The chaos that breaks out during the second half of Lexi Howard's Our Life at the Season
2 finale of Euphoria is the most beautiful trainwreck of a theatrical experience I've
ever witnessed, and I've seen Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark.
However, Lexi's onstage fantasia and the Big Feelings it inspires in her sister are far
from the most dramatic twists in the HBO drama's season finale. Cal is handed over to the cops
by Nate! The cops raid Fez's home, resulting in his death! The highlights of "All My Life,
My Heart Has Yearned for a Thing I Cannot Name" are listed below.
When Fez is about to go for Lexi's play, he notices Custer and Fay shooting at each other.
Custer quickly acknowledges what he's suspected for some time: the cops discovered Mouse's
body. There's some back-and-forth with Fay about how he told her Laurie killed Mouse,
but then Ash stabs Custer in the neck with a knife before Fez can intervene, and that's
the end of it. Fez places his hand over Custer's mouth while he bleeds out, then makes sure
Ash and Fay stay quiet while he dumps Custer's phone into a half-drunk Big Gulp in the kitchen,
realizing that someone might be listening in via Custer's phone.
We instantly flashback to Lexi and Fez talking on the phone about Little House on the Prairie,
social networking, and how their lives are very different but they share similar character
traits. He tells her, "That's the main s–t," and it's so lovely and genuine... Then we
return to Fez, who is near-hyperventilating in the kitchen as a result of everything that
has happened. We pick up where Lexi's play left off, with
Cassie dragon-breathing on the back of the auditorium door. Her mother whispers, "Oh
God," as she marches in with a frown on her face. As Cassie sashays down the center aisle
toward the stage and walks straight up on stage, many audience members take notice.
God bless the man in charge of the follow spot, because he lights Cassie up from the
time she enters the fray. Cassie mocks her sister's play, then drags the playwright onto
the stage, Lexi gently pleading with her to stop. Mama Suze also climbs up to attempt
to help, but this only adds fuel to Cassie's fire. Cassie screams at her sister, "You're
just a f–king bystander," drawing boos from the audience.
Cassie and Maddy are arguing in front of everyone at one point about who has the biggest see-you-next-Tuesday.
Then, during the carousel scene based on Cassie's Season 1 carnival O, Maddy decides it's time
to join in the fun when Cassie attacks the girl who's playing her in the play. She eventually
pursues Cassie off the stage and beats her up in the school corridor.
Lexi is in a puddle of tears backstage as a result of the incident, but her stage manager
helps her reclaim her mojo. Lexi's name is soon chanted by the audience. So she takes
the stage, thanks everyone, and announces that they will be back in a few minutes. She
then dedicates the show to Fez (though she does not identify him).
Speaking of Fez, he's going to take responsibility for Custer's death, and he'll do it soon,
because the cops are about to break down the door. He orders Ash to leave, but the youngster
refuses; instead, he gathers all of their weapons and prepares to make his last stand
in the toilet. Fez loses his guard when there's a commotion at the front door, giving Ash
just enough time to punch his brother in the head and then lock himself in the toilet.
The cops storm in and point their guns at Fez, who begs them not to fire. He cries,
"There's a kid in there!" and begs Ash to come out. When Ash hears a flash bang grenade
go off, he becomes so enraged that he shoots through the door, hitting Fez in the side.
The cops retaliate, and things quickly escalate. When the youngster goes for broke, Fez is
bleeding badly on the floor, still screaming for his brother to stop shooting. There are
SO MANY BULLETS, and poor Fez is lying on the filthy carpet, pleading with Ash to respond.
When things quiet down, an officer unlocks the restroom door and announces that Ash is
unconscious. He, on the other hand, was a liar! He sits up and shoots the cop in front
of him, then stands there watching while another officer's laser sight crawls up his face to
his brow. The final shot is heard by a devastated Fez, who realizes what has happened.
What's new with Rue? She informs us that she went to meet Elliot a few days ago. "I believe
you may have saved my life by accident," she says, and when he asks if she's on any medications,
she says no. She hasn't spoken to Jules yet ("I guess that one's going to take a little
longer," she laments), but he sings her a song while playing the guitar. Rue's eyes
well up with tears as she listens to the song, which has a refrain of "I hope it was worth
it in the end." She tells him she enjoys it in the end. He wonders if they can still be
friends, and when she reminds him that he was the one who declared they weren't compatible,
he replies he still believes that. Later, we watch her contact Lexi to compliment
her on her play, which contained a sequence based on Rue's father's eulogy. "I've been
through a lot, and I don't know what to do with it," Rue eventually tells her pal. You've
been through a lot, and you've managed to make the best of it." Rue says that seeing
the play "meant the world to me." They talk about how much they miss their fathers, as
well as the various complex feelings that come with it. Rue speculates that Lexi's addict
father "loves you a lot more than he loves himself," but concedes that this isn't much
consolation. They both cry, and Rue scoots next to Lexi and gives her a tight hug. The
curtain comes down as the crowd gives Lexi and her cast a standing ovation, and that
scene is also the final one of Our Life — don't think about the chronology of events too hard,
because this production didn't — and the curtain comes down as the audience gives Lexi
and her cast a standing ovation. A beaten-up toilet in the ladies' room Cassie
informs Maddy that she and Nate are no longer together. "Don't worry," Maddy says (to console?
to warn? ), "this is only the beginning." As the audience leaves the theatre, Jules
takes a seat next to Rue and tells her how much she loves and misses her. Rue kisses
her on the head and walks away. Jules sobs. Rue tells us in a voiceover that she stayed
clean for the rest of the school year. "I'm not sure if this feeling will continue forever,"
she admits, "but I'm giving it my best go." Nate loads his rifle, takes a few beers, and
drives to one of his father's construction sites, where Cal is holding a small get-together
with some half-dressed pals. "Can you tell me something we share in common?" Nate informs
his father. "We both get a kick out of inflicting pain on others." He inquires as to Cal's happiness.
The older man answers, "I'm figuring things out." Cal blew everything up and then left,
according to Nate, who claims he discovered Cal's sex films when he was 11 years old and
began having dreams about his father "f–king me like he was f–king others." Everyone
with a last name other than Jacobs hustles out of there around that time.
Cal claims he made a mistake, but he loves his son and believes he should have kept him
safe. Nate points the rifle at his father's torso and says, "I don't want your apologies."
"All I want is vengeance." After that, he takes a thumb drive from his pocket. Cal inquires
as to what's on it. "Everything," he adds as the police lights outside begin to flicker.
Cal begs his son not to do what he's planning, but Nate declares that he will never change.
The teen then comes to the door, opens it, and watches as three cops arrest Cal.