'Euphoria' Season 2 Finale Review: Intense, moving, and at times funny
SPOILERS FOR 'EUPHORIA' SEASON 2 EPISODE 8
Season 2 of 'Euphoria' is officially over! Picking up steam over the course of the last three episodes, Episode 8 was one of the most-anticipated finales with many waiting eagerly for it, crashing the HBO Max portal when it dropped.
Picking up where 'The Theater and Its Double' ended, Episode 8 resumes at Fez's house where Custer's motives are being questioned. Surrounded by a wary Ashtray, an unreadable Faye, and a sharp Fez, Custer attempts to talk his way out of the situation, hoping to stall Fez long enough for the police to arrive. However, Faye discreetly signals Fez to remain silent as the police are listening in on their conversations. Before Fez can even think of his next move, Ashtray stabs Custer in the neck, resulting in his death.
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While Fez tries to get Ashtray to safety before the cops show up, we see a furious Cassie storm the stage at East Highland, interrupting Lexi's play midway. She begins to call Lexi out with hopes of getting even with her for humiliating her but instead gets booed by the school. As Lexi and her mother attempt to get her off the stage, Maddy jumps on it and begins to chase Cassie around, landing a slap or two and running her head into a wall. Lexi, who was already hesitant about her play, goes in hiding, only to be talked into continuing the performance by her crew and a supportive crowd led by Rue.
Back at Fez's house, we see Ashtray arm himself to the teeth, ignoring Fez's pleas to not make things worse. Faye begins to hear the SWAT team break in but remains silent due to shock. The officers charge in no time and after a prolonged shoot-out, during which Fez gets hurt, gun Ashtray down. Elsewhere, Nate turns his father into the police after confronting him for being a predator.
Titled 'All My Life, My Heart Has Yearned for a Thing I Cannot Name', Episode 8 of 'Euphoria' Season 2 ends with an injured Fez getting arrested, while Lexi's play concludes with a standing ovation. We see a somewhat satisfied Maddy tell a disheveled and bleeding Cassie that this is only the beginning, while Jules expresses her feelings to Rue, who cuts her short by planting a kiss on her forehead before walking away. We also get a voiceover that says Rue remained sober for the rest of the school year not because she wanted to, but because she felt it was easier, just before the end credits roll.
With enough moments to keep one at the edge, Episode 8 of 'Euphoria' Season 2 was a nail-biting experience, with special mentions to the scenes at Fez's house that were staged in a manner that amplified the intensity of the episode. Two moments stand out and could symbolically represent what the future has in store for the characters in 'Euphoria.' The first one is a shot of Cassie trampling Lexi's playbill. Walking over "OUR LIFE" written in bold, the shot could symbolize how Cassie, through her deeds or should we say misdeeds, trampled over the lives of those close to her. The second one is a shot during Fez's arrest. We see one of the SWAT team members stomp a card with Lexi's name on it, symbolically stomping over Fez's hopes of being with her as he is taken in for crimes that could result in him doing serious time.
Sadly, the last episode of 'Euphoria' Season 2 does have some cons. The memories evoked due to Lexi's play tend to be disorienting at times. Fans were also of the same opinion that the scenes involving Elliot, Nate, Cal, and Rue's childhood were distracting and uncalled for. Nevertheless, 'All My Life, My Heart Has Yearned for a Thing I Cannot Name' brings to an end a rollercoaster of a season, and along with it, comes a long period of waiting as new episodes of 'Euphoria' will be out only by early or late 2023.