“Euphoria” - Season 2, Episode 3 Review
Before reading this article, please note that this article mentions complex topics such as drug addiction and abuse along with physical abuse. For resources on drug addiction/abuse, visit https://www.samhsa.gov/find-help/national-helpline. For resources on physical abuse, visit https://www.samhsa.gov/find-help/national-helpline.
“Ruminations: Big and Little Bullies” is the third episode of the second season of “Euphoria.” This episode was wild and showed a significant progression from last week's simpler episode.
It focused on character development and also began some of the main drama that will continue throughout this season.
This episode also gave a lot more development for new characters as well as characters who haven’t been as important this season.
The standout character in this episode was Elliot, played by Dominic Fike. He had two great scenes with Jules (Hunter Schaffer), another standout in this episode. The two have incredible chemistry, which makes sense since the actors are apparently dating in real life. These two scenes were incredibly humorous, which is something this show does surprisingly well.
The episode was very meta. Rue (Zendaya) has a long scene in which she is talking to the audience about how she hides her drug addiction to the other people in her life. This scene is followed by another meta scene involving Lexi (Maude Apatow). This scene is a documentary styled scene in which characters from the show are interviewed and cameras are visible for the audience to see.
Both scenes are a bit jarring at first, however both scenes are done incredibly well. The meta humor lands quite well and brings a fresh new idea to the show.
Rue’s story this season has been very bleak, which is why it’s unfortunate that Rue’s main story this season will be working with the female drug dealer introduced in the first episode of the season.
Laure (Martha Kelly) is a very threatening villain, and Rue is very naive about selling drugs. This arc will be interesting in future episodes; however, it was set up perfectly in this episode.
The first fifteen minutes of this episode focused on Cal (Eric Dane), Nate Jacob’s (Jacob Elordi) father, and one of the main antagonists of the show. This introduction follows Cal as a teenager as he experiments with his sexuality.
Cal is a very ashamed man, which is why it was very interesting to follow his life before he was a villain. This episode gave Cal a bit more personality, which is very important for his character.
In the previous season he was a dull villain, but this added substance will make his character way more interesting as this season progresses.
Similar to the last two episodes, the directing is sensational. Sam Levinson is an incredible director. He loves to experiment with lighting and finds unique ways to portray characters. The scene involving Elliot and Jules, in particular, is directed beautifully.
This season has been progressing beautifully, as this episode is confirmation that this is one of the strongest written, directed and acted shows of the 21st century. This episode gives a lot more depth to some forgotten characters, as well as sets up a lot of drama that will clearly be more focal throughout the season.
This show handles very emotional content, yet it never crosses the line, and continues to perfectly represent these characters. This is a very solid episode and includes some of the best scenes of the season so far.
Jack Freiser is a second-year majoring in telecommunications. To contact him, email jef5614@psu.edu.
