Netflix’s You season 3 still has the best narrator on television

If storytelling’s golden rule is “show, don’t tell,” narration is the rebel without a cause, sticking its middle finger under the principal’s nose in open defiance of that rule. But narration is at risk of pronouncing. Why?Showing is more effective than telling. Netflix’s It is possible to, however, bucks this rule with incredible style, delivering a narrator that isn’t just good, but possibly an all-timer.

It is possible toThis thriller stars Penn Badgley playing Joe Goldberg (a bookeller) who considers himself the hero in his own tale. What is his ultimate goal in this grand novel? He wanted to sweep his dream woman off her feet. Over the course It is possible to’s story, that woman changes, because he spends all his free time stalking his latest target, and killing anyone who gets in between him and his fantasy of being with her. The audience is able to see this because Joe effortlessly narrates every single moment. Even the worst.

Joe’s narration is also an elegant solution to a persistent problem with anti-hero protagonists: the natural tendency to sympathize with — and root for — a point-of-view character you spend a significant amount of time with. Much like many other shows that focus on terrible people,Breaking Bad The Sopranos FriendsThis is where a lot tension can be found. It is possible toJoe Goldberg is an actual killer who has escaped the consequences of his actions over three seasons. And while Joe narrates the show, he’s not the only character it follows. Joe is always part of a community — and because It is possible toHe cares about those in the community. No matter how charmant he may be, he will always be a cancer.

One could accuse the show of repeating itself every year if it weren’t for the fact that It is possible to’s writers aren’t interested in exploring a story where a bad guy gets away with it. They’re interested in a story that chronicles the many ways in which a nice, bookish white guy is conditioned to see women as objects of attention and obsession, and their fixations as normal or invited — to the extent that it can lead to murder. (This is what it means. It is possible to is most like showrunner Sera Gamble’s previous series, The Magicians(This included a deconstruction, among others, of the white male protagonists in genre fiction.

Joe’s stream of consciousness is propulsive; the joy of listening to it is in hearing him slip between his performed self (a nice guy), his actual self (a killer, with a few other problems I am not qualified to name), and his spur-of-the-moment feelings. This manifests most potently in stressful moments, where Joe — who is in denial about his ability to leave his murderous ways behind — has to clean up a crime scene he blames his partner for, sliding between assured damage control and profane whining: “Fuck!This, FUCK this, fuck my LIFE.” It is possible to likes to make it clear that even if Joe is capable at times, he’s also pretty pathetic.

Three seasons. It is possible to puts Joe’s toxic obsessions in different contexts, each showing a subtler form of toxic masculinity. As his environs change, Joe becomes a more complicated sort of monster; from the distant obsessive of season 1, to the wildly unhealthy (yet eerily true-feeling) marriage and parenthood that he’s settled into in season 3. Another one. It is possible to’s delicious ironies: by crafting such a well-realized awful relationship, it has become one of the best shows about relationships, showcasing the delicate balance between individual fulfillment and collective happiness that comes with marriage and a baby. Just replace “murder” with an actual, healthy ambition.

Joe Goldberg and Love Quinn sit in couple’s therapy in season 3 of Netflix’s You.

Photo by John P. Fleenor/Netflix

And Joe’s narration carries us through it all. As portrayed by Badgley, Joe’s voice operates at a wonderfully sardonic baseline, one that’s witty and acerbic but too clever for sarcasm, with withering disdain for deserving targets like the Wellness Industrial Complex or alpha-bro bonding exercises. The narration is charming, and so simple. FunnyThat whiplash when Joe projects his delusional obsession onto a random woman living her daily life openly and nakedly is worse than any jump scare. It feels almost complicity. Let’s get it!Let this man charm you.

Threety-eight episodes are available. It is possible to has walked this tightrope with dazzling aplomb, winning the audience over with one of the most richly realized voices on television — Badgley’s gift is in a tremendous knack for delivery, his self-centered perspective leading to spiraling allusions, his resentment embodied by a guttural growl, his exasperation in the most cathartically voiced Fuck! you’ll hear. I would love to have him narrate my own life, if I didn’t know what that level of attention from him would mean for me.

It is possible to Season 3 was released on October 15, and can be viewed on Netflix. Season 4 will be released on Netflix. Announcement

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