Warning: YOU Season 2 spoilers ahead! The second season of YOU did something that fans may have not been expecting: it sought to explain how Joe Goldberg came to be the man that he is. This was done through a series of flashbacks from his childhood, which explored the unhealthy dynamic that existed between him and his mother. But while those memories are from the past, a new YOU theory about Joe's mom suggests that her role in his life may not be as over as you may think. In fact, it hints that her character could become a huge part of Joe's Season 3 story arc.
The theory in question centers around the final few moments of Season 2, when Joe appears to find his next obsession in his new suburban neighbor. “This is just the beginning. Because this is where I had to be exactly where I had to be to meet You," Joe says in a voiceover while looking through a hole in his mystery neighbor's fence. “There you were with your books and your sunshine, so close but worlds away. I will figure out a way. A way to get to you. See you soon, neighbor.”
At a glance, it'd be easy to assume that the new target Joe has acquired is just another young woman he'll fall head over heels for. However, several fans have taken to Twitter to suggest that the neighbor in question is actually Joe's mother.
Twitter user @KeioshaDreams speculates that Season 3 will be all about Joe reuniting with his mother — whether she wants to or not. After all, her current whereabouts remain unknown. In fact, when Joe was asked about where his mother is now, he refrained from answering — perhaps because he's had a secret plan for her all along. As @KeioshaDreams suggests, it's possible Joe's mom went on to start a new life with a new family, once again leaving her son to feel abandoned and alone — a pattern that occurred multiple times throughout his childhood.
The woman's face is never shown, leaving her identity up for debate, though she was wearing a wedding ring on her finger, indicating that she has some kind of family in her life. And she could potentially be older in age, though it's difficult to tell from what's been shown of her so far. Some fans even feel like her hands are a dead giveaway in confirming that she's Joe's long-lost mother.
Joe has been repeating the same unhealthy cycle since he first started dating Candace. He falls in love, becomes obsessed, and ultimately kills the relationship (sometimes quite literally) before moving on to someone new. If this really is Joe's mom, it'll serve as a refreshing change of pace from his typical pattern, leaving fans to wonder how this all could possibly end.
What would Joe's ultimate endgame be: to reunite with his beloved parent or exact vengeance on behalf of his less-than-happy childhood? It's certainly something for fans to obsess over in the months to come.
