The Fall I Thought About The Summer I Turned Pretty

This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Ashoka chapter and does not reflect the views of Her Campus.

I do not know what Belly’s life holds for her, but I do know it is going to be another episode of aesthetics, Taylor Swift heavy soundtracks and a lot of the carefreeness that comes to mind when we think of summer.

Hi, I am not Lola Tung but this article is brought to you by HerCampus.

Isbael Conklin, fondly called Belly, turned “pretty” three seasons ago. She walked straight from her childhood into a messy love triangle between two brothers, the golden retriever frat boy Jeremiah (Jere) and the brooding medical student Conrad (Connie). She grew up with them, at their mother’s (Sussahnah) beach house where she visited each summer with her mother and brother (Steven). As the show progresses, we learn about Susannah’s cancer, the effect of her death on the lives of the main characters and Belly’s confused back and forth between the two brothers like a game of ping pong. In the third and final season, Belly almost marries Jeremiah, but eventually calls it off and flies to Paris on a whim to discover herself. At the brink of the finale, this is where the story stands. 

Her life choices seem extremely questionable and certainly concerning. We are almost constantly pissed at her character. Yet, my friends and I spend every week in anticipation. Wishing that this Wednesday, she will make a choice that has a satisfactory outcome. As a viewer, the decisions that Belly needs to make seem glaringly obvious to us. A lot of the damage that happens is preventable. If only she had done things differently. But she cannot, because that would require her to be someone else. The choices she makes might not always be in her favour, but they are certainly inherent to her character. The twenties are often a time to mess up and to make mistakes. I like that the series gives her the space to do that, however infuriating it becomes for those who know better. I do wish Belly explored beyond the bubble she has created around herself. To take risks and find herself beyond the laid out storyline she has at Cousins. 

I find that the reason why so many of us are invested in this plotline is because almost everyone we know is hooked (at least most people I know are). In a world where we are so isolated even by social media, where everyone’s instagram feed is curated to their interests, TSITP serves as a fun show to bond over, even if you hate it.Whether you are team Jere or Con or Team Belly should be busy choosing what university she wants to attend instead, you know you will all get together to find out what happens. Just like we got together when the Twilight movies were made or when The Vampire Diaries was released. Love triangles in some sense, hold nostalgic value and TSITP makes us reminiscent of the times we spent binge watching or reading them. 

Another thing about love triangles is that you know they are inevitably doomed. One of the characters will always bear the weight of rejection. Yet, support or sympathy arises for one character over another because these characters represent the protagonist’s path. Belly’s life would take a certain road if she got married to Jeremiah, it will take a different path entirely if she ends up with Conrad. So team Jere or team Con are more a symbol of what her life will look like, as a consequent domino effect of this choice.

I do not know what Belly’s life holds for her, but I do know it is going to be another episode of aesthetics, Taylor Swift heavy soundtracks and a lot of the carefreeness that comes to mind when we think of summer. Belly would dream of the perfect summer each year at Cousins. Her summer has never been the same since the show began. I think that’s the point. Sometimes perfect is annoyingly similar to monotonous. Sometimes the imperfections are what perturb things and sometimes these are good. TSITP is definitely not a perfect show. It most certainly is flawed and even considered ragebait. But it stirs up something in your heart. Like the ocean, calm or angry always rushes to the shore, I find myself going back to the show each week.