Editor’s Note: The following contains spoilers for The Summer I Turned Pretty Season 3 finale.After years of keeping audiences in a chokehold, The Summer I Turned Pretty has come to an end — at least for now. The Prime Video series, based on Jenny Han‘s novels, explores Belly’s (Lola Tung) coming-of-age journey, going to Cousin’s Beach every summer, and harboring feelings for both Jeremiah (Gavin Casalegno) and Conrad Fisher (Christopher Briney). In Season 3, Belly had to make a decision about who she would end up with, and after calling off her wedding to Jeremiah and going on a Parisian getaway, she came to terms with the fact that she’s always loved Conrad. As the pairing finally found their way back to each other in the finale, an unexpected romance began to unravel.
No longer with Belly, Jeremiah spent the last few episodes figuring out what he wanted to do with his life. After his father cut him off financially, he stayed a few weeks at Steven’s (Sean Kaufman) apartment and then at Denise’s (Isabella Briggs), moping about how his relationship with Belly turned out and trying to pinpoint what to do next without going back to university. Denise, who previously made fun of Jeremiah when they worked together at his father’s firm, ultimately became a friend he could lean on while trying to mend his broken heart. By the finale, the two characters decide to go from friends to something more. Although we aren’t sure what will happen to this new pairing after the events that unfold at the end of Season 3, it’s nothing short of exciting to see these two characters grow closer.
Jeremiah and Denise Finally Get Together in ‘The Summer I Turned Pretty’ Finale
Despite being introduced in the series’ final season, Denise fit right in. She initially becomes Steven’s new love interest, as the two of them go from bickering at the office to later becoming business partners and toying with the possibility of coupling up. Of course, Steven and Taylor (Rain Spencer) were always supposed to be endgame, so it doesn’t come as a surprise when Denise and Steven decide to keep their relationship platonic. Still, audiences were unsure what would happen to Denise’s arc towards the end of the season. It was only in the penultimate episode that the writers began to hint at a possible romance between her and Jeremiah.
Throughout the season, Jeremiah’s goal was to marry Belly, whom he’s been with for four years. Their abrupt engagement stirred drama among both his and Belly’s families, who weren’t immediately in favor of there being a wedding even before the two of them graduated from university. On top of the lack of approval from Laurel (Jackie Chung) and Adam (Tom Everett Scott) for most of the wedding planning, there was also the elephant in the room, which was that Belly had history with Conrad. When their wedding is called off after Conrad professes his love for Belly, Jeremiah is a wreck.
Unable to trust his own brother, get over Belly, or depend on his father, the character had to do some personal reflection. Denise helped him see the light at the end of the tunnel, bringing a smile to his face and encouraging him to find out his true passion. Even with the limited timeframe that they had on screen, it became clear that Denise was the right person to help Jeremiah get back on his feet and move on.
Jeremiah and Denise’s Happy Ending Doesn’t Get Proper Development
Denise and Jeremiah getting together at the end made sense. However, it’s undeniable that the lead-up to their passionate kiss was overshadowed by Belly and Conrad’s reunion in Paris. Bonrad supporters were over the moon about the couple rekindling, and were able to appreciate their tasteful scenes together, exuding yearning. Still, while Belly and Conrad finally expressed their love for each other and gave their relationship a second chance, Jeremiah had his character development cut short. In the penultimate episode of The Summer I Turned Pretty, it is evident that Jeremiah is almost at the stage of healing. Yet, in the finale, audiences don’t get to see him evolve, but rather are meant to believe that he’s now a skilled cook and that he and Denise are seeing each other as more than friends.
If The Summer I Turned Pretty had dedicated more time to building Jeremiah and Denise’s connection, there would’ve been a better payoff when they finally kiss in the kitchen at Cousin’s. Instead, their kiss (even though chemistry-filled) felt rushed, and their future together uncertain. After all, Denise will soon move to San Francisco with Steven and Taylor, with the prospect of starting her own company. She’s worked hard to make this startup a reality and deserves to make her dream come true. When she and Jeremiah decide to give in to their mutual attraction, there doesn’t seem to be much of a conversation about whether what they have is temporary or that they are meant for each other. If the series had made their eventual romance more of a slow burn and hadn’t rushed their final scenes together, their resolution would’ve felt more rewarding.
‘The Summer I Turned Pretty’s Upcoming Film Should Give This Couple More Screen Time
As was reported shortly after the release of The Summer I Turned Pretty finale, there is a film in the works that will expand on what happens to each of the characters after the finale. With this announcement in mind, the hope is that Jeremiah and Denise’s relationship develops further. After all, Denise will be in San Francisco making her business thrive, and Jeremiah is expected to continue honing in on his career as a chef. It would be interesting to either see them together in the same city or maybe navigate a long-distance relationship. One thing is for certain: Denise was the best thing to happen to Jeremiah this season. She pushed him to get out of his comfort zone and find his passion without his father’s financial backing, encouraged him to heal at his own pace, and she was the one to convince Jeremiah to forgive his brother and Belly in order to move on.
Jeremiah finally found his footing and has matured after all that transpired during his engagement to Belly, and given that we haven’t gotten the chance to see him fully evolve, the film would be the perfect opportunity to give Jeremiah the development that he deserves as one of the series’ leads. If Denise was the one to get him to where he is at, it would be interesting to see him become even more mature and professionally accomplished at her side. After all, their happy ending in the series might’ve been sweet and unexpected, but their romance seems to be only getting started.
The Summer I Turned Pretty is available to stream on Prime Video in the U.S.
The Summer I Turned Pretty
- Release Date
-
2022 – 2025-00-00
- Network
-
Prime Video
- Directors
-
Erica Dunton, Jesse Peretz, Jeff Chan
-
Lola Tung
Isabel ‘Belly’ Conklin
-
Christopher Briney
Conrad Fisher