Previously on HBO’s Euphoria, Maddy has Alamo help her with Cassie saving Nate, only to find Nate dead. After being held hostage at Laurie’s, Rue tries to have Faye help her get the money and run. They open the safe, but no money is to be found.
The episode begins with Faye screaming for Wayne to wake up. Rue grabs something and hits Wayne with it, then punches Faye, making a run for it. Wayne grabs a shotgun and chases her. She luckily escapes the house, but Harley edges closer to her on a horse. He lassoes her, but he ends up falling off the horse after being shot by G from afar. Rue runs and gets in the car with G. They make it back to the club with Rue’s evidence and hand it over to Alamo. He proposes a 50/50 split and a “lifetime truce.” He wants her to take a week off to heal and relax. He also gives her a bottle of Percocet for the pain. Rue goes to Ali’s after getting stitches in her hand.
Big Eddy and Mitch get the drugs from Mexico and pick up the girls. They almost get caught at the border, but make it through, returning to the States. We learn that while Mitch went to get the girls, Big Eddy and Bishop switched the trucks.
After having to use the restroom, Wayne learns from Faye that the drug mule is a setup; they’re laxatives, not painkillers. They make a run for it, leaving the house. As Big Eddy and Mitch arrive at the house, the DEA comes right behind them. Before the officers can get to her, Laurie ends up hanging herself from the roof. We also learn that Big Eddy possibly was an informant when he mentions to one of the agents that he quits.
In the morning, Rue watches the news and finds out that Fezco escaped prison. As she runs off to find him, Ali finds the bottle of pills on his table. She breaks into her childhood home, only to find Fez nowhere to be found. She enters the kitchen to find her mother and father; they embrace her. Next, we see Rue asleep— it was all a dream. Ali goes to wake her and finds her dead. Ali checks the pills and learns that Alamo laced the Percocet with fentanyl.
A few months go by, and Ali holds his last AA meeting. He admits that when Rue died, he drank, relapsing.
Maddy and Cassie create a business together and plan to do their content in the house Cassie shared with Nate. The girls haven’t told Lexie that Nate’s dead, only that he’s disappeared. Lexie pays them a visit at the house. Maddy gets picked up by Bishop. After Maddy leaves, Lexie expresses her guilt to her sister about Rue, telling her she read the Bible Rue left in her apartment.
Maddy and Bishop make it to the club. Alamo takes her to a VIP room, and Bishop stands on the other side of the door, guarding it. Ali comes in with his military uniform on and a gun in his hand, barricading the doors. Meanwhile, Alamo tells Maddy that he had an epiphany. He tells her, “I’m just another slave with a little more money in my hand.”
Ali gets Kitty’s attention and asks for G. G goes over to him, and Ali tells him that he’s a friend of Rue’s. Ali grabs his gun from underneath the table and orders him to sit down. Ali asks what happened to Rue, and G tells him that she overdosed on fentanyl. G lies about not knowing who gave her the drugs, and as he stands up, Ali shoots him. He yells for Alamo, who ambushes him from behind. As Ali grabs his dropped gun, Alamo uses Maddy as a shield. He throws her on the floor and gets a gun from Bishop. Ali tells him that he came here because of Rue. Alamo grabs a champagne bottle and tells Kitty to put it on the table. As it nears rolling off, Alamo points his gun at Ali, but it clicks— Bishop emptied the gun. The bottle drops, and Ali kills him. Bishop takes Maddy and Kitty home.
Next, we see Ali visiting the family in Texas that Rue told him about from episode one. He tells them that she passed away. He has supper with them and leads them in prayer. As he says “Amen”, he sees Rue at the head of the table, smiling. At the end, Rue says, “May God bless us all.”
Overall, this was a heartbreaking yet perfect ending. Between Rue passing away and both Maddy and Cassie being heartbroken over Nate’s death, there was so much solemnity in this episode. Throughout this episode after Rue’s death, we see Ali’s love for her and his cry for help, which stood out the most. Colman Domingo did an incredible job as Ali. It was a beautiful way to end the story, with Ali coming for redemption, killing Alamo, and then visiting the family in Texas. Even though there are some unanswered questions about why Bishop gave Alamo an empty gun, and if Alamo had been taking advantage of Maddy, the finale did give us some relief and comfort in knowing that all of the bad guys are dead. Even though it was sad to see Rue die, it was unfortunately going to happen, whether from overdosing or getting murdered. Zendaya did spectacular as Rue Bennett.
Rating: 10/10