Joyce Byers (played by Winona Ryder) has always been the emotional backbone of the series. While other characters evolved into fan-favorites, Joyce has carried the burdens of loss, fear, and resilience since Season 1. You might think Joyce may seem quieter in Season 5, but the finale instead brings her journey full circle, placing her at the heart of Hawkins once more and letting her have her moment as a character.
SPOILER WARNING: This feature covers content involving MAJOR spoilers for the Stranger Things Season 5 finale. Continue with caution.
What has Joyce been doing in Stranger Things Season 5?
From Season 1 to Season 3, Joyce had played a huge part in the series. As the catalyst in pushing for the investigation of Will Byers’ disappearance and rescuing him, to helping Will break his connection from the Mind Flayer. Joyce has also spearheaded the retrieval operation to bring back Hopper from an underground Russian base. Since then, however, Joyce’s role has slowly faded into the background.
Following Season 5 Part 1, we see Joyce becoming more of a side character, trying to protect Will in Hawkins while the rest of the team does “crawls,” which are missions to look for Vecna and finally kill him in the Upside Down. Eventually, in Season 5 Part 2, Joyce later begins to trust Will more and supports him to go back into Vecna’s mind to take him down.
Mainly, we see other characters have their shining moments in battles with the military and against the Upside Down’s creatures and environment. But by the end, Joyce has a defining role that closes her story.
Joyce’s Big Moment in the Stranger Things Season 5 Finale
In the final fight, the Hawkins gang has banded together to attack the Mind Flayer’s weak points, also helping to weaken Vecna / Henry. At the same time, Eleven is confronting Vecna / Henry within the Mind Flayer in an all-out psychic battle.
It looks as if Henry is about to overpower Eleven and gain the upper hand when Will’s manifested mind powers stop Vecna / Henry in his tracks. This distracts both Vecna / Henry and the Mind Flayer, giving Eleven enough time to drive a Mind Flayer spire through Vecna / Henry’s body, seemingly killing him.
With Vecna / Henry subdued and the Mind Flayer rendered dead, the entire team rescues Holly and the kidnapped children. All seems well until the gang hears the weak voice of Vecna / Henry, who is still alive yet very weak at this point.
Joyce notices and approaches Vecna / Henry with the rest of the team, looking back on how much pain and suffering he has caused them and Hawkins as a whole. Joyce finally lifts her axe and says the final words to him, “You fucked with the wrong family!” and lands several blows to Vecna / Henry’s neck, decapitating him and ending his reign of terror.
Why does Joyce ultimately kill Vecna?
Joyce deserved to have the final blow against Vecna. As mentioned earlier, Joyce took the initiative on a lot of things in previous seasons. It was her taking action on Will’s disappearance that started everything, and it feels right that she would be the one to end it, too.
More than any other character, Joyce has lived with trauma longer than almost anyone else in the show. She lost Bob, nearly lost Will multiple times, and endured years of being dismissed as hysterical.
Joyce also kills Vecna not only as an act of vengeance, but also as an act of closure. You see Joyce confronting the embodiment of everything that’s haunted her since Season 1 and refusing to let it all define her future. That moment possibly shows how Joyce reclaims control over her life and family, and protects both in one final time.
What Happens to Joyce at the End of Stranger Things?
By the end of the finale episode, we get a glimpse of how each character turns out, including Joyce. 18 months since the final battle, it’s graduation day for Will and the rest of his friends, and he’s seen at home with Joyce, Jonathan, and Hopper, taking a photo before heading to Hawkins High School for the graduation ceremony.
Later on, we find Joyce and Hopper finally having their date at Enzo’s. In the midst of Hopper’s awkward attempts at ordering food, he and Joyce talk about possibly moving to Montauk, New York (an easter egg to Stranger Things’ original setting). Here, it’s revealed that Hopper has a job waiting for him as chief of police.
Hopper then cues some musicians playing in the restaurant and proposes to Joyce. The scene concludes with the happy couple dancing, indicating a bright and peaceful future for Joyce (and Hopper).
