*Warning: This article contains minor spoilers for Euphoria season 3 episode 1.*
Having waited for four years and had to endure the sleaze fest that was The Idol in the interim, Sam Levinson is back and attempting to craft more gripping episodes of Euphoria.
The third season has been talked about for what feels like an age now, with release dates being changed, recent rumours of behind-the-scenes tensions and tragic cast deaths naturally souring the entire affair. But is Euphoria season 3 worth the wait? Let's not mince any words here – not at all. In fact, this season is the epitome of something that nobody asked for, nor needed.
The first three episodes that were made available to press ahead of the series premiere are not only disappointing, lethargic and fairly dull but they also continue to perpetuate a pervading issue within Levinson's recent writing: his continual insistence on portraying women as hyper-sexualised beings, devoid of any real substance or personality.
Euphoria has always been heavy on the angst, sex and drugs, proving itself to be a series that would make any prude shrink within themselves. It's the kind of show that throws out big themes but rarely does anything with them, with thoughts of seasons past bringing up memories of Cassie's (Sydney Sweeney) cringeworthy carousel scene in season 1, Maddy (Alexa Demie) covering up her neck bruises from boyfriend Nate (Jacob Elordi) in the same season, and the uncomfortable hazing of McKay (Algee Smith).
Euphoria's casual heavy drug usage throughout both previous seasons has also been well discussed amongst fans, as well as the problematic dynamic between Cal (Eric Dane) and Jules (Hunter Schafer).
But now that the cast and the characters themselves have grown up and are out of their teenage years, what substance does Euphoria's third season have?
View Green Video on the source websiteTo be entirely honest, it's never been a series that has really tried to say a lot. While the show has gone on to spawn plenty of quotable memes (mainly thanks to Demie's Maddy), it has dealt somewhat sincerely with Rue's addiction and the way that can tear people and their families apart.
But there's no point in having one slightly more thought-out previous plotline as evidence that Euphoria can dig into the nitty gritty when now Levinson just appears to be steadfast in portraying his characters through the most salacious lens.
Now having left high school and forging lives and careers of their own, this third season is supposed to be a more adult chapter for our cast. We're supposed to see how they've spread their wings (or more realistically, have struggled to), how their lives have diverted and intersected from those they went to school with and what hangovers from the previous season may still be relevant.
Instead, we have a raft of half-baked characters and women that appear to have been written by someone who has no real sympathy or duty of care to craft them as more than the sum of their bodies or addictions.
Cassie has continuously been sexualised across the seasons, with Sweeney previously admitting she had to tell Levinson when she felt as though Cassie's topless scenes weren't "necessary". At the time of Sweeney's comments in an interview with The Independent in 2022, she also said: "I've never felt like Sam has pushed it on me or was trying to get a nude scene into an HBO show. When I didn't want to do it, he didn't make me."
The premiere episode of Euphoria season 3 features the now viral scene of Cassie dressing up as a dog in order to create content for her online audience, with Nate initially getting angry at his fiancée's new moneymaking ideas (in order to make money for her dream wedding flowers, no less), but then switching the erotic energy of the scene around once he has the leash in his own hands.
Another moment to come in the series, which has also been doing the rounds on social media after it was glimpsed in a teaser, sees Cassie in a similar scene 'creating content' – however this time, she's dressed up as a baby, complete with a dummy in her mouth and pigtails.
Some fans might defend the inclusion of an OnlyFans plot as simply being representative of the world we live in and the way in which plenty of people choose to make money. There's no problem with that at all here but instead of engaging in thoughtful discussion around sex work, Levinson makes the entire scenario (and Cassie herself) a hapless caricature.
Speaking of Cassie's OnlyFans scenes in the season 3 premiere, Levinson explained that he was keen to focus on the humour of the moment – pointing out that her housekeeper is the one filming it. He told The Hollywood Reporter: "What we wanted to always find is the other layer of absurdity that we’re able to tie into it so that we're not too inside of her fantasy or illusion – the gag is to jump out, to break the wall."
But by placing Cassie at the centre of her own OnlyFans storyline, it's yet another perverse scenario for the character and renders her no more than the sum of her body. The OnlyFans storyline is, in my opinion, a lazy way of attempting to make Cassie seem like an autonomous and intelligent character when realistically, she has never been portrayed as such.
Some viewers have already decried the scenes as "like a humiliation ritual" for the actors, with many not quite understanding how major film stars such as Sweeney and Elordi have agreed to be part of such storytelling. While I nor anybody can really speak for why an actress would sign on for these scenes, we can instead interrogate the way in which this series continues to get away with these damaging portrayals.
In season 3's first episode, we also get the very extensive play-out of the physical toll of being a drug mule, complete with intense choking scenes, that centre on Rue and Faye (Chloe Cherry). In amidst the chaos of the premiere, we also see Rue try to impress Alamo (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje) to work in his strip club empire. We're introduced to him as he's surrounded by topless or bikini-clad women in a hot tub, the kind of misogynistic fantasy that this series seems to be becoming very adept at showcasing.
At its prime, Euphoria was the talk of the town, receiving numerous accolades and making household names out of its young cast. A four-year wait hasn't done this show any favours, with it being clear that Levinson has not used the time to craft his female characters with any nuance. Perhaps the latter episodes of the season may have a couple of redeeming qualities but I wouldn't hold out any hope.
Now, it's time that we all wake up and smell the roses – Euphoria has veered into being the kind of gross slop you shouldn't bother wasting your time watching.
Euphoria season 3 is airing weekly on HBO Max, Sky Atlantic and NOW. Catch up on seasons 1-2 on HBO Max and NOW.
Check out more of our Drama coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
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