Euphoria
S.02 E.04 – “You Who Cannot See, Think of Those Who Can” (2022)
To be completely honest, there is something amazing about the bold ambition of Sam Levinson this season. Along with being the sole credited writer this season so far, he continues to find ways to throw the characters further into the depths of emotional distress. The music becomes more overwhelming, where the cross-cuts between Cal, Cassie, and Rue reveal this poetic alignment of emotion. They are all in their own forms of darkness, and each goes about their spiraling in many different ways. This is one of the most overbearing episodes that the series has released so far, and it does feel like whatever happens next, my theory that Levinson is building for a Greek tragedy is evident. Even the way that the story cuts to Fezco at his home watching a movie warning that danger is lurking hides something that is trying to strip the fantasy from this depressing reality.
That is how everything starts: with a fantasy. The act of Jules performing oral sex on Rue is sold with a highlight reel of pop culture’s greatest romances. There’s pictures of John Lennon and Yoko Ono, Frida Kahlo, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937), Titanic (1997), and even Brokeback Mountain (2005). These are moments seared into our memory, though Levinson is likely sticking some additional subtext into these images. Those who have seen Titanic and Brokeback Mountain will know that the fates are tragic, that one of them dies. Not in the moments depicted, which are all passionate, but looming in the distance. Even Snow White being kissed back to life holds this ominous sense of death over it.
Paired with the reality of Rue not enjoying the oral sex and things become more complex. Here is a vulnerable act that is supposed to be pleasurable, but Rue isn’t enjoying it. She fakes the passion, but even Jules recognizes the insincerity. Why is this? While some could argue this is a continuation of the asexual theory from last week, it’s most evident by the comments she makes. She’s high. She’s been that way since becoming a drug dealer and hanging out with Elliot. They are almost bonded solely by their levels of intoxication. The real tragedy is that Jules is on the outside of this, doing everything to stay sober for fear of watching Rue relapse and feel immense guilt. Given that Elliot confesses this to her near the end of the episode, it makes sense to think that their time together is coming to an end. Metaphorically and literally, the passion isn’t there.
It can be read in the way her thigh has two cuts. It’s unclear how fresh they are, but considering that the scene features Rue echoing “I love you” as Jules looks upward as if in a dark pit, there is the metaphorical sense that she is regressing. Given that she cut herself originally when she lost trust in her mother, it makes sense that she would react with similar types of self-harm. The question is how the show will go from here about it. Considering that Jules is practically co-lead and has been a useful addition to the crafting of her character from her look to the increasing exploration of her sexuality, it doesn’t totally make sense to call suicide. With that said, it does feel like some damage is about to go down. As she mentioned in the special from 2021, Rue’s absence was making her gap for not wanting to hurt herself close. There was that threat, and given that this season has been downright bleak at points, it’s not hard to see things turning in on themselves.
Speaking of, Cassie remains one of the more loose cannon characters. On the one hand, she has been playing the freakout role almost exclusively for four episodes now. Her insecurities became front and center very fast, and having Nate egg her on only made things worse. Still, it’s at times uncomfortable to see her suffering so much mentally. She’s losing weight and being blamed for doing things in their relationship that are more caused by Nate’s irresponsibility. Even at the party, she is dressing seductively and getting way too drunk just to try and cope with the fact that Nate is trying to get back with Maddy. There’s a level of gaslighting going on here that is downright sinister. It’s the type of descent into insanity that may build to some profound character arc, but watching a car wreck in slow motion is still painful.
With that said, Nate as a character almost gets a backseat this week in The Jacobs Family. With a head bandage in check, Cal decides that this is the week to have his mental breakdown, to reflect on a life that he left behind to follow heteronormativity. He’s tired of being assaulted by everything that comes with being the perfect man. It’s partially why him at one point looking at a portrait of John Wayne is brilliant, as there was a man who built his identity around masculinity despite being something opposite. Cinema bought into his idea of strength when he wasn’t even that. Cal is buying into a mirage that is evident when he visits the bar from his youth and imagines dancing with his boyfriend. Years fade backward and he’s allowed to be in that moment, holding onto something beautiful.
Levinson has a strange knack for juxtaposing moments in ways that build anxiety. When Cal is driving to the bar, Rue, Jules, and Elliot are driving to steal beer. There is the subliminal sense that both cars will collide before either reach their destination, though again they have their own metaphorical car crashes to account for. Cal’s isn’t that evident at first. He’s having a good time until he gets too drunk and wants to wrestle everyone in the bar. When he gets kicked out, the shame of his aging body and years missed overwhelm him. As he drives home, he hears INXS on the radio. Maybe it’s a play on the name (in excess) or that they were a band featured during young Cal’s most passionate moment last episode, or that again it’s a metaphor for a singer who ultimately committed suicide after having fraught relationships.
Cal spins out of control to the point that he arrives at The Jacobs Household in time to urinate on their floor and call out every family member for their flaws. While he cannot determine what Nate’s are, he manages to use that time to come out in the most pathetic way. He announces that he’s lonely, that he’s a man who loves everyone: men, women, transgender. He’s not ashamed anymore and clearly resents the family. Similar to how Nate cannot keep Cassie around with a simple “I love you,” there’s nothing Cal can be told to have him change his mind. He has burned bridges and maybe the road ahead will be better. Knowing Levinson, it’s likely going to be the exact opposite.
Much like Nate, Levinson’s insistence on making Cal have a three-dimensional personality is at times confusing. Here was a man with his own problematic arc in season one. He was in dangerous relationships and was at times rather abusive. Now he’s trying to be sold as a hero, or a tragic figure. There’s an effort to make him more sympathetic, but the legacy he’s left behind is obvious. His neglect of his son Nate has caused him to gaslight Cassie. There is plenty of reason to believe he has a third son that he’s greatly ignored. So much of his central identity is reprehensible, and yet this mental breakdown is confusing to process amid all of the high-strung energy that Levinson is pulling from here.
To return momentarily to Jules’ plot, she is discovering how self-destructive her friend group is. While she doesn’t pick up on it when robbing a liquor store, the immediate actions afterward tip her off. Rue drinks everything to an alarming degree. Even with Elliot insisting to stop, she goes further into that black hole. Jules becomes shocked to see it. Given her history, it’s likely overwhelming and is throwing her into her own conflicted depression. She wanted to believe that Rue was getting better, that their relationship meant something. When she learns that everything that was supposed to be pure about their relationship has been a lie, it’s going to devastate her. It’s unclear how tied up with Elliot she will be, but given that the two cuts on her thigh may symbolize her issues with both of them, this could be either the release she needed or the moment where she accepts a crueler fate.
With all of this said, Levinson has found another tool to throw into this week’s episode, and it’s probably the most profound one. Having gotten blackout drunk, Rue imagines herself in a church with Labrinth making his first on-screen cameo. His music is so powerfully intertwined with the show’s atmosphere that he’s tough to miss, but his brief time here reflects how it works. There’s the sadness, but there’s elements of a choir that make it almost spiritual. In the pews are Elliot and Jules, watching on as she is about to confront her father and announce that she’s a terrible person. It’s one of the show’s strongest moments and it captures the conflicts of an addict to feel like they’re something greater than themselves. They feel like prisoners in need of some saving, and odds are that Rue isn’t getting that. She’s hiding it well for now when at home, but will that be true much longer?
Similarly, Lexi is moving further into the world of fantasy. She’s continuing to work on a play that’s about her home life. What is a bit concerning however is that she’s maybe not the best writer creatively. It’s one thing for her to be inspired by her home life but what’s evident is that she’s not exactly changing enough details to make what follows just airing dirty laundry. Levinson shows the cuts between her home life and the stage, showing dialogue lifted verbatim. While this isn’t enough to worry about just yet, the presence of names like McKay suggests that she’s not doing much to protect those around her. She’s making the first mistake most writers know to do. You need to change enough details about your life to not make the more damning facts feel incriminating and worthy of real life lawsuits.
Every character is trying to find that balance right now, and in some cases, it feels more like stagnation. For Cassie, it feels the most like a prison where she wants to escape but cannot. She is victim blamed in the worst ways possible. Jules is waking up from the fantasy while Rue is going further in. Cal is arguably waking up from his, though the methods he will take to arrive at a healthy conclusion feel unlikely. The only one without any satisfying arc this week is maybe Kat, who feels like she’s slowly being written out of the show that may likely be because of some behind the scenes feuds. Who knows exactly?
There are many ways that Euphoria this season continues to feel like too much of everything. Almost every arc is reaching a soap opera level that may be engrossing in seeing how far the integrity can be pushed, but is maybe evident why Levinson needs more writers. He still has ideas worthy of exploring, but certain characters feel like they’re stuck in repeat this week and it’s not really helping things. I do believe that he’s still capable of crafting a great image with meaningful subtext, but there has to be something more than an overbearing tone at a point. This show continues to grow exhausting with how it ratchets up the tension. With that said, it’s one of the things that makes it singular as an experience. It’s still a great time, even as one hand is covered, uncertain that anyone should undergo half the psychological abuse currently on this show. Still, it’s doing enough right to care where things end up. The only question is if they’ll be satisfying when we inevitably get there.
Comments
Post a Comment