It is not news to any of my readers that YOU by Caroline Kepnes is one of my favorite books. The story is intensely creepy, is brilliantly written, and is mind-bendingly addictive. You’ll think and feel things you would never have before, and Joe Goldberg is one of my favorite anti-heroes of all time. Kepnes has a fantastically devious mind, and I’m so happy she shares it with us.
Obviously, I have been looking forward to the TV adaptation since it was announced. I did have some trepidation because y’all? It’s Lifetime. They’re not exactly known for turning out Emmy gold. (Yeah, I said it) And let me make it clear…if this show fucked up this book, your girl was gonna be PISSED.
But all my fears were unfounded because Lifetime KILLED it. The casting is spot on. Santino Fontana has always been my Joe since he made the audiobook his bitch, (seriously, guys, you MUST listen) but lemme tell you a little something about Penn Badgely. I am too middle-aged and uncool to know his previous work, so I didn’t know what to expect from him. HE DID THE DAMN THING! He’s so creepy, yet so endearing that it really fucks with your brain. Liking him makes you feel dirty, but you can’t bring yourself to hate him. He’s the perfect Joe.
A cute book lover who’s hobbies included being obsessed with me? SIGN ME UP.
Read on for my thoughts on the season premiere, and don’t forget to follow me on Twitter where I’ll be live-tweeting each episode.
FIRST UP: The voiceover. Being inside Joe’s mind. I am here for it. You see, I’m a little bit twisted and I love me the unstable ones. Come.To.Mama.
We meet little Paco in the series, he’s a new addition, and a brilliant one. We see Joe being a selfless, decent man. We fall a little in love with him. It makes us wanna use some hand sanitizer. A gentleman sociopath?
CAN WE ALL AGREE THAT BENJI IS THE LITERAL WORST? I could smell his hipster douche stench through the screen. Smells even worse than his artisanal sodas. What a fuck bucket.
Time for a little self love. Cue Amazon selling out of green humping pillows. Because Beck spends all her money on extravagances she really can’t afford, instead of soft furnishings like , y’know, CURTAINS, delighfulfully dangerous Joe has a front row seat to the show. Naturally, he “takes the situation in hand”, if yaknowwhatI’msayin.
OH MY GOD JOE, DON’T TOUCH THAT LADY’S LUGGAGE WITH YOUR DICK MITTENS! For shame…
Yeah, you could hail that cab hands-free right now, can’t you? **waggles eyebrows**
THE CAGE. I SEE THE CAGE. An icon. I felt kinda like this when I saw it…
Oh, Look! It’s Matt Durning from 90210! (Told you I was middle-aged)
Waaaaaiiiit….Joe wants to cook, clean, and take care of Beck’s books. Are we supposed to dislike him? Cause the boy is growing on me. Yeah, yeah, he pilfered her undies…but c’mon…some things can be overlooked.
EL OH EL…the shower. Is this supposed to be funny? Because this shit is funny.
Beck, Beck, Beck…you need to reevaluate your whole life, honey.
And Joe’s creepy smile at the end?
IN SUMMATION: I was pleasantly surprised by this adaptation. I’m thrilled to see that Joe’s character has not been diluted, and that through this script, we’re seeing a whole new side of him that makes the “bad” side so much better (worse?) This show is smart and darkly funny, and underneath the entertainment value, there are some lessons to be learned here.
Benji most definitely reeks of clove tobacco vape juice & Baxter of California hair pomade, and FOR THE LOVE OF CHRIST BECK BUY SOME CURTAINS.
Stay tuned for next week’s recap!
Leave a Reply