You might be the most telling example of how Netflix can pick up an underappreciated show and allow it to flourish on streaming. That was the case after the first season went relatively unnoticed on Lifetime. Stalker Joe was a hit, though, and this development mildly disturbed leading man Penn Badgley himself, since Joe is such a reprehensible guy. However, the show’s done so well at turning the tables on Joe and dragging him through hell that it’s quite an addictive series. Last season, his Mr. and Mrs. Smith-style serial-killing counterpart, Love, ended up biting the dust, and Joe fled to Paris.
That’s where the season finale left off, but Netflix has now revealed (and they’re apparently out of range of Caroline Kepnes’ initial novels) that Joe has already left his new building. This set photo tells the tale of Joe’s new stomping grounds, and while he hasn’t crossed any ponds, he’s swapped out countries. “Joe’s back for a bloody good time,” the Netflix caption reads. “If his book choice tells us anything… our boy might not be in Paris anymore.”
So, from New York to California to Suburban Hell, and now.. to London? The book-obsessive’s choice of reading material adds up, too: Thackeray, Dickens, and A Good Man In A Cruel World by Rhys Montrose. Those seem like pointed choices, although it feels like a crime not to throw in Dostoyevsky just to make everyone wonder what’s up. Or Kierkegaard. I’d love to hear Joe verbally wrangle with either of those names. Everyone should say Kierkegaard with aplomb.
For real, though, I’m excited to see how Joe’s next “fresh start” will go, now that he’s no longer a family man (?) and since he apparently hasn’t followed anyone to London. Or has he? Tati Gabrielle is among the returning cast (along with Charlotte Ritchie and Lukas Gage), so maybe she’s got something to do with the venue change. Speculation abounds!