YOU Season 5: Top 10 Most Shocking Moments

“The Luckiest Guy in NY”

In the first episode of “You” Season 5, Joe Goldberg admits he hasn’t killed anyone in three years. His murder hiatus comes to an end when Kate’s Uncle Bob conspires to destroy her reputation and force her to step down as CEO of Lockwood Corp. Joe suggests taking him out before he can expose Kate’s past mistakes, but she’s not on board. Later, we think Joe kidnapped Bob anyway and plans to kill him. As Kate discovers, Joe is just writing about who and how he wants to kill to calm his dark urges. She’s repulsed by his desire to kill. However, Buffalo Bob proves to be relentless and cruel. In the end, Kate lets Joe murder him.

“Blood Will Have Blood”

When Joe receives a call about Henry getting into trouble at school, he’s understandably concerned. Like any parent, he doesn’t believe his son would hurt anyone. But he learns that Henry punched Gretchen Jacobs, his step-cousin, for calling his mother a murderer. Being the offspring of two violent people and having an unstable home life for the first three years, maybe it wouldn’t be too far-fetched for him to develop early signs of aggression. At dinner, Henry overhears Gretchen’s mom Reagan, Kate’s sister, threatening to ruin their lives and throws a butter knife at her. Joe may be shocked by his actions, but still defends him, saying Henry is trying to protect his family. Sound familiar?

“Blood Will Have Blood”

“You” is a drama thriller with heavy themes. It’s also darkly funny, mainly because Joe Goldberg is a judgmental introvert who says what we’re thinking… sometimes. Seeing him fail is pretty hilarious, too. In Season 5, we meet Kate’s paternal half-siblings, twin sisters Reagan and Maddie, both played by Anna Camp. Reagan is as ambitious as she is ruthless, making it her mission to take Kate down. Despite the animosity, Kate doesn’t want her sister to die, but Joe decides to kidnap her… or so he thinks. In a classic sitcom twist, he actually grabbed Maddie, who, to be fair, was hooking up with Reagan’s husband Harrison while dressed like her. He’s also surprised that this isn’t Maddie’s first time being kidnapped.

“My Fair Maddie”

On his second attempt, Joe does capture Reagan, but not without an unexpected struggle. Basically, Peach Salinger all over again. He puts her in the glass cage with her sister. When she regains consciousness, their reunion isn’t a happy one. Reagan knows about Maddie and Harrison’s affair, though we learn that Maddie loved him first. Maddie was also a surrogate for the couple and risked her life giving birth to Gretchen. Reagan is as venomous as ever, relishing in making her twin sister feel less than, showing just how little she values her life. Off-screen, Maddie uses her insulin to kill Reagan. Sticking to Joe’s questionable plan, she impersonates Reagan. Literally haunted by what she did, Maddie goes into a downward spiral.

“Folie à Deux”

Season 4 had a few shocking reveals, but the one that really stuck with us was watching Joe frame Nadia Farran for murder. The Darcy College student had her whole life ahead of her, and he ruined it just so he could get his happily ever after. We hoped Nadia would return and, more importantly, get out of prison with a revenge plan. However, we didn’t expect Kate, who helped put her there, to be the one to do it. As she continues to uncover more of Joe’s crimes, including being the Eat the Rich Killer, Kate begins by making things right, starting with having Nadia released. Sadly, there are things she can’t reverse, like Nadia’s father passing away, or Eddie’s death.

“#JoeGoldberg”

After Bronte’s friends expose Joe on social media, we get a series of familiar faces, beginning with Dottie Quinn, Love’s mother. Madre Linda residents Sherry and Cary don’t defend Joe, but their beef is with his late wife. As in the trailer, Beck’s friend Annika Attwater comes forward, accusing him of killing Peach. Paco has nice things to say about his former friend, including how he “helped” with his abusive step-father, Ron, which doesn’t help Joe’s case. Former Mooney’s employee Ethan Russell chimes in with a somewhat neutral stance. Lady Phoebe and Will Bettelheim make longer appearances in other episodes. While we didn’t see all the characters we wanted to, like Ellie, Theo, and Joe’s half-brother, it’s still exciting that we got this many.

“Trial of the Furies”

Another character we hoped would make a return was Marienne Bellamy, one of the few “You” survivors who escaped the glass cage with her life. Joe, delusional as ever, is happy to see her alive. But as she spits facts about how much he hurt and dehumanized her, he firmly believes he’s a savior because he helped her get custody of her daughter by killing Juliette’s father, Ryan. Marienne also deserves credit for getting through to Bronte, who was still caught up in Joe until she heard some hard truths from another woman who believed Joe’s lies. In the finale’s “happy ending” montage, we see that Kate’s working with emerging artists again, including Marienne, who finally feels safe enough to display her work.

“Last Dance” & “The Dark Face of Love”

Ahead of Season 5, it was announced that Joe would have a new “you” to obsess over named Bronte. Going by that very likely fake name, fans theorized she could be just another hallucination, or maybe someone undercover. Bronte, real name Louise Flannery, was in fact real, but also catfishing Joe. A flashback shows she was friends with Guinevere Beck and teamed up with fellow internet sleuths, Dominique, Phoenix, and Clayton, to take Joe down. While they didn’t like her decision to go rogue and make him fall for her, they still caught him. Unfortunately, Clayton got aggressive with Bronte/Louise, and Joe killed him. Come to find out, he was the son of Dr. Nicky, the man Joe framed for Beck’s murder.

“Finale”

Whether or not Joe is capable of real love, not infatuation, has been an ongoing question in the series. The only real examples are probably his mother, even after she abandoned him, and, of course, his only son. Joe managed to keep his dark side from Henry for years, but this season’s events expose the truth. At first, Henry hears about his dad from his stepmother Kate, who tells him just enough to know that he did something bad. Then he sees Joe with a knife and later learns that he killed his biological mother. On a call facilitated by Will, he finally says what Joe’s been dreading. Just as Love said with her last breath, Henry knows his dad is a monster.


Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.

Joe Clearly Underestimated His Wife’s Strength

Thousands Watch an Accused Serial Killer Weep After Trauma Dumping

We Usually Love Joe’s Savage Reads… But This Cut Deep

Somehow Joe Knew He’d End Up in His Own Cage

“Finale”

For years, “You” fans have theorized and debated the ultimate fate of Joe Goldberg — would he turn himself in, get caught, be killed by one of his victims, or get away with it? Kate was determined to stop him and almost died in the process. Bronte takes on the responsibility of finally stopping Joe on her own, risking her life in a long and brutal fight that ends with him wounded in handcuffs. Although he’s killed at least 18 people, not counting Season 5 casualties, Joe is convicted of first-degree murder for killing Beck, Benji, Peach, and Love. He’d rather die than go to prison, making his sentence of life without parole all the more fitting. Now he’s the one in a cage.


Do YOU think Joe Goldberg got what he deserved? What moment shocked you the most? Let us know in the comments below.