This Is Us Recap” The 20’s”
This Is Us debuted it’s Halloween themed episode, “The 20’s” at the perfect time for a lot of holiday tears.
The fantastic hour just missed our rankings for the best Halloween episodes of all time but it’s a must-watch for fans of the show. Taking viewers back to a new timeline, This Is Us gets to explore a new side of the characters that it has yet been seen. With moody and selfish twenty-year-olds in charge, it’s a fun break from some of the more depressing parts of the season.
In their twenties, the triplets lives are much different from how the audience typically knows them. Kevin is working at a hair salon which he claims is only a temporary job until his pilot season starts. In the meantime, Kate is employed at a diner while she takes night school and spends her free time sitting in front of the spot where her childhood home was.
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Randall has the most stable life with Beth but he suffered from a nervous breakdown a few months ago and seems to be on the path for another one with their baby arriving soon. Basically, “The 20’s” makes it clear that these characters were lost kids desperately trying to figure out their place in the world.
Randall gets the best storyline in “The 20’s,” because his fear of failing at anxiety over being a new father rings more sincere than either Kate or Kevin. Truthfully, the twins aren’t exactly the best people in this time but it’s forgivable considering their age. When the ceiling fan stops working in the nursery, Randall is adamant about fixing it which sends him away to the hardware store.
Unfortunately, he breaks down in tears and the employee ends up comforting him about how babies tend to be a lot less scarier than people think. He makes it home in time for Beth’s home delivery (the roads are closed for Halloween) and the two welcome Tessa (named for the ceiling fan brand name Tessana) into the world.
Back into their childhood, “The 20’s” addresses a few parenting issues throughout the Halloween festivities. Rebecca thinks Jack is too easy on Kate when he allows her to switch costumes last minute, while he claims his wife lets Randall get away with almost anything. When it comes to trick-or-treating, Randall wants to follow his map for the most candy while the twins are adamant about going to haunted house.
It forces the couple to split up and take their kids to different places which already looks like a bad sign. Jack gets the easier job, because Kate is just hoping a cute boy in her class will hold her hand during the haunted house which Kevin scoffs at. Lo and behold though, Kate emerges from the house with said boy but it doesn’t take Jack long to realize that Kevin bribed the kid to be nice to his sister.
Rebecca gets the toughest job of all in “The 20’s,” when she has to explain to Randall that he wasn’t adopted as a replacement. She stresses that his adoption was always meant to be but both mother and son don’t look that satisfied with her answers. She returns home to Jack where she laments about the moment, and the two agree he always has to be there so they can parent together.
Jump back to Beth’s birth, Rebecca admits she’s a little sad Jack couldn’t be there to see the first birth of his grandchild. She sets up a Facebook account to share photos of little Tess, and finally viewers get to see how her relationship with Miguel first started: an online message! Fans who were worried Miguel made a move on Rebecca very quickly after his best friend’s death can now be relieved knowing the guy waited a respectable amount of time.
“The 20’s” does an excellent job of showing the catalysts which pushed The Big Three into the people they are today. Kevin decides to join a comedy troupe after becoming the guy who screws over friends to earn acting roles and Kate ends up moving in with him so she can stop sitting in front of their old house.
Next: This Is Us Recap: “Brothers”
It was a fun detour in a pretty dour season and hopefully This is Us does more pit stops in the future.