This summer, Jenny Han’s popular teen book series, The Summer I Turned Pretty made a splash as its 3rd and final season released weekly on Amazon Prime. The show has captivated audiences since 2022 and continues to surprise fans as the adaptation splits from the books.
Episode 3- Engagement Announcement
Possibly one of the most awkward scenes of this season was in episode 3, when Jeremiah and Belly announce their engagement to their families. However, it’s the moments before the announcement that show Jeremiah’s true character. After the memorial for Jeremiah and Conrad’s mother, Susanna, the Fishers and Conklins come together for lunch. Instantly, there’s tension when Belly’s mom, Laurel, offers to pay for lunch, only for Jeremiah’s dad Adam to order the most expensive thing on the menu, with Jeremiah following suit. Belly opts for the cheapest option, wincing as her fiancé is oblivious to the cost of his choice. This scene is quintessential to the series because it reflects how Jeremiah aspires to be like his father, choosing to replicate his behaviors, even when they’re unhealthy or selfish.
This is mirrored later in the series, when Jeremiah is offered a permanent job at his father’s firm—and accepts—despite his resentment toward his father for being treated unfairly. Jeremiah is willing to do anything to gain his father’s approval, even when it’s against his and Belly’s best interests. When planning their wedding, Adam decides to pay for the wedding and takes the reins, which Jeremiah enables. Belly, who had dreamt of an intimate ceremony at the Cousins house, now must plan an elaborate country club wedding. This scene is the first marker we see in this season of what Jeremiah is willing to do to be favored by his father, even if it costs him Belly.
Episode 5- Peach Scene
Episode 5 was definitely a fan favorite with Conrad narrating and some retro music. Online, fans went crazy over this episode’s insight into Conrad’s mind after his relative radio silence until this point. Many fans were excited to see that Conrad was thinking exactly what they were: why is Belly marrying Jeremiah?
In this episode, Conrad grapples with watching his ex-girlfriend and brother plan their wedding while struggling to reconcile with his lingering love for Belly. A scene that highlights the complicated emotions Conrad faces is towards the end, when Belly asks Conrad to stop for fresh peaches on the side of the road, and Conrad—who can’t ever seem to say no to her—pulls over. This scene is integral to this season because it illustrates how Conrad is watching two things he can’t have, Belly, and the peaches he’s allergic to.
The peach plays an important role as a symbol of the love Conrad has for Belly that’s both messy but also sweet. In the background, Wild Horses by the Rolling Stones plays; a song that is about loving someone you are devoted to and can never be taken away from. The lyrics sing, “Wild horses couldn’t drag me away,” which reflects how Conrad feels he could never stop loving Belly. The song goes on, “Faith has been broken, tears must be cried,” an allusion to the fraught history between Belly and Conrad, who, despite all the love they shared, had a rocky relationship. This episode cemented itself as a fan favorite for many, reaffirming Conrad’s persisting love for Belly through the years.
Episode 7 – Beach Scene
Possibly one of the most heart-wrenching scenes in the entire series occurred at the end of episode 7, when Conrad reveals to Belly that he’s still in love with her after finding out Jeremiah cheated on her. “It’s too late,” Belly laments. Still, she stays on the beach as Conrad asks to explain to her how he feels. Conrad expresses regret that his mother’s death led him to push her away—only for this summer, four years later, to stir up all his old feelings for Belly.
He asks Belly to choose him over Jeremiah, but she refuses, saying, “You will never be what Jere is to me.” She goes on, “You and I were never anything.”
This moment is incredibly dramatic with a lone piano playing in the background, the ocean roaring and the wind whipping through their hair. For fans of Conrad, this scene was heartbreaking when Belly refuses him.
This scene calls back to episode 6 in season 2, where on the same beach, Belly drunkenly admits to Conrad that she wishes she’d fought for their relationship. Conrad exclaims, “I thought you knew,” referring to the fact that he still loves her. Belly again finds reasons for why they won’t work and eventually chooses Jeremiah, a love that is more stable than her one with Conrad.
The beach scene ends with Belly marching just out of view of Conrad, before collapsing into tears. Taylor Swift’s loml comes on, a song that describes losing the love of your life. This song was a dead giveaway to watchers that Conrad and Belly will end up together as Swift sings that their love is “never quite buried.”
Episode 8- Engagement break off
Episode 8 was intense, capturing both the day before and the day of Jeremiah and Belly’s wedding. The scene that left everyone reeling was at the end, right before Belly was going to walk down the aisle. Jeremiah comes into her dressing room after disappearing for the whole morning.
“Can we talk about what just happened?” Belly asks, but Jeremiah brushes her off and replies, “I don’t want to talk about it.” He goes on, “I always come back, Conrad is the one who leaves.”
This moment encapsulates their relationship in one small exchange, showing fans that it is built on the fact that Jeremiah is not Conrad, which is both why it works and why it ultimately fails. Jeremiah is stable and reliable–whereas Conrad is complicated and confusing– making him the boring but also understandable choice for Belly. Belly loves Jeremiah for the security he brings, but their love is shallow, built on a childhood bond and the grief that demands they rely on one another.
Finally, Belly is confronted with the fact that she loves both brothers, but in a wholly different way. Jeremiah asks Belly to look him in the eye and tell him she doesn’t love Conrad, but instead she replies, “Jeremiah, I love you.” After being further pressed, she confesses she still loves Conrad. After a heated exchange where Jeremiah admits he knows about Conrad and Belly’s interaction at Christmas, Belly begs for him to stay.
“You can’t marry me to erase him,” Jeremiah affirms before leaving their engagement officially broken off.
This scene was heartbreaking, but a long time coming. Throughout the entire season, fans watched Belly fight against her feelings, afraid to accept that she still has feelings for Conrad, for fear of what it would do to her life. This scene was the final push for her, but the moment of confrontation that she needed. As Belly flees the wedding, Taylor Swift’s Cardigan comes on, an apt song for a story about a love triangle.
