S03.E12: Songbird Road, Part Two

[Jillybean]

So how about perpetually unemployed Kate telling Toby she wants to buy a house with a yard? In LA. I'm sure they will snap their fingers and be in a lovely home in no time.

[Haleth]

I had to laugh at Rebecca trying the Pearson sob story tactic (Kevin is a sensitive little boy) on a Pearson and failing.  Good for the writers for leaving Nicky in his trailer with an understanding, and a few quick repairs, between him and Kevin.  

Justin Hartley has been knocking it out of the park this season.  He's made Kevin a believable and sympathetic character, surpassing Randall.  That expression of guilt and pain at the end in the car was palpable.  I hope his relapse is dealt with quickly.

Kate and Randall's side trip was only interesting in that they had such different memories of that day.  As usual Kate was too self absorbed to realize something was wrong and still lets the hero worship of her dad color her memories.  Randall used to be able to sense when someone was in trouble but has since learned to ignore it while he seeks his own gratification.  I thought it was rude of them to knock on the strangers' door.  This wasn't remotely their house anymore.  

6 hours ago, lucindabelle said:

nicky May not want it: but he IS their responsibility now. He’s blood. And letting him go after his “You were all I ever wanted?” Without even a hug? SOMETHING?

He said "You were all he ever wanted."  Oh, Nicky. 

Edited February 13, 2019 by Haleth

[Trillian]

I continue to be creeped out by the looks of adoration young Kate showers upon her father. There’s obviously nothing wrong with loving your dad.  Little Tess and Annie look at Randall with love and admiration, but they manage not to look as if they are in the throes of childhood lust. Maybe it was cute when the actress was much younger , but now that she’s pubescent, I kept thinking “ewww” through the whole scene. 

The glitter fight did not look like fun.  Maybe that’s because, as a mom, I was painfully aware of how difficult it would be to clean up. Rebecca’s the saint here, for not totally losing it when she saw it. 

[debraran]

21 hours ago, Katy M said:

I thought going to the old house was stupid when Randall suggested it.  When Kate pointed out that it wasn't the same house, but Randall said it was the same neighborhood, I was then OK with it, because I figured they were just going to do a drive through on the way to the airport.  Maybe pull over for a couple of seconds.  But, how does going into a house with a completely different layout do anything?

And good for that woman for shutting the door in their faces.  This happens all the time on TV, but does anybody in real life actually go to their old house and ask to go in.  Sure, I've driven by a couple of times when I've been in the area.  I'm not bothering anyone.  I'm driving down a public street.  Nobody knows.  Nobody cares.  But, asking to go inside?  That would be completely insane and inappropriate.  I loved it when Randall and Kate started arguing about their memories and the older couple told them they were about to go out.  Randall's timing is always so awful.  

I think all of them, especially Kate, need to stop wallowing so much in the past.  Does anyone spend as much time reliving their childhoods as these three?  Again, I'm not saying you can never think of your childhood memories.  I'm sure we all do.  And I'm sure we all occasionally share a funny or sad moment.  But, not all the time for crying out loud. Live in the present.

Oh, one more thing. Young Kevin was perfect.  He gave the ball player a list of places where he could play pool or whatever.  That's the good kind of help.  Just a suggestion, no pushiness.  Nothing to suggest that after he got traded (assuming he did) that Kevin ran away from home to Minnesota and ensured the guy followed up and played pool in the right places.  

I think everyone forgets how Kate sat outside that house every year. We had enough of that.

Edited February 14, 2019 by debraran

[Jillybean]

I've never forgotten about Kate sitting outside the house (and now you've reminded us 4 times, haha), and that's why I thought it was so weird Randall suggested going there. You don't take someone back to the scene of their unhealthy obsession.

[debraran]

13 minutes ago, Katy M said:

I thought going to the old house was stupid when Randall suggested it.  When Kate pointed out that it wasn't the same house, but Randall said it was the same neighborhood, I was then OK with it, because I figured they were just going to do a drive through on the way to the airport.  Maybe pull over for a couple of seconds.  But, how does going into a house with a completely different layout do anything?

And good for that woman for shutting the door in their faces.  This happens all the time on TV, but does anybody in real life actually go to their old house and ask to go in.  Sure, I've driven by a couple of times when I've been in the area.  I'm not bothering anyone.  I'm driving down a public street.  Nobody knows.  Nobody cares.  But, asking to go inside?  That would be completely insane and inappropriate.  I loved it when Randall and Kate started arguing about their memories and the older couple told them they were about to go out.  Randall's timing is always so awful.  

I think all of them, especially Kate, need to stop wallowing so much in the past.  Does anyone spend as much time reliving their childhoods as these three?  Again, I'm not saying you can never think of your childhood memories.  I'm sure we all do.  And I'm sure we all occasionally share a funny or sad moment.  But, not all the time for crying out loud. Live in the present.

Oh, one more thing. Young Kevin was perfect.  He gave the ball player a list of places where he could play pool or whatever.  That's the good kind of help.  Just a suggestion, no pushiness.  Nothing to suggest that after he got traded (assuming he did) that Kevin ran away from home to Minnesota and ensured the guy followed up and played pool in the right places.  

I think everyone forgets how Kate sat outside that house every year eating junk food on the fire anniversary.  I think she saw enough of neighborhood.  

[mtlchick]

10 minutes ago, icemiser69 said:

I wasn't sure if that was supposed to be his line.  An argument could be made that he should have said he used to be a "Pearson".

Closed captioning said "person."  

[Lady Calypso]

39 minutes ago, icemiser69 said:

I don't  think Nicky is really leaving the door open.  He said what he needed to say in order for them to leave him alone.   I seriously doubt that he will attend a meeting either.

The Pearson family are more annoying than people who come to someone's house trying to sell stuff.

As for the sequin fight, people tend to remember what they want to remember.  I am not surprised that both Kate and Randall have different memories of that day.  Kate idolizes her father far too much to remember him for what he was. I am surprised that she doesn't have dreams of him walking on water.

I didn't expect Kevin to take a drink.  I expected  Kevin to fill the metal box with cash to help Nicky out.

True. I just rewatched that scene and might have inflicted my own feelings onto the scene, hoping that Nicky was leaving the door open for the Pearsons. I do think he will try to attend a meeting, though. He didn't owe Kevin that information, lie or not. And I do think he'll be willing to at least see them again. It's just not any time soon.

[BonnieD]

Quote

Kevin rightfully called out Randall's willingness to help everyone under the sun, except their estranged uncle? Kevin was 100% correct.

I'm willing to give Randall a pass because he just finished coming to the realization that he needs to start putting his OWN family first, then his career, then anything else. I don't think this quest for some long lost uncle needs to be his, or Kates for that matter. Neither of them wanted to pursue it. It was Kevin's idea. Randall just needs to friggin' stay home and tend to his own nest, his own dependents.  And Kate needs to tend to her pregnancy before she loses the baby. Traveling is not a good idea for her.  So, yeah, I dont blame either for leaving. But the entire stopping by the site of our former home then reminiscing inside as if it were the same house from their childhood was stupid and a writers' contrivance. 

I'm going to go further and say the whole idea of "family! we must nourish and embrace very person related to us" is nonsense to me. There are people in your family who you simply are not close to and may have little feeling for. Why does sharing DNA trump logic and reason? The uncle can figure out his own issues. He is not their responsibility. He may as well be a stranger. Sounds cold but its what I believe.

Eleven year olds and they've never ordered a pizza before? Okay. That tells me all I need to know about the over-parenting going on there.

[Rebky]

The house flipper in me had a real problem with Kevin slapping up some ceiling tile without fixing the source of the leak. It will be ruined the next heavy rain that comes along.

[ItCouldBeWorse]

11 hours ago, ams1001 said:

Several times I thought, "god, these people are so self-centered!" (Mostly Kate and Randall.)

I did like Nicky sharing a little story with Rebecca, even if they were pushing him too much.

I thought he was going to tell her that Jack had been his Superman.

[DFWGina]

There is just no way that Rebecca didn't smell the whiskey on Kevin.  That smell lingers and she has to be familiar with it from Jack's old drinking...  She was a drinker at some point in her life (from what they've shown us) -- not as a problem -- just a drinker.  You can definitely smell it on the person.

I worry for Kevin that he won't get helped by his family and will spiral downward again.

[ShadowFacts]

1 hour ago, BonnieD said:

I'm going to go further and say the whole idea of "family! we must nourish and embrace very person related to us" is nonsense to me. There are people in your family who you simply are not close to and may have little feeling for. Why does sharing DNA trump logic and reason? The uncle can figure out his own issues. He is not their responsibility. He may as well be a stranger. Sounds cold but its what I believe.

He is indeed a stranger to all of them, thanks to Jack's choice decades ago.  Kevin started out wanting to find out about his father's Vietnam experience, due to Terry Gross' question.  It led to a huge surprise that needed further investigation.  Nicky is nobody's responsibility, but once the big three and then Rebecca inserted themselves into his world, I don't think a little compassion is much to ask.  They don't have to take him in, solve his problems, or give him money.  Just treat him with some respect and abide by his wishes.  Which in the end is what they pretty much did, minus the trip to the VA housing, which he could have declined so that wasn't a major misstep.  Their family seems small on both sides, it doesn't seem odd to me that Kevin would want to possibly embrace a newly-found member if that's the way it played out, but it didn't. 

[izabella]

3 hours ago, ShadowFacts said:

I was a little put off by Rebecca popping up to the hotel only to act the way she did.  She didn't initially want to meet him, now she does, says we need to talk, but then really doesn't listen and treat him as a vulnerable human.  Wants a childhood story.  There was some human warmth missing there from Rebecca toward someone in need.  Sure, it was a tough situation for all, tricky how to approach it, but I didn't like the sense that Nicky was not much more than a source of info about Jack.  How about asking him what he might need, slipping a phone number, something?  Kevin is the only one who made a connection here, and maybe that's okay because the rest of them can't be bothered too much. 

I really didn't understand her attitude with Nicky.  Why did she seem so pissed off and cold?  Nicky doesn't owe them anything.  It's not Nicky's fault that Jack lied to her the whole time about Nicky.

[Cementhead]

Griffin Dunne is killing it as Nicky.  My heart breaks for him.  He doesn't even need to read a line; the pain and angst is right there on his face and in his stance and almost pained way of just moving.  I am totally picking up what he is laying down.  When he said he used to be a person?  Oh Boy. 

Then throw is Justin Hartley/Kevin.  Ugh.  Killing me.  The two of them are doing wonderful work together and I want much more of it. 

The whole "going to visit our childhood home" thing was a big, giant GROAN from me.  Really?  It's not even the SAME house!!  When Kate was standing in their now dining room, reminiscing about the sequin fight in that room when it used to be the living room...??  Huh?  What the?  I imagine the writers in the writing room having a fight about this with most of them saying that this was not going to work on account of it being a DIFFERENT house...but ok, whatever. 

The sequin fight was causing me great anxiety.  Eek.  I don't even like glitter in my house.  Even at Christmas.  Especially at Christmas.  Have I been known to open up Christmas cards covered in glitter over my sink and then cram them right back into their envelopes before the glitter gets stuck in my floorboards?  No.

And yes, everybody does love Pringles.

[debraran]

7 minutes ago, izabella said:

I really didn't understand her attitude with Nicky.  Why did she seem so pissed off and cold?  Nicky doesn't owe them anything.  It's not Nicky's fault that Jack lied to her the whole time about Nicky.

Noone really asked about keeping in touch. She was colder than I though she’d be.  I guess she was taking her angst about Jack out on him. Maybe she thought he should have gone against Jacks wishes ?

[DoubleUTeeEff]

I think Nicky said it best to Rebecca. "I am not a prop." That's something I think that Randall is especially guilty of--making people his prop rather than letting them be the human beings they are.

I think Nicky will keep his promise to Kevin about going to group once. He specifically said that he might not go twice but he will go once. I think if he were going to lie, he would just say he would go. I hope that Kevin visits him from time to time. If Nicky wants to live in a trailer and be mostly alone--let him--but I think it would be beneficial if he had at least one person who cared enough to visit with him every once and awhile.

I was surprised that Kevin turned out to be looking at a bottle. I thought he was looking at a picture of Jack or Jack and Nicky as kids or something heartfelt. 

For some reason, I thought Beth was totally lying to Randall about going to visit her mother but it looks like I was wrong about that too.

[ShadowFacts]

6 minutes ago, Cementhead said:

The whole "going to visit our childhood home" thing was a big, giant GROAN from me.  Really?  It's not even the SAME house!!  When Kate was standing in their now dining room, reminiscing about the sequin fight in that room when it used to be the living room...??  Huh?  What the?  I imagine the writers in the writing room having a fight about this with most of them saying that this was not going to work on account of it being a DIFFERENT house...but ok, whatever. 

It really made no sense to me, and also, Pittsburgh is the complete opposite direction than going back to New Jersey, hours away, for two people who had to get back to their homes.  Nothing about that worked for me, including the vignette with the people who lived there.  Non sequitur.

[JudyObscure]

5 minutes ago, DoubleUTeeEff said:

I think Nicky will keep his promise to Kevin about going to group once. He specifically said that he might not go twice but he will go once. I think if he were going to lie, he would just say he would go. I hope that Kevin visits him from time to time. If Nicky wants to live in a trailer and be mostly alone--let him--but I think it would be beneficial if he had at least one person who cared enough to visit with him every once and awhile. 

That's what I want.  Kevin to go check on Nicky, call up Nicky's promise to go to a meeting, they go together and help each other recover. Nicky needs more than anything in the world to feel like he's done some good for someone and he might be just the person to save Kevin.

I love the Nicky storyline.  It's so raw and real, with no hints of the magical, wise, elder, just a suffering veteran, who may, or may not, ever be able to get past his massive load of guilt. 

I think the writers may be going through their own growth arc.

[debraran]

14 minutes ago, ShadowFacts said:

It really made no sense to me, and also, Pittsburgh is the complete opposite direction than going back to New Jersey, hours away, for two people who had to get back to their homes.  Nothing about that worked for me, including the vignette with the people who lived there.  Non sequitur.

Yes they and they probably saw her for years there parked staring at home .  

I hope even if far apart somehow Kevin does get to rehab with Nicky and they help each other.  I like the idea from Judy above that one saves the other . 

[AriAu]

Quote

Justin Hartley has been knocking it out of the park this season.  He's made Kevin a believable and sympathetic character, surpassing Randall.  That expression of guilt and pain at the end in the car was palpable.  I hope his relapse is dealt with quickly.

Justin Hartley has done a nice job this season, but the writers have done an even better job of making him a 3 dimensional character. On the other hand, they have done Randall no favors and made him so shallow that even SKB's acting cant save it. It was great that Nicky argued to Rebecca that he wasnt just a chance for a movie star to be a hero for a day and Kevin showed himself to be more than that and I hope that he actually follows through and is there for more than a day.

Griffin Dunne IS going to win an Emmy as best guest in a drama. Phenomenal performance.

[Runningwild]

I had to look it up. John Smiley was traded to the Minnesota Twins for the 1992 season.

The more I watch this show, the more I love Kevin and can’t stand Randall and Kate. 

[nexxie]

Please put some lipstick on “old” Rebecca!!!

[Brookside]

4 hours ago, Jillybean said:

I've never forgotten about Kate sitting outside the house (and now you've reminded us 4 times, haha), and that's why I thought it was so weird Randall suggested going there. You don't take someone back to the scene of their unhealthy obsession.

Five times now (see above)!  But I think we can probably blame PTV's incomprehensible changes rather than Jillybean.

Edited February 13, 2019 by Brookside

[Captain Asshat]

12 hours ago, lucindabelle said:

I cannot believe they just left him there. No “you still are” from Rebecca when he says he used to be a person?

hes  or a “sad old man,” he’s squarely middle aged, about Rebecca’s age after all about 55 because remember he’s younger than Jack. Stephen Colbert is 54, for reference.

He's definitely older than 55. I'm turning 55 this year. I was 11 when the Vietnam war ended. Nicky is at *least* in his mid 60s, which is still not an old man, but the life he's lead has definitely taken a physical and mental toll on him. 

Edited February 13, 2019 by Captain Asshat

[Dowel Jones]

1 hour ago, Cementhead said:

The sequin fight was causing me great anxiety.  Eek. 

I can imagine the set crew thinking "This better be a one take scene.  We ain't cleaning up this place three times."

[AV8n]

When Nicky said “I used to be a person...”, he then went on to describe the type of person he used to be and wished he could be again. So not quite as sad as thinking he’s not a person at all anymore.

In his last scene with Kevin in the trailer, he reaches into the fridge for a bottle, shakes it, then put it back. Perhaps he realized it was less full than he remembered.

Will NBC have a This Is Us spinoff with the family at the Pearson’s old address? I need to know more about this family and all the drama with the daughter!

[AuntieMame]

Griffen Dunne is doing an amazing job with the part of Nicky. As are the writers. Sometimes people get so much trauma that full recovery really isn’t possible. I’m also loving Kevin here. I loved, loved, loved Nicky showing us his perspective that being rescued from his one safe place wasn’t as helpful as it might seem from the outside. 

If only the rest of the show was being written so well. I’ve been hating Randall and Kate. Once the situation with their uncle wasn’t a short ride to glory for them, they were out of there. 

I’m glad Kevin stayed because I’ve thought that Kevin took a lot of the Pearson family’s dysfunction. He suffered most and was expected to say nothing around Randall’s ridiculous and far fetched adoption. Kevin has had the fallout of his unstable twin and again, everyone is expected to ignore the elephant in the room of Kate’s eating disorder. Kevin’s need to please and be allowed back in his own family is heartbreaking. 

I think the writers have written themselves into an emotional corner with Kate, Randall and Jack. The characters are no longer consistent so the situations bother the viewer. 

[jmonique]

The beauty of Griffin Dunne's performance is that he's capturing not just what it's like to be a war veteran/hermit with PTSD, but I also 110% can buy him as the older version of Michael Angarano's character. I read that Dunne and Angarano played father and son in a movie a while ago, so it isn't without precedent, but you can totally see the younger man from the Vietnam scenes in Dunne's character. 

At the same time, you can read the conflict in Nicky's face: He's spent years alone, hating himself for what he did and probably not deeming himself worthy of family, and suddenly here are four Pearsons, loud and in technicolor. But 50 years of pain and sorrow and alcoholism and trauma can't be fixed in a weekend. 

As for the look on Rebecca's face upon seeing him, yeah, that was an absolute misstep on the part of Mandy and/or the writers, IMO. The looks she was throwing him were the looks Nicky would have deserved if HE had shown up, barged into their house and dragged them all off to stay at a hotel. Not the other way around.

SUPERFICIAL NOTE: They need to stop filming Kid Kate right next to Milo for a while, given she's half a foot taller than Teenager Kate, as well as Kid Kevin and Kid Randall.

Edited February 13, 2019 by jmonique

[Cowgirl]

7 hours ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

I thought it was very kind of Nicky to go to the VA to make Kevin happy, and it was also kind of him to tell Kevin that he would go to a meeting. Nicky didn't have to do any of that, but he was trying to be nice to Kevin

I agree 100%.  There is still some hope for Nicky.  The actor playing him is amazing, because when Nicky talks sometimes he lets a little spark of life sneak into his eyes, then they harden again, in defense.  (Maybe I'm just reading in what I want to see.)

So, my DVR cut off the ending just as Kevin was taking his second slug from Nicky's bottle.  Did anything else happen after that?

Who are the Schuyler sisters?

Toby's dog is completely adorable.  However, when Toby appeared in his bathrobe, I worried for a second there that he was back in the throes of depression.  

I agree with the poster above who said that it bothered them that Kevin only fixed the INSIDE of the trailer.  I would have, at the very least, bought a tarp and bungeed it to the roof of the trailer. Another thing that bothered me about that scene (though I laughed at Kevin being sure to reiterate that the student film WAS NOT PORN) is that Kevin already has carpentry skills he learned from his dad.  He helped Randal fix up the apartment building he bought.  The only explanation I could think of for his actions here are that maybe HE was being kind, playing a bit dumb and letting Nicky give him some direction, as a bonding experience.  I thought it was a wasted opportunity though, where he could have said something like, "You're really handy Nicky, like dad was. Dad taught me too." 

I was surprised that, when Nicky said that he gets the shakes whenever he leaves his trailer, no one thought that it might be from the DTs (though yes, it's probably a psych problem too). 

When Kevin was on the phone with his girlfriend and saw something and got distracted, I thought it was going to be a picture of his family or Nicky and Jack as boys. 

Edited February 13, 2019 by Cowgirl

[izabella]

16 minutes ago, AV8n said:

Will NBC have a This Is Us spinoff with the family at the Pearson’s old address? I need to know more about this family and all the drama with the daughter!

I swear I thought it was an ad for a new family drama show, and was interested in seeing when that was scheduled to start.

[Cowgirl]

1 minute ago, izabella said:

I swear I thought it was an ad for a new family drama show, and was interested in seeing when that was scheduled to start.

I could have sworn I saw the parents together in a show before, which added to my confusion.

[ShadowFacts]

24 minutes ago, Captain Asshat said:

He's definitely older than 55. I'm turning 55 this year. I was 11 when the Vietnam war ended. Nicky is at *least* in his mid 60s, which is still not an old man, but the life he's lead has definitely taken a physical and mental toll on him. 

It's been established within the show that he's 70 -- I believe Kate asked in the car when the road trip began and Randall replied. 

As to whether Kevin only fixed the inside of the trailer, I believe he said "and the last step is" or something like that, leaving it open that he did other steps including to the roof.  Because otherwise, yeah, it would just be a cosmetic type repair. 

Edited February 13, 2019 by ShadowFacts

[saber5055]

3 hours ago, Rebky said:

The house flipper in me had a real problem with Kevin slapping up some ceiling tile without fixing the source of the leak. It will be ruined the next heavy rain that comes along.

Thank you! Finally someone else noted what I did, that replacing a ceiling tile doesn't fix a roof leak. That tile will be stained just like the other one unless Kevin got on the roof of that old trailer and put down a couple of tarps. Or, even better, put up a new metal roof over the entire thing. This scene was obviously written by people who live where it doesn't rain every two days. Or snow, even in winter.

I hated the going-to-see-our-old-house-that-isn't-there-anymore scenes. But I dislike Kate so much, she can't do or say anything to change that with me. Enough said about her, just read my mind if you want to know more about how much I hate her.

Do we know why Kevin was alone in Nicky's trailer? When he made the phone call to Zoe, then found the bottle? Where was Nicky? What was in the metal box?

An old AA trick is to refill the bottle with water after you've taken a few slugs out of it. Because Nicky would notice for sure that bottle was less full after Kevin chugged on it. People who live alone notice every detail, especially when it's something important, like a bottle of whisky.

I was disappointed in Rebecca and her attitude toward Nicky. Hey, it's not HIS fault his brother was a jackass. Plus they all barge in on him, then all take off again. Well, everyone except Kevin, who is my favorite character now. Kevin and Nicky. Now that would be an interesting show.

Meanwhile, does that trailer have heat? Sewer? Water? It's just sitting out in the woods somewhere. But I guess heat doesn't matter since it never snows in Pennsylvania or gets cold, either.

[Beezella]

14 hours ago, camom said:

"I used to be a person" was kind of heartbreaking.

This was the line of the night for me.

[chitowngirl]

12 hours ago, WhosThatGirl said:

I’m so glad others had the exact same what show am i watching now moment?!?!

Ugh. I hated the moment with Randall and Kate in the House when they were reminiscing and then Randall had a breakthrough and made things super awkward in front of random strangers about “no Kate it wasn’t a great day, dad threw a plate!” Like I understand things like this can happen, you remember things randomly ad at bad times but also kind of seems like Randall didn’t just remember it at that moment. He had clear indications  of that moment it seems like. And even if he didn’t, would he start bringing it up in front of strangers? It just seems like a not Randall thing to do. Then again.. ever since season one I’m not really sure who the hell randall is anymore. It’s odd that SkB continues to get the most award love for this character, Randall is awful.

Sad for Kevin. That last minute broke my heart.  I did enjoy the moment where Rebecca learned Kevin wanted to make the baseball player feel at home in his possible new city because that is Kevin. Yes he was selfish as a teenager, most teenagers are actually, not everyone is a Randall, Kevin generally does just want to make people happy at the end of the day. I think that’s why he liked being an actor too, not just because he liked the attention but because he knew it made people feel good when or if they met him and they enjoyed his show or his movies. 

Yeah.. aside from the Kevin stuff, I found this episode boring. It doesn’t help that it feels like it’s been off for a long time and this episode was a slow one to come back to. 

It was supposed to only be a one week break, but turned into two when the SOTU was rescheduled to a week later.

15 minutes ago, Cowgirl said:

I agree 100%.  There is still some hope for Nicky.  The actor playing him is amazing, because when Nicky talks sometimes he lets a little spark of life sneak into his eyes, then they harden again, in defense.  (Maybe I'm just reading in what I want to see.)

So, my DVR cut off the ending just as Kevin was taking his second slug from Nicky's bottle.  Did anything else happen after that?

Who are the Schuyler sisters?

Toby's dog is completely adorable.  However, when Toby appeared in his bathrobe, I worried for a second there that he was back in the throes of depression.  

I agree with the poster above who said that it bothered them that Kevin only fixed the INSIDE of the trailer.  I would have, at the very least, bought a tarp and bungeed it to the roof of the trailer. Another thing that bothered me about that scene (though I laughed at Kevin being sure to reiterate that the student film WAS NOT PORN) is that Kevin already has carpentry skills he learned from his dad.  He helped Randal fix up the apartment building he bought.  The only explanation I could think of for his actions here are that maybe HE was being kind, playing a bit dumb and letting Nicky give him some direction, as a bonding experience.  I thought it was a wasted opportunity though, where he could have said something like, "You're really handy Nicky, like dad was. Dad taught me too." 

I was surprised that, when Nicky said that he gets the shakes whenever he leaves his trailer, no one thought that it might be from the DTs (though yes, it's probably a psych problem too). 

When Kevin was on the phone with his girlfriend and saw something and got distracted, I thought it was going to be a picture of his family or Nicky and Jack as boys. 

After Kevin took the second drink, we see him in the passenger seat of the car as Rebecca is driving and staring out the window with a pained expression on his face. Pain that he can’t believe he took that drink? Pain of his uncle’s situation? Pain that his father lied to them? We’ll see.

And the Schuyler sisters is a Hamilton reference. Eliza Schuyler married Alexander Hamilton.

[Biggie B]

4 minutes ago, chitowngirl said:

After Kevin took the second drink, we see him in the passenger seat of the car as Rebecca is driving and staring out the window with a pained expression on his face. Pain that he can’t believe he took that drink? Pain of his uncle’s situation? Pain that his father lied to them? We’ll see.

Intercut with adult Kevin driving home with Rebecca were scenes of young Kevin driving home with Rebecca from the autograph signing. In both instances, Rebecca said to Kevin, "I'm so proud of you." That further added to the pained look of adult Kevin, having just relapsed.

[nexxie]

Loved the aftershow with Justin and Griffin Dunne (old Nicky) - I really enjoy all the aftershows!

[debraran]

Sorry for multiple posts!  I haven’t maneuvered the new system from my phone and didn’t see I couldn’t delete.  Thanks for understanding 🤭

I think it’s cemented Kate should never go home again 😄

[Katy M]

2 hours ago, ShadowFacts said:

It really made no sense to me, and also, Pittsburgh is the complete opposite direction than going back to New Jersey, hours away, for two people who had to get back to their homes.  Nothing about that worked for me, including the vignette with the people who lived there.  Non sequitur. 

I'm not sure where Kate flew into, though.  Maybe in that sense, it wasn't that far.  Stupid anyway. And completely unnecessary, both from their point of view and the show.  There is nothing that happened from them standing in that house/being in that neighborhood that couldn't have happened while having a discussion in the car on the way to the airport.  When it got heavy at the big reveal that Jack broke a plate, Randall could have pulled over so as to give Kate his full attention, but that's really the most that needed to happen.  Or, they could have stopped at a restaurant and had their public difference of opinion there.  Nobody would have thought it odd that a pregnant woman would want to stop to eat on the way to the aiport before getting on a long flight.  And nobody would have thought Randall a bad husband for taking an extra half hour or so for that.  And I don't think anybody would have thought any less of them for leaving extra time to eat instead of taking Nicky for his VA tour.    The plates could have looked like the one Jack broke if they really thought they needed a visual reminder.  Which makes more sense than a house that looks nothing like the old house.

[ChicksDigScars]

6 hours ago, Katy M said:

And good for that woman for shutting the door in their faces.  This happens all the time on TV, but does anybody in real life actually go to their old house and ask to go in.  Sure, I've driven by a couple of times when I've been in the area.  I'm not bothering anyone.  I'm driving down a public street.  Nobody knows.  Nobody cares.  But, asking to go inside?  That would be completely insane and inappropriate.  I loved it when Randall and Kate started arguing about their memories and the older couple told them they were about to go out.  Randall's timing is always so awful.  

It's certainly better than having the cops show up at your house and question whether you live there, because a lady called to tell them that her parents were out of town and someone was squatting at their house, partying with the lights on.  And a week earlier, finding a note on your door from the woman's son, with a phone number, telling you that his mom MAY show up, and if she does, here's my number so you can call for an explanation.  Dude, it would have been better had you explained that your mom has dementia BEFORE the cops showed up...twice...on Thanksgiving weekend.  Oh, and at Halloween, the old lady LOCKED my automatic garage door, thinking that she was keeping her parent's stuff safe, so that when I pressed the button, the garage door got stuck and bent all to crap. I thought it was a prank from neighborhood kids until the cops showed up and I started connecting the dots.  Yeah, I may act like the woman who slammed the door in Kate and Randall's faces, the next time a stranger knocks. You'd better have a sash with badges, and a load of Thin Mints, Caramel Delights, and Peanut Butter Sandwiches in your arms if you want me to come to the door with a welcoming smile. 

I've also driven by my childhood home when I've gone back to Wisconsin to visit. I've never gone to the door, but I've driven by WISHING that I could see the inside.  It made such little sense for them to go into the house if it was a complete rebuild. All I could think was, that it wasn't. The frame of the home remained, was deemed safe, someone restored it.  But the show didn't tell us that. They said it was an entirely different house. Why would they want to go in?

[ChicksDigScars]

4 hours ago, DFWGina said:

There is just no way that Rebecca didn't smell the whiskey on Kevin.  That smell lingers and she has to be familiar with it from Jack's old drinking...  She was a drinker at some point in her life (from what they've shown us) -- not as a problem -- just a drinker.  You can definitely smell it on the person.

I worry for Kevin that he won't get helped by his family and will spiral downward again.

I'm going to go out on a very obvious limb and say that Nicky knew.  Either he noticed that the bottle was a lot emptier than when he had been to the trailer the last time, or he smelled it on Kevin. And that's why he agreed to meet him halfway, and say that he'd attend a meeting. 

[WhosThatGirl]

I actually think Kevin might be the only one out of the three who doesn’t wallow in the past that much. And when he does, it is because he kind of has to, he has an addiction problem. His dad has an addiction problem that no one in the family wants to ackowldge. Even now.. it’s pretty brushed off for the most part and that makes me even sadder for kevin and him now relapsing. 

But I agree Randall wallows on about the last and his mission in life to be a great man like his fathers. And Kate is trying to recreate her childhood and all those great memories.

And like I said maybe Kevin does but he kind of has to. He has a addiction that he is predisposed to but he knows next to nothing about it because no one talks about it.

And I will never understand why Rebecca especially after the terrible therapy session didn’t understand that her kids do need to know about the addiction problem. It will possibly run and cycle into their children as well and their families. 

[debraran]

22 minutes ago, ChicksDigScars said:

I'm going to go out on a very obvious limb and say that Nicky knew.  Either he noticed that the bottle was a lot emptier than when he had been to the trailer the last time, or he smelled it on Kevin. And that's why he agreed to meet him halfway, and say that he'd attend a meeting. 

Rebecca missed JAck’s drinking too.  No amount of mints hides that.

I think Kevin emptied the bottle, but not 100% sure

[screenaddict]

I credit Kevin's character growth to Justin Hartley. Remember the first episode, when he was introduced as this spacey, womanizing actor? Now he's become this sensitive soul. 

And I screamed at the TV last night. "Kevin! Put that back right now! Right now! Don't pick that up! Don't drink that! Kevin, put that down right now!"

[Cowgirl]

Thanks @chitowngirl and @Biggie B!  Stupid DVR.  I also look forward to watching the aftershow when I get home tonight. 

I had to laugh at the fact that the little girl at their old homesite asked them to come see her room, then disappeared and they never bothered to make her feel good by going to admire her room.  It was all Kate and Randall's carnival of self-absorption.

I appreciated the look of slight annoyance on young Kevin's face when his mom announced she was taking him to get his card signed, and not his dad.  It seems like he decided when he was pretty young that Dad was it for him and Mom was an annoyance. 

[Katy M]

7 minutes ago, Cowgirl said:

I had to laugh at the fact that the little girl at their old homesite asked them to come see her room, then disappeared and they never bothered to make her feel good by going to admire her room.  It was all Kate and Randall's carnival of self-absorption.

They may have been planning to, but then got kicked out because they were being ridiculous.

Wouldn't it be funny if we found out that they were a family of serial killers and that's what they were arguing about before K&R got there.  The daughter didn't want to kill any more, but her parents did.  She knew that K&R would be in danger if she didn't get rid of them quickly.  Then parents got upset and stashed their daughter in the basement and tied her up while sending granddaughter out to get the people back.  But then when they started arguing about whether or not Jack threw a plate, they realized they were too nuts and just sent them on their way.

I've only seen about 5 episodes of Criminal Minds, but it looks like that may have been one too many.

[Cowgirl]

@Katy M, I would watch that! 

[Amethyst]

Rebecca probably would have been fine meeting Nicky that one time and not seeing him again, even with the memories he has of Jack.  But now she's doing this for Kevin.  Rebecca knows Kevin didn't get much attention from her and Jack when he was a child, and Rebecca didn't take any interest in Kevin as an adult, now she's trying to make up for lost time.  So Rebecca went and delivered that speech to Nicky because this is so important to Kevin.  

I'm glad Nicky said "I used to be a person," rather than a Pearson.  It's nice to think of these people having dreams and ambitions that aren't related to their families.

[Brookside]

8 hours ago, Trillian said:

The glitter fight did not look like fun.  Maybe that’s because, as a mom, I was painfully aware of how difficult it would be to clean up. Rebecca’s the saint here, for not totally losing it when she saw it. 

As a mom, in my house I'm not the one cleaning up after a glitter fight.

7 hours ago, BonnieD said:

Eleven year olds and they've never ordered a pizza before? Okay. That tells me all I need to know about the over-parenting going on there.

I'm in my 50s and I've never ordered a pizza.  Nor have my kids, at least not from my house.

3 hours ago, saber5055 said:

An old AA trick is to refill the bottle with water after you've taken a few slugs out of it. Because Nicky would notice for sure that bottle was less full after Kevin chugged on it. People who live alone notice every detail, especially when it's something important, like a bottle of whisky.

As an alcoholic, he'd also notice at once that it had been watered down.

Edited February 13, 2019 by Brookside