If you’re anything like this book-obsessed, music-devoted girlie pop, you may or may not have rolled out of bed at 3 AM ET this morning with a strong ass coffee ready to spiral into absolute oblivion over episode 3 of The Summer I Turned Pretty season three. I said, may have—this is a judgement-free zone!
While most of the episode was spent white-knuckling a throw pillow thanks to the mounting tension between the emotionally complicated cast (we’re really looking at you during this episode, Taylor and Steven), one of the most gut-punching—and beautifully soundtracked—moments hit in the final minutes of the episode.
SPOILERS AHEAD! Don’t say I didn’t warn you. (If you heard this like Taylor Swift in your head, you’re in the right place.)
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After spending the entire episode hiding their engagement like two star-crossed teenagers (because they practically are), trying not to get caught sneaking out after curfew, Belly blurts out that she and Jeremiah are getting married in August. At just 20—almost 21—and 22 years old, it’s no surprise their parents, Laurel and Adam, don’t exactly pop the champagne. Instead, their reaction is… well, a crash course in disappointment, bewilderment, and classic parental panic. “You want to take the next step? Move in together… foster a cat!” Laurel suggests, practically begging them to pump the brakes.
Time stands still as Conrad—Belly’s first love and long-lingering “what if”—is struck silent. The weight of the moment crashes over him like a tidal wave: he’s lost Belly to Jeremiah forever.
As the memorial lunch for Susannah—aka Beck—abruptly ends due to Adam and Laurel’s disapproval, Conrad is left outside the seafood restaurant, utterly alone. He watches as Belly and Jeremiah drive off in opposite directions, the moment fractured and raw. Then, the 1997 Radiohead track “No Surprises” begins to play—aching and wistful. While this moment was anything but “no surprises” as Conrad is left gobsmacked and broken by the news, the moment crescendos with the lines “This is my final fit/My final bellyache with/No alarms and no surprises.”
Bellyache. Belly Conklin. It’s rather on the nose, but a beautiful music moment that captures that emotional juxtaposition of Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish, Olivia Rodrigo, Sabrina Carpenter, among other pop icons, soundtracking the season.
The fourth episode of The Summer I Turned Pretty will air on Amazon Prime on Wednesday, July 30.
