I will review what we have learned about the formation, properties, evolution and death of the first stars, embedding the problem into its proper cosmological context. This is a good time to reflect on where we are, just ahead of the JWST launch, and of the imminent arrival of a suite of next-generation observational facilities. How can we test our emerging theoretical picture with observations both in-situ, at high redshifts, and in our local cosmic neighborhood?