Season Two of Netflix’s hit crime drama sees the infamous Joe Goldberg (Penn Badgley) take obsession to a new level, with Greg Berlanti and Sera Gamble’s unexpected twists and turns sure to leave you looking over your shoulder.
“This adaptation […] uniquely explores the themes of redemption, addiction and love in a suspenseful manner”
With Netflix Originals such as Sex Education and Black Mirror being praised and enjoyed worldwide, it is no surprise that millions worldwide spent their Boxing Day binge watching season two of You. Through the spine-chilling narration of the protagonist Joe Goldberg and the ominous characterisation of the powerful Quinn family, this adaptation of Caroline Kepnes’ Hidden Bodies (2016) uniquely explores the themes of redemption, addiction and love in a suspenseful manner.
With episode one being titled ‘A Fresh Start’, the audience expects a new and improved Joe Goldberg (played by none other than Gossip Girl himself, Penn Badgley) as we follow him to the city of dreams, Los Angeles. On the run from his demons embodied in Brooklyn and his ex-girlfriend Candace Stone (Ambyr Childers), Joe is quick to fall back into old habits upon his sighting of the gorgeous Love Quinn (Victoria Pedretti).
“The apparent similarities did mean that my genuine interest in the Season Two storyline did not stem until the interesting developments which episodes four and five had to offer”
It must be said that this is fairly repetitive of Joe’s infatuation of Guinevere Beck (Elizabeth Lail) in Season One, and the apparent similarities did mean that my genuine interest in the Season Two storyline did not stem until the interesting developments which episodes four and five had to offer, in the form of Love’s brother Forty Quinn (James Scully) offering added complications for Joe’s alter ego, Will Bettelheim.
“Season Two did offer an interesting look into the effects that childhood trauma can have”
Having said this, Season Two did offer an interesting look into the effects that childhood trauma can have, particularly for Joe, Love and Forty. Berlanti and Gamble’s use of flashbacks to display the dark and corrupt past that the cast have had is an effective characterisation technique, particularly to signify the root of Joe’s tendency to mistake love for infatuation and to explain how he feels compelled to be a ‘protector’ of society. From his brotherly love of Ellie Alves to his need to punish criminals such as Henderson (Chris D’Elia), many storylines are cleverly interlinked to give us more insight into our unredeemable serial killer.
“Without a doubt this redeems the previously mentioned slow start to the season”
It goes without saying that Love Quinn takes centre stage by episode nine however, as the extremely unexpected plot twist gives the audience a completely different perspective of our seemingly innocent love interest. Without a doubt this redeems the previously mentioned slow start to the season, and the surprising deaths and major cover ups along with the final scene in episode 10 set an ominous yet intriguing tone for Season Three.
You is available to watch on Netflix now, with Season Three being confirmed for 2021, if that unexpected ending left you with many more unanswered questions…the most important one clearly being whether Joe will ever replace the iconic hat for a more logical disguise.
9/10
Amrit Virdi
Featured Image courtesy of A+E Studios, Alloy Entertainment, Berlanti Productions & Warner Horizon Television via IMDb. Image use license found here.
For more reviews follow Impact Magazine on Facebook and Twitter.
For more Freshers content, as well as uni news, reviews, entertainment articles, lifestyle, features and so much more, follow us on Twitter and like our Facebook page for more articles and information on how to get involved!
