S05.E08: In the Room

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Quote

The Pearsons navigate huge family milestones together but from a distance.

Promo:

Original air date: 2/16/21

[PRgal]

That was random.

[Armchair Critic]

I honestly am not a crier but this show gets me almost every time. When Kate said "the new Big 3" it got me again.

[Quickbeam]

I was sure the couple was going to be Miguel’s parents. Faked out. 
 

I am not a weeper but the pigs.....Gaah, cry city. 

[Spartan Girl]

Did not see them going there with the couple in the beginning but that guy definitely deserved recognition! Especially since we are all using videos to communicate these days 

Yup a new Big Three born on the same night. We all saw that coming.

Loved Randall distracting Madison from that scary looking epidural with his rendition of “MmmmBop.” Best part of the episode.

Second best part was Toby and the covid patient’s husband. Glad that his wife would be okay; even if he was a dick about the parking spot at first he was going through a lot and it was understandable. LOL at his little “bacon army.”

[bettername2come]

I'm glad they told us a little about that couple at the end. I think they worked that in better than than the time they had that football guy's story in one ep. 

Kate's got the cutest little 3-month-old. 

I wanted Kevin's babies to have Randall and Beth as their middle names. And I'm glad Kevin's charms at least went to the head of TSA in Seattle so I know that random lady's not gonna lose her job. 

I enjoy the mental image of Kevin singing "Mmmbop." And wanting to start a brother band with Randall. 

[BuckeyeLou]

Lots of tears:  the scene between Miguel & Rebecca was lovely(Miguel is so perfect for her), Kevin & Randall connecting again, the idea of a new "Big 3"...I was joining Rebecca in tears over the babies....and AWWW...Uncle Nicky so pleased to have a baby named after him.  Loved this episode!

[ams1001]

The stream of my consciousness...

• Who else started off saying "Am I on the right channel?" during that first scene? Couldn't even decide what decade we might be in.
• "Unfairly gorgeous babies" 😄 
• Is this guy with the wife in the hospital a heretofore-unknown Pearson? He sure talks like one. (And maybe if you have a reason to want a particular spot you don't start by growling "that's my spot" to a complete stranger in a nearly-empty parking lot?)
• Baby's middle name's gonna be Rose, isn't it?
• "When I decided to become a city councilman..." "Ugh. Give her something interesting." 🤣
• Are the babies gonna all be born at the same time, even?
• Uh-oh.
• Ugh, shut up, Jack.
• Why is everyone taking their masks off to talk to the baby? Don't breathe on the newborn!
• Eyes on the road, Beth.
• "I was communing with the spirit of my birth mom" and Kevin doesn't say "wait, what?"
• Seriously, who are these people?
• Okay, I was gonna be annoyed that we even got a backstory for the guy who ultimately led to us having Facetime but then they had the pictures and the note about keeping us connected today and damn you show.

[debraran]

I loved the end the best, unrealistic births but this isn't Call the Midwife. Like how the inventor of what keeps most of us sane was at the beginning and end. Loved seeing Nicky and how they made Hailey's mom say goodbye (Rebecca should have with Kyle) Loved the man in the parking lot.

I also like how they will show another kink in Jack's armor next week. Kevin shouldn't be in his shadow but making his own.I don't know how much more we have to see of their past though

I wished Miguel and Rebecca were physically closer but maybe another show. I did like her saying she was happy and their wedding memory. Of course the painting had to dominate that more than once. I did love seeing the younger kids painting it though.

Edited February 17, 2021 by debraran

[mtlchick]

What got me was Nasir and Esther, who my sister and I were thinking were Miguel's parents, at the very end.  God bless them for 56 years of marriage and Nahir for being part of something that has become essential to our lives. 

I did wish we did have more of an explanation of how Kevin made it on the flight other than the TSA people doing him a solid.  

Immediately called it that Rose would be the middle name as soon as the man said it.  On the new show Kenan that premiered before this one, there as a joke on how someone gambles on This Is Us plot twists.  This would have been an easy bet to make. 

 

Damn you Randall!  Now I can't get MMMBop out of my head! 

 

edit: teenage Randall hit puberty!  His voice went down several octaves!

Edited February 17, 2021 by mtlchick
spelling mistake

[Spencer Hastings]

I really thought birth mom was going to change her mind about letting Kate and Toby adopt her baby. 

Side note: As someone who has seen Hanson 63 times in concert, the Mmmbop reference was a nice treat! 

[BuckeyeLou]

3 minutes ago, Quickbeam said:

I was sure the couple was going to be Miguel’s parents. Faked out. 
 

I am not a weeper but the pigs.....Gaah, cry city. 

Yes, I thought For Sure, that the couple at the beginning were Miguel's parents, I thought the man looked like Miguel(the glasses & hair, I think)

[Eureka]

4 minutes ago, Quickbeam said:

I was sure the couple was going to be Miguel’s parents. Faked out. 

We thought the same thing. I liked how it ended with them telling us who he was, bc I would have gone to look up if he was real if they hadn’t.

[ams1001]

7 minutes ago, Quickbeam said:

I was sure the couple was going to be Miguel’s parents. Faked out. 

I considered that, but he would have been born in the '40s, right? (I remember we figured out that Jack was born in '44 (which I further remember because that's the year my mom was born).) Their clothes seemed more 60s or 70s.

[Eureka]

3 minutes ago, Spencer Hastings said:

I really thought birth mom was going to change her mind about letting Kate and Toby adopt her baby. 

Yup, us too.

[CleoCaesar]

Did we really need a reenactment of the meeting and marriage of the couple involved in creating FaceTime? It reminded me of padding college papers with tangents to get to the minimum page count.

Randall is the best person Kevin knows, really? Well, it wouldn't be a real episode without someone fawning over Randall.

 

[ams1001]

11 minutes ago, Spencer Hastings said:

I really thought birth mom was going to change her mind about letting Kate and Toby adopt her baby. 

That's where my "uh-oh" in my first comment comes in.

Though assuming the law hasn't changed, I believe she would have 72 hours in PA to change her mind. (My old boss adopted; the baby was born in PA and their first birth mom changed her mind before the window was up. Their second match worked out.) Don't know if CA is different.

[nilyank]

This was a lovely episode.

New Big Three. 

Cute baby actors.

Pearsons.

Kevin and Randall finallly on their way to making up.

Everyone was happy.

Nobody died. 

And a real life couple which includes a man that worked on something that allows us to communicate with those with love most during this difficult year.

Honestly, with the Covid 19 limitations, this episode was able to have the entire family be connected for the new births of the new babies. In normal year, the whole Pearson family would have been stuck in the waiting room like it did when Jack was born so this made in unique for the new kiddies.

[Jeddah]

Randall is the best person Kevin knows? I think that line ruined the episode for me.

[PRgal]

6 minutes ago, ams1001 said:

I considered that, but he would have been born in the '40s, right? (I remember we figured out that Jack was born in '44 (which I further remember because that's the year my mom was born).) Their clothes seemed more 60s or 70s.

That, and I’m pretty sure Miguel said his family was from Puerto Rico, not Argentina and India. 

[mtlchick]

2 minutes ago, CleoCaesar said:

Did we really need a reenactment of the meeting and marriage of the couple involved in creating FaceTime? It reminded me of padding college papers with tangents to get to the minimum page count.

Did we?  No.  But this is a show that has banked scenes with Milo and Mandy with the younger versions of the Big 3 to use in the future and have this show mapped out to their end which is supposed to be next season.  Then COVID throws a major wrench in those plans and you need to pivot.  It's easy to guess that people on this show know people that have either gone through COVID or pregnancy (and probably that Mandy will experience soon enough) or almost anything in the hospital. 

 

I had surgery last May near the height of the first wave and no family or family could visit me and it was DEPRESSING.  Thank God I had my iPhone and iPad to communicate with everyone so I wasn't "alone." 

[ams1001]

11 minutes ago, bettername2come said:

Kate's got the cutest little 3-month-old. 

lol...I noticed we hardly saw the twins' faces. I guess they figured there's no amount of suspension of disbelief that will make the audience buy old-enough-to-be-infant-actors as six-week-early twins. (Were they even real babies?)

[KaveDweller]

4 minutes ago, ams1001 said:

I considered that, but he would have been born in the '40s, right? (I remember we figured out that Jack was born in '44 (which I further remember because that's the year my mom was born).) Their clothes seemed more 60s or 70s.

Wasn't there a caption at the beginning saying it was 1960-something. That was how I knew it wasn't Miguel's parents, but I thought it was odd, since we never get year captions on this show. It was a little weird, but the guy who made video chat possible deserves some recognition, so good for the show on that.

Kate and Toby's daughter is insanely adorable. Way too big to be a newborn, but crazy, crazy cute. Very glad they didn't go the typical, birth mother changes her mind route.

I think tonight is the first time I have cried while watching this show. I am blaming cabin fever from the pandemic though.....everything has been making me cry lately.

[pennben]

Fans of Grey’s Anatomy could have told Toby to give that spot up pronto—-don’t want to mess with that guy at a hospital!!😀

[mtlchick]

Just now, ams1001 said:

I guess they figured there's no amount of suspension of disbelief that will make the audience buy old-enough-to-be-infant-actors as six-week-early twins. (Were they even real babies?)

Pretty sure they were dolls due to COVID regulations.  There was one shot of Kevin holding the baby in a way that it seemed he was BENDING him.

[ams1001]

2 minutes ago, KaveDweller said:

Wasn't there a caption at the beginning saying it was 1960-something. That was how I knew it wasn't Miguel's parents, but I thought it was odd, since we never get year captions on this show. It was a little weird, but the guy who made video chat possible deserves some recognition, so good for the show on that.

Was there? I didn't see it.

[bybrandy]

I wanted to be mad at Nasir and Esther but given how we are all keeping in touch with each other these days it felt wildly appropriate.   

I knew we'd see NIcky again but I was surprised to see him this episode.  That was nice.   

Knew the middle name would be Rose but was surprised at how foggy it got when Rose face timed with her husband off the vent.   
 

[gonzosgirrl]

I was all ready to be pissed at the intro of yet another thread of strangers, but damn if that wasn't an awesome, unexpected surprise. How much we owe the Nasir Ahmeds of the world. 

Lovely episode, though I could live without the sanctimonious Randall deigning to forgive Kevin. They have a long way to go to redeem him for me.

[Bulldog]

Count me among those faked out that the couple was Miguel's parents.  The wife even called their son "Mike" near the end.  (Maybe their son's real name was Mike.  Did in say in the end scroll?)

Loved Beth telling Randall to tell Madison an interesting story and not something about him running for city council. 

Admittedly, its been years since our kids were born, but would they really have women in labor masked up while giving birth?  

Rose might be pissed that her husband gave away one of her favorite pigs when she's released from the hospital.

6 minutes ago, pennben said:

Fans of Grey’s Anatomy could have told Toby to give that spot up pronto—-don’t want to mess with that guy at a hospital!!😀

My thoughts exactly. 

[nilyank]

4 minutes ago, ams1001 said:

Was there? I didn't see it.

1960 something New Mexico

[DoubleUTeeEff]

Kate and Toby actually got a babysitter during a pandemic in order for Toby to sit in a parking lot. That's...extra. And during the episode where we got a lesson about video over the internet and how we don't have to physically be somewhere to be there. Which I liked, aside from my Toby snark.

Too obvious that the baby's middle name would be Rose. However, I did enjoy that Kevin and Madison named one of the twins after Nicky. Well, mostly Nic Cage but Nicky too.

I'm not sure why everyone has to go immediately to rude first and then explain themselves instead of just politely asking for something up front. I'm talking to you Dude in the parking lot. Nice of him to give Toby a pig though.

I'm glad Randall and Kevin are finally really talking. Randall didn't seem to be tripping over himself in order to apologize to Kevin though maybe I missed it.

When Kevin told Madison that she and the twins were all he needed, I couldn't help thinking, I'm pretty sure you need to eat too. Of course, he can probably get acting jobs in LA.

Do women actually have to give birth with masks on? Interesting how freaked out about needles people can get. Madison is about to push two babies out of her body and she's freaked out over a needle! I'd want that needle stuck in me as fast as possible if I was about to feel that pain. I know needles are a thing for a lot of people though.

Surprising lack of drama with Kate which was nice. I'm glad she just let the birth mother have her moment.

Jack annoyed me this episode. I'm not sure what that character brings to the show any more and now we're going to have to watch his slide into alcoholism which looks fun.

[bybrandy]

3 minutes ago, gonzosgirrl said:

Lovely episode, though I could live without the sanctimonious Randall deigning to forgive Kevin. They have a long way to go to redeem him for me.

I'm wont to hate Randall most days but this didn't read sanctimonious today.  This just read family pulling together for the big things.  I suspect that they are on the road to recovery but they aren't all there yet this just isn't the day for it.

Edited February 17, 2021 by bybrandy

[phalange]

Aww, Haley, Nicholas, and Francis, the new Big Three. That’s sweet of Kevin to honor Nicky and I’m glad Rose lived. Also caught how Toby’s list of middle names included Fogelman as a nod to Dan Fogelman. 

Beth telling Randall not to bore Madison with his city council story had me rolling. All of them singing MmmBop to distract Madison from the epidural was hilarious. 

I was wondering where they were going with the couple at the beginning but it makes sense now. I liked their story being included considering how instrumental things like FaceTime and Zoom have been in keeping people connected during the pandemic.

[ams1001]

2 minutes ago, Bulldog said:

Count me among those faked out that the couple was Miguel's parents.  The wife even called their son "Mike" near the end.  (Maybe their son's real name was Mike.  Did in say in the end scroll?)

I don't think so, but he does have a son name Michael (he's a lawyer).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nasir_Ahmed_(engineer)#Background

[Bulldog]

I did like that Randall's story about Kevin began with him coming home wasted and Madison acknowledged that she was having two babies with an alcoholic.  I thought it was a very realistic touch.  With the previews of the next episode appearing to focus on Jack's drinking around the time they brought their babies home, I wonder if Kevin's drinking will be revisited again.  

[stefinny]

Quote

8 minutes ago, DoubleUTeeEff said:

Do women actually have to give birth with masks on?

 

My neighbor is pregnant and due in April, and yes, they ask that the women labor and give birth with masks on if possible, or wear a mask in labor for as long as possible.  This is in New York State - I don't know how other states compare, but I would not be surprised if California had similar guidelines.  I would tell them to kick rocks, as there is no way I would labor for very long wearing a mask.

[txhorns79]

21 minutes ago, BuckeyeLou said:

Yes, I thought For Sure, that the couple at the beginning were Miguel's parents, I thought the man looked like Miguel(the glasses & hair, I think)

I initially thought that as well, but then I realized their kid was too young to be Miguel.  I'm not sure what to think of it.  It's nice that they gave the guy recognition, even if it felt very random, and for some reason I thought videotelephony had been a work in progress long before this particular guy came along.

I'm also a little confused on the timeline.  Why are Rebecca and Miguel still isolated at the cabin?  Even in Covid-times, the isolation seems extreme.    

[ams1001]

22 minutes ago, pennben said:

Fans of Grey’s Anatomy could have told Toby to give that spot up pronto—-don’t want to mess with that guy at a hospital!!😀

I watch Grey's but I can't place the guy. And IMDB's cast list for the episode doesn't list him. (But it does list Rose, who was in it for all of 3 seconds, and several characters who were not even in the episode...)

[Jax7917]

Anyone else surprised the show allowed Madison to name one of her kids after HER family ? Thought for sure both kids , first and middle names would be Pearson related . 
 

I loved the twist with Nasir and Esther . The show gets eye rollingly annoying at times , but they do have some brilliant writers . A show like this must be so hard to keep up with with its past , present , future , so many different characters etc . But for the most part , they really do a great job with keeping up with it all and blending the past and present really well . 

[txhorns79]

2 minutes ago, ams1001 said:

I watch Grey's but I can't place the guy.

Many seasons ago, he conducted a cast purge at Seattle Grace as part of sweeps. 

[gonzosgirrl]

37 minutes ago, bybrandy said:

I'm wont to hate Randall most days but this didn't read sanctimonious today.  This just read family pulling together for the big things.  I suspect that they are on the road to recovery but they aren't all there yet this just isn't the day for it.

He was good with Madison, but as soon as Kevin started apologizing, Randall did what he does. No return apology (we both said stuff is not an apology), no reciprocity of Kevin's OTT praise. And the promised conversation for a later date was clearly to be about how wronged Randall was growing up. 

21 minutes ago, ams1001 said:

I watch Grey's but I can't place the guy. And IMDB's cast list for the episode doesn't list him. (But it does list Rose, who was in it for all of 3 seconds, and several characters who were not even in the episode...)

Spoiler

Pretty sure he's the guy who shot up the hospital for failing to save his wife. Killed two of the newbie docs, shot Derek, etc.

 

Edited February 17, 2021 by gonzosgirrl

[ams1001]

6 minutes ago, txhorns79 said:

Many seasons ago, he conducted a cast purge at Seattle Grace as part of sweeps. 

Ah, gotcha. Thanks.

2 minutes ago, gonzosgirrl said:

 

  Hide contents

Pretty sure he's the guy who shot up the hospital for failing to save hus wife. Killed two of the newbie docs, shot Derek, etc.

 

Yes.

[KaveDweller]

11 minutes ago, txhorns79 said:

I'm also a little confused on the timeline.  Why are Rebecca and Miguel still isolated at the cabin?  Even in Covid-times, the isolation seems extreme.    

I guess they don't want to fly during Covid and don't want to drive cross country, because they'd have to stop at hotels? But considering all her kids came to see her on their birthday, they could have taken her home with them. Didn't Kate and Kevin get a motor home or something for that trip?

[Blakeston]

So after Kevin gave a very genuine, self-effacing apology, the best Randall can do is to basically say, "Mistakes were made on both sides?"

Even though the writers are clearly in love with Randall, I could swear they're trying to make the audience dislike him.

[nixgirl28]

Jack was irritating. Let your wife complain a little, she's a fulltime mom, taking care of the kids (and him) is what her life revolves around. He should've let her blow off some steam and be excited about having alone time with him. She'd have been done in 5 minutes and onto their weekend. And if I kept all my kids' pictures and art, I'd be surrounded in paper and glitter, it's ok to let some of it go, especially if its waterlogged. 

[zoey1996]

37 minutes ago, DoubleUTeeEff said:

 Interesting how freaked out about needles people can get. Madison is about to push two babies out of her body and she's freaked out over a needle! I'd want that needle stuck in me as fast as possible if I was about to feel that pain. I know needles are a thing for a lot of people though.

My then husband was in the delivery room when our daughter was born (1971), and I still remember him saying that he was glad I didn’t see the needle. It was long and scary!

Like some I was a little annoyed at the introduction of yet another unknown couple at the beginning, even though I thought we would eventually get an explanation, but at the end I was in tears of gratitude for this man and all the others that made video calls real!

[ProudMary]

33 minutes ago, ams1001 said:

I watch Grey's but I can't place the guy. And IMDB's cast list for the episode doesn't list him. (But it does list Rose, who was in it for all of 3 seconds, and several characters who were not even in the episode...)

The actor is Michael O'Neill, who I immediately recognized as Secret Service Agent Ron Butterfield from The West Wing. His name is in the episode's full cast list on IMDb, but without a character name. I don't think he and Toby ever exchanged names in the episode.

I had to take a phone call during the episode. Can someone tell me what the birth mother said to her newborn after she asked Kate to leave the room? Was there a tense conversation between birth mother and Kate afterward? Also, I missed the introduction of Kate's baby's name. From reading other posts above, i see that it's Haley but how did they work it into the dialog? Did Toby already know the name Kate had chosen? I was certain that Toby would choose Rose for her middle name. 

[Cara]

3 minutes ago, ProudMary said:

The actor is Michael O'Neill, who I immediately recognized as Secret Service Agent Ron Butterfield from The West Wing. His name is in the episode's full cast list on IMDb, but without a character name. I don't think he and Toby ever exchanged names in the episode.

I had to take a phone call during the episode. Can someone tell me what the birth mother said to her newborn after she asked Kate to leave the room? Was there a tense conversation between birth mother and Kate afterward? Also, I missed the introduction of Kate's baby's name. From reading other posts above, i see that it's Haley but how did they work it into the dialog? Did Toby already know the name Kate had chosen? I was certain that Toby would choose Rose for her middle name. 

There was no discussion between Kate and the birth mother. They just showed Kate waiting in another room and then a nurse brought her the baby,

[Quickbeam]

I’m a nurse and needle phobia is super real. I’ve had patients die rather than subject themselves to any intravenous therapy. My boss won’t get the vaccine for Covid because it’s a needle.

I love how Beth is a humanizing and grounding influence for Randall. He’d be even more insufferable without her. 

[Bulldog]

1 hour ago, DoubleUTeeEff said:

I'm glad Randall and Kevin are finally really talking. Randall didn't seem to be tripping over himself in order to apologize to Kevin though maybe I missed it.

This.

33 minutes ago, Blakeston said:

So after Kevin gave a very genuine, self-effacing apology, the best Randall can do is to basically say, "Mistakes were made on both sides?"

And this. 

7 minutes ago, Quickbeam said:

I love how Beth is a humanizing and grounding influence for Randall. He’d be even more insufferable without her. 

Perish the thought!

 

Was I the only one expecting Kevin to announce that they had named his son Nicholas Randall Pearson?