We Need To Talk About Stranger Things' Finale Epilogue For Dustin And Max, Because There's No Freaking Way

Sadie Sink as Max and Gaten Matarazzo as Dustin in Stranger Things 5
(Image credit: Netflix)

SPOILERS are ahead for the Stranger Things series finale, now streaming with a Netflix subscription.

I don’t know about you, but I’m not getting over the beautiful finale of Stranger Things, which was among streaming options over New Year’s Eve, anytime soon. After everything these Hawkins kids went through across nearly a decade of television, it was very satisfying to see them graduate from Hawkins High (aside from Eleven, whose fate was left ambiguous by the creators) and play one more game of Dungeons & Dragons together in Mike’s basement before starting their adult lives. However, there are two members of the gang who have somewhat unbelievable fates now that I think about it.

Gaten Matarazzo's Dustin doing his Valedictorian speech in Stranger Things series finale

(Image credit: Netflix)

One Detail In Dustin’s Hawkins High History Puts A Dent In His Valedictorian Status

Dustin Henderson having the honor of delivering the valedictorian speech to the class of 1989 was special, and it isn’t surprising in and of itself considering how smart the character is, and how he turned out to be the one to figure out how the Upside Down works. However, remember when Dustin’s GF Suzie straight-up changed his Latin grade manually? If the administration knew about that, he probably wouldn’t have been elected to the position, and may have even had to skip out on graduation!

On Twitter user also dug up a screenshot of Dustin’s grades from that scene, and he also had three B’s (along with three A’s) that semester of school. Those are good grades, but not exactly enough to make him the No. 1 in the entire school, right? Then again, the whole town was going through some crazy things with the Upside Down being open, so maybe Dustin just tracked better than everyone else? Or, they found out he practically saved the world and gave him the honor for it. Either way, he’s the perfect choice for what happened during the speech.

However, he’s not the only Stranger Things character we’re questioning in the graduation scene, either.

Sadie Sink's Max watching Dustin's speech at graduation during Stranger Things series finale

(Image credit: Netflix)

And, How The Heck Did Max Graduate On Time?

Then there’s the subject of Max graduating on time. You know, the character who was literally in a coma for nearly two years? How the heck did she catch up and graduate on time? It’s definitely possible if she worked her butt off, and hey, maybe she did so she could get out of Hawkins with her classmates after “Running Up That Hill” from Vecna. As one fan hilariously wrote:

Sadie Sink recently talked about how school worked on the Stranger Things set, and it definitely wasn’t your typical hours for a high schooler, so perhaps the creators thought it could happen for Max? However, if we're judging based on the average high school experience, I have a hard time believing she would have walked with her friends.

This wasn't your average high school experience, though. And obviously, these are technicalities we're discussing here. Overall, I loved seeing them all get to graduate, regardless of it not completely making sense.

Sarah El-Mahmoud
Staff Writer

Sarah El-Mahmoud has been with CinemaBlend since 2018 after graduating from Cal State Fullerton with a degree in Journalism. In college, she was the Managing Editor of the award-winning college paper, The Daily Titan, where she specialized in writing/editing long-form features, profiles and arts & entertainment coverage, including her first run-in with movie reporting, with a phone interview with Guillermo del Toro for Best Picture winner, The Shape of Water. Now she's into covering YA television and movies, and plenty of horror. Word webslinger. All her writing should be read in Sarah Connor’s Terminator 2 voice over.

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