When we left Joe Goldberg at the end of the third season of the hit Netflix series You, he was literally in an explosive situation. He had killed his wife Love, set his house on fire and cut off his own toes to imply he had perished in the blaze. Joe was determined to change his life, especially after meeting Marienne and seeing the horror on her face at who he was and what he had done. Then he fled to start anew in another country.
In Season 4, it is revealed that Joe traveled to Paris in search of the woman he believed was meant for her, Marienne. This led him to London, where he took on the new identity of a man named Jonathan and began working as a professor for a literature class.
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Joe is trying desperately to be good
With a seemingly new attitude towards life and a sense of restraint, Joe could finally reinvent himself. He eventually decided not to kill Marienne, which showed progress, right? And he paused when he caught a glimpse of the stunning woman across the flat. He won’t do that again, he told himself in his signature inner monologue.
But where Joe goes, trouble follows. A colleague at the university, a pompous young man named Malcolm, is constantly interfering in Joe’s business and insists that he attend a fancy party. Joe finally gives in and once again ends up feeling sorry for the very kind of people he hates: elite, entitled snobs with no talent or direction, but failing bank accounts. From princesses to painters, social media geeks to a celebrity who considers herself a “lady,” Joe finds everything repulsive.
The only diamond among the vile people, however, is an author with political ambitions named Rhys. Rhys intrigues Joe with a similar life story of a squalid childhood and rising from the ashes. He’s a refreshing departure from the nondescript others Joe had to converse with at the soiree.
After unknowingly having one drink too many drugged, Joe passes out and wakes up in his apartment with a dead Malcolm lying on his kitchen table. He quickly jumps into action (Joe isn’t new to scenes like this, after all) and disposes of the body while wondering if he committed the murder – he can’t remember.
Joe becomes the hunted
Joe’s concerns are quickly allayed when he receives a text message mocking him. It’s the real killer and you know what he did. But when they see how Joe reacted, they are intrigued. Ironically, this killer is watching Joe’s every move.
To prevent further bloodshed, Joe enlists the help of a college student named Nadia, who has a vast knowledge of murder mysteries. She knows her tropes inside and out and is happy to help him research the subject for a book he is writing. Of course there is no such book: Joe is chasing a real killer and always wants to be one step ahead.
Next, snobbish (and thieving) artist Simon dies, and meanwhile the killer is on the trail of Joe’s true identity. They papered its walls with old articles about the death and destruction of a man named Joe Goldberg. The killer plays games and Joe doesn’t like being the receiver.
Furthermore, the killer hints that his next victim is Kate, the stunning woman across the street, who Joe realizes is the only one of her friends with empathy. he tries desperately to protect her from this unseen threat.
Everything comes to a head at the big party
Joe continues to get invited to the elite parties thanks to Kate’s best friend Phoebe, who seems to like him and sees him as a kind of pet project. And the next big event is a soiree at her family’s vast country estate. Joe of course has to go because he has to protect Kate. He also firmly believes that the killer is among them.
Upon arrival, Joe spends his days and nights conducting an internal investigation, going back and forth with each person trying to figure out who the killer might be. Each of them has secrets, problems, conflicts and motives. They could all get away with it, but most of them aren’t smart (or smart) enough to actually pull off the murders.
The trouble ensues when he runs into Kate, who has discovered the body of party-goer and friend Gemma on the floor in her room. Joe agrees to help Kate get rid of the body to prevent the information from leaking to her vile, wealthy father while revealing private details about his life. He also tells her the true story about Malcolm and the messages the killer sent to him.
They almost get away with hiding the body until the creepy Roald overhears parts of the conversation and holds Joe hostage, gun in hand, in front of everyone, believing Joe is the killer. The sick, twisted man decides to make a game of his revenge, partly driven by his own narcissism and partly because he’s drunk and high on numerous drugs. Roald then chases Joe through the woods. Joe eventually manages to KO Roald, only to look up to see someone staring down at him before he’s also KO’d.
What happens at the end of You Season 4 Part 1?
For some, it was a predictable ending: Rhys, it turns out, never really got over his anger, jealousy, and troubled childhood. He made fun of ridding the world of the horrible people he once called friends. While Joe and Roald are chained, he tells Joe that he only intended to frame him for Malcolm’s murder, but instead got a surprise when he discovered a fellow criminal.
He orders Joe to kill Roald if he wants to save himself. But when he comes back and the job isn’t done, Rhys lets Joe and Roald die and knocks over a candle to set the place on fire before heading out the door. Joe desperately manages to escape, saving Roald in the process, unlike his old self.
Fast home and it is clear that Joe Rhys has not reported to the authorities nor revealed the identity of the killer to the others. He wants Rhys all to himself. When he sees Rhys on the TV screen explaining his candidacy for Mayor of London, the light goes out of Joe’s eyes. He prepares to feed the obsession, now bubbling to the surface again, in a way he’s never done before: hunting a murderer and, oddly enough, a kindred spirit.
Joe is so fixated on this task that he rejects Kate’s romantic advances. Old Joe might have made Kate his next obsession. But Joe has changed. He has no time for romance or love right now. At least not while “you” are still out there.
You Season 4, Part 2 premieres on Netflix on March 9th.
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