This Is Us – Six Thanksgivings

By: Maddie Ruby

Thanksgiving was the theme of last week’s This Is Us episode. We got a look into six different Pearson-linked Thanksgivings, all with twists and turns of course. Some questions were answered, and some new and unexpected information was given. This episode had the flashback factor and was very emotional as well I thought, but in a good way.

The first Thanksgiving we will talk about is the last Thanksgiving while the Pearson kids are still at home…and seemingly the last one while Jack (Milo Ventimiglia) is alive. Jack and Rebecca (Mandy Moore) are cooking Thanksgiving for six, including Miguel (Jon Huertas) as their only guest, when they hear laughing in the other room – something they find odd due to the normal fighting between their teenaged children. They come to find that Kevin (Logan Shroyer) and Kate (Hannah Zeile) laughing over Randall’s (Niles Fitch) college essay question about who had the greatest impact on his life. Obviously, everyone assumes that he would pick the fireman that brought him to the hospital’s door step. Randall looks deeper into the question, as he always does, and says that it is flawed because no one person has the greatest impact on someone’s life. They eat dinner with Miguel, who is having a rough time due to his recent divorce. He confides in Jack about how he is worried his ex-wife is going to turn his kids against him.

We then turn to the present time where Randall (Sterling K. Brown) and Beth (Susan Kelechi Watson) are bringing their daughters to the soup kitchen to help on Thanksgiving and also promote Randall’s campaign. Tess (Eris Baker) isn’t feeling well and decides to stay home, where Toby (Chris Sullivan) and Kate (Chrissy Metz) are going to be helping prepare dinner while Randall and Beth are gone. Randall, Beth, Annie (Faithe Herman) and Deja (Lyric Ross) all head to the soup kitchen where Jae-Won (Tim Jo) meets them. He is annoyed at the fact that earlier Beth decided they were going to a different soup kitchen because the original soup kitchen is the biggest in Philadelphia and the media is covering it, with Randall’s opponent Councilman Brown handing out food there instead of Randall. Beth expresses that Randall cares more about connecting with the civilians instead of showing himself off in the media and argues with Jae-Won on this. Later, Jae-Won says he convinced a photographer to come there and Beth says it is not a good idea. Randall pretty much just tells Jae-Won that Beth is his wife no matter what and that he can leave if he has any issues with and so he does.

As their serving the food, Deja thinks about how she was on the other side at a point. Annie scolds Deja for giving out too many cookies, but Deja explains that the people they’re giving the cookies to need them and that the person in charge doesn’t get what it’s like to have to come to a soup kitchen.

After the outburst with Jae-Won, Beth questions Randall on how many of her ideas he really thinks are good and how many he agrees with to make her feel better. The conversation is interrupted with texts from presumably both Tess and Kate needing them to come home.

Back at Randall’s home, Toby went to check on Tess to see if she was feeling any better when he runs into her holding multiple feminine products. They both scream, and Toby tells Kate this is a moment for her to practice some mothering skills and talk to Tess. Kate talks to Tess, who is very embarrassed, and starts talking about how soon Tess will have her first kiss and first boyfriend. Tess corrects Kate and says “or girlfriend,” hinting that Tess is either bi, like her grandfather was, or a lesbian. Kate promises to keep this part a secret.

Another Thanksgiving in the episode takes place in Vietnam. Jack and Nicky (Michael Angarano) are talking and Jack expresses concern for a young boy who hurt his foot on the wire fence. Nick says this means the wire is doing its job, but Jack is worried about the young boy’s heath. Jack helps the mom of the young boy, a local village woman, carry water and a picture of it is snapped during it. This is the same picture Kevin (Justin Hartley) carries around of the woman wearing the necklace. Jack brings fish to the woman and her family and sees how much pain the boy is in. No matter what he cannot get Nicky, who is a medic, to help the young boy. Jack does his best and in return the woman gives him the necklace, answering the question of how he got it.

When Jack returns to camp Nicky explains why he didn’t want to help using a story about his first commanding officer. When he first arrived, he was very nervous so most of the men in his unit made fun of him. Nicky’s commanding officer, “Bones,” is the only person who got them to respect Nicky. Sadly, Bones was killed by the Viet Cong as his location was discovered because of a woman that was in the village who they were always kind to and never suspected her to cause harm. “You can be nice to them all you want, Jack. But they’re not just women and children,” Nicky states.

In another flashback, William (Ron Cephas Jones) is playing piano when a man [(who you will remember we learned last season was his lover Jesse (Denis O’Hare)] comes up to him and they get introduced. This is what starts their friendship. Jesse and William talk about addiction and Jesse admits he hates Thanksgiving and it is depressing because his family just questions his sobriety when they are together for the holiday. William invites him to come listen to some jazz playing with other ex-addict musicians and Jesse agrees to go.

Lastly, we come back to the present where Miguel and Rebecca are going to his daughter Amber’s (Yara Martinez) house for Thanksgiving before going to Randall’s home. Miguel is nervous and feels like the only reason they were invited was because his ex-wife couldn’t make it. During dinner things are awkward between Miguel and his kids. Matters get even worse when Miguel’s son snaps at Rebecca, claiming she stole Miguel from his mother when really they got together way after Miguel’s divorce and Jack’s passing. Ten years later to be exact. Miguel is not happy with this accusation and says they can treat him any way they like, but they have to respect Rebecca. Amber seems to see her father’s good intentions and grabs his hand and holds it.

Rebecca and Miguel arrive to Randall’s house, finding Toby with takeout food because he burned the real dinner. He is feeling terrible about this, thinking he is a failure, when Kate tells him what he did was “Jack Pearson” magic.

Teenaged Randall finishes his college essay speech in the background. He remarks not one person was his greatest impact because he has been impacted by so many people and will continue to be, but if the question must be answered then it was the fireman. Various Thanksgivings play in a montage. In the present, they all sit around with a giant teddy bear as the head of the table. There is a tablet on the bear with Kevin video-chatting them, so he can be a part of Thanksgiving from Vietnam. This was Annie’s surprise all along.