It’s been a loooong, strange fifth season of This is Us, with COVID production delays forcing several hiatuses between episodes since the fall 2020 season premiere.
For one, all the stories deal with the Pearsons’ career joys — Kate’s found hers, and the others have lost or might lose theirs.
At Kate and Toby’s, a shower pipe upstairs is loose and water is leaking through the kitchen ceiling.
Toby doesn’t want to ask Miguel, despite his construction background, because he doesn’t want to “send up the Pearson bat signal” and have to spend the day talking about, then crying about, then talking about crying about his feelings.
He then says, “People only look for leaks where the water’s coming out, but it’s the pressure that’ll get you.” Metaphorically, this suggests people should check on loved ones even when they seem fine, and people should open up before things become overwhelming.
Kevin orders an emergency meeting with his team to book a new project.
He publicly melted down on The Manny, walked away from a Broadway play , and walked away from Foster’s set when the twins were born.
Disrupting the meeting’s ensuing silence, Nicky says he wishes they still made shows like Bonanza — it featured a man’s man.
Then Zoe says Kevin always fully commits to things, even making unintended situations into something he “wanted all along.” Zoe says it’s a compliment — essentially, he easily adapts to change and the needs of others around him.
In a college-era flashback, after Kate’s breakup with Marc, Rebecca gushes over Kate having a job interview with a colleague.
Rebecca notes that Toby lights up when Kate’s happy, like Rebecca always felt seeing Kate’s joy when she was a child.
Virtually absent from her life for a year and a half, he’d reached out when he saw her magazine cover engagement news, and expressed excitement about attending the wedding.
Rebecca says she always sees all of Kate — every Kate she’s been or might still be — and that no matter what, Kate was always easy to love.
This scene is connected to a flashback of Kate telling her mother about getting a job at the diner and saying she should stop hoping for much from her.
Kate asks how she kept that faith and Rebecca says that “real joy is never gone forever,” and Kate just needed time to find that joy again herself.
In a time-jumping montage, we see a progression of intertwined events for young Beth with her dancing and adult Beth with her dance studio that culminates in young Beth throwing out her dance shoes and adult Beth closing the studio, her business a COVID casualty after masked in-person classes became Zoom classes that dwindled in attendance until Beth couldn’t afford to continue.
Worried that Beth is feeling worse about losing the studio and returning to corporate life than she’s letting on, Randall asks Déjà to watch Beth during the day.
Déjà tries to convince Randall not to push Beth to talk before she’s ready or try to “fix things.” Randall declines her advice, but when Déjà finally confesses that Beth is cleaning out the studio, Randall seems to actually listen to her last note: Beth doesn’t need a hero, he should just be there for her.
Back on campus, she finally opens up about having her dance career dreams crushed despite working so hard for so long, always closely studying her performances in the mirror to improve.
It’s a lesson all parents and partners could use… although we can still hope all the Pearsons maintain/regain/save their joys.