Joe beams with pride as he reflects on his wife's handling of distressing news imparted by a virtual stranger. Her response, a strategic application of force that left the man merely unconscious rather than permanently silenced, marks a peculiar sort of progress in their twisted world. Yet, Joe knows deep down that Gil's fate is sealed; once ensnared within their plexiglass prison, escape is but a fantastical dream, with death serving as the sole exit. The burning question lingers: in what manner will Padre Linda, alias Gil, meet his untimely demise? (Incidentally, while the original Will Bettelheim managed to stay under the radar and avoid implicating Joe, his circumstances were uniquely suited for evasion; Gil, however, lacks such luxury.)
Joe and Love find themselves in a quandary, wrestling with morality amidst a sea of misplaced decisions. They take lives, yet cringe at the thought of being categorized as cold-blooded killers. Joe endeavors to broker a truce with Gil, suggesting they keep their assault and kidnapping ordeal a friendly secret. Gil, oblivious to the gravity of his peril, retaliates with an anti-vax tirade, extolling the virtues of Henry's supposed "enhanced immunity," believing he had actually done the child a favor. Joe recognizes the futility of reasoning with Gil, realizing their only hope lies in uncovering some damning secret to silence the seemingly blameless man. Alas, their search proves fruitless as Gil turns out to be as saintly as they come. The solitary blemish on his record, an incident he was unaware of until Joe and Love brought it to his attention, lacks the sting they desperately seek. How dull, indeed! Imagine the intrigue if they had discovered genuine dirt on Gil, releasing him only to live in perpetual fear of his potential betrayal. (But that's just this recapper's musing; I'm eager to hear your perspectives in the comments below!)
Now, let's not jump ahead. Sherry, the vigilant community member, organizes a search party for Natalie, transforming the neighborhood into a real-life episode of "Search Party." With neighbors scouring the very woods where Natalie was once buried and exhumed, tensions flair. Overhearing Theo's vehement refusal to participate, citing the fakery of everything and everyone around him, and Sherry's suspicion of Matthew as the killer, Love coaxes Theo into attending, promising to accompany him. Could that seemingly insignificant hole in the fence pose a threat to Joe and Love's carefully constructed façade? Their persistent focus on it suggests a pivotal role in the narrative to come.
Amidst the blossoming yet twisted tales of relationships, Marienne stumbled upon Joe in the act of stealing a $2,500 book, and inexplicably deduced that he must have hailed from a mansion where rare tomes served as trivial drink coasters. Clearly, we are privy to Joe's deplorable nature, yet Marienne lacks any substantial reason to presume his upbringing was anything but similar to her own modest origins; her knowledge of him is confined to his fatherhood and a fondness for books! This adversaries-turned-lovers archetype falls flat for me. Their animosity demands a more tangible foundation! Surely, there are numerous legitimate reasons to dislike the fellow. Consequently, Joe is compelled to return the ill-gotten tome, leaving Ellie to fend for herself this month. One wonders if the ultimate narrative arc might see Ellie returning to exact vengeance upon Joe? Such a twist would pose the classic dilemma of "becoming the very thing one hates," yet her life is already in disarray.
Gil gradually dawns upon the grim reality that he is dealing with genuine sociopaths, yet even this awakening offers him no viable escape. Ideally, Gil should deduce that Joe and Love are behind Natalie's demise. What are the chances that the Quinn-Goldbergs' arrival coincides with Natalie's untimely death, her last known location being their bakery? Moreover, Gil has borne firsthand witness to their brutal actions and the macabre human aquarium! Upon this realization, one might expect Joe and Love to conclude that eliminating Gil is their only recourse. Instead, the narrative offers a labyrinthine non-plot intertwined with misleading clues, as Gil fails to grasp the gravity of his perilous predicament. (His refusal of a croissant due to caloric concerns?! Really, Gil?) Gil repeatedly emphasizes that as a parent, one's duty is to ensure their children's health and safety, prompting me to scribble in capital letters, "GIL, YOU DID NOT VACCINATE YOUR DAMN KIDS!"
Love informs Joe that after much deliberation (a mere 24 hours), they have no alternative but to commit homicide: "We didn't want to do this. We did it to safeguard our family." Alright, pal. It's amusing how swiftly Love, the self-proclaimed "non-impulsive" Quinn, jumps to concluding, "Well, I suppose we must murder this guy." Joe snaps at Love, insisting she will not compel him to slay anyone. Oh, Joe. The season has scarcely begun.
Love announces her mother's impending visit to take Henry, prompting me to jot down, "Didn't she recently scream at her mother to vacate her life forever?!" Yet, such inconsistencies are brushed aside! Grandmother offers Love the contact of their family private investigator, whom Love intends to deploy to scrutinize Gil, much to Joe's exasperation. (Also, isn't it peculiar that the police haven't obtained a search warrant for the bakery?) Later, Love confesses to Joe her fear of eternal resentment if they don't "handle the situation" (their hostage) "the right way" (without murder), and I think, Well, duh, continued homicide is bound to impact your spouse's perception of you! Setting aside Joe's own share of homicidal deeds for a moment, it's a classic case of pots calling kettles black, where all pots are, in fact, corpses.
Love taunts Gil with the confidential information procured by the private investigator, weaving a narrative akin to an real-life "Operation Varsity Blues" saga, further complicated by Gil's son's alleged assaults on multiple unseen women. (How convenience it is for this show to exploit the specter of sexual violence against anonymous females as a mere plot device for the male characters we avidly follow… Not my cup of tea!) Unbeknownst to Gil, the extent of the deceit and cover-ups stretches far beyond his comprehension, and the revelation concerning his son shatters him to pieces. Before Joe and Love could even utter the words urging Gil to flee town, they return to find him hanging from the rafters, a victim of his own despair. Love reassures Joe, "Hey, this isn't on us. HE made the choice." Oh dear. Has Love surpassed Joe in the realm of madness, or was she always this madness, and Joe merely unleashed her darker side?
Love comprehends the necessity of attending the search party, leaving Joe to deal with Gil's aftermath. Meanwhile, she conjures a scheme, which Joe skillfully executes while she and Theo wander through the woods, cunningly burying the murder weapon – now smeared with Gil's fingerprints – beneath the soil. Her master plan: Frame Gil for Natalie's murder, constructing a narrative of an illicit affair, Gil's guilt-ridden act of slaying Natalie, and his subsequent suicide at home, accompanied by a melodramatically overwritten suicide note penned by Joe. Two corpses, one seamless narrative. It's a neat, tidy loop. Perhaps too neat, one might argue. But for the duration of this episode, it suffices.
At the search party, Theo erupts in fury upon overhearing Sherry label Matthew as an "unfeeling robot." Love steps in to smooth things over with Sherry, feigning concern for her wellbeing, momentarily alienating Theo's friendship but swiftly reclaiming it, for she is the sole soul in this forsaken town who truly understands him. Curiously, Theo ponders, "Does a terrible family tragedy make people more desirable?" To which Love responds, "From my experience, yes." Yet, she was already entangled with Joe and pregnant when Forty perished – Forty's demise being the "terrible family tragedy" Theo is aware of. So, how could she know she became "more desirable" to whom? Her husband, who, as she has lamented, scarcely acknowledges her existence since their son's birth?
It might seem insignificant, but a series like "You" relies on such foundational interactions making coherent sense to justify its decadent, bizarre, and wildly unpredictable plot twists. If these core exchanges leave a vigilant viewer scratching their head, pondering, "Wait… what?", then the show's wilder aspects will surely plummet.
Theo plants a kiss on Love, only to have her swiftly slap his hand aside, issuing a stern warning against such behavior. Yet, the gesture hints at an inevitable repetition, leaving one to ponder when he might attempt it again. Meanwhile, the detectives meticulously piece together the clues that Joe and Love have deliberately scattered for their discovery. Theo loads his car, preparing to embark on his journey back to school, while Joe assumes Gil's cozy reading nook in the library.
Marianne, her fingers toying absentmindedly with her necklace, engages Joe in conversation and suggests, with a hint of obvious flirtation, "David Copperfield" as his next literary venture. Joe is acutely aware of the perilous path his thoughts might take if he indulges in her charms, but we are all too familiar with Joe's struggle to resist contemplating a woman once she has captured his attention.
