The Imprint

Along with most of the internet, I too have fallen into The Summer I Turned Pretty rabbit hole, and its finale has left a gaping void in my heart. So, I wondered what better way to work through it than to analyse it. (It’s what Susannah would’ve wanted.)

This is also your official spoiler warning! If you haven’t seen the show, binge it all on Prime and come back to read this properly…

On the surface and to all the outsiders, Jenny Han’s show seems like just another young adult series that circles a love triangle. Where a girl is impossibly trapped between two guys (brothers, in this case), unable to choose- and in some basic way, it is. But it’s also a story of growing up, experiencing loss, taking accountability, adapting to change, coping with grief and, above all, falling in and out of love.

Over the three seasons, we see Belly, our protagonist, grapple with her feelings and relationships with Conrad and Jeremiah, two brothers she’s grown up with. Five years after their abrupt breakup, Conrad and Belly reunite in Paris and rekindle their deep-rooted love, finally able to look back at the past with no resentment and have honest conversations. The curtains close with them returning to the summer house together. *Cries in Scott Street*

One of the show’s biggest hooks is its representation of love through the years, despite everything. 

In the final season, we see Conrad distraught over his desire and intense longing for Belly, even though she’s now engaged to his brother. After years of fighting his feelings and battling a silent anxiety, he’s certain in his love and wants nothing more than for her to call off the wedding (you know the scene). 

In our modern world of dating apps, meaningless texting and situationships, we’re deprived of this romance and level of yearning that Conrad shows for Belly. His unwavering feelings are a sight for sore eyes and completely capture the audience. Seemingly surrounded by nonchalance, we crave this level of care and thoughtfulness, reminding us of an old-fashioned love.

Another thing it gives the audience is the feeling of being in love, specifically as a young teen, falling for the first time. Along with Belly, we too become girls, experiencing the rollercoaster of emotions that come with young love. Girlhood, as a term, has started to trend again across social media, with the show reigniting those intense emotions with women in their 20s, 30s, 40s and beyond.

As well as love, the show also depicts grief, living with loss and how it can shape us as young individuals. After the death of their ever-present mum, Conrad and Jeremiah struggle with the emptiness in their lives, coming to terms with it in different ways. Conrad detaches from everything, looking out for his brother when he can, while Jeremiah craves companionship, leading him to lean on Belly.

Capturing the characters in their teen years, Jenny Han also does an amazing job of showcasing their growth, not only through their behaviour, but also through flashbacks and parallels. By physically showing them changing before our eyes, she reminds us that they’re growing but also returning to who they always were.

The addictive content aside, there was a lot of thought put into the release and format, leading its final season to become the show’s biggest yet.

Back in July, I was disappointed to hear that the show would be airing weekly, rather than dropping all at once. But now, having experienced a summer of watching the show, I understand why they made this decision.

Halfway through August, my every Wednesday revolved around the show; it felt like my life would pause so I could be in Cousins for an hour or so, finding out what they’d all been up to. With people watching from 8am and sharing their thoughts online, I would avoid Instagram and TikTok until 5pm when I was home, in front of the TV with my sister. Yes, it became that serious.

By releasing a single episode weekly, we watched as a community, dissecting every moment and losing ourselves in the anticipation. It brought back the excitement of waiting and experiencing it all together. All over the US, people were watching in bars, hands clutching each other and a drink. It brought people together and reminded us of the joy that comes with community. In our world of streaming, where people can watch whatever, whenever, we’ve forgotten the feeling of being immersed in a show with other people.

Seeing creators that we follow or even new ones, react to the show was just as joyful. You would definitely catch me watching Tina’s reaction every Thursday morning, and just being able to witness her emotions and relate to them.

With companies getting involved in the team discourse and creating memes, I truly felt immersed in the show, eating up every little crumb (of Jere’s two-tiered mirror glaze chocolate cake with raspberry coulis). And this only grew, with Jenny Han’s omnipresence on Instagram and TikTok. Releasing BTS content and interacting with reels, she kept the conversation constantly going. And while the chats have paused for now, they’ll undoubtedly return, even louder, when the movie releases!

There’s also something to be said about the soundtrack… Putting aside the show’s much rumoured budget, the intentionality of the songs used is impressive. From incorporating upbeat pop songs to hard-hitting emotional numbers, the songs consistently reflected the character’s emotions, often even on a lyrical basis.

Whether it was Olivia Rodrigo’s Driver’s License in the second season or the heartbreaking scene where Conrad stands in the parking lot, stunned by the news of their engagement, with Radiohead’s No Surprises playing; it’s clear that they thought carefully about each one.

And we can’t not talk about Taylor Swift’s hand in the show, with a shocking amount of her music playing throughout the three seasons. Often used in Belly’s most emotional moments (and many of her scenes with Conrad), Taylor Swift seems to be Belly’s inner voice, sharing how she truly feels without any dialogue.

Applying her exceptional eye for detail, Jenny Han weaves multiple Easter eggs throughout the show. Whether she was hinting towards pivotal moments or towards the ending, she didn’t miss any opportunity to ‘wink’ at the audience. Which made watching even more fun, whether you were piecing it together in real time or falling into theory holes on social media.

From season 2, there were nods to France or more specifically, Paris, with Belly reading The Hunger Games in French and Nicole wearing a Paris jumper. At the time, they seemed unconnected and random, but in hindsight, they told us that Belly was going to end up in Paris, even when she decided against it.

And in the lead-up to the ending, there were small signs that Conrad and Belly would find their way back to each other. From the infinity sign showing up in the subtlest of ways to the repeated use of red, Jenny Han knew exactly what she was doing.

Throughout the show, they signal out lots of colours, but it seems that red has the most significance, referring back to Taylor Swift’s iconic Red lyric. After using it in the season 3 teaser in April, it clearly sets the tone for the season. Whether it was the iconic blue hydrangeas growing red flowers or Belly constantly wearing red around Conrad, Jenny was trying to outline the end, no matter how many twists she threw their way.

As much as she hinted towards the end, she also took efforts to throw us off track. Filming in Paris meant that fans would be leaking scenes before they aired. So, Jenny decided to fly Jeremiah out (even though he didn’t have any scenes there) and stage a fake meeting between him and Belly, building the storyline that they might reconcile. Which of course, sent viewers into a frenzy that there may be a world where Conrad and Belly don’t get back together after all.

Alongside Taylor Swift, she also had other influences that she referred to. Much like her protagonist, Jenny Han adores Aubrey Hepburn movies, pulling moments from Sabrina (1954) and recreating them. The black and white movie follows a young girl returning from France and finding herself in a relationship, but falling for his older brother. Sound familiar? It’s no wonder that Jenny calls back to it time and time again.

From Belly and Cam going to watch Sabrina at the drive-in to the mirroring of the letter-writing and haircut scenes in Paris, the movie seems to be a source of inspiration that they constantly refer to. Oh, and Sabrina also ends up with the older brother, so it was just another signal to us.

Along with the dozens of other Easter eggs (and the things the internet wrongly overanalysed), the show perfectly balances entertainment and emotion, feeling both effortless and deliberate.

So, no, it’s not just a teen drama about a love triangle, but far more, and all the boyfriends and husbands secretly unable to look away from the TV screen might just agree with me.

Our time in Cousins may be over for now, but I’m sure whenever the movie releases, it’ll bring everyone right back together for one more summer.

Thank you for reading this (deeply analytical) piece, and I hope the next one brings you back to The Imprint!