Warning: “Euphoria” Season Two Spoilers
Up until two weeks ago, I was pretty sure I was one of the five people at Penn State who had never seen an episode of “Euphoria” before. Every Sunday for the past eight weeks, all of my friends would have their phones on off between 9 p.m. and 11 p.m. so they could watch the latest episode without fear of interruption.
At first, I was confused as to how the show could possibly be spoiled for them that easily, and then my TikTok “For You Page” turned into a “Euphoria” shrine filled with clips straight from the show. You would think after that, I would be kind of curious to see what all of the fuss was about, but I never caved until recently.
My friend asked me if I wanted to come over and watch the latest episode of “Euphoria” and I hadn’t seen them in a while, so I agreed. What I didn’t realize was that I was agreeing to was to watch what was universally known as the biggest episode of the season thus far. It was episode seven, “The Theater and Its Double” and apparently this was unlike most episodes of Euphoria in that it was going to be set as a play. After about 20 minutes of intense summary reading and a short recap of the previous episode from my roommate, I was ready, or so I thought. Looking back, nothing could have prepared me for what I was about to see.
My first thought was regarding the clothing that the characters wore. I had seen jokes about it on TikTok, but I didn’t realize that the characters wore what looked like literal rave clothing to school every day. How did they not get dress coded or yelled at by the faculty? How did they have time every morning to adjust the gemstones around their eyes until they were lined up perfectly? These were some of the thoughts running through my head and I realize that if I had been watching since the beginning, maybe I would have understood better but coming in a season and a half late, I was beyond shocked. I will say, though, the wardrobe department for “Euphoria” killed it because all of their outfits were spectacular.
The play itself was something that also really confused me. The set design, wardrobe, hair and makeup looked like it cost a fortune, so I was wondering where Lexi got the funds for that. Most drama departments in high school are underfunded and on the verge of being cut, yet in Euphoria High, it looked like they put more money into the drama department than they did into the school facilities. It looked like a Broadway production and I was thoroughly impressed. Turning to the script, how did Lexi get that approved? The play was fully about her classmates and some weren’t exactly painted in a flattering light. If that had taken place at my high school, Lexi fully would have gotten expelled for bullying, but it made for great entertainment.
The character’s reactions were what got me the most, though. Rue looked pleased throughout the play even though it showed her descending into a drug addiction. Maddy looked pleased as well through most of it, except for watching the scenes where she and Cassie started to get into fights. The only ones who looked mad while watching the play were Cassie and Nate. With Cassie, I understood because she was portrayed as a terrible person who, perhaps unintentionally, works to wreck her friendships.
Nate, however, I didn’t fully understand because he took the locker room scene way too personally even though it was supposed to be about the toxic masculinity in the men’s sports. He drew his own conclusion from it which caused him to stomp out when he really didn’t have to. Watching all the characters watch their own lives play out in a school production was really funny and I enjoyed it.
Overall, this episode was interesting to watch as someone who had never seen an episode of “Euphoria” before. That being said, I feel as though I would have definitely enjoyed it more had I been watching “Euphoria” from the beginning. I don’t know if I’ll ever start “Euphoria” but I’m glad I got to watch this episode.
Happy streaming, collegiettes!