In HBO’s Bleak Gen Z Drama, Euphoria Is the Opposite of Happiness

Gen Z is sad--or so their elders have heard. And it isn't just teen angst. Too young to remember 9/11, they had relatively peaceful childhoods that have given way to existential struggles on both political and environmental fronts. Adults haven't been much help. We haven't meaningfully addressed the sources of their stress--like school shootings--but we have capitalized on it with moody Burger King commercials and anhedonic hitmakers from Billie Eilish to Lil Uzi Vert.

Gen Z is sad--or so their elders have heard. And it isn't just teen angst. Too young to remember 9/11, they had relatively peaceful childhoods that have given way to existential struggles on both political and environmental fronts. Adults haven't been much help. We haven't meaningfully addressed the sources of their stress--like school shootings--but we have capitalized on it with moody Burger King commercials and anhedonic hitmakers from Billie Eilish to Lil Uzi Vert.