This Is Us Review: The Waiting Room (Season 3 Episode 15)
This Is Us Season 3 Episode 15, “The Waiting Room,” has a lot of waiting and not quite enough payoff to completely win us over with this bottle episode.
This newest installment has plenty of emotion to keep us holding on to every word uttered in that claustrophobic hospital waiting room. Yet it’s no surprise This Is Us isn’t able to thrive in the moments where it is rehashing and rebottling season-long drama.
“The Waiting Room,” is memorable, but it’s not exactly enjoyable.
When “The Waiting Room,” succeeds it does so not by thinking outside the box but by confining itself to a box.
The glass walls of the waiting room act as the perfect catalyst for Pearsons to anxiously await the fate of Kate’s baby boy.
The dialogue at times is mundane and bizarre as Kevin and Randall bicker over who needs the phone charger more while Rebecca contemplates how the wall sockets look like faces. Yet it is in these more spontaneous moments that This Is Us succeeds by replicating the human experience in an honest way.
Every sincere moment is complimented brilliantly by the background noise of a busy hospital and droning television. There’s no music or title card that allows us to escape the Pearsons and that’s not always a bad thing when they ease back on the theatrics of it all.
This episode relies on less significant reveals to keep us invested until the big baby reveal and for the most part there’s enough shock value to stick around.
Anyone could guess the water bottle Kevin has been carrying around with him is not actually filled with water, yet seeing the brief look of surprise and disappointment as Zoe takes a swing is still heartbreaking.
In a more hectic episode, we may have missed a detail like this but with the Pearsons under a magnifying glass, even the tiniest of interactions are exposed.
An admirable moment we may not have gotten had it not been for this bottle episode is the overwhelming and gutwrenching recollection Rebecca gives of the waiting room the night Jack died.
With each detail she rambles off, Mandy Moore delivers another wonderful performance of passion and grief in the absence of Jack. This woman is singlehandedly keeping this season on its feet.
I am disappointed to see Rebecca’s odd behavior isn’t the result of her suffering the first symptoms of whatever illness she is living with in the flash forwards. Kate’s baby drama would be the perfect red herring for Rebecca to fall ill and begin tying the two time periods together.
Hopefully, this focus on Rebecca’s state of mind will come back into play as we creep closer to the season finale.
That being said the ending to this episode, while predictable, is still lovely. Allowing us a moment with Toby, Kate, and their premature baby boy is an emotional event that perfectly captures the hope and sorrows these parents are feeling knowing their baby isn’t safe just yet.
Kate naming her boy Jack is a whole thing in itself, but asking for her father to look over him is just too much for one box of tissues to handle.
There are no private matters amongst the Pearsons in this episode and it is exciting to think everything about these characters is fair game. Unfortunately, the discussion can only carry on for so long before certain topics and people become exasperating.
Despite their more empathetic moments in the waiting room, Kevin and Randall’s behavior have just completely turned me off from rooting for anything they do.
Kevin rudely asking Madison why she is waiting with them after the girl goes out of her way to get everyone donuts is one example of the character causing unnecessary drama — and it’s not even Kevin at his worst in the waiting room.
Randall, on the other hand, continues to argue with Beth about her choice in a career when he doesn’t even have the heart to mean what he’s saying.
You can’t completely fall in love with an episode like this when the entire season has been building resentment towards these characters and still expects us to enjoy watching them at their worst.
This Is Us sets out recreate the horrible experience that is a hospital waiting room by sticking us with the spiraling Pearsons as they are forced to air their dirty laundry.
One has to appreciate when This Is Us takes a chance and experiments with its formatting. It is that spunk and individuality that makes these kinds of installments memorable regardless of how good they actually are.
“The Waiting Room,” is heartbreaking and heartwarming at the best of times. Unfortunately, this episode hinges on conflict and the one thing this season has struggled to keep us invested in is the conflict.
Extra Thoughts About The Episode:
- Um, did no one actually tell Madison about the baby? She is gone for the announcement and Miguel doesn’t say anything when she gives him the stuffy.
- Also, Baby Jack has a Ruth Bader Ginsburg stuffy — his parents are awesome!
- For 26+ hours in a hospital without a shower, these people are still looking rather fresh.
- Power Outlets do look like little surprised faces!
- Miguel gives me such Jerry from Parks and Recreation vibes during this episode, especially when he thinks Toby is being serious about Kate wanting to see him first.
- Vodka in the water bottle, such a high school move Kevin.
What did you think of this episode of This Is Us? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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This Is Us airs Tuesdays at 9/8c on NBC.
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Alicia Gilstorf
Alicia is a Rotten Tomatoes Certified Critic and a Critics Choice Association member. She credits her passion for TV to workplace sitcoms, paranormal dramedies, and coming-of-age stories. In her free time, Alicia loves to curl up with a good book and lose herself in a cozy game. Keep a lookout for her coverage of Ghosts. You can also find her work on Eulalie Magazine and Cool Girl Critiques. Follow Alicia on social media: @aliciagilstorf