YOU Season 1 Episode 4 Review: The Captain
Jasmine Blu
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It wasn't double the pleasure (though you redeemed yourself in that area, Joe), but it was double the fun because YOU finally gave us Beck's POV.
YOU Season 1 Episode 4 was an hour dedicated to shading in the enigmatic Beck. The question is, how do you feel about Beck now that we've spent a little time in her head?
Is it presumptuous to say the consensus of TV Fanatics was that Beck is lackluster? Up until this point, Beck was difficult to grasp. The majority of what we knew about her was based on Joe's impression, and the supporting characters stood out more in the scenes with Beck and them.
As YOU headed into this Beck-centric hour, there were some high expectations. It was the time to deliver something juicy on the series co-lead, and whether or not they delivered is debatable.
Some part of me was hoping to learn that Beck has a darkness to her. I wanted to cast her in this role of an unassuming adversary who would give Joe and his wickedness a run for his money. Perhaps that's why the Joe and Peach dynamic is infinitely more fun to watch in some ways.
But Beck is Beck.
Beck, you're such an asshole. Love me, daddy. I'm going to be a writer, daddy. God just shut up forever.
Beck Voiceover
There's finally an opportunity to color her in more, and she's the broke Art student with identity and daddy issues seeking approval and validation from others. She still doesn't know what she wants out of life. She's still unexceptional.
On other shows, this (and she) would be relatable and endearing, but here, it's disappointing -- for now. This series has a way of surprising us, though.
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It could be that accepting that Beck is normal means facing that Joe is disgusting and vile for violating her. Go on YOU, slap us on the wrists for being entertained or possibly even liking this guy.
Even now, a tiny, twisted, unconscionably idealistic part of me wants Joe to stop his stalkerish ways right now. Maybe he and Beck can find happiness together if he stops. Isn't that a horrible thing to think?
Beck's feelings for Joe are genuine. He gives her what she craves the most. He believes in her, and he validates her. It's what she wants out of men, but she never dated a man who was like that.
It was telling that she was willing to stick things out with him even after their disastrous sex. The moments following that brief scene were amusing to no end. Neither one of them knew what to say, and it was beyond awkward.
Then Beck shared the experience in the group chat with her girls, and Joe tortured himself by reading those texts about his anatomy and inadequacy. Yikes!
My dick reduced to cartoon food items. This is my nightmare. A hot dog. Yes, with the bun. Tell her, Beck. Go on, listen to your gut. Joe is the one.
Joe
The more Beck spoke favorably and fondly of Joe, the more discomfort there is when he continues to stalk the ever-loving hell out of her.
The way Joe showed up at the Dickens Fest (LOL, really?) and Beck eventually bumped into him was so spectacularly disturbing.
Although, Joe visually sweeping his apartment while making out with Beck and stealthily removing objects that would tip her off (her panties, tank top, and cellphone) upped the creep factor to distressing new heights.
Sound the alarms! Beckalish, no!
Joe was able to redeem himself and show off his sexual prowess. Kudos to Joe, when he did bump into her with his little newsboy hat; he was so smooth and charming addressing the elephant in the room. He admitted to light but acceptable (!) stalking when he explained how he found her.
Shoutout to YOU for showing the creepiness of the Rom-Com tropes often painted as hopelessly romantic. Joe tracked Beck down based off of a sculpture in the background of her picture, and no red flag went up. Not one. Dammit, Beck.
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Joe scratched an itch and figured out who "Captain" was, gave her sage advice like a dutiful boyfriend, and convinced himself that he's Beck's hero.
Joe: I'm lying to you right now. I wasn't happy with how we left things and neither were you seeing as how you were hiding out in the bathroom.
Beck: I wasn't hiding, I swear.
Joe: We can at least agree that I left you a little wanting?
Beck: Yeah--
Joe: So you're saying you did want it to last longer than eight seconds?
Beck: No, I mean yeah, as in--
Joe: Wait, I thought it was a race? Didn't I win? I thought it would be nice if I came to surprise you and not leave you with that memory of me for too long.
As suspected, Beck's father is very much alive and is seemingly happy with a new family. Yeah, Beck only went to see him when she needed money, but by the end of the hour, her reasoning made her more sympathetic.
It sucks when you have to endure all of someone's mistakes so they can learn, grow, and bestow their lessons and this new and improved them on someone else. Edward's new family reaps the benefits from Beck and her family's suffering.
We found out that Beck's mother is depressed and never recovered, Beck's severe daddy issues reflect in her choice of men, and she and her siblings are estranged. That is messed up.
Edward's addiction is the cause of Beck's irrevocably broken family; meanwhile, Edward is happy and healthy with his new family. Also, his new family doesn't have room for her because Nancy and Mia are awful.
Finding a positive, decent character requires a telescope with this series. Nancy was loathsome, and her shade-throwing was unparalleled. Mia was an insufferable little witch too.
There is nothing remotely Christian-like or acceptable about a woman who yearns for her husband to cut off his kids and play dumb when Beck brings up his past.
All Beck has is her past with her father, and Nancy kept getting in the way of that too. Hate to say it, but Joe was right about Beck working through her issues with her father.
Nancy: Your father, he's just an ATM to you, right Beck?
Beck: I'm sorry, and what is he to you? A feature for your blog so you can brag about how you lifted him from the pits of despair? Newsflash, he was sober when you met him! I was in the pits with him, and not because I wasn't Christian enough. You didn't save him. You think he'll fall over if you pull your hand out of his ass?
Edward: Guinevere, enough.
Writing is supposed to be about honesty, and the reason Beck has been a sucky writer for so long is that she refused to be honest about her relationship with her dad. People can sense the truth in writing and poetry, and all Beck wrote about was her dead father.
Her peers and instructors saw right through that even if they didn't know the whole story. Beck's resolution with Edward was unsatisfying because Edward never appeared contrite.
He was in NA for crying out loud! Did he ever make amends? Did he ever reach out to Beck's siblings? Did he ever do anything that gave Beck the impression he didn't replace her with this fake family?
The most Edward did was throw money at her and attempt to badger her into spending time with them for the holidays.
Beck needs to stop using him as an ATM, but he should be willing to check his rude ass wife. If Beck remains bitter and distant with him forever, it's understandable. I hope their new baby is an atheist who gives them hell.
Joe gave us the barest hint about his family issues. Hopefully, we'll learn more about him. Is it safe to say the voiceovers will shift back to him?
I'm trying to decide if it worked to YOU's advantage or Beck's disadvantage that the entire hour wasn't solely her voiceovers.
It's possible we would have learned more than we did about her and she would have popped more. It's also possible that they prefer her to remain shrouded in mystery or she's so mundane that they knew their strength lay in Joe. What do you think?
It's really too bad the one whose approval you seek the most isn't my biggest fan. Fortunately, Paco is a remarkably quick reader. I can return the book I never had any intention of keeping, and if that's not enough, if Peach still has a problem, every relationship has its obstacles to overcome, right? I won't let her get in the way if us Beck. I won't.
Joe
Joe knows that Peach is the one he has to win over, but he also knows there is a chance he never will. Didn't you love it when he returned the book? There is something about the two of them that remains captivating.
They're like two sides of the same coin, but with each passing hour, Peach's genuine feelings for Beck come through. Most of the time she comes across condescending, but when she encouraged Beck with her writing, it was sweet.
Of course, that's also because we were in Beck's head at the time, and Beck's friends from her perspective aren't that bad. The conflictive nature of the viewpoints is fascinating.
Over to YOU.
Did you enjoy the Beck voiceovers? Did this Beck- centric hour change how you perceive Beck?
Do you find Joe's stalking creepier than ever now that we know more about Beck? How long will the two be happy before something interferes with it?
Is Joe capable of not stalking Beck? Hit the comments below!
If you'd like to catch up on this twisted little series, YOU can watch YOU online here via TV Fanatic!
Jasmine Blu is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. She is an insomniac who spends late nights and early mornings binge-watching way too many shows and binge-drinking way too much tea. Her eclectic taste makes her an unpredictable viewer with an appreciation for complex characters, diverse representation, dynamic duos, compelling stories, and guilty pleasures. You'll definitely find her obsessively live-tweeting, waxing poetic, and chatting up fellow Fanatics and readers. Follow her on X.
