Euphoria Shows the Dark Side of Growing Up

courtesy of @euphoria instagram

Something about Euphoria seems painfully relatable and hauntingly reminiscent to many young adults who’ve binge-watched the new HBO drama. We at Jerk found ourselves heartbroken over the characters’ failures and elated over their triumphs, but the series never failed to highlight the darkness behind young adult life in this day and age. In fact, the show was so on point The New Yorker labeled it as “a punishing Gen Z exposé.” And even if some of the topics didn’t speak to everyone’s typical high school experience, others hit a little close to home.

The series uncovers some ugly truths of life as a young adult, including drug use, mental illness, violence, sex, and party culture. The characters are also all complex; no one is straight-up good or straight-up evil. The characters are depicted as teens should be depicted-- as kids just trying to figure it out, fucking up along the way, and embracing the people around them who make the world seem a little less scary.

The series dives into the angsty, complicated minds of young adults. It shows how unreasonable we can be, how badly we want to belong, how quickly our minds can change, and how overwhelming constant societal pressure can feel.

Sure, it’s bleak, but the aesthetically pleasing cinematography serves as a contrast to some of the disturbing topics on the show. Euphoria gets that kids are messed up in more ways than one. High school is tough. College is tough. Everything that happens to us automatically feels like the most Earth-shattering thing in the world, and all the while we’re supposed to figure out who the fuck we are.

You might sympathize with Rue, who didn’t necessarily get clean for herself, but for someone she loves. Or maybe Cassie, who never said no to a boy because she was always looking for the love her dad never gave her. Or McKay, whose father didn’t allow “failure” to be a household term. Maybe you connect with Jules, who feels as if conquering men and conquering femininity are the same thing. Or even Maddy, who, despite being in an abusive relationship, knows she will always love her partner.

It’s not hard for Gen Z to see themselves in any one of the characters on the show. Their issues are familiar, and it shows that even when their intentions are good, shit might still hit the fan. Euphoria also focuses on the toxicity of party culture, both in high school and college. With Cuse’s party school reputation, party culture is very present on campus, and it’s easy to get caught up in the superficiality of it. From the outside, SU is cute tailgate pictures, laughing with your friends at happy hour, and themed parties. And yes, to an extent, it is that. But what we fail to admit, to ourselves and to the world, is that the other side of the party culture isn’t necessarily as Insta-worthy. The toxicity of college party culture neglects to showcase the ugly: falling behind in school, waking up in a stranger’s bed, and abusing drugs to ignore your problems.

Euphoria embraces not only the beauty of growing up but also the parts we’re more reluctant to show people. And that’s what makes this show such a huge success. It’s a glimmer of realness in a world where everything feels so fake. It resonated with so many people because it managed to encompass the highs and lows of this beautiful, painful, and complicated thing we call “growing up.” If you haven’t fallen for it yet, odds are you will soon.