Euphoria Season 1 Episode 6 Review: The Next Episode
Paul Dailly
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If at first you don't succeed, lie again, and repeat as many times until you get your wish.
That's what Nate and Maddy did on Euphoria Season 1 Episode 6, and it rendered the two of them the worst characters on the show, and possibly on any show that is currently airing.
Nate is smart. He knew he had to do something to reverse the damage his actions have done to the Jacobs family name.
This is a kid who nearly killed someone already, catfished a classmate and subsequently blackmailed her into doing his bidding, and I'm getting the sense that his reign of terror is going to worsen as we approach the conclusion of Euphoria Season 1.
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Becoming a pariah in town, he's going to have a list of people who he will want to take down, and there's a chance he could get away with anything he wants to.
If there's one thing we've learned about Euphoria, it's that the show is not one to keep the characters happy. These are teenagers, and their lives are changing daily.
There are no redeeming qualities to Maddy after her decision to go along with this. In her mind, she knew she was the one who led Tyler into the pool and was all over him like a rash.
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She wanted to get back at Nate, and she knew how to do it, and that's why Tyler went on to get the living daylights beaten out of him and has now admitted to a myriad of crimes thanks to the intense manipulation.
Tyler will probably be out of the narrative for good now, but I'm starting to question whether Maddy knows the truth about Nate's infatuation with Jules.
It's hard to believe that Maddy thought the whole thing would work if there weren't a third party saying that they witnessed Tyler attacking her.
For that reason, I'm going to assume she knows the truth and that's why she and Nate have managed to use the whole situation to bring them back from their fall from grace.
Everyone seemed ecstatic for them to arrive at the party. Well, everyone except for Jules.
For much of "The Next Episode," it seemed like Jules was still struggling with the fact that she was responsible for Rue's sobriety, and that seemingly explained why she was getting drunk.
This is a young woman who was trying to forget everything and thought that self-medicating with alcohol was the best foot forward.
In reality, Jules was suffering in silence. Nate's gift of the explicit photos she sent to him, followed by the warning derailed her happiness. There's no getting away from that.
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More worrying is the fact that she filed a false police report. When all of this is said and done, I'm certain Jules is going to have broken more than one law as she tries to prevent the photos from going public.
It's a genuinely harrowing tale and the one that is the most uncomfortable on Euphoria. Jules has been trying to be as positive as can be, but her life is slowly but surely being ruined and she can't tell anyone about it.
The sad thing is that through her actions at the party, Jules has pushed Rue, the one who has been trying to romance her for weeks away.
Rue doesn't need someone who is getting into those drunken states in her life.
She's trying to be a better person, and that means staying away from people that could either trigger or enable her.
Based on Rue's reaction, she's either going to return to drugs, or she's going to realize that the pressure of a relationship is not good for her recovery.
Even though she can't tell Rue anything, Jules will be crushed if Rue cuts her off.
There's an undeniable connection between these two young women, and Zendaya and Hunter Schafer are killing it every single week.
In an ideal world, they would be able to be happy, but the reality is that relationships never go how you expect them to, especially in their infancy, and that's what makes this show such a fascinating watch.
I have no joy in this contract tonight.
Jules
Speaking of relationships, McKay and Cassie are on thin ice, and while it's been clear Cassie has not been happy about the way her boyfriend has been treating her, the scene in the dorm room was disturbing.
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McKay being dragged naked from his bed by eight men as they screamed "McGay" was very unsettling and disturbing to watch.
While it was unclear what really happened, the scenes that followed seemed to infer the actual scene was nothing compared to what he suffered.
What was more telling was the way McKay composed himself in the bathroom before returning to sex with Cassie seemed like McKay's way of dealing with the fact he had just been emasculated.
What is with your weird fascination with me?
Kat
There are going to be ramifications to all of this for both McKay and Cassie, but it doesn't seem like Cassie is as into her boyfriend as she was at the beginning of the series.
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McKay is too mature for her. He wants her to live by his rules, but he forgets that she's still in high school.
What's more, McKay hasn't exactly been treating Cassie the best, sayng that she's not his girlfriend in front of the Jacobs family. Through all of this, it seems like he's more scared of failure than anything.
He left the school behind where he was hailed as a hero for his skill on the field, but he's now in a position at college in which there are others who are better than him, and he's been benched.
His father always taught him to let loose on the field, but if he's not being given a platform to do that, what else is he supposed to do?
It's been drummed into him from a young age to follow his father's orders.
Before "The Next Episode," Nate was portrayed as someone who was embarrassed by his girlfriend's actions, and like Nate and the Jacobs family, he was all about keeping up appearances.
In a sense, I would have preferred him to find Cassie in the bedroom with Daniel.
Even though Cassie eventually shut her tryst with the teenager who was not her boyfriend down, she still allowed herself to be put in that situation.
She's in a relationship, and she should have avoided getting that close to him in the first place.
Cassie has a past thanks to the sex tape that was doing the rounds, and it's obvious that Daniel thought that if he showered her with compliments, he would get his wish and she would have sex with him.
The situation with your son… a lot of people are talking… I know (he’s innocent.) It’s just.
Restaurant Manager
What she didn't know, however, was that all he wanted was sex, and he didn't actually care for her. That's why he lashed out, essentially saying that beyond her beauty and sex appeal, there's nothing much going on for her.
That's a troubling thing to hear, and it's going to shape Cassie's arc for the rest of the season. That, in addition to the hint that she may be pregnant.
Yup, all of these teens are going to need counseling by the time the season is over.
That's all I got, Euphoria Fanatics.
What did you think of this crazy episode?
Hit the comments below.
Euphoria continues Sunday at 10 PM on HBO.
Paul Dailly was an Associate Editor for TV Fanatic.Follow him on X.
