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Speaker 1 00:00:05 It's Sunday night, 8:54 PM. You stop your reading. You know that it takes exactly six minutes to walk downstairs, plug your computer into the TV, monitors, HDMI cable, and load HBO, max.com on the HBO website under continue watching you look for the familiar title euphoria. For some reason, the show's icon is not there. It's okay. You search for it. This puts you a few seconds behind schedule, but you accept that and click on the icon that appears only you've already seen the episode that starts playing at that moment. You realize there's no new episode, an odd feeling of emptiness settles into your, with no euphoria available. What will you do for the next hour? What will you do next Sunday, college students and other viewers around the globe have developed a tradition over the last two months. Every Sunday evening, they sit around the TV screen and watch the newest euphoria episode. Since the show first aired end 2019, it has steadily grown its base. Now two seasons and a few special intermediate episodes later. Teenagers are obsessed. Curious about this obsession. I talked to some Northwestern students about the significance behind their weekly viewing parties and their plans for future Sundays devoid of euphoria. TJI a first year in Middel watched every new episode in his dorm lounge with some friends, he was unimpressed with season two, stating that it
Speaker 2 00:01:25 Did not meet expectations while the show didn't have incredible amounts of story. This was, as I've said to many, a friend and many, a person at our watch party, this season was 70% vibe, 30% story,
Speaker 1 00:01:40 Despite disappointment in the show itself to Kenji thoroughly enjoyed spending that quality time with his friends.
Speaker 2 00:01:46 I like making, watching a show, a social event. I think it's nice to share common things with people. I don't really like the binge culture that's arise from streaming. I prefer much more to like watch shows with people. So then I have people to talk about them with whether it's for a minute, whether it like later in the week, it's nice to have things in common of people
Speaker 1 00:02:07 Rose. Another first year has similar praise for her own viewing parties. Her friends were not caught up on euphoria. So she watched season two on her own as it came out. But she does get together with her friends to watch the bachelor every Monday,
Speaker 3 00:02:20 As much as you do enjoy the show, it's really just an to all go hang out together and like laugh and talk over the show kind of the entire time feel like even though we're watching something together, it's really just about hanging out and like spending more time together on a given night,
Speaker 1 00:02:36 Both TJI and rose pointed out the break that watching a show with their friends, offered them from the stress of schoolwork and other obligations.
Speaker 2 00:02:44 You have something to look forward to. And I appreciate that the serotonin of like getting everyone together and then going downstairs keeps me motivated like on a Sunday, it's
Speaker 3 00:02:53 Really just about hanging out and like spending more time together on a given night and kind of using it as an excuse to be like, okay, yeah, I have homework tonight. And like, I shouldn't be hanging out with people, but you know, there's something to do. So I'm gonna use that as an excuse to go hang out and spend time with my friends, which is always worth it in my mind
Speaker 1 00:03:12 Because TJI and rose dedicated a chunk of every Sunday to you, four, ya for the past two months, I knew that the, they would have some free time in the near future. I had to know what they would be watching to fill that time.
Speaker 2 00:03:24 How so the dragon in HBO, I'm also excited to watch the boys season three.
Speaker 3 00:03:28 I really wanna watch the Americans next.
Speaker 1 00:03:30 Will these dedicated viewers continue their viewing party traditions for house of the dragon, the Americans and euphoria season three.
Speaker 3 00:03:37 Oh, I hope so. Feel like, like all of my friends watch it and we all like talk about it so much that I would not be surprised if there was a season three viewing party.
Speaker 2 00:03:46 I think that I will be doing watch parties for other things. How are the dragon HBO invincible, um, season two, season three to boys, but that's in the summer
Speaker 1 00:03:55 Because of the chokehold that euphoria has on this generation. One is so piece of information I needed from my interviewees was this, what does a post euphoria season two world look like for them? A world without new insights into the lives of Ru Jules, Maddie and Cassie, every Sunday,
Speaker 2 00:04:12 A post euphoria world is a world that was the same. Is there like something that gives me like happiness on a Sunday night? Yeah. There's tag on Titan. I'm fine.
Speaker 3 00:04:21 I feel like Sunday nights. I'm just gonna be like disappointed.
Speaker 1 00:04:27 It turns out that maybe the euphoria obsession had less to do with the plot and more to do with the community created around watching the show either way. We'll keep our eyes out for season three. In the meantime, if you are looking for a way to, during reading and finals weeks, sit down on the couch with some friends and watch a favorite show together. As our guests noted, it's a great way to spend quality and relaxing time with people you care about for w and your news. I'm.
