Netflix has offered a glimpse at the explosive fourth series of Stranger Things with the release of its first trailer.

The three-minute teaser picks up six months after the Battle of Starcourt as the young cast struggles to return to normal life.

The hit science-fiction drama will make its highly-anticipated return to screens in two volumes, the first arriving on May 27 before a second batch of episodes premieres on July 1.

In the new series the friends are separated for the first time, and navigating the complexities of high school has not made things any easier.

In the teaser video, Max Mayfield is seen sitting at the grave of her step-brother Billy Hargrove, telling him: “Dear Billy, I don’t know if you can even hear this. Ever since you left, everything’s been a total disaster.

“For a while we tried to be happy. Normal. But it’s impossible.”

Other popular characters also feature in the clip, including Eleven, Mike Wheeler and Will Byers, who can be seen trying to lead their teenage lives at school and hanging out at roller discos.

Finn Wolfhard as Mike Wheeler, Caleb McLaughlin as Lucas Sinclair and Gaten Matarazzo as Dustin Henderson return for the fourth series (Netflix/PA) 

Fellow Hawkins residents Dustin Henderson, Lucas Sinclair, Nancy Wheeler, Steve Harrison, Jonathan Byers and Joyce Byers also make an appearance during the clip, confirming their return for the next series.

However, in true Stranger Things fashion, all is not well as Jim Hopper is seen being held in what appears to be a Russian prison camp.

Eleven, played by Millie Bobby Brown, admits: “I don’t have my powers”, as a man replies: “I don’t know how to say this other than just to say it. Without you, we cannot win this war”.

The teaser video also features a sinister voice saying: “You have broken everything. Your suffering is almost at an end.”

Viewers are later offered their first look at what reports have suggested is the ruler of the Upside Down (Netflix/PA)

Viewers are later offered their first look at what reports have suggested is the ruler of the Upside Down, a menacing-looking tentacled creature who floats in the air.

The show has teased that “in this most vulnerable time, a new and horrifying supernatural threat surfaces, presenting a gruesome mystery that, if solved, might finally put an end to the horrors of the Upside Down”.

A rapid series of clips featuring explosions, a dramatic plane ride and monsters builds the anticipation of the drama to come as the words “This summer every ending has a beginning” flash on the screen.

Season four of Stranger Things has been highly anticipated by fans after it was delayed for over a year due to the pandemic.

The streaming giant previously confirmed the show will end after its fifth season.