When This Is Us premiered in 2015 it became an overnight sensation, pulling in a record number of live viewers than live television had seen in several years. Since then, the family drama has continued to dominate NBC’s Tuesday night lineup on Twitter’s trending topics. Now in it’s final season, the fans and the creators themselves have started to reminisce about the show’s epic run.
While This Is Us is many things, at its core, it’s a show about love and romance. From Jack and Rebecca’s love stories in the past to their children’s love stories in the present, a core theme anchoring the show has always been love in its various forms. To pull this off, This Is Us has a plethora of hopeless romantic characters who always know what to say to get the other to swoon, including their devoted fanbase.
Jack To Rebecca
“I don’t need anniversaries to see you. I see you every day. You are my daily meteor shower.”
As the patriarch of the Pearson family, Jack (Milo Ventimiglia) certainly set the standard for romance and iconic quotes. From the moment he locked eyes with Rebecca (Mandy Moore) he pulled out all the stops to make her his. And even when she finally agreed, he never stopped wooing her and showing her just how much he loved her.
Jack’s so good at grand gestures that he makes Rebecca feel inadequate which leads Jack to say this swoon-worthy quote to her during their fourth wedding anniversary.
Kevin To Sophie
“The best thing that ever happened to me was you telling me that you’d marry me. I’m still in love with you, and I will be at our restaurant bright and early tomorrow waiting for you.”
Much like his father Kevin (Justin Hartley) is a hopeless romantic at his core. Unfortunately, he hasn’t had the best luck in love. While he did marry his childhood sweetheart, Sophie (Alexandra Breckenridge) the pair couldn’t make things work.
Still, that didn’t stop Kevin from pining after Sophie for several seasons. Fans got a glimpse of just how remorseful Kevin was about losing Sophie in season one when he surprises her at her apartment to give her an epic romantic speech about why she’s it for him.
Beth To Randall
“When I look in your eyes, I see my home. I see eternity. And no matter what may come our way, I promise that I’ll always choose you.”
While Beth (Susan Kelechi Watson) often endearingly rolls her eyes at Randall’s (Sterling K. Brown) romantic antics, she has a hopeless romantic living inside of her too. Through flashback, fans learn that love hasn’t always been easy for Beth but once she finally let Randall in it became easy.
In fact, that’s entirely what the season 3 episode “R&B” was all about and led to one of Beth’s most romantic quotes. Even when their marriage got rocky in the present, Beth continued to choose Randall showing that she really did mean the words she said.
Toby To Kate
“When you smile, the world is a better place, see? The world just got a little better.”
As one of the only non-Pearson males in This Is Us, Toby (Chris Sullivan) had a lot to live up to in the romance department. Unsurprisingly, though, he knocked it out of the park proving to be just as romantic as the Pearson men.
Not only is Toby constantly wooing Kate (Chrissy Metz), but he also knows just what to say when she’s feeling stressed and scared. Nothing was as stressful and scary for these two than Kate’s rainbow baby pregnancy which is what led to Toby uttering this perfect quote to cheer her up.
Miguel About Rebecca
“Some love stories are written in the stars and other love stories are written together: two people the universe had no plans for writing their story in the stars together.”
When fans first learned that Rebecca remarried Jack’s best friend Miguel (Jon Huertas) fans were a bit skeptical. However, like everything with This Is Us, their history played out slowly and fans began to fall in love with this unlikely couple.
Miguel faced an uphill battle when it came to love with Rebecca especially since she was married to the King of Romance himself. However, instead of trying to compete, Miguel realized that his love with Rebecca was a different kind which made it unique. That’s exactly what he explained to Kevin at Kevin’s bachelor party in season 5.
Jack To Randall
“The moment I saw you, I knew you were my boy. You weren’t a choice, Randall, you were a fact.”
“Romantic” usually is synonymous with a certain kind of love, but it doesn’t mean that someone can’t be “romantic” towards their family too. In fact, Jack was also the king of this so-called “romantic family love,” especially when it came to Randall.
Early on in season one, young Randall begins to question his place in his family since he was adopted but Jack is having none of that. Instead, he sets Randall straight by getting down to his level and telling him that it was love, at first sight, the moment he spotted Randall in the hospital all those years ago.
Randall To Beth
“I promise to spend the rest of my life earning your love because you are the only thing, the only thing I’m ever gonna need.”
When it comes to Randall and romance, he excels in romantic gestures more so than heartfelt speeches. However, that’s not to say Randall doesn’t know how to sweet talk Beth because he definitely does. And he’s not afraid to be vulnerable when it really needed.
After hitting a particularly rough patch in their relationship, Randall realizes that showing Beth how much he loves her isn’t the same as actually telling her. This is what leads him to say this beautiful quote to her that helps them get back on track.
Kate To Toby
“You don’t need to pass down your favorite thing to your son, because I know with every part of me that you are gonna be our son’s favorite thing. You.”
Kate takes after Rebecca in more ways than she’d like to admit including her not always knowing how to react to Toby’s constant grand romantic gestures. However, as their relationship developed so did Kate’s responses as she learned Toby’s love language.
One of the most romantic moments to come from Kate is when she comforts Toby, who starts to panic about being a father as Kate’s due date gets closer. After one particular meltdown, Kate pulls Toby aside and reminds him that the only thing their son needs is him. It’s exactly what Toby needs to hear to calm him and also a romantic moment that shows just how much Kate loves him.
Rebecca To Jack
“You and I? We’re gonna have it all together. We’re gonna have the big moments and the small moments and it’s gonna be one for the ages.”
While Jack might have been the King of Romance, he often felt inadequate for Rebecca in all other areas of their life. This was largely due to Rebecca’s wealthy family and her unwelcoming and condescending father who was always looking to put Jack down.
However, none of this mattered to Rebecca who made it clear just how much she loved Jack in the season 4 episode “Light and Shadows.” In a twist of events, Rebecca pulls off the romantic gesture this time, showing up at Jack’s work to tell him that he’s the only one she wants to spend life with.
William About Randall And Life
“Cause the two best things in my life were the person in the very beginning and the person at the very end. That’s a pretty good thing to be able to say, I think.”
Romance is usually synonymous with happy feelings and thoughts, but it can also conjure up bittersweet feelings as well, especially as one’s life begins to dwindle as was the case with William (Ron Cephas Jones).
During a rather bittersweet heart-to-heart moment, William sits down with Randall and reminiscences about his life. It’s at that moment that William says the above quote while talking about the love he’s experienced over his rough life.
