“Euphoria” returns for its final season

A wild, raunchy, and surprisingly queer show has risen for a final season, even after its stars like Zendaya and Sydney Sweeney have all gone different directions (politically, too).

The trials and tribulations of high school in drug-fueled Los Angeles have come to a close, but the legend of Euphoria lives on. Season three of the widely welcomed, LED-lit show Euphoria is back for its final season.

The provocative series follows loveable lesbian and addict Rue Bennett (Zendaya) who wreaks havoc on friends and family because of her drug dependency. The show has made headlines in the past for its risqué subject matter, never shying away from hard drugs, domestic abuse, prostitution, and so many other subjects that trigger warnings are almost the show’s calling card.

Gen Z and Millennial fans have spent many past Sundays worrying about quick-to-anger characters like Nate and Cassie, whether Jules and Rue would be together, and all the delectable drama. Like a car crash featuring only modelesque people, you can’t look away from: Euphoria season 3 proves to be a beautiful disaster.

But maybe that’s the point. It brings everybody online together in a collection of discourse, memes, and reactions in a way that not many television shows can. It’s a hot topic of conversation in the culture, even in a season as critically unacclaimed as this one. IGN rated it a six, and other outlets are dismissing it as the worst season yet. Though the stakes are more drastic, including weddings and border crossings, the neon beating heart of the show remains. Largely thanks to the dedicated performance from today’s top actors, everyone is baffled by why they came back.

​Fan favorite drug kingpin Lori is back to deliver a message to Rue: the $47,000 she owes has actually accrued interest and is now north of $43 million. Rue is trapped and joins in trafficking drugs across the Mexican border, bringing a whole new Breaking Bad-like scenario into what was once a drama-heavy teen show.

We catch up with Lexi (Maude Apatow) working in LA, trying to make it in the TV industry on the production side. Sydney Sweeney plays the bubbly and vindictive Cassie, who is now married to Nate (Jacob Elordi) as they struggle through pre-marital and money woes.

“Euphoria” has always been able to connect the insane lifestyles of its different characters under the same umbrella, but this chapter feels like everyone is so far apart, both in life and maturity, that you have to wonder why these people even interact with one another anymore. The former magic from those early coming-of-age seasons is certainly lost as the show transitions to an even more mature set of circumstances.

​Chloe Cherry returns to highlight the drug mule process: how mules have to swallow bags and condoms full of drugs, and if even one bag rips, they could die. Those high stakes feel very reminiscent of the HBO Max show’s core tension: that one mistake can tear everything apart at the seams. The rest of the premiere fell more flat, but an enticing preview does have fans curious as to what’s to come.

​With real-life drama ranging from the Republican rise of Sydney Sweeney to Barbie Ferreira publicly exiting the show as she felt there was “nothing left” for her character, Euphoria has never had a clear path to its audience. Fans even clocked when Zendaya walked right past showrunner Sam Levinson on the red carpet — and who can blame her after several reports about how frustrating this season had been to create. Watching just to sense the on-set drama is reason enough to tune in.

​Euphoria is no doubt a strange work of art, and its portrayal of queer romance is worthy of praise. The show introduced Jules, played by Hunter Schafer, to the world, showing that a young trans girl can be resilient, fiery, desirable, and complex. Rue’s love for her, and their evolving love story, is one marked by truth, pain, and the revelation that no amount of love can overcome addiction. Though the season three premiere lacked Hunter Schafer, she will apparently appear as a sugar baby who has someone paying her rent. Not the most aspirational representation, but if history proves anything, Schafer will do justice to the community, the character, and the truth of living authentically as a trans woman.

​Catch new episodes of Euphoria on Sundays on HBO Max.