"Trying to Get to Heaven Before They Close the Door" is the first episode of the second season of Euphoria, and the eleventh episode of the series overall. It was released on January 9, 2022 on HBO and HBO Max.[1]
- For the episode's transcript, see here.
Premise[]
Rue and Jules cross paths with each other as East Highland celebrates New Year in an unforgettable party.
Plot[]
Marie O'Neill, Fezco's grandma, arrives at a strip club with a revolver in her hand. She shoots Paulie, Fezco's father, in both legs. She returns to the car with a young Fez, saying that he will live with her now. Marie enlists her grandson's help with her drug business. After a day at school, Fez comes home to a baby lying on the floor. After Marie is scammed by another drug dealer, she tells Fezco that the baby came from a customer as collateral, but he is never picked up. While taking a bath in the sink, the baby eats a cigarette, an amused Marie calls him an ashtray. Marie discovers the location of the scammer and beats him with a crowbar, Fez tries to stop her but is accidentally hit by Marie. During a dinner, Marie excuses herself from dinner early and collapses on the bathroom floor. Fez drives her to the hospital, unable to call 911. Marie returns home in a vegetative state, leaving Fez to take over her business.
In the present, Mouse and Custer are speaking with Fez. Armed with a hammer, Ashtray kills Mouse and breaks Custer's nose. Rue, Ashtray, and Fez are on the way to meet with Custer to find a new drug supplier. Rue and Custer's girlfriend, Faye, are suddenly grabbed from the car. Laurie's thugs forces the group to strip, fearing they may be informants. Laurie asks Fez if he trusts Rue, and he vouches for her. Laurie fronts Fez a suitcase of drugs.
Kat, Jules, and Maddy arrive at a New Year's party. Rue sees Jules and hides. Lexi asks Maddy if she's seen Cassie, saying that the two had an argument and Cassie got out of the car. Cassie sits alone in a gas station parking lot and is stumbled upon by Nate. Nate offers to give Cassie a ride to the party. The two drink and Nate begins to drive dangerously fast, which initially frightens Cassie but she gets turned on.
Maddy knocks on the bathroom door, unaware that Nate and Cassie are having sex inside. Upon hearing Maddy's voice, the two panic. An increasingly annoyed Maddy yells at Nate to open the door. Unable to open a window, Nate tells Cassie to hide inside of the bathtub. While Maddy waits, Travis flirts with her. Cassie lays down in the tub while Maddy uses the restroom. Both Maddy and Travis have a prolonged conversation in the bathroom when Cassie's phone begins to ring as Lexi calls her. Travis opens the shower curtains and sees Cassie, he tells Maddy to look, but she brushes it off and the two leave to go dance. A relieved Cassie finally leaves the bathroom.
Lexi sits on a couch next to Fezco. Fez asks Lexi if she knows Rue and the two begin to converse. Fez spots Nate across the room and they exchange looks. Jules ask the two if they have seen Rue, which they deny. Fez compliment's Lexi's intelligence, and they discuss whether or not they believe in God. After finding Cassie, Lexi returns to Fez on the couch and he flirts with her.
Rue returns to the car and finds Faye's Altoids tin of heroin, which she takes. Rue walks around the house for a room to take the drugs, and finds a young man snorting drugs. Rue convinces him to tell her what drugs he's taking. Rue snorts her drugs with Elliot and fears that she is beginning to overdose due to her pulse slowing. Rue's pulse slows and Elliot begins to panic, she tells him to crush the Adderall in her sock and her heart rate normalizes. Rue tells Elliot that he's her new favorite person.
McKay arrives at the party and greets Nate and Lexi. McKay sees Travis and Maddy together, Nate tells him about the breakup and that he's doing everything he can to get her back. McKay takes Cassie to another room and they discuss their breakup, Cassie saying that it just felt that they were in two different places. Cassie tearfully tells McKay that she isn't a good person, implying that she cheated on him. A hurt McKay leaves her in the room. McKay begins to heavily drink, and Nate asks if they had sex in the room. Nate makes McKay extremely uncomfortable by asking where he came.
Ethan greets Kat and they share a kiss and Jules teases them before walking away. Jules sees Rue at the campfire, shocked. Jules sits next to Rue and asks when she relapsed. Rue tells her that she relapsed the night Jules left, which causes her to tear up with guilt. Fez asks Lexi for her phone number and tells Ash to start the car. Ashtray tells Rue that if she wants a ride, he and Fez are leaving now.
A concerned Lexi stares at Fez as he takes off his sweatshirt. Midnight strikes as Jules and Rue share a kiss. Fez starts a conversation with Nate, and Nate reminds Fez about his threat. Fez brushes it off, saying it is a New Year before smashing a liquor bottle over his head and beating him. After a prolonged beating, McKay and Virgil pull Fez off of Nate. Rue and Jules stare in shock, with Rue simply saying "Damn."
Credits[]
Cast[]
Crew[]
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Directed By Written By
Created By
Executive Producers
Producers Co-Producers Director of Photography Production Designer Edited By
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Music Composed By Casting By NY Casting By Unit Production Manager
First Assistant Directors Second Assistant Director Costume Designer Associate Producer Music Supervisors Sound Designer Consultants |
Trivia[]
- The title of this episode is a reference to the Bob Dylan song "Tryin' to Get to Heaven" from his 1997 thirtieth studio album, Time Out of Mind.
- This episode takes place on Monday December 31, 2018.
- According to Angus Cloud, this episode was filmed on location for five days and each day was 7:00 PM till sunrise, all solid all-nighters.[2]
- HBO Max actually crashed for many users due to over activity.[3]
- It's only been around a week since the events of the specials, which take place around Christmas.
- According to Levinson, the intent of the party was to not appear to closely to the opening party of the first episode, intending for it to appear as a party taking place at 5am.
- Cassie confirms she has broken up with McKay.
- The flashes of the characters as the New Year begins is intended to evoke the feel of a photo taken during a party, acting almost as portraits.
- The production team reached out to Kodak to remake ektachrome for shooting, who then had to convert their factory to remake it.
- Daelo Walton, Javon Walton (Ashtray)'s brother, portrays 6-year old Ashtray.
- It was previously the highest rated episode on IMDb, with a 9.3 rating, until "Stand Still Like the Hummingbird".
- The episode bump up to 10.8 million total viewers since the series original broadcast.[4] The episode is also the most viewed episode of an HBO series ever on HBO Max, currently with more than 14 million viewers across platforms, more than double the average audience of Season 1 (6.6 million viewers per episode).[5]
- The episode was the #1 most social premium cable episode since the Game of Thrones finale in May 2019.[5]
Soundtrack[]
| Song | Artist | Album | Scene |
|---|---|---|---|
| Don't Be Cruel | Billy Swan | I Can Help | Fez's grandma walks into the strip club. |
| Look At Grandma | Bo Diddley | Where It All Began | Fez's grandma teaches Fez how to deal drugs. |
| Jump Into The Fire | Harry Nilsson | Nilsson Schmilsson | Fezco in math class and sees baby when he arrives home. |
| Think - Instrumental | Curtis Mayfield | Superfly (Soundtrack from the Motion Picture) [Deluxe 25th Anniversary Edition] | Fez tucks the baby in and sleeps next to him. |
| Hyperbolicsyllabicsesquedalymistic | Isaac Hayes | Hot Buttered Soul | Fez's grandma cooks drugs on the stove. |
| What Time It Is | Sonny Skillz | Fez counts money while grandma sunbathes. | |
| I Want Action | Poison | Look What The Cat Dragged In - 20th Anniversary Edition | Fez counts money while grandma sunbathes. |
| I Walk On Guilded Splinters | Johnny Jenkins | Ton-Ton Macoute! | Fez's grandma attacks Bowl-Cut with crowbar. |
| Who Am I | The O'Jays | Back Stabbers | Fez and Ashtray watch a movie. |
| Vampy Thing | Analogue Skywalker | Ashtray attacks Mouse and Custer with a hammer. | |
| Hit 'Em Up - Single Version | 2Pac, Outlawz | Greatest Hits | Rue, Fezco, and Ashtray sing along in the car. |
| Right Down the Line | Gerry Rafferty | City to City | Ashtray, Fez, Custer, and Rue in Laurie's apartment have to undress to confirm no one is wearing a wire. |
| Dirty Work | Steely Dan | Can't Buy A Thrill | Fez and Laurie talk about Mouse; Gives Fez the drugs and they all leave. |
| Affix 44577 Benji | Decadez | Fez, Ashtray, and Rue drive away from Laurie's. | |
| Hypnotize - 2007 Remaster | The Notorious B.I.G. | Greatest Hits | Rue and Jules show up at NYE party; Lexi tells Maddy she can't reach Cassie. |
| Thirsty | Jackie Bistrow | Cassie buys a pack donut. | |
| Who's That | Virus Syndicate | The Swarm | A truck drives with bright light up to Cassie at the convenience store. |
| Just My Luck | David Fredericks | Just My Luck | Nate buys beer at the convenience store. |
| Dead of Night | Orville Peck | Pony | Nate drives Cassie to the party. |
| Runway | Blaq Tuxedo | RUNWAY | Cassie and Nate hook up in the bathroom. |
| Back That Azz Up | JUVENILE, Lil Wayne, Mannie Fresh | 400 Degreez | Cassie hides in the tub; Jules dances; Rue finds drugs and Elliott. |
| Mr. Bangbadaboom | Thrillah | Maddie and Travis flirt; Cassie hides in the tub; Rue goes into cardiac arrest; Fezco and Lexi talk. | |
| Uhuh Yeah | Colbie, G.L.A.M. | Uhuh Yeah | Jules looks for Rue. |
| Ferrari | Troyman | GODSPEED | Fez and Lexi talk about God. |
| Queen | Foxi | Jules finds Kat by the pool. | |
| DIRT | B.o.B | Somnia | Nate talks to McKay. |
| I Can’t Wait | Nu Shooz | Poolside | Lexi calls Cassie; Jules sees Rue by the bonfire. |
| Party Up | DMX | ...And Then There Was X | Maddy and Travis talk; Lexi finds Cassie; McKay Cassie to talk. |
| Madonna | Tarik | Madonna | Nate jokes about McKay and Cassie. |
| Straight Shooter | Jody Upshaw | Straight Shooter | Jules talks to Rue; Ash gets a phone call form Fez to start the car. |
| 4,5,6 | Big Mali | Gangsta Talk | Fez and Lexi talk; Fez takes of his sweater. |
| Pull Up | Derek Minor, Greg James, THICC James | Pull Up | Fez breaks a bottle over Nate's head. |
| (I Just) Died In Your Arms | Cutting Crew | Broadcast | End credits. |
| Auld Lang Syne | Labrinth | End credits. |
Gallery[]
References[]
- ↑ Euphoria Ep. 1: Trying to Get to Heaven Before They Close the Door | Official Website for the HBO Series | HBO.com
- ↑ 'Angus Cloud' interview with 'GQ'
- ↑ 'HBO Max' Crashes for Many Users
- ↑ ‘Euphoria’ Hits Another Ratings Series High, ‘The Gilded Age’ Draws HBO’s Biggest Monday Premiere Audience Since ‘Chernobyl’
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 HBO Renews Drama Series EUPHORIA For A Third Season
| Season 1 | |
|---|---|
|
"Pilot" · "Stuntin' Like My Daddy" · "Made You Look" · "Shook Ones Pt. II" · "'03 Bonnie and Clyde" · "The Next Episode" · "The Trials and Tribulations of Trying to Pee While Depressed" · "And Salt the Earth Behind You" | |
| Special episodes | |
|
"Trouble Don't Last Always" · "Fuck Anyone Who's Not a Sea Blob" | |
| Season 2 | |
|
"Trying to Get to Heaven Before They Close the Door" · "Out of Touch" · "Ruminations: Big and Little Bullys" · "You Who Cannot See, Think of Those Who Can" · "Stand Still Like the Hummingbird" · "A Thousand Little Trees of Blood" · "The Theater and Its Double" · "All My Life, My Heart Has Yearned for a Thing I Cannot Name" | |
| Season 3 | |
|
TBA | |