YOU on Netflix- The Sociopathic Thriller

“I’m not an option, I’m the chosen one”. – Joe Goldberg, YOU

To what lengths would you go make someone fall in love with you? And in order to woo someone, would you become a murderer? Well the later part becomes quite true when that someone who fell in love with you turns out a sociopath. Well Netflix presents you all with their sociapathic thriller series ‘YOU’. The story of a man who would go to any lengths just for love. From manipulative, controlling and abusing, this series portrays a true sociopath who would do anything to satiate himself.

The Beginning…Season One

The story begins as a pretty woman walks in the bookstore where Joe Goldberg works. The whole story is narrated by Joe himself. The way Joe observes that woman, displays his not-so-normal behavior. He picks up her name from her credit card- Guinevere Beck- as she pays for the book. he begins showing the symptoms of a true stalker by stalking Beck over social media. In no time, what he think as love turns into his obsession. He begins following her everywhere and starts keeping a track of her every move. Moreover, his obsession starts taking a dark side as he makes a duplicate key of her apartment and goes through her personal stuff. He even stole her lingerie and that shows how sick he was in his head.

In order to come close to her, Joe watches her closely. He would even stare in the window during her private moment. Joe has his mind set on becoming Beck’s boyfriend. Therefore, to make Beck notice him, he needed to take care of her Ex- boyfriend- Benjamin ‘Benji’ Ashby. Benji and Beck have on and off relationship. So in the obsession for Beck, Joe kidnaps Benji. He kept him in the plexiglass box beneath the bookstore, where Mr. Mooney used to keep him as a child. And there he murders him, which leads to Beck opening up herself to Joe.

“Sometimes, We Do Bad Things For The People We Love”. – Joe Goldberg, YOU

As Beck and Joe come closer, he meets her friends. Beck’s best-friend, Peach Salinger, has her suspicions on Joe. She feels something off about him and warns Beck. Joe did not liked it, as she began coming between him and Beck. So just like Benji, Joe plans to take care of Peach himself. Therefore, he ends up shooting her at her family estate in Connecticut. Story takes a turn when one day Beck had stayed over at Joe’s place and while he was out for coffee, she finds his little box of trophies. She finds her lingerie, Benji’s phone and other things of the people around her who wet missing. And that’s when she realizes that Joe is not what he seems.

She confronts Joe as he returns and he confesses to her. But she put up a fight and began running. Well, Beck also turns up ending in the box. And eventually, Joe ends up killing her too. Joe finds a perfect way to get out of all the murder charges as he very successfully pinned everything on her therapist- Dr. Nicky.

The Final Chapter…Season two

The season one of the Netflix show YOU ends up with Joe on he run after he had murdered Beck. Beck’s book is published posthumously. In season two, you will find Joe in California. He begins working in a grocery store. There he comes across Forty and Love Quinn, the twins and heir to the family grocery store Joe works in. Now Love becomes Joe’s next YOU. Little did Joe knew that Love is not how she appears. In reality, Love shares the same behavior as Joe. She could also go to any lengths to live her fairytale that she has imagined with Joe.

She very easily kills Delilah, Joe’s next door neighbor who seemed as a threat to Love who could destroy her domestic future with Joe. Love confesses to Joe about the murder she had committed before of the au pair of her brother. She used to sexually molest Forty when he was young. She tells Joe that her family had bribed the police so that she faces no charges.

Joe understand Love as she even thinks like him. She also possess the romantic obsessions while being a murderer. Meanwhile, Forty gets killed in a crossfire with the LAPD. Therefore he gets convicted for killing Delilah after he dies. The season ends with Joe and Love having a baby together. They have left their lives and moved on in together to the country side. The chaos will unleash in the upcoming season three next year.

The Characters

Joe Goldberg- The leading man of the series, played by Penn Badgley has a charismatic appearance. he seems like a boy-next-door, who loves to read and is very intelligent. His shy and anti-social personality intrigued us and made him one of the favorite character in the series despite his sociopathic behavior. Also, he narrates the story from the beginning and it portrays his point of view.

Guinevere Beck- An aspiring writer, played by Elizabeth Lail, who met the leading man in the bookstore. Joe becomes obsessed with her instantly and begins stalking her every move. She appears quite confused, dating not-so-great man and need of money and a knight in shining armor. Well, Joe bags the opportunity to sweep in her life and make her feel safe and secure.

Peach Salinger- Beck’s best and closest friend who is quite controlling and manipulative. She secretly loves Beck and has her suspicions on Joe. This nature of hers made her loose her life as Joe kills her. Her role is played by Shay Mitchell.

Love Quinn- Played by Victoria Pedretti, she becomes the latest obsession of Joe. A health guru and an aspiring chef who share the same sociopathic behavior as Joe. Just like Joe she can also go to any lengths to get whatever she desires.

Insight of the Show

The series YOU on Netflix has been adapted from the book of the same name by Carolina Kepnes. The first season aired in 2018 and the second season premiered in 2019. Greg Berlanti and Sera Gamble developed this series together and Blake Neely composed it.  With two seasons already out, people are eagerly waiting for the upcoming season three.

The relationship of the series with the audience from the beginning was just great. Even though you know that whatever crimes Joe committed in the name of love, did not justify his actions. The obsessions and jealousy that love brings have been showed very perfectly. You develop this love-hate sort of relationship with the leading male, Joe. With his boy-next-door exterior lies a obsessed sociopath. This series on Netflix proves to be a one time watch at least.

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