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This week's episode of This Is Us brought out the imperfections of the otherwise perfect Pearson kid, Randall.
The episode, titled Every Version Of You, was directed by Justin Hartley and written by Kay Oyegun. It took viewers through Randall's past, present, and future.
It's now time to dive in and dissect the tenth episode of NBC's This Is Us Season 6.
Note: This article contains spoilers and reflects the writer's opinions.
This Is Us Season 6 Episode 10 review
This Is Us Season 6 Episode 10 concluded the Big Three trilogy with Randall. It starts with the same Pearson Pool day as the previous two episodes, highlighting the moment between Rebecca and her kids. In the present day, Rebecca and Randall set off on a road trip to Boston to get an upset Deja back (Deja ran off to salvage her relationship with Malik).
The episode perfectly balances out family drama with heartwarming moments. The mother-son time is a reminder of all the simple things the two used to do together when Randall was a kid, from taking vitamins to reading on the couch.
The weight of responsibilities
The flashbacks and present-day storylines in This Is Us paint a picture of Randall's journey from being a little kid to the man he has become. Viewers of the show are aware that Randall has always felt responsible for his family's safety and happiness.
As a kid at the pool, he helps out his parents when he sees them struggle to make Kate and Kevin happy. When a teen Randall sees a troubled night that could affect his family's already damaged spirit, he takes it upon himself to get his siblings out of a situation that could land them in trouble. His life-long trait of being an authority figure shines throughout the episode.
Randall's imperfections
As for Rebecca, she feels Randall spent most of his life worrying about something or the other and forgot how to be a carefree teen after Jack's death. But Randall never really saw himself as a kid as he always liked pushing himself towards responsibility and taking the burden off of the people around him.
While this is one of Randall's best traits, it is also a setback when it comes to parenting his own children. Growing up, he was always the good kid. This made him unable to understand his children's decisions, especially those of Deja. Randall was a people-pleaser and always followed the rules. On the other hand, Deja is the independent, rebellious kid of the family. Her independence is what stresses Randall, but she isn't in the wrong considering the struggles she had to face before she met Randall and Beth.
However, the moment that makes everything alright is when Deja apologizes to Randall in an indirect but heartwarming way, saying, "Don’t want to have a whole talk about it right now, but you’re my dad. You’re the only one I ever had." The weight of these words alone would make anyone cry, especially those who are aware of Deja's past.
A brand new start
At the end of this episode of This Is Us, some tension was seen between Randall and Rebecca after all the sweet moments they shared. Randall's passive-aggressive comment was nothing but a late, much-awaited response to Rebecca's decision to give Kate the responsibility of taking care of her. What he does not know is that Rebecca made the decision to avoid burdening Randall again.
As a mother, she wants Randall to embrace his carefree self and his high ambitions, which he never got to do as a kid. It was also revealed that Randall wishes to run for State Senate, bringing back his campaign storyline from Season 3. While the Big Three trilogy might have set This Is Us in a different direction, this episode reassures viewers that the direction it's moving in isn't far away from the same old heartwarming family show they love.
The latest episode of This Is Us Season 6 is now streaming on Peacock, Hulu, and Hotstar.
