Welcome to episode three, “Love Sick,†where we will be witnessing scenes of real loss, betrayal, humiliation, and grief and also scenes in which characters react to the relatively minor tragedy of losing a vacation home as if it were an existential threat (yes, yes, I’m a shrill pinko scold, what are you going to do?). Everybody keep their arms and legs inside the vehicle at all times and don’t forget to buckle up.
The kids’ primary issue, or at least their most tangible issue, is that their beloved house at Cousins Beach is for sale. After Susannah died, the entire deed went to her (half) sister Kyra Sedgwick (Aunt Julia), who had made plans to sell the property even before the funeral she did not attend. Conrad, in desperate need of perspective, tells Belly that seeing the “For Sale†sign in the yard was like losing his mom all over again. Con, some people who lose their parents don’t even have beach houses.
I know he’s grieving for his mother and everything and that’s terrible, but I have had it up to here with Conrad. The true villain of this episode is not Kyra Sedgwick (Aunt Julia), who seems to have some class resentment and is probably selling the house so she can afford to feed her kid. Nor is the villain the boys’ dad, who won’t let them dip into their trust funds to pay for the down payment on the house. Are these two college kids also going to pay for the mortgage and the upkeep and the property taxes and God knows HOA fees, and if so, how? No, the real villain is Conrad, who not only doesn’t understand any of these things but insists on “handling it†by himself, dismissing Jeremiah and Belly with the insolent grunt of immense privilege and a nonverbal “Fuck you.â€
Jeremiah decides to try it his way anyway, which might have been more successful had Conrad not already poisoned the well. Kyra Sedgwick is in town to host her open house tomorrow, and so far her only contact with her nephews has been the five minutes she spent listening to Conrad rant over the phone. Understandably, she’s not in the best of moods to receive Jeremiah’s hydrangeas and cheery “It’s been too long!â€
The other problem with Jeremiah’s approach, aside from being too little too late, is that he doesn’t put much thought into why Kyra Sedgwick is so eager to sell the house right away. He and Belly clearly didn’t catch the subtext behind comments like, “I think you and your brother should sort this out with your dad. I’m certain that you have the resources, but I can’t put off the sale while I wait for you to get your ducks in order,†and, “I have to be back at work in a week. I barely got the time off as it is,†but I sure did. Kyra Sedgwick asks incredulously if Jeremiah is expecting her to gift him the house, which is exactly what he’s expecting.
The entitlement is eye-popping, sure, but I have faith in Jeremiah’s ability to learn and grow. I have seen him verbally acknowledge Belly’s feelings on several occasions. There’s hope for this kid. If only he wouldn’t allow Belly to talk him out of his very reasonable anger at Conrad.
Belly, reflective: “Conrad just pushes people away when he needs them the most.â€
Jeremiah, the voice of reason: “There’s only so many times I can take being pushed. It’s fucking exhausting.â€
Considering everything we see in the flashbacks to Belly and Con’s relationship in this episode, this is the attitude I really wish Belly would consider adopting for herself.
The problem with Conrad isn’t really that he’s moody and self-serious and unjustifiably arrogant (which he is). It’s the way all of this pressure and privilege coagulates into the worst romantic hero trope of all time. (See also: Edward Cullen.) With Belly he is childishly needy but also too paternalistic to actually confide in her. He makes unilateral decisions about their relationship without her input. He treats her badly and then punishes her for it. (See also: Dean from Gilmore Girls.) And he does it all with the same vacant eyes and flat vocal affect — that’s not a moral defect, just a personality one, for the record.
Conrad wasn’t a bad prom date because he forgot Belly’s corsage. Conrad was a bad prom date because he was sullen without explaining why; didn’t get up to dance with her until Steven prodded him into it; tried to bail five minutes in while Belly was enjoying herself. And Belly still would have forgiven him for all of that if he would just open up to her a little. Not even open up, just stop actively icing her out. But this is Conrad’s way, and so he dispassionately dumps her in the rain while she sobs.
And then there was the funeral. If I were to give Belly one piece of advice, it would be to refrain from insisting on providing comfort to a grieving person who has expressly rejected said comfort. But I still don’t blame her for causing the scene. She was upset seeing Conrad with Aubrey, sure, but he could have let her just run away and cry it out alone. Instead, he follows her downstairs to, what, taunt her about their breakup? To belittle her in front of a bunch of rich strangers and her mother? Was that the plan?
“The funeral was fucked. Everyone was a mess that day,†Jeremiah said in the previous episode, and that’s true. But there’s messed up and then there’s looking dead-eyed into the face of your weeping ex-girlfriend and telling her and a room full of mourners that their relationship was a mistake because she’s too much of a child. I will be haunted by the image of Belly reacting to this, with “Silver Springs,†by Fleetwood Mac, twisting the knife in the background, for years. Belly says she’ll never let herself be affected by Conrad like that again, which is silly because Conrad is definitely going to be a jerk again and it’s not her fault if he hurts her feelings.
As it stands, the MVP of The Summer I Turned Pretty continues to be, as ever, best friend Taylor, who can call bullshit and offer empathy at the same time and with humor. It’s why Steven is, quite rightly, in love with her. By the time Steven and Taylor (the only couple I’m rooting for at this time) arrive unannounced at the Cousins house, blueberry pie in hand, the brothers plus Belly have hung up on their dad and decided the only next course of action is to sabotage the open house. Did you forget that these are actually children?
I’m afraid we have to feel empathy for Conrad one last time in this episode, which ends with a text message that triggers an immediate panic attack. But I reserve the right to rescind my pity depending on what we learn the text says in the next episode.
Emotional Gut Punches
• Conrad playing Pearl Jam’s “Last Kiss,†but specifically the part where his voice catches in the middle and he mutters, “Excuse me.†I don’t like the guy, but I’m not a monster.
• The stumble. Laurel’s face.
• Belly, wandering through the house, “She’s everywhere and nowhere.â€
• Steven hugging Belly in the rain after she gets dumped at prom.
• Just look up the “Silver Springs†lyrics. I dare you.