Have you ever had a feeling that you’re being watched? That feeling when you’re walking down the street and you feel like there’s a pair of eyes somewhere looking only at you? That feeling of discomfort is central in a Netflix series. YOU is a psychological thriller made by Caroline Kepnes, based on a novel by the same name, and is a Netflix series fans of thrillers must watch.
YOU is about a man named Joe Goldberg, played by Penn Badgley. Joe is an intelligent bookstore clerk, who inserts himself into the lives of women who peak his curiosity, using any means necessary to do so. Each season Joe pursues a female love interest. Season 1 gives us Guinevere Beck in autumnal New York, played by Elizabeth Lail, an aspiring writer in college who also struggles financially. In season 2 we then get Love Quinn in sunny Los Angeles, played by Victoria Predretti. Love is a chef with a buried bloody past and a protective sister to Forty Quinn, another character who plays a major role in this show. Season 3 has Marienne Bellamy played by Tati Gabrielle, a librarian, someone who loves books similar to Joe and has had problems in the past similar to Love. Season 4 gives us Kate Lockwood in romantic France, played by Charlotte Ritchie, an art dealer with a powerful businessman father, whose name is Tom Lockwood.
The show allows us to hear Joe’s inner monologue which helps us understand his character on a personal level, and how he justifies his morally wrong actions. From stalking and murder, to being put in life or death situations. We see how the consequences of Joe’s actions affect him throughout the show, making him more and more mentally unstable as the show progresses, befitting for a psychological thriller.
The series finale of YOU, season 5, gives us Joe returning to his roots, back in New York, but now he has embraced his dark side. In season 5 Joe has the liberty of doing things hes wanted to do without being held back, becoming a more unhinged version of himself.
I had a really good time watching this show for the first time. Season 4 of YOU takes a different spin on things, keeping the same premise but making it even more interesting, using the classic “whodunit” style and shifting to a darker tone, making it feel like a true murder mystery. The “Eat The Rich” killer is introduced to be a thorn in Joe’s side, showing us that Joe can be an unreliable narrator. Others will argue that the last two seasons didn’t do as well for good reason, like reusing an overused trope or the controversial opinions of the ending of the final season. I picked up on some of these tropes when watching Season 3. I thought the new characters introduced were kind of lackluster, and were only made to keep up the agenda this show was maintaining for so long. People also criticize season 5 for being the most underwhelming finale of all time. I would give this show a 9/10 simply because I watched the show while it became extremely popular, which only enhanced the experience when I watched YOU for the first time.
