I have a feeling about Kate and her boyfriend, and their future. I dont know if this is a spoiler. I am just giving my theory.
Seeing the dismay /mixed feelings when they found his photo in the piano bench. This combined with the boyfriend saying something to Kate along the lines of “ you are the only thing worth living for…” in the last episode. I have a feeling that he ends his disturbed life.
That’s a very valid scenario. I wouldn’t be surprised. Either that or he tries to harm her in some serious way and winds up in jail.
He’s clearly moving towards abusive. From the “We’re not 12 year old girls” comment to reckless driving to leaving her on the side of the road. I totally understand why Kate stays with him - she’s desperate for love, and he’s the first person her age to give her the time of day.
My theory is rape, either attempted or successful. That would also explain Kate’s weight gain; she wasn’t obese as a teenager.
^^^ I wonder about rape too.
She wasn’t obese as a teenager but she was chubby prior to the teen years. And that scene where he kind of reprimands her for eating the chocolate. Loser.
Isn’t Austin Abrams a fantastic actor? He’s great in every role I’ve seen him in.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Austin_Abrams
He is. I think it was great casting. Then again, EVERYONE on the show is great!
I also thought the Big 3 rift was going to be about Randall not telling the others about Rebecca. Especially every time Rebecca almost told, then got interrupted! Rebecca and Kate at the conference was one of the times I liked Rebecca the most. I think I read that Justin Hartley directed that episode.
^^Yes, I saw that Justin did direct the episode.
I think we’ve seen what the scene may be when Rebecca is dying.
Kate releasing the fireflies…” kissing her palmed hands as she raised them up and said fly home, fly home “ …
Hmmm… I have to wonder if for each of the three there might be a reflection of a moment like that.
I find it sad that Kate’s life is portrayed as so consistently challenging. Between her strong reaction to and guilt over Jack’s death, to the teen-aged boyfriend that seems so controlling, not really being a successful singer and now the issues with Toby, along with a blind baby. I really hope she and Toby come to a good place, although the future look a few seasons ago seemed to suggest that she and Toby were not together.
In contrast, Randall has won his election and has a good marriage and great kids. Kevin is very successful in his career, although his personal life is certainly messy.
I find the struggles Kate faces in her life to be very real. I have family members whose lives have been consistently challenging. It’s really, really hard for them. Unfortunately, there is no magic wand that can be waved to make things all better. I appreciate the honesty of a character like Kate.
Randall has his own challenges. As we have seen, many of those are under the surface. Pushed down because that has been his experience (Jack told him when he was young that he and Rebecca needed him to be ok because of all the issues Kate and Kevin presented). And in that way, I think Randall is very real too. Many of the people who appear to have everything lined up and going well are also dealing with significant issues.
Certainly, all of the Big 3 have their issues and some are more hidden. But Randall has a wonderful supportive partner in Beth. I just was happy to see Kate getting a “win” and that she was getting that with Toby.
If you look at the divorce rate, I would guess that having a wonderful supportive partner is much more the exception than the norm.
Why do you say that? As best anyone can tell, only about 40% of first marriages will end in divorce, in some cases only after 20 or 30 years. Only about a quarter of first marriages end in the first 10 years. Things like both spouses’ higher education (Randall and Beth, not Kate, and not Kevin, I think), meeting your spouse in high school/college/graduate school (Randall and Beth, and Kevin and Sophie, but again not Kate), and getting married after age 25 (Kate and Toby, definitely, not Kevin and Sophie, and I think not Randall and Beth) all reduce the chance that a first marriage will end in divorce.
Of course, “not getting divorced” isn’t exactly the same as “having a wonderful supportive partner.” In both directions – Kevin, for example, seems to have had a wonderful, supportive partner, which didn’t keep him from getting divorced when he cheated on her repeatedly. But there’s nothing in the divorce rate to tell you that wonderful supportive partners are “much more the exception than the norm” for married 39-year-olds. My guess is that it may not be the norm, exactly, but it’s pretty common.
I agree that Kate has had a lot of challenges. I’ll also agree that all 3 have had their share of challenges. Outward challenges (perhaps) get more attention to inward challenges. Because they worn more on the sleeve.
That said, maybe (for example) it seems Kate has more challenges because she has done any possible of the following:
Maybe someone like Randall (for example) is or appears to have handled challenges more successfully because of any of the following:
So one person’s problems may linger, another person’s problems may appear to fade. But in both cases used as example above, some challenges are harder to change (Jack’s blindness, Randall’s anxiety).
As you said yourself, staying married doesn’t necessarily mean you are happy or have a wonderful supportive partner. And Sophie didn’t have a wonderful supportive partner in Kevin. Yes my statement was based on the divorce rate plus my 5 decades on the planet. Though that last part is true of every statement made here so adding it would get pretty cumbersome.
As is noted often here, this site is not a great cross section of real life. Demographics here skew this place in many ways. Having been here for a number of years, I suspect it skews towards having a wonderful supportive partner. June Cleaver may well have an account here. YMMV.
I have 4 brothers, 2 of whom are twins. Every single one of us is different, and each of us processes things in our own unique way. My older brother absolutely looked at things that happened in our childhood differently than the rest of us. We used to joke that he must have lived with a different family. I imagine you could say 4 of us “handled challenges more successfully” than this brother. But he was raised by the same parents, in the same place. I bristle a bit at the idea that he somehow failed to do things that would have made a difference. In reality, his brain was wired differently. I guess that’s why I have a soft spot for Kate’s character.
I am with @kelsmom I have a brother that talks about times in our childhood that if they happened, I must have been deaf, dumb and blind! I really think he lived in another universe as no one else has seen/heard what he claims happened. I absolutely think sibling process differently the same situation.
Just got home (9:40). All I saw what’s reference to kate being fat locked out of the cabin and cutting her hand trying to get back in. Was there more to it?