How Max Really Escaped Vecna (It Wasn't Just The Music)
This article contains spoilers for Stranger Things season 4, volume 1.
Max’s escape from Vecna in the extraordinary climax of Stranger Things season 4, episode 4, “Dear Billy,” was not just due to the music of her favorite song, “Running Up That Hill” by Kate Bush. Since arriving in Stranger Things season 2, Max Mayfield (Sadie Sink) has become an increasingly intrinsic part of the story. Despite some false starts with Mike Wheeler (Finn Wolfhard) and Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown), by the time Stranger Things season 3 arrived, she had become a core part of the group and became the girlfriend of Lucas Sinclair (Caleb McLaughlin).
These friendships were further tested by relationship angst, Soviet infiltration of Hawkins' Starcourt Mall, and the Mind Flayer’s attempts at world domination. This culminated in the death of Max’s stepbrother Billy Hargrove (Dacre Montgomery), who, despite having a fractious relationship with Max, laid down his life to save her and Eleven. The guilt associated with this and her failure to do more than just watch as the Mind Flayer killed Billy, weighed heavily upon Max and caused her to break up with Lucas and distance herself from her other friends.
Related: How Is Vecna Connected To The Mind Flayer?
It was these feelings of guilt and trauma that Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower) preyed upon in Stranger Things season 4. In fact, Max was on the verge of being killed by him when her friends played her favorite song, Kate Bush's “Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God)” and this appeared to be the thing that saved her. However, within the red smoke of Vecna’s Mind Lair, it wasn't the song itself that saved her, but the memories it conjured up. What broke through to Max was the happy, loving memories of
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