“Euphoria” Recap: Episode 3 -- Big and Little Bullies

It’s pretty safe to assume we were all up to the same thing Sunday night -- watching the new episode of "Euphoria"! If you’re like us, you have been anxiously awaiting each new episode of Season 2, and waiting a week can sometimes feel like a century. But no worries, because Episode 3 was certainly worth the wait! Here are all the highlights from the new episode “Big and Little Bullies”! 

1. Cal’s Backstory 

Right off the bat, we get Cal Jacobs's backstory. Cal is played by Eric Dane, also known as “McSteamy”, a fan favorite from "Grey’s Anatomy"; However, Dane’s character is far from a fan favorite in this series. Cal is an extremely troubled man throughout the series, but in Sunday night's episode, we get a better look at why he is the way he is. We learn about Cal’s high school experience and his best friend Derek (curious if this name choice is an ode to "Grey’s"?), with whom he had a very close relationship. Derek and Cal do everything together and eventually get girlfriends who they end up incorporating into their squad as well. Throughout the backstory, the audience can see Cal’s struggle with his sexulaity as he wants to be more than just friends with Derek. He and Derek eventually act on this impulse the day they graduate high school, but nothing ever comes from it because, the next day, he gets a call from his girlfriend and future wife Marsha that she is pregnant, forcing Cal to be closeted the rest of his life. 

2. Lexi the Playwright 

Thank you Sam Levinson for blessing all us Lexi stans with some top-tier content in this episode. We get to see the creative side of Lexi (Maude Apatow) as she starts to write about everything in her life and then turns it into a play. We love this side of Lexi because fans finally get to see her take charge instead of taking the backseat to everyone and everything. She even alludes to this when she reveals her idea for the show and how it's not about the main character but it’s about the side character. From this, we really feel like we get a good look into Lexi’s mind and how she feels in her life. We can’t wait, though, for her play to come out and all her friends to realize she wrote it about all them. That should certainly elicit some interesting reactions... 

3. Jewel 

Fez (Angus Cloud) would not stop referring to Jules (Hunter Schafer) as "Jewel" and it was the funniest moment of the episode. It made us wonder, does he actually not know her name, or is it a nickname? Either way, Fez is the comic relief of this show, and we aren’t the only ones that think so. 

4. Oklahoma 

Lexi is putting on her own play at school specifically to protest the other play that’s going on, Oklahoma. The confusion surrounding Oklahoma provides some pretty hysterical moments throughout the episode. Rue (Zendaya) has no clue what Oklahoma is and asks Cassie (Sydney Sweeney) if she auditioned, because she’s dressed like a cowgirl. Cassie begins to freak out if it's a bad thing or a good thing that she looks like a country music star, to which Maddy (Alexa Demie) replies that she better be joking. This scene had us dying because, let’s be real, she did look like she was auditioning for Oklahoma. 

5. SIKE! 

Wow, Sam Levinson, you almost got us! Following Cassie’s freakout about whether or not she looked like a cowgirl, she goes into full blown hysterics about how she and Nate (Jacob Elordi) are together and in love and they can judge her but she doesn’t care because she has never been happier, in front of everyone, Maddy included. My mouth literally dropped to the floor. I could not believe that it came out like this, that this massive secret has already been exposed. But sike! This whole scene was in Cassie’s imagination and she really just stared at herself in the mirror. I have to say, though, they got me at first, but now we must wait for it to really come out, and it’s going to be big. 

6. Potty Mouth Maddy 

Once again, we get content of Maddy babysitting precious Theo, and it's not enough -- we want more! Maddy, Theo, and Cassie are all laying out by Theo’s pool and Maddy is talking to Cassie about Nate whether or not she should get back together with him. Somewhere, Maddy let a bad word slip that Theo did not appreciate, and he made sure to call Maddy out on her potty mouth. This scene seriously had us LOLing. 

This episode was crucial in plot formation for the series. We learned so many things we didn’t know before, like Cal’s backstory and how Lexi really feels in her life, while we also got hysterical content like Oklahoma and Theo correcting Maddy. Let’s just say the countdown is on until next Sunday. "Euphoria" is now streaming on HBO Max, with new episodes airing every Sunday on HBO!