Amazon Prime’s hit TV series, The Summer I Turned Pretty, might be to Gen Z what Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight was to Millennials — a cultural linchpin fueled by its love triangle.
Fans grew divided over which brother, Conrad or Jeremiah, was better for Belly, the main character. For its third and final season, the series needed to wrap up all of its plotlines and give its characters worthwhile endings all the while satisfying this massive audience.
Unfortunately, it failed. The journey through the series beat the destination.
Serious issues arise in Belly’s contradictory feelings towards the brothers. After Conrad diverted his flight to Brussels to meet her in Paris the previous episode, she questions his motives before dismissing her worries entirely to show him around the city.
When the two then take a moonlit stroll and kiss after attending a party for Belly, where he gifted her a vial of sand from Cousins Beach, she admits she still hasn’t moved on from him. Hours later, she doubts — once again — Conrad’s feelings for her in a sudden shift that paints her character as erratic. This back and forth dynamic grew exhausting.
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After spending the entire season fawning over Jeremiah and alternating between ignoring or taking advantage of Conrad, their sudden relationship feels incredibly unbalanced.
The show portrays the treatment of the person she supposedly loves abysmally. When Conrad suddenly accepts her after all of it, it’s heartbreaking.
Even though Belly’s audacity is on full display, the finale doesn’t drag. Scenes move quickly, emotional beats hit and intense moments are interspersed with moments of lightheartedness to keep the story flowing.
This pacing made the finale bearable to watch despite the aggravating nature of its cast. The series’ music also aided the ambiance of the scenes without directly overshadowing them.
Take Belly’s realization of her steadfast love for Conrad. Her mad dash through the streets of Paris is over-the-top and her love confession once she catches him is even more ridiculous.
The story doesn’t linger on them but instead shifts to the other couples, providing some much-needed relief from Belly and her antics.
Despite this success, the other two couples featured in the finale — Jeremiah and Denise, and Taylor and Steven — failed to redeem the series’ romance element. With Jeremiah and Denise, their transformation from friends to more feels incredibly forced when every interaction between the two feels as if Denise is mothering him.
It prompts questions about his sudden feelings for her. Does he actually like her, or is he trying to find a new mother figure now that Belly has left him?
Steven and Taylor suffer from a similarly lopsided dynamic to Belly and Conrad. Taylor, throughout the season, both encourages and deters Steven from pursuing other girls. Watching both couples, I couldn’t help but picture Steven and Denise together as their interactions appeared natural and effortless.
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In a way, Denise, Steven and Conrad all displayed depth and maturity to balance the insanity of their relationships as essential voices of reason.
Although the finale ties up everyone’s storylines, it leaves behind a lingering lack of fulfillment. There’s also a strange relief that summer is finally over, because at least fall doesn’t come with Belly and her drama.
Ultimately, Cousins Beach is now closed. At least until the movie.
