Then, Bronte pulls a gun on Joe, demanding he revises the edits he made of Beck’s memoir. Various physical fights between the two ensue, as well as a terrifying chase through the woods.
But what about Joe’s ultimate fate? Well, he ends up being shot in the penis and imprisoned. He is convicted of the murders of Love Quinn (Victoria Pedretti) and Guinevere Beck, as well as season 1 characters Benji Ashby and Peach Salinger. He also becomes the subject of a mocking meme of him being shot in his private parts.
We see him delivered a fan letter in his jail cell, though, which describes sexual fantasies the writer wants to do with Joe. It causes Joe to question if he is in fact the problem, or is it actually “you”? I.e, in quite a meta point, the show is asking, are we perpetuating the notoriety and power of violent and criminal men like Joe by fixating on and sexualising him?
It’s an interesting question to end on, acknowledging the obsession around Joe Goldberg from the show’s beginning and the discomfort that surrounds that. Why is there a Netflix hit show about a male stalker and serial killer? Why do some find his character sexy and sympathetic?
While You season 5’s ending may not “fix” its many storylines of VAWG, it does ask us to explore our own psyche as well as Joe’s. As he says, is he – at least to a certain extent – a product of his environment? It certainly asks us to take accountability for contributing to an obsession with 5 seasons centred around a murderer of so many women, and perhaps what it says about us as a society.
What happens to the remaining women in You?
So let’s start with Bronte – she narrowly escapes and starts a new life as Louse. She reworks Beck’s manuscript and deleted Joe’s additions, with the newly released edition becoming hugely successful. It details her story with Joe and his murders. Kate (Charlotte Ritchie) makes her company non-profit after taking over as CEO, after surviving a fire set at Mooney’s. She also supports and champions Marienne’s career as an artist, who is safe to be in the public eye after Joe’s imprisonment.
Charlotte Ritchie recently predicted a “mixed reaction” to the You season 5 ending. She told Radio Times: “I think this is such a larger than life character that finding an ending that satisfies everybody based on all of the various feelings they have about him, like in his life, I don’t think that’s possible, but I think it’s a nice nod to the kind of relationship we have with him, which I think is quite fun and quite kind of inclusive, weirdly.”