You Season 4 Part 1 ending explained: Did Joe survive the fifth episode?

You has always been a show that makes us ask the toughest of questions, with the fourth season managing to outdo that by bringing out the question of the protagonist's survival. After a topsy-turvy five episodes that marked the end of You Season 4 Part 1, the conclusion of which will be released a month later, fans were left with several questions, including the prospect of Joe Goldberg's (played by Penn Badgley) death.

Both the format and story-telling of the latest season of the Netflix drama have managed to surprise fans, if not anything else. The first part of the fourth season saw Joe make an honest (kind of) attempt at leaving his sociopathic tendencies behind and try to carve out a new life in England, posing as Professor Jonathan Moore (quite easily), but things took a turn for the worse soon after.

The fourth season saw Joe turn into a reluctant detective, putting his stalking skills to good use in a bid to find a serial murderer known as the 'Eat the Rich' killer. After the murderer managed to take down a few important characters from Joe's friend circle, the last episode revealed his identity and put Joe in a dangerous position.

If you haven't watched the latest season of the popular Netflix show, this is a good point to turn back. Otherwise, read on to decipher the ending of You season 4.

Warning - Major spoilers ahead.

---

You Season 4 Part 1 ending: Who was the killer, and what did he do to Joe?

In the finale of the first part of the fourth season, Joe found himself in a tough position with the Eat the Rich killer, who proceeded to take our hunter-turned-hunted protagonist as a prisoner. After the series saw the deaths of Malcolm (Stephen Hagan) and Simon (Aidan Cheng), things were sure to go in the wrong direction when the group took a last-minute trip to Lady Phoebe's (Tilly Keeper) countryside manor.

Rhys Montrose (Ed Speleers), aka the 'Eat the Rich' killer, took Joe hostage after knocking him out in the forest. Furthermore, he was the only one who knew about the secret past that Joe had shielded from the public eye. Later on, Joe opened his eyes in the unused basement of Lady Phoebe's mansion, where Rhys planned to kill him.

Rhys cleverly plotted a scheme to kill Roald (Ben Wiggins) and place the blame on Joe instead. Joe attempted to reason with him and scheme his way out of the trap by trying to convince Rhys that he was on the killer's side, but Rhys saw through the deception and decided to set the basement alight, leaving Joe and Roald to die.

However, before they could burn to death, Kate (Charlotte Ritchie) managed to reach the basement and helped pull the duo out of danger. Although she saved Joe's life, it was also implied that Kate would soon find out about his true identity.

Moreover, the final episode of the fourth season's first part convincingly introduced the killer as Rhys, one of the least suspicious characters in the large group. Looking back, though, there were certain foreshadows used throughout the first four episodes.

Although Joe knows the identity of the killer now, the game of cat and mouse is far from over. The second part of You season 4 will have plenty of drama and thrill awaiting viewers. You Season 4 Part 1 is currently streaming on Netflix.