‘You’ Season 4 Part 1 Recap and Review: London Calling
You Season 4 Part 1 is finally available on Netflix. The psychological thriller series picked up Joe Goldberg’s story in London. Joe is teaching under the name Professor Jonathan Moore. He attempts to keep a low profile while spending a lot of time with a wealthy group of socialites. The trailer teased a season full of twists and a murder mystery storyline, but the end of part 1 revealed the Eat the Rich Killer’s identity with five whole episodes of the season to go.
[WARNING: This article contains spoilers for You Season 4 Part 1, including the identity of the Eat the Rich Killer.]
Joe has a little too much luck in ‘You’ Season 4 Part 1
The premiere episode of You Season 4 Part 1 needed first to explain its setting change from Paris to London, and it did just that. Joe followed Marienne to London after learning she was there attending an art show. Marienne thankfully took Love’s words to heart and doesn’t trust him. Seeing Joe terrifies her, though he lets her go.
Joe then runs into Elliot Tannenberg, a man who Love’s father hired to find him. It seems that not everyone was convinced by Love’s fake suicide note, which truly isn’t surprising.
What doesn’t make sense much sense is Elliot’s sudden change of heart. He suddenly decides that his days of working as a hired killer are over and offers Joe a handshake and a new ID, complete with a sparkling credit score and work visa.
It’s not the first time fans of the series have needed to suspend their disbelief. The plotline also missed out on an opportunity to bring back the fake-ID extraordinaire, Will Bettelheim. Regardless, Elliot’s final request is that Joe ties up loose ends and kill Marienne, which he doesn’t do. Might this come back to haunt him later in the series?
Kate is a refreshingly stone-cold love interest
After landing a teaching job, Joe unwillingly befriends another professor at his school named Malcolm, who introduces him to his latest obsession. Kate is refreshingly different from Joe’s past love interests. She is wary, suspicious, cold, and not at all charmed by Joe. She isn’t easily impressed by his acts of heroism and finds him obnoxious.
Things take a turn when the Eat the Rich Killer begins murdering Kate’s wealthy group of friends. Throughout the series, Joe’s inner monologue shows a distaste for most people, save for his obsession. Yet in You Season 4, his wealthy new circle really is detestable.
Malcolm, a professor at Joe’s university, is sleeping with at least one of his students. Simon, an introverted artist from a wealthy tech family, steals his work from those less fortunate. Gemma abuses the staff at Phoebe’s mansion.
The other rich folk, like Roald, Connie, and Blessing, prove to be just as soulless. They are hardly phased by members of their friend group suffering violent deaths. That’s not to say that they deserve to die, but it’s hard to feel sad when the Eat the Rich Killer picks off Malcolm, Simon, and Gemma one by one.
Kate, however, slowly softens as the terror builds, revealing that she’s so stone cold because she was forced to bottle up every emotion as a child. Lady Phoebe and Adam are also a surprisingly sweet couple, despite their quirks.
‘You’ Season 4 reveals the Eat the Rich Killer’s identity in episode 5
While Joe and his rich friends hide out at Phoebe’s mansion, Roald becomes convinced that Joe is the killer. He chases him into the woods with a shotgun, à la The Most Dangerous Game. Rhys Montrose, the only wealthy socialite Joe likes, appears out of nowhere and smashes Joe over the head with a shotgun
It turns out that Rhys was the killer all along. Having grown up in a childhood full of poverty and trauma, Rhys hates the wealthy socialites he’s forced to rub shoulders alongside. He hopes that Joe will share his love of killing the rich and join forces with him.
Joe wakes up chained in a dungeon beside Roald in the basement of Phoebe’s home. After realizing that Joe isn’t interested in playing his game, Rhys lights the place on fire, telling Joe he’ll see him in London if he manages to escape. Joe does indeed manage to survive and, back in London, realizes that Rhys is running for mayor.
You Season 4 reveals the identity of the Eat the Rich Killer surprisingly early and sets up a completely different storyline for part 2. Joe is now involved in a cat-and-mouse game with a sadistic killer who has the potential to become one of the most powerful men in London.
You Season 4 Part 1 premieres Feb 9, 2023, and Part 2 March 9, 2023, only on Netflix.
