‘Stranger Things: Tales from ’85’: Concluding Commentary

After several painful encounters with “snow sharks” and “Jerk-O-Lanterns,” Stranger Things: Tales from ’85 it ends with a decisive victory over the monsters of the Upside Down – or so Hawkins’ team thinks. It is because Legends from ’85 leaves the door open for more tales, which would take place before the start of Stranger Things Season 3.

From the possible Season 2 to the truth about monsters and the fate of Nikki (Odessa A’zion), here’s what you need to know about the ending Stranger Things: Tales from ’85.

Who created the Queen Stranger Things: Tales from ’85?

Legends from ’85‘s biggest enemies are not the same Stranger Things‘ Demogorgons or Mind Flayer. They are constantly changing, and it is all due to human experimentation.

Dustin (voiced by Braxton Quinney) initially accuses substitute science teacher Anna Baxter (voiced by Janeane Garofalo) of creating the monsters, including the controlling Queen. Evidence adds: He is a science teacher who is passionate about evolution, and is working on cutting-edge research that can revive dead plants. Furthermore, the sight of the radio tower in his house matches the image that human victims remember seeing after being swallowed.

However, Anna was just a red herring. The real culprit is his partner Daniel Fischer (voiced by Lou Diamond Phillips). Before she was a store clerk talking to Dustin about change, she was a scientist in the Hawkins lab. Although he didn’t have high-level approval, he got his hands on a dead vine from the Upside Down. He brought it back to life using the same green goo that Anna used in her experiments, and from then on it transformed into the deadly monsters that Hawkins’ team faced. He thought he had made a functional, controllable and flowery sample of “Queen.” But it turned out that his roots were growing below Hawkins, increasing his influence and his descendants. When Dustin reveals the truth to Dan, the Queen transforms into a giant, almost unstoppable monster that tries to open the gate back to the Upside Down and back to her place.

I say “almost” because Eleven (voiced by Brooklyn’s Davey Norstedt) managed to stop the Queen by teleporting the gate to her, cutting it in half. Not before the monster eats Dan, though.

End of that saga, right? It’s wrong.

Stranger Things: Tales from ’85 sets up Season 2.

Credit: Netflix

The last scene of the Legends from ’85 reveals that we may not have seen the last of this new breed of Upside Down beastie. Just before the credits roll, we see the Queen’s body lying face up. While he’s dead, something inside him is missing: A small blue flower bursts from his skin, releasing a square from its Demogorgon-like mouth. Funny thing is, the whole scene is set to Vera Lynn’s “We’ll Meet Again,” which is also impressive. Stranger Things A sequel to season 3 featuring a growing army of Mind Flayer humans.

Could this new flower be connected to the source of Dan’s life, as he was swallowed by the Queen and may have been in her corpse? Or is it another stage of evolution of these creatures? Either way, it’s clear that these monsters last a long time. However, because they are not dangerous Stranger Things Season 3, and any future seasons, for that matter, you can guess will end eventually. Legends from ’85 leaves the “path” of that open for the future. (Perhaps Vecna ​​is a weed killer?)

What happened to Nikki in Stranger Things: Tales from ’85?

Credit: Netflix

Speaking of characters that have never appeared in this entire series Stranger Thingslet’s talk about Nikki. He is the latest addition to the Hawkins party, now known as the Hawkins Investigation Club Legends from ’85. (Also, it’s not something from the flagship series.)

Since Nikki is not involved in the later seasons of Stranger Thingsit is clear that he is out of the picture by Season 3. However, Legends from ’85 keeps him strong in the middle picture at its end. While Nikki and her mother Anna were originally going to move out of Hawkins, they ended up staying and moving into a new house, with no private labs. (That we know, anyway.) Nikki joins the team Pits & Dragons game, and everything seems hunky-dory.

Of course, that will definitely go down in any future seasons of Legends from ’85since Nikki has to go out in the end. Maybe he and Anna will eventually leave. Or maybe you’ll join Barb, Bob, Alexei, and Eddie in the ranks of the beloved Stranger Things killed characters. For now, though, he’s embracing his role on the team after years of dreading long-term connections.

Will there be a Stranger Things: Tales from ’85 Season 2?

Netflix has confirmed that Stranger Things: Tales from ’85 will return for a second season this season. The exact date has not been confirmed.

Stranger Things: Tales from ’85 now streaming on Netflix.

Update: April 29, 2026, 1:57 pm EDT This article has been updated to include new information about “Stranger Things: Tales from the ’85 revival”.