The Idolization of Joe Goldberg
Is the finale really that bad?
Warning: Spoilers for the show You
I have been a fan of the show You for a while now, even reading the first book in the series. Since season 5 came out, fans are outraged about the ending. Some saying Joe should have died, some saying he should have gotten away with it all. I've seen a lot of men say that feminists ruined the show, and that the ending was catered toward women. This makes no sense at all though.
The show itself shows incel culture in season 5. When Joe does a podcast live, people turn on Bronte. Even though technically she is the "victim" (since you know, she watched her friend die). People start to feel bad for Joe. People start to idolize Joe. People start to call Bronte a whore, a monster.
Here are a few examples, from the tv show. "These hypocritical girls with their whiny, toxic masculinity bullshit" "Someone should find her" "Oughta dox the bitch" But hey, doesn't this all sound familiar?
Men (and women) idolize Joe. Why? Because he is attractive. He's funny. He's tough. He gets away with things. I think the people who are mad about the ending are incels. Yep, I said it. And the few dozen women who idolize or defend Joe are just people who have gotten attached to the show. Or people who are just that in love with Joe's looks, Joe's voice, his words. They have fallen under the spell that Marienne and Bronte fell into too (along with others). "Because if you got fooled by this guy, you are not as smart as you thought you were. You're one of those women. You know, the ones you, deep down, think you're smarter than. It can't be you." (Season 5 Episode 9) Men online call Joe Goldberg a “goat”, they say he's just like them. Or that the show is a tutorial of sorts. Some of these are just harmless jokes, referring to maybe stalking an instagram profile or something small like that. But is it still okay to idolize Joe, even if it is just a "joke"?
Let's talk about the finale everyone is so outraged about. In the finale, Kate lives, Bronte lives. Joe gets sent to prison for presumably the rest of his life. Is this what he deserved?
I've seen people argue this is unrealistic. That Joe is too smart for this. And to be honest? I kind of agree. I see why people would be mad. That somehow Kate and Bronte survive? And he gets taken down by a group of random immature Redditors? I think that Joe would be smarter than this. As we saw from the past 4 seasons, he is always one step ahead. So yes, this doesn't make much sense. But I don't think this is enough to be fully outraged about the ending.
Some people think Joe should have died. That death is what he deserved. I disagree. When Bronte was in the woods, gun pointed at Joe, police close to catching him. Joe begs. He begs her to shoot him. To kill him. He knows a life of loneliness would be the worst torture he could endure. Since season 1, we know Joe has just been searching for love. For so long. A life of loneliness would be worse than death.
“So… in the end, my punishment is even worse than I imagined. The loneliness. Oh, my god. The loneliness. No hope of being held. Knowing this is forever.” (Joe)
So why do people think he should have died? Because death would mean he wasn't caught..?
Some argue that episode 9 should have been the ending. I sort of agree, because that would have been a good ending. But episode 10 is underrated. Is Bronte annoying? Yes. But that doesn't mean episode 10 is awful. We really see Joe's true self. We see him get what he DESERVES. A punishment worse than death (at least for him).
And then some people think… He should have gotten away with it.
Yes, I get this show is a work of fiction. It's for entertainment. But also, shows/movies and books usually have a main theme or lesson. Something it is trying to show the audience.
It's fictional, but the internet's reaction isn't. Honestly people just thinking he should have gotten away with all his murders grosses me out. I've seen some awful videos and comments agreeing with Joe’s methods and reasoning’s.
The show tries to get the audience to fall in love with Joe, and I admit it works. I mean I personally did love Joe. But I think after seeing the end of the show, you have to admit he gets what he deserves from a realistic standpoint.
In the end scene, Joe receives another fan letter in prison. “Why am I in a cage when these crazies write me all the depraved things they want me to do to them?” (episode 10). The letter IS crazy (see the episode if you want to look at it). But this letter and Joe’s final words I think hold a ton of meaning.
“Maybe we have a problem as society.” “Maybe the problem isn’t me. Maybe… It’s you.” Joe is saying maybe he isn’t the problem but we are. People who are fascinated and consumed by characters like Joe. Some are just obsessed with the fictional killers like Joe, or the new tv show about the (REAL CASE) Mendez Brothers, or the killers in Scream or any other fictional media. But there are real cases of this. When fascination with fictional killers, becomes obsession with real killers. We’ve seen this with Jeffery Dahmer, Ted Bundy, and more. The fan letters, the smut and “fan-fiction”, the defending. Joe defends himself in this quote:
“Putting all this on me. Aren’t we all just products of our environment? Hurt people hurt people. I never stood a chance.”
Yes, while environment and circumstances effect killers and the psychology of killers, killing is still a choice. Even watching the final episode with my mom, she defends him. Bringing up the fact he was abused and abandoned as a child.
But the fact is that many people have awful childhoods but they don’t kill.
Why is society obsessed with killers? The attractiveness (Jeffery Dahmer is fucking ugly)? The curiosity?
I ultimately think Joe deserves what he got. And this ending (specifically the end scene and monologue) aims to question the audience. And maybe some people just can’t accept that. Or they’re mad, it’s calling them out.
Society’s fascination with murderers (usually attractive ones), true crime, gruesome true stories, can become obsession pretty fast. It’s okay to watch true crime or be curious. But when it becomes excessive, that’s a problem.
Thank you for reading! Please comment on what else I should write, or any feedback you have. This is probably my favorite article I have written so far!