First impressions of Euphoria: Season 1
“Better late than never,” I think, as I waver between joining the fandom of the HBO series or defeating peer pressure and the tempting excerpts of the series I involuntarily stumbled on in my Tik Tok feed.
But how could I ever refuse anything that stars Zendaya?
The Emmy-winning actress plays the series’ protagonist and narrator, Rue. Rue grants us access to the world of Euphoria: a domain of hormone-raging teenagers featuring sex, violence, and drugs.
The series has mushroomed controversy amongst its audience. For what reason, though?
I’ll admit that I braced myself for the worst. I hurdled up with a weighted blanket and kept my palms in proximity in case I needed to block my view momentarily. I even considered not wearing my glasses to skip the minutiae of super graphic scenes. Yet, I soon realized that the most disheartening facet of Euphoria wasn’t visual, but verbal.
“And then, it happens,” starts one of Rue’s many short monologues as the narrator of the series. “That moment when your breath starts to slow. And every time you breathe, you breathe out all the oxygen you have. And everything stops: your heart, your lungs, then, finally, your brain. And everything you feel, wish, and want to forget, it all just sinks. And then suddenly… you give it air again, give it life again.”
This descriptive language is much more adept at describing the inner world of an addict, creating poignant images, and exacting lasting impressions of the struggles of a teenager. These and more of Rue’s words “sink” in me as well, and I think over them even when the episode is over.
That said, the culprit of Euphoria’s controversial reputation is not enigmatic. Excessive nudity, intercourse, and drug use take the scenes by storm, but we must remember that it is a drama series, and everything will be heightened.
The series extrapolates meaningful domains that teenagers may struggle in, such as sexuality, confidence, purpose, friendship, and family. Imbued in every one of its unique and flawed characters, Euphoria creates a safe space between itself and the audience, where nothing is taboo, and no one is alone, even during their darkest moments.
Would I binge-watch the series? Probably not.
As Alexa Demie said in an interview with BUILD Series two years ago, every episode feels like filming a movie, and I also feel like I have watched a short film when each episode ends. I attribute this feeling to the impressive visuals and montage of each episode and the excellent character development that occurs in each one. My curiosity, compassion, love, and agitation for the characters are saturated and put away for next week’s episode.
After all, isn’t this the traditional 7-day-span that episodes are released?
Euphoria isn’t too much. It’s just enough. But if you get easily scared like I do, keep a blanket close to you.