“The Summer I Turned Pretty.” Five words, infinite connections. What at first seemed like a simple show about a young girl falling in love with two brothers became a story families across the country gathered by the TV every Wednesday to indulge in. What began as a book trilogy about a young girl finding love within two brothers, grew into a comfort show for people around the world.
The question that haunted viewers for three seasons: who will Belly choose, Jeremiah or Conrad? What began as an extremely controversial topic quickly became less so once the opening episodes of Season Three began to come out. Many viewers have read author and director Jenny Han’s books, the original story of Belly and her love for both Jeremiah and Conrad. As someone who read the books in early middle school, fell in love, and soon found out that there would be a show, I could not have been more excited about Season Three. In the third and final novel, Belly marries Conrad in the very end after breaking off her engagement to Jeremiah, Conrad’s younger brother, on the day of their wedding. In the show, viewers were not guaranteed the ending given in the novel, which was the ideal ending for most fans.
Han took the opportunity to confuse and captivate fans with an unknown approach to end one of the most watched shows in the century. Long story short: Conrad ends up with Belly. Take a sigh of relief! After Belly has practically ruined the Fischer Family through her relationships with both brothers, canceled her wedding the day of with Jeremiah because she still loved Conrad, even after she repeatedly told Conrad that she wanted nothing to do with him, Han decides to give the fans what they have been dreaming of.
Conrad was the obvious choice for Belly, even from the start of the story in 2021. I personally never had a doubt that they wouldn’t end up together, and I loved the additions to the story Han made. Watching every Wednesday night was spectacular, whether you saw the iconic peach scene in Episode Six, or the proposal in Episode Three, you were still drawn to the screen. The addition of Belly’s life in Paris could not have been portrayed better. It was such a sentimental place to have Belly and Conrad reunite, as Belly has now found her new self, and she is ready to commit to the boy she’s been waiting for for years. I genuinely could not have been happier with this season, the ending, the music choices, the new characters, and side dialogue. Everything was extremely well written and we could not have asked for a better ending.
But don’t fret. Conrad and Belly aren’t leaving our screens forever! Han announced that they will be making a “The Summer I Turned Pretty Movie” in the next few years! Hopefully this will be an awesome look into the future of Conrad, Belly, Steven, Taylor, Jeremiah, and Denise. There are high expectations, and big shoes to fill, but “The Summer I Turned Pretty,” has one summer left.
