Its good to be back.
(New to America, he explains to the carnival ticket-taker.)
Things, however, will soon go south.
THIS IS US — “Ave Maria” Episode 301 — Pictured: (l-r) Mandy Moore as Rebecca, Milo Ventimiglia as Jack — (Photo by: Ron Batzdorff/NBC).Ron Batzdorff/NBC
That bumpy ride is an experience shared by the Pearson siblings in the present-day timeline.
(Theyre knocking boots, Beth laments to Randall, who hears that phrase for the first time.
This recapper had the same experience.)
But both are handed tough doses of reality.
For Beth, its an inability to keep quiet as she watches Zoe and Kevin dance around one another.
She screams at Zoe while Kevin listens with Tess and Annie by his side.
He says to her, We dont want [the adoption] to happen unless its your choice.
Dont tell me were the same, Randall, she says, angry that he tried paralleling their experiences.
Dont tell me I have a choice in anything.
They leave with no choice made.
Then theres Kate and Toby, who are still working hard to conceive.
Another hopeful new beginning.
She then decides to play a game: Cats or dogs?
Then: Mushrooms or pepperoni?
They say opposite things both times, and then it starts to rain.
Jack has run out of money but doesnt want to admit this to Rebecca.
So they stay hiding under shelter, as it pours, with him seemingly refusing to buy an umbrella.
But the actors still find room for resonance.
I have been trapped in this body for so long.
Trapped, Kate says.
And I take a stab at stay positive … Im tired of smiling and pretending that its sunny out …
When is the universe going to give me a break?
Similarly, Randall and Deja have a pained heart-to-heart when they get back home.
She confronts him with her pain, but also her good fortune, and Ross plays the moment beautifully.
I met these people and they think Im exceptional.
She returns for the party, presenting her foster dad with a new pair of sneakers.
Then she adds, nonchalantly, that he can sign the papers.
Shes made her choice.
This is her family.
She leans in for a kiss.
And she says goodnight, with an implicit promise of a second chance.
They both revolve around Toby, who isnt exactly the shows most compelling figure.
Kate is moved deeply, but Toby evidently feels renewed pressure.
He flushes his antidepressants down the toilet.
There was no way of knowing, no idea of what it could mean.
He says, She wants you there, too, but Toby isnt so sure.
Seems that this mystery may be teased out slowly.
Will we have to wait a year-and-a-half as we did with the saga of Jacks death?
Strap in,This Is Usfans.
Its time for another season of guessing, theorizing, and kleenex-grabbing.
