But as soon as she found Max, Holly became a sidekick. Now, it was Max who understood the world of Henry’s memories, and it’s Max who knows what to do. Holly’s just along for the ride.
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Worst of all is the moment that Max abandons Holly to reenter the real world. Leaving aside the ridiculous moment in which Max, who heretofore had been telling Holly that they would escape Camazotz together, now tells Holly that she must go alone, the entire scene subordinates Holly to Max while acting like its the younger girl’s big moment. Max tells Holly that she cannot follow, that the escape signaled by “Running Up That Hill” is for Max alone. To encourage the younger child, Max explains that Holly has to find her own point of connection to the real world, and that she can do it no matter what anyone else says.
Although Max’s words make it sound like the moment is all about Holly, the filmmaking is all about Max. She’s the one on the camera, her performer Sadie Sink gets all of the lines, and, ultimately, Max is the only one with agency. After Holly leaves, supposedly to find her own way as her own person, the show effectively ignores her focus entirely on Lucas protecting Max’s body, Max returning to her body, and then a tearful reunion between Max and whichever character she meets. Holly is just is a footnote.
The Kids Aren’t Alright
In the final moments of episode seven, the last part of volume 2, Holly and the other kidnapped children sit around a table and join hands. Despite her attempts to resist, Mr. Whatsit has overcome them and now, he allows a sinister smile as the children’s eyes go white and they throwback their heads.
This scene will go directly into the Stranger Things finale, which is good news for fans of Holly and Derek. Even though Dustin talks a big game about blowing up the Upside Down, and even though Erica’s stuck with Mr. Clarke for some reason, at least some of the younger kids have something to do in the two-hour-plus last episode. If the finale has some good moments featuring the next generation, then Stranger Things might end on a high note, in the same way it began. But if it doesn’t and if the older characters get the spotlight again, then it will be just one more disappointment in a series that has lost its way.