I’m on the record as being a newly minted 30-year-old who still loves teen dramas, and The Summer I Turned Pretty—which features teenager Belly Conklin living, laughing, and loving her way through a confusing summer love triangle with (gasp) two brothers—is one of the finest examples of the genre I can think of. Naturally, I was thrilled when the new season hit Amazon, and naturally, I had a lot of thoughts on the first episode; below, find them all in chronological order.
- God, even the score for this show makes me want to go lie on a beach.
- This show implying that there was ever a time when Lola Tung was not pretty is insane, but I digress.
- Conrad romantically dripping water on Belly is sooooo high school boyfriend coded.
- Oh, wait, that was a daydream, and Susannah (Conrad’s mom) straight-up died?
- Are you kidding me, show? Killing off Cher Horowitz?
- Belly’s reading The Hunger Games in French, which is actually a really good way to study a language.
- Flashback to last summer: Belly and Conrad are cute as hell walking on the beach.
- Oh, nooo, Belly comes clean about kissing Jeremiah. Conrad is undeterred, though, because he really likes her(!).
- Susannah being psyched that Belly and Conrad are together is so cute and deeply non-relatable to me. They’re teens! Ground them! Make them do SAT prep!
- Back in the present, Taylor and her new haircut invite Belly to join volleyball camp, but she’s not into it.
- Oh, damn, Steven got into Princeton!
- And there’s a big grad party on the horizon, but Belly doesn’t want to go; we also learn that she quit volleyball and her grades have been slipping since Susannah’s death. :(
- Flashback time again: Jeremiah is extremely upset about the Belly-Conrad thing, which tracks because if a girl I loved dated my brother instead, I would go insane.
- Somehow, Susannah sent Steven a laptop for college before she died that arrives right before his graduation ceremony, and we learn that Conrad and Jeremiah are busy and aren’t coming. Sad face again!
- Belly correctly realizes that the boys need each other to get through their mom’s diagnosis and breaks up with Conrad (yet again on the beach—do these teens ever fight at, like, a Dairy Queen, or is it always scenic?).
- “No matter what happens, we’ll still be infinite” is an Edward Cullen–level romantic line. Go off, Conrad!
- Steven says “fuck” in his valedictorian speech! Bad-boy alert. People clap, though.
- I know how mom-ish this is of me, but Belly looks so cute with her hair pulled back!
- Belly’s mom wrote a book about Susannah after her death, apparently.
- Oh, shit, Belly’s not going to Cousins at all this summer?
- God, high school parties (or the few I attended) would have been so much better if they’d had Latto playing at them.
- LMAO, Taylor’s new BF is a bleached-buzz-cut DJ? You hate to see it.
- Oh, shit, Conrad’s dad cheated on Susannah when she first got diagnosed?
- And with his secretary? Why can’t men at least be more original?
- I love that the made-up college Conrad goes to is called Finch.
- Ooh, Belly is flirting with a new guy at the party! A guy who’s not related to Conrad or Jeremiah! We love to see it.
- Oh, noooo, the guy actually likes Belly’s friend. We hate to see it!
- Belly and Steven get in a big fight at his graduation party, and he calls her out for dating both Conrad and Jeremiah. Let women have fun!
- PERFECT “DRIVER’S LICENSE” BY OLIVIA RODRIGO NEEDLE DROP!
- Seriously, this song was made for this show.
- Flashback: Conrad shows up at Belly’s house on Halloween and tries to get her back, and they full-on make out (I am also 16), but clearly things don’t pan out.
- Now it’s time for Belly and her mom to have a huge fight. God, rough night for this girlie!
- Ooh, baby, Belly talks to Jeremiah and finds out Conrad is missing.
- Wait, is Conrad at Brown or Finch?
- Either way, Jeremiah and Belly are teaming up to find him. Dramaaaa!
