S04.E05: Storybook Love

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Quote

Rebecca hosts a dinner party. Kevin tries to support those around him. Randall faces concerns about how his family is adjusting to their new home.

Promo:

Original air date: 10/22/19

[ams1001]

An actual conversation between Randall and one of his siblings!

"Quiet's nice, huh?" "It was." 😄

Jesus, Randall, give the kid some space. An hour in her room is not an emergency.

Do they still make ice cream in those boxes?

[ByaNose]

I’m 55 and don’t recall those ice cream in a box thing. Carton...yes.....Box.....no. 

[ShadowFacts]

Little Nicky and Jack and the ice cream, then Uncle Nicky giving Kevin his slice, was golden.  And I want a slice. 

[debraran]

LOVED Rebecca's speech and her chutzpah. I liked the tie in a the end with the piano, but what could have happened with the young man and Kate? Was he standing in for her dad in her mind or did he hurt her ? No mention of him before so maybe not too important, we will see. 

Nice to see Randall not wanting help because that is wrong but normal. My kid needs it but I have control. Maybe like Nicky and Kevin, he'll see it later.

Ice cream scene has me craving it but chocolate. ; )

Edited October 23, 2019 by debraran

[ProudMary]

In my opinion, for most of last season and for the first four episodes of this season, this show that I had loved so much was lost. Tonight it found itself again.

Best episode in a long time.

[CleoCaesar]

There are episodes where the present-day scenes benefit from being interspersed with flashbacks to the past. This was not one of those episodes, in my opinion.

Too much was going on with very little actually happening. A 15-second scene of Kevin and Nicky (who I still don't care at all about), 5-second scene of newly married Kevin coming home to his family, 5-second look at Kate cuddling baby Jack, cut to Randall being worried about Tess, then cut to awkward family dinner in the past, then Jack and Rebecca setting up house, then a cut to William (oh. him again. great.), then Nicky and Kevin and Cassidy for a few seconds, then back to the teen Big Three...the whole episode felt very jumbled and superficial, a patchwork of tiny scenes one after another, none of it really adding up to anything. Last week's episode did a much better job of balancing all the characters without rushing through so many micro scenes.

Plus it felt like Shonda Rhimes wrote so many of the weird speeches. That is not a compliment. People just don't just stand there and monologue at each other (example: Kevin asks Cassidy's ex-husband why he bothered to come to the event and ex-husband starts rambling how he met Cassidy at 15 when she bumped into him in the hallway and blah blah blah blah...).

[Spartan Girl]

Yes, I geeked out when Mandy sang The Princess Bride theme song, so what?

I loved Rebecca unloading on the Big Three for all their arguing. And Cassidy's husband ripping Kevin a new one for judging him.

Also loved Nicky's story about their dad and the ice cream block. It's nice to remember that their dad wasn't always an asshole.

"You have the strangest relationships with people." Yup.

[chitowngirl]

I love Kevin and Nicky’s relationship! Kevin DOES have strange relationships with people!

Also love pissed off Rebecca!

Oh Beth, why didn’t you tell Randall about William’s panic attacks?? Does anyone tell Randall ANYTHING about his past? When that’s the one thing he craves?

Edited October 23, 2019 by chitowngirl

[Armchair Critic]

I usually like the flashbacks more than the current day.

Miguel was a good guy all along. Looks like he was patiently waiting for Rebecca.

Hmmm... so what happened with Mark? Also what do I know that actor from?

[greekmom]

We use to have box ice cream in Canada. I think we still do. 

I don't like where teen Kate's storyline is going.  It's hinting towards an abusive relationship. 

Kevin still wins MVP.

[debraran]

1 minute ago, CleoCaesar said:

There are episodes where the present-day scenes benefit from being interspersed with flashbacks to the past. This was not one of those episodes, in my opinion.

Too much was going on with very little actually happening. A 15-second scene of Kevin and Nicky (who I still don't care at all about), 5-second scene of newly married Kevin coming home to his family, 5-second look at Kate cuddling baby Jack, cut to Randall being worried about Tess, then cut to awkward family dinner in the past, then Jack and Rebecca setting up house, then a cut to William (oh. him again. great.), then Nicky and Kevin and Cassidy for a few seconds, then back to the teen Big Three...the whole episode felt very jumbled and superficial, a patchwork of tiny scenes one after another, none of it really adding up to anything. Last week's episode did a much better job of balancing all the characters without rushing through so many micro scenes.

Plus it felt like Shonda Rhimes wrote so many of the weird speeches. That is not a compliment. People just don't just stand there and monologue at each other (example: Kevin asks Cassidy's ex-husband why he bothered to come to the event and ex-husband starts rambling how he met Cassidy at 15 when she bumped into him in the hallway and blah blah blah blah...).

Milo directed it and was in it, maybe that's why. Harder than it looks.

[gonzosgirrl]

Just now, greekmom said:

We use to have box ice cream in Canada. I think we still do. 

Chapmans! In Ontario anyway. 🙂

It cut scenes a little too quickly, but all around a good episode.

The casting of young Beth is astounding. She has Susan's mannerisms down cold. Young Kate is a close second.

So, are we thinking abuse from the music store boyfriend?

[MissT]

I’m 52, from the Northeast and clearly remember boxed ice cream.  I used to hate that the top never really closed.   Breyer’s mint chocolate chip!   

[Blakeston]

That "ice cream" looked disgusting to me. It resembled giant sticks of butter more than anything else.

Edited October 23, 2019 by Blakeston

[ByaNose]

2 minutes ago, MissT said:

I’m 52, from the Northeast and clearly remember boxed ice cream.  I used to hate that the top never really closed.   Breyer’s mint chocolate chip!   

I’m from the Northeast (Philly) & don't have any recollection of this. I will need to confer with my 85 year old parents. LOL!!! Also, mint chocolate chip (green) is my favorite ice cream.  

[MissT]

Just now, ByaNose said:

I’m from the Northeast (Philly) & don't have any recollection of this. I will need to confer with my 85 year old parents. LOL!!! Also, mint chocolate chip (green) is my favorite ice cream.  

From Philly area as well!    Born and raised.  I also remember when you had a true half gallon of ice cream.  They rip everyone off now.     

[ShadowFacts]

I did like Rebecca telling her kids to get their whiny little asses back to the table, but the rest of that whole dinner didn't work as well, I don't think Miguel's little wine talk and then her speech ending with how perfect Jack was made much sense.  The pigeon flying around the long ago dinner featured kind of bad acting by Milo who I usually think does a good job. 

I was afraid that after Cassidy's husband left, we were indeed going to see the beginning of Cass + Kevin, but liked the slight twist of his explanation of why he can't honor the thing that broke her. 

[Spencer Hastings]

This show hasn’t made me cry in a long time but Kevin and Nicky with the ice cream got me.  It’s nice to know that Jack got some good things from his father that he passed down for his kids. I’m glad Nicky has some fond memories. 

Boxed ice cream is definitely a thing. I think they still sell it here.

Edited October 23, 2019 by Spencer Hastings

[Crs97]

I’m 51 and remember the cartons of ice cream.  We were a Blue Bell family, but I had many a slice at other people’s homes.

[Eureka]

10 minutes ago, Blakeston said:

That "ice cream" looked disgusting to me. It resembled giant sticks of butter more than anything else.

Basically it was. 

https://tvline.com/2019/10/22/this-is-us-season-4-episode-5-milo-ventimiglia-interview-kate-abused/

[Dejana]

I remember the ice cream in the box as a kid (many decades after Young Jack and Nicky), to me it was the cheap kind compared to the brands in the carton, and the vanilla was always that yellowish white color. 

We know Beth and Randall are still together in the future, so Randall will probably go to therapy eventually (later this season).

Guess we'll be seeing the story of Kate and the old boyfriend soon enough. A shallow note, but Tween Kate seems to be taller than Teen Kate now.

[Kdawg82]

19 minutes ago, CleoCaesar said:

There are episodes where the present-day scenes benefit from being interspersed with flashbacks to the past. This was not one of those episodes, in my opinion.

I agree with your entire post. I also roll my eyes at the Rebecca telling the table of teens/Miguel the move-in story about her and Jack's 1st home. She recalled Jack making a ridiculous scream bc of the bird.  It makes me feel like I have issues with alzheimers bc I never recall minute details about a day that happened 19-20 years ago.

[mtlchick]

23 minutes ago, ams1001 said:

Do they still make ice cream in those boxes?

There's a Canadian brand that not only still make them, but had recent ad campaigns touting them! https://chapmans.ca/class/original-ice-cream/

I missed the first 20 minutes so I can't really comment about everything until I watch it in full, but if Randall still thinks he doesn't need to see a therapist after seeing what Tess is going through and what William went through, he's heading for one hell of a breakdown say...around sweeps time.  

Now I'm really intrigued about Kate and her boyfriend who may be "the one that got away" and why she's missing in the future.  

Finally, episodes like these remind me that Mandy's pop star career sort of overshadowed what a beautiful singing voice she still has. 

[Carmel Cub]

24 minutes ago, Armchair Critic said:

I usually like the flashbacks more than the current day.

Miguel was a good guy all along. Looks like he was patiently waiting for Rebecca.

Hmmm... so what happened with Mark? Also what do I know that actor from?

Actor's name is Austin Abrams. He played Ethan on Euphoria.

[bybrandy]

I liked Kate's reaction to Beth.  I expected her to down Beth since the boys were suspicious of her guy so I enjoyed her being upset about that but not taking it out on Beth.

I like that Kate and Randall pretended to know each other in the present day.   Kate and Randall interactions are rare!   

I love hot sauce but when Jack poured hot sauce on that string cheese?!?!?!   

I don't love ice cream but I kind of want a slice.   

I'm not sure this show needs Nicky but I welcome Nicky snarking at Kevin.   

[ams1001]

14 minutes ago, MissT said:

I’m 52, from the Northeast and clearly remember boxed ice cream.  I used to hate that the top never really closed.   Breyer’s mint chocolate chip!   

9 minutes ago, ByaNose said:

I’m from the Northeast (Philly) & don't have any recollection of this. I will need to confer with my 85 year old parents. LOL!!! Also, mint chocolate chip (green) is my favorite ice cream.  

I love mint chocolate chip, but Breyer's was always my favorite because it wasn't green! (But I think they changed the chips; now I go for Turkey Hill All Natural.) I remember cartons with real squared corners but we never sliced it.

9 minutes ago, Eureka said:

Basically it was. 

https://tvline.com/2019/10/22/this-is-us-season-4-episode-5-milo-ventimiglia-interview-kate-abused/

Yummy...

[bybrandy]

4 minutes ago, Kdawg82 said:

I agree with your entire post. I also roll my eyes at the Rebecca telling the table of teens/Miguel the move-in story about her and Jack's 1st home. She recalled Jack making a ridiculous scream bc of the bird.  It makes me feel like I have issues with alzheimers bc I never recall minute details about a day that happened 19-20 years ago.

I do for days like that.   My nephew had the bird visiting from his class when I was babysitting once and it got out and I remember everything about trying to recapture that bird and my nephew's panic and going, "Surely this is not a babysitter level problem!"

[Kdawg82]

Kate's boyfriend definitely gave me creepy weirdo vibes in this. Definitely the kind of person I've known in my youth around that time frame the young "big three" are in at this point. I know Rebecca's situation is very different but if i brought in a random kid like that to family dinner, i would get a reaming for it and a ration of sh** for even thinking about seeing this kid. My parents weren't as accepting as the Pearsons. I'm going with abuse from this kid. I hope it's not cancer or such bc then I'll feel kind of bad.

[Lady Calypso]

I can't believe that, in my 25 years, and with having bought the boxed ice cream a lot over the years, none of us ever thought about cutting up the ice cream. 

Oh, how life would have been simpler if we had thought of it instead of getting out hands dirty with trying to scoop out the ice cream.

Rebecca barking at the kids during dinner was all sorts of awesome. She got to call them whiny! That's a win in my books!

I wonder what happened with Marc. From the implication of that last scene, nothing good. I'm going to trust Kevin when he says that he doesn't like him and assume it's more than jealousy issues. Hopefully, whatever happened with Marc and Kate wasn't anything too horrible.

I liked the stuff with Cassidy and her husband. It was kind of neat to see Kevin giddy that he could tell Cassidy that her husband still liked her. I like Kevin the Matchmaker. As Nicky said, Kevin has some weird relationships with people. Speaking of Nicky, he's hilarious. 

The anxiety stuff with Randall and Tess was well done. And of course Randall would rather ignore the issue than go see a therapist. 

[tennisgurl]

I love that Princess Bride song, and Mandy sounded so beautiful! That made me really happy, and its a good song for this show. I also always love "no more time for your shit" Rebecca telling the kids to stop squabbling and get their respective shit together for dinner. 

Honestly "You have the strangest relationships with people." could sum up a LOT of relationships from this show that the Pearson family has.

You know Randall, maybe your daughters anxiety wasnt helped by having to randomly move away to a new city and new school because of her dads midlife crisis? 

I hope the music kid doesent turn out to be abusive, but it kind of sounded like that. Or maybe he was the one that got away, or had a bad break up or something she has regrets about. Nate does NOT need more angst time! Especially something thats never been brought up.

Young Beth is amazingly well cast, she really nails present day Beth. I love how everyone loved her right away! 

Jack and Nikki's dad might have been a bastard for most of his time as their father, but it is good to remember that he was once a kind and loving father and husband, and that that part of him wasnt totally killed by alcoholism and bitterness. And Jack actually did inherit something nice from him, which is a decent call back to William and Randall wondering what their kids would get from them, even if they meant biologically and not traditions. I think that a really big part of Jacks obsession with being Awesome Perfect Super Dad/Husband was before he was terrified that he could become like his dad. He remembers that his dad was a good man once, and he was scared that the switch could be flipped in him too, so he overcompensated. 

[Blakeston]

14 minutes ago, Kdawg82 said:

Kate's boyfriend definitely gave me creepy weirdo vibes in this. Definitely the kind of person I've known in my youth around that time frame the young "big three" are in at this point. I know Rebecca's situation is very different but if i brought in a random kid like that to family dinner, i would get a reaming for it and a ration of sh** for even thinking about seeing this kid. My parents weren't as accepting as the Pearsons. I'm going with abuse from this kid. I hope it's not cancer or such bc then I'll feel kind of bad.

The way he inserted himself into an intimate situation like this, and then introduced himself as her boyfriend right after she'd chosen to just call him a friend, was definitely creepy.

Edited October 23, 2019 by Blakeston

[zoey1996]

From Kansas.  We had the "box" ice cream.  They were the rectangular type, but we referred to them as "cartons."  We'd open from an end, not the top, and never sliced the ice cream.  We'd use an ice cream scoop.

I've liked all the episodes, but this one was the best so far.  I somewhat relate to Uncle Nicky.  I'm an introvert and need my alone time too.

Someone last week remarked on Beth's dark spot on her eye.  I'd never noticed it before, so I made a point of looking, and sure enough, I saw it.

[bybrandy]

2 minutes ago, zoey1996 said:

Someone last week remarked on Beth's dark spot on her eye.  I'd never noticed it before, so I made a point of looking, and sure enough, I saw it.

I'd never noticed it until somebody mentioned it last week, either.  And thought it was really funny that just when I was looking for it Kate mentioned it!

[tennisgurl]

I actually like the stuff with Cassidy and her husband way more than I expected to this week. It’s a terrible situation and I feel bad for both of them. And Kevin was practically giddy when Cassidys husband told him to stay away from her. Kevin would probably be a good match maker, he has great people skills and can read people really well. 

[ScorpioSoul]

27 minutes ago, Carmel Cub said:

Actor's name is Austin Abrams. He played Ethan on Euphoria.

He  also played Ben in the movie Paper Towns and was in All Summers End, a movie where he and two friends play a prank that ends with another kid dead.

Edited October 23, 2019 by ScorpioSoul

[Mldh598]

18 minutes ago, Lady Calypso said:

I can't believe that, in my 25 years, and with having bought the boxed ice cream a lot over the years, none of us ever thought about cutting up the ice cream. 

Oh, how life would have been simpler if we had thought of it instead of getting out hands dirty with trying to scoop out the ice cream.

This! I thought the exact same thing. All that scooping when we could have bee slicing....who knew? =)

[txhorns79]

1 hour ago, Spartan Girl said:

And Cassidy's husband ripping Kevin a new one for judging him.

I just love that Kevin felt entitled to lecture a person he just met about his behavior.

[memememe76]

I too know about boxed ice cream but never thought about cutting it like butter or cake. I opened one side and scooped it out. It was a mess so I never buy boxed ice cream now that I am rich and entitled.

Loved the episode. Young Sophie is way annoying. She reminds me more of adult Madidon than adult Sophie.

[Crs97]

Nicky is hilarious (though seeing his face at the hockey game broke my heart), and I love knowing that he ends up at Rebecca’s bedside.  Kevin does have the strangest relationships.

Rebecca’s speech about how they better pretend to like burnt raw food was fantastic!  Miguel is such a sweetheart, and I hated seeing how much Kate is annoyed by him.

I don’t like how Randall spoke to Beth and how Beth just took it.  I hope she can get through to him before another blowup.  Great model for Tess there, Randall.  Hope their youngest daughter is okay.  She does not get enough to do.

[Violetgoblin6]

Marc (Kate's bf) was on Euphoria as Kat's bf. too late as always. 😂😂

Remember ice cream in cardboard very well, I'm 45. Sealtest. 

Liked how Kate commented on beauty mark on Beth's eye. 

Agree with the fact the show jerked around a lot, one minute of Kate holding the baby, another of Kevin at hockey game, another of Miguel circa 1998. 

Liked, however, the dinner course titles...salad, entree, etc. Kinda artsy.

Still curious and sad about Stanley becoming rotten.

Edited October 23, 2019 by Violetgoblin6

[Armchair Critic]

I figured out that I must know Marc from Euphoria and The Walking Dead. From the way Kate reacted to the photo it didn't seem positive but this show likes it's twists so who knows.

[Violetgoblin6]

1 hour ago, MissT said:

From Philly area as well!    Born and raised.  I also remember when you had a true half gallon of ice cream.  They rip everyone off now.     

Me too, Bucks County. A true half gallon! My grandparents got Sealtest and my nana got Breyers checkered orange sherbet and vanilla.  I loved and still love vanilla ice cream that's yellow, lol, and you get in Chinese restaurants in the silver dish, still cold from the freezer. Ugh, I'm craving ice cream! 

[Lsk02]

I feel like I missed this in previous seasons, but didn’t they live in an apartment in the pilot, in the first scene when Rebecca was hugely pregnant? With boxes all over like they were packing? Or was that supposed to be the bedroom in their house? 

[chocolatine]

I was just traveling through Tuscany last week with my family, and we visited Montalcino and bought a bottle of Brunello. It's very good (and very expensive) wine, so Miguel was definitely trying hard to woo Rebecca with that one.

After present-day Kate and Rebecca's reaction to the polaroids, I think it will be the relationship with the record store guy that will lead to her spiraling and gaining the massive amount of weight, rather than Jack's death as I'd previously thought.

I loved Nick Wechsler's speech to Kevin and thought it had a bigger emotional impact than any of the Pearson scenes.

6 minutes ago, Lsk02 said:

I feel like I missed this in previous seasons, but didn’t they live in an apartment in the pilot, in the first scene when Rebecca was hugely pregnant? With boxes all over like they were packing? Or was that supposed to be the bedroom in their house? 

That was a retcon for sure. In this episode's flashback Rebecca looked five or six months pregnant, so she and Jack would have surely unpacked everything by the time the babies came.

Edited October 23, 2019 by chocolatine

[Ana88]

Haha I guess we are all alike here - I also love mint chocolate chip ice cream in green! 

This was a pretty good episode but not as good as the last. I always like these flashback epis that kind of tie to the present, however this as you all have said, felt too rushed and trying too hard. I continue to be amazed at the casting - the little expressions are SPOT ON, almost scary. 

I am worried about Kate's guy and also tend to think he might have been the one who made her weight spiral out of control. We shall see. I didn't recognize the old or young Sophie at all in this actress or in her behavior, she has always seemed more serious than Kevin but here they were both acting like 10 year olds. 

The ice cream scenes were adorable - so nice to see Nicky remembering a good side to his dad. I remember those ice cream blocks too but we had the rainbow kind and we also cut them with a knife. How the heck else are you going to eat them? lol 

Kevin is my fave! So relieved it seems like his baby momma isn't going to be Cassy but who knows.. 

Edited October 23, 2019 by Ana88

[LoveLeigh]

1 hour ago, tennisgurl said:

I actually like the stuff with Cassidy and her husband way more than I expected to this week. It’s a terrible situation and I feel bad for both of them. And Kevin was practically giddy when Cassidys husband told him to stay away from her. Kevin would probably be a good match maker, he has great people skills and can read people really well. 

I tried to read the posts to see if this was addressed. I cannot find anything. So...... Cassidy's husband was on his phone and Kevin was pissed. Her husband explained why he was on the phone to Kevin and it had something to do with their son. What did he say to Kevin? Thanks. 

[chocolatine]

1 minute ago, DakotaLavender said:

I tried to read the posts to see if this was addressed. I cannot find anything. So...... Cassidy's husband was on his phone and Kevin was pissed. Her husband explained why he was on the phone to Kevin and it had something to do with their son. What did he say to Kevin? Thanks. 

He said he was staring at his phone during the ceremony because otherwise he would have started openly weeping in front of his son.

[Spencer Hastings]

They made it a point to mention the boyfriend’s older age and that Kevin didn’t have a good feeling about him.  This guy may be manipulative and abusive.  Teen Kate is already in a vulnerable state so it’s a perfect recipe for her life (and body weight) to spiral. 

[MsJamieDornan]

2 hours ago, Lady Calypso said:

I can't believe that, in my 25 years, and with having bought the boxed ice cream a lot over the years, none of us ever thought about cutting up the ice cream. 

We had Kemps boxed ice cream . We only sliced it if we were going to use the whole thing. Otherwise the damn box wouldn't close.

Miguel still bugs me.