S01.E01: Pilot

[chocolatine]

14 minutes ago, bybrandy said:

I doubt they had no red tape to take home that baby but he was born to a crack addicted mother and the twins were six weeks premature so they didn't go home immediately.   I could see them getting emergency foster placement in the couple of weeks before those babies were cleared to go home.   

Black babies are to this day adopted less than white babies so having a placement for black crack baby would have been a big deal.  Assuming of course they were in a state that didn't block multicultural adoption which was a thing in some places at the time.

Great explanation, makes the scenario somewhat plausible. I had no idea about the bolded part (I didn't grow up in the US), that's really sad to hear. It looks like maybe the story takes place in California? Kevin's sitcom would most likely be taping in LA, in the outside scene where Kate throws her junk food into the trash and puts dog poop on it, it looks like Spanish-style homes, and if Randall was just able to drive over to bio dad's place and then take him to his house, they must all still be in the general area where they were born. California has always been a progressive state, no? I would hope that stupid rule didn't exist there.

Edited September 21, 2016 by chocolatine

[Minneapple]

I liked the twist. The rest of it...eh. Maybe I had read too many reviews that were basically all, "THIS HAS AN AWESOME TWIST!" and I was just waiting for the twist. I'll give it another couple episodes to see how it goes. 

[HighHopes]

I wasn't going to watch this show (it looked way to cheesy from the previews) but my Twitter feed seemed to like it so I decided to check it out.

I noticed during the opening shot that there was a box on the ground labeled "family photos '75-70". Also how they also panned around the room and the lack of technology-- which I just assumed meant that they were young kids without a bunch of money to afford tvs and whatnot. After the twist was revealed I went back to re-watch their scenes to see if there were any other clues, and when Mandy Moore's character comes out of the bathroom there is a seventies style vacuum cleaner behind her. 

Also yes to the lack of technology in the hospital rooms. My sister gave birth this summer and as soon as she came in she was hooked up to heart monitors and there were various machines around her. So it threw me off not to see them in those scenes. (Also the doctor saying that it was a high risk pregnancy, yet Mandy Moore wasn't on bed rest or in the hospital prior to going into labour to triplets). 

However I kinda feel like they wrote the show for the twist at the end, and I'm not sure how the show will work in future episodes? 

[scarynikki12]

Like everyone I think that Jack and Rebecca have passed. I'm guessing that will be saved for the mid-season or season finale and will turn out to be the real reason all three were ready to make these life changes that we saw. Their parents died (recently and close together I'm guessing) and their first birthday after got each thinking about what they want but don't have. Kate wants to get her life back to what she imagined including weight loss, Manny wants the career he'd imagined, and Randall wants to know where he came from on a biological level. That's a good foundation for a character focused show so we'll see. 

I do want more fun times with Randall's kids. They were a hoot. 

[WhosThatGirl]

I'm wondering if giving away the twist at the end of this episode was a bad call. According to the writers/creators, they always wanted this first episode to be the reveal, but I do wonder if they are letting the cat out of the bag too soon? I don't know, it was such a cool reveal but now I'm wondering how does the show top that? Would the reveal be better later on in the season or would it be better at the season finale? Or another season all together? I suppose the third option would be the worst option because shows can have a quick expiration date, but now..I'm kind of left wondering if it's happened too fast? 

[voiceover]

Hadn't read anything about the show; truth be told, I saw about an hour before the broadcast that Milo V was in it -- and I tuned in for that reason alone.

I'm on the side of those what appreciate that it's not a cop/zombie/reality show.  And I loved the unexpected comedy of Sterling's first scene with his birth dad.  

The cast chem works for me! so for now, I'm in.

[Lonesome Rhodes]

One thing that the show got right was the willfulness of the siblings.  They are all definitely the children of that father.

I already know I am not going to like all the flashbacks.

I pretty much hate the date dude.  He showed his true colors in that support group.  The woman's pain was his pleasure.  She was his entertainment.  Then he preys on an extremely vulnerable woman from the group and maneuvers her into sex that same day.  He's loathsome.

The soccer games?  Braiding hair in the middle of the game?  The back-to-back parenting was way too cutesy for me.  I felt almost zero actual investment by those parents (actors) in their children.   They were observers, not parents.  Blecch.

None of the big moments were earned, imo.  I was not invested in any of them.  Are we going to have massive moments every week?  I'll be stunned if the show is allowed to breath.  We already have a hint of volatility with the bio dad.

[mojoween]

I was also curious about Sterling telling some guy he just met in some neighborhood he doesn't know that he has a $140,000 car.  Like dude, you're just asking to get rolled.

Also the baby probably didn't have a name when he got dropped off at the station so they should have given him a K name too.

Edited September 21, 2016 by mojoween

[mojoween]

Randall didn't even tell his wife though so it appears he was keeping it a secret from everyone.  Randall seems to be a guy who often acts on impulse and then thinks things through later.

[skotnikov]

So why everybody calls this a "twist"? Is it because PR dept. wanted to create a hype around pretty predictable mediocre show  with two male eye candies? Everything was pretty obvious after 15 minutes already.  

Edited September 21, 2016 by skotnikov

[NUguy514]

I was in second grade when the Challenger explosion happened, and I was born in May of 1978.  Kids in my grade (and since I moved around a lot growing up, lived in three different states, and attended six different schools, I believe this is pretty typical aside from those who skip grades or are held back) were born between September 1977 and August 1978, so the math bothered me a lot there.  No way a 1980 birthday would put you in second grade in January 1986; you'd likely have been five when the tragedy happened or barely six, which is typically the age for kindergarten, unless you skipped two years.

I totally noticed the family album with "'75-'79" on it, and I thought, "...That math doesn't make any sense...UNLESS!"  I might have thought the twist was showing a bare boy ass on network TV (NYPD Blue feels like so long ago), and I felt juuuuuusssssst fine about it.

Some of the dialogue was really bad, especially the scenes with Sterling and his father ("I AM VERY RICH AND DON'T NEED YOU!" "Do you want to come in?" "YES."  And later: "I HATE YOU, COME TO MY HOUSE."  "I'm dying."  "LIVE HERE.")  Those reactions were ridiculous, try as Sterling did to make that shit work.  Manny and Dr. Best of the Best were also saddled with some words no humans would ever say and mean them seriously.

If the dialogue can improve, I might be here for a while.

[TVForever]

Okay, this is going to sound weird. I was watching this with closed-captioning, and   During the early scene with the parents at the soccer game, when the dad says, " That's my little badass", the caption read, " That's my little Bull Dyke." It was a needle-scratch moment. Wait, what? I rewound it about 4 times. Then, watching his lips, it DID look like he was saying something other than "badass". Like, maybe it was voice-dubbed. And that caption was the same each time.

If you still have this recorded, or if you can watch OnDemand, PLEASE watch this scene with your closed-captioning on and tell me I'm not crazy.

[lulee]

Just read an interview with the show's creator on EW.com. He referred to Milo and Mandy being in 1979 after the interviewer pointed out the photos 75-79. 

He also said, for whomever mentioned it above, that the Terrible Towel was vintage. 

[biakbiak]

Age smage! I wonder where they were living when The Challenger, exploded!  It seems everyone is on the west coast, my 5th grade teacher was a finalist as in he went through all the training and missed the first part of the school year and made us watch it and it happened about 7:30 in the morning west coast time, we had to come in early and had a project making a quick bread to keep us occupied  during the boring parts until the launch. I did love it that it was clearly a rehearsed monologue that actors have in their back pocket for auditions.

Edited September 21, 2016 by biakbiak

[Court]

I read zero reviews so I didn't go in expecting a twist. I think that it may take out some enjoyment if you're actively looking for it. 

The back to back parenting cracked me up and it felt real to me. My husband and I have done the same thing often.

[Sandman]

I have to say that when the firefighter offered Jack the cigarette, my first thought was "So I guess Fireman Dad is dead in the future..."

[BonnieD]

My first thought when he offered the cigarette is that there was some sort of time slip going on. Took me a moment to catch up and realize the story was being told from two timelines. I really enjoyed it. There are simply not enough family dramas available these days IMO. I don't care if it's Hallmark or cheesy sometimes. Like Parenthood, I'm sure I'll roll my eyes and huff OFTEN, but then  they'll get me with some little moment that makes it worthwhile

Also, what's the deal with people thinking a doctor wouldn't deliver Caesarean in the early 80s? That's nuts. My sis had her babies in the mid to late 70s and had to have them both Caesarean. For triplets I'm certain a doctor would recommend it back then. Unless they're saying that Milo and Mandy refused because they wanted to try a natural delivery despite knowing the possible complications.

[alexa]

I liked the reveal of the twist quite a bit.  What I didn't like...I am not a fan of the jumping around.  I get involved in a storyline to just have it snatched away for a while.  It becomes too jumpy for me.  Plus the commercials felt very long....longer than the actual show.  I felt like I watched 3 minutes of story, and 7 minutes of commercial, regularly repeated.

I think I like the parents storyline best, and wanted the story to keep going back to them.  I will have to give it a few more episodes and see how it goes.  But I do think I will just DVR it so I can forward through commercials.

[mojoween]

I was 12 and in 7th grade during the Challenger disaster.  I was at lunch when a classmate came through the lunchroom telling each table "the space shuttle blew up!"  Next class after lunch was social studies and that's what we talked about for 40 minutes.

I also had a sister born in 1971 with severe cerebral palsy after the umbilical cord was wrapped around her neck depriving her of oxygen.  When I was born two years later the doctor didn't even give my mother an option, her water broke and she had an immediate c-section.  Then a hysterectomy, because that's what they did back then apparently.

I never watch shows like this.  If it stays a show about people doing people-y things, and doesn't devolve into a show purportedly about a plane crash that then turns into some strange supernatural thing, I'm in for the long haul.  Even if Milo is a Steelers fan.

[lulee]

18 minutes ago, BonnieD said:

Also, what's the deal with people thinking a doctor wouldn't deliver Caesarean in the early 80s? That's nuts. My sis had her babies in the mid to late 70s and had to have them both Caesarean. For triplets I'm certain a doctor would recommend it back then. Unless they're saying that Milo and Mandy refused because they wanted to try a natural delivery despite knowing the possible complications.

I don't know why anyone wouldn't think  a C-section was likely for triplets (not twins as someone discussed above). Now all triplet pregnancies are high risk (according to my friend who has trips). Back in 1979 Dr. Gerald called her pregnancy "high risk" and said she was 6 weeks before her due date, which upon reflection, makes it seem odd that the two babies weren't receiving some additional attention and were simply "healthy." 

I know this isn't ER or Grey's Anatomy, but some of the medical stuff seemed handwave-y.

[TaraS1]

I had no idea a twist was coming, either, so that was definitely a cool little moment, but otherwise?  Too schmoopy for me.  I gave it a shot, even though family drama/dramedy isn't my thing, but I don't think I'll be back because, for all the cleverness of the twist, the rest of it felt very cliched.

Props to Milo's ass, though. 

[photo fox]

1 hour ago, TVForever said:

Okay, this is going to sound weird. I was watching this with closed-captioning, and   During the early scene with the parents at the soccer game, when the dad says, " That's my little badass", the caption read, " That's my little Bull Dyke." It was a needle-scratch moment. Wait, what? I rewound it about 4 times. Then, watching his lips, it DID look like he was saying something other than "badass". Like, maybe it was voice-dubbed. And that caption was the same each time.

If you still have this recorded, or if you can watch OnDemand, PLEASE watch this scene with your closed-captioning on and tell me I'm not crazy.

Definitely not crazy! I saw the same thing. When I watched live with my mom, and then later at home on my DVR.

There's an aftershow on the NBC app with the cast and creator that I highly recommend. One thing MV said that really stuck out to me... you usually think of your parents being your past, and your children your future, but what if you're walking through life at the same time? What parallels will you see? 

My only nitpick, which strengthened on rewatch, was how they all acted like the bio dad was a horrible person for dropping his baby at the fire station. That's what you're supposed to do!

[fountain]

Where I live the cutoff for school is Dec 31 so kids starting school could be nearly 1 year different in age.  I remember the disaster, I was older than these kids as I was born in 74.  The old timeline seemed more like the 70s to me not the 80s but since it should be 1980 I guess it works as probably 1980 was still more like the 70s than 80s. However, maybe the current year isn't 2016?

I like the show.  I haven't read anything about new shows this year other than seeing commercials so I wasn't spoilered.  The birth of triplets still bugs as c-sections were done in the 80s.  My sister was born by c-section in 1976.  All I could think was that the couple were hippies and didn't want that much medical involvement unless necessary? The timeline at least explains why they didn't know which babies were boys and girls and also why someone carrying triplets would even consider sex?  The whole scene I was thinking "your doctor probably doesn't advise this".  The timeline also explains why someone at the hospital could just adopt a baby.  It will be interesting to watching the children raised together, those would be less accepting times.

I like that the show seems both funny and also depressing, a combo I enjoy.

[random chance]

9 hours ago, mojoween said:

I did think however that the show was going to be about random people who shared a birthday but I'm intrigued anyways.

That's exactly what I thought! Once I was at a table with three other strangers buying a drink (at one of those shows where you're required to buy a drink) and the waitress commented that we all had the same birthday and I thought oh wow, this TV show is going to be about what could have happened next. I was kind of disappointed that wasn't it.

9 hours ago, SuzyLee said:

I didn't cry, nor was I tremendously impacted emotionally by the ending.  While I think the show is well made (relatively speaking), I think it was way, way oversold. 

It's not the kind of show I cry over either. While I was watching the Manny have a fit on the set I thought of that scene in Bojack Horseman where the girl tells him (paraphrasing) so what if it's not high art - you get to make a living doing what you love, not many people can say that. The adopted guy: he was way better off. The fat sister: losing weight is hard but at least there's a solution to your problem, unlike someone who discovers something like they have Huntington's. (I am possibly too cynical for shows like this but I'll probably watch it anyway.)

9 hours ago, Jadzia said:

I feel like such a dumb ass! I didn't quite understand the twist until the very last shot with them looking in the bassinets in a 1970s looking room.

I didn't even see that scene - I have really got to stop multitasking when I watch TV!

9 hours ago, sjohnson said:

So, it seems to be very well made, but promising to be really grim.

Yeah it does look pretty grim, although I think some of that grimness might just be the show taking itself too seriously. I mean we weren't supposed to cry for the Manny being stuck on a sitcom when he really wanted to be in an Oscar Bait movie ... were we?

9 hours ago, Lady Calypso said:

I've been looking for a non-cop/doctor/lawyer/superhero show to watch, so these family dramas/dramedies are so hard to come by. 

That's exactly why I'll stick with it for awhile. I am completely burned out on cop/doctor/lawyer/superhero shows.

[callmebetty]

1980 would definitely be more rooted in the 70'same. It's not like the decade changed and then boom, it takes a a good few years to change over. That's why I laugh at early 90'so  photos of myself and family and remember it there was still some 80's  style hanging around. 

Did not see the twist coming.  But a couple of things stood out as odd that now make sense. Why there was not a team of nurses around Mandy when she was having those contractions and wasn't hooked up to machines. Then of course the fireman pulling out the cigarette outside the nursery. Boy things were different back then.

It does make me kinda of sad that after the Dr's speech about one day Milo being an old man like him giving a young guy advice, you realize Milo is probably dead and he would have 72 in the present year, so didn't even make it to the docs age of 73.

Good show, I think I'll keep watching it. I stuck with Parenthood even though it had its ups and downs, but what show doesn't?

[VioletNevermind]

1 hour ago, BonnieD said:

There are simply not enough family dramas available these days IMO. I don't care if it's Hallmark or cheesy sometimes. Like Parenthood, I'm sure I'll roll my eyes and huff OFTEN, but then  they'll get me with some little moment that makes it worthwhile.

Perfectly stated.  I derided this show last night, but in the light of day, I think I agree with you.  Like the good Gen X'er that I am, I roll my eyes early and often, but maybe I can ease back on the cynicism for once and attempt to appreciate a nice family drama.  Time will tell . . .

[TVForever]

18 minutes ago, photo fox said:

Definitely not crazy! I saw the same thing. When I watched live with my mom, and then later at home on my DVR.

There's an aftershow on the NBC app with the cast and creator that I highly recommend. One thing MV said that really stuck out to me... you usually think of your parents being your past, and your children your future, but what if you're walking through life at the same time? What parallels will you see? 

My only nitpick, which strengthened on rewatch, was how they all acted like the bio dad was a horrible person for dropping his baby at the fire station. That's what you're supposed to do!

I was thinking the same thing about the bio dad! Given that he was as drugged out as the mom was, son should be thanking him for having enough presence of mind in the moment to leave him where he must have known someone could help him, instead of in an alley, on a garbage heap, or worse yet, just walking away from the birth scene to leave him to die along with the mother. But Biodad also seemed to "get" that this was part of son's "Screw You" scenario that he must have been working on for awhile. 

And thanks for the assist on that caption. What do you think was going on there?

[Lady Calypso]

6 hours ago, WhosThatGirl said:

I'm wondering if giving away the twist at the end of this episode was a bad call. According to the writers/creators, they always wanted this first episode to be the reveal, but I do wonder if they are letting the cat out of the bag too soon? I don't know, it was such a cool reveal but now I'm wondering how does the show top that? Would the reveal be better later on in the season or would it be better at the season finale? Or another season all together? I suppose the third option would be the worst option because shows can have a quick expiration date, but now..I'm kind of left wondering if it's happened too fast? 

I don't think so. If they had held out on the twist, they would have had to find ways to go about Jack/Rebecca's storyline without giving it away. People would have figured it out quite quickly and there could be more problems by trying to fake out the audience for nine/ten episodes or longer. It actually gives them more room to explore without the constraints of trying to deceive the audience through a twist. They don't necessarily have to top the twist now. They can let the stories progress naturally and they may have stumbled their way into twists that we may see later down the road. I'm not expecting them to top this twist, not at all. This twist was used to set up the story and that's what it did. It set up the uniqueness of the entire series and I think that's what they aimed to do. 

[AdorkableSars]

I totally did not see the twist coming…all of the articles and interviews I read from show creators/actors before the show made me aware that there would be a big reveal of some kind, but I had no clue this would be it. I actually yelled at my TV” OH MY GOD KATE AND KEVIN ARE JACK AND REBECCA’S KIDS” and then seconds later “THEY ADOPTED RANDALL. IT’S IN THE PAST!” (Sidenote: I had consumed about a ½ bottle of wine at this point. And I actually do talk/yell to myself. Live alone, yo…) Like others here, I hope now that they reveal has happened, that we’ll see some scenes between all three siblings. A few things in the show seemed to indicate that Jack and Rebecca have passed away in the present day, which is a bummer. But I’m excited to see this all unfold.

 

Thought all of the cast did a great job. I laughed quite a bit (mostly at Toby and Kevin’s characters, and Randall's awesome soccer playing/braiding twins), and teared up, but only cried once (when Dr. K was consoling Jack after revealing that the last baby was stillborn. Great acting from both gentlemen in that scene). Loved Kevin’s meltdown! In the post-show video, they said that some of that scene was ad-libbed by Justin Hartley, which is kind of cool.

Quote

Also, FYI, just read an a ew.com article with producers/writers/etc from the show and they said Sterling got an e-mail from Manny that said 'Happy b-day bro' but you have to freeze frame it well enough to catch it, so Sterling isn't totally  isloated from his siblings.  

I actually did notice this. But I had read that the characters were all interconnected somehow, so I thought they were just friends...hypothetical bros. So it didn't ruin the twist for me at all. And gives me hope that we will see some scenes with "The Big Three" in future episodes. 

Quote

However I kinda feel like they wrote the show for the twist at the end, and I'm not sure how the show will work in future episodes? 

I kind of wondered that too...however, I'm sure that NBC wouldn't have ordered this show if it didn't have a solid plan going forward. I'm excited to see how they jump between timelines, and see what happens to all of these characters.

[photo fox]

33 minutes ago, random chance said:

The adopted guy: he was way better off. The fat sister: losing weight is hard but at least there's a solution to your problem, unlike someone who discovers something like they have Huntington's. (I am possibly too cynical for shows like this but I'll probably watch it anyway.)

 

 

 

 

I get what you're saying - that these are problems of their own creation - but I think it's actually more poignant that way.  Maybe it's because I'm close to their age, but I really identified with them all.  Sometimes the things that keep you up at night aren't the things you have no control over, but rather those that you DO, and how your own choices have led you to be where you are.  You're not helpless to make changes, but sometimes you feel like it would be easier if you were.

 

21 minutes ago, TVForever said:

And thanks for the assist on that caption. What do you think was going on there?

Honestly?  I think that was in the original script, and maybe was what was even shot, since his mouth seemed a bit off.  And then someone else watched it, and said, "whoa, we can't have a sympathetic main character in 2016 call his athletic daughter a 'bull dyke'!"  And so they dubbed it.  I notice a lot of times with closed captioning that the CC is off by a word here or there, but still makes sense.  My theory is that they CC using the script, so if the actor switches a few words, they won't match.  (Seinfeld episodes have this happen a lot.)  I would imagine if the entire scene was substantially changed, like the meltdown scene that JH apparently ad-libbed much of, they would start the CC from scratch.

[random chance]

3 minutes ago, photo fox said:

I get what you're saying - that these are problems of their own creation - but I think it's actually more poignant that way.  Maybe it's because I'm close to their age, but I really identified with them all.  Sometimes the things that keep you up at night aren't the things you have no control over, but rather those that you DO, and how your own choices have led you to be where you are.  You're not helpless to make changes, but sometimes you feel like it would be easier if you were.

Oh that's lovely - very true and well put!

[callmebetty]

I hope he adlibbed my favorite part of his meltdown, "Where are you going Alan Thicke with your empty suitcase and what are you going to wear when you get there?"  I laughed hysterically at that.

I did notice the email, but I thought the subject was  "It's our birthday, bro"  Which would make even more sense, once the twist is revealed.

[TVForever]

22 hours ago, PreviouslyTV said:

Prepare to cry, Generations X and Y. Our Thirtysomething has arrived.

View the full article

Funny you should say that, because I did get a similar feeling watching this as when I used to watch Thirtysomething way back when ( I guess I'm dating myself now, oops!)

I have to admit, I didn't see the twist coming until the fireman showed up at the maternity ward. I thought I knew what this show was going to be about, now I have no idea. But I'm a sucker for "slice of life" dramas, so I think I'll  enjoy sticking around.

[potatoradio]

I'm not that "twisty" a viewer, heh, so I liked the twist, but it wasn't a jaw-drop moment for me. Clever, yes, but I didn't think it added much. 

I'm a sucker, though, for character-driven dramadies, and I had a free night by myself. With a little wine and cheese, this was all right. A bit precious and definitely needs more work to earn the great emotional catharsis it seems to want to evoke, but watchable. 

I liked the ManNY character's storyline best - probably because I relate to job-meaninglessness the most out of all the storylines and I am curious, like another poster said, as to why he's an actor with seemingly no entourage or groupies. 

Massive eyeroll at the fat characters' storylines being (so far) about self-hate directed at their bodies. I don't want to watch self-loathing people cowed by a 150- calorie glass of wine, unless it's leading to an ultimate rejection of that mindset. Did the guy really ask for a handjob when he walked her to the door? Ew...was that trying to illustrate that a fat guy must be so desperate for sex that he's incapable of being classy or restrained? Or is that the character? Or is that how men are these days? I've been out of the dating pool for years, so perhaps I'm not entirely wakey-wakey to the current dance.

Then again, I tend to watch any uber-hyped show with a side eye, so I'm not completely giving it a fair shot. And it's a pilot. It can go either way from here and with any luck, it will improve its nuance and depth instead of piling on GONNA MAKE YOU CRY moments....

[MaryPatShelby]

6 hours ago, voiceover said:

Hadn't read anything about the show; truth be told, I saw about an hour before the broadcast that Milo V was in it -- and I tuned in for that reason alone.

I'm on the side of those what appreciate that it's not a cop/zombie/reality show.  And I loved the unexpected comedy of Sterling's first scene with his birth dad.  

The cast chem works for me! so for now, I'm in.

I loved the unexpected comedy in a lot of the show; there were several times when I laughed out loud. I, for one, like a show that makes me feel all feels throughout.

3 hours ago, TVForever said:

 

 

2 hours ago, alexa said:

 Plus the commercials felt very long....longer than the actual show.  I felt like I watched 3 minutes of story, and 7 minutes of commercial, regularly repeated.

I almost always DVR everything but decided to watch this live and agreed, the commercials seemed never-ending?  Is it always this way? Back to the DVR for me.

[alexa]

6 minutes ago, MaryPatShelby said:

I almost always DVR everything but decided to watch this live and agreed, the commercials seemed never-ending?  Is it always this way? Back to the DVR for me.

Normally when I watch things live it doesn't feel anything like this, and in fact sometimes I go to the kitchen thinking I have enough time to do something and I return to the show being on.  This show was completely different for me.... I could have gone and done 5 things and still not missed the show.  lol  I also think that the show snippets were very short.... it just felt like the characters barely had a chance to say anything before their segment was up.

Edited September 21, 2016 by alexa

[Aloeonatable]

Everyone assumes the story begins in 1980, but the television in the hospital showed the Ayatollah in Iran and that took place in 1979, if my memory serves. Besides, this pilot, though shot earlier this year, was actually written last year. So the twins would have been 7 and in second grade when the Challenger explosion happened.

[Artsda]

I was wondering before going in based on the commercials and promo how they'd tie all these people together other than with the birthday yet I was still shocked at the end with the post on the wall with Kevin calling Randalls's kids his nieces. Then the firefighter saying he brought a baby in, Dr.Gerald telling Milo's character he can take 3 babies home. I loved how the ending pulled it all together. 

I was really expecting a twist of Mandy's character to die leaving the 3 babies to Milo alone, so really glad that didn't happen. Loved the chem between Milo and Mandy.

[Big Mother]

Inaccurate medical stories are a pet peeve of mine. Triplets born six weeks early would 1) be in the NICU and 2) NEVER delivered vaginally. Even in 1986. C-Sections WERE reserved for multiple births! Delivering TRIPETS vaginally very often results in tragic consequences for the mother. A dear friend of mine, Abbie Dorn, remained in a vegetative state after her body shut down after delivering triplets vaginally. (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/8408345/Disabled-mother-Abbie-Dorn-fighting-for-the-right-to-see-her-triplets.html)

I guessed the 'twist' as soon as the fireman at the hospital mentioned the baby. But again - the preemies would not have been in the regular nursery. Even in 1986.

Last but not least: the fact that Randall's father did not remember leaving him at the fire station makes me suspicious. I started wondering, in the back of my mind, if the real twist here is that the third baby was fathered by someone else other than [the husband, I forget his name] and therefore [the wife, I forget the name] was so worried about it that she had arranged with the doctor beforehand to be whisked away and delivered in secrecy so that if the baby is black they can do the shpiel we just saw. It's just me conjecturing, I didnt read any spoilers, this might make no sense.

Last but not least: Why was the [husband] so pigheaded about discussing "options" in case there were complications? That kind of discussion wouldve happened way before delivery, it wouldve happened during the doctor's visits.

Oh, and another thing: the two overweight kids, is this a new retread of Mike and Molly? In today's day and age, a lot of ppl with this amount of weight to lose undergo bariatric surgery, it makes losing weight so much easier. Is the actress this heavy in real life? I don't recognize anyone on this show, so I dunno.

 

EDITED TO ADD: i'm such a doofus. the triplets were born in 1979!!!!!!! I dont know if c sections or NICUs were so popular then. Which makes it even worse: babies born six weeks early in 1979 would have a much more difficult struggle. there were no steroid shots then> They wouldve been on oxygen for sure. And triplets were SUCH An anomly in 1979, that there woudlve been a TEAM of doctors, nurses, student nurses, etc etc etc in the room... very sparse medical team for triplets in 1979.

Edited September 21, 2016 by Big Mother

[photo fox]

22 minutes ago, Big Mother said:

Last but not least: Why was the [husband] so pigheaded about discussing "options" in case there were complications? That kind of discussion wouldve happened way before delivery, it wouldve happened during the doctor's visits.

 

I can fanwank that they had discussed it with their regular doctor, but since Dr. McRaney was new to their case, he wanted to talk to them about it himself.

People who don't want to discuss realistic options with their doctors is one of my biggest annoyances on medical dramas, though.  Even though I can totally understand the mindset.

[Jeffurry]

I watched for the twist, which I figured out ten minutes into the show (thank you, old medical equipment, email, and avoiding the word "twin"). The rest of This Is (obvio)Us doesn't interest me, so I'm out.

[mojoween]

Did Kevin really give his niece's a signed topless picture of himself?

[Indy]

I enjoyed it enough to give it a shot for a few more episodes. I need a new show to watch with a glass of wine on Sunday nights while my husband is watching football and this seems like it might fit the bill. 

[Bruinsfan]

12 hours ago, mojoween said:

I didn't get it until the cop offered Milo a cigarette; I thought it was just a random coincidence that there was another baby left in a fire station.

I'm sad that this means no more Gerald though as he'd be 109 by now.

Sterling K. Brown is worth every minute I watched.  It was interesting how he came at his father by getting angry at being abandoned when apparently his parents gave him a damned good life and it obviously worked out for the better instead of him ending up in some drug den.

I figured it out a few seconds earlier when the fireman introduced himself. Nice twist for someone going in blind, though.

I'm a bit puzzled by Sterling's anger. I was adopted and never had any curiosity about my biological parents, much less seething anger and resentment at being given up. Putting me up for adoption in a loving home was the best gift anyone ever gave me. I can get how someone with awful parents or raised in foster homes/institutions would be angry over the circumstances, but that doesn't seem to be the case based on what the siblings said about their upbringing.

Edited September 21, 2016 by Bruinsfan

[Aloeonatable]

Quote

Did Kevin really give his niece's a signed topless picture of himself?

It looked like a promo poster. I would think that actors/celebrities are often asked by friends and family for this type of thing. 

[VioletNevermind]

7 hours ago, Lonesome Rhodes said:

I pretty much hate the date dude.  He showed his true colors in that support group.  The woman's pain was his pleasure.  She was his entertainment.  Then he preys on an extremely vulnerable woman from the group and maneuvers her into sex that same day.  He's loathsome.

In talking with people about this show this morning, I discovered that I was the only person in the conversation who felt this way.  Most people felt like she was lucky to have found him, "considering."  I totally disagree.  He came off like a huge jackass.  That joke in the group discussion was tasteless and he clearly only cares about himself and how quickly he can get his rocks off.  This show has a long way to go toward making me feel any sympathy for him.  He will not only hurt her eventually, but he will also impede her weight loss.

I feel sorry for the man who wraps up a first date with me by suggesting I give him a "handy."

Edited September 21, 2016 by SuzyLee

[Lady Calypso]

1 minute ago, Bruinsfan said:

I'm a bit puzzled by Sterling's anger, though. I was adopted and never had any curiosity about my biological parents, much less seething anger and resentment at being given up. Putting me up for adoption in a loving home was a huge gift. I can get how someone with awful parents could be angry over the circumstances, but that doesn't seem to be the case based on what the siblings said about their upbringing.

I'm adopted myself and although I hold no anger toward my biological parents (although I hold some curiosity and some resentment myself), I can see why some would. Even in a good upbringing like Randall had, there's still that curiosity that builds over years. Mind you I'm only 22, but Randall's had 36 years to dwell on this. I can see how it would form into anger after a while, especially if Jack and Rebecca have died. And honestly, their deaths, if it happened in the past few years, would make sense as to why Randall decided to start looking now. 

Basically, it all depends on the person, for sure. Some don't care about their biological parents at all, some care too much. But the ultimate thing I find is that Randall seemed to need closure more than anything. As soon as he could get some answers or some type of closure, he could move on. 

[Court]

I don't think she was lucky to find him. However, I didn't think he was a jackass at all. He clearly uses his humor to disguise his feelings about his weight.  That's pretty common.

Losing weight is not as simple as just doing it or getting surgery. It's so much more than a physical thing. It's hard as hell and people are incredibly judgmental about it. 

I'm overweight.There have been times I've been walking and I've had names and obscenities screamed at me. Do you know what that does to people? It sure as hell makes me want to go grab a milkshake and not even bother excerising. 

Edited September 22, 2016 by Court

[Enigma X]

I haven't watch this show yet, but, judging from most of your responses, this show seems right up my alley. I will watch it when I get home. 

[Bruinsfan]

Regarding the poster, I imagine giving the nieces a big promotional image of Uncle Kevin from your show (when they probably see you shirtless at pool parties and family beach excursions frequently) is a very different vibe than sending autographed images of your bare torso to random children.