Nothing attracts book lovers more than a hot bookstore employee like Joe Goldberg in the 2018 series “You”. This show magnifies the journey of finding the one in a mysterious way and in the first episode, we saw Joe’s journey to discovering the life a bookworm beauty who attracts toxic people into her life. For Joe, it was an ordinary day at the bookstore that he grew to love after being taken in by the store owner as a young boy. He first admired her physical features, but I think he was more drawn to look at her because she was a beautiful woman in a bookstore, The two shared a love for books which made Joe feel like the connection was just perfect, but being a hot blonde and a fan of Paula Fox wasn’t enough, he had to know more. I liked how Joe admired every small thing that she did, he appreciated every inch of her without even knowing her name, He read her like a book, but she is filled with thousands of pages. The way that Joe viewed this woman is a way I feel like a lot of women would want to be viewed who is underrated and unappreciated. He did undress her with his eyes, but he also undressed what was in her mind. I loved how well he played it off during their introduction as if he didn’t have a thousand thoughts about her, but only spoke a few sentences. It would kill me to have a thousand thoughts, but so very little to say. When Beck said “At the end of the day, people are really disappointing” it really stuck with me because it is true, but that is because we paint people to be something that they truly don’t live up to and when they don’t, it becomes disappointing. I can tell the Beck see’s the world and people for who they truly are, but doesn’t want to accept it so she goes with the flow. to us, I know you probably wondered why is it that he’s hot, works at a bookstore, and she didn’t bother to flirt with him or get his number? Well, I wondered the same thing.
With only a couple of minute memories left in Joe’s head, he could only imagine how hard life is being someone like Beck, but she wasn’t the only person that he cared for. We were introduced to his neighbor’s son Pac, a young boy who was fascinated by books and used them as an escape from her mother’s boyfriend’s ranting and abuse. Pac admired Joe for all of his dedication to informing him about that magic that books hold. Pac is also a speedy reader so he goes through books often and joe keeps him loaded. Nothing makes me smile harder than a child’s love for literature. Pac could’ve been outside playing with other kids, playing video games, or getting into trouble, but he decides to read. It’s amazing how powerful books really are. Joe was used to seeing him be alone in the midst of their arguing so he always keeps pace company and is a role model to him. As a young boy, Pac needs to have a male figure in his life that will lead him, but his mother isn’t that great at choosing men, so she is stuck with Ron.
After keeping Pac company, Joe was left alone with his thoughts and worries about Beck. He just had to know more so he did what any stalker would do, He googled her. As crazy as it sounded, he could tell so much about her just from her social media, all of those things, of course, ended up being true. I still wondered what made Joe so great at reading people or was it just her? From my point of view, I couldn’t possibly read her the way Joe did. From looking at Beck without even knowing her, I would have guessed that she was a good girl with bad habits, comes from a family with both parents and both of those parents being very successful, so successful that they would be able to put her through NYU, but they didn’t have to because she had perfect grades in high school and was offered thousands of scholarships. Without knowing her I also thought that she would be the type of girl that would pretend to be cool in front of everyone and do what everyone else does, but is secretly a nerd bookworm who doesn’t know how to live her life. I wasn’t completely right except for a little bit of the last one, but do you see what I mean? How quick we are to judge people from the looks of their appearance, labels they were on their clothes, and social media profile, We live in a world that loves to be filtered because the reality is a blow to the balls. None of the things that I thought about Beck were true.
Joe got her address from google (WATCH WHAT YOU HAVE ON THE INTERNET!) because he wanted to know more about her life from a personal point of view. In his creepy and flattering stalking journey he discovered that Beck is an aspiring writer, yoga instructor, TA at a university, with little money to survive on her own. rich friends who always want to go out and spend money that she doesn’t have and a drug-addicted boyfriend whose dream is to launch a soda company. When I found out these things, I wondered how could Beck be satisfied with such a sh**y life? It hit me that Beck is a woman that will always make it work for her own sanity. Her worst habit is loving things that don’t love her back, but in a way it makes her special, Some people quit when the going gets tough or when the pressure starts to beat at the door, Beck is feared worst enemy. She is consistent and she compromises. Though these are good traits to have, Joe believes that she should live a different. A life that he feels like she deserves. A life that doesn’t involve a boyfriend like Benji or friends who have more money than she does. He imagines her having a life with him. Joe referred to Beck as “the genuine article”. I wondered if she is the genuine article what gives him the right to be the editor. Sure she is his typer, but why insert yourself in a life you cannot guarantee to make better.
In this episode, we were also introduced to Benji, Beck’s toxic boyfriend (booty call). From the way he treats her, I couldn’t imagine what would make her so attracted to him, but Joe said that love blinds us. It will have us doing things that we never thought that we would do. I’m pretty sure that Beck never pictured herself being with someone like Benji, but from her financial stance and busy schedule to make a living, she felt like that’s what she deserves, but Joe feels like she deserves him. He describes himself as the man that would cater to her every want and need while she follows her dream, but she cannot see that, but Joe will make her. I don’t like how Joe raided her apartment, but I do like how he tried to understand the pressure that comes with being a woman. Beck has more pressure on her than any other character in the season thus far as she struggles to meet the deadline, the professor offered an alternative. Her friends openly expressed their moments of sleeping with teachers to get good grades, but that’s not Beck. To top things off she read her most prized possession in front of everyone at a cafe including Joe unknowingly, but Benji did not show up.
The episode had me on my toes when Beck drunkenly fell on the train tracks, but luckily Joe stalked her long enough to save her. To him, it was his time to shine, but Beck puked on him before he could get his prince charming moment in for a few minutes. It questionable how Joe is into the “love at first sight” cliche and he is protective of someone who doesn’t have the same feelings, but I know it is because he sees her as a once in a lifetime opportunity. I feel like the connection will never be real until he gives her a chance to get to know him through actual human contact and not through naked windows. If I was Joe I would’ve just played secret admire for awhile not secret staler. He could’ve bought her flowers and set them on her porch or surprised her with gifts at her poetry reading when she was spiraling out of control. He knows so much about her and all he is trying to do is save her, but I couldn’t help, but think it is out of selfishness. In the end, I was right, Joe is the nice guy, that finishes last, but he didn’t want to wait to cross the finish line, he wanted to take one of the runners out. That runner being Benji. Joe knocked out Benji with the same mallet that he fixed the book he had given pac. Watching the reconstruction of a book was so satisfying, but I can’t say the same thing about watching Benji being beat. I gotta say that side of Joe came as a shock to me because of his good guy attitude, perfect smile, and acts of kindness. Maybe he read to much Stephen King. I couldn’t imagine such a handsome guy being a killer book lover, but like Beck said: “At the end of the day people are really disappointing”.
So far I really love this show. I love the narration that is included as well as the characters. Despite, Joe striking Benji at the end of the episode, I still like him because he is a handsome guy working at a bookstore who may have read too much Stephen King. Beck is idolized in this episode so I can’t really say she is a favorite of mine, but Pac is also one of my favorites because he reminds me a lot of myself when I was young. Poring my mind into the world of literature to drown out the noise of the world. Hopefully, we will see an episode that focuses on his life the way that Joe focuses on Becks. I didn’t think that it was good that Joe was already jealous of Benji when he only has Beck’s email and has never been on a date with her, yet a feels like he is obligated to do long division in her life with the results being reduced to the two of them. I’m looking forward to seeing what else is behind the gorgeous smile of Joe Goldberg and what makes him tick. Till the next episode.
