Rumors of the first six episode titles for Stranger Things 5 have dropped. Here they are.
1. The Crawl, by the Duffer Brothers
2. The Vanishing of ___ Wheeler, by the Duffer Brothers
3. The Turbow Trap, by Frank Darabont
4. Sorcerer, by the Duffer Brothers
5. Shock Jock, by Frank Darabont
6. Escape From Camazotz, by Shawn Levy
7. ?
8. ?
Speculations that grabbed my attention:
We’ve known the title of episode 1 for some time (since November 2022) and there’s been more than enough speculation about it.
Regarding episode 2, The Vanishing of ___ Wheeler, it copies the title of the season-1 premiere, “The Vanishing of Will Byers”. There have been photos of Karen Wheeler doing shots at the hospital set, so maybe it refers to her. There’s also a new actress playing Holly Wheeler: Nell Fisher, who starred in the film “Evil Dead Rise”; so maybe she will be the one to disappear. I hope, however, that it’s either Nancy or (even better) Mike, one of the lead Wheeler characters, but I rather doubt the Duffers will have the balls to raise the stakes that high. My bet is on Holly.
Regarding episodes 3 and 5, The Turbow Trap, and Shock Jock, each is directed by Frank Darabont who did The Shawshank Redemption. Talk about a coup. A turbow trap involves enhancing sound systems, which could have something to do with WSQK radio station (the set piece leaked in various photos). A shock jock is an offensive radio DJ, and so again, this would point to WSQK radio station. I’m looking forward to a vulgar-mouthed DJ. Two candidates who come to mind are Dustin Henderson and Murray Bauman.
Episode 4 is called Sorcerer. Since episodes 3 and 5 have the common director and common radio station theme, they were probably shot back to back, and “Sorcerer” in between may focus on another character or characters entirely. If Vecna is the sorcerer referred to, then the episode may focus exclusively on Max’s consciousness that is trapped in Vecna’s mindscape. (That’s exactly what I did with my chapter 4 of Stranger Things 5: It’s called “The Eternal Nightmare of Max Mayfield”, and it’s all her and Vecna.) On the other hand, if Will Byers is the sorcerer referred to, then we might see a confrontation between Will and the entity that has been on his back, if not inside him, for so long.
Episode 6, Escape From Camazotz, is the one directed by Shawn Levy. In the previous seasons he has always directed episodes 3 and 4, and made the 4th episode particularly intense. In season 1, it was Joyce screaming at Will through her living room wall, when she saw him trapped and crying for help in the Upside Down; in season 2, it was Will’s possession scenes and Eleven’s telekinetic tantrum in Hopper’s cabin; in season 3, it was the sauna battle between El and Billy; and in season 4, it was his crown-jewel episode “Dear Billy”, in which Max barely escapes Vecna’s mind on the wings of Kate Bush’s song.
In season 5 Levy is doing only one episode due to his current work on Deadpool & Wolverine, and it’s safe to assume it’s going to be great. The title Escape From Camazotz could hint at some next-level shit. Camazotz is a planet in the classic book A Wrinkle in Time — the planet controlled by a hivemind (the dark entity IT). However, Camazotz is also a Mayan god known as the “death bat”, and is associated with death and sacrifice; the Camazotz ritual often involves sacrificing peoples’ hearts. I’m a bit worried that “escape” from Camazotz might involve the resurrection of Eddie Munson who was killed by the demo-bats in season 4. If the Duffers pull a back-from-the-dead maneuver like this, I’m going to be pissed. Otherwise the episode sounds very promising.
The Busybody 