– and now everyone involved is laughing all the way to the bank
TV CHRONICLE “Euphoria’s” final season was panned by critics and hated by fans.
But it was still, or perhaps rather precisely because of that, a success in terms of viewers.
So, this week I, like many others, watched the long finale of HBO’s “Euphoria” and it was… weird?
Was it good? Was it bad, or even a disaster?
I don’t really know what to say. More than that, after all, it was probably a fitting end for a series that, after two admittedly controversial, but at the same time groundbreaking and above all qualitatively stable seasons, finally came back after a break of four years – and gave us one of the most radical departures the television world has seen.
Rarely has a series undergone such a personality change and tracked so capitally.
It took the expression “You never know what happened next” to new heights, or new depths if you will, with its tireless, almost parodically sensational orgy in filth, drugs and humiliation.
It cannot be said that everything was lousy; the creator Sam Levinson is clearly talented and so is the ensemble. Nor that there was no message about the state and prospects of America’s youth somewhere between the fentanyl, the pats and the porn. “God help us all” became the clear message at the end.
But after this spectacle and 2023’s hopeless “The idol” I have begun to wonder if there is anyone who can save Levinson from himself and from his worst impulses. And inform him that he is now past 40 and should start trying to control his jerking fantasies from the boys’ room.
And another thing I think about is that the third season of “Euphoria” has been a massive commercial success, despite the fact that almost no one liked it. Because it quickly became the subject of the phenomenon known as hate-watching, which in short involves people consuming things they actively dislike or get upset about, in order to perhaps feel a little smarter and then be able to rage and bond with others who think the same on various social platforms.
It’s hardly a new thing. Large parts of the reality genre have for decades been based on interfering with the participants. And already in the 90s, for example, I returned a little too often to Steve Urkel (those who remember, you remember) to be provoked by his extreme difficulty. But in my defense, there wasn’t always much to choose from, and I had the sense to keep quiet about it anyway. And that the phenomenon has exploded and become a hobby for the masses nowadays, when the supply is so huge that no one has time to watch everything that is actually good, is neither particularly flattering for humanity nor good for television culture in the long run.
Because streaming is an attention economy, and when people love to hate productions like “Emily in Paris”, “And just like that” and “With love, Meghan”, and start going to the roof over watching Sydney Sweeney topless once again…
Yes, then you can perhaps imagine that it leads to more television that is basically intentionally made for hat viewing. At the expense of whoever is not.
Or as Maddy said when Cassie posted polarizing content on Onlyfansin one of this spring’s most reviled “Euphoria” episodes:
“The angrier these idiots get, the more money you make.”
Touche.
FJELLBORG’S FAVORITES
Cape Fear
Nick Antoscas new “Cape Fear” on Apple TV Plus is badass, gorgeous and admirable in every way. With Amy Adams, Patrick Wilson and Javier Bardem in lethal form as the villain Max Cady. Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg are executive producers – and this is probably the best series of the summer.
The trio
Skyshowtime’s Swedish venture based on Johanna Hedmans book about a young love triangle and its effect 20 years later, is wistful, nostalgic and fancy. And very well played, by August Wittgenstein, Nina Zanjani, Felix Sandman and the newcomers Seth Manteus and Rebecca Harper.
Spider-Noir
The story is perhaps not the strongest in this mix of superhero drama and noir pastiche on Prime Video, but the style and tone are top notch and the eccentric Nicolas Cage is very entertaining as an alternate, cynical and slightly older Spider-Man. Can be seen in both color and black and white, but choose the latter version.
