Student Life October 2019

EUPHORIA
NOW TV REVIEW
BY LEANNE ARNOLD
After seeing a post by my celebrity
girlfriend, Zendaya, I became excited for a
TV series that she described as a ‘raw and
honest portrait of addiction, anxiety and
the difficulty of navigating life today’.
I was apprehensive at first, unfortunately
mental health isn’t always portrayed very
well in TV and film, and as one of the shows
main focuses there was a lot riding on this.
However, without giving it a chance how
was I able to make my decision on this?
After watching the show it’s clear that
there is a strong love for two of the main
characters; Rue and Jules. Having watched
the series, I can confirm that I am an avid
Rue fan… but here’s a wee overview of
both of them.
As the show starts you get a feel for
Rue pretty quickly. She’s a quirky
loveable character, and battling with
her own demons, you get a sense of
protectiveness over her. Fresh out of
rehab Rue is a recovering drug addict that
has no intention of staying clean. You
are taken on a journey of her struggles
with her addiction and the impact this
has on the social, mental health, family
and educational aspects of her life.
Her character, although making many
decisions which are at her own demise, is
loveable and un-apologetically fun.
However, being my celebrity
girlfriend, I may be slightly biased
so let me redeem myself.
Jules, a transgender female character
enters the scene fairly quickly as the new
girl, and you can recognise that she has
some hidden demons in which she is still
battling. Coming from an LGBT community
I absolutely adore that the actor who plays
Jules is a huge advocate for the LGBT+
community and is herself transgender.
I believe the producers made a very
smart and welcoming move with casting
Hunter Schafer to play this role. Jules’
backstory is heart-breaking and the more
you learn about her the more you come
to love the character. Jules had a rough
childhood filled with trickery, self-harm,
gender dysphoria, and divorcing parents
– to name a few. For me, her story was
played well, and you are able to relate and
connect with this character.
11 • ENTERTAINMENT • STUDENT LIFE