Netflix You season 5 is the final season, meaning that the ultimate toxic male, Joe Goldberg’s, story comes to an end – and it is absolutely perfect.
From the very first episode of You, I was hooked. This is a story that is right up my alley. Toxic male serial killer who is intriguing, but a terrible person, and somehow often gets women to fall for him. Hiding in plain sight, much like Dexter, this is a story that we as a society often soak up, practically begging for me.
The show has always been sexy, daring, disturbing, and thrilling. Admittedly, I was worried when season 4 was announced, because I felt that season 3 was a perfect ending. Then, after season 4, I thought, okay, this must be it for Joe Goldberg (Penn Badgley).
But the creators had other plans, and rather than let him ride off into the sunset with Kate Lockwood, Joe was to be tested again. This time, by Bronte.
When a woman breaks into his closed bookstore in the middle of the night, she gets a lot more than she was bargaining for. Bronte (Madeline Brewer) captures the attention of Joe, which, as viewers of the show, we know is something you absolutely do not want. With his marriage already struggling, the story starts to follow a theme of will they or won’t they. Honestly, this is when You season 5 is at it’s weakest.
Something about Bronte annoyed me pretty much from the first moment that we meet her. Things felt off, and if I am being completely honest, she was getting on my nerves. I have watched many naive women fall for Joe Goldberg, but she seemed better than that. She was smarter than that. And watching her fall into his trap was driving me crazy.
While Brewer was making me want to pull my hair out (nothing against the actress, she did what she could with how it was written), Anna Camp was giving me life over her portrayal of Kate’s sisters, Reagan and Maddie Lockwood. These two could not be any more opposite, and yet she nails both performances.
I found myself wanting to hug Maddie and wanting to push Reagan out a window. Somehow, this only made me start to feel bad for Joe – a trap I fell into many times over. Then something magical and exciting happened. You Season 5 Episode 6.
When I say game-changer, that is almost an understatement. This episode literally gave me chills as I jumped from my seat on the couch with excitement. This is the moment that I had been waiting for. Suddenly, everything that I had been feeling started making sense. And I could not have been more thrilled.
This season knows exactly what it is doing as it finds a way to tie all of the previous seasons in. Joe Goldberg mentions several times how he is haunted by those he has killed, but he really has no idea just how right he is. Without giving anything away, one of my favorite things about You season 5 is that it was clearly always intended to be the end.
Everything comes together to create a story that will have viewers on the edge of their seats, clicking play next episode over and over, until the very end. Especially as those final episodes start rolling and viewers truly have no idea how everything is going to play out for Joe Goldberg. Will he get what he deserves? Will he get off scot-free? Or some combination of the two?
While I cannot lay it all out – tune into the final ten episodes on Netflix for that – I can say that it is done so in a way that is so brilliant, and so poignant, and kind of makes you think about the world we are living in today in a way you probably don’t want to. You Season 5 is the perfect ending to a twisted, disturbing story that fans have been following for years.
I never expected it to end this way, but I am thrilled that it did. The final line of the series gave me chills, and works so perfectly, making the series as a whole one of the best thrillers to ever grace the small screen. Penn Badgley is truly one of the greats.
You Season 5 is now streaming on Netflix, along with all four other seasons. Do not miss out on one of the most unforgettable, exciting, and thrilling television series to ever exist. Now is the time to start binge-watching if you have never seen You. Trust me, you will not regret it.
Oh, and the final two episodes include the perfect, and I mean perfect, use of Olivia Rodrigo’s Vampire and Taylor Swift’s Guilty As Sin.
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About You Season 5
In the epic fifth and final season, Joe Goldberg returns to New York to enjoy his happily ever after… until his perfect life is threatened by the ghosts of his past and his own dark desires.
You Season 5 is now streaming on Netflix.
Tessa Smith is a Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer-approved Film and TV Critic. On Camera personality and TV / Film Critic with 10+ years of experience in video editing, writing, editing, moderating, and hosting.