Move over, Julia Roberts. We've got a new runaway bride in town. Well, potentially. This Is Us loves to play with audience expectations and weave people in and out of the Pearsons' lives. Well, that was no less true in this week's episode, "Both Things Can Be True," when I started to wonder if Kevin and Madison would actually get married after a final montage featured three of Kevin's exes reading about his engagement to Madison in Us Weekly. Including Sophie.
While Kevin and Madison are very gung-ho on making their family work, I'm getting a looming feeling that all these perfectly laid plans are about to go awry. I'd hate to see anyone actually left at the altar on their wedding day because that is just cruel, but I do think the sneaky This Is Us writers are purposefully setting up some feelings of cold feet.
It's Too Much, Too Soon
Madison and Kevin's entire relationship has been a whirlwind, that's for sure. From a hookup to finding out you're having twins to quarantining together during a pandemic to getting engaged twice(!) now, these two went from zero to 100 fast.
There's no doubt they're going trying to make their family work, as having children was something they'd both dreamed of, but let's address the elephant in the room here: they barely know anything about each other. (Aside from what time Kevin goes running in the morning or which Starbucks drink Madison prefers.) The real emotional meat is still up for grabs and it takes time to build that trust.
For example, after nine plus months together, only in the last episode did Madison tell Kevin about her estranged relationship with her dad and how her entire life she's been chasing the happiness she felt at a Japanese garden with her parents, hence the Japanese Kabuki masks in her guest room.
And perhaps more significantly, these two kids still haven't even said "I love you" to each other yet, and don't you think that's something they should feel and shout from the rooftops before they walk down the aisle?
Sophie's Choice... Is a Tough One
Obviously, Sophie is no fool, and she and Kevin have been around the marriage block before themselves. (Been there, wrecked that.) They both wanted and needed to be in a healthy place to grow separately since being together wasn't working. Plus, hello, she's still engaged.
I'm feeling like the most likely route we'll see is that she'll reach out and congratulate Kevin, since they aren't completely radio silent exes. Jury's out on if that leads to her coming out to LA to visit before his nuptials – and her own. But as This Is Us co-executive producer K.J. Steinberg told Entertainment Weekly about that pivotal Sophie reaction, "Buckle your seatbelts" is the name of the game when it comes to Kevin's love story.
Speaking of seatbelts...
What Could That Mean For The White Car?
Let's say Sophie goes out to LA to find closure before she and Kevin say their "I Dos." Madison seems like the type of person who would possibly see the chemistry between the two of them and realize that now is not the time for her and Kevin's love story.
If that scenario comes to pass where Madison becomes the runaway bride, and in turn, Sophie and Kevin respectively drop out of their weddings to other people, could that lead to Madison and Sophie coming up in the white car together to Kevin's house in the deep flash forwards, as the two most important women in his life?
It would make sense to me at least that in whatever shape or form, Sophie would want to be there for Kevin in his mom's final days, just like how he showed up for her when her mom passed away. And if she, Kevin, and Madison had the whole co-parenting thing down, they would both be there to support not only him, but also Nicky and Franny saying goodbye to their grandma.
This is all early stage conjecture, of course, but can't "both things be true"? Kevin wants to make it work with Madison for the sake of their kids, but he also can't deny that he has a romantic spark with Sophie that will always be there? I think it's likely they both can. And for what it's worth, have we even seen more than five minutes of Sophie with her own fiancé? Yeah, that's suspect all on its own.
Read more...
Let's Dissect Kevin's Exes Learning About His Engagement On This Is Us
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Images: NBC