Saturday, December 28, 2019

REVIEW: 'You' - Forty Drugs Joe in the Hopes of Achieving Creative Greatness Together in 'Fear and Loathing in Beverly Hills'

Netflix's You - Episode 2.08 "Fear and Loathing in Beverly Hills"

Joe wants to get away, but Forty insists they finish their script. As pressure mounts, Forty's excessive coping devices make for a harrowing night.





In 2018, there were 495 scripted shows airing amongst the linear channels and streaming services. The way people are consuming content now is so different than it used to be. It happens according to one's own schedule. As such, there is less necessity to provide ample coverage of each specific episode in any given season from a show. Moreover, it is simply impossible to watch everything. As such, this site is making the move to shorter episodic reviews in order to cover as many shows as possible. With all of that being said, here are my thoughts on the next episode of Netflix's You.

"Fear and Loathing in Beverly Hills" was written by Kara Lee Corthron & Justin W. Lo and directed by Harry Jierjian

Can murderous impulses be curbed? Joe believes that he is getting better. He wants to accept that he only kills when he is forced into those uncertain situations where it's a matter of survival for him. The season may be arguing that it is all hereditary. Joe grew up in an abusive household. His father hurt him and his mother. His mom may have actually killed his father in order to successfully get away. She may be the only figure who will truly love and embrace him no matter what. Of course, that would also be him confirming to himself that he is a killer and there is nothing wrong with that. He is still horrified by the sight of blood on his hands. When he is peaking during his LSD trip, he believes that he has killed again. He worries that it will add to his high body count. The debate may linger on if it was just an involuntary impulse. But again, that serves as evidence that this is who Joe is in his bones. When he first enters the hotel room with Forty and realizes the extent that his friend has confined him, he looks around for the numerous ways in which Forty could die. This friendship may be a complete fantasy because Joe constantly looks at it as a burden he must put up with in order to be with Love. Even when she calls willing to take him back, he has to agree to bringing Forty along with them abroad. Joe started this hour fearing for his life once more. He was completely willing to pack up his life and leave the country just like Will told him to do awhile ago. He felt he had unfinished business in this life. However, he may just be holding out hope for some relationships to strengthen once more even though every hour he spends in Los Angeles potentially brings him closer to exposure and arrest. He knows that he shouldn't worry about Candace anymore. However, he still worries about the danger she may bring because Forty is still texting with her. He can't control the world and the numerous individuals within it. He is frustrated when others don't see the value of how he wants them to react. Delilah is desperate to make it out of this dire situation alive. She sees clearly that Joe is a monster. She is locked in the cage. Joe wants to prove that that doesn't come with a death sentence. Will eventually got out. Joe believes Will has made a better life for himself in Manila with his girlfriend. That may be completely aspirational. It's the thought that Joe holds onto though. He believes Delilah and Ellie can be reunited. Their family dynamic doesn't have to change simply because he became involved in their lives. That's simply not true though. He was the latest man to take advantage of them and essentially abuse them. Delilah is dead at the conclusion of this hour. Joe doesn't remember killing her. As such, he will wrap his mind around the morality of such a decision. He didn't want her to die. Her death could showcase how it's the simplistic and most basic way that Joe reacts to the twists of the world. He is in a controlled environment within the storage locker. No one else had access to it. No one else was under a time crunch in order to get out of town. He was running against the clock knowing that Delilah's escape could plague so much of what he was hoping to escape to with Love. That makes it understandable why he would feel the impulse to kill her. In his mind, it's the simple solution. The same is true with Forty. Killing him would provide a simple resolution to that lingering problem. Sure, it runs the risk of completely destroying his bond with Love for good. He can't accept that right now. However, she is willing to run away because she sees the ideal of what this relationship can be. She views it as the one thing that may actually be healthy and rewarding for her. That may not be true at all considering the lethal mentality Joe embraces about his life. He is forever torn up about that decision. But again, it's just naturally who he is. He comforts Forty after he opens up about killing his au pair. That friendship is strong and grounded in the sense that they are both damaged people who have hurt others in significant ways. They can sometimes overcome those actions to have better lives. They may still have to deal with the consequences though. Forty has been plagued by a life of addiction problems because no one has known how to help him. Joe presents as a calming and comforting presence. But he too is just manipulating the situation to his benefit in the hopes of securing love for himself without having to kill any more. And yet, that may be inevitable at this point. As Candace once said, murder follows him wherever he goes because that's simply who he is. That final image may finally prove that to Joe.