Euphoria (HBO): A Review in Character Writing (VIDEO SCRIPT)

Best part about my job is that I subscribed to HBO Max in time to get that 12/month rate for a year and now I can write it off as a business expense. Anyway, let’s talk about Euphoria!

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Trust me, Readers; I can definitely understand why someone might be on the fence in watching season 1 of Euphoria

/For a lot of people who are fans of her, it serves as one of Zendaya’s first steps away from the family friendly monikers of Disney like other successful alums of the Disney Channel before her, and into a more mature Hollywood that can allow us to see her true range as an actress./

And if you haven’t seen Euphoria yet, then trust me when I say that she has what it takes.

But others might need a bit more convincing, and trust me; I get it.

As someone who also watched this first and foremost because they wanted to see how Zendaya stepped her game up, I wasn’t necessarily immediately on board with a lot of the set up and themes the first couple of episodes told me I was in for

/Exploring the lives and drama of a group of privileged 2019 southern california suburbian high school students didn’t sound like anything I was interested in, especially since not only has that part of my life been over for 14 years, but the culture difference is so present that I could find none of their experiences relatable./

It’s part of the reason why I never really gelled with Ed, Edd & Eddy on Cartoon Network growing up.

It wasn’t because I didn’t have any friends growing up. But the idea of all my close friends being in such close proximity with each other instead of different neighborhoods across Detroit was wishful thinking to the point where the show itself didn’t reach me like it could have

Now if you’ve been watching me for a while, you’re probably calling me a hypocrite now regarding that point of relatability.

And that’s mostly because one of the things I preach when it comes to stories and characters is that the lack of relatability in either characters or a scenario isn’t necessarily a dealbreaker for me.

It’s part of why I don’t entertain the opinion that Marvel superheroes are better than DC superheroes because Marvel heroes are more easily accessible due to their relatability.

Like, of course you’re not going to completely relate to Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman. They’re a solar powered alien, a multi-millionaire philanthropist and a Greek Demi-Goddess

So when I entered Euphoria, I did with the sole purpose of seeing how Zendaya was going to portray Rue.

/All I knew before then was that she was portraying a 17 year old drug addict, that she was more than likely going to be tempted along the way to recovery and eventually find love from what I’ve seen of the promos/

Then the first episode takes such a deep dive into so many aspects about herself. Her mental disorders, the loss of her father, how she initially got hooked on drugs.

/The time dedicated to the exposition of Rue’s character both in summaries and during the real time of the episode was very wisely spent in order for us to get an idea of her character./

Then as you watch her in the next couple ones, because you’ve been exposed to that knowledge in a way that didn’t feel like an info dump and operates in a way that’s similar to how Rue’s head is hardwired, you start to emphasize with her.

You want her to find love. You want her to get better. You either smile or let out a disappointed sigh whenever she makes decisions in favor of her getting better or see her relapse respectively

/It’s pretty much why episode 3 of season 1 is my favorite as far as how Rue’s development is handled. I won’t ruin it in case you decide to watch the season after this video, but I’ve never been so proud of a fictional character in my life after watching it./

The kicker here, is that this treatment isn’t just exclusive to Rue. It’s given to pretty much every other main cast member in the show

It’s done in a way where at first, they just look like a typical band of High School TV tropes and stereotypes.

/You got the outcast, the football jock antagonist who is the TEXTBOOK definition of Lawful Evil, by the way, the token black dude, the new kid, the mean girl cheerleader girlfriend of the jock antagonist, the nerdy fat girl, and the best friend of the mean girl cheerleader with the “fun” mom./

And you expect a lot of them to play out the same tropes, especially when the girls all hang out.

Then you find out over the period of a few episodes that all of the tropes that they’re based on are actually subverted, and that they’re genuinely all friends with each other that both lift each other up and call each other out if need be.

Then once it becomes relevant to the season, they’re given the Rue treatment and we see THEIR exposition.

/We see that in one way or another, they’re just as flawed as Rue is. And, just like Rue -- the combination of us receiving those puzzle pieces and seeing how their tropes are subverted once we get a better understanding of their characters -- we either root for them, wish to see their downfall, or just wish that they find happiness once we see how the overall story relates to their own arcs/

The way this show is formatted is a character writer’s dream.

And when I mean character writer, I specifically mean writers who prefer the actions and decisions of the characters to drive the narrative of the story in a way that feels natural, as opposed to forcing said characters to stick to the overall plot.

It's the difference between DIRECTLY controlling a Sims character in order for them to reach a certain goal, versus letting said Sims character interact with the world on their own, and HOPING they’ll eventually get there without setting themselves on fire.

One is more direct and to the point as far as achieving said goals that leaves SOME wiggle room for development and whatnot, while the other will definitely take longer because of how much freedom you’re allowing them by giving them permission to go at their own pace

These writers are respectively called plotters and pantsers. Plotters plot out the way they want everything to happen beforehand, while pantsers fly by the seat of their pants

Trust me; one of my besties is a pantser and every time she vents about the decisions her characters made as if she had no control over the situation, I’m all like:

But they’re your characters. You created them. You could’ve just had them do the thing. I don’t understand. Why are you like this??

Now am I saying that Euphoria has no plot? Not necessarily.

/But from what season 1 has shown and what its finale has teased season 2 will be, it’s the acts and decisions of Rue, Jules, and everyone else in the main cast that are gonna drive the story forward first and foremost. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing.

But I digress, Readers. Your homework assignment for the day: 

If you’ve seen season 1 of Euphoria, write in the comment section below what you thought about the series so far

Or, if you feel like sharing with the rest of the class, whether or not you prefer a plotter style or a pantser style when it comes to reading, writing, or viewing stories.

Whichever you decide to answer, I’d love to know your thoughts.