Join or Sign In
Sign in to customize your TV listings
By joining TV Guide, you agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge the data practices in our Privacy Policy.
This Is Us Season 3 Episodes
Season 3 Episode Guide
18 Episodes 2018 - 2019
Episode 1
Nine Bucks
Tue, Sep 25, 201843 mins
It's December 23, 1972. While most of the talk in Pittsburgh today is what the sports media is calling Franco Harris' final play "immaculate reception" to win the playoff game against the Raiders, all Jack can think about is his first date with who he considers his dream girl, Rebecca, after spotting her singing at an open mic at *the* bar, especially as seeing her changed the course of his night and possibly of his life. The problem for Jack this night is that between him and Darryl, he can only come up with $9 for the date, something he doesn't want to tell Rebecca and which becomes more and more problematic as the date progresses. In present day, the Big 3 are celebrating their thirty-eighth birthdays. Kate and Toby will be attending a brunch hosted by Madison for the occasion, their mood at the brunch which will be dictated by an appointment they have that morning concerning their diminishing options to have a baby. Kevin will be joining Randall and his family to celebrate. What Randall is hoping for as the ultimate gift this year is for Déjà to agree to be adopted by him and Beth, he having planned an elaborate speech at a special location to broach the subject with her for the first time. It may not go Randall's way if Déjà has not yet gotten over the sense of being abandoned by her mother, which had earlier resulted her acting out against the Pearsons. Another attendee at that party will be Beth's cousin Zoe, who does not want Beth to know that she and Kevin are in the early throes of a sexual relationship, especially in knowing the outward animosity Beth has always had toward Kevin.
Episode 2
A Philadelphia Story
Tue, Oct 2, 201843 mins
Approximately twenty-four hours in the lead up to the New York premiere of Kevin's feature film debut in Ron Howard directed Hill 400 is presented with the adult members of Kevin's family all invited. Kevin's thoughts go primarily to Zoe and figuring out if they are anything more than sex partners, which if so, means asking her to the premiere as his official date. Kate and Toby don't want to divulge to anyone in their family that they going through IVF, especially fearing the reaction from Rebecca. Toby is also hiding something about the process that may affect all his relationships and not only with Kate. And after the first week of school for the girls, Randall wants to accommodate Déjà, who misses hanging out with other black people her own age who are few and far between at the local school. He decides to introduce her to Sky, the daughter of William's old Nigerian friend Chi Chi from the apartment building in Philadelphia. Randall's action only demonstrates to him further how he lives between two worlds not quite fitting in in either. Within this time, Kate makes an off the cuff comment to Kevin, but it ends up affecting Randall even more, who hears about it second hand. What happens within this twenty-four hours is colored by how their lives were affected in the aftermath of Jack's death, a time when the Big Three were contemplating their post-secondary lives.
Episode 3
Katie Girls
Tue, Oct 9, 201843 mins
1972. Jack, heartbroken in seeing Rebecca with another man, instead focuses on an aspect of his home life he wants to rectify, namely getting his mother out from under the abuse of his father. Conversely, Rebecca has to decide between the somewhat known quantity of Alan and a life in New York, which would work toward her dream of a music career, versus taking a chance on Jack, with who she has only spent so far four hours of her life. In present day, the success that ends up being Kevin's movie premiere is somewhat overshadowed by an issue between Kate and Randall concerning her comment that she is the only one who can pass on a piece of their father. As Randall tries to make amends, Beth faces her own crisis of uncertainty, one where she has to turn to another for support and one where she has to decide when she will confide in Randall seeing as to the other issues which preoccupy his thoughts, not only with Kate but with the recreation center in Philadelphia. In making the media rounds, Kevin not only negotiates his relationship with Zoe but comes to a realization of how little he knows about one key aspect of his father's life. And Kate is nervous in going into the first surgery which will be part of the development of what will hopefully be the embryos. Under the anesthesia, the insecurities that Kate has experienced most of her life surface to the top of her subconscious, which may or may not be helped by additional thoughts of her father.
Episode 4
Vietnam
Tue, Oct 16, 201843 mins
Five specific periods in Jack's life are presented largely in reverse order: late 1971, late 1970, 1969, 1955, and October 18, 1948. Each successive time period shown provides some explanation as to what happens in the later years, from his unhappy and bitter home life with his abusive father to his decision to enlist in the Vietnam War in spite of the fact that he had a medical exemption. But everything done in Jack's life up to this point in time is largely in service to one specific task: to be his younger brother Nicky's protector, with the reason behind him taking on this role with all fiber of his being explained.
Episode 5
Toby
Tue, Oct 23, 201843 mins
Randall is hosting his first campaign rally--an eat-and-greet at a local restaurant. The well-attended event turns on a dime. Randall's emotions end up much like they were during his high school prom night. In feeling like she needs to support Randall, Beth is less than forthright with him about how her first job interview went. Kevin and Zoe visit Mr. Robinson, Jack's Vietnam War colleague. In wanting to discover the truth about his father's time in the war, Kevin discover more information than expected. In the process, Zoe comes to some conclusions about her relationship with Kevin. Kate and Toby are awaiting the news about how many if any of the eight embryos have resulted in her becoming pregnant. Kate has always shut music out of her life in bad times - like following her father's death. Toby, who went off his anti-depression medication, is slowly feeling the effects. In feeling the need to be the support for Kate, Toby does not want to show the depressive side of himself to her, something that he has dealt with for the better part of his life and that was exacerbated in his teen years with the break-up of his parents' marriage. And in the late 1990s following Jack's death, Miguel is there to support Rebecca and the kids. His reasons for doing so come to light.
Episode 6
Kamsahamnida
Tue, Oct 30, 201843 mins
In 1993, the talk at the Pearson house is boxing when Jack comes home with a black eye because Rebecca had no idea that he even did anything remotely boxing-related besides use the punching bag at the gym. While Rebecca wants to stop Jack from fighting actual people even in a boxing format, Randall, manufacturing a lie, persuades his father to teach him how to box without telling Rebecca. The real reason for Randall wanting to learn to box does eventually come to light having to do with Kevin's physicality with him. In present day, Kate passes along the happy news that she is pregnant, which is tempered with the fact that Toby, despite now being back on his anti-depressants, still has not gotten out of his debilitating depressive state. While Toby fears that Kate will eventually leave him because of his depression, Kate discovers just how ready she is to be a mother as she deals both with Toby's depression and an issue with Audio. Kevin becomes obsessed with the photograph of the woman and his father from Jack's Vietnam days. With Zoe taking some alone time after finishing her documentary, Kevin turns to another person to figure what he should do about this obsession. Randall does an unofficial campaign stop, which doesn't go quite the way he wanted it to thanks to Councilman Brown. Randall stumbles upon what he believes may be a gold mine of votes, which leads to him building his campaign team. And Beth discovers that getting fired has repercussions on her family that she didn't even contemplate. When Beth hits her breaking point, she gets words of wisdom from an unexpected source.
Episode 7
Sometimes
Tue, Nov 13, 201843 mins
Two times in Jack's life in the early 1970s is presented. One is in Vietnam, just as soon he meets up with Nicky. Their complicated war coexistence is shown, where Jack still wants to be his protector, while Nicky seems to have a death wish. Jack does whatever he can to have Nicky transferred to his platoon, while he himself has an uncomfortable incident en route back to his squad located in a small fishing village. Two is one week after Jack and Rebecca meet, she who has convinced him to accompany her to Los Angeles where she has an exploratory meeting with a record company executive arranged by her friend, Nicole. Vietnam hangs like a cloud over their road trip, Jack who refuses to speak to her about it, even as he has a special albeit painful task of his own in Los Angeles related to his time in Vietnam. The unspoken nature of Vietnam ends up bringing Jack and Rebecca closer together in an odd way. In present day, Kevin and Zoe have themselves arrived in Vietnam, it still a few days until they make their way to the fishing village. While Kevin makes an early discovery which could kibosh finding out about the woman and the necklace, he and Zoe make some admissions to one another as they navigate their relationship.
Episode 8
Six Thanksgivings
Tue, Nov 20, 201844 mins
Six Thanksgivings, covering close to 50 years, are presented. The first is in Vietnam where Jack has recently arranged for Nick to join his company as a medic. Nick is harboring some anger for reasons unknown to Jack. That reason comes to light as Jack tries to help a struggling family in the village consisting of an old man, a young woman, and the woman's son. The second is in 1997. Because Shelley has taken their kids, Andy and Amber, to have Thanksgiving with her family, Miguel is invited for the first time to spend Thanksgiving with the Pearsons. Miguel has largely been an absent father while trying to provide for the family and believes Shelley is now turning their children against him. Seeing the happy Pearsons is difficult for him to handle, including Randall working on what he considers the flawed question he has to answer for a college entrance application. The third is the first Thanksgiving spent together by William and Jessie, who are still feeling each other out mostly only knowing each other from the drug addiction support group. And the remaining Thanksgivings take place in present day. Kate and Toby, who is just on the road to resuming a stable mental state out of his depression, are cooking dinner at Randall and Beth's, while Randall and Beth's entire family heads to a campaign event volunteering at a soup kitchen. One person who ends up not going is under-the-weather Tess. What is actually happening with Tess leads to a point of connection between her and Aunt Kate. The campaign event is just the latest of several points of contention between Jae-won and Beth, the latter who Randall has appointed campaign field director. The end of the event will demonstrate how Randall really views Beth as part of his campaign team. The event will also bring up some painful memories for Déjà, which turns to being bittersweet with a text she receives. And Miguel and Rebecca will have dinner at Amber's with Amber and Andy's respective families, including Miguel's newly adopted grandson, before heading to Randall and Beth's in time for dessert. Miguel still has a strained relationship with his offspring which leads to a need to set some ground rules in what is and is not acceptable in the way they deal with each other.
Episode 9
The Beginning Is the End Is the Beginning
Tue, Nov 27, 201844 mins
With Jack and Nick's joint tour of duty in Vietnam, Jack has to work fast to get Nick out of his funk until Nick is scheduled to return to his own platoon. Jack tries to reinforce that their joint mission is to make it back home alive. Nick has his own thoughts of what he wants for his time in the war. In present day, Kevin and Zoe are close to making it to the Ville where both Jack and Nick served. In likening their situation to a documentary movie, Kevin has to come to grips with Zoe's assertion that their journey is a fluid one without a preconceived ending of Kevin's own making. Kate and Toby discover that the news thus far on the baby front is positive. There is one suggestion that Dr. Jasper makes for Kate's own good, which sends her on a journey of discovery of her own with Toby by her side. They also have to discover why they don't want to learn the sex of the baby among other things they don't talk about the baby. Randall has an upcoming debate with Councilman Brown while he and Beth not only have to deal with a moody Tess but figure out what to do when they learn that Déjà has secretly been in contact with her biological mother. Something has to give with all these pressures facing Randall and Beth. And Kate tries to convince Tess to open up about her emotions, Tess' secret which Kate has divulged to Rebecca only wanting Tess to have that support she will probably eventually want and need.
Episode 10
The Last Seven Weeks
Tue, Jan 15, 201943 mins
The lives of the Big Three in the final seven weeks of the election campaign are presented, starting on the day after Jae-won tells Randall that the campaign is effectively over in he having no chance of winning, and after Beth tells Randall that she no longer supports him in the campaign in they needing to focus on Tess and what she has divulged to them about her life. Randall continuing with the campaign may be a sticking point between him and Beth. Randall also has to decide what to do with some damaging information Jae-won discovers about Brown, information which could effectively derail his campaign. Through it all, Randall cannot help think about the time Jack accompanied him to Howard, and what Jack stated that he envisioned for his future. Kevin and Zoe have made it back from Vietnam with the discovery that his Uncle Nick was not killed in the war in Vietnam. In Kevin and Zoe's search to find out what happened to Nick and if he is still alive, Kevin gets to see a part of Zoe's past, what Beth earlier mentioned to Kevin as Zoe's troubled history. That past may effect whether there is a future for them. And Kate and Toby have decided that it's time to redecorate the room they will use as the nursery. Due to a specific incident, they talk about what material of their own past, especially from their childhood, they can pass on to their child.
Episode 11
Songbird Road: Part One
Tue, Jan 22, 201943 mins
Two road trips, nearly thirty years apart, to 2125 Songbird Road, Bradford, Pennsylvania are shown. The first, in 1992, is by Jack after receiving what is listed as the final postcard from Nick, the trip under the guise of a business trip to Trenton. Because of that postcard, Jack feels the need to have one last conversation with his little brother to tie up loose ends. The second, in present day, is by the Big Three, as Kevin has just told the rest of the family that Nick was not killed in the war as Jack had told them, and Kevin who discovered that Nick was still living at that address as recently as one year ago. Rebecca, emotionally, cannot handle making the trip as she deals with her role in Jack's lie, whether it was an all-out lie or the real truth of it being a lie partly out of omission. The Three are uncertain if Nick is still there, and if he is, what he will say if he does talk to them. Jack and the Three, on their respective trip, will end up having the same dilemma on their way home. Nick himself reflects on a specific incident in Vietnam which makes Jack's lie of saying that he died in the war not completely untrue, at least figuratively.
Episode 12
Songbird Road: Part Two
Tue, Feb 12, 201942 mins
After witnessing his behavior regardless of if it was a regular occurrence for him or purely a reaction to their visit, Kevin, Kate, and Randall feel they have no other option but to help their Uncle Nicky in the short term by not leaving him by himself in his leaking trailer where he could do himself harm. Kevin takes this help one step further by researching vet centers, one in nearby Youngstown, which looks to be a good one where they can take him at least for a visit. Rebecca appears unexpectedly to join them, even though originally she had no intention of meeting Nicky but nonetheless felt compelled to do so. Kate and Randall leave to attend to their other commitments. As Kevin and Rebecca deal with Nicky and as Kate and Randall head off together to their respective homes, they all cannot help but remember the day Rebecca now realizes was the day after Jack returned from his last visit to Nicky, in which Rebecca had an up-and-down time with Kevin when he wanted to get a baseball card signed by Pirates pitcher John Smiley. Kate and Randall have vastly different remembrances of the day and their father despite having been together and with Jack for all of it.
Episode 13
Our Little Island Girl
Tue, Feb 19, 201942 mins
Beth and Zoe head to their childhood home in Washington, DC as Beth's mother, Carol Clarke, has bruised her hip, she previously having broken it. In addition to providing her care during her recuperation, they want to speak to her about either working on a part-time basis or preferably retiring altogether from her longtime job as a high school principal. Zoe knows that she has to be the stronger one in the situation as Beth has never been able to stand up to her strong-willed mother. The issue of Carol's retirement ends up taking a back seat to something that Zoe learned on the drive to DC and which Beth finally admits to her mother: that she was laid off and has been unemployed now for several months. This issue brings Beth back to her growing up and having her dreams of being a prima ballerina dashed, partly out of the family's circumstance and partly out of being good but not quite good enough - or so Carol thought - despite she putting every ounce of effort she could muster into pursuing this dream.
Episode 14
The Graduates
Tue, Mar 5, 201943 mins
The Big Three are about to graduate from high school four weeks after Jack's death. Rebecca and Kate are unable to move on from the loss of Jack in their lives. For Rebecca, the issue is highlighted by something that happens when she goes shopping for something that was Jack's purview. For Kate, the feeling of abandonment is only exacerbated by Kevin's decision to follow Sophie to New York after graduation in pursuit of becoming an actor. In present day, Kate has finished the eight credits from Encino Community College required to become a college graduate. Although she doesn't want or expect any celebration, Toby goes all out not only for her but the other three people graduating at the same time with people surprising her at the surprise celebration. One person whom she does expect is Kevin, who has been in Los Angeles in meetings for the past week since the Big Three and Rebecca met with Nicky. The effect of meeting with their uncle for the first time has taken its toll on Kevin, who tries to hide his coping mechanism from everyone but especially Zoe. Other issues overtake the celebration. One person who did not make the trip to Los Angeles is Randall. Randall and Beth are trying to organize their lives in light of his upcoming work as city councilor and her decision to teach dance, all the while making sure the three girls are still priorities. Something that happens with Déjà may influence what decisions they make as a family.
Episode 15
The Waiting Room
Tue, Mar 12, 201943 mins
All the adult members of Kate's family, including their significant others, and Madison have eventually made their way to the hospital, Kate's water which broke at twenty-eight weeks. Beyond the initial news of Dr. Monroe being able to delay labor in the realm of hours and not weeks as would be ideal, they have heard little about Kate or the baby's condition or prognosis, whether it be from Toby who has been by Kate's side the entire time, Dr. Monroe, or any of the other hospital staff, none of the family members having ostensibly left the waiting room since their arrival, some who have been there since Kate's admission now just over twenty-four hours ago. As such, everyone is on pins and needles, which only makes the elephants in the room more palpable. Those elephants include Kevin's recent drinking binge which everyone is now aware of including Zoe who will have to evaluate their relationship based on this information, and the tiff between Randall and Beth in he asking her to delay her dream of teaching dance to look after their children which everyone else does not yet know, but which Beth may not be able to contain in her frustration. In being on pins and needles, every little thing seems to set one person or another off. While Miguel tries to play his usual role in diffusing the situation, Rebecca seems like she has gone into a trance, noticing all the minute details of their surrounding, which hearkens back for her to another hospital and another waiting room.
Episode 16
Don't Take My Sunshine Away
Tue, Mar 19, 201943 mins
It's the end of the school year 1992, and Rebecca and Jack have agreed to be one of the chaperons at what will be the Big Three's first school dance. Kevin's goal of having a first kiss with Sophie is a little more obvious than Randall's goal for the evening, he who has agreed to be Kate's friend Jessica's date. Rebecca has an impromptu goal of her own when she learns that Jack never attended a school dance when he was young. In present day, Kate and Toby are dealing with Baby Jack's precarious situation differently, he who is still existing in an incubator and going through a plethora of daily tests which require him to be continually poked and prodded. Zoe has convinced Kevin not only to attend AA meetings again, but to go into couples therapy to address the issue not only of his recent drinking binge but the lies he told to hide it. Something that comes up in therapy may be a deal breaker for a long term future between the two, Kevin who turns to old supports to find the answers. And Randall and Beth have embarked on their shared housework and child rearing in light of Randall starting his work as a councilman and Beth continuing to teach dance to feel fulfilled, they trying to be there for the other when required in those professional situations. But they may only be able to keep up this pace for so long before something will give.
Episode 17
R & B
Tue, Mar 26, 201943 mins
In light of their potentially marriage-ending fight concerning the voice message Randall left when he thought Beth wasn't showing up for the political dinner, Randall and Beth are shown at key points in their relationship, starting with the first time Randall ever laid eyes on her at college. That relationship exists largely on Randall's persistence because their first date, at least from Beth's perspective, was a total disaster that highlighted their fundamental differences. The one thing that Beth did not want was either to be consumed by the other and their life. The bad of their relationship is analogous to the way they share a plate of nachos, her favorite food, with Randall having been able to sweet talk his way out of every bad situation thus far and Beth feeling that she ultimately has had to give every time. The good of their relationship is epitomized by the way they ultimately wrote their wedding vows - each having difficulties on their own leading up to their wedding day - and the underlying emotions to those words. In their current impasse, they have to find a way to get back to the emotions contained in the vows for their marriage to survive.
Episode 18
Her
Tue, Apr 2, 201943 mins
In 1992, Jack has to figure out what to do when Rebecca has an unexpected overnight hospital stay, not wanting to leave her side, the kids to see her in her present condition for the fear they may have, especially because they are dependent upon her emotionally as their mother, or to leave the kids with someone else in their collective emotional distress. The feeling of dependence on their mother hits Kate in the present day after Rebecca and Miguel have made the decision to move to Los Angeles to help Kate and Toby with baby Jack as he begins the transition from living on machines to surviving on his own. With them not yet even having left the hospital or Rebecca and Miguel having made the move, Kate begins to feel overtaken by her mother in the child-rearing process. Kevin can't help but raise the topic of children once again with Zoe when they babysit Tess and Annie, and Kevin sees how good she is with their nieces. And Randall and Beth have to figure out a way to overcome their current marital impasse if they can, their problems, which they have been trying to keep from their daughters. Unlike what Randall and Beth believe, their marital problems are not well hidden within the house, and both Tess and Déjà are able to see such problems with Randall and Beth and have their own methods of dealing with it. All these items come into play in the surviving Pearson collective convening several years into the future.
