Kristen Bell's new Netflix thriller The Woman in the House Across the Street From the Girl in the Window jokes about common storylines in the genre. But it's the brilliant Netflix series You that is a hilarious send-up of what living in the suburbs can be like. In season 3 of the fan-favorite series, Joe Goldberg (Penn Badgley) and Love Quinn (Victoria Pedretti) move to a California suburb and try their best to raise their baby boy while staying out of trouble.
Of course, as fans know, Love and Joe aren't exactly able to live a regular life, and before too long, the horrors of their old life come back to haunt them. There are several ways that You is a better suburban satire than The Woman in the House... and it's interesting to compare the two shows.
After watching season 3 of You, one thing becomes clear: the show is a brilliant depiction of how dull and lackluster suburban living can be. Joe and Quinn both struggle to cope with living in a community where everyone smiles and then talks about people behind their backs, and even before the real horror starts and Love kills her neighbor Natalie, it's clear that this couple isn't going to stay happy for long. They each convince themselves that taking care of their baby son and baking and cooking and going to parties in the neighborhood will be enough, while realizing that being bored is its own kind of horror story.
Love is a funny, scary character on You, but there's another stand-out of season 3. Most of all, You satirizes suburban life thanks to the character of Sherry Conrad (Shalita Grant) who is a mom influencer who talks about being a perfect parent and hates any food that has carbs or sugar. When Love brings sugar-free, gluten-free raspberry cupcakes to a birthday party, proud of the hard work that she put into the baked goods, Sherry freaks out because she says that fruit has sugar and her kids can't possibly eat them. This is a perfect send-up of people who take healthy eating and living a bit too seriously, as it's one thing to cut down on added sugar and entirely another to yell at someone for making delicious and beautiful treats for a children's gathering.
You also pokes fun at suburban life because Sherry and Gary's activities are pretty over-the-top. Joe goes on a camping trip with Sherry's husband Gary (Travis Van Winkle) along with some other husbands/fathers from the neighborhood. Everyone yells and gets loose and wild, and this scene has the potential for horror, as Gary falls and Joe freaks out as he doesn't want to kill him or get into trouble. This doesn't feel like an ordinary get-together as Gary's energy is so wild and intense, making it seem like something bad is about to happen. Fans also watch on the edge of their seats when Joe and Love attempt a foursome with Sherry and Gary and then Sherry and Gary learn how evil this couple really is.
Although The Woman in the House... makes fun of thriller and horror films that take place in the suburbs and therefore have a main character spying or seeing a murder happen, You definitely does a better job of satirizing this type of story. While fans know that Joe and Love have both killed before and that they will do whatever it takes to get what they want and continue on their path, it does feel like living in the suburbs where everything and everyone is beautiful and perfect is motivating them to continue to kill people. Joe and Love are messy, complex characters who often make messes that they then have to clean up. As soon as Love murders Natalie, Joe knows that his supposedly calm life in this California neighborhood isn't going to last.
While The Woman in the House... makes fun of horror tropes, some of the jokes don't quite land. A scene when Kristen Bell's character Anna jokes about not eating bread is not nearly as hilarious as it could be, butYou goes there and isn't afraid to look at how strongly suburban dwellers can believe in something. Joe shares something that he heard about Sherry with viewers: "Fun fact. Sherry had to post an apology video in August 2020 when it was revealed that she had a massive party while the rest of us were home clutching hand sanitizer. Rumor was, the whole neighborhood got their hands on a secret vaccine manufactured for the queen of England and thus were immune to COVID."
You fans have questions before season 4 comes out, and chances are, the next season of this brilliant, hilarious, and terrifying Netflix thriller will prove even more fascinating.
