Since Season 2 of the addictive thriller YOU was released on Netflix the day after Christmas 2019, fans have been glued to their TV screens, desperate to find out what happens next in the story of stalker Joe Goldberg (Penn Badgley). In the first season, his object of gross and messed-up affection is Guinevere Beck (Elizabeth Lail) and in the most recent season, it's Love Quinn (Victoria Pedretti).
Both women that Joe falls in love with are fascinating, and it's time to compare them (while we wait for a third season — which can't come soon enough). Here are five reasons Love Quinn is a better romantic leading lady, and five reasons it'll always be Beck. Spoilers below.
Love: She Has A Compelling (And Tragic) Backstory
When Joe gets to know Love, they've been working together at the natural foods store/hipster paradise Avarin ("Nirvana" spelled backward). Her parents own the place and so she's the chef there. Joe gets a job in the "bookstore" (using the term loosely).
Love is a better romantic leading lady because she has such a compelling backstory. She was married to James, who seemed to be her soulmate, but he passed away from an illness that left her devastated. Sure, Beck has had some hard times in her life, but she's much more whiny than Love is, so it's tough to feel sorry for her. The tragedy that Love has experienced makes her an interesting person.
Beck: She's A Writer
Sure, it's cool that Love is a chef, and she seems to be pretty talented, but Beck is a writer who attends grad school and gets a book deal (the book comes out after her death). She's definitely a tortured artist, which makes her an awesome romantic lead as it seems like she could burst into dramatic tears or break at any given moment.
Joe and Beck can sometimes seem so good together that it's easy to forget that he's literally stalking her and that he ends up killing her. This is a testament to how convincing she is as a legitimate love interest.
Love: She Pursues Joe
With a show as crazy as YOU, no one is all that trustworthy, but fans are more likely to think that Joe is the one spying on people instead of the other way around. That's why it's so interesting when Love pursues Joe.
Sure, Joe does some light stalking of her (all the while swearing that he's not doing that all), but it turns out that Love is super determined to make him hers. While they say that they'll start off as friends, she bakes for him and leaves treats in his locker at the store every day.
Beck: She's A Damsel In Distress
Once Season 2 ends and Love and Joe are revealed to be super similar, it becomes clear that Joe isn't so into her anymore. It could be argued that this is because unlike Beck, Love doesn't necessarily need Joe, she just wants him.
Joe is really attracted to Beck because she's the damsel in distress type and she's constantly on the verge of tears about the state of her life. He wants to make everything better for her and wants her to love him more than anyone else.
Love: She's Just As Crazy As Joe
Another reason that Love is the better romantic leading lady on YOU is that she's honestly as crazy as Joe. She's willing to kill people who get in the way of their romance (Candace and Delilah), and she stalks Joe Love is a woman who makes sure she gets what she wants.
Beck and Joe could never end up together because once she learns what he has been doing, she's terrified and tries to get away. Beck's not the nicest person in the world, but she's definitely not a psychopath. Joe's perfect girl has to be just as nuts as he is, and Love fits the bill.
Beck: She's More Independent
On the other hand, Beck is much more independent than Love as she can stand to be away from Joe and hang out out with her friends, write, or attend classes.
That makes her a great leading lady because this drives Joe up a wall. He doesn't want to let her out of his sight, and that creates the addictive drama that fans know and love. It also adds more interest since it seems like maybe she could escape the box that he has put her in (and the literal cage that he traps her in at the end).
Love: Her Twin Adds Another Layer To The Story
Joe can't handle the fact that Love has a twin named Forty who doesn't want to share her. But Forty just might be the best thing that has ever happened to the show because his character adds another layer to the story: Love's enduring adoration of her brother.
Love would do anything for Forty, and throughout the second season, Joe makes it clear to her that if they run away together or continue their romance, he will make sure that Forty is included. When Forty is accidentally killed, this helps Joe's case as he can comfort Love in her time of need. Of course, Joe hates Forty, but he's pretending to love him... and manipulating Love in the process.
Beck: She Cheats On Joe
It might sound strange to say that Beck is a better leading lady on YOU because she cheats on Joe... but, hey, this isn't your typical TV show.
The fact that she sleeps with her therapist, Dr. Nicky (John Stamos), causes even more conflict between her and Joe. And that sends their love story toward its unfortunate and yet inevitable conclusion. This show needs a leading lady who keeps Joe guessing, and Beck definitely does that.
Love: She Manipulates A Perfect "Happy Ending"
It's pretty satisfying to see where Joe is at the end of the second season. Instead of getting away from Love or killing her, which many fans probably expected him to do, she beats him at his own game and tells him that she's pregnant with his baby. In the season finale's last moments, the two of them are moving into a house and getting ready to welcome the baby. Of course, Joe can't stop himself from checking out the woman who lives in the next house, and it seems that he's going to stalk her next.
The fact that Love manipulates such a perfect "happy ending" makes her a great romantic leading lady. She wants Joe to be with her forever and knows that he'll be tempted to start a family with her and be an amazing father. Joe feels totally trapped, and it works so well since he's the one who has been ruining other people's lives — or murdering them — for so long.
Beck: She's More The Girl Next Door Than Love Is
Love and Beck both come from unhappy families, but while Love is a poor little rich girl who has always had everything in life handed to her, Beck is much more relatable.
She is trying to get her graduate degree and figure out how to start her writing career, and she's insecure and uncertain like many people in their 20s. Beck is ultimately the girl next door and that makes her a good leading lady. She feels like a regular person, which makes things even creeper since it feels like this could happen to anyone if they fall for the wrong person.