The Summer I Turned Pretty Season 3 Episode 11 Review: At Last

There is something to be said for endings – they aren’t ever really easy, but they are a necessary part of life. They allow you a chance to start anew. They give you a moment of freedom to not be trapped by the past and memories. The Summer I Turned Pretty, Season 3, Episode 11, wasn’t easy, but it was beautiful. Paris never stood a chance against Belly, but we never stood a chance against Belly and Conrad.

And this writer is okay with that.

There’s something about Belly and Conrad that has just always made sense. There has always been this electricity; this unidentifiable spark that just makes sense. It’s not to say that they haven’t had their trouble – they have. We all know that.

But who is to say that road wasn’t necessary? It’s sometimes the long road that has the best payoff.

As a book reader, it’s been over a decade of my life coming to a close. But I will always have the books and always have this show. Cousins Beach will always be an attainable place.

JEREMIAH FINDS A PATH

I must have missed the part where Jeremiah decided to become a chef, but I am not mad at it. At least he’s passionate about something in his life. It’s something that I think anyone would want for him. He’s always seemed a little lost and a little out of place.

He’s seemed like his father.

But seeing Jeremiah make his own road and finding something that makes him happy – I can get behind. He’s definitely taken on the attitude of being a chef.

It – at first – felt like a time jump that I didn’t get. But hey, TikTok made him an up-and-coming chef. Pulling off a dinner for influencers – good job. But is anything better than someone finding faith in themselves? Not really.

DENISE & JEREMIAH

Damnit, did I find some redemption for Jeremiah? Did I like Jeremiah? I can’t believe that I am about to say this, but I did. There is always some redemption when you see someone learn from their mistakes and their misgivings.

Jeremiah finally telling his father that he knows that he thinks he’s a f***-up, well, that was a moment that I never thought I would see. That was a moment that I never thought Jeremiah would have the courage to tell his Dad.

But I also never thought that Adam would be one to say he was proud. He definitely isn’t the smartest person – saying that he just thought he didn’t have to say it, that it was always implied.

While I was left wondering why it is we even have this going on, I soon realized that it was to tie up other characters’ storylines. It’s not just about Belly and Conrad. It’s about this group of friends who are family.

Denise and Jeremiah – they wouldn’t have been my ideal choice – but then again, I never really thought about who should end up with Jeremiah. I just thought that he needed to grow up.

Seeing them kiss – it was meh. I wasn’t really sure what to think, but I am not mad at it. Moving characters forward – giving them growth – is important. And they definitely tied up Jeremiah in an open-ended way – one that showed he can move forward.

We may never know the extent to which he does, but that’s okay. Why? Because we know he does move on.

TAYLOR & STEVEN

So, Denise lets it slip that she and Steven got their seed money, but it was contingent upon their moving to San Francisco. Jeremiah takes it well, but when Taylor overhears her, she’s ready to rage.

Taylor just moved to Boston to be with Steven, and now she finds out that this massive secret has been kept from her. Well, I think we’d all be upset. She wants to go kill Steven, but Denise convinces her not to say anything for 24 hours.

While everything with Jeremiah’s dinner is going to hell in a handbasket, it had to be moved to Cousins. Taylor and Denise have to figure things out as Jeremiah cooks and puts things together.

And that’s part of what I love about Taylor and Denise – they are no-nonsense. They don’t care what others think.

But Taylor does care what Steven thinks. She may not be good at hiding anger, but it is quite funny how she’s dragging Steven, and he has no idea why at first. Love that Jeremiah is the one to tell him that she knows about San Francisco.

She knows about him having to move for his company.

When their argument runs over in the kitchen, Jeremiah kicks them out. It is Cousins, so no shock to anyone that they end up on the docks talking it out.

Taylor is upset that he didn’t ask her to come. He didn’t ask her because he didn’t want her to give up anything for him. Both of them have good reasons, and it reminds you that the same story, well, it can be seen from different perspectives, and both are true. But communication is even more important.

Steven isn’t the best with words – I think Taylor makes him nervous. But then again, I think that it is love that makes him nervous. He wants forever. He’s always wanted forever with Taylor. He’s thought about not going to San Francisco – because Taylor is part of his dreams too.

These two talking it out and deciding to move to San Francisco – TOGETHER – just showed how much they have changed. How they have grown.

Taylor and Steven having mature conversations – never thought I would see the day. BUT, I love that they do have these difficult conversations and keep working on their relationship.

They are just perfect together. You can’t convince me otherwise.

BIRTHDAYS

I was really scared that at the beginning, when we see Belly and Benito, they are still together. I wanted to scream at her to make smart choices. Liking Benito isn’t the issue, don’t get me wrong. It feels like she’s running.

But Benito, he is not the endgame.

I did like the choice to make it seem like they were still together and even make Benito jealous of Conrad. But what I loved the most was seeing that Belly had really made a life. I loved that even with all of these new people around, Belly was still Belly.

She still found a missing piece of herself with Conrad.

The way that their bodies moved together, as if they always found each other no matter what, was magnetic. Sometimes your body reacts to love before you realize it’s there.

But it was his present to her – the sand from Cousins – that made me feel like he gets it. He gets her. Conrad Fisher understands the things that she says and the things that she doesn’t.

Her friends seemed to like him, but even more important, you could see the look in her eyes that she remembered just how much she loves him. Even if she’s going to try to compartmentalize it, Isabel Conklin will always love Conrad Fisher.

PARIS THROUGH HER EYES

There is always something special when Conrad and Belly see each other. There is this part of the two of them that comes alive. You can see life and angst in their eyes. You can also see their pain.

Conrad and Belly spending the day together was good, but it was when he saw Paris through her eyes that I found some sort of peace from their past – all the mistakes and pain. I just am not sure that she or him do.

Admitting how they feel has always been a hard road for the two of them. But it’s something that they need to do. It’s just the way that Belly’s insecurities come out that broke me.

Their conversation about love and why they love each other – I was crying my eyes out. Belly has made a lot of mistakes, and so has Conrad, but that conversation made me believe even more that they have to get out of their own way.

Belly thinking that he only loves her because of his Mom and the way that everyone said from a young age – that was just wrong. She needs to believe that the girl that she was and the woman that she is are worthy of love.

A TRAIN AND A CHOICE

Sometimes, all it takes is a second to realize that the words that you said were wrong. It takes a second to realize that fear has overtaken you, and that was your biggest mistake.

Now, I am not the biggest believer in cardio, but for Belly, that was the one way that she was going to get to Conrad. He had taken a big chance and laid his heart on the line again, only to have her turn him down again. I admired that he was able to walk out the door, broken-hearted and didn’t want to push it.

But I wished that he would have.

Pushed it that was.

But what a romantic gesture, running through the train station and onto a train to find him. She was wearing the infinity necklace – I was a mess. Their infinite s*** paid off – because in every single lifetime she admitted that she would choose him. The way that it changed the look of pain that he held in his eyes – to believing in love again – it was everything that three seasons had led up to this.

And I was happy.

I was happy that these two found a future, and there was a belief in soulmates that came into my mind again.

Yes, there have been a lot of debates throughout the seasons over who Belly belongs with. She belongs to herself, and that’s something I think she’s realized by moving to Paris. It’s what eventually helped her move home.

Life for Belly may have been measured in summers, but for the first time, I am thinking that it was that way because it was the way she could measure her memories with Conrad.

And now – here they were – finally admitting that they loved each other. Life could be measured in more than summers.

It could be measured in love, and their love was infinite.