This post contains spoilers for Euphoria. Who would have guessed that it would be Rue all along? On Sunday night’s episode of Euphoria, Cassie’s secret affair with Nate was finally revealed to Maddy—and Kat, Lexi, Gia, her mom, and Rue’s mom—by none other than Rue herself, who saw a wicked opportunity to save her own skin by throwing Cassie under the bus. Her revelation marked a long-awaited turning point in the season, and also pulled the rug out from under viewers—spiking a popular fan theory that, had it been true, would have been an explosive twist. All season long, fans have wondered if Maddy knew about Cassie’s affair and was merely waiting for the right moment to enact her revenge. It was a sadistic theory, though not entirely beyond the realm of possibility for Euphoria. The last episode seemed to hint at such theories, with Maddy throwing pointed looks at Cassie while verbally lacerating Nate in the hot tub. In another scene, Maddy calls Cassie immediately after Nate screens her call, potentially suggesting she knows the two of them are together. But those were just little red herrings designed to make Sunday night’s revelation land with a more resounding crash. The episode opens in stark contrast to the starry chaos of season two thus far, beginning with Rue having a violent, emotional showdown with her mother after she realizes her mother has taken the suitcase full of the drugs she was supposed to sell. It’s an acting tour-de-force from Zendaya, who oscillates between high rage and whimpering vulnerability. After the breakdown, Rue agrees to be taken to rehab by her mother, only to change her mind once they’re on the road. When they refuse to take her home, she runs into traffic, escaping to Lexi and Cassie’s house. Her family catches up and the scene becomes a full-blown intervention (her second of the day), with her friends and family around her. Cassie—so sweet, so slow of mind—encourages Rue to just “take it one day at a time.” Rue, desperately in need of an escape hatch, decides to cause a little mayhem. “Hey Cass? How long have you been fucking Nate Jacobs?” she asks. Cassie, a bad actress (played by Sydney Sweeney, a great actress), tries to lie, but it quickly becomes apparent to everyone in the room that the secret is true. “I’m literally gonna get violent!” Maddy screams, an instant contender for best line of the season. Rue escapes, leaving Cassie behind to fend for herself. In the scheme of things, it’s one of the more unpredictable ways this secret could have come to the fore. Maddy slyly knowing all along could have made sense (the drama!), though her hotheaded ways wouldn’t have enabled her to stay mum this long. Rue spilling the beans is much more of a shock, because she usually keeps to herself and is rarely in the same room as Cassie. (That Oklahoma bathroom scene was a reminder that Rue even knows anyone at Euphoria High beyond Jules and Lexi.) Episode five underlines Rue’s moral disintegration, showing how her addiction leads her to physically and emotionally hurt the people she loves the most. As for the people she merely likes? Oh, Cassie. Wrong place, wrong time. Rue delivering the secret also underlines the show’s thesis, which is: drugs are awful. Sure, there’s a lot of drug use on Euphoria, prompting national hand-wringing over its depiction, but depiction and glamorization are not the same thing. No matter how high Rue gets, there’s always a vicious drop waiting for her on the other side. Over the course of a single episode, Rue’s severe addiction leads her to torch her relationship with her mom, her sister, her classmates, and Fezco. She breaks into a stranger’s home, nearly gets arrested, and runs into traffic (twice). The only person left for her to turn to is the drug dealer who warned Rue that she’ll have her “kidnapped and sold to some real sick people” if she doesn’t get her money. At this point, the only thing “glamorizing” Rue’s addiction is the fact that she’s still alive. More Great Stories From Vanity Fair — Cover Story: Priyanka Chopra Jonas on Her Excitement for the Future This post contains spoilers for Euphoria. A week ago, the nation settled in to watch the Rams battle the Bengals in the Super Bowl, but over on HBO, Euphoria fans gathered to watch a showdown of a different nature: Maddy vs. Cassie. At last, Maddy had found out about Cassie and Nate, a reveal that promised to pave the way for biggest fight East Highland had ever seen. But then…the fight never happened. To the grave disappointment of fans, the episode glossed over the feud entirely, skipping straight to the part where Maddy licks her wounds and moves on. Done and dusted, over and out. Or so it seemed. This Sunday night’s episode retraced last week’s steps and flashed back to the Big Reveal, showing exactly what happened after Maddy (Alexa Demie) found out about the affair. But surprisingly, it wasn’t the violent showdown that fans imagined it might be. Instead, right after Rue reveals Cassie’s secret, Cassie sprints up the stairs and locks herself in her bathroom. Maddy charges behind and bangs on the door (the second time this season Cassie’s had to lock herself in a bathroom to hide from Maddy). “Open the door and tell me it was worth it!” Maddy says, sobbing while Kat rubs her backs and comforts her. All the huffing and puffing that was promised actually turns into a tender teen breakdown. No punches thrown, no hair pulled. Just a girl crying over the betrayal of her best friend. (Achingly portrayed by Demie, taking the baton from season 2 scene-stealer Sydney Sweeney.) Then, Maddy leaves, closing the Cassie chapter of her life. And…that’s that. The full-circle start and finish of the big Cassie vs. Maddy showdown. The show teased it up just to tear it down, despite moments this season that seemed to amp up Maddy’s love of fighting—including, but not limited to, a scene where she slams a girl’s head into a wall. What really happens, though, is human and realistic, much more in the realm of how a girl who has constantly been abused and lied to by those closest to her would actually respond. Euphoria often pulls this kind of about-face on Maddy, proffering her bullying bonafides, then turning around and inflicting all kinds of violence on her, typically at the hands of Nate. Much of her season 1 storyline revolved around Nate abusing her at the carnival. Season 2 goes much the same way, with the most recent episode showing Nate breaking into her room and threatening to shoot her, establishing an astonishing new baseline of sociopathy for the character. Yet the underlying current of the episode is the rising zen of Maddy. In the previous episode, she got to hang out with her mentor, Samantha (Minka Kelly, in a role written for her), and hear some kind, sensible words of wisdom for how to get over Cassie’s betrayal. She’s also warmly portrayed in Sunday night’s episode, with Lexi’s controversial play shining a kind light on the Maddy character and emphasizing her role as a surrogate big sister, reminding viewers that Maddy moved in with Cassie’s family because her parents fought all the time. The play also pokes endless fun at Cassie and Nate (though the homoerotic splendor of the Nate-centric football scene was undercut by a weirdly homophobic tone). For once, Maddy has the upper hand and she revels in it, laughing at Nate’s embarrassment. Then, without lifting a finger, she gets the ultimate revenge at the end of the episode, when Nate gets so fed up with Lexi’s play that he breaks up with Cassie on the spot. Maddy, it turns out, never needed to fight Cassie in order to win the war. 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