Warning: SPOILERS ahead for You season 5.Youseason 5 makes a reference to “fairy smut,” and that may leave viewers wondering if the show is talking aboutA Court of Thorns and Roses.With Joe Goldberg (Penn Badgley) managing and owning a bookstore, the Netflix series is no stranger to literary references. There are many of them scattered throughoutYou’s five-season run, and the show’s final outing continues to lean into its bookish themes. But while Joe’s new love interest, Bronte, clearly knows her classics, she also has a good grip on more modern trends and releases.
That’s why she criticizes Joe for not seeing the value of a romance section in Mooney’s, and it’s why there are a number of dark romance references throughout season 5. And when Bronte and Joe first start bonding at Mooney’s inYouseason 5, episode 2, he quips that she’s “a playwright who reads theFinancial Times, as well as Ibsen.“Bronte jokes that “she also reads fairy smut,“which in itself is a nod to modern readers. It may not be a direct reference toACOTAR, but it certainly acknowledges a trendSarah J. Maas' fantasy serieshelped popularize.
Did You Season 5 Reference ACOTAR? The Netflix Show Indirectly Nods To Fae Romances
It Acknowledges A Subgenre That A Court Of Thorns & Roses Helped Popularize
Romantasy books are some of themost popular books, both on BookTokand offline, nowadays, andA Court of Thorns and Roseshas a lot to do with that. Maas' story, which centers on a fated mates romance between two High Fae, is among the earliest and best-known series to go viral under the “romantasy” banner. And Bronte’s “fairy smut” comment inYouseason 5 may not go so far as to mention Maas or any of her books, butit does call out the subgenre that surfaced on the heels ofACOTAR’s success.
WhileYouseason 5’s fae romance nod is more general, it could be traced back toACOTAR.
With romantasy gaining so much traction — especially when it leans into certain tried-and-true tropes — manybooks likeA Court of Thorns & Rosesnow fill bookstores like Mooney’s.Fae romances continue to be a huge category beneath the romantasy umbrella, and Bronte could easily be talking about any of the books that fall into it. But whileYouseason 5’s fae romance nod is more general, it could be traced back toACOTAR.And it’s a fun addition to the show, which helps ground it in the present day.
You Season 5’s Romantasy References Help Cement Its Present-Day Setting
Mentioning Men’s Rights Activists & True Crime Podcasts Has A Similar Effect
Youseason 5’s “fairy smut” quote is an entertaining reference for those familiar with the romantasy genre, but it also serves another purpose. It helps ground the final season in the present day, utilizing modern book trends to do so.
While the subgenre was less well-known whenYouseason 1 debuted in 2018, it has since blown up. It would feel strange for the characters to work in a bookstore andnotreference that.Youseason 5 uses other references to things like men’s rights activists and true-crime podcasts to similar effect. Overall, the show is successful at it.
