One thing Netflix missed in 5th series of ‘You’

What on earth was Netflix thinking when it commissioned the small-screen adaptation of Caroline Kepnes’ novel You in 2018 (that is, beyond the obvious desire to boost subscriber figures, given that the streaming platform’s earnings plummeted by more than $24bn in the second quarter of that year?) Both the initial and many, many subsequent seasons of the show feature farcical, soap opera-like storylines that sensationalise the serial killing of women at the hands of an entirely unsuspected protagonist. So far, so Hollywood cliché. But it’s devastating that Netflix missed out on such a golden opportunity to do something different.

- Emma Clarke

‘And that's why I'm far from celebrating the return of series five and the new three-minute teaser, which dropped on YouTube on Monday morning, landing more than 77000 views in just a few hours. Just look at what the series could have achieved: it could have continued to shine a light on what coercive relationships can look and feel — and how it is not always the most obvious of culprits who inflict such harm on their partners. It could have risen to the challenge of lifting the lid on the gritty, “behind closed doors” reality of domestic abuse and violence against thousands, if not millions, of women.