This Is Us Review: The Game Plan (Season 1 Episode 5)
Our suspicions on Jack’s tragic fate are affirmed in This Is Us Season 1 Episode 5.
After some speculation, it turns out our fears are true: Jack is no longer with us. Kate confirms this in “The Game Plan” when she shows Toby an urn with her father’s ashes.
I’m still ruminating on this one.
On one hand, it’s fitting for a show that is best characterized as bittersweet, and that has a nature of unmasking the flaws of a loving family, to provide this blow to the audience. It’s on par with the story and the tone of the show.
However, on the other hand, Jack’s absence squashes any opportunity for present-day stories, and that feels like a loss in itself.
Granted, we don’t know when Jack passed away, so it can be that we’ll still see Milo Ventimiglia in scenes with Sterling K. Brown, Chrissy Metz, and Justin Hartley. But there is also a chance that we won’t, and I can’t help but feel regretful about that.
Rebecca and Jack’s scenes take place before the kids are born (in fact, they takes place the night the babies are conceived), and, if I’m being honest, I don’t really care for them this time.
Maybe it’s because I have trouble consolidating who Rebecca is here with the person we’ve gotten to know.
Her feelings about motherhood, and not wanting to take part in it, are so unwavering and clear. And yet, we see how fiercely she loves her children once they arrive. We know how much that role means to her.
I wasn’t sure what point the show was trying to convey in making Rebecca so strongly against having kids, but then I realized that the scenes aren’t so much about her as they are about Jack.
What contrasts Rebecca’s aversion to parenthood is Jack’s own readiness and pull for it.
The significance of that is seen through Kate, who cherishes the tradition of watching the Pittsburgh Steelers play because it’s something that she did with her dad. The emotion that comes with preserving the memory of her father is felt so deeply because we see how much Jack wanted to grow a family.
There is a theme throughout this episode about the continuum of life.
There’s a lot of talk about wanting kids and not wanting kids, of keeping future generations going, and the idea of immortality through our children. Because Jack is gone, his legacy is carried through Kevin, Kate, and Randall. His teachings, his impact, his spirit, these are all things that the Big Three have in some ways inherited, for better or for worse, and there’s beauty in that.
When Kevin and William watch the girls, after Randall and Beth take a night to themselves, the question of what is left behind after death is cautiously addressed.
After initially fumbling with his words and scaring his nieces, Kevin delivers an eloquent, philosophical monologue about life and loss to Tess and Annie. Considering how doubtful Kevin is about his own capabilities, the speech is surprisingly moving, and even convincing.
As Kevin explains to the young, innocent minds before him that death was a natural progression of life, I oddly felt a moment of repose myself.
While experiencing the death of a loved one is unquestionably painful — sometimes debilitatingly so — it’s also something you have to accept because it’s just the way things are, and some comfort can be taken from that.
Kevin is quickly becoming a favorite.
His cluelessness mixed with his unexpected insight makes him a delight. From the way he solemnly spoke about Jack, I’m very curious to see what the relationship was like during his teenage years or early adulthood. Especially after what we witnessed in “The Pool,” I think this particular father-son relationship will reveal itself to be painfully complicated.
While I would normally be more upset about Jack not being in the present-day story, Kevin’s words have lulled me into a state of acceptance. What Jack’s death means for the entire family, and how it affects the narrative as a whole is going to be interesting to explore from this point on.
Other final thoughts:
- It bugs me that Kate and Toby are constantly seen eating so blandly. How about a delicious fruit smoothie or a Greek yogurt topped with berries and granola for breakfast? Eating healthy could be enjoyable, just saying.
- I adored William’s Wise Owl to Kevin’s dopey Labrador. They have great acting chemistry.
- I hope we don’t see an apparition of Jack. It’s a tired trick and I hope the show doesn’t go there.
What did you think of this episode of This Is Us? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
Reviewer Rating:
User Rating:
This Is Us airs Tuesdays at 9/8c on NBC.
Shabnaj Chowdhury
Shabnaj is a pop-culture enthusiast who spends much of her time enabling her coffee addiction and thinking about Jon Snow's hair. Some of her favorite shows include Friday Night Lights, The Leftovers, and Game of Thrones. Shabnaj also loves to write creative non-fiction.