This Is Us Season 4, Episode 15 takeaways: Randall has a rocky start in therapy
By Noah Mussay
This Is Us Season 4, Episode 15 saw Randall attend his first therapy session where things got off to a rocky start.
This Is Us Season 4, Episode 15 started with a flashback of The Big Three in seventh grade. It’s report card day, and while Kevin and Kate’s priorities seem to lie elsewhere, Randall’s not thrilled to have received an A- in Geometry.
While Jack and Rebecca assure him that it’s no big deal, Randall’s adamant that he’s going to contest his grade. This worries Rebecca, who tells Jack that Randall’s anxiety is getting worse and suggests that he may need to see a guidance counselor.
However, Jack brushes her off and tells her that Randall just needs to blow off some steam. So, he takes him out running on a racetrack, and as we’ve seen this season, Randall goes on to use running as a coping mechanism.
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Randall was raised by Jack, a self-sufficient individual who didn’t talk about his issues, namely his experiences in Vietnam.
For all of their good qualities, Jack and Rebecca were not equipped to help Randall through some of his toughest times, so Randall had to find his way through. Unfortunately, it is becoming more apparent that Randall is simply running from his problems using exercise as a band-aid as he awaits the results of Rebecca’s MRI.
So, as Beth points out early in the episode, seeking counseling is a huge step.
He’s a bit apprehensive to open up once his therapist acknowledges that she recognizes him because he’s a public figure. Nevertheless, he pushes through and dominates the conversation.
When Dr. Melfi tries to direct the conversation toward Rebecca’s condition, Randall denies Rebecca’s contribution to his anxiety. However, he can’t deny it for long once they’re interrupted by a text from Kevin, who’s decided to take Rebecca to her follow-up appointment, and Randall tells Dr. Melfi that he’s not thrilled:
"“My mother depends on me. I’m the only one who can take care of her. It’s been that way a long time. […] If I’m not taking care of her, who will?”"
He tells her that since Kevin is a recovering alcoholic and Kate’s raising a son with special needs, the responsibility has fallen on him to oversee Rebecca’s medical care:
"“And if you think this is new information to me, if you think I’m having some kind of revelation right now, I’m not. Which is why this is a waste of time.”"
When Randall tells her that if it weren’t for him, “this whole family would have fallen apart,” Dr. Melfi challenges that notion, which frustrates Randall, and he storms out.
To be fair, Randall’s correct that Rebecca has relied on him a bit too much in the past, as we saw in Season 4, Episode 8. However, as an adult, it’s time for him to take responsibility for his life and allow Rebecca, Kevin, and Kate to take responsibility for theirs. Right now, his attention needs to be on his health, Beth, and the girls.
Speaking of Beth, she’s sitting on the couch waiting for Randall when he gets home. He sits down next to her and tells her that he tried, but he believes that therapy isn’t for him. Beth suggests that he give it another go, but Randall shuts her down, saying that he’s fine although she thinks he needs it.
To this, Beth admits that she’s the one that needs him to go because, since the break-in, she’s also been barely keeping it together:
"“[…] I want to tell you. I need to. You’re my person. Unless you’re gonna get the help you need…I can’t.”"
So, Randall ends up going back. In my prediction for the episode, I said that Randall would succeed at getting the help he needs because he wants to be perfect for his wife and kids. Randall went into his first therapy session thinking he was doing it for himself, so it was hard for him to open up.
However, I believe that with Beth’s insistence that he needs to get better so that she can confide in him, something changed. Now, he’s doing it for her because Randall Pearson has never wanted to fail his wife. He’s doing it to help her, but in the process, he’ll get the tools he needs to help himself.
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What did you think of This Is Us Season 4, Episode 15? What do you think is to come for Randall and Kevin’s brotherhood? Sound off below!
This Is Us returns on Tuesday, March 10th at 9pm ET on NBC.