jack pearson

This is Us 2×18 “The Wedding”

Big Three Moments of the Week 

And that’s a wrap on season two — congratulations to This is Us for successfully being one of the very few shows that hasn’t fallen into the season two curse (aka the terrible twos of a TV show.) It’s been a fantastic adventure, dear readers, and we’ve reached the end of a wondrous chapter celebrating with a wedding. Who doesn’t love crying through a union and a cliffhanger that we’ll have to wait months for? No part of me is okay, all of me is shook, and my eyes hurt from crying. How are you guys feeling?

However, on a serious note, I appreciated the series bringing us back to its core theme, which is the power of our choices — the strength that’s found in making the hard decisions in life. The serenity that’s found in choosing to let go of what’s burdening us and choosing to walk down the hard paths for it’ll lead us towards a better victory in life. “The Wedding” took everything we knew about This is Us and moved us towards a journey into the future, a journey that’s a clear result of the choices people have made, and a clear portrayal of just how vital human connections are.

Continue reading →

This is Us 2×14 “Super Bowl Sunday” and 2×15 “The Car”

To Jack Pearson | Part II and III

jackkk

Jack Pearson is a superhero — and sometimes, the superhero dies in the end, and though he is gone, the superhero’s story lives on, the superhero’s legacy paves the road for what’ll lie ahead. The people the superhero leaves behind learn of the fact that in being themselves, they played a vast role in giving him the powers he’s had. And that’s not to undermine the superhero, but rather, it’s intended to highlight a kind of greatness, which showcases that all-consuming, immaculate adoration has great power to inspire human beings to be the very best versions of themselves. Jack Pearson is in all of them — because they are him. They are the reason he’s chosen to lead the kind of heroic life, where unbeknownst to him, to everyone, he’s consistently done everything in his power to protect those whose love tirelessly fueled him. Therefore, when a hero like that leaves this world, all that remains is strength, perseverance, and profoundly comforting wistfulness.

Continue reading →

This is Us 2×13 “That’ll Be the Day”

To Jack Pearson | Part I

jackkk

source: IMDB.com

We’re always told that life is precious — a gift, in fact. We’re told to live each moment as though it’s our last because we could never be certain of what tomorrow will bring, or if it’ll even come at all. But as human beings, for the most part, we’re incapable of grasping this to a full degree. We knew Jack Pearson’s life was tragically cut short, and we knew that each of the kids harbored their trauma differently, but what we didn’t know is that it occurred at a time where teenage phases get the best of us. I’m no doctor or psychologist, so the amount of research I could do on the matter wouldn’t be qualified coming from someone with an English degree. . .but we all go through a certain phase when we’re younger where we prefer to spend our time with our friends or our significant others at the time. And the tragedy is that there’s nothing malicious about the intention, but when something as horrifying as this fire occurs, everything changes — guilt takes over.

And that’s the thing about life, every moment matters whether we’re able to get another or not. It’s authentication of the fact that while there’s a great number of things we cannot control in this world, we can control how we treat one another. We can control how much time we spend with a person. We can control how long we go without apologizing or atoning for our mistakes. We can control how often we tell people we love them.

These next two episodes are special ones, and as you’ll notice, I’ll be branching out to discuss the episodes in their entirety as opposed to choosing just three moments. We’ll resume our usual structure for episode 15.

Continue reading →

This is Us 2×12 “Clooney”

Big Three Moments of the Week

Sometimes, I hate this show. I really do. And by that I mean, I don’t actually hate it. However, it frustrates me. It makes me want to claw my eyes out and then two seconds later it makes me want to cry, but basically, the emotional rollercoaster always ends up being something I want to talk about, thereby, here we are. “Clooney” was something alright, and I believe, for the most part, it served as the perfect reminder of the fact that as human beings, we need to ask questions — as opposed to assuming, asking the right questions generally makes life bearable and better.

Continue reading →

This is Us 2×10 “Number Three”

Big Three Moments of the Week

It is the age-old fact that every choice we make changes the course of our lives. There’s a reason we shouldn’t challenge the “what ifs” and simultaneously, a reason why we always will. Whether we understand the concept that things happen for a reason or not, we’ll continue questioning it until there’s a tangible answer in front of us. An answer, we may never even get in the way we want. There’s not a single decision that doesn’t change something – whether a drastic change or a small, often unnoticeable one. And choices are especially pivotal in the Pearson family. “Number Three” concluded the emotional trilogy in a way so heart shattering, it’s left me, and Randall with nothing to say. A stammering attempt to break down the questions into seemingly tangible answers. And that’s perhaps the most interesting thing about this life, some emotions, some events are so hard to describe you rummage through every corridor within your brain trying to find the perfect description. Sometimes, in the midst of those attempts, a genius motto is born, other times, Pac-Man – something simple, something bizarre, but nevertheless, oddly comforting.
Continue reading →

This is Us 2×08 “Number One”

Big Three Moments of the Week

There will come a time in every human being’s life where they will need the guidance of another. Those moments come differently to all, in some scenarios, it happens gradually without any sort of spiral. In others, it’s darker, bleaker, lonelier, and when the spiral comes, help isn’t always around. And while that moment of loneliness may be man’s most vulnerable time, it’s also his bravest. The choice to admit that there’s pain residing within a person awakens the kind of courage that showcases the magnitude of their heart. If they’re still aware of their emotions, then they haven’t shut their heart off to the world — they haven’t accepted the cold, overwhelming darkness that leads to far more treacherous roads. This trilogy surrounding the kids starting with Kevin is an interesting touch to the series, which is making it far more exciting than the usual flashback/present day episodes. I for one, am definitely here for this mini trilogy.

Continue reading →

This is Us 2×06 “The 20’s”

Big Three Moments of the Week

“The 20’s” gave us some of the most beautiful scenes with Rebecca that simultaneously showcased what an absolute star Mandy Moore is. We’ve had a number of episodes giving Jack the platform to shine as a parent, and we’ve had each of the kids given similar opportunities, but with Rebecca it’s always been limited to moments that forced audiences not to side with her, and that’s probably been the most frustrating aspect of the series because I’ve hated having to justify how incredibly human her behavior is when fans began disliking her. But this episode gave her the perfect situations to expose just how much love fuels her, and how hard she tries to be the kind of parent who’s helping her kids grow. Through her struggles and mistakes, Rebecca is the kind of character who’s ceaselessly learning thereby, allowing the audience to understand that perfection is unachievable while flaws are inevitable. (Mostly, I just want to gush about the spectacular performance Mandy Moore put on that made me ugly cry more than once.)

Continue reading →

This is Us 2×05 “Brothers”

Big Three Moments of the Week

Genetics — it’s a funny thing really. The way we silently, unknowingly become what we see in our parents/guardians — even when we don’t want to. Because unless we’re fervently working towards an objective, it’s easy to give in to what’s in front of us. Addictive personalities are complicated, and because it’s something that runs in the Pearson family, if it isn’t monitored and worked towards, it could become dangerous. But interestingly, it’s not just in alcohol or drugs but rather objectives — desires and the inability to stop pushing plays a riveting role in shaping the Pearson family. And in “Brothers”, we watched it effect the Pearson kids differently; some, in more dangerous ways than others of course, but nevertheless, a challenging process, which makes for excellent television while inspiring with some incredible messages we should all take with us.

Continue reading →

This is Us 2×03 “Highs and Lows”

Big Three Moments of the Week

Human beings have a tendency to repress pain — pain that’s so vivid, so heart wrenching that when it’s felt, there’s no escape. And that kind of pain has only one solution, it demands to be felt. This is Us is a show that forces its characters to feel these emotions by pulling through roller coasters they’ve never wanted to be on. In “Highs and Lows” we saw just that, moments between the siblings, parents, and new family members adjusting.

Continue reading →

This is Us 2×02 “A Manny-Splendored Thing”

Big Three Moments of the Week

As human beings, the one thing we need to embed in ourselves is the fact that we’ll never be perfect — none of us. No matter how faultless a person seems to be, there’s darkness in them that neither of us can imagine. We are only ever capable of knowing our own best. And in “A Manny-Splendored Thing”, we finally brought light to the darkness within Jack — for the kids at least. There’s no picking sides on this show, and there shouldn’t be, for there isn’t a single character that’s capable of reaching some sort of unimaginable perfection. There’s no character who’s capable of fighting off darkness and negativity entirely, but these are human being that clearly try, so where credit is due, it should be given. And this episode’s means of dealing with the tainted relationships verses the seemingly perfect ones was enamoring. Who would’ve imagined that Kevin returning to The Manny would result in an incredibly emotional rollercoaster.

Continue reading →