Caroline Kepnes’s You series began in 2014 amidst a wave of popular media featuring antiheroes: protagonists or main characters whose charisma, attractiveness, and cunning are complicated by immoral, violent, or criminal behavior. In contrast to the traditional hero archetype, which is generally aligned with the pursuit of personal growth and innate integrity, antiheroes have ambiguous ethics that are often defined by personal ambition. In 2014, Gillian Flynn’s blockbuster novel Gone Girl had been wildly popular for two years. Jeff Lindsay’s Dexter novels took the antihero approach to another level, making his central character a serial killer. On television, Breaking Bad and the adaption of Dexter were, respectively, recently concluded and concluding. The previous decade had seen the rise of Tony Soprano, another charming, clever criminal for whom audiences mostly rooted, despite his despicable actions.

Joe Goldberg fits comfortably into the territory shared by Dexter Morgan and Gone Girl’s Amy Dunne. He is attractive, charming, petty, driven by sinister compulsions and appetites, and places little to no value on human lives other than his own. People—particularly women—are drawn to Joe because of his looks and charisma, but they cannot sustain his interest—or avoid his rage—without meeting his needs and priorities.