This Is Us (NBC) (1 Viewer)

[Mike Frezon]

The "kids in their 20s" WAS a bit of a stretch, however, for these actors who are in their late 30s and young 40s.

I continue to marvel at the show's depth...but, again, I'm taken out of it when the writers do certain dumbass things. It's as if they don't know how to end a scene without some type of rhetorical flourish. Last night's was young Randall pulling the full-size Twix bar (product placement, anyone?) and sharing it with his mother. Really? That stuff is driving me nuts. Not every scene needs a momentous (and unrealistic) "capper."

I also didn't like Mandy Moore's episode-ending monologues that were intertwined across the decades in the two maternity wards with baby Randall and baby Tess. I don't think they provided much insight into her character...except, frankly, to make her come off as a totally self-absorbed idiot. Who else can marvel at the sight of new life and make it all about herself? I, I, I...me, me, me. It was embarrassing because I don't THINK that was the point the writers were trying to make.

But,these are just the momentary places where the show goes wrong. There are still so many more ways that it does things right. There was a lot of time-jumps last night and they are so deftly done, for the most part, that I don't find them nearly as jarring as I do in most conventional storytelling. More clues about the relationships between Kate and Jack, Randall and Rebecca, Rebecca and Miguel, Kate and Kevin (what a desperate ass he was in his 20s storyline!), Beth and Rebecca, and Randall and his anxiety.

I LOVED the scene with Randall and the salesman in the hardware story! LOVED it!

And then there's this odd little tidbit about last night's episode...

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

The "kids in their 20s" WAS a bit of a stretch, however, for these actors who are in their late 30s and young 40s.

I thought they did a great job 5with Rebecca's makeup, though, subtly aging her. In the present day scenes, I'm never not aware that Mandy Moore is buried under latex and makeup. But there, it just felt like Rebecca, aging well, in her fifties.

I also didn't like Mandy Moore's episode-ending monologues that were intertwined across the decades in the two maternity wards with baby Randall and baby Tess. I don't think they provided much insight into her character...except, frankly, to make her come off as a totally self-absorbed idiot. Who else can marvel at the sight of new life and make it all about herself? I, I, I...me, me, me. It was embarrassing because I don't THINK that was the point the writers were trying to make.

I didn't read it that way at all.

In the 1970s scene, the context is that Rebecca had just lost her baby and her husband was pushing someone else's baby on her to take his place. In previous episodes, she was still grieving and not at all ready to consider that as an option. That conversation with Randall was about seeing whether she could do this, whether she could accept this little child into her family and be his mother. And the outcome of that one-sided conversation is: yes, she could. It wasn't about her, it was about Randall. And being Randall's mother became her life's mission.

In the 2008 scene, the context is that Rebecca is desperately missing Jack and she is really sad that he's missed the birth of his first grandchild. Telling that story to newborn Tess is her way of honoring Jack, making him a part of this momentous event, by pointing out that Tess is the product of a long epic story spanning decades, that started with life handing Jack Pearson "the sourest lemon that life has to offer" and him seeing in the miracle that was baby Randall an opportunity to turn it "into something resembling lemonade." It wasn't about her, it was about Jack.

I found all of that beautiful, but the beat that really made the scene sing for me was Rebecca pointing out to Tess that she was named after a ceiling fan.

More clues about the relationships between Kate and Jack, Randall and Rebecca, Rebecca and Miguel, Kate and Kevin (what a desperate ass he was in his 20s storyline!), Beth and Rebecca, and Randall and his anxiety.

Man, Kevin can be a douche sometimes. I loved the response of the guy he was trying to impress, who listened patiently to his backstabbing BS and levelly informed him that he would never have a professional relationship on any level with someone who would sell out his friend like that.

On the other hand, you get the scene where little Kevin traded away his Halloween candy so the boy his sister likes would hold her hand in the haunted house.

Kevin is both of those people, and it's always fascinating to see whether his innate decency will outweigh his selfishness and insecurity.

Randall was always Rebecca's favorite, and Kate was always Jack's favorite. In both cases, it's because they were needed. Kevin has had a lot of things in life handed to him, but because of that, he was left to fend for himself a lot more. And that mercenary quality can be very unattractive.

I always assumed that Miguel moved in on Kate while comforting her over Jack's death. The reveal that they'd drifted apart after Jack's passing, that Rebecca had eight years as a single widow acutely feeling Jack's absence, and that they only found each other again on Facebook years later, made me like both Rebecca and Miguel better than before. With my new understanding of their relationship and marriage, Jack doesn't feel like he's in the middle any more.

And it explains some of the tension between Miguel and the kids in the first season: He had been back in their lives for less than a decade at that point, instead of the nearly twenty years I'd been expecting.

I LOVED the scene with Randall and the salesman in the hardware story! LOVED it!

Me too! Great acting from both men. It could have come straight out of a two-hander in some off-Broadway venue.

And then there's this odd little tidbit about last night's episode...[/QUOTE]
Wow, bizarre. I can understand why the show didn't want the distraction, but it continues to amaze me how quickly Hollywood revises its own story to exclude the unsavory parts.

 

[Mike Frezon]

I wish the Rebecca monologues (and her aside to Tess about her name) worked for me the way they worked for you, Adam. I really do.

Maybe it's because I have a hard time with Mandy Moore's acting. Maybe it was the writing. I dunno.

 

[ScottH]

I thought that was one of the worst episodes of the series. Do we really need yet another timeline?

Kevin is a douche, but even the douchiest of douches wouldn't try to pull what he did.

And a pregnant woman about to bust out can't get out of a neighborhood because the street is closed for trick or treating? Yeah...

Randall was always Rebecca's favorite, and Kate was always Jack's favorite.

I think you're confusing "favorite" with "pity", or to not be so harsh, "empathy" or "compassion".

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

I think you're confusing "favorite" with "pity", or to not be so harsh, "empathy" or "compassion".

Not so. Rebecca pities Kate, and it's a big part of why their relationship is so strained.

Randall was vulnerable around Rebecca, and Kate was vulnerable around Jack. And because they let the parent see what's going on inside, it brought them closer. Kevin never really let himself be vulnerable around either parent, and that created a certain distance.

 

[ScottH]

Not so. Rebecca pities Kate, and it's a big part of why their relationship is so strained.

Randall was vulnerable around Rebecca, and Kate was vulnerable around Jack. And because they let the parent see what's going on inside, it brought them closer. Kevin never really let himself be vulnerable around either parent, and that created a certain distance.

I disagree. Rebecca overcompensates for Randall, and Jack overcompensates for Kate. It's not a "favorite" thing at all.

 

[Matt Hough]

I liked everything about last night's episode except Kevin's pill addiction. I had hopes they were going to do something daring or original with it, but so far, it's as predictable as can be. All of the other plotlines past and present I found very involving last night.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

The decision to use young William's story, about one year after the pilot in Jack/Rebecca time, as a contrast to Randall's story with Deja, was a brilliant one.

We are taught through images and anecdotes and innuendo and "Law & Order" repeats what to think of people like Deja's mom. We come into this episode knowing that she has problems with the law that have resulted in repeated incarceration. We know that she has exhibited behavior in the past that has endangered Deja's welfare. Our elected officials have instituted mandatory minimums to protect society from people like Deja's mom.

So we come into this episode with all of that baggage, all of our own preconceptions and all of society's preconceptions. We have spent multiple episodes learning about the mental, emotional and physical scars that Deja has accumulated as a result of the life her mother has led. And then the first thing we learn is that Deja's mom skipped out on the chance to see her.

But we also spent an entire season of television meeting, understanding and empathizing with a drug addict in William. When we see him standing before the judge at his initial hearing, we know how his story is going to end. We know the long painful road that will take him there, but we also know the immeasurable contributions he will make to the lives of Randall and his family. We know how acutely Randall felt his absence in the years in between. We know that he did turn his life around, and that if Rebecca had been emotionally prepared to let him in, how much more he could have offered his son.

He enters that courtroom a man full to the brim with anger and utterly devoid of hope. And because he's William, and he's brilliant and poetic and articulate, he takes the judge's judgment and condescension and hands it right back to him in a way that the judge can't shake. And so the judge gave him the break that allowed him to turn his life around. Probably three out of every four people who walked his court are lost causes. And unfortunately, most of the time, the fourth person gets lumped in with the others, because they don't have the tools to put into words their despair the way William could.

And so the rest of the episode, when we want to judge Deja's mom, when we want to dismiss her, the episode has us thinking about William. Which is perfect, because when Randall sits down in front of that glass partition, full of smug righteousness, some part of him is thinking about William too. He sets right into her, but like William, she will not allow herself to be defined by his opinion of her. She declined visitation because she cared more about protecting her daughter from the sight of her bloodied and bruised than her own acute desire to see her beloved child. She is frank about her addiction, and about the type of people her addiction has introduced into her life. She is unapologetic. Like William, she finds the words to convey her anger. Unlike William, she is not devoid of hope, because she is a part of her child's life.

And so while Randall hates her for the trauma she's caused Deja, he respects the fierceness of her love for her child. So even though he is more possessive of Deja by the day, he doesn't make the selfish choice that Rebecca made all of those years ago. I held it together the entire episode, but it was revealed that he gave Deja's mom their phone number, and promised her that they'd always accept the call, and then arranged a phone call between Deja and her mother, I just completely lost it. Ugly sobs. I'm tearing up a bit typing this, just thinking about it. That is a truly selfless, even courageous act. Even more so for Randall than most, because he's likes certainty and stability. And Deja's mom is an obstacle to both of those things. But he understands that the uncertainty and chaos that she introduces is worth it because Deja's mom can give his things that nobody else on the planet can. God, I love him for that.

I loved the sentencing judge's frank monologue to William about the failures of our criminal justice system, and his own cynicism about the role he plays in it. I was less thrilled about him presenting himself as William's white savior. The payoff was worth it, though, when William -- having just discovered that his cancer is terminal -- tells that remembered crusty old white face where to shove it. But before he gets the chance to shoot up, a far more important face keeps him on the straight and narrow: the face of his son.

The adoption storyline was well handled, with real nuance. The metaphor with the more exposed photo of Randal glued onto the less exposed photo of the rest of the family was a little on the nose, but it did the job. It showed Delroy Lindo's family court judge that they weren't completely oblivious to the challenges ahead of them. And yet he still wouldn't sign off on it, still wasn't sure that they were in the best interest of the child. So he washed his hands of it. The scene in the judge's break room, where the two judges expressed the uncertainty of their task, was a really wonderful beat.

Toby's getting better. Instead of browbeating Kate into the big wedding, he presents her with options. When he's chatting with Jack's urn, his uncertainty is a sign of growth. He doesn't assume he knows what's best for her anymore, but he doesn't keep his mouth shut when he needs to speak up, either.

I liked everything about last night's episode except Kevin's pill addiction. I had hopes they were going to do something daring or original with it, but so far, it's as predictable as can be. All of the other plotlines past and present I found very involving last night.

It's definitely the least engaging story line right now, because addiction is -- by and large -- a boring and monotonous story. The one thing that really worked for me is the idea that Kevin would implode his relationship with the love of his life before he'd admit to being an addict and get help. He throws in the towel because all he can picture ahead of him is pills and alcohol, but rather than imagine a life without the pills and alcohol, he imagines a life with out Sophie and their hypothetical children.

It's a selfless act, but classic depressing addict logic.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Doing a three episode series in the middle of the season focusing in turn on each of the Big Three is an interesting idea.

This episode was better than I thought it would be. There were a number of places where it seemed about to go descend into a Lifetime movie plot. But each time, the episode pulled back toward something more naturalistic.

Working against the episode is the fact that of the protagonists on the show, Kevin's story -- both of Kevin's stories -- are the ones we've seen the most times before: The star athlete cut down by a horrific injury just when he's on the verge of greatness. And the celebrity brought down low by drug addiction.

In a normal episode, where Kevin's story is only roughly one quarter of the runtime, we would have gotten the cliff notes version of this plot. And that would have been wholly uninteresting. But by living inside Kevin's head for the entire forty-plus minutes, the show's able to dig underneath that surface a bit. We see just how arrogant Kevin was in high school, and how completely foreign the concept of a future that is not assured as his birthright was to him. As the truth does start to pierce in, a little bit, you see teenage Kevin begin to move through the stages of grief, trying to bargain his way back to the superstardom that was promised him.

And then that's contrasted with an astonishing moment of self-awareness in the middle of the football field as an adult, as he ticks off the enormous opportunities that were afforded him and the various ways he took them for granted.

The pharmacy scene seems poised to descend us into trite melodrama, as the pharmacist recognizes that the plastic surgeon's signature has been forged (On that note, are paper prescriptions still a thing in Pennsylvania? New York has been electronic only for over a year now.) But then he realizes that the necklace his dad gave him is missing, and the panic at the thought of losing the only thing of his father's that he has left cuts through even the fog of his addiction.

The scene where Kevin breaks down on Charlotte's lawn is the best single bit of acting yet from Justin Hartley, the weakest performer among the Big Three. His anguish, helplessness and hopelessness are visceral.

And then, having hit rock bottom, he is poised to confess to his brother that he has a problem with narcotics. But before he gets the chance, he learns that Kate has lost the baby. And that's the single worst thing that could have happened to her, at this moment, so his problems have to take the back burner. Kevin has had the easiest life of the Big Three, but that has also made his problems the least visible of the Big Three.

The casting of teenage Sophie is another stellar find in a show that's amazing at finding younger versions of our characters. And the casting of Kelly the starstruck high schooler coordinating the awards ceremony did a great job calling to mind teenage Sophie without being a carbon copy of teenage Sophie. I thought he was going to hook up with her, and was very glad that the episode didn't go there.

 

[Matt Hough]

Better than I thought an addiction scenario would play out, and the anguish Kevin endured throughout his time at the high school before, during, and after the ceremony was really palpable, even before he had his breakdown on the front lawn (making this episode definitely Hartley's Emmy submission episode).

And the irony of him earning cheers from the audience during his miserable acceptance speech when he tried to explain how undeserving he was was really a wonderful touch.

 

[Mike Frezon]

Bravo Justin Hartley.

He somehow managed to make all of those scenes NOT become the trite, hackneyed scenes they might easily have become: the monologue on the football field, the acceptance of the award (swapping back & forth between the HS coach and his dad), and out in front of of Dr. Everly (Dr. Everby" made me laugh).

Hartley knocked all those out of the box and I agree that the potential disaster of his storyline(s) was averted--mostly due to Hartley's abilities.

As we were nearing the alumni award ceremony at his HS, I turned to my wife and said, it's really to the show's credit that I'm sitting here right now pulling for him to NOT screw up this ceremony. I really wanted him to graciously rise to the occasion.

Really good stuff.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

This week's episode was not what I expected -- in a good way.

With what felt like a lot of missed calls to Kevin last week, I was figuring that the aftermath of losing the baby would be a scene of complete hysteria. Instead, it was a quieter, more insidious kind of grief, the kind that happens in real life when you don't need to make dramatic promos.

Last week's episode focused on the underexplored relationship between Kevin and Jack. The heart of this week's episode was the incredibly fraught relationship between Kate and Rebecca. They are two people with mirrored talents and ambitions, separated by a vast divide of life experiences. Rebecca was skinny and beautiful and popular. The other girls wanted to be her, and the boys wanted to be with her. Kate was an overweight child who grew up to be a morbidly obese adult. Even during her teen years, when she was pretty close to a healthy weight, she knew the constant rejection of her peers. And because of this vast divide in how they perceive the world and how the world perceives them, their commonalities further alienated them from each other instead of bringing them closer.

But losing a baby is one of those truly heartbreaking ordeals, and it doesn't spare the pretty ones. Rebecca couldn't relate to being fat, or being picked on. But she sure as hell could relate to losing a child who never got the chance to even be a child. Finally, after decades of antagonism, of saying the wrong thing at the wrong moment, Rebecca was exactly the person Kate needed, and she was there exactly when Kate needed her. Instead of guessing (wrongly) how Kate felt, she knew -- knew deep in her bones -- exactly how Kate felt, what she was thinking and why. I loved that conversation on the couch, loved that mother and daughter took something truly horrible and used it to finally build a bridge between them.

It will be interesting to see what approach is taken with Randall next week.

 

[Mike Frezon]

This idea of focusing on each of the "big three" in consecutive episodes is really working.

The writers are still awkward at writing dialogue for kids though. There was something (I don't remember the topic though) that teenage Kate said to her mother (during the scene in her bedroom) that a kids would just never say.

 

[Matt Hough]

As with all the episodes, I found it gripping and emotionally on point. Toby's journey during the hour was just as devastating to me as Kate's.

 

[John Lee_275604]

The writers are still awkward at writing dialogue for kids though. There was something (I don't remember the topic though) that teenage Kate said to her mother (during the scene in her bedroom) that a kids would just never say.

ject. GrandNothingal willrivial young Rnadall telling his ma time'abou' when she first tried to check out his science pro

EDIT: I have tried and tried to edit this post and whatever has Kinjafied this BB my cursor all over the place at so figure out what I'm trying to say, or don't. I'm tired of fighting this tarded content edito. reyo,randmkeepssenin

 

[Jason_V]

The moment when Toby goes off on Kate in a controlled, reasonably calm manner, about how they both lost the baby was heartbreaking. He's just as busted up over this as Kate is, though Toby feels like he has to hold everything together. There was a moment of understanding in Kate's face. Up to now, it feels like she doesn't fully buy Toby is in anything with her.

He's more jovial, outgoing and confident. Kate has never really taken him seriously. Hopefully she will now.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Last night's episode just about broke me.

Sterling K. Brown is one of the great actors of his generation, and episodes like this that mine the nuances and complexities and contradictions of his upbringing really make use of that extraordinary talent. Randall really wants to be the white knight that saves Deja from her circumstances and gives her everything that she deserves. But he also remembers how much he missed having William as a part of his life growing up, and how betrayed he felt when he learned that Rebecca denied him the opportunity to know William.

That early scene where Deja's mom shows up out front unannounced spoke volumes. Deja was the one who talked her mother down. Randall is absolutely correct when he notes that Deja has had to be the parent far too often when it comes to her mother. But we also see how Deja has been impacted by her time with the Pearsons. She was willing to trust a system that had resulted in her enduring physical and emotional harm over and over again in the past. She had the words to articulate the point she was trying to make in a way that successfully defused the situation. And she trusted Randall and Beth enough not to use it against her.

Debra Jo Rupp has been phenomenal as Deja's social worker. Usually social workers in film and television are either saints who have no identity beyond this calling, or unfeeling and uncaring monsters. Rupp's social worker is excellent at her job, passionate about her job, but also realistic about the limitations of her role and respectful of the constraints the state should have when intervening in family matters.

The flashbacks to Randall's college visit to Howard explored another facet of Randall's tangled multicultural identity. He has always been a minority, everywhere he's been, for as long as he can remember. And then, touring the most prestigious historically black university in the nation, he gets a moment to experience the other side of the coin. And Jack, touring the school as a solitary white guy in a group of black parents and their black children, gets a taste of what Randall experiences every day. And the result of that, before they're summoned to the hospital, is a chance to understand each other a little better.

That scene where they say goodbye to Deja is just packed with greatness. Every single second has meaning and weight and deepens our understanding. Randall tries to keep the door wedged open a bit with Deja's mom, and she shuts that down. But then she thanks him for taking such good care of Deja, something that must have been incredibly difficult given the antagonism inherent in their situation. But then later, Deja says her goodbyes to Randall and Beth, there's a brief moment when the camera focuses on Deja's mom in the background of a shot. And you see that she sees just how important these people are to Deja, how much of themselves they have put into her daughter, and that their attachment to Deja is not just some possessiveness or entitlement. And I don't think there are words to capture what Joy Brunson expressed with her face.

My only real complaint is that they should have saved Kevin's big screw up for the next episode, and left "Number Three" completely Randall-centric. The scene itself captures what this show does so well. It could have easily been a big, melodramatic mess. But they took a harrowing situation -- a fatalistic Kevin driving drunk, unaware that his young niece has stowed away in the backseat -- and played it out realistically. Most times when a drunk gets behind the wheel, it doesn't end tragically. Still, if he were in New York he'd be facing at minimum a Class D felony for driving while intoxicated with a child 15 years of age or less in the vehicle. Hopefully this is the rock bottom he needs.

Using the show's nonlinear format to introduce that little boy seems like a risk. You don't know if a character will click until a couple episodes in. If that little boy doesn't click, they may have promised something that they can't pay off. But this show's track record is so strong that I'll give them the benefit of the doubt.

 

[Matt Hough]

The Kevin incident just rubbed me the wrong way. It felt so horribly and overtly manipulative that it made me mad at the producers of the show. I felt it beneath them. EVerything else I found remarkably involving and quite moving.

 

[Jason_V]

I really liked Randall's evolution in this episode re: Deja and her mom. There is an understanding he can't control everything and make the world a happy, beautiful place all by himself. There are things out of his control.

Oh Kevin...I don't like the placement of the drunk driving. I get this is another step on his downward spiral and may be what snaps him out of it. But here's the thing: I can very easily see Randall blaming himself for not doing anything to help Kevin. Kevin did show up at the door and tried to reach out...Randall basically brushed him off twice. Randall saw the drinking and did nothing. This isn't only about Kevin; it's going to be about Randall, too, and affect his life in the second half of the season.

 

[Mike Frezon]

Yes. The relationship between Kevin & Randall is one of the most interesting relationships of them all with this crew.

The two brothers have a very multi-layered connection going on.

Think of how Kevin went rushing away from his show to comfort Randall during that breakdown in season 1. I think Jason's correct that Kevin's issues are going to have a huge impact on Randall.

And just sayin'...but that must be one freakin' amazing house in which Randall's family lives...