This Is Us Review: The Pool: Part Two (Season 4 Episode 2)

This Is Us Season 4 Episode 2, “The Pool: Part 2,” takes us back to what we know while still managing to cover new ground in astounding ways.

This Is Us perfectly executes a season premiere that looks nothing like the show we have come to love and then turns around to introduce a traditional Pearson episode that gives us everything we were worried would be lost in this new departure from the Big Three.

The premiere does what is necessary to show us This Is Us has a future. “The Pool: Part 2” does what’s necessary to prove that the show we fell in love with is here to stay — and both do so with flawless execution.

But if we have to choose favourites, I’m a sucker for the Pearson family and the episodes that capture their domestic beauty with intertwining timelines that are incredibly complex and stories that are so incredibly human. This episode does that and so much more.

This Is Us has done a wonderful job of creating central themes for each episode that tie everything together with a common goal in mind. Not only does this format give each episode its own purpose, but it allows all these mismatched characters and stories to come together without feeling forced.

With the premiere, the theme focused on strangers and with “The Pool: Part Two” the theme revolves around teenagers and the moment their parents realize their children are growing up. This is a strong theme that ultimately allows this episode the ability to succeed.

Revisiting the public pool with an older Big Three is the perfect catalyst to set in motion a chain of events that ripple across the time periods, bringing the Pearsons together against a common enemy — angsty tweens.

With these episodes, there is always an odd storyline that doesn’t quite fit with the central theme and that storyline always makes or breaks the flow of the entire episode. For this episode, that storyline is Kevin and Baby Jack.

Thankfully, This Is Us has the brilliant idea to use the theme as an excuse to stir up drama between Kevin and Randall that Kevin would, of course, reflect on as an adult who is on the verge of forty. This, coupled with Kevin’s baby bonding time helps tie even the oddest of ends together to create a neatly wrapped story from all angles. 

This episode is all about the subtle humour and I am here for it. We give This Is Us so much credit for making us emotional over everything from different floor textures to Jack shirtless, but we don’t give this show enough credit for it’s lighter moments of humour.

Seeing Jack continue his quest to secure five lawn chairs from the public pool is adorable and laughable as we witness a father that is clearly at the peak of his coolness shake his butt to rap music. It’s official, Jack Pearson is the biggest dork of a dad and we will always stan.

Randall has some fun moments with his kids that are more than welcoming after Season 3 put that family through the wringer. I particularly like the moment in the kitchen where Randall is audibly relieved to hear Annie doesn’t have some absurd request for him. These mundane moments spent with the younger Pearsons helps brighten the entire episode.

Even Madison manages a few laughs with her pep talk that quickly turns into a crying fest. Madison breaking down within the first five minutes of Baby Jack’s home session, after swearing to Kate she wouldn’t, is exactly how I feel watching this show.

The added element of hormonal teenagers just being awful to their parents is such a clever and relatable way to tie this slight humour into the theme of the episode.

With a new season comes a fresh start for our characters. That means for the first handful of episodes we get to see them at their best before emotional warfare begins to take its toll. So I enjoy seeing every relationship showcased within this episode work so well together because that’s almost never the case as we move into the back half of the season.

Jack and Rebecca continue to have this rhythm to their relationship that works across all timelines and Beth and Randall feel more in sync now than ever. But it’s Kevin and Kate that really bring out the best this episode has to offer.

The twins haven’t always been there for each other and so it’s incredibly heartwarming to see them finding comradery in the love they both have for baby Jack. Kate showing Kevin how to communicate with Jack is a perfect This Is Us moment as any.

I particularly like that the scene they share in Jack’s bedroom is lighthearted but it still hints at the issues brewing beneath the surface. We are able to catch the worry etched on Kate’s face and Kevin’s distant stares between the conversation without that sadness dragging down the entire scene.

Somehow, this episode manages to strike emotions of both pride and worry for Kate and Kevin. And I honestly don’t know which I love seeing more.

On his own, Kevin could easily propel this episode forward. His newest arc is rich with potential and on the verge of some truly captivating conflict.

I love how the episode introduces us to Kevin on a movie lot and there’s this very cinematic moment where the camera angle changes and it actually feels like we are in the film with him. It’s a great way to put the audience back into Kevin’s shoes while showing off just how good the cinematography can be on this show. And that M. Night Shyamalan cameo is the sweet cherry on top.

Kevin’s relationship with the ficus provides some consistent commentary for the character to fall back on and his time at the public pool as a tween is a strong memory for Kevin to pull from in the present day.

His need to put baby Jack first over everything, including his career, is such a clever move for This Is Us. It allows Kevin to be vulnerable in a whole new way. Uncle is a good look on Kevin and I hope it’s one we continue to see as he takes on the most likeable qualities of his father.

I’m interested to see how these newest additions to the cast will fit into Kevin’s journey going forward because he certainly has the most fascinating storyline next to Kate at the moment. And I can’t wait to see how this show will continue to expand on a character that came off very two dimensional at the beginning of this whole thing.

“The Pool: Part Two” provides us with proof that This Is Us knows how to orchestrate a flawless episode, whether the Pearsons are at the center of it or not.

Not too many television shows can craft an episode that has so much going on and yet doesn’t feel the least bit overwhelming. This episode has comedy, it has drama, and it has heart.

Even the grander moments don’t overpower the smaller moments that manage to sneak up on us like the toddler Big Three cuddling with their parents at the pool — how adorable!

I know deep down that This Is Us can’t keep this up forever, but I hope the momentum of these two phenomenal episodes can carry this show through another season.

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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