Secret Euphoria episode every viewer should go back and watch after finale
Topics: Euphoria, TV And Film, Zendaya
Greg Harris
Featured Image Credit: HBO
Topics: Euphoria, TV And Film, Zendaya
After seven years and three seasons, Euphoria came to an end and now, fans have urged others to watch the 'secret' episode of the show following the tragic finale.
The smash hit HBO series came to an emotional conclusion on Sunday (31 May), as creator Sam Levinson wrapped up all storylines, giving some characters happier endings than others.
Sadly, Rue (played by Zendaya), the show’s lead and narrator, died. The fan-favourite character battled addiction throughout the entire series and drug abuse and the struggles tied to it were a central theme in Euphoria.
In season three, Rue begins working for Alamo Brown (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje), a ruthless drug dealer, arms dealer, and human trafficker who owns a strip club.
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However, after he found out that she had begun working for the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) as a mole, he laced the Percocet pills he gave to her with fentanyl.
Rue took the high-strength pills as she was injured after being captured by Laurie’s henchman and dragged around by a horse.
Despite her previous addiction to painkillers, she took the drugs for the pain, not knowing they were laced with fentanyl, which killed her.
Although the cult classic series is officially over, fans online are urging viewers to watch an episode that wasn’t part of the three main seasons.
It was one of two specials that aired in December 2020 on HBO Max and then on HBO a few days later. The specials bridged the gap between seasons one and two.
Titled Trouble Don’t Last Always, the special focused on Rue as she spoke to her sponsor, an older man named Ali Muhamand (Colman Domingo), on Christmas Eve. Together, they discuss her recent relapse, as well as her tumultuous relationship with girlfriend Jules (Hunter Schafer).
Fans might have missed the episode when it originally aired almost six years ago however, it was met with universal acclaim from critics for Zendaya and Domingo’s acting. The episode is set in a diner and features a lot less locations and cast members because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Following Rue’s tragic end, fans re-watched the episode and it seems to have stood the test of time. At the time of writing, it has a 97 percent critics' score and an 84 percent audience score on Rotten Tomatoes.
One fan gushed: “I can’t explain how hard this hit on so many levels, especially at the time of release. Pure cinema & a masterclass imo w/ Zendaya & Coleman Domingo. Just a diner convo w/ layers of complexities. High Art.”
While another viewer wrote: “The fact that people still haven’t seen these episodes is insane to me still.”
On Reddit, a fan praised Zendaya’s acting, calling it a ‘masterclass’ that ‘fully showed she completely deserved that Emmy’.
A detailed review of Zendaya’s acting from another Redditor said: “What I find most incredible about her performance as Rue is all her facial tics of someone that's trying to hide emotion poorly.
“That kind of muscle control can't possibly be voluntary cause her face twitches in ways that are incredibly subtle. She's able to get in that headspace better than the vast majority of actors I've seen.”
The special is followed-up with another episode, titled F**k Anyone Who's Not a Sea Blob, and it focuses on Jules.
The special episodes and full series of Euphoria are available to stream on NOW with an Entertainment & HBO Max membership.
Alternatively, you can buy or rent them digitally on the likes of Amazon Prime Video UK and Apple TV.