TSITP Ep 9-10 Breakdown: Conrad’s Letters & Belly’s Narration Explained

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Before the highly anticipated finale of The Summer I Turned Pretty Season 3, we dive deep into the emotional weight of Conrad’s heartfelt letters and what they truly mean for Belly’s narration in Episodes 9 & 10.  💌 These letters aren’t just words on paper — they reflect Conrad’s struggles, his love, and the silent truths he couldn’t say out loud. Belly’s narration brings new depth to his emotions, giving us a glimpse into what might shape her final choice in the finale. #TSITP #TheSummerITurnedPretty #TSITPFinale #TSITPSeason3 #JennyHan #PrimeVideo #TeamConrad #TeamJeremiah #BellyConklin #ConradFisher #JeremiahFisher #TSITPEpisode9 #TSITPEpisode10 #TSITPBreakdown #TSITPTheory #LoveTriangle

Transcript

00:00In the Summer I Turn Pretty Season 3, Belly's narration shifts as she enters a new chapter

00:05in Paris, navigating her life abroad. But notably, her voice disappears after she receives her first

00:11letter from Conrad in Episode 10. Earlier in Season 3, I talked about how Conrad's honesty

00:17in Episodes 7 and 8 brought out a more truthful narration from Belly after a stretch of oppression

00:23and avoidance. And now, once again, her narration grows quiet. Let's talk about why.

00:28To understand Belly and Conrad's arc in these two episodes, we need to trace back a thread from

00:34Season 1. After Belly and Conrad almost kiss for the first time, Conrad confides in Cleveland about

00:40his fears of messing things up with her. Cleveland tells him,

00:47Back then, Conrad pulled away from Belly because he wasn't ready. He realized that he wasn't right

00:52with himself. But in Season 3, after heeding Cleveland's advice, Conrad has done the work.

00:58He's ready for Belly. Belly, on the other hand, isn't ready for him. She's in the very place

01:03that Conrad was in Season 1, not right with herself. In Episode 9, Belly's narration begins

01:09outward, reflecting on the mess and the hurt she left behind. I just blew up my life and hurt everyone

01:15who has ever loved me. It's centered on the emotions of others. But by the end of the episode,

01:21after a day in Paris, it shifts inwards. I have no idea where I'm headed, what my future is,

01:27but I know this. Rebuilding is always possible. This marks a move from centering others' emotions

01:33to reclaiming her own. When she was engaged to Jeremiah, Belly was performing. Caught up in roles,

01:40appearances, and expectations. She was trying so hard to convince everyone, along with herself,

01:46that she knew what she wanted, that it was all decided. But in Paris, she begins peeling away

01:52that performance and moving back into a space of self-discovery. Even Belly chasing her backpack

01:57and engagement ring around Paris is symbolic. This episode, she chases a ring, a symbol of home

02:04and connection, only to reject it once she has it in her hands. When she chooses to stay in Paris,

02:10it's not just about physical distance from her past. It's about establishing an emotional distance

02:16as well. Episode 9 becomes a turning point. Belly begins to separate her identity from the weight

02:23of other people's expectations. And episode 10 gives us Belly's most vulnerable narration in season 3.

02:29It was a chance for me to test myself, to find out what I was really made of. She admits to weakness,

02:35homesickness, and insecurity. Feelings that she would have previously hidden or pushed down.

02:40Three months in, and it turns out, I'm weak and homesick and I'm really bad at French.

02:45She is no longer narrating to persuade or prove anything, only to search and to sit with her

02:51doubts. She's questioning and wondering again about what she hasn't figured out yet, what she still

02:57wants, and what she fears losing if she goes home. I haven't seen or changed or learned enough yet. I

03:03won't be able to make myself come back. This vulnerability marks real development. Belly is learning to sit

03:10with her doubts instead of running from them. And unlike before, nothing is decided. Even Benito,

03:16her new boyfriend, is kept at a distance. One of the most symbolic moments in episode 10 comes when

03:22Belly forgets the anniversary of Susanna's death. For someone whose grief wants to find her, this

03:28forgetting shows healing and a departure from her old self. She hasn't erased Susanna, but she is no longer

03:34trapped in grief, particularly the grief that was the foundation in her relationship with Jeremiah.

03:39Instead, she is building forward, where her past selves don't dominate her every step. And her unsure,

03:46questioning narration in episode 10 reflects this. However, after her letter from Conrad arrives,

03:52Belly's narration goes silent for the rest of the episode. Conrad is also notably absent as a subject in

03:59her narration across both episodes and his reappearance in her life, quiets her voice altogether. When his

04:06letter appears, Belly's reaction is withheld. She doesn't tell anyone about the letters and she

04:11doesn't narrate her feelings about them. It's Taylor who finds one, forcing the subject out into the

04:17open. But Belly is choosing when and how to confront her feelings, if at all. So, when Taylor confronts

04:23her about the letters, Belly is avoidant. She brushes it off, downplaying the love letters as

04:28regular nothing notes. This indicates that she is not ready to broach the subject of Conrad out loud

04:35to Taylor or with herself, which is why her narration quiets. This is in keeping with the first half of

04:41season 3, when Belly's narration would quiet after moments with Conrad when her feelings were stirred.

04:47An example is during and after the peach scene in episode 5, when Belly was visibly affected,

04:53but quiet. Similarly, Belly is affected seeing Junior Mint and the Infinity necklace, but the audience

05:00isn't privy to the thoughts swirling behind her telling expressions here. The avoidance with Taylor

05:05is also a shift because in the past, Belly's feelings were often shaped by Taylor's advice,

05:11following her advice to pursue Jeremiah and the past over Conrad, or to get back with Jeremiah after

05:17he cheated. And even in this moment, her pursuit of Benito is sparked by Taylor's encouragement.

05:23But now, with Conrad, she keeps the letters and the emotions around them private. These letters

05:29remain hers alone to decipher, and she takes her time figuring out what they mean as she sorts through

05:35her own unresolved feelings. But the key here, she no longer needs or wants anyone to validate or define

05:42what those feelings mean for her. Yet, as I mentioned, Conrad does not appear in any of her narration.

05:48Even the flashback in this episode reinforces this absence. Throughout the series, Belly usually

05:54explains the memories we see through flashbacks in her detailed narrative voice. But this episode,

06:00the flashback has no narration, and Conrad, though a part of the memory, only comes up indirectly,

06:06mentioned in passing. He's acknowledged as the people that Belly says she wants to hang out with

06:13to Susanna. But the significance of this is not explored in her narration. The memory is not

06:19unpacked. We instead just see it flip past her mind. And these stylistic choices with Belly's narration

06:25matter. It shows Belly refusing to let Conrad consume her in this new chapter. She's not ready to

06:33confront him directly, so she keeps him at a distance in her narration. Belly is moving on.

06:38It's not by erasing Conrad, but by refusing to let him dominate her story. Her narration shows a

06:45deliberate avoidance, not because he doesn't matter anymore, but because she needs the space to explore

06:51and decide her feelings on her own terms. As Cleveland suggested, Belly has to get right with

06:57herself before she can even think about getting right with Conrad. This also adds nuance to the

07:02earlier airport scene in episode 9 when Belly last sees Conrad. In this moment, after the wedding

07:09is called off, Belly is almost paralyzed seeing Conrad at the airport. It's so much bigger in this

07:14moment than a coincidence for her. It's fate, a sign. In the previous episode, at her bachelorette party,

07:21Belly realizes that Conrad has been and is always there when she needs him. And here he is again,

07:28in her time of need. She waits for him to look up, hesitating to get on the plane to Paris.

07:34Even after their goodbye at the wedding, the part of her that still waits is still alive and well.

07:39But I think, in this moment, she realizes what Conrad had to realize in season 1,

07:44that you need to be right with yourself first. So Belly needs to pull herself from this situation

07:50and make the decision to leave without Conrad's input, which she does. And I think,

07:55this is why he disappears from her narration altogether in episode 9 and 10. So Belly,

08:01in this moment, is exactly where she needs to be, figuring things out on her own. This moment

08:07highlights their interconnectedness and teases the invisible string which will always bring them back

08:12together, as Conrad senses her as well. But it doesn't give us that moment yet because Belly needs

08:19to grow. Because the next time they come together, it can't be out of chance or weakness, but out of

08:25choice. Signifying the inevitability of their bond but also its newfound strength, when they find each

08:31other after they have both had a chance to find themselves. So jumping to the end of episode 10,

08:37Belly decides to stay in Paris longer. And she finally writes Conrad back. This showcases a point

08:43of internal clarity that Belly has reached about the letters and her feelings for Conrad. And she

08:48doesn't need to acknowledge them to anyone else in her life or the audience. She goes right to the

08:53source, signaling her growth. And we actually see the seeds of this in the previous scene.

08:59When Belly moves into her new apartment, she tells Benito that she wishes to sleep in her bed alone.

09:04I think this is a subtle reference to a book 3 moment when Jeremiah and Belly stay at the cousin's

09:10house. And Belly tells Jeremiah that she prefers to sleep in her own bed without him. At this point,

09:17the two of them are engaged. But her feelings for Conrad are creeping to the surface, slowly drawing

09:23cracks in Belly and Jeremiah's relationship. And the first one is her not wanting to share a bed.

09:28And history is repeating itself here with Benito. She's beginning to pull from him in this moment.

09:34The same way she did with Jeremiah, because of her creeping feelings for Conrad. So by this point

09:40in episode 10, Belly has opened her heart again for Conrad. And when we see her sit down to write

09:45the letter to Conrad, we can presume that Benito is out of the picture. Belly's reply marks a resolution,

09:52a turning point, where she has confidently stepped into a new sense of self. In episodes 9 and 10 of

09:58season 3, Belly's narration evolves. It becomes less about convincing others and more about

10:04uncovering herself as she begins her new life in Paris. Belly is finally learning that her identity

10:10is not tied to others. Not Conrad, not Jeremiah, not Taylor, but to her own choices. In this,

10:18she begins to reclaim agency over her own feelings and relationships. And she's left to determine where

10:25she stands with Conrad at the end of it all. And I think, after shedding her need for external

10:30validation and uncovering her repressed feelings by the end of episode 10, we will see or hear

10:36Belly feeling right with herself in her narration for the finale. And we will see her on the path

10:42to finding her way back to Conrad. This time, sure of who she is, who she's becoming, and what,

10:49or who, she wants. So that's all I have for today. Thank you so much for watching. And make sure to tune in

10:55next week for my analysis on the finale. And let me know in the comments if you're as excited for the

11:00finale as I am.

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