Euphoria Season 3 In Review

Natalie Fabres ‘27

Thousands of fans were thrilled for the highly anticipated Season 3 of the HBO original series, Euphoria, which stars Zendaya as Rue Bennett. This season picks up on a loose end from Season 2, when Rue owed Laurie—her drug dealer—a large debt of $10,000.

The first episode, “Andale,” transports the audience 5 years into the future, taking a look into the characters’ lives out of high school. Rue's storyline remains one of the most intense. She finds herself in deeper trouble than she did at the end of Season 2, working as a drug mule at the U.S.-Mexican border to pay off her debt—which, by that point, had accumulated to a staunch $43 million. On top of this, she took up a side hustle as an Uber driver, all while her struggle with addiction persisted.

Cassie and Nate's storyline presents a theme of false growth. When the season opens up, they are engaged and seem to be maintaining a “perfect” relationship. But beneath this hopeful surface, their relationship is unhealthy and toxic. A notable contributor to this dynamic is financial insecurity; with Nate sitting in pools of debt, he is hard-pressed to fulfill Cassie’s wishes of $50,000 floral arrangements for their wedding.

In the first episode of Season 3, Lexi’s storyline also begins to unfold; at this point, she appears to be living alone, working as an assistant on a Hollywood nighttime soap opera. As Lexi pursues her passion for writing in LA, she lets Rue crash on her couch from time to time, and thus, can’t fully remove herself from the wildness of her high school years.

Maddy, a beloved character on the show, takes a similar route as Lexi. Now working at a Hollywood talent agency, managing influencers and building a career of her own, Maddy’s experiences reflect this season’s larger theme of character development.

Although, the theme of character development doesn’t stand alone in defining Season 3. This season is also uniquely focused on consequences of past actions and redemption.