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Rebecca: Mandy Moore

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By photo fox
in This Is Us

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JudyObscure

JudyObscure

12 hours ago, mojito said:

She's not much different than women of the fifties and before: saddled with kids while hubby works, no real life of her own. Imagine being her while she watches her peers take corporate jobs and make good money.

It's not hard for me to imagine  being her because I was at home with a child in the seventies while my husband worked. I didn't consider my child something I was "saddled with," but the greatest joy of my life and I'm here to tell you, without question, that my life was real. Later on, I worked in a bank, earning money, and was not one bit happier, or more real, than when I was a housewife. Some people just don't define themselves by how much money they make.

  • Love 12
SlackerInc

SlackerInc

17 hours ago, dcubed said:

I think she's just used to being steamrolled by someone.  First her mom, then Jack.  As a child, she was taught that her opinion doesn't matter, what she wants doesn't matter.  It's carried into adulthood.

She orders lunch?  Mom changes it for her! 

She orders a pop?  Mom orders her a diet pop! 

This apartment won't work?  Jack buys a house! 

Need to mourn a child you carried for 9 months?  No time for that - let's adopt!!!! 

I think these are all fair except the one about the house, which doesn't match.  The others are about people dismissing her preferences.  Jack's getting the house was about his being sensitive to her being upset and feeling they couldn't raise the babies in their apartment.

biakbiak

biakbiak

27 minutes ago, SlackerInc said:

I think these are all fair except the one about the house, which doesn't match.  The others are about people dismissing her preferences.  Jack's getting the house was about his being sensitive to her being upset and feeling they couldn't raise the babies in their apartment.

To me the house is the most egregious because of the level of commitment. She isn't a child and should have been consulted before he made such a ginormous decision. He could have offered it as a solution but cutting her out of the decision entirely is being a controlling asshole with no respect for her opinion.

  • Love 12
qtpye

qtpye

(edited)
2 hours ago, biakbiak said:

To me the house is the most egregious because of the level of commitment. She isn't a child and should have been consulted before he made such a ginormous decision. He could have offered it as a solution but cutting her out of the decision entirely is being a controlling asshole with no respect for her opinion.

In my life my husband made exactly one somewhat major decision in ten years of marriage, without consulting me.  He bought a high end refrigerator very quickly, because the deal was too good to pass up and there was no time to consult me.

I appreciate what my husband was trying to do, but now I am saddled with a stainless steel monstrosity, which is not a great choice when you have small children.  Their finger prints are all over the thing.

I understand this is a very first world problem, but it could have been avoided if he had talked to me.

I would go insane if my husband ever purchased a house without consulting me like Jim from the Office or Jack on this show.  No, writers...it is not romantic, but idiotic when one partner makes major life decisions without checking in with their significant other.

Edited by qtpye
  • Love 19
biakbiak

biakbiak

3 hours ago, SlackerInc said:

I see it differently when it's a major upgrade your spouse would assume is impossible to afford.

Why? He could have easily explained it to her that they could swing it without making a unilateral decision that there was no need to do that without talking to her first.

@qtpye example is one where it was something they could afford but that she would have been against because she understood things her husband didn't about the fridge.

Heck if they had lived in a small apartment or even a smaller house while the kids were young maybe they could have saved enough money for Randall to go to school without having Jack give up his dream.

Making a huge life decision with out your partner's input is a sign of an unbalanced or unhealthy relationship.

Hell Randall and Beth could most likely easily affoard a boat without hardship but Beth wasn't having that nonsense of him doing that without asking her opinion, They even mentioned that Beth wasn't sure about buying their house but Randall convinced her that it was doable but it was still a joint decision. .

  • Love 3
qtpye

qtpye

6 hours ago, biakbiak said:

@qtpye example is one where it was something they could afford but that she would have been against because she understood things her husband didn't about the fridge.

 

6 hours ago, biakbiak said:

Making a huge life decision with out your partner's input is a sign of an unbalanced or unhealthy relationship.

Particularly since Rebecca was a stay at home mom to three babies.  Perhaps she would like a house with some specifications that would have made her life a little easier, that Jack might have not had a clue about.  Not to mention the huge financial implications of buying a house is something that should be well thought out and planned, instead of a spur of the moment "romantic gesture".  This is not picking up a bouquet of flowers on the way from work to make your wife smile.  This is a giant decision that will have a major impact on your life together and both parties should have a say.

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SlackerInc

SlackerInc

(edited)
6 hours ago, qtpye said:

Particularly since Rebecca was a stay at home mom to three babies.  Perhaps she would like a house with some specifications that would have made her life a little easier, that Jack might have not had a clue about.

But that wasn't an option.  Jack's boss was complaining about the house he was a foreman at running over budget and becoming an albatross for him.  Jack saw an opportunity: he could make the boss an offer, an amount no one else would take.  The boss gets to unload the albatross without putting any more work or money into it, and he gets to do a non-salary favor for his best foreman.  Jack gets a house with potential, something he can finish himself, and in the end gets a finished house that's nicer than someone with his income could have afforded.  Even then, he had to sell his beloved car, and go endure his father's abuse to kiss his ass for enough money (in combo with the car) to scrape together the down payment.

Now, let's say he does what so many of you say he should have done.  He goes and presents the whole plan to Rebecca.  She comes and looks at a very unfinished and unhospitable looking house.  He says "I think we can swing it if I sell my car and beg my dad for money.  What do you think: should we do it?"  Now, she's in an impossible position.  Even if she doesn't just assume the whole thing is a crazy idea that will never work (this is how my wife would react), and she actually likes the idea of moving to that house, she has to ask Jack to take sacrifices she knows are extremely painful to him.  If she says "yes, let's do it", she's going to have to carry that guilt.  He spared her all that by just going for it.

I know it's easy to paint this as some kind of retrograde, Mad Men era thing where the domineering husband is cutting his wife out of important decisionmaking.  But that's not why I'm sympathetic to it.  Personally, I'm a stay-at-home-dad, and my wife is the breadwinner (she's at work right now and I'm at home with the kids).  But she has asked me to manage the finances, and particularly to oversee things related to home repairs.  She just doesn't want to deal with it, and when she does confront those kinds of things, she tends to be very pessimistic about them and even overwhelmed.

So I can buy that depending on how well Jack knows his wife's personality, and that being heavily pregnant might not be the best moment for her to tackle decisionmaking on something like this, that he made a defensible move.  YMMV.

Edited by SlackerInc
  • Love 4
Guest

Guest

I see that side but I wish the writers would give more evidence that Rebecca is that type rather than write these scenes as if it's every woman's dream romantic gesture-- coming home to a surprise new home (twice).  I think most SAHMs want input.  

For me it's just more in the column of Rebecca being kind of unrealistic and underdeveloped.  She seems to be kept hazy so as to allow them to push her into whatever reaction is required to bolster the stories of the people around her.  Which I suppose is no worse than just rewriting her personality scene to scene, which they've done to some extent with others.  At least she's consistently a prop.  Heh.

chocolatine

chocolatine

(edited)

I agree with the part that a fixer-upper at a steep discount was all Jack and Rebecca could afford, but she was still an equal partner in the marriage and should have been part of the decision. Jack could have told his boss he needed 24 hours to discuss it with his wife - it's not like there were any other offers. Then explained to Rebecca that their options are either the 6th floor walk-up, moving in with her parents, or a fixer-upper that still looks very rough but will be habitable by the time the babies arrive. She probably would have also chosen the house, since she was so upset about the idea of moving back in with her mother, but at least it would have been a joint decision.

Edited by chocolatine
  • Love 11
SlackerInc

SlackerInc

(edited)
On 3/22/2017 at 7:51 PM, chocolatine said:

I agree with the part that a fixer-upper at a steep discount was all Jack and Rebecca could afford, but she was still an equal partner in the marriage and should have been part of the decision. Jack could have told his boss he needed 24 hours to discuss it with his wife - it's not like there were any other offers. Then explained to Rebecca that their options are either the 6th floor walk-up, moving in with her parents, or a fixer-upper that still looks very rough but will be habitable by the time the babies arrive. She probably would have also chosen the house, since she was so upset about the idea of moving back in with her mother, but at least it would have been a joint decision.

That's all well and good, but it doesn't address what I would consider my biggest point: I think a lot of women (certainly my wife) would hate the idea of having to feel like "I 'made you' give up your beloved car and go crawl on your belly to your awful abusive dad".  And yes, that's overdramatic, but a lot of people are that way.  Plus, it's not entirely untrue: if he actually poses it as "say the word, and I'll do those things", he really is dumping the responsibility in her lap.

ETA: @Winston9-DT3, a surprise new home twice?  What was the other time?

Edited by SlackerInc
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biakbiak

biakbiak

3 minutes ago, Winston9-DT3 said:

I could be remembering wrong but wasn't the apt. something Jack picked out and surprised her with, too?  

Yes that is correct.

Every single female I know would want to be treated as an equal partner and know everything about huge decisions being made and I include both my grandmothers and the one great grandmother (when they were alive) in that statement so it isn't something "new". 

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chocolatine

chocolatine

51 minutes ago, SlackerInc said:

That's all well and good, but it doesn't address what I would consider my biggest point: I think a lot of women (certainly my wife) would hate the idea of having to feel like "I 'made you' give up your beloved car and go crawl on your belly to your awful abusive dad".

 

18 minutes ago, Winston9-DT3 said:

I feel like they could've written it where he says, "I think we can swing it.  The boss will make us a great deal.  What do you think?"  Then she has input and isn't put in a difficult position.

Exactly, he didn't have to say anything about getting money from his father. And with three babies coming, they would have had to trade in the muscle car for something more family-friendly either way.

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qtpye

qtpye

It is a reminder of my friend when he was graduating medical.  He had to buy a new car, because his clunker was dying, so he did the research and picked out an affordable hybrid he thought he could afford.  He wanted a hybrid to save on fuel costs and was set on buying this car.  Out of the blue his family buys him another type of car as a surprise for his medical school graduation present.  His family put in the down payment and he would make the monthly payments and pay for the insurance.

He understood that it was a very generous thing for his family to do, but without consulting him, his family had him paying for a car he did not want in the first place.  Also, his family did not research the car and it gave him trouble, costing him more money he did not have. He was in his residency and was not getting paid the big bucks.

On paper, it was a beautiful gesture.  Lets help our son, who is graduating medical school, buy a car, so he only has to worry about the monthly payments and make it a total surprise.  In reality, they saddle their son with a lemon and it would have been much better off consulting with him before making the purchase.

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SlackerInc

SlackerInc

On 3/23/2017 at 11:13 PM, chocolatine said:

 

Exactly, he didn't have to say anything about getting money from his father. And with three babies coming, they would have had to trade in the muscle car for something more family-friendly either way.

Not necessarily: the "fun" car could be their second car.

And I'd note that you don't really want him to fully let her in on how they will swing the finances.  So our disagreement is a matter of degree rather than kind.  I had been understanding the objection as (and maybe this is in fact what others meant?) saying that he should lay out all the cards including the price he is getting for the house and where all the money is coming from.  To leave out his father's money means he has to implicitly lie about how much the down payment is (or pretend like he had had a hidden cache of money all along that he hadn't revealed).

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methodwriter85

methodwriter85

This tune has been stuck in my head all day. I'm not sure why, but here you go.

Mandy really did represent the sweet, more innocent facet of the late 90's/Y2K pop music boom. She probably could have slutted it up and had more hits that way, but it's great she stayed true to herself.

I have this irrational need to want to hear Rebecca sing Mandy Moore's songs. I know it won't happen, but damn if I wouldn't love it if a middle-aged Rebecca broke out into "Candy" or this one, or "Cry."

Her covers might be possible, though. She did a great rendition of "God Only Knows" and "Have A Little Faith In Me."

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qtpye

qtpye

I think they changed her hair tones in the wigs she wears.  Also her features look more sharp.  I hope she does not give into the pressures of plastic surgery and ruin her expressive face

I understand being daddy's little girl, but Rebecca can really can do no right and Jack is perfect.    Sure it is fun to undermine your wife and slide the grapefruit away, but it is not in the best interests of the child

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methodwriter85

methodwriter85

12 hours ago, qtpye said:

I think they changed her hair tones in the wigs she wears.  Also her features look more sharp.  I hope she does not give into the pressures of plastic surgery and ruin her expressive face

I understand being daddy's little girl, but Rebecca can really can do no right and Jack is perfect.    Sure it is fun to undermine your wife and slide the grapefruit away, but it is not in the best interests of the child

I think it might be a combo of perhaps taking off about 6-8 pounds, and moving further into her 30's

General Days

General Days

On 10/6/2017 at 9:33 AM, qtpye said:

I think they changed her hair tones in the wigs she wears.  Also her features look more sharp.  I hope she does not give into the pressures of plastic surgery and ruin her expressive face

I understand being daddy's little girl, but Rebecca can really can do no right and Jack is perfect.    Sure it is fun to undermine your wife and slide the grapefruit away, but it is not in the best interests of the child

I really like Rebecca, but I like current-day Rebecca least of all, and in part, I think it's because of her wig (I have hate rage toward it) and because her face is less expressive, when she's wearing the age makeup.

Nitpick: Did Jack slide away Kate's cantaloupe? (All of the posts I've noticed here have also called it a grapefruit, but it's a half of a cantaloupe with a scoop of cottage cheese in the center; a breakfast I remember well). He just sprinkled crappy sugar cereal on it, didn't he?

I always wish Rebecca's food solution had been healthier breakfasts for everyone, rather than letting the boys eat solidified, colored, corn syrup, while making Kate have something different.

 

6 hours ago, chabelisaywow said:

I just started and binge watched Season One. I see myself having no investment in the Rebecca character. She is "disappointed" with Jack, lied to Randall, and married his best friend.  This is the 2017 Rebecca. Where to go from here?

 

When is she disappointed with Jack? Is this in relationship to his alcoholism, or something else? I don't like that she lied to Randall, but I get her choice in terms of the story. I don't care that she married Miguel. As far as I can tell, they don't get together until after Jack dies. Marriage vows are until death, not throughout eternity. 

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General Days

General Days

37 minutes ago, Crs97 said:

But it is Saint Jack.  Short of throwing herself on the funeral pyre, she can't grieve hard or long enough to deserve him.

They say it's a great compliment to the deceased spouse when a widow or widower remarries. That is, if they hated marriage, they wouldn't do it again. Besides, Miguel also loved Jack. Without seeing anything of the Rebecca/Miguel marriage, I think it's kind of sweet. 

1 minute ago, chabelisaywow said:

She tells him something to the effect of "I can't talk to you until I stop feeling disappointed." I interpreted it as . disappointed with him.

I'm sorry. What I was trying to ask was when she said it to him. That is -- what are the circumstances that led up to it? I don't remember who said what when.

Crs97

Crs97

I was being sarcastic; sorry it didn't come through.  I actually am one of the few who likes Miguel and thinks Rebecca might be (gasp!) better off with him than with Jack.  The way she talks to everyone about how close to perfect Jack was frankly makes me uncomfortable.  She clearly felt small in their relationship.  Miguel loved Jack and counts himself lucky to be with her.  I am looking forward to seeing how they end up together.

  • Love 5
methodwriter85

methodwriter85

 

This is a puff piece on Mandy's career, where they do touch on her career downturn.

Mandy Moore is officially hawking Garnier Nutrisse, so she definitely seems to be back in the "bankable" category again.  I always thought she did better with "frosty" kind of roles. It looks like she's going to play one of the evil adults in a teen dystopian film, so that might be good for her. She's at a pretty great age right now to get a wide variety of roles. I hope she has better luck with roles and movies this time around.

chocolatine

chocolatine

15 minutes ago, Winston9-DT3 said:

Apparently Moore dyed her hair blonde and put photos on her Instagram then pulled them off, for some reason, leaving a lot of celeb news outlets with a story with bad links.  I wonder if Garnier saw the press and had some objection. 

Looks like the People website managed to screen cap it before it was deleted. It's not a full-on bleach job, just balayage - easy to dye back if necessary. Perhaps she's making a movie during the TIU hiatus or she just wanted to change it up a bit. 

JudyObscure

JudyObscure

I truly cried for the first time while watching this show,  when Rebecca was apologizing to Kate about "getting in her way," and Kate said, "You don't get in my way, you are my way."

Mandy Moore is my least favorite actor on the show, mainly because the competition is so tough, but her scenes with Kate this season, particularly when Kate had just had her miscarriage, really bring to life that tense mother/daughter relationship.

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