Euphoria Part 1: Rue – A Stirring Conversation on the Will to Live

Part one of Euphoria’s two-part special episode release is unlike anything we’ve seen from the series before. Right when you think the creators and performers are in a groove, they throw you a curveball. As the viewer, you are stuck trying to pull your face away from the screen. This episode hits different. It stirs in you like a cup of coffee with two creams, no sugar. It’s bitter AF, but you get used to the taste and come to love it and wait for its magic to take. It picks up right where we left off. Careful – * spoilers ahead *.   Eggs Over Easy The episode starts with Rue and Jules. In a perfect little loft apartment with a fire escape framing their New York apartment window. Rue is looking brand new like life means something else to her. She wakes Jules, gives her the Luther Vandross ‘thousand kisses’, and for her, it is never too much. Jules remembers her portfolio presentation, Rue assures her she’s alright – that there’s time. It’s an average, yet eclectic bohemian life. Even though you don’t want to realize it – you know it’s a dream. Image courtesy of HBO via IMDB Rue helps Jules get dressed and collect her portfolio. Rue says goodbye, closes the door, and routinely crushes up some pills and snorts them. Your heart drops and the scene seamlessly changes from their apartment to a diner bathroom. Where Rue is in the same maroon sweatshirt seen in the episode’s trailer. She walks out to meet her sponsor, Ali.  Reality begins. Rue sits across from …