Written by: Abdulsalam Aljohani

Edited by: Dr. Alaa Alghamdi 

“This Is Us” is a masterpiece, and a legendary realistic drama. “This Is Us” has it all. It is the combination of a well written scenario, capable actors, and great directing. Even the soundtracks selections are well studied. I can confidently say that this show is one of the best if not the best show aired on television in recent years. It’s a real life drama as it discusses love, relationships, loss, job struggles and many other aspects of daily life. The title of the show tells you about what kind of show that you are about to watch. “This Is Us”… this is who we are….This is our story, and you are about to hear it. Nothing is according to a plan…We have lived a life that worth telling. Maybe you can learn some lessons, maybe it is going to make you value family even more!, or it might make you appreciate relationships you have or the life you have been given, but be careful, because you might also end up being depressed as you watch us losing the ones we love, the ones that made our lives worth living. You will watch us living our lives. You will see us getting older and closer to the end waving goodbye to the good old days we had. It’s indeed depressing to see the falling of life, but that’s how it is. Life is a tragedy. Nothing will last forever. You have the privilege of seeing our past and future. You will also be aware of our struggles, weaknesses, losses, and damages that took place on our hearts as we were fighting our way in life, so by the time you finish watching the show, you will have no excuse to not come up with a fair judgement.

Story

This Is Us series is full of drama, so it is about life. The story is about the Big Three. In case you have not watched the show, this is the name of the three siblings, Kate, Randall, and Kevin. They are going through different personal struggles as they are pursuing happiness in life and trying to overcome obstacles and tragic events that took place in their past. It starts with Jack, an Italian American young man who has just came from the Vietnam war falling in love with Rebbeca, but due to being a lower class hard mechanic worker, Rebecca’s father, who is a high class businessman refuses to give him his blessing and constantly trying to persuade his daughter to break up with him, because he is not capable to provide her with an appropriate life, but at the end, love wins. They got married and they had a twin, Kate and Kevin. They also adapted a black African kid who was born and left alone in a fire station at the same day and they named him Randall. In the beginning of the story, the story begins by shedding light on the struggles of lower class. I mean the life of Jack to be specific. He almost lost the love of his life just because he is a simple guy with no money or status. He struggles with the arrogance of Rebecca’s father. After Jack wins the social class battle against Rebecca’s father, he then financially struggles to provide to his family. He works hard for several hours a day which I personally think it is what started his alcohol addiction and what triggers it afterwards. In my opinion, the words that Rebecca’s father said got deep into him, so every time he fails in his work, he remembers these words and starts questioning himself. He reached the point where he pretended and acted as if he was someone else at dinner with his boss just to look suitable for the promotion. He even spent his last 200 dollars he had to pay for the dinner. This scene represents the harsh reality of our life. Our financial status became the measure of our value as individuals.

A Feminist perspective can be seen in more than one occasion. The first was when Jack and Rebecca got in an aggressive argument because Rebecca was about to move on a tour around the country to follow her dream and pursue a singing career. She doesn’t want to be a regular housewife anymore. Rebecca feels bitter and blames Jack, accusing him of being ignorant and selfish. Jack on the other hand wonders why Rebecca all of a sudden want to break free from her responsibility as a mother leaving three kids behind? Is it a middle-age crisis that will end what they have been building all those years? Of course love has saved the situation at the end of the story.

To conclude, I am really connected to this show and I get amazed every time I watch it. It’s one of the few shows that makes your eyes full of tears. The director did a great job explaining each character’s mindset to the audience.

Alaa Alghamdi: Associate Professor of English – Taibah University

@ayghamd