Warning: SPOILERS ahead for Beef Season 1. Please sit calmly in your car until you’ve finished all the episodes!
From the moment I first spied the Beef trailer when it was released in March 2023, I had a good feeling that this would be a standout among the many Netflix shows to become part of the 2023 TV premiere schedule. And, while I didn’t read any reviews of the series that called it a must-watch before checking it out myself, I can proudly say that I was very much correct in my initial assumptions about the series which is brilliantly led by Ali Wong and Steven Yeun as they head up the incredibly strong Beef cast.
You guys? This show is wild from top to bottom, and I loved every second of it. If you’re still processing your feelings about the A24 production, here are my thoughts about Beef to help you through it all!
These People Are Clearly Already At The End Of Their Ropes
Look, just from the basic premise of the show, I knew that Danny and Amy were going to take the fallout from their near-traffic incident to disastrous heights, but damn. What I really liked about how the story progressed after they road raged all over their quiet community was that we quickly saw that these were two people who were already at the end of their ropes by the time they almost got into an accident in the Forsters parking lot. This is the kind of thing that could (and does) happen when people boil over.
I'm So Uncomfortable With Danny's Burger King Stress Binge...
But lots of us have been there, me included, even though I’ve never come anywhere near finishing four Burger King Original Chicken Sandwiches before. The way Danny furiously tries to eat his stress, frustration, and depression away by standing near his car at the property he’d like to buy while stuffing food into his face so fast that he nearly chokes perfectly shows what that kind of binge is like.
But It Definitely Got Worse
Literally the next time we see Danny he’s attempting to commit suicide, and in the weirdest way possible: by lighting all those grills he just tried to return to the store inside of the apartment he shares with his younger brother. I don’t know if he was simply hoping that he’d be easy to find afterwards or what, but I’m glad he changed his mind.
WTF Is Happening With Amy And This Gun?!
I had ZERO idea of what to make of this, OK? At first, I thought she was also trying to end her life like Danny, but she seemed to be enjoying the whole experience too much. We didn’t find out until a bit later that, um… she was actually masturbating with the gun, because sex with her husband, George, was simply too “vanilla” for her. Alright, girl. I guess as long as you make SURE it’s not loaded… do as thou wilt.
Amy And Danny Are Surrounded By People Who Really Don't Get What They're Going Through
And, isn’t that the case with a lot of people? It’s hard to talk about being depressed or even simply overwhelmed, and literally everyone is going through something, meaning that we often miss the signs when others are hurting.
I Am VERY Worried About Everyone's Safety
Obviously, Danny and Amy are spinning out of control very quickly here, so I knew that danger was imminent. But, as the plot continued to thicken, there was no way I couldn’t worry about the safety of pretty much everyone in the show. Every time we saw a gun on screen, or there was an altercation of some kind, I was afraid that we’d be shown a horrible death. Luckily, at least, that didn’t come until pretty late in the show.
They're Really Not Shying Away From How Mental Health Issues Can Impact People
Part of the reason why our leads are stuck in this beef is because of their respective mental health, and how it can negatively impact decision making. While their behavior is an extreme example of this, I was glad the show delved into it, even showing Amy in therapy and talking about her long-standing depression.
I Might Need Steven Yeun And Ali Wong To Star In Everything I Watch Now
Seriously. These two are amazing as Danny and Amy. ALL the way through.
I'm Actually Not Mad At Amy And Paul's Sweet Pseudo-Date
OK, Amy was traveling a slippery slope once she started having real conversations with Danny’s brother, Paul, in an effort to get more info on her new nemesis, but I doubt even she could have predicted actually liking him a bit. Yes, it was wrong of her to invite him to her Vegas hotel room, but I believe she really needed (and benefitted for a time) from the release she got from their sweet pseudo-date, where she adhered to a strict “nothing physical” policy. It was good to see her have some real fun and be able to connect with someone without all the pressure to maintain her carefully crafted image.
This Is Getting A24 AF And I'm Really Nervous Now
By “A24 as fuck” I do mean “creepy and unsettling as all get out like one of the company's horror movies.” Amy deciding to have Danny’s BK stress meal. A random shot of some dead leaves on the ground. Danny leaving his parent’s new home and a mystery person climbing out of a tree. Amy's memory of having sex with a stranger while not letting him see any of her face or body, and looking in the mirror to a reflection of herself as a scary witch-woman… I could just tell this was about to end badly.
Beef Might Have The Most Thrilling And Weirdest Two-Part Season Ender I've Ever Seen
And it did end badly! Fortunately, not too badly, at least for Amy, Danny, and their families. From the fight between George and Danny, to the latter’s accidental kidnapping of Amy’s daughter, to the whole, messy as hell hostage situation and actual terrifying car accident/hallucination-filled time in the wilderness and shooting, I was on the edge of my seat. I was shocked, sometimes confused, definitely incredibly nervous, and wondering how anyone possibly came up with such an insane last two episodes for a first season. This was more thrilling and weirder than some of the stuff I saw on Game of Thrones. Much love to all the crows, and R.I.P. Jordan!
Danny And Amy Are 'Divine Twins,' And I Love That As The Ending
When George reveals to Amy that he’d previously had an “emotional entanglement” with Mia, her employee, it seems like the show was giving us a hint that Danny and Amy are actually the “divine twins” that George spoke about when telling her what happened between him and Mia.
In the finale, Amy and Danny had the ability to finally let their guards down around each other so they can have actual conversations. This allows them to see how bad things already were for each of them when they met in that parking lot, and they manage to bond in such a deep way that i doubt anyone saw it coming.
If Beef continues with a second season, they might not be in a completely stable relationship (as friends or otherwise), but I do believe that they at least understand now that they’re two sides of a very broken coin, and I really love that for the end of the season. If either of them had been able, after the parking lot, to step back enough to understand that the other was probably going through their own shit, things wouldn’t have escalated the way they did. Amy and Danny are all of us.
We don’t know if Beef will get Season 2, but I’m definitely down to watch whatever might come next with my Netflix subscription!
