The Summer I Turned Pretty returned with the fourth episode of its final season, and, boy, do they just keep getting worse and worse! Listen, if you go searching for a thoughtful or complex show and you decide on The Summer I Turned Pretty, that’s your bad. That being said, all the things that made the show bearable are lost. The fun and nostalgia of teenage summers, innocent and passionate first love, and a little bit of levity; they’re replaced with complexities that Jenny Han and the actors of this show can simply not support — though I’d love to be proven wrong.
The morally grey area that Belly has been written into takes a lot of nuance to justify and I just can’t see it coming. I’m hanging on for the sheer enjoyment of the game of the cursed love triangle and to see my boy Conrad find some peace. I want Belly and Conrad to be together, but, honestly, it’s only because they have no business trying to bring to life any feminist-I-chose-myself plot line with the shallow and lacking writing we currently see Belly sketched with. It’s a shame, too, because Lola Tung has grown into a fine, young actress. The moments she’s allowed to explore complexities are pulled off purely by her emotional registrar; sadly, she’s hardly given anything juicy enough to sink her teeth into. Sorry to be so cynical this week guys, this is getting draining as hell.
Belly’s “Happy” Birthday
Last Stand, episode four of The Summer I Turned Pretty season three, picks up weeks into the catastrophic blowout over Belly and Jeremiah’s engagement. The dust has begun to settle, but tensions still run high as we tune back into the Conklins and the Fishers on Belly’s 21st birthday. Belly is dressed in her waiting uniform, having signed up for a double shift, and is applying band-aids to her blistered ankles as Jeremiah facetimes from his internship at Adam’s company to wish her a happy birthday. Jeremiah is being hazed at work, having pacifiers placed on his desk and being called a nepo baby (I mean…).
Belly has been working relentlessly since we last saw her and enjoying none of it; all she earns is put towards the impending wedding. Jeremiah feels guilty, but Belly assures him he’s working hard too to convince Adam he’s responsible. Say, Belly, maybe if he has to prove how responsible he is at a job he didn’t even earn while you bust your ass waiting tables, he shouldn’t be getting married in three months. To each their own. Honestly, it’s getting unbearable to even follow up on this deluded pair; maybe they do deserve each other.
Laurel and I are getting more and more similar by the episode; any time we hear Jeremiah’s name, we cringe instinctively. Laurel and John try to have a somewhat normal birthday celebration with Belly, trying to ignore the divide that’s been created since the news of the engagement, by making her Mickey Mouse pancakes and giving her a bottle of wine that has been aging alongside her since birth. The thoughtful, parental gesture is quickly deadened by Belly saying, “We can open it with Jeremiah next time he’s down here.” Hey, Belly? Hush for just a minute, okay?
The Kids Aren’t Alright
Unfortunately, Belly can’t just have a simple family breakfast. She pushes Laurel to come wedding dress shopping with her and Taylor between her double shift. But, we can always trust Laurel to dig her heels in and state the blatantly obvious: “I’m sorry, but my mind hasn’t changed. You guys are just too young. It would be such a mistake to get married right now.” While I agree with Laurel, the motherly chill is bordering on freezing. I mean, it is her birthday.
John levels with Laurel, telling her that this is happening, and besides, they aren’t that much younger than they were when they got married. Ding, ding, ding: “And how did that work out?”, Laurel replies curtly. Isn’t every mother’s nightmare watching their daughter repeat their same mistakes?
Though I loathe Adam, it’s nice to see someone putting Jeremiah in his place. At work, Jeremiah is a joke. But not to the secretary Kaleigh (none other than the Kaleigh Adam cheated on Susannah with during her first round of chemo), who tells Jer how handsome he looks in his suit today. Here’s hoping the only reason we’re meeting this woman is to more poignantly frame Conrad’s reaction to Jeremiah’s cheating scandal. Steven, now working with Jeremiah, tries to stay strong on the engagement issue, but he’s soft and loves a bit of flattery. When Jere brings up his open best man spot, Steven crumbles.
Belly, Taylor, and Lucienda (at least someone’s mom is there) head to go bridal shopping… at a prom store. Belly looks miserable surfing the discount racks in a scene that serves as a contrast to season one’s glamorous hunt for a Debutante dress with Susannah and Laurel. Lucienda brings a load over from the discount rack, asking, “Isn’t this a slay?” and gets chastisized by Taylor for shopping for herself. Cringe. The over-the-top teen-ification of Taylor’s mom is lazy, bordering on irritating writing. Here’s hoping they change direction on this incredibly cliché, kid-has-to-parent-the-parent dynamic because it’s just getting stale and sad at this point.
Dress for Distress
Belly is slightly unbearable this episode, but you have to feel for her in the dressing room scene. She comes out so dimmed and so half-hearted in every dress, desperately craving her mother’s presence. Of course, Taylor convinces her to try on one more, and it’s “the one”. Belly still seems underwhelmed, forcing a smile on her face for the sake of Taylor and Lucienda, and buys it. But as eagle-eyed fans spotted: this is not the dress in the trailer. I’ll join Jeremiah and Belly on the delusion train in thinking this means the dress in the promo is her future wedding dress with Conrad. We all need a little fantasy to get through the day.
Belly finally breaks down in her call to Jeremiah, telling him apathetically that she found a dress. Crying over the lack of magic in her engagement experience, Belly asks Jeremiah:
“How are we supposed to do this without both of our moms?”
– Last Stand, episode four of season three of The Summer I Turned Pretty
That’s enough for Jeremiah to huck it to Philly after work with flowers, cake, and a plea to Laurel to accept their engagement. In a painfully uncomfortable, tense sit down discussion where Jeremiah outdoes all previous deluded behavior with the line, “C’mon, Laurel, I know you always wanted me as a son in law” (Laurel’s face and my unadulterated laughter both stem from the very obvious fact that its Conrad who takes that prize), Laurel hammers down on her disapproval of the wedding.
Even Jeremiah’s supposed love-speeches reek of his inferiority complex. In proving their commitment, Jeremiah cites the feeling he’s held onto from Belly “choosing” him. Once again, begging the question, does Jeremiah truly love Belly, or is she more of a trophy in the Conrad-Jeremiah contest that’s been going on their whole lives? Laurel, like me, is unmoved. She turns Jere down and, in a “private” screaming match with Belly, says:
“Belly, I understand that if you decide to do this, I can’t stop you. But you need to understand that I won’t be part of it. I will not be at the wedding.”
– Last Stand, episode four of season three of The Summer I Turned Pretty
Conrad, Cousins, Catastrophe
With that, Jeremiah and Belly pack up the car and head to Cousins, and the summer finally feels like it’s starting. Because, after spending the night on the couch with Jeremiah sleeping between her legs, Belly awakens to see Conrad Fisher in the kitchen about to head out on a run. Every single time these two are in the room together, all you need is one lingering glance to tell you all there is to know: it’s never over. Their bubble is burst per usual by Jeremiah (who Conrad genuinely seems revolted to see as he sits up from between Belly’s legs).
Still avoiding telling his family he got fired from his internship, Conrad has been camping out in Cousins and avoiding Jeremiah’s calls about the wedding. Jeremiah and Belly’s ridiculous lack of understanding over why Conrad may be hesitant to outpour his congratulations over their engagement is truly starting to infuriate me. On Jeremiah’s part, remember when Belly and Conrad holding hands at Thanksgiving was enough to send him into a woe-is-me, I-can’t-be-in-the-same-room-as-you pity party? On Belly’s part, maybe it’s the same reason you could hardly bring yourself to tell him about the engagement in the first place? Conrad said it best in the opening of the season: “She was my girlfriend first.”
With the news that Jeremiah will be leaving and Conrad and Belly will be staying in the house alone, there’s finally a smidge of light at the end of this dark, desperate tunnel season three has wedged us in. A great question to be asking is why is Belly so nervous to stay alone with Conrad? Well, maybe not a great question; those are the ones we don’t know the answer to. Conrad’s nervous, too, hence his haste to book it back to California as soon as he sees the two of them together.
When Conrad finally agrees to chat with Jeremiah about the wedding, we know we have a Jere pouting scene impending. Jere asks Conrad to be his co-best man, and the guilt Conrad feels over his reluctance is immediately evident. But not to someone as underdeveloped as Jeremiah. Conrad, as the sensible, jealous older brother, tells Jeremiah he finds getting married at 21 a bit ridiculous, so Jeremiah paddles away, outraged on his surfboard, telling him:
“I wouldn’t want you standing next to me on my wedding day if you had to fake it.”
– Last Stand, episode four of season three of The Summer I Turned Pretty
While it was four years ago, the last conversation Jere and Conrad had about Belly was that Conrad was clearly still in love with her. Did you think he wouldn’t have to fake it at all, Jere? Belly is also outraged by Conrad’s reaction and tells him off for his comment (so over this storyline, it’s ridiculous). Conrad overhears Jeremiah and Belly making fun of his comments about the wedding and swiftly purchases a one-way ticket home to California.
What comes next, we were all waiting for. As Jeremiah packs his things to go home for the week, Belly confides that she can’t picture leaving him for a full semester in Paris. Good, Jeremiah concedes, he didn’t want her to go anyway. The quiet devastation on Belly’s face is obvious, and so too is the weight of Jeremiah’s words: his comfort is more important than Belly’s growth. One of my true wants from this season is for Belly to realize she’s more than a fixture in these boy’s lives to make them feel secure. Conrad has had his growth, Belly’s fighting for her own, leave Jeremiah to figure it out too.
“What Have I Done?”
Belly, in a moment we all held our breath for, goes upstairs and finally erupts into devastated sobs. Sobs over her mother, sobs over Susannah, sobs over growing up. We’ve all been there. Landslide playing in the background is doubly devastating. Conrad, having gathered his belongings to catch his flight, stops cold by her door, with his forehead placed defeatedly on its frame, as he hears Belly cry.
Suddenly, Belly gets a text that Conrad has agreed to be the best man. Even though we know it’s killing him. Racing downstairs to thank him, we find Conrad’s bags nowhere to be seen and him bent over the dishes; “You’re ridiculously welcome”, he jokes. As Conrad leaves for the store, confirming he’s staying behind in Cousins to make sure Belly’s okay, she notices the muffins he’s baked for her. Seriously, how obvious the right choice is is just making Belly unbearable now. He tells her he only bakes on special occasions: “Happy belated birthday, Belly”. Shocked, he remembered (please), he tells her, “I always remember”.
As Belly runs over to him for a hug and Conrad buries his face in her hair, we finally get a good, heartbreaking moment with Conrad’s simple internal thoughts: “What have I done?” The only thing keeping me from switching the show off completely at this point is the promise of Conrad’s perspective next week. Bring me the news of Paris, bring me the discovery of the cheating, bring me these two talking senses into each other for five days straight. The Notebook references are sure to be in full swing by next week.
The Summer I Turned Pretty has never been high-brow television, obviously, and usually teeters between cringey and a drama you can’t turn off. But this season is just getting grating. Maybe it’s just Belly still acting how she did when she was sixteen, or maybe it’s the fact that I’m affronted with more Jeremiah than I’ve ever been. Hopefully, with Jeremiah gone, leaving Belly and Conrad will have to share the Cousins house alone, the delusion will finally begin to fade, and the romance we’ve all hung on for will begin to bloom again. With how much they’re bating us with it, I’ll be irate if it doesn’t. Honestly, I don’t know how Belly digs herself out of this hole, and I don’t even think she deserves Conrad anymore, but I don’t need thoughtful, deep plots from this show; that’s not why we watch it. Just have them be together, and let’s put a bow on this trainwreck.
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