The knives are out in ‘You’ Season 4 Part I

By Mac Sykes ASSISTANT ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR

Few horror shows and movies come to mind that keep audiences on the edges of their seats or continue to develop their main characters in an interesting way by the time the subsequent installments come around. Fortunately, Season 4 of “You” is one such show. Thursday, Feb. 9, saw the return of Netflix’s popular psychological thriller for a fourth season – one that delivers a satisfying continuation in a story that amazes and leaves us constantly guessing as to what will come next.

The series takes on an unexpected approach in the narrative that the promotional material does not do justice to. The over-thetop, far-fetched, sexually-driven plots that dragged out Season 3 have faded away, and the writers have grounded the show back to the roots of what made this such a gripping tale to start with. Penn Badgley’s complex portrayal of the bookstore clerk-turned-killer, Joe Goldberg, is back at the center of attention.

Season 4 finds Joe, now under the alias of Dr. Jonathan Moore, hiding in London as a university professor after burning away his old life in the suburbs of California, where we saw him at the end of the third season.

What begins as a fresh start does not take long before things begin to spiral out of hand, as Joe finds himself entangled in a mystery with an unknown figure who is fully aware of all his secrets and ready to expose them to the public. Joe finds himself at his most vulnerable, having met his match in a real life game of chess. Each move proves consequential as he attempts to outsmart the unknown enemy and leave everything from the past behind for good.

An overwhelming majority fans were ecstatic at a continuation of another chapter in the show. A few expressed their concern that the story seemed extremely cluttered, which was a problem with previous storylines that focused less on Joe’s development. Additional concerns arose that the writers had run out of steam, with fans stating that the plot seemed equivalent to the “Knives Out” films, as the trailer showed Joe attempting to solve a murder related to a group of powerful members of society. All of this left some to question the relevance of a continuation, as the story had seemingly been seamlessly concluded by the end of the previous season. Fortunately, the first five episodes had much more to offer, putting the worries of those who raised concerns about potential flaws, to rest. “You” has taken a chance at the murder mystery plot that has been done to death, and still manages to deliver a new take in each episode, having the lead protagonist and former killer now be hunted by a threat beyond himself.

Gone are the days of the intense, disturbing stalker Joe was in Season 1, as we now see him in his weakest point. The clever hunter has become the hunted prey, and Joe must do his best to survive. The element most lacking in the previous two seasons was fixed within the first episode.

The plot that focused on Joe’s inner monologue and the process he undergoes to solve this mystery proved to be much more interesting and fresh in comparison to past episodes.

While some elements have been repeated continuously throughout the show, specifically in their endings, each season of “You” is brilliant in its own right. There is something for everyone to love with each season.

Since the release of the episodes earlier this month, a lot of fans have complained that the show has become a bit dull in its pacing, especially in comparison to past seasons. However, this slower pacing is a welcome change.

The writers have set out to develop Joe’s character and grow him as a person. They do not wish to repeat the same story elements about him over and over in subsequent seasons, where the tropes become all too familiar.

It is worth applauding the efforts of the creative team. Joe is back in the focus of the narrative and the audience is once again put inside the mind of this complicated killer. Fortunately, fans see a less malevolent side to Joe this season and are instead treated to a reserved man trying his best to change. Having lost everything, Joe is completely broken-hearted, using his intelligence and skills of deception for the greater good – even if it is to save his own life when he certainly deserves to go down. It is a nice change for Joe’s character to be focused less on another crush he has deemed “the one to his heart” and instead fighting against the devil himself to save his own life.

For long time fans, this season is worth the watch as we see Joe’s growth and the different take in the presentation of his story. Less of the emphasis is focused on murder and the consequent results and more of it is focused on an intriguing mystery about survival. Whether or not Joe will truly change once and for all and escape his fate is something fans will have to wait for when Part II of Season 4 premieres Thursday, March 9, on Netflix.

What happened to long seasons of TV?

By Abby Gibson SPECIAL TO THE CHRONICLE

Shorter television seasons have become increasingly common in today’s streaming world. There used to be more than 20 episodes per season, but over the past few years, many only have half of that. With shorter seasons, there is less time for character development and world-building. Filler episodes are no longer necessary, and while that might be good for the plot, it also prevents us from learning more about the characters.

With streaming services becoming more and more popular, the budgets for these shows seem to prioritize quality over quantity. Without filler episodes, viewers are left to imagine what the characters are like outside of the show. Filler episodes used to provide viewers with insight into secondary characters, or even more knowledge of who the main characters are.

An example of this is the Netflix’s “Stranger Things.” The show has never exceeded nine episodes; however, it does a great job of letting us into the plot and growing it over time. The downside to this is that we never see the kids doing kid things or the teens being teens. There is never a break from the world of monsters that lasts for more than a few minutes.

Some well-known actors favor shorter seasons, as it gives them more time to pursue other projects. For example, Viola Davis from “How to Get Away with Murder” would only sign on if they kept the show at 15 episodes instead of ABC’s normal 22-episode order.

Our society has dived deep into the art of binging a televi- sion series. With shorter seasons, there is more appeal to binging a show. For example, “Stranger Things” would be completely different if it had around 20 episodes. Yes, we would get to see more of the characters but it would be harder to watch all of them in a 24-hour time period.

Spoiler alerts on social media become more frequent during the release of big shows like this, and shorter episodes can help remedy that. Keeping with the “Stranger Things” example, some of their episodes last around an hour. This is completely different when there are more than 15 episodes per season as each one lasts around 30 to 40 minutes.

ABC’s “Abbott Elementary” plans to have 22 episodes in its third season. This is the most the series has done, and the fans seem to be excited for a longer season. This series says that it was not influenced by the many calls to give the show a full order.

A problem for cable TV with this trend of a lower number of episodes per seasons is syndica- tion. Syndication is when a TV series begins to air reruns. The series has to either have entered their fourth season or have around 80 to 100 episodes. It is more difficult to get to this point if there are no longer 20+ episodes per season. The process of syndication is likely to be in trouble as more and more shows are deciding to focus more on the plot and less on filler. Streaming services have also affected the syndication model, as they do not care how many episodes a show has as long as they have content to put onto their sites.

While each viewer has different opinions on this change in the world of television, it seems to be sticking around. I do not believe there will be much of a change in episode orders anytime soon.

Until then, you have free range on streaming services to watch whatever show you want with episode numbers ranging from eight to 21.