You Season 2: 5 Characters Who Deserved So Much Better (& 5 Who Should Have Had It Worse)

The second season of Netflix’s You delved more deeply into the aftermath of abuse, highlighting the events in Joe’s past that made him what he is, as well as focusing on the stories of survivors, like Candace and Delilah. But while the series does a good job of calling out stalking and abuse, it rarely ever delivers appropriate justice to the perpetrators.

The fact that Joe is still a free man at the end of season 2 is enough evidence that characters rarely get what they deserve in this Netflix series, but there are plenty of other unfair outcomes throughout the new episodes as well.

Here are 5 characters who deserved so much better from You‘s second season (& 5 who definitely deserved worse).

10 Deserved Better: Candace

Candace represents every woman who’s been abused and not taken seriously, and killing her off in the midst of her mission to get justice just feels wrong. Sure, Candace could have gone about the Joe situation much differently. For one, she likely could have revealed what he did to Beck without becoming tangled in his new life, dating Forty and essentially taking on a new persona in the process.

It’s clear why Candace doesn’t trust the authorities to handle the situation, but she also should have called them instead of Love when she managed to beat Joe at his own game. Unfortunately, Love winds up killing her instead — and now Candace will never see Joe punished for what he did to her and so many others.

9 Deserved Worse: Will

The real Will — you know, the one whose identity Joe steals — makes for great comedic relief throughout the second season of You. When it comes down to it, though, the guy does stand by and allow Joe to get away with things he should be exposing. For that reason, he probably doesn’t deserve the happy ending he got.

Keeping one’s promises is respectable, but knowing what Joe was capable of, Will should have went to the police the moment Joe released him. It would have saved quite a few lives, but instead, Will simply gives his former captor advice from Manila.

8 Deserved Better: Delilah

Delilah is arguably one of the only stable adult characters we meet during the second season of You, but it’s inevitable something terrible will happen to her once she becomes romantically involved with Joe. It’s only a matter of time before she realizes something is awry and begins snooping — and this is what gets her locked in Joe’s cage, then killed by Love.

Given the lengths Delilah’s willing to go to protect and care for her sister, it’s heartbreaking when viewers realize she won’t be able to do so anymore. She’s a genuinely good and hardworking person, and it’s a shame she happened to walk into Joe’s messed-up world.

7 Deserved Worse: Henderson

One might say Henderson got his just desserts when Joe accidentally killed him, but exposing him while he was still alive would have been far better in terms of getting justice. The way Henderson’s story ends enables his fans to ignore the accusations against him, doubting his victims and allowing his legacy to live on.

Had Joe forced Henderson to turn himself in or found another way to prove he was assaulting underage girls, Henderson might have gotten the jail time he deserved — and the ruined reputation along with it.

6 Deserved Better: Ellie

If anyone got the complete opposite of what they deserved this season, it’s Delilah’s sister, Ellie, who is forced to leave her entire life behind and run away after Love kills her only remaining family member. Not only do the police begin to look at Ellie for Delilah’s disappearance and presumed death, but Joe and Love manipulate the girl in order to protect themselves.

The last we see of Ellie she takes Joe’s money, bids him an angry farewell, and heads off — though whether she’s truly gone for good remains to be seen. Ellie’s forced to grow up far too quickly in the later episodes of the season, and it’s possible her grief will drive her back to Joe and Love at some point. Let’s just hope she fares better than Candace did.

5 Deserved Worse: Fincher

Detective Fincher isn’t nearly as bad as some of the characters on this list, but he should at least be fired for his poor policing skills. (Seriously, how did he miss the bloody contents of the garbage bag Joe was carrying after killing Henderson? How?)

It’s also because of Fincher that Forty is dead. And with the Quinn brother being blamed for murder and unable to defend himself, one could also argue that Fincher had a hand in Love and Joe getting away with their crimes. So, no, perhaps Fincher doesn’t deserve too much worse. But he certainly shouldn’t be working in law enforcement anymore.

4 Deserved Better: Forty

Forty is a flawed character — and that’s putting it generously — but he didn’t deserve to die the way he did, trying to protect his sister and repair his relationship with his family. The worst part about Forty’s death is that he was the last person attempting to reveal what Joe had done. With his end came the end of any hope Joe would be exposed this season — though perhaps Ellie will reappear and piece things together next time around.

One might argue that Forty’s death isn’t that undeserved, given he owns up to killing someone himself when he and Joe do LSD. Still, there are lawful ways to enact justice for that crime — a crime which will remain swept under the rug now that Forty’s gone.

3 Deserved Worse: Love

The biggest twist of You season 2 is when Love reveals that she’s known what Joe is all along — and that she’s accepted it. In fact, she proves herself equally as messed up, killing Delilah and Candace in order to protect him from getting caught. And she wants them to raise a family together?

Given the innocent lives she’s taken, the fact that she essentially destroyed Ellie’s life, and the fact that she’s willing to bring a child into this game she’s playing with Joe, it’s probably fair to say Love deserved to get caught. She might be even more dangerous than Joe, as she doesn’t appear to feel the same remorse that he does. With any luck, she’ll pay for what she’s done next season.

2 Deserved Better: Beck

Even in death, poor Beck can’t catch a break. Prior to being shot, Forty was in the process of adapting Beck’s book into a movie — one that would reveal her ex-boyfriend as her killer and cement everything she went through. Beck’s novel being adapted would not only have given her the justice she deserved, but it would have allowed her legacy to live on a bit longer.

Of course, with Forty out of the picture, it doesn’t seem Beck will get the last laugh after all. It’s bad enough she had to die because of Joe, but the series couldn’t let her story live on?

1 Deserved Worse: Joe

Does this even need to be said? As excited as fans are to potentially see a third season of this roller coaster of a show, it’s a bit disappointing that Joe walks away from You season 2 almost entirely unscathed. Sure, he’s not thrilled to be living the white-picket-fence life with Love, but that’s a small punishment compared to all the lives he’s destroyed.

It seems like Joe’s luck needs to run dry at some point, but how many seasons will it take for him to get caught? And will he even pay for the crimes he committed prior? It would be nice, but this show isn’t known for giving the fans or the characters what they want.

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