BEEF Review: United In Anger

 Netflix Series 

Beef Review: United In Anger

By Dylan Barbee

Image Provided By IMDb

SPOILERS AHEAD

“There’s always something,” says Danny Cho (Steven Yeun). This relatable phrase is repeatedly stated throughout the new Netflix A24 series “BEEF” as it effectively illustrates how all Americans are provoked of anger when anything disrupts their path to happiness and success. Whether this anger is related to one’s inability to reach the American dream, constantly facing microaggressions or even the intrusion of family, sometimes it feels impossible to obtain the feeling of inner peace.  

 
The series follows both Danny Cho and Amy Lau (Ali Wong). Danny is a failing contractor who works hard at any task he is assigned while also raising his impish little brother, Paul (Young Mazino) who spends his days trying to make money off crypto. Danny even goes to the unethical lengths of doing business with his ex-convict cousin Isaac (David Choe) to get the money he needs to hopefully bring his parents back to the states and buy them a house.  

 
While Danny is an ambitious blue-collar worker, Amy is an established white-collar worker who has started her own plant business that has grown to be remarkably successful. However, she still faces an identity crisis as she feels like her current lifestyle does not align with how hard she has worked to get to where she is. Amy faces marriage issues throughout the series, microaggressions from business partners, and feels like her work still holds her back from living. Both Amy and Danny are at their breaking points. 

 
In the first episode of the A24 series Amy and Danny cross paths in a road rage incident when nearly colliding vehicles in a store’s parking lot. After a high-speed chase through suburban roads, Danny and Amy fall into a spiral of pettiness as they seek revenge on one another throughout the series.  

 
Personally, I found the pilot episode very entertaining as it does an effective job of introducing us to both of our protagonists and how their lifestyles are so different from one another but their anger towards each other is so similar. Although the first ten minutes were filled with childish anger that made me laugh, this show quickly made me realize that this rage embedded within both Danny and Amy are causing them to ruin each other's lives. 

 
Danny and Amy’s war against one another escalates into something much more severe. Danny peeing all over Amy’s bathroom soon leads to Amy ruining Danny’s work life when she leaves several bad Yelp reviews about his contracting company. Amy even has a sexual relationship with Danny’s little brother, risking her marriage to her husband George. Danny retaliates just as badly as he plots a heist on Amy and her coworkers which eventually leads to Danny accidentally kidnapping Amy’s daughter, Junie when driving away in the getaway car. 

 
“BEEF” fully explores the ways people can hurt each other and how far one is willing to go to negatively impact another person’s life circumstances. Both characters suffer from the bad decisions they inflicted on one another, but in the end, they can reconcile and understand one another during an accidental high on poisonous mushrooms in the woods.  

 
As grounded as this series was when it comes to putting a spectacle on certain issues different social classes in America must face, I found the finale episode to be very existential. Danny and Amy’s conversation while being intoxicated on random forest mushrooms teaches us that we all desire unconditional love. The entire series consisted of both Danny and Amy chasing things to feel fulfilled within themselves for providing for the ones they loved. However, they both feel like this love is not appreciated or reciprocated. Amy’s husband files for divorce and Danny’s brother leaves after a dispute over Paul’s academic journey. With no one left to provide for, no sense of purpose, and nearing death both Danny and Amy are forced to be vulnerable with one another. Through this mutual vulnerability, both protagonists are forced to show their battle scars causing them to realize the purpose behind their anger is more similar than they originally thought, and they begin to deeply understand each other.  

 
“BEEF” dramatically shows us what happens when we let our emotions get the best of us. The wild chronological sequence of events that occur within its 10-episode length makes it one of the best original shows that Netflix has released on their streaming service. The title may be slang for when people have a problem, but in the end, like beef, we all need some tenderness in our lives.  

 Rating: 9.5/10