This week: 2 Kleenexes.
When we last left the Pearson family, our hearts were aching for Randall. His sister Kate told him and Kevin that she was the only one of the three siblings who could pass on a piece of their dad, Jack, who died when they were 17. Presumably, she meant that Kevin can't carry on dad's legacy because he'll never settle down and Randall can't pass on a piece of dad because he was adopted.
Instead of apologizing to Randall for the hurtful comment, she somehow turned it around and made herself the victim. Randall suggested she adopt instead of going through with a dangerous IVF operation, after which Kate flipped out and told him he has no idea how much she wants this or how hard it is to lose a baby (one of last season's heartbreaks).
Leave it to Kate to deflect and diminish Randall’s very valid hurt feelings and turn it around to make it about her. And, of course Randall feels bad now. #ThisIsUs pic.twitter.com/r0Dj5xSWiH
— Tris B (@mstrilliviapope) October 10, 2018
Thankfully, Kate makes up for it at the end of the episode by telling Randall he just made "the most dad move ever."
*Kleenex Alert*
This week we also got more flashbacks of the beginnings of Jack and Rebecca. Jack showed up at her house to return her jacket, only to find her smooching another man, who turned out to be an old flame. Jack drove away, thinking that was the last time he'd see her.
Minutes later, Jack and Rebecca meet surreptitiously in a drug store. He sees her picking up champagne to celebrate her sudden move to New York, while Jack is bringing his mom to a new place, away from his abusive dad.
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"Jack, do you have a dream?" Rebecca asks him. He gives a beautifully honest "Jack" answer about just wanting to live in a loving home.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the sound of a woman falling in love.
As for the slightly narcissistic, but always charming and well-intentioned Kevin, he is now a bonafide movie star. His whole family showed up on opening night to see him absolutely kill his starring role in a Ron Howard, war film called Hill 400. At least we assume he killed it - everyone in the audience was in tears. Still, rave reviews aside, Kevin is struggling through all the press junkets as he tries to recall memories of his dad. During an NPR interview, for instance, he realizes he knows next to nothing about his dad's service in the Vietnam War. Judging by next week's preview, Kev is going to start asking those long overdue questions.
Beth also has a tough episode. After 12 years at her company, her boss told her she was simply "less valuable" than the other two senior staffers. So, she turns to Jack Daniels for comfort. That's the bad news. The good news? We get another Ron Cephas Jones cameo!
*Kleenex Alert*
Kate isn't waking up after her surgery. She hallucinates that she's with her dad again, and two of her younger selves. They tell her to "stay" with them and not return to the present.
I'll let you guess if she opens her eyes.
The narrator described next week's episode as "the episode that simply cannot be missed." We're going to learn "how Jack became Jack."
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