If you would like to read my review of the last episode of This Is Us, click here.
Synopsis: Struggling with Toby’s depression, Kate seeks Rebecca’s advice; Randall makes time for Kevin, who obsesses about Jack’s past. (TVGuide)
Writer: Vera Herbert
Director: John Fortenberry
Rating: TV-14
Running Time: 45mins
Airs: Tuesdays at 9pm on CTV (Canada)/NBC (United States)
This Is Us has yet to have an episode that isn’t good, and honestly, it is hard to see a scenario where it could ever be bad. This week focuses on Randall’s campaign while Kate makes some headway with Toby’s depression.
Appropriately named Kamsahamnida, which means thank you in Korean, this episode was all about being thankful for what’s right in front of you–even when you don’t realize it or take it for granted. This sentiment came out between Randall and Beth, between Kevin and Zoe, and even in the past with the Pearson family.
It turns out that The Manny is extremely popular in South Korea, a point that Randall learns after meeting Kevin at a diner. This moment comes after Randall attends church in the neighborhood he hopes to gain support from, but from the looks of it, it’s not going to happen.
Seeing how much the Korean neighborhood is in love with Kevin, he looks into the stats of unregistered voters and learns that he could actually win if he gains the support from this particular neighborhood. And what better way to guarantee that support is by using Kevin’s popularity. But he’s immediately called out by a young Korean man named Jae-Won who sees right through Randall’s intentions.
In classic Randall fashion, he gives an uplifting speech that wins over Jae-Won and many of the locals who are having Randall’s speech translated to them. By the end of the episode, Jae-Won lands a job as Randall’s campaign manager, a point that Randall is able to politely but effectively throw in his opponent’s face.
Kate’s pregnancy news is shared across the Pearson family but with it is Toby’s current situation–he’s still unable to get out of bed and has been back on meds for about two weeks. Kudos to Kate for sticking by his side and kudos to This Is Us for handling this situation with care. It doesn’t shy away from the fact that the road ahead with Toby will be a difficult one but it also allows Kate to make that decision to stay by his side on her own.
When their dog, Audio, accidentally eats a rock at the park, Toby expresses some sort of emotion towards Kate, albeit a negative one, but he realizes he’s being too aggressive and says sorry. Kate gets frantic, however, and takes Audio to the vet where she has the option to have surgery done on him or wait for Audio to poop out the rock. With the help of Rebecca, Kate takes Audio and decides to wait it out.
Not only does Audio poop out the rock, but Kate manages to convince Toby to go out on a walk with them after he confesses that he’s scared she will leave him. She gives a heartfelt speech to him about being there through better or worse and in sickness and in health, and she will always be there to support him, and she will get him through this.
In the past, Rebecca expresses concern over Jack coming home with a black eye. He goes boxing at the gym and has upgraded from the bag to actual people, and she’s not okay with it. When Randall asks for Jack to help him with boxing because of a bully, Rebecca once again fears the worst when she catches them. It turns out Randall didn’t have a bully, but just wanted to be more like Jack because he doesn’t think he’s his “son-son”. Thankfully, Jack reminded him that he adores Randall and he is his “son-son”.
Rebecca eventually comes around too when she realizes that it helps Jack with his emotional distress, most likely from the war. He even opens up about Nicky, so it’s a win-win!
Beth has her own emotional journey this week as she continues to grapple with the reality of losing her job, and she’s having a hard time helping out the girls with their Girl Scout cookie sales. But it’s Deja who helps her through the frustration and convinces her to speak to Randall because he’s only the best person in the whole world. When Beth does finally tell Randall she’s not fine, he offers her a job on the campaign because together, they can truly conquer all.
Zoe goes off on a night to pamper herself after finishing the documentary, but Kevin spends most of the episode realizing he can’t let the photo of Jack and a mysterious woman go so easily, and it’s something he must explore. At the end of the episode, Kevin asks Zoe to join him in Vietnam as he tries to find out what happened with his dad there.
We’re on a two break now from This Is Us, but when it returns, there is a lot more headed our way–and we can’t wait.
Score: 8/10
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