‘Euphoria’ and ‘Hacks’ say goodbye. Plus, ‘Star City’ takes off

Summary of ‘Euphoria’ and ‘Hacks’ say goodbye. Plus, ‘Star City’ takes off

by The Ringer

1h 21m•June 2, 2026
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Overview of Euphoria and Hacks say goodbye. Plus, Star City takes off by The Ringer

Chris Ryan and Andy Greenwald spend most of this episode unpacking the chaotic, ambitious, and divisive series finale of Euphoria, then briefly compare it to the more conventional emotional payoff of Hacks, before finishing with an enthusiastic rave for Apple TV+’s new spinoff Star City from the For All Mankind team. The conversation centers on how prestige TV handles endings, whether emotional truth matters more than structural logic, and what kinds of big swings are worth defending even when they don’t fully work.

Euphoria Finale: a Big Swing That Divided Them

Their overall reaction

  • Greenwald, who had only watched this season of Euphoria, found the finale both moving and maddening.
  • Ryan, a longtime viewer, was similarly conflicted: impressed by the ambition, frustrated by the storytelling.
  • Both agreed the episode was visually and thematically bold, but also overloaded, uneven, and at times undercooked.

Rue’s ending and the addiction theme

  • The episode’s emotional core is Rue’s apparent death and the fantasy/last-day structure surrounding it.
  • They read the ending as a powerful expression of Sam Levinson’s obsession with addiction, fentanyl, and the idea that many addicts don’t get second chances.
  • The show frames Rue’s final moments through a kind of imagined “choose your own adventure” sequence that turns into a death fantasy, making her ending feel tragic rather than melodramatic.

Ali, cinema, and fantasy

  • A major topic was Ali’s arc and how the show uses him as a vessel for cinematic references:
    • Dirty Harry
    • Rolling Thunder
    • Taxi Driver
    • The Searchers
  • They argued that Ali’s final transformation into a vengeance figure is less literal plot than fantasy logic—an imagined, cinematic answer to the pain of addiction.
  • The “Searchers” framing is especially important: Ali is cast as an outsider who cannot fully enter the “domestic peace” Rue imagines, yet by the end he is brought into the family table scene in a symbolic reversal.

Religion, prayer, and the Old Testament

  • The episode leans heavily into Bible imagery, grace, prayer, and moral binary thinking.
  • Ryan and Greenwald debated whether the show is sincere, skeptical, or simply using religion as another storytelling framework.
  • They agreed that the show seems to treat prayer as a way people try to cope with grief and uncertainty, much like movies or drugs function as escape mechanisms.

What worked and what didn’t

  • What they liked:
    • Zendaya and Coleman Domingo’s performances
    • The emotional intent behind Rue’s ending
    • The tribute to Angus Cloud / Fez
    • The ambition of making the finale feel like a cinematic event
  • What frustrated them:
    • Plot mechanics that weren’t clearly set up
    • The handling of supporting characters
    • Scenes that felt like they belonged to a different show
    • The sense that the season was a “tweener,” neither a full continuation nor a clean reinvention

Hacks Finale: More Traditional, More Satisfying

Deborah’s ending

  • They also discussed Hacks ending the same weekend.
  • In contrast to Euphoria, Hacks delivered a more classic, emotionally legible finale:
    • Deborah learns her cancer has returned.
    • She considers assisted suicide in Switzerland.
    • She ultimately chooses life, work, and more jokes.

Why it worked differently

  • Ryan felt Hacks was more structurally complete and emotionally consistent.
  • But he also noted that the show sometimes relies too much on a cycle of conflict, breakup, reunion, and comfort.
  • Greenwald said he drifted away from the show because its biggest provocations always seemed to resolve with hugs and reassurance.
  • Their takeaway: Hacks is steadier and more “watertight,” while Euphoria is messier but more willing to make truly severe narrative choices.

HBO’s Current Moment

A quick state-of-the-network discussion

  • The hosts touched on HBO’s current and upcoming slate:
    • The White Lotus
    • Task
    • The Last of Us
    • House of the Dragon
    • Lanterns
    • Harry Potter
    • Dune: Prophecy
    • The Gilded Age
    • The Pitt
  • Their point was that HBO still has a strong floor, even if the network’s identity is changing under new corporate ownership.

Main idea

  • HBO no longer looks like the old HBO, but it still has enough dependable hits and ambitious projects to remain culturally relevant.
  • The bigger issue is corporate consolidation, not a lack of content.

Star City: The Best Surprise of the Episode

Why they loved it

  • The final segment is an enthusiastic recommendation for Star City, the Soviet-focused For All Mankind spinoff.
  • They were both surprised by how strong it was, with Greenwald calling it one of the best new shows he’s seen in a while.

What the show is

  • An alternate-history space-race drama set in the Soviet Union in the 1960s.
  • Created by the For All Mankind team: Matt Wolpert, Ben Nedivi, and Ronald D. Moore.
  • Starring:
    • Reece Iphans
    • Anna Maxwell Martin
    • Agnes O’Casey
    • Alice Englert
    • Others in a strong ensemble

Why it stands out

  • It has a gritty, decaying, “brutalist” visual style.
  • The performances feel lived-in and specific.
  • It uses the Soviet perspective to show how triumph is also surveillance, propaganda, and control.
  • Ryan compared it favorably to Andor and Chernobyl in terms of atmosphere and seriousness.
  • Greenwald emphasized that you do not need to have watched For All Mankind to enjoy it.

Key Takeaways

  • Euphoria’s finale was emotionally powerful, but narratively messy.
  • The show’s central concerns are addiction, death, fantasy, forgiveness, and how people use art to make sense of pain.
  • Hacks chose a more conventional but satisfying emotional ending.
  • HBO’s lineup still looks strong, even as the company’s corporate future changes.
  • Star City is the episode’s biggest recommendation: a smart, moody, ambitious spinoff that feels like prestige sci-fi done right.

Bottom Line

This episode is mostly a debate about what audiences owe TV creators—and vice versa. Ryan and Greenwald are willing to defend big artistic swings, especially when they’re trying to say something primal about addiction, loss, and belief. But they’re also clear-eyed about when ambition turns into sloppiness. That balance is what makes the conversation engaging: they’re not just grading the shows, they’re trying to understand what these finales are actually saying.