This list contains spoilers!
Summary
The lovable killer is back once again for the final time, and Netflix’sYouis sent off into the sunset with flying colors. Theshow is an exceptional thrillerthat leans heavily into the weirder and more taboo themes and doesn’t hold back when it comes to violence and subject matter. Five seasons, all full of wild and completely unexpected twists that have been blowing viewers' minds for the past seven years, and the final season wraps everything up in a concise and satisfying way, finishing the show with a bang and completing Joe’s saga.
When looking at the show as a whole, there are very few complaints that can be pointed out in any of the seasons. Every single one has its strengths and moments that make it shine, and the complete package is a thrilling ride that is both memorable and titillating from start to finish. With that being said, there are certainly some episodes, arcs, and seasons that stand above the rest, delivering a more perfect experience to the audience and crafting an extremely high-quality TV thriller that keeps viewers begging for more.
5Season 4
The Weakest Of The Bunch But Still Just As Thrilling
After a long list of kills under his belt, Joe decides it’s time to go across the pond to get away from all the bloodshed and pain. But as it turns out, whatever he touches turns red, and despite crafting a perfectly believable persona and attempting to blend into a new crowd, things quickly turn sour as the killer comes out once more. The season does a lot of things right, one of which is the characters, all of whom are incredibly insufferable, rich socialites who are practically asking to be murdered and provide more than a few comedic moments that are mixed in with the violence.
The big twist comes from the fact that Rhys, the person Joe believed was the true murderer, was actually a figment created by Joe himself, meaning that the true culprit was a lot closer to home. Though the reveal was pretty unexpected, it felt a lot more sour than it should have been and turned an overall grounded, if a little psychotic, show into more of a fairytale that stretches more into the absurd than the real world. Also, the pacing felt a bit off in the first half of the season, and though the final episodes did speed things up a bit, it was a little too late, and with so many characters to clean up and resolve, it turned into more of a rushed job.It was a fine seasonin the grand scheme of things, but it left a lot to be desired when compared to the quality of the previous ones.
4Season 1
A Solid Start That Keeps Things Simple
The introduction to Mr Goldberg and his slow spiral into madness and murder, season one ofYouwas as good a start as anyone could have asked for. Viewers get to watch firsthand as Beck becomes the first target of Joe’s stalking escapades, and the tension and intensity continue to rise at a comfortable pace that never feels too fast, and keeps everything in a nice flow from start to finish. It wastes no time demonstrating that Joe will do anything he can to get what he wants, even if that means spilling a bit, or at times a lot, of blood.
Despite having aconsistent level of enjoyment throughout, some of the plot points felt a little out there in terms of realism and believability, like Joe’s ability to sneak around undetected in the way that he does. And despite having a pretty diverse cast of characters, a lot of the focus stays on Joe throughout, which is to be expected as it is effectively told from his point of view, but it can get quite tiring having to watch him and his questionable morals continue to disturb and disgust with so much going on elsewhere. It would have been nice to have a bit more character development for the supporting cast, to add some additional stakes and motivations for their actions and personalities. Drawbacks aside, it’s a great start to an even greater show and sets the stage for even more delightful thrills to come.
3Season 3
More Tension Than Ever Before
After a roller coaster of a ride in the second season, the third looked to continue the story after a twist that came completely out of the blue. Love and Joe have moved on from their previous life and are now living happily married lives with a newborn baby to add to the parental fantasy. But this show isn’t known for fairytale endings, and it only takes a few episodes for Joe to slip back into his old ways and get back on the psycho train that he had just departed. New neighbors, a new setting, but the same trauma haunting both of them, the dynamic between the two begins to fall apart, and culminates in afiery ending for Love and a saddening escapefor Joe.
A good season when pictured as a whole, but when dissecting the details, things start to fall apart quite quickly. After two seasons involving plenty of death and scheming, to go into another one that followed a pretty similar trend started to make the show feel repetitive and predictable, as a lot of the surprises were either fairly well telegraphed or didn’t deliver as big of a surprise when compared to the previous seasons. When two characters who are known for their evil ways are suddenly presented as average, jolly residents, it is hard to suspend disbelief at some of their actions, and the ending did feel a bit more like a villainous calculation than a stroke of good luck. Still, season three hits a lot of great points and has plenty of memorable moments that allow it to remain an enjoyable watch.
2Season 5
A Fitting End In A Neat And Tidy Bow
Season five marks the series' conclusion, and it seemed like the perfect place to stop the story. Sure, it would have been great to continue seeing Joe on screen a little longer, but this felt like a logical stopping point that completes an amazing show with a satisfying and well-made end. The show comes full circle, with Joe returning to New York with Kate to once again start a new life, only this time with everything out in the open. It starts out like any other season ofYou,normality attempting to repress the demons, and in typical Joe fashion, the goodness begins to slip, and more ghosts from the past pop up, and he loses control over rationality and stability.
It is actually quite hard to find ways to criticize the season, but there are a few shortcomings that could have potentially elevated it to the best in the show. Repetition and plausibility aside, the finale felt more like a moral lesson that was attempting to say something, and ended up saying nothing at all. The show is trying to speak to the audience about their perception of Joe and potentially serve as a metaphor for relationships in the real world, but it does so through clumsy character portrayals that seem a little too on the nose. Also, after so many interactions and understanding who Joe is as a person, the twists and turns that follow him around, and more than expected at this point, which isn’t necessarily the fault of the show, but more the downfall of a series known so well for its subversion and breaking of expectation.
1Season 2
The Perfect Pacing
Season 2 is truly a fantastic follow-up to the initial story, and continues to build on so many of the best elements that makeYouso appealing and unique. Leaving his old life behind and starting a new one with a new persona as Will, Joe begins to feel part of anew community of people, from co-workers to acquaintances, to newfound love interests with a more than comedic name. Love is a superbly crafted character that has so many complex layers and difficulties to tackle, and combined with the chaos of Joe, their relationship unfolds in a poetic manner that the audience knows will soon collapse thanks to the killer instincts inside.
While it is fair to say that the similarities between season one and season two are pretty common, the second season does enough story and character building to create a distinctive narrative that continues the story in a fairly well-constructed way that doesn’t stretch too far into the unknown. Also, the build-up over time to the final big reveal is expertly done and was far from anything that anyone could have predicted, leading to a final episode that was as frantic and chilling to watch as the actions in it. Joe shows his true colors in even more vibrant ways and continues his rampage through a new set of iconic characters, many of whom stick around long after they meet their untimely end. The best season in the show, but not by a landslide, progressing the saga in a way that makes sense and allows the whole collection to set a new standard for thriller shows to follow.
