What I’m Watching: This Is Us

This Is Us: Season 2, Episode 5 “Brothers” (B+)

This was a helpful episode for explaining the relationship between Randall and Kevin, starting at a point when Kevin was very meant to his brother while Randall was making lists of things he could stop doing so that he wouldn’t be perceived as annoying and ending up in the present where Randall is doing a great job of being a dad under difficult circumstances and Kevin is spiraling out of control. Déjà’s eagerness to go to the gala was a great opportunity for Randall to step in, and he did the right thing by standing outside the bathroom and hearing her when she said that he couldn’t grab her like that because of bad experiences she had in her previous foster home. We haven’t seen Sophie in a while, and while her reintroduction in this hour started off in a semi-comic way with an auction featuring Kevin as the hot ticket, it turned much more sour when Kevin was on the phone trying to get a refill he wasn’t eligible for of painkillers. Kevin needs some serious help, and I’m not sure that anyone is paying enough attention to help him get it. Jack deciding to be a good father to his sons rather than be there for the father who was never there for him said something about his commitment to family, and it seems that he had a brother who we’ve never heard mentioned in the past, who seemingly isn’t alive anymore but I imagine we’ll still meet in some time period. Toby’s reaction to Kate telling him she was pregnant, after he threw everything off his desk, was fantastic, and hopefully she’ll appreciate his celebration in the bar and not be too thrown off by his enthusiasm. I’m not too fond of the support group meetings and Madison, and I think her spat with Kate ending in a joint moment of happiness was the weak point of this episode.