It’s been nearly three years since Stranger Things 3 was released in July 2019. Considering the events of the last few years, no one could blame fans for forgetting what happened. Here’s a character-by-character Stranger Things 3 recap for those who need it.

Mike

Hopper told Mike to stay away from El, breaking them up. Despite that, Mike helped her track a possessed Billy, and eventually admitted to El he loved her, helped her save Hawkins, and then said goodbye when she left town with the Byers clan after Hopper’s disappearance.

Lucas

Lucas and Max's relationship was up and down, but they ultimately kept it together as the glue of the team tracking Billy's strange behavior. He helped devise a plan to trap Billy and worked with Will to realize the Mind Flayer's goal was to possess all of Hawkins.

Will

Will’s connection to the Mind Flayer proved crucial in uncovering Billy’s possession and beating the monster. However, this was his third near-miss with the Upside Down, and his mom, Joyve, decides to leave Hawkins for their safety.

Max

Lucas’ GF and El’s bestie, Max, had a rough go of it when her brother Billy turned out to be possessed by the Mind Flayer. Though she stuck by her friends and helped save Hawkins, she was the one most emotionally hurt by the events of Season 3.

Dustin

After going away to camp and getting a girlfriend, Dustin set up a radio control to communicate with her, only to intercept Russian transmissions leading to the Starcourt Mall. He teamed with Steve, Erica, and Robin to uncover a Russian base hidden under the shopping mecca.

Erica

Lucas’ little sister came into her own in Season 3, helping Dustin, scamming Steve, and generally being a pint-sized badass. She was crucial in uncovering the Russian base beneath the mall and helped rescue Steve and Robin from being tortured.

Steve

His job at Starcourt Mall’s Scoops Ahoy ice cream shop was the perfect way for Steve to help Dustin track Russian communications under the mall. He and Robin led the group in infiltrating the base, then got captured together, ultimately becoming besties for the restie.

Robin

Steve's new coworker Robin didn't believe he'd saved Hawkins multiple times until Dustin proved there was a Russian base under the mall. Once she was in, she was all in, and luckily she could translate Russian too. After she came out to Steve, they became BFFs for life.

Nancy

Nancy’s internship at The Hawkins Post was riddled with harassment. Still, her decision to investigate Mrs. Driscoll’s exploding rats with Jonathan revealed the Mind Flayer’s possession extended beyond Billy, a key clue they brought to El’s team just in time.

Jonathan

Nancy’s boyfriend and investigative partner played backup during the Driscoll investigation and protector of his little brother when Will helped El find the Mind Flayer. Sadly, their relationship is now long-distance as left Hawkins with the rest of his fam.

Murray

Season 2’s conspiracy theorist and matchmaker helped Joyce and Hopper get together while gathering clues that someone reopened the Upside Down in Hawkins. His doomed friendship with Alexei was vital in linking the Russian infiltration with the return of the Mind Flayer.

Joyce

After spending all season tracing the reopening of the Upside Down, Joyce and Hopper admitted their feelings for each other just before he sacrificed himself to close the Upside Down. Grieving and exhausted, she packed up her kids and El and took them away from Hawkins.

Hopper

After struggling to be a good dad to El and falling in love with Joyce, Hopper got a hero’s ending by closing the Upside Down at the cost of his own life. But it turned out, he’s still alive! The Upside Down merely spat him out in Russia.

Eleven

When the Mind Flayer and the Russians converged, Eleven sent the Mind Flayer packing while Hopper closed the Upside Down. After Hopper was presumed gone for good, Joyce took the orphaned El with them when the Byers fam left Hawkins.

Stranger Things Seasons 1 through 3 are streaming on Netflix. Stranger Things Season 4 Part 1 debuts on May 27 and Part 2 debuts on July 1, 2022.