“This Is Us” never fails to disappoint, especially for a finale. The season five finale of “This Is Us” aired on May 25, 2021, where the episode is about Kevin and Madison’s wedding day. In “The Adirondacks,” we find out if Kevin and Madison say, “I Do” and a major flash-forward scene in the future set five years later involving Kate.
Spoiler alert warning
Are Kevin and Madison Married?
From the beginning of the finale, Madison is debating whether she should marry Kevin. A glimpse is shown of Madison’s past when she was younger when her mother left her and her father, and her mother gave Madison these earrings that she would wear on her wedding day. In another flashback, Madison and her past lover break up and she almost binge-eats to make herself feel better. I hope there is more of Madison’s past in season six, and I want to know more about why she is not close to her father.
2 hours before the wedding, Madison talks to Kevin and decides not to marry him. Madison realizes that in the past, she has accepted any love and affection from men because she felt she was not worthy of it, and as much as she is in love with Kevin, she feels deep down that Kevin does not feel the same way, and she is right.
“I can’t marry someone who’s not in love with me…. I know it’s ironic, but I think you have finally helped me realize that I am worthy of that.”
Madison
I knew from the beginning of season five that Kevin and Madison are not supposed to be together. I see and feel no chemistry between them, Kevin only proposed to Madison because he felt that was the “right thing to do” and believed if he married her, they would become a family. I hope in the final season, Kevin and Madison find the love they both deserve, co-parent together, and still be a family.
After the cancellation of the wedding, the Pearsons all come together to bring comfort to Kevin. Rebecca then reveals she wants Kevin to build her the House, the house Jack was going to build for Rebecca. I look forward to seeing how the house gets built next season.
Did Toby take the Job?
For Kate and Toby, Toby decides to consider a job offer in San Francisco, I do not understand why Toby would even consider taking a job in San Francisco when Toby knows he will be away from Kate most of the time (three days a week when the office re-opens) and expects Kate to quit her job as an assistant teacher. Kate then calls Phillip (her boss) to resign from her job, but he rejects her resignation. Phillip explains how the students love Kate, she is talented, useful and losing her would be a great loss. I thought what Phillip did was nice because his words made Kate realize how she is and was meant for this job.
Toby then comes to talk to Kate and decides not to take the job offer in San Francisco. But Kate wants him to take the job while she will still work as a teacher assistant, that they will work through this and have kind of a long-distance relationship. I feel like the decision that they made was the wrong decision. Kate should have let Toby not take the job in San Francisco, and Toby could have found another job in LA, he just needed to be patient.
Flash-Forward
The flash-forward scene that shocked viewers was Kate being re-married to her boss, Phillip. I am shocked that Kate and Toby will divorce in the future because I love them as a couple. But I think divorcing in the future illustrates how sometimes marriages unexpectedly do not work out, and two people can easily grow apart without realizing it.
I am not looking forward to seeing Kate and Toby split, but I am interested in seeing how Kate and Phillip come together.
Rebecca and Randall share a moment
Some moments in the finale were tearful and gave the audience clarity, like Rebecca and Randall having the conversation about his trip to New Orleans to know more about his birth mother. Rebecca wants to know what happened on the trip, and Randall has been hesitant to talk to her because he does not want to upset her, does not want her to be jealous, or make her feel less worthy.
When Randall finally tells Rebecca about the trip, she gets emotional, and Randall changes the subject, probably to break the awkwardness. But later, they have this moment where they both get closure, Rebecca apologizes as to why she hid Randall’s birth father from him and why she was emotional.
“I knew things and I hid them, and I am very ashamed…. if I cry it’s because I know what I robbed from my favorite person and it’s not because I’m jealous.”
Rebecca
Beth and Tess have Mother and Daughter Vibes
Beth and Tess had this rocky relationship through season five and shared a moment in the finale. Tess has been in a bad mood since the beginning of the episode, and we learn that she is uncomfortable in her dress. Beth being the wonderful Mom she is, works to fix the problem to make her daughter happy. When Beth transforms the old bridesmaid dress into a new dress that makes her feel comfortable, Tess apologizes for being terrible to Beth and wants her to know she loves her.
Tess: You’ve gotten a lot right… I love you Mom and I’m sorry I forget to say it for the next ten years
Beth: One time will have to be enough
Five for Five for Malik
Another tiny plot in the finale is Malik applied and got accepted into four top colleges in Philadelphia. He also got accepted into Harvard in Boston. I like Malik because he is a young Black man who is educated and chasing his dreams despite being a teenage father.
I like Deja and Malik together, and I am interested to know what decisions he makes in the final season. In season five, the show also revealed that in the future, Deja is working to be a doctor, and she is also pregnant, and I hope Malik is the father and that they are still together.
The final season of “This Is Us” will return in 2022 with 18 episodes uninterrupted, and I am excited and nervous about what’s in store. We finally get to see what happens in the future, and I hope “This Is Us” has a beautiful ending for an incredible show.
