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This Is Us Season 1, Episode 2 rewind: Cracks surface in Rebecca and Jack’s marriage

By Jennifer Lind-Westbrook

THIS IS US -- "The Big Three" Episode 102 -- Pictured: (l-r) Mandy Moore as Rebecca, Mackenzie Hancsicsak as Kate, Milo Ventimiglia as Jack, Parker Bates as Kevin, Lonnie Chavis as Randall -- (Photo by: Ron Batzdorff/NBC)
THIS IS US -- "The Big Three" Episode 102 -- Pictured: (l-r) Mandy Moore as Rebecca, Mackenzie Hancsicsak as Kate, Milo Ventimiglia as Jack, Parker Bates as Kevin, Lonnie Chavis as Randall -- (Photo by: Ron Batzdorff/NBC) /
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On the This Is Us Season 1, Episode 2, “The Big Three,” Kate and Jack face the cracks in their “perfect” marriage, Kevin learns walking away from The Manny has far-reaching consequences, and Randall tries to figure out how William will fit into his life.

This Is Us Episode 2 begins to settle into the groove of exploring episodic storylines for Kate, Kevin and Randall as well as revisiting moments from their pasts. These flashbacks give us a clearer picture of who Jack and Rebecca are as individuals, as parents and as a couple.

The challenges of being an interracial family begin to be addressed as this intensifies the sibling rivalry between a young Kevin and Randall.

Kate grows frustrated at her inability to lose weight, particularly because Toby is making strides while Kate isn’t seeing any results. She and Toby’s relationship is progressing, but Toby is determined to make their relationship more about numbers on a scale.

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Kate’s weight has been an issue since her childhood, and Rebecca tries to handle it without smashing her eight-year-old daughter’s self-esteem. She doesn’t get much help from her husband who chooses to coddle Kate, unable to bear causing her any disappointment.

The big issue in Rebecca and Jack’s marriage is his drinking which has apparently been escalating over the years. Rebecca finally throws down the gauntlet, demanding that Jack “be a man” and fix it.

Another major character is introduced, Miguel (John Huertas), who is Jack’s best friend and only confidante outside his immediate family.

Randall and Beth continue to adjust to William’s presence in their home. There are trust issues because of William’s former drug problems. William asks for a few dollars every morning to ride the bus and disappears for the entire day, causing Beth and Randall even more reason for concern.

Randall remains conflicted about his feelings regarding his biological father, but he can’t walk away from the man who has stage 4 stomach cancer.

Beth reveals to William that Randall has a compulsive need to be perfect, and this drove him to a nervous breakdown years earlier. Beth is protective of Randall, so she has no problems asking William questions about how he spends his days, if he’s using and if he’s really sick.

William reveals he travels to his apartment in Philadelphia to feed his cat, Clooney. Annie has asthma, so bringing Clooney to the house will cause problems. William’s fear is if he doesn’t tread lightly, they’ll ask him to leave. William feels better around Randall and his family. He’s happy to have something to care about other than his cat.

This is a breakthrough moment for Beth, Randall and William. William isn’t a bad guy, he’s a victim of bad choices.

Kevin learns artistic differences aren’t grounds enough to walk away from The Manny. He attends a big party Hollywood party –with Kate and Toby in tow — to try to convince the head of the network to release him from his contract. The man threatens to torpedo Kevin’s career if he walks away.

This Is Us
(Photo by: Vivian Zink/NBC) /

Kevin calls Randall for advice. He also admits he hasn’t been a great brother, so we know the sibling rivalry hasn’t magically resolved.

Kevin decides to leave California and head to New York to do a play.

“The Big Three” sheds light on the challenges facing someone who is obese from Kate’s viewpoint. Everything is about weight. It factors into every aspect of Kate’s life.

Jack promises Rebecca he’ll quit drinking because nothing is more important to him than her. He gives her a moon necklace (this isn’t a random choice) which she continues to wear three decades later.

There’s a lingering shot of the slow cooker. Knowing how this everyday appliance eventually alters the lives of the Pearsons forever, it’s no longer just an establishing shot. The smallest details can turn into big picture stuff on This Is Us. This means viewers can either drive themselves crazy reading meaning into everything, or accept the genius of the show is how carefully constructed every minute of every scene has been from the start.

The biggest bombshell comes in the episodes final minutes when Rebecca arrives at Randall’s, not with Jack, but with Miguel.

Next. This Is Us: What's up with Miguel?. dark

This Is Us Season 3 premieres Tuesday, September 25 at 9/8c on NBC. Tune in to see what’s in store for the Pearsons.

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