‘Stranger Things: Tales From ’85’ Rotten Tomatoes Score Revealed & It Seems Fans Are Not Happy

The animated spin-off Stranger Things: Tales from ’85 has officially landed on Netflix, and now we know how both critics and fans feel about it. The series dropped on April 23, and early reactions show a pretty mixed response.

On Rotten Tomatoes, the show currently holds a 67% critics score, while the audience score sits lower at 51% based on early fan ratings. That gap already tells the story — critics are split, and fans seem even more unsure.

Critics had a lot to say, and the opinions are all over the place. Chase Hutchinson from the Seattle Times didn’t hold back, calling it a “Rotten” entry and saying “it’s an experience that, even with some playfulness, is so narratively boxed in and stuck looking back that it proves to be a largely dull drag.”

On the other side, Tara Bennett from IGN gave it a more balanced take with a 6/10, writing “Stranger Things: Tales From ’85 is a colorful but underbaked addition to the Stranger Things universe.”

Brian VanHooker from Polygon leaned more positive, saying “it did make me remember what I love about these characters, which, to be honest, was something I’d kind of forgotten.”

But not everyone was convinced. Ben Travers of IndieWire graded it a C and wrote “the animated series aims to be an addendum when it needs to be an adventure.” Angie Han from The Hollywood Reporter echoed a similar feeling, calling it “a diet version” of the original, while Alison Herman from Variety described it as “nostalgia for nostalgia, a recursive loop with a predictably diminished impact.”

Still, there were brighter takes. Robert Lloyd from the Los Angeles Times said “it feels at once familiar and fresh,” and Jack Seale from The Guardian noted “it would be cool to be stuck in 1985 in Hawkins indefinitely.”

Fan reactions tell a slightly different story, and they’re much more emotional. Some viewers enjoyed the return to Hawkins and the lighter animated style. One user said “Stranger Things Tales from 85 is a fun ride… Something for the whole family with all kinds of jump scares.” Another fan praised the vibe, writing “I love the monsters. I love everything and like scary parts of the series.”

But a lot of fans were disappointed. Some felt the show didn’t stay true to the characters or tone of the original. One review called it “Obvious cash grab… The mischaracterization is insane. The dialogue is cheesy and annoying.” Another viewer simply said “Dumb show… A waste of time.”

There were also specific complaints about how characters were handled, especially Will, with one fan writing “this really pissed me off, come on…what was this.”

Overall, the reaction to Tales from ’85 feels split right down the middle. Some people enjoy the nostalgic return and animated twist, while others think it plays things too safe and doesn’t bring anything new. Whether it grows on audiences or fades out will likely depend on how future seasons evolve from here.

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