Euphoria season 2 had gotten off to a good start. The new season dived deeper into the nuances of sexuality mental health, and the show seemed to tackle all these subjects pretty well.
I even thought that Euphoria was one of the few teenage drama series in recent times that went beyond the shallow and cliche plot tropes such as love triangles. But I think I spoke too soon.
Season 2 Episode 4 was perhaps the most underwhelming episode in the show. Episode 3 had set the stage for an impeccable episode 4.
With Rue now dealing drugs for Laurie, and Cal’s back story coming to the surface, a lot could’ve been explored.
However, episode 4 was predominantly about characters cribbing about their partners. It was merely a they-love-me-they-love-me-not situation. It essentially steered focus away from significant character arcs and plot narratives.
While this might sound a little vague to you, I have the precise answer to why episode 4 was such a big letdown.
Euphoria season 2, episode 4 reduced all major character arcs as relationships with their love interest and nothing more. The episode did not give screen time to essential characters such as Cal and Fez and their arcs.
Well, to begin with, let’s start with an article by The Swaddle, which spoke about how Euphoria is the most woke show that failed the Bechdel test.
The Bechdel test checks whether at least two women in any film or show talk to each other about things other than a man.
If you’ve watched this episode, you know where I’m going with this. So let me quickly give you an overview of how the show failed the Bechdel test in this episode.
Let’s begin with Kat. In the previous season, she was coping with body image issues, and her character did not revolve just around Ethan.
However, it’s been three episodes now, and all that she is dealing with is not actually liking Ethan. Besides that, there is no other narrative attached to her story.
Maddy and Cassie are both obsessing over Nate, who is still figuring out his complexes and is affected by the dynamics with his dad. In this case, Nate has an arc of his own, even if you take Maddy and Cassie out of the equation, but the opposite isn’t true.
Rue, Jules, and Elliot are the other love triangle that is getting more and more attention with each episode.
Rue’s arc as a drug addict and a peddler is moving forward slowly, but Jules’ isn’t. In fact, she doesn’t have an angle beside her mixed emotions about Rue and Elliot.
As you see, four out of five women only have arcs related to their partners, and three of those partners are guys.
While this might seem more like an analysis in hindsight, once a person is finished watching an episode and going down the internet rabbit hole to read about it, some moments were instantly disappointing.
One such moment was Cal confessing to his family about the double-life he leads and coming out as a pansexual.
In episode 4, we see Cal reach a saturation point where he’s had enough of chaos around him, and he can’t repress any of his emotions anymore. He gets drunk, decides to go back to the gay bar where he first kissed Derek, and later comes home in a messy state.
He comes out to his family about him being a pansexual, having sex with Derek when Marsha got pregnant, and while all this might seem like a good thing, it isn’t. Here’s why.
Cal coming out to his family didn’t feel liberating for the character or the audience. This was because he still is very toxic. He believes that his family was the one who held him down and prevented him from being who he is.
He regrets having Nate and not knowing him. He calls these people, who’ve led their lives on his terms and his so-called principles, hypocrites.
The fact that he is out of the closet and can live life the way he wants doesn’t mean he gets to blame others for repressing his own emotions.
Yes, his father and perhaps the social mentality back when he was young didn’t allow him to be who he naturally was. But his family – Marsha, Nate, and his elder brother, didn’t have any role in that. They’ve probably been his most significant support, and Cal doesn’t realize it.
One may wonder that the intent might be to show him as a toxic person and that sometimes, your trauma doesn’t justify you being toxic to others. If this was the case, then the show just threw away such a significant part of Cal as a 3-minute monologue and nothing else.
His part should’ve gotten more focus and perhaps even built up to a bigger, catastrophic event that would affect everyone around him in the worst ways possible.
Instead, the writers focused more on the love triangles and the relationships, thus not giving enough time for Cal’s arc to flourish. As a result, the entire bit made Cal look like a throw-away character.
This was a crucial moment for Cal and would drive his narrative in future episodes. However, no matter what he does or brings to the series, this moment was so underwhelming that it wouldn’t feel powerful enough and wouldn’t take the character to the next stage.
Conclusion
Until episode 3, I was a fan of what Sam Levinson was creating. It was layered, mature, and truly depicted the different aspects of teenage psychology, mental health, etc.
The way he handled topics and character arcs felt authentic and holistic, and not superficial.
However, episode 4 changes all that, and he’s now at a point of no return. In the upcoming episode, if Sam Levinson can justify these events, he might have some chance at redeeming himself and the show, but that seems a little unlikely.
Euphoria has been renewed for a third season. If the show goes on the way it is right now, its quality will keep declining with each episode, eventually making it like any other teenage drama series.
About Euphoria
Euphoria is a teen drama on HBO that is loosely based on the Israeli series of the same name. The series is written by Sam Levinson and stars Zendaya, Hunter Schafer, Maude Apatow, Jacob Elordi, Alexa Demie, and others.
The show revolves around Rue, a teen drug addict who is also suffering from Bipolar disorder. She meets Jules, a transwoman, and falls in love with her. Euphoria deals with themes of sexual violence, addiction, trauma, and self-identity.
The series was renewed for season 3 in February 2022.
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