Okay, listen, we’re just going to preface this by saying that our hopes that Eddie Munson will be alive in Stranger Things 5 are high, but our belief that he actually will return is low. Still, when life gives you a Stranger Things 5 episode title with a giant bat god in it, one associated with death and sacrifice, you just have to make some space for yourself to believe that Eddie Munson could come back. And that’s not the only potential clue that Eddie Munson could still be alive hidden in the full list of Stranger Things 5‘s episode titles.
You could call it wishful thinking—we’ll call it manifesting. Here are the clues (that we very much want to believe are real) hidden in Stranger Things 5‘s episode titles that signal Eddie Munson is not dead after all.
Stranger Things 5, Episode 6 Invokes Camazotz, a Bat God, and Eddie Munson Is Associated with Bats
Stranger Things 5, episode 6, revealed a title that immediately caught our eye and made us think of Eddie Munson. Episode 6 of Stranger Things‘ final season has the title of “Escape from Camazotz.” But what is Camazotz? Well, Camazotz is actually a bat god from Mayan mythology. Camazotz means “death bat” in the K’iche language, and the god has associations with death and the “domain of Twilight.” Mexic-Arte Museum shares that this bat god likely came to exist because “Bats would inhabit the subterranean caves around the Sacred Cenotes, or sinkholes of water, which the Mesoamericans believed were portals to the underworld. It would be a very chilling sight at dusk when the bats would swarm out of these ‘portals’ and begin drinking the blood of the other animals.”
Portals to the underworld, you say? That sounds an awful lot like how the Upside Down operates to us… And who is associated with death, the Upside Down, and bats? Why, it’s Eddie Munson. Eddie, of course, sadly died in the Upside Down, swarmed by demobats. In addition to this, he had bats tattooed on his arm long before he ever heard of Vecna and the rest. We’re not saying this Stranger Things 5 episode title must refer to Eddie Munson being alive; we’re just saying it would be a shame for it not to. If a bat god of death has entered the scene, it feels unfair to tie it to anyone else when Eddie Muson already has strong symbolical associations with the creature.
We’d love to see bat-Eddie swarm out of a portal… and begin drinking the blood of other animals. (If he must.) Camazotz is also the god of sacrifice, and who has sacrificed more than Eddie Munson?
Eddie Munson, Kas the Bloody-Handed, and Camazotz
In myth, Camazotz sometimes drank the blood of his enemies—making him a Mesoamerican vampire. Interestingly enough, fans have theorized that Eddie Munson could return to life as a vampire on Stranger Things since the moment of his death. In these theories, fans look specifically to the Dungeons & Dragons tale of Kas the Bloody-Handed. Incredibly, Kas is a warrior who fought against Vecna in the lore, lost, and was resurrected by him as a vampire. Kas’ story isn’t one-to-one with Eddie Munson’s, but it sure does feel like a way the creators could go if they wanted to bring Eddie Munson back to our screens on Stranger Things. With Stranger Things 5‘s episode titles invoking bats, vampires, and death gods, we feel Eddie Munson must be involved.
Eddie Munson Was a Sorcerer in Stranger Things Puzzle Tales
Moving on from bats, we come to the title of Stranger Things 5, episode 4, “Sorcerer.” The Party loves a good game of D&D—and if you’ve seen Stranger Things or ever played Dungeons & Dragons yourself, then you know picking the class of your character is a major part of the fun. Some Stranger Things characters have official D&D classes assigned to them by the series, while others have associated themselves more spiritually. But we have yet to see a sorcerer on Stranger Things… Or have we?
Interestingly enough, Eddie Munson was very recently labeled as a Sorcerer in the tie-in Stranger Things game, Stranger Things Puzzle Tales. While the events of this game are by no means canon, it sure is interesting that Eddie Munson is the only sorcerer we’ve ever seen pop up on anything associated with Stranger Things. And Eddie’s Sorcerer connection came to life at the same times as the release of Stranger Things 5‘s episode titles—that’s a little suspicious. If Stranger Things 5 wanted to introduce an important sorcerer, wouldn’t they keep a bit more of an eye on who else holds this title? We’re taking this to mean that Eddie Munson is absolutely alive in Stranger Things 5. If he’s not a bat god, he can be a sorcerer instead.
Episode 1 of Stranger Things 5 Matches Lyrics From the Song Eddie Munson Played in the Upside Down, “Master of Puppets”
This “Eddie could return” Stranger Things 5 episode title clue is a little thin, but it has been shared before, so we’ll give it some space. As we previously learned, the first episode of Stranger Things 5 will be called “The Crawl.” Meanwhile, “Master of Puppets,” the Metallica song that Eddie Munson plays in the Upside Down before his demobat death, features the following lyrics: “Come crawling faster (faster) / Obey your master (master) / Your life burns faster (faster) / Obey your master, master.” If Vecna has indeed brought Eddie Munson back to life by as a demobat vampire, then he might be living out the prophecy of his own music. Now, he’s the one crawling toward Vecna, who is the Master of Puppets.
“The Crawl” and “Come Crawling,” again are not perfect analogs, and yet, the connection is there. We’d like to think it’s a sign that Eddie’s Kas/Vampire storyline could come to pass, and we’ll see him again in Stranger Things 5.
Stranger Things 5, Episode 8, “The Rightside Up,” Could Reveal Heaven
This last Stranger Things 5 episode title clue isn’t necessarily about Eddie Munson specifically, but it does give us hope that we could see him return, if not alive, then at least present, in the final season of the show. The final episode of the final season of Stranger Things is called “The Rightside Up.” At Nerdist, we’re speculating that the Rightside Up could be another realm that parallels Hawkins, just like the Upside Down does. But instead of a realm of despair and anguish, it’s one of hope and life. And if the Rightside Up is a kind of heaven, then it had better include the afterlife of one Eddie Munson. We’d prefer, of course, to see Eddie alive in Stranger Things 5, but we’ll take him however we can get him.
Could Eddie Munson Be Alive in Stranger Things 5?
Ultimately, we don’t want Eddie as a bat god, an evil sorcerer, or a shade in the afterlife. We just want Eddie Munson to be alive in Stranger Things 5. (No puppet strings attached.) But as we just said, any Eddie is an Eddie we’ll welcome. Ultimately, it’s too soon to know if these episode title clues are wishful or meaningful when it comes to Eddie Munson’s return to Stranger Things. But it sure can’t hurt to think about it. Eddie Munson, we’re hoping that 1987 can be your year. We’ll sign off as we always do, bring back, Eddie Munson, you cowards!
