S06.E17: The Train

[LexieLily]

2 minutes ago, Toonces464 said:

Same. Way too much time spent on that mystery family and I'm still not sure why or how it tied in with Jack, other than their accident happened the same day he died. Way too short on Miguel, and not even a mention of Kyle? Not at all what I was expecting, and quite a disappointment that it wasn't even close.

Once it became clear Malik was the baby daddy and not Marcus, Marcus and Family should have gone away. And once we learned that Marcus and Family were in the hospital the same night Jack died, I thought it was going to be a "doctor is called away on Marcus' case and doesn't have time for Jack to check him out" scenario. I was confused what was the point when that turned out not to be the case. 

[Dminches]

Swing and a miss.  Rebecca deserved better than to share an episode with an unknown family with a silly tie to the Pearsons.

 

[StaceyNotStacie]

I’m disappointed that we didn’t get Kyle. When the doctor mentioned her losing a child, I thought for sure that we were getting a Kyle appearance. Maybe we’ll get some sort of continuation next week considering that she literally saw Jack in the final scene. 
 

The other family seemed so unnecessary in regards to time constraints for a 1 hour episode. It felt like a back door pilot for a new family for their life after the accident. 
 

The episode felt rushed with so much to show in just one hour, and all of the commercials didn’t help. They really needed another 30-60 minutes for this episode. 

Edited May 18, 2022 by StaceyNotStacie

[BuckeyeLou]

9 minutes ago, SunnyBeBe said:

I’m too confused to comment.  I’ll have to watch it again.  

The little boy in the back seat with his soccer ball, was injured in the car accident(the same night the Pearsons' house burned down), the little boy was saved at the hospital the same night Jack died(they had the same doctor).  The little boy(Marcus, I think?) grew up with a limp & became a doctor whose cancer experiment did not work, but at the end we find out he got an award for 'curing" Alzheimers.

[CSunshine76]

I hated that William was the train conductor. Why not Jack? And on the other hand, why not Miguel? Was she married to Miguel as long, if not longer than, Jack? But she’s in bed with Jack when she crosses over?

There was absolutely no need to introduce a new family; it added nothing to the story.

I cried, but I think more because of personal circumstances, I sat with my Grandmother the entire month of December and was alone with her when she passed on Christmas Eve.  So death is hard for me in any setting right now.  I feel like they missed the mark…Kate is in London with her curriculum…um, okay show. 

 

[cardigirl]

I thought the episode was pretty clear. Like everyone else, I thought the researcher was the father of Deja's baby until Malik showed up in the end, and I'm not mad about it. But at no time was I confused about the family in the car accident, or who all those people were. 

I loved the idea of Rebecca revisiting her life by going through all the cars in the train with William. I have to admit, this episode made me cry. I think the writers did a pretty good job of showing life is a circle.

And the seasons, they go round and round
And the painted ponies go up and down
We're captive on the carousel of time
We can't return, we can only look
Behind, from where we came
And go round and round and round, in the circle game

Loved that Kevin's painting was there too. That episode from the first season is one of my favorites. 

I'm off to have a good cry!

Edited May 18, 2022 by cardigirl

[CdrJanny]

44 minutes ago, chitowngirl said:

Wasn’t the rest of the family in the waiting room? The child that’s the soccer player who wasn’t wearing a seat belt was the one injured. And who is, I presume, the lab guy who was limping, since the doctors were talking about the child’s damaged leg. Who will, of course, be Deja’s guy.

Sadly, that turned out not to be the case.  😪

[BoogieBurns]

Beth's goodbye to Rebecca, as 2022 Beth and then 2000 Beth both made me so happy and so sad. I ugly cried HARD. When she said "I've got it from here" (paraphrased) regarding taking care of Randall. I just couldn't hold it together. I had to pause to cry. 

Dulé Hill is always welcome on my screen. I thought they'd tie to Edie somehow. But hated the fakeout with "who was Deja with?" 

All the normal stuff made me cry too, seeing William, Dr K, having the 3 versions of the Pearson kids on the train. Kate being late made me cry. The 4 square made me cry. Look, I'm a Pisces.

I always wondered how they'd handle Miguel and Jack both waiting for her in the "afterlife" or train. I think it was a tad lopsided, but made sense to me.

[Quickbeam]

I am completely embarrassed to say this but I was getting Malik and Marcus jumbled up as in who is Deja’s baby daddy. Just throwing that out there. Also did Rebecca pass the dead triplet on the train. I was misting up. 

[KaveDweller]

4 minutes ago, LexieLily said:

And once we learned that Marcus and Family were in the hospital the same night Jack died, I thought it was going to be a "doctor is called away on Marcus' case and doesn't have time for Jack to check him out" scenario. I was confused what was the point when that turned out not to be the case. 

But wasn't that exactly what happened? The doctor said he left Jack because he seemed okay and there was a kid who was coding. While he was saving the kid Jack died. Then the kid went on to live and help with Alzhiemers research in the future.

I think the point was also supposed to be showing that Jack had an impact on other people. He made the one offhand comment about lemons to that guy, and it became their family motto and maybe motivated the kid to keep working.

[gibasi]

Yes, it was sad but for some reason I just didn’t connect with this episode.  Not a single tear shed. A

Edited May 18, 2022 by gibasi
Too personal

[GeorgiaRai]

FYI, I’m  sure she said it but we were out of earshot:  “Yes, Toby. I absolutely like you better than Phillip.”  

[tennisgurl]

I’m so glad we got to see William as Rebecca’s guide and we got to finally see Dr. Katowski again, I started tearing up the second we saw William and it just kept going from there. They probably spent too much time on the fake out with the kid who was in the accident, but I can appreciate how the stories fit together. So much of this show has been about the connections between seemingly disparate people and how much we are all connected, so Jack paying forward the lemon speech he got, from a father who dealt with horrible hardship to him when he was at a low point, makes complete sense thematically. Right before he died he passed this last bit of good into the universe, and that good came around and did even more good later on, it’s cheesy in a very TIU way, but it feels like we’ve come full circle. Besides, is anyone really surprised that the secret to curing Alzheimer’s was a Pearson speech?  

Edited May 18, 2022 by tennisgurl

[chitowngirl]

Did we only get one version of Kate on the train, small Kate? No teenage Kate?

[Notabug]

Just now, GeorgiaRai said:

FYI, I’m  sure she said it but we were out of earshot:  “Yes, Toby. I absolutely like you better than Phillip.”  

I'm sure she felt that it goes without saying.

I think we didn't see Kyle because it would've been awkward to stage.  He died while still in the womb, there would've had to have been a lot of exposition as to why Rebecca was now seeing him as a live child on the train and that she would recognize him and vice versa.

[BoogieBurns]

6 minutes ago, Quickbeam said:

I am completely embarrassed to say this but I was getting Malik and Marcus jumbled up as in who is Deja’s baby daddy.

We all did, it was intentional

[debraran]

Just now, Notabug said:

I'm sure she felt that it goes without saying.

I think we didn't see Kyle because it would've been awkward to stage.  He died while still in the womb, there would've had to have been a lot of exposition as to why Rebecca was now seeing him as a live child on the train and that she would recognize him and vice versa.

He was delivered full term but some  recognition. 
And Jack in bed? Idk. Corny and Miguel was given a crappy goodbye. She adored him 

[Evie]

I liked it. I could have done without William as the conductor though. You know how some people feel about St. Jack? That's me with William. 

I liked the train idea though and the "Hey" with Jack at the end. It would have been nice if the final door opened to Jack holding baby Kyle.

I was okay with what Miguel got since the Miguel episode was lovely and the series began with Jack/Rebecca. 

[Crs97]

If the last scene had been Rebecca’s face reacting to a “Hi, mom,” after the big three had said goodbye, then I would have lost it.  Instead I rolled my eyes at that big bed in that tiny caboose.  

[BoogieBurns]

Just now, Evie said:

You know how some people feel about St. Jack? That's me with William. 

You think William is also a saint? Wonderful, me too!

[nilyank]

4 minutes ago, Katie111 said:

Besides maybe the ridiculous notion that Kate now has an “international curriculum”.  

I really think the show is trolling us. Last week, we were told than within the time before Jack was born and by the time Miguel has died,  Kate went back to college to earn her bachelor's and went on to get her masters in education while working full-time, raising two small children (one who is special needs), when the first couple of those years she was working as a part-time classroom aide. With only a handful of years as a certfied teacher,  she gets invited to develop the arts curriculum for one of the largest states in California. 

But was that enough for these writers? 

No because apparently, it is so successful that within a year or 2 after bringing to California, she is sharing it internationally. At least in London.

They need to learn math. Kate and Tobey seperate/divorce after the new Big 3 turned 6. Kate and Philip marry withi a year or two after that. Miguel dies and Kevin moves back to stay with Rebecca. Looking at the new Big 3, they are no more than 12. So 2 years from California to London.

It was easier to believe that dead-man walking Jack shares with Dule Hill's character the lemon motto from Dr K and somehow this will the family motto for the almost dying boy turned doctor/researcher to be inspired and continue until he finds a cure for Alzheimer so he can save all the Rebecca's in the world. Maybe his was the clinical trial that Rebecca would have joined if not for Covid.

 

[buckboard]

36 minutes ago, A.Ham said:

I have only watched a few minutes so far, but Randall questioning the fact that people are able to smile and joke and eat is soooo Randall. What does he want them to do, sit Shiva? A PIA through the end.

 

When we were sitting shiva for my dad, during a slow time when we weren't expecting anyone, we played Trivial Pursuit, which my dad loved to play.  We were laughing and telling stories when the doorbell rang and who was at the door but his very Orthodox aunt in her 90s.  We scrambled to get the game into another room.  Glad it wasn't Randall at the door.

Edited May 18, 2022 by buckboard

[Blondnotstupid]

I re-watched the presentation to Dr. Marcus.  The speaker said he was getting an award for his "drugs targeting Alzheimer's".  Not that he cured it.  I thought that the drugs Dr. Marcus developed were the ones that enabled Rebecca to live so long with Alzheimer's.  To me, that made sense as a tie-in for the otherwise random family featured in this episode.  

[Notabug]

6 minutes ago, buckboard said:

When we were sitting shiva for my dad, during a slow time when were weren't expecting anyone, we played Trivial Pursuit, which my dad loved to play.  We were laughing and telling stories  when the doorbell rang and who was at the door but his very Orthodox aunt in her 90s.  We scrambled to get the game into another room.  Glad it wasn't Randall at the door.

I am not Jewish, but have attended a few shivas and, especially in the case of the death of an elderly person who had lead a full life; there was always plenty of laughter and telling stories, looking at photos and generally celebrating a good life.  Not to mention the enormous amounts of delicious food.  I don't know what Randall expected, but there was no reason they couldn't be grateful for the long life their mother had and the many blessings she brought into their lives; especially when she was dying after a long battle with a horrifying illness.. Rebecca told them she wanted them to go out and live their best lives, even as hers ended; she wouldn't have wanted a sobfest.

Edited May 18, 2022 by Notabug

[DanaK]

I wish we were alerted that the episode would go over by 2-3 minutes. Good thing I recorded the following show

[Madding crowd]

It was sad and like everyone I thought Marcus was with Deja until the end. I did like seeing Ken Olin as the guy giving Marcus his award. I guessed pretty quickly he would cure Alzheimer’s. Liked William as Rebecca’s guide but wanted her to spend more time with Miguel. I was hoping for something about Kyle but maybe they thought it would be confusing and too sad. Finally stopped crying. 

[Eliot]

1 hour ago, cardigirl said:

I thought the episode was pretty clear. Like everyone else, I thought the researcher was the father of Deja's baby until Malik showed up in the end, and I'm not mad about it. But at no time was I confused about the family in the car accident, or who all those people were. 

Same. I didn’t find it confusing at all. And I didn't find the introduction of the other family confusing or annoying. It was very much in keeping with the show to explore random life-changing connections, and I like that they didn't go the predictable route of having Marcus be Deja's boyfriend.

58 minutes ago, KaveDweller said:

But wasn't that exactly what happened? The doctor said he left Jack because he seemed okay and there was a kid who was coding. While he was saving the kid Jack died. Then the kid went on to live and help with Alzhiemers research in the future.

Yep, that was it. They threw in a little irony with the Alzheimer’s research, which was…clever, I guess.

47 minutes ago, Evie said:

I liked it. I could have done without William as the conductor though. You know how some people feel about St. Jack? That's me with William. 

I was never really a William fan either. I thought the show worked too hard to make him “magical.”

Quote

I thought that the drugs Dr. Marcus developed were the ones that enabled Rebecca to live so long with Alzheimer's.  To me, that made sense as a tie-in for the otherwise random family featured in this episode.  

Maybe the drugs he developed enabled Rebecca to live so long with Alzheimer’s while somehow miraculously skipping the really awful, scary, angry symptoms that happen to people in the real world. [/snark]

ETA: I thought I'd be sadder watching this, given that my sisters and I went through this exact experience with my dad last year. Maybe it's just that last week's portrayal of her illness was so sanitized I was still too annoyed to be sad.

Edited May 18, 2022 by Eliot

[nilyank]

18 minutes ago, tennisgurl said:

Besides, is anyone really surprised that the secret to curing Alzheimer’s was a Pearson speech?  

The lemon speech is all Dr K, so I would be happy to give all the credit to him.

[BuckeyeLou]

1 minute ago, Madding crowd said:

It was sad and like everyone I thought Marcus was with Deja until the end. I did like seeing Ken Olin as the guy giving Marcus his award. I guessed pretty quickly he would cure Alzheimer’s. Liked William as Rebecca’s guide but wanted her to spend more time with Miguel. I was hoping for something about Kyle but maybe they thought it would be confusing and too sad. Finally stopped crying. 

I did not realize that was Ken Olin, I will have to re=watch...

[Kip Hackman]

19 minutes ago, BoogieBurns said:

Beth's goodbye to Rebecca, as 2022 Beth and then 2000 Beth both made me so happy and so sad. I ugly cried HARD. When she said "I've got it from here" (paraphrased) regarding taking care of Randall. I just couldn't hold it together. I had to pause to cry. 

That got me, too. And I thought, "Damn, if I couldn't get through Beth's goodbye, how am I going to make it through the rest?"

But that turned out to be the only scene I got misty over. Weird.

[SunnyBeBe]

The series Goliath ended with a similar train theme…..guy was dying….at the station, got on the train, saw his dead dad, but his dad told him to get off and he survived.  

[KaveDweller]

8 minutes ago, nilyank said:

No because apparently, it is so successful that within a year or 2 after bringing to California, she is sharing it internationally. At least in London.

I defended Kate's career stuff last week, but this line didn't even make sense. That's not how education works. And London? Wouldn't it make more sense to have her be working with schools in third world countries or something? The UK has their own curriculum and education system in place and would not be looking to us to help change that.

 

[Gemma Violet]

15 minutes ago, DanaK said:

I wish we were alerted that the episode would go over by 2-3 minutes. Good thing I recorded the following show

Damn, I was watching my recording and it cut off for me right when Rebecca was about to go into the caboose and she kisses William.  I see upthread Jack was in the caboose.  Could someone tell me what happened when she goes in?

eta:  I just saw a tiny snippet of it on the This Is Us facebook.

Edited May 18, 2022 by Gemma Violet

[30 Helens]

Of course Rebecca’s final stop was with Jack. Because as the show has constantly reminded us, theirs was the love story for the ages. Even though what she had with Miguel was deeper, more grounded, and more profound. (IMO)

Poor Miguel. Always gets the short end of the stick, even in (someone else’s) death.

I get the point of the Marcus story, but I also don’t get the point of the Marcus story. We’re one episode from the end, and we’re jumping timelines for yet another family? Knock it off, Show, we don’t need your tricks anymore. 

I spent far too much time trying to figure out how much time had passed. Deja looked about 10 years older, Kevin’s kids about 13, and Randall about 30 years.  Too much dissonance in the makeup trailer.

Edited May 18, 2022 by 30 Helens

[Turkeypotpie]

I thought for sure someone here would’ve already said this, but maybe I’m just really weird. When Rebecca first entered the bar car and the doc offered her a drink, I got strong “The Shining” vibes. I’m sure creepy was not the intended vibe but I was definitely thrown for a second!

[Blakeston]

So Marcus is smart enough to develop an Alzheimer's treatment, but the expression "when life gives you lemons, make lemonade" is too hard for him to understand without someone explaining it to him.

[ItCouldBeWorse]

x

Edited May 18, 2022 by ItCouldBeWorse

[Crs97]

6 minutes ago, Gemma Violet said:

Could someone tell me what happened when she goes in?

Someone can correct me on details since I am going just from memory, but she first sees young Kate sitting by the bed with a jar of ladybugs.  They smile at each other.  When she goes in after William’s speech about endings and beginnings, she is by herself.  She sits on the bed.  In real time the three say they love her and Randall says to say hey for them.  She squeezes his hand, then we are back to the train.  She lies down and turns to see Jack lying beside her.  She says hey and he responds hey with a smile.

[LexieLily]

18 minutes ago, KaveDweller said:

I defended Kate's career stuff last week, but this line didn't even make sense. That's not how education works. And London? Wouldn't it make more sense to have her be working with schools in third world countries or something? The UK has their own curriculum and education system in place and would not be looking to us to help change that.

Isn't Phillip from London? Wouldn't it have been so much simpler to say that Kate, Phillip and the kids were there to visit the Mean Jerk in-laws and Phillip/the kids caught an earlier flight or came home a day earlier or something?

[Gemma Violet]

7 minutes ago, Crs97 said:

Someone can correct me on details since I am going just from memory, but she first sees young Kate sitting by the bed with a jar of ladybugs.  They smile at each other.  When she goes in after William’s speech about endings and beginnings, she is by herself.  She sits on the bed.  In real time the three say they love her and Randall says to say hey for them.  She squeezes his hand, then we are back to the train.  She lies down and turns to see Jack lying beside her.  She says hey and he responds hey with a smile.

Thanks!

[txhorns79]

Credit where it is due: Beth's goodbye to Rebecca was lovely and moving.  She remains the best.

And I guess future Malik goes through some kind of second puberty?

And why would Elijah be included at Rebecca's night of goodbyes?  I'm not sure we ever even saw them speak to one another.

[Lovecat]

51 minutes ago, Notabug said:

I think we didn't see Kyle because it would've been awkward to stage.  He died while still in the womb, there would've had to have been a lot of exposition as to why Rebecca was now seeing him as a live child on the train and that she would recognize him and vice versa.

 

44 minutes ago, Evie said:

 It would have been nice if the final door opened to Jack holding baby Kyle.

That’s what I thought was going to happen.  I actually didn’t realize little Kate was little Kate, and thought they for some reason were showing Kyle as a child. Derp.

35 minutes ago, DanaK said:

I wish we were alerted that the episode would go over by 2-3 minutes. Good thing I recorded the following show

SAME…and I just now remembered that I did indeed record New Amsterdam!

23 minutes ago, Gemma Violet said:

Damn, I was watching my recording and it cut off for me right when Rebecca was about to go into the caboose and she kisses William.  I see upthread Jack was in the caboose.  Could someone tell me what happened when she goes in?

eta:  I just saw a tiny snippet of it on the This Is Us facebook.

 

12 minutes ago, Crs97 said:

Someone can correct me on details since I am going just from memory, but she first sees young Kate sitting by the bed with a jar of ladybugs.  They smile at each other.  When she goes in after William’s speech about endings and beginnings, she is by herself.  She sits on the bed.  In real time the three say they love her and Randall says to say hey for them.  She squeezes his hand, then we are back to the train.  She lies down and turns to see Jack lying beside her.  She says hey and he responds hey with a smile.

Thank you!!

Anyone else notice that Dr. K was polishing a glass behind the bar with a Terrible Towel, and that Jack’s coffee mugs (World’s Best Dad, with his picture on it, as well as one from Lundy, the company where he worked) were on display on shelves behind the bar?  Makes me wonder what other Easter eggs I missed…good thing I didn’t delete the episode!

[30 Helens]

7 minutes ago, LexieLily said:

Isn't Phillip from London? Wouldn't it have been so much simpler to say that Kate, Phillip and the kids were there to visit the Mean Jerk in-laws and Phillip/the kids caught an earlier flight or came home a day earlier or something?

But then we wouldn’t have been treated to our final image of Kate Savant, musical education genius extraordinaire, saving the world one disabled child at a time.

And yes, of course your reason would have been simpler (and more logical). But you know what show you’re watching, right? 😉

[tennisgurl]

The big shock for me wasn’t the identity of the mystery family, it was that Annie was the only one of Randall’s daughters who got a moment with Rebecca. Go figure, the only member of the Pearson clan that remembers her is the one with severe dementia. Not so surprising? Both that Deja ended up with Malik, Pearsons really are quick to imprint on a life partner, and that Malik still hasn’t figured out how condoms work. 

[UGAmp]

1 hour ago, CSunshine76 said:

I hated that William was the train conductor. Why not Jack? And on the other hand, why not Miguel? Was she married to Miguel as long, if not longer than, Jack? But she’s in bed with Jack when she crosses over?

There was absolutely no need to introduce a new family; it added nothing to the story.

I cried, but I think more because of personal circumstances, I sat with my Grandmother the entire month of December and was alone with her when she passed on Christmas Eve.  So death is hard for me in any setting right now.  I feel like they missed the mark…Kate is in London with her curriculum…um, okay show. 

 

I loved William as a character but I too think Miguel should have been the one escorting her. Especially since he passed before her. He was with her for years. And he can still hand her off to her first true love. 

I didn’t love the train. I think for her to end up in the caboose with a huge bed by herself was weird. Even if Jack did show up at the end. But I loved seeing all of the past characters and just wish the setting had been different. Like her moving through all of the houses she’s lived in or something. 

Mandy Moore has really knocked it out of the park this season. She has been glowing in these last few episodes. I don’t know if she’ll actually get the Emmy (a lot of other actors don’t get the big win for their final season in much more critically acclaimed shows) but she should absolutely be nominated. 

I cried a lot. I’ve been pretty much running out the clock on this show since season 3. I’m glad it had one more episode that felt very season 1 to me.  

Edited May 18, 2022 by UGAmp

[Lovecat]

Sorry, double post!

Edited May 18, 2022 by Lovecat

[LexieLily]

2 minutes ago, Lovecat said:

Anyone else notice that Dr. K was polishing a glass behind the bar with a Terrible Towel, and that Jack’s coffee mugs (World’s Best Dad, with his picture on it, as well as one from Lundy, the company where he worked) were on display on shelves behind the bar?  Makes me wonder what other Easter eggs I missed…good thing I didn’t delete the episode!

I saw Jerry Maguire and Police Academy 3 VHS tapes, and the yarn ball of togetherness. Anyone else have something to add?

[Eliot]

Quote

And why would Elijah be included at Rebecca's night of goodbyes?  I'm not sure we ever even saw them speak to one another.

Elijah and Madison and the twins moved back to the area along with Kevin and Sophie, so I imagine they spent a fair amount of time at the cabin in the years since last week.

[KaveDweller]

14 minutes ago, LexieLily said:

Isn't Phillip from London? Wouldn't it have been so much simpler to say that Kate, Phillip and the kids were there to visit the Mean Jerk in-laws and Phillip/the kids caught an earlier flight or came home a day earlier or something?

Yes, but that would still have been problematic, because why wouldn't Kate drop everything and run to a plane as soon as she heard about Rebecca? I mean there was time for Toby, Phillip, and the kids to get there from LA, but Kate was only just boarding a flight? What was she doing in the 6+ hours it would have taken everyone else to get there?

I know Rebecca said not to make themselves smaller, but unless Kate was meeting with the Queen, I think she could have asked to reschedule.

They just wanted drama. Because Rebecca dying wasn't dramatic enough, I guess.

6 minutes ago, txhorns79 said:

And why would Elijah be included at Rebecca's night of goodbyes?  I'm not sure we ever even saw them speak to one another.

Madison was probably there to support her kids, and Elijah was there to be with her. That didn't seem so odd to me. It would have been weird if he'd given some long speech or she saw him in the train, but not just being there.

[LexieLily]

HEY! What happened to Uncle Nicky and why wasn't he at Rebecca's bedside like we saw in the earlier season's future-flash?

Edited May 18, 2022 by LexieLily