HBO’s long awaited original series, Euphoria continues on for a second season and has captivated audiences waiting for the new drama that’s in store for season two. The first episode of season two was released on January 9, 2022, marking a date where fans were kept on their toes. 

Euphoria fans were waiting for the day for the season two release which starts right off the same time frame in season one that was released on June 16, 2019. Immediately after season one came out, it was announced around July 2019 for Euphoria to be renewed for a second season. The complex characters return for this season, as each of their storyline was revealed in season one. Their storylines contribute to the overall plot of season two. 

The show is based on another series, an Israeli TV series also named Euphoria that was released in 2012 that took place in the 1990s. Euphoria is directed by Augustine Frizzel, Sam Levinson, Jennifer Morrison, and Pippa Bianco. 

This season still revolves around Rue (Zendaya), Jules (Hunter Schafer), Nate (Jacob Elordi), Maddy (Alexa Demie), Cassie (Sydney Sweeney), Kat (Barbie Ferreira), Fezco (Angus Cloud) and Lexi (Maude Apatow). Our favorite unreliable narrator, Rue, is there to recap all the messy drama that happened in season one before the episode starts. 

The starting episode surrounds the intense New Years Eve party scene which makes it relatable for viewers as New Years was right around the corner. The beginning scene is of Fezco’s grandma (played by Katherine Narducci) that elaborates on Fez’s and his little brother, Ashtray (Javon Walton) backstory that wasn’t mentioned in season one. After their storyline, viewers are now watching a drug deal happening that mainly involves Fezco and Ashtray before the New Years Eve party that resembles a Grand Theft Auto scene. Once the whole gang arrives, Rue stumbles to Elliot (Dominic Fike) who is partaking in drugs and joins him. Maddy and Lexi are worried for Cassie because they don’t know if she has arrived at the party since she isn’t picking up her phone which she usually does. As they mentioned this, viewers can predict Cassie is heading towards a downward spiral as she’s navigating the single life after always being in a relationship. Nate and Maddy are on a break right now, but Nate is still pursuing Maddy after all the harmful things he’s done to her. Viewers can notice new romances starting to build between the characters. Things start to calm down after Lexi and Maddy find Cassie and the party mood increases. Though, tensions start to build up between Nate and Fezco due to the fact that Nate keeps bothering Rue and Jules. Fezco wants to protect them because he knows Nate is capable of doing over the top things to people. The New Years Countdown starts and let’s just say, that the characters ring into the new year to the start of a bloody, messy mess. 

Euphoria has revolutionized the way for how Gen Z expresses individuality based on the costuming the show has shown. The costume designer is Heidi Bivens. The makeup artist is Doniella Davy. Nails were a new aspect of the show that were designed by Natalie Minerva. 

Each character has their own color palette that corresponds to their clothing, makeup, and nails. For example, Rue typically wears earth toned colors and her iconic maroon hoodie. Viewers can evidently see from watching Maddy that she is the fashion icon of the show. Maddy is perhaps the most confident out of all the characters because of her beauty pageant background. Her makeup usually consists of glitter, eyeliner, and rhinestones. Jules is also one of the characters to experiment with her look. Being transgender, she is trying to conquer femininty with the way she presents her self. In season one, she wears the most colors out of anybody else in the show. She usually is drawn to pastels but as she progresses through the series, she is seen wearing less pink as she realizes she doesn’t need to look feminine to impress a boy. Sometimes the outfits have midriff showing, small skirts, cut out pieces which can be unbelievable to even wear at school with the risk of being dress coded. Euphoria as a whole has revitalized the glitter makeup and has inspired many to recreate makeup looks from the show. 

        The graphic scenes from the show can make it unbearable to watch since it shows nudity, drugs and violence. Critics may argue that Euphoria glamorizes drugs and it isn’t true to the typical teenage, high school life. Though the portrayal of Rue battling addiction is hard to watch, the show doesn’t shy away from the realness of addiction. As opposed to some shows where they feature a character going to a few sobriety meetings and are now recovering from addiction without trouble. Since the characters are teens, the acts that they partake in are uncomfortable to watch which the show is designed to do. However, there are real life high school students who are in the same situation as the characters which is why it’s uncomfortable. 

Euphoria as an art is an aesthetically, pleasing show that combats real life situations through the lens of today’s high school students. Euphoria will make the viewer have a different portrayal of life and reflect on their own high school experiences. It is definitely worth paying for an HBO Max subscription. The show makes you feel euphoric after watching because there are captivating elements of Euphoria that will make you want more.