The television network Lifetime debuted its new show You in September 2018. Like most of Lifetime’s greatest hits, You is unsettling to say the least, but it was also one of the most captive shows to air in 2018. Here’s why people should not only want to binge-watch You on Netflix immediately, but here’s why they need to:
It is just the right amount of disturbing.
We live in a world drenched in social media and technology, and though it has been said before it needs to be said again: we are indeed too attached to our tech. As our technology evolves, it helps us advance medically, socially, economically and more. But it also makes us vulnerable to those who will use technology to further their own sick agendas. It’s too late to go back to the lives we led free from a screen. We have had social media for far too long, despite not wanting to admit it we love the power it gives us. You does a phenomenal job at highlighting that issue.
The acting isn’t good — it’s riveting.
Penn Badgley, known for his role as Dan Humphrey in the television show Gossip Girl, was the perfect Joe Goldberg. Badgley excels at being the outcast who knows too much but is so invisible even the ones he is closest to are unable to see who he really is. Elizabeth Lail plays Goldberg’s obsession, Guinevere Beck, who is simply too naive to be living in New York during the digital age. However, Lail brings the character to life as a light-hearted, naive and incredibly intelligent writer and MFA student who hasn’t quite figured out who she is. Pretty Little Liars star Shay Mitchell also has a part in the thriller as Beck’s rich, sinister best friend Peach who would do anything for her attention.
Who doesn’t love, love?
Throughout the season it becomes evident Goldberg cannot be trusted and he should not be romanticized. But the harsh reality is people really are capable of turning our lives upside down in a negative way. The relationship Goldberg and Beck have is truly a cautionary tale. It depicts the downfall of letting others see our lives through social media and how that can make it hard for us to trust new people we meet. Despite violence and dishonesty being a big theme in every relationship Goldberg has with women in You, it is still easier to believe the things he does is because he is a hopeless romantic instead of a deranged pervert. You stitches together the story of a psychotic stalker who wants nothing more than to love and be loved effortlessly.
You might be able to give this generation a much needed social media reality check.
Social media can be an excellent tool if utilized properly, but it can also create serious problems within the personal and professional lives of those using it. A lot of people are influenced by the images and content they see online, and sometimes it might be because people forget they are also active agents in how they take in and process the information that is out there. In other words, it is possible to control the amount of truthful information you are seeing. Society has become a little too comfortable with the reach social media platforms have and accepting all the information they see at face value. You forces its audience to see that.
Simply put, it is hilarious. It will leave you wondering, “Wtf did I just watch?”
Never has there been a show more surprising than You. Every new scene or episode left viewers puzzled and wondering, “What just happened?” The best shows are those that include witty banter between characters and random bouts of humor that is usually inappropriate but incredibly relatable. That is exactly what You has. None of us would like to admit it, but the things we find funny aren’t usually things we would discuss publicly. Lifetime used its platform to create a content-heavy show that addresses topics like abuse, murder, stalking and the abuse of technology in a truly humorous way.
You is available to stream on Netflix.
