Warning: This story contains spoilers for season two, episode five of Euphoria.
Sam Levinson is known to blend different styles in Euphoria, often mixing comedy with drama to tell the high schoolers’ stories. But in season two of the HBO series, the episodes have become increasingly chaotic—and episode five is no different.
After the last episode closed with Rue (Zendaya) hallucinating her father and being held by Labrinth in church, we expected this one to open with her in a hospital bed. It was a beautiful moment that seemed to symbolize a shift in Rue’s addiction, with some speculating that she had actually died.
If you were hoping for answers in the first five minutes of the show, you’re not getting any.
Instead, the show begins with Rue’s mom, Leslie (Nika King), confronting her about her relapse. And though Rue initially blames Gia (Storm Reid) for snitching, Leslie reveals it was Jules (Hunter Schafer) and Elliot (Dominic Fike) who told her about the suitcase of pills. “You don’t understand mom, it’s not my suitcase,” Rue cries. “This is bad.”
She destroys the house in her search for the drugs, which have already been flushed down the toilet. She breaks down doors, smashes furniture and threatens her sister, which Jules and Elliot witness from the other room. For the first time, it seems like Jules understands the full extent of Rue’s addiction.