Recipe for love, rivals for disaster

Although a good watch, the newest season of the TV show, The Summer I Turned Pretty, is resulting in a chattering debate between the two teams: Conrad and Jeremiah.

We have been waiting all summer for the finale—and we finally got it on September 17. Don’t get me wrong, any episode of The Summer I Turned Pretty is never a skip! However, I, along with the rest of the world, have found this season to be less captivating than the first two. Despite the fact that this show is a guilty pleasure of mine, the character descriptions between the book and the show are slightly off. That’s why you’ll find the internet fighting and faming over the different sides. Looking past the fact that the end of the season felt pretty rushed, there are many clear reasons why everyone should be Team Conrad. Whether you like the show or not, you can’t deny that the polar opposite traits of the brothers drive the plot to be interesting.

Conrad is mysterious. He holds a deep love for Belly that he has difficulty expressing. On the other hand, Jeremiah is more open and goofy. When Belly is with Jeremiah, she feels safe and at home. However, when she is with Conrad, it is a dangerous love; she feels alive. Yet, the feeling that she has felt ever since she was little towards Conrad is unmatchable, even when she’s with Jeremiah. Yes, Jeremiah is sweet and affectionate towards Belly, but he puts himself before her and doesn't truly know what will make her happy. Now, let’s give Conrad some grace; his confession was passionate and emotional. It just so happened to be that his timing was unfortunate; but in all fairness, he didn't deserve the angry response that he got.

There’s a strong pattern in this debacle. Still, something notable is that people who were originally Team Conrad when the show first came out had read the books first. These are the people who know that he waited for her, and these are the people who would wait forever if he knew that one day they would end up together. When I asked junior Karolina Simonik why she was Team Conrad instead of Jeremiah, she said: “He yearned for Belly for, like, literally his entire life. Men who yearn, earn.” The audience can reflect upon Conrad's known rough exterior and see the loving person that he can be.

My personal opinion is that both of these brothers have been through enough: their trauma and conflicts have scarred them enough. Considering the death of their mom and exhaustion between fighting over the same girl; they should be left alone. There are speculations on the internet discussing how the ending will turn about. Who will Belly wind up with in the end?

All of this being said, the real question still stands: Are you Team Conrad, or Team Jeremiah?