Netflix’s ‘You’: The Show that Makes you Fall for a Stalker

Spoiler alert! The show starts off very simply, with a woman entering a bookstore and we
soon realise that we’re looking at the story through someone else’s view point. Penn Badgely
plays Joe Goldberg, a New York bookstore manager, who begins stalking the struggling but
ambitious writer named Guinevere Beck after she goes to his bookstore. Joe’s character soon
develops into a bone-chilling depiction of a stalker who follows her, stands below her house,
and even manages to steal her phone while saving her life. The one thing that is especially
disturbing about this whole show are those carefully curated moments where you can’t help
but feel your heart warm up for Joe, despite knowing everything that the character does.
All the characters on the show are so creatively written that you can’t help but love and hate
every character. The creators went to great lengths to make sure that the viewers couldn’t
choose to love one particular character and stick with their perception of them. Joe’s
character is sometimes so painfully charming and somehow manages to convince the viewers
that he only did what needed to be done. Joe goes on to murder Beck’s beau Benji who is a
horrible and pretentious man and Joe excuses this by declaring that he is doing all that to
keep Beck safe, and honestly, your heart melts for a bit. It is glaringly obvious that Joe is a
stalker and a murderer, including the fact that there is a huge chance that he murdered his ex-
girlfriend Candance. Candance, of course, isn’t an angel either because she cheated on him
with a guy, who also dies by “falling off” a ledge (Joe pushes him off).
Beck doesn’t just attract one person who’s obsessed with her, we also have the gorgeous
Shay Mitchell playing Peach Salinger, daughter of the filthy rich J.D. Salinger. Peach and Joe
dislike each other from the very beginning. The reason becomes clear later when we realise
that this conflict arises from being obsessed with the same person- Beck. Ironically, the
character of Peach who protects and takes care of Beck is disliked by many viewers who like
Joe even though they are basically the same person; except the fact that Joe is a murderer and
a stalker. This might stem from the fact that the viewers go through the entire story
understanding situations the way Joe does. He also steals her laptop, whose password is
“Beckalicious” BTW, and finds a folder of Beck’s pictures. He considers het to be his biggest
obstacle. That problem is soon solved when Joe kills Peach too.
One particularly ironic scene is one where Joe mentally chides Peach for spying on Beck
taking a bath while he spies on both of them. The show holds up a mirror to how easy it is to
romanticize any of the protagonist’s actions if he is sometimes charming enough. The sheer
fact that the show succeeds in doing that proves how manipulative Joe is. One very unique
addition to the show is Joe’s innocent neighbour Paco. This character was not in the book but
also brings his own charms to the story. However, there was a very ingenious reason for
bringing him into the show. We see Joe’s charming and caring side around Paco- he brings
him books (steals one from Peach’s house as well), gives him his food, and gives him advice.
He also ends up killing Paco’s abusive step-father which makes him a hero in his eyes.
Paco is clearly brainwashed. He assumes that Joe can do no wrong which is probably why he
makes no effort to help Beck when she sees him struggling in the last episode. Somehow, like
Joe, he is convinced that Joe might have a reason for what he’s doing. It’s no wonder the
show is returning for a second season, with a twist- Candace is back. Also, viewers question,
is Beck really dead? We were led to believe, throughout the season that like all his other
victims, Joe had killed Candance as well. So, if she can be “resurrected”, can we really let of
the idea that Beck might not be dead as well? The chances, however, seem slim because the
viewers never really saw Joe kill Candance. Also, what really happened to Candance’s
brother. He had been sent to a mental asylum but apparently, he died. Did he die or was he
another one of Joe’s victims because he was catching on to him? Also, how does Joe reach
LA in the second season? One thing is clear, there is a lot to look forward to.