'You' Season 2 Episode 4 Review: Joe's psychological issues stem from major childhood trauma that gave him 'mommy issues'
Contains spoilers for 'You' Season 2 Episode 4
From episode 2, we have picked up a bunch of flashbacks from Joe's childhood memories with his mother. He has major 'mommy-issues' because of the way he was brought up by her within a broken home.
He is desperate to seek love and acceptance from the women in his life including his mother. In episode 4 we get a sneak peek into Joe's childhood where we see his father as a raging alcoholic who beats his wife in front of little Joe and it is all the more scarring for him.
Joe grows up be to an "optimist" with a whole new meaning to the ideology and it is very confusing because although he is trying to do the right thing, he ends up killing people.
Since the memories of his childhood are recurring, he ends up developing 'mommy issues' with Love as he is desperate to gain acceptance from her. His obsessive and crazy behavior depicts a reality in which he lives. The irony is such that he doesn't even listen to his own thoughts and ends up doing the exact opposite. As a child, he has had very less time with his mother because they were always on the run from his abusive father. What's more messed up is that his mother can't stop seeing other men, and each time it is a different man!
His mother wasn't even loyal to him even though she talked about them fleeing, just the two of them. But when another man pulled up in a car at their house, his trust was shattered and he refused to be with her.
So, we can assume that Joe is very territorial about the women in his life. He despises sharing them even if they have a different relationship with others. Season 1 shows that Beck went behind his back and cheated on him, but around Love, he had nothing to worry except for, maybe himself.
Joe feels the same way about sharing Love with Forty, although their relationship is on a different level. It is revealed that Joe's mother looks for comfort outside and she keeps trying to get rid of him somehow. It is evident that his mother does not love him and in turn, she is the one with psychological issues from all the abuse she has gone through.
Joe never gets the attention, love, and warmth from his mom, so it has all evolved over time and projected on his love interests. He does anything and everything, including murdering people to keep the women to himself only. Growing up he felt powerless, unsafe and it is shown through the flashback where he kept his mom’s secret as she's planning to kill her husband and be free. She usually justifies her actions with defensive optimistic statements.
This is exactly what Joe does throughout Season 1 and now it all makes sense!
Catch the premiere of 'You' Season 2 dropping on Netflix on December 26.