Credit: Surviving Christina
The third episode of “You,” opened with a helicopter’s view of a New York City sunrise- with the light bouncing off the tops of the skyscrapers, this is the only perfectly serene moment pictured in the entire episode. When the first scene begins, Joe and Beck are walking down a sidewalk that looks surprisingly clean considering the city they’re in, talking about their favorite movies (Joe’s being Beverly Hills Cop, oddly; Beck’s is Pretty in Pink). Joe thinks to himself how he could be the Duckie to her Andie, just like in the 1980’s hit movie. This peace is counteracted when a later scene reveals a nervous Joe, unsure of what to do with Benji’s very bloody and decaying body. I mean, what are you supposed to do when you kill the ex-boyfriend of a girl you’re kind of dating but not really, right? Beck still has no idea that he’s even dead. Joe has covered up any trace of his downfall, continuing to tweet from Benji’s Twitter account to make it seem like he’s off somewhere forgetting about her, and she makes sure Benji knows that in her eyes, he’s dead. The tweeting might be easy, but when it comes to the actual body in his bookstore’s basement, Joe is at a loss for what to do. Joe is slowly realizing the depth of his crime and is fearful of what could happen.
Credit: Twitch
In episode three, we also saw some development in Beck’s character. Finally, she is starting to grow slightly weary of Joe and sees some of the signs that indicate he may be a little off. She notices Joe take a phone call from work. He speaks suspiciously as a coworker tells him they need access to the basement where Benji’s body lies, and Beck notices how worried he seems to answer a seemingly simple request. However, once Joe covers it up with a smile and his soft tone of voice, telling her that she is more remarkable than she thinks, she forgets all about any fears that she roused. She does start to pay more attention to the fact that it’s a little weird that she hasn’t been to his apartment or met his friends, but immediately feels awful for bringing it up to him, considering she and Joe aren’t yet exclusive. Beck is also showing how much she cares for her art as she begins attending a new writing class which filled with highly intimidating and skillful writers. She tries to focus on succeeding in her class but occasionally allows herself to be distracted by Joe. Most importantly in this episode, Beck is going through a “Benji exorcism,” in an attempt to erase any memory she ever had of the fake hipster she once dated.
Mitchell in “You” (right) and in “Pretty Little Liars” (left) Credit: Us Weekly
Throughout their day together, a few significant things occurred between them, but the most important concerned Peach. Peach is featured more in this episode and Shay Mitchell has a great talent for displaying her high and mighty attitude. Whereas Penn Badgley portrays a role similar to another he’s played, Mitchell is given the opportunity to branch out with her acting. Her character is completely the opposite of her infamous role of Emily on “Pretty Little Liars” and she completely owns the new persona. While her nose is typically in the air, Peach actually spends this episode begging for help as she experiences trouble with a medical problem that Beck seems to be aware of. Unfortunately for Joe, she comes right in the middle of him and Beck getting very comfortable with each other in Beck’s apartment. When Beck convinces Joe to drive her and Peach to a hospital, he sits at the wheel wondering why Beck wouldn’t stop writing to spend time with him (although, she actually did) but was more than willing to help her friend during a terrifying experience with her gallbladder syndrome. So selfish of her, right? I mean, despite the doctor saying it was good they took care of this emergency when they did, how could Beck abandon him when he was in such a need for attention? Peach ends up fleeing the car before reaching the hospital, because of an awful smell, a.k.a Benji’s body was reeking from the back of the car. Joe had left it there earlier to get it out of the basement and blamed the odour on the smells of the city. Badgley portrays Joe’s annoyingly needy side in this scene. He does this again as he follows Beck and sees all the other men she’s interested in. She and Joe are not exclusive but still, Joe is desperately trying to control her, keep track of her, and blind her from the realities of her life that he hopes she’ll never know about.
Between scenes, more shots are taken of the hussle in the city and it’s weird to see all of the New Yorkers walking around because some of them probably see Joe every day and don’t realize it. They don’t realize that the guy who’s in the coffee shop, on the same subway as them, fixing books in their favorite bookstore, etc, is also a stalker and killer. It terrifies me to realize that someone this ordinary looking could be so troubled. Peach actually mentions to Beck that she should avoid him- not because she feels aware of the crimes he’s committed but because of his financial situation, which is similar to that of Beck. Therefore, he won’t be able to support her. The point is that this whole episode made it seem like the universe is trying to tear the two of them apart. It’s as if the world is giving her small warnings in an attempt to stop her from seeing him anymore. After Joe finally lets her into his real self a little more, the episode ends as he and Beck have a mishap that may alter their relationship in the future.
Featured image credit: Twitch
