This article contains spoilers for the first and second seasons of HBO’s “Euphoria”.
“Euphoria”’s season two ended on February 27th, and it was a roller coaster of emotions. But besides the massive success and amazing performances, we cannot forget Kat’s disappearance in the series’ new year and how bad it was for her unforgettable storyline.
Why is Kat’s story a masterpiece in “Euphoria”?
Even though she is a supporting character in the storyline that focuses on Rue, Kat’s plot in season one was extremely complex and genius for several reasons. The first one is the ability to portray the feelings of being a teenager with such honesty. The fantasies, curiosities, insecurities, and the scars bullying leaves on each person. These are just some issues that Kat deals with.
You may think that Kat’s story is something distant from reality, but it’s quite the opposite. A good example of it is the fanfics she writes and the moments she spends fantasizing in her mind. For real, who hasn’t had fantasies too?
It was dealing with the fantasies and the sexual discovery without fear that “Euphoria” consecrated Kat. There is no need to have an ultimatum about the character’s decision to be a cam girl being right or wrong because this is the reason why the series is spectacular: even though the audience judges the attitudes as correct or incorrect, these actions and people still exist in the world.
As a society, we have years and years of experience showing us that hiding certain groups of people does not improve any situation. The same goes for the cam girls, pretending they don’t exist is not an option. Watching the portrayal of one on television encourages us to practice the exercise of empathy and to be less judgmental of the ones around us.
Society can no longer hide subjects like this from anyone, especially young people who are in a stage of life when everyone goes through countless discoveries. “Euphoria” creates opportunities to talk about important issues by exposing them in its episodes, creating a strong reflective environment
Kat’s decline in the second season
With the conclusion of the first season, “Euphoria” fans were expecting nothing less than a sequel to Kat’s thought-provoking plot. But what they did receive was the transformation of the character into practically an extra. Almost all of Barbie Ferreira‘s chances to shine were reduced.
The only saving moment is the brilliant scene where toxic positivity is discussed through Ferreira’s character. “Euphoria” began a conversation about the relationship we have with our bodies and how social media can be a negative influence on this topic, reinforcing the idea that it is better to be honest with yourself when you don’t feel well than to create an illusion that we love ourselves all the time.
But the impression it gives is that “Euphoria”’s creator Sam Levinson made one good scene just so no one can say that Kat completely disappeared during the season. In any case, it is impossible to deny that Barbie Ferreira’s character has moved from being our beloved Kat to becoming only Maddy’s supportive friend.
The number of Ferreira’s scenes has decreased brutally. The few that remained showed a lackluster Kat, with lines that sound like a completely different character from the one we met in the first season. The girl who made up ridiculous lies to break up with Ethan in the second season completely contradicts the powerful young woman we met in the first round of episodes.
Even though, according to Ferreira in an interview to The Cut: “Kat’s journey this season is a little more internal and a little mysterious to the audience”. But an internal journey still does not explain the reduction of scenes. All the characters in “Euphoria” carry internal journeys from the first minute of the series and still had numerous scenes.
“Euphoria” fans are quite right to be frustrated with Barbie Ferreira’s character situation, and seeing a greater prominence of her in the third season is a wish of every fan. As Kat once said in season one: “There is nothing more powerful than a fat girl who doesn’t give a f***”. We definitely need that girl back.
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The article above was written by Giovanna Ragano and edited by Milena Casaca. Liked this type of content? Check out Her Campus Casper Libero for more!