One other week, one other sneaky “Euphoria” Easter egg hidden among the many drama. Throughout season two’s sixth episode, Rue (Zendaya) wears an oversize Malcolm X graphic tee that followers on Twitter immediately clocked as a rare find hailing from the clothing brand Mosquitohead, however the sartorial alternative is not only a tribute to the late civil rights chief in honor of Black History Month — it is also a delicate callback to a previous dialog Rue had with Ali (Colman Domingo).
To actually recognize this full-circle second, let’s rewind to the first of two “Euphoria” special episodes, “Hassle Do not Final At all times,” which aired in December 2020. Whereas Rue and Ali converse over pancakes at a diner on Christmas Eve, Ali touches on Malcolm X’s private journey to effecting social change and the way America was usually extra receptive to Martin Luther King Jr.’s much less radical strategies. Rue nonchalantly replies, “Possibly I will begin a revolution like Malcolm X or one thing,” which units Ali off on a tangent about how a lot revolutions have, properly, revolutionized although the years.
“A real revolution has no allies,” he says. “It is simply that straightforward, as a result of a real revolution — not a quick one, not a fast one, not a trendy one, however an actual f*cking revolution — is at its core religious. It’s a full decimation of 1’s priorities, beliefs, and way of life.” After addressing simply how severe her habit is, he provides, “Your solely hope is a revolution. However an actual f*cking revolution, in and out. However you gotta see it by means of. You may’t half-ass this sh*t. You simply should decide to it, each single day, and know that you could at all times do it higher and be higher.” The revolution he is referencing is, after all, her highway to sobriety and the way it will not be a simple one.
Quick-forward to episode six of season two, and Rue — who’s experiencing some severe opiate withdrawals after her trip to Laurie’s — calls Ali on the cellphone to apologize for using his past parenting missteps against him. Through the tense and transferring chat, she wears dishevelled sweatpants and the classic T-shirt with Malcolm X’s face and quotes plastered on the entrance. It appears “Euphoria” costume designer Heidi Bivens selected to decorate Rue within the eye-catching piece as a sign that she’s been taking Ali’s recommendation to coronary heart and that her apology is (hopefully) step one on a protracted highway to restoration forward — her personal private revolution, if you’ll. Symbolism and character progress — we like to see it.
