‘The Summer I Turned Pretty’ Season 3 Episode 4 review: “Last Stand”

How many more bad decisions are in store for our favorite characters? The Summer I Turned Pretty Season 3 Episode 4, titled “Last Stand,” saw the emotional weight of the present affect many of the choices for the future. Paris? Gone. New York? Goodbye. California? On hold … maybe. Prime Video’s The Summer I Turned Pretty loves a dramatic twist, and Season 3 has been shaping up to be a messy one full of tears. “Last Stand” was a sobering chapter that’ll make you feel sad for all of the characters, regardless of their poor choices.

Birthday blues.

No one, not even Belly, would’ve ever imagined her 21^st birthday to turn out like this. It’s such a far cry from the early celebrations at Cousins Beach with all her loved ones, but now she’s dealing with the bleak outlook of this reality. And quite honestly, she made her bed and now has to lie in it.

Did she expect that her birthday would change Laurel’s opinion? Anyone’s opinion, for that matter? Getting engaged to Jeremiah so young was going to have repercussions. Sure, Taylor and Steven are in it, but it’s still a huge weight for everyone to accept. I understood Laurel’s strong stance to still not support the wedding; she would love a future of Belly and Jeremiah together, but she can see they’re way too young and immature now. Jeremiah may have had his heart in the right place to talk to Laurel, but Laurel sees it for what it is. Belly’s birthday wasn’t going to change it.

Like mother, like daughter.

The outcome of Belly moving out of the house into the Cousins Beach cottage was a messy idea. Laurel and Belly need to mend their issues first, and them being together under one roof could help Belly see clarity. Laurel’s recommendation of waiting until they graduated was a great idea! Belly only had one more year to go – most couples wait a year to save up and plan for their future before marrying. Her stomping out of the house because she didn’t get her way proved Laurel’s point. The couple (especially Belly) isn’t ready to make this big adult life commitment so young.

Laurel’s chat with John was an eye-opening reveal that we as fans (and The Summer I Turned Pretty series) needed to have. After their spicy hookup and lingering chemistry, it was very curious why they hadn’t gotten back together in the past. However, Laurel, seeing a lot of her younger self in Belly, answered those questions. Of course, Laurel doesn’t want her only daughter to get married at 21 years old. She knew exactly what challenges and regrets would come from it. Laurel can let Belly make her own mistakes, but she doesn’t have to stand by as history repeats itself.

And now with Belly giving up Paris to stay with Jeremiah, that could create a lot of resentment between the couple. Sure, the timing doesn’t work out due to the wedding, but we’ve all seen what happened in Lauren’s life on The Hills. Girl, get on that plane and go to Paris!

So long, New York.

“Last Stand” did a great job of contrasting Belly’s fractured relationship with Laurel against the troubles forming in Taylor and Lucinda’s lives. Both mother-daughter pairs have major issues forming that are changing their plans. For example, Belly’s heartbreak over her mother not going wedding dress shopping hits an emotional nerve within her that she didn’t expect. Belly had such a romanticized idea of what her wedding planning would’ve been like, but she’s now going through it alone. And with the childhood flashback of Susannah giving her a bedroom at the cottage, it’s a sobering reality for her to realize she’s lost both mother figures in her life.

Comparatively, Taylor has her mother around, but she’s having to make the tough calls to be the adult. If you were Taylor, would you have given up New York to pay off the debt? I’m on the fence here because New York was Taylor’s dream. She was so excited to work for the company doing PR for The Met Gala! Once again, Taylor has had to adjust her life to save Lucinda, which is unfortunate because it’ll most likely happen again.

Taylor’s choice to quickly pay off the debt without talking with Lucinda wasn’t the right call. She should’ve talked with her mother first because there could’ve been a solution. Like, why didn’t they call the police on Lucinda’s ex-boyfriend? He committed fraud and got credit without Lucinda’s knowledge; that would’ve sent him to jail, and they could’ve fought the charges. Plus, they could’ve paid off some of the cost and sold some items without giving up all the savings. While it’s noble of her to help her mom, she made a very hasty decision that wasn’t as mature as she hoped.

Working through work life.

Jeremiah has gone to intern at his father’s company. While being anywhere near Adam is bad enough, there’s another looming thorn in the mix. Is anyone else predicting that Jeremiah is going to cheat with the woman who complimented his suit? That compliment didn’t seem completely wholesome; I picked up on some sultry tone in her wording. We need to keep our eyes on that because something doesn’t seem right in that office situation. There could be a world where Jeremiah cheats due to his father’s treatment at the office and any wedding troubles that come up with Belly.

Meanwhile, Conrad staying behind at the cottage instead of going back to his job is going to get messy. Don’t get me wrong, he made a heartwarming gesture to be the co-best man, one that will mean a lot to his brother. And his staying behind was a bright spot that an already depressed and crying Belly needed, so I’ll give him that. However, you could see it in his eyes, and in that hug, he knew he had messed up. Being around Belly is only going to open up old wounds and make terrible mistakes that he should be long past.

Conrad has to stop putting himself in situations where he’s a masochist. He either needs to acknowledge his feelings and say something to Belly, or he needs to move on. His longing glances and tortured demeanor are now old and tired.

Overall.

“Last Stand” was a heavy episode that had little fun in the dysfunctional. This chapter was all about facing the harsh reality of life and making big decisions about what to do next. Arguably, most of the characters made terrible choices, so we’re left to watch as we wait for the car crash to come. However, “Last Stand” is an uncomfortable episode that needs to be watched; it carries the story further and approaches tough situations that our characters need to deal with.

The Summer I Turned Pretty airs new episodes on Wednesdays on Prime Video.

Images courtesy of Prime Video