That ‘Summer I Turned Pretty’ Season 3 Teaser Is Foreshadowing a Major Development for Belly and ConradThat ‘Summer I Turned Pretty’ Season 3 Teaser Is Foreshadowing a Major Development for Belly and Conrad
Editor’s Note: The following contains heavy spoilers for We’ll Always Have Summer, the book Season 3 of The Summer I Turned Pretty is based on.After a two-year wait, The Summer I Turned Pretty will be officially returning this July for its third and final season. Season 3 of the teen drama is set to closely follow the events of We’ll Always Have Summer, the third book in Jenny Han‘s trilogy on which the series is based. Season 2 ended with Belly (Lola Tung) choosing to be with Jeremiah (Gavin Casalegno), and Conrad (Christopher Briney) in turn taking back his most recent confession of his feelings for her. Now, two years later, Belly will have to reevaluate her decision after Conrad reenters her life again.
The teaser-trailer for the new season of The Summer I Turned Pretty has been released, and it gives a glimpse of a major scene in the novel, confirming that the show is, in fact, heading in the same direction as the books. The main plot of We’ll Always Have Summer kicks off after Belly learns that Jeremiah cheated on her during a brief Ross (David Schwimmer) and Rachel (Jennifer Aniston)-style break. Desperate to keep Belly from dumping him, Jeremiah impulsively proposes to her, and the whole book builds towards the rushed summer wedding of Belly and Jeremiah. Belly can only outrun her feelings for Conrad for so long, though, and the teaser-trailer hints at this in the perfect way.
‘The Summer I Turned Pretty’s Season 3 Teaser Intentionally Switches from Jeremiah to Conrad
Like both seasons of The Summer I Turned Pretty so far, the teaser-trailer for Season 3 uses Taylor Swift songs to hint at where Belly’s heart truly lies. The clip shows the passage of time that has occurred since Belly and Jeremiah got together at the end of Season 2. In a montage set to “Daylight,” they kiss, go on dates, dance, and act the part of the happy couple. Like in the books, Belly has been dating Jere throughout the entire time jump and has let herself believe that this is what she wants. Of course, this is easier to do with Conrad avoiding her and making it possible for her to compartmentalize her feelings for him.
After the line “I once believed love would be burning red,” the teaser-trailer abruptly cuts to a scene of Belly opening the door to the Cousins Beach house to find Conrad standing there. Conrad greets her, and the moment Belly sees him, the song cuts to Taylor Swift’s “Red” on the line “But loving him was red.” The teaser-trailer thus confirms the same conclusion drawn at the end of We’ll Always Have Summer: Belly’s relationship with Jeremiah may be happy enough, but it is nothing more than a distraction from her feelings for Conrad, which is made abundantly clear when she snaps back into focus upon seeing him in the final scene.
‘The Summer I Turned Pretty’s Season 3 Teaser Shows the Start of a Major Book Scene
That scene between Belly and Conrad at the end of the teaser trailer occurs as a flashback in We’ll Always Have Summer, about six months before the start of the events of the novel. Belly describes being alone on the day after Christmas when everyone in her family is out of town, and impulsively taking a trip to the Cousins Beach house. While Belly is at the house celebrating Christmas on her own, Conrad shows up, not knowing ahead of time that she is there. The two haven’t really seen each other since she and Jeremiah got together, but there is a natural ease to their interactions in this scene, and in some ways, it’s like nothing at all has changed between the two of them.
Of course, a lot has changed between them in the last two years, namely the fact that Belly is now dating his brother. When Belly and Conrad are reminded of the night they spent there two winters earlier, back when they were dating, they both start to feel awkward, and he goes to bed. Belly thinks that Conrad has left the next morning, and she hurts her head while running around looking for him. He tends to her injury, and then Belly realizes that she still loves Conrad. In a great line that will likely be in the show as well, Belly says, “I’d thought my feelings for Conrad were safely tucked away, like my old Rollerblades and the little gold watch my dad bought me when I first learned how to tell time. But just because you bury something, that doesn’t mean it stops existing.” Belly rationalizes her lingering feelings for Conrad by accepting that her feelings for him are a part of her past and who she is, but this scene still acts as a turning point for her, even as she stays with Jeremiah.
It’s Clearer Now Than Ever: ‘The Summer I Turned Pretty’ Season 3 Will Bring Belly and Conrad Back to Each Other
Nothing happens between Belly and Conrad when they run into each other at the Cousins Beach house, but she still lies to Jeremiah about it, because that night and the following day at the house with Conrad mean a lot more to her than she is ready to process. This is the moment where Belly is forced to wake up and realize that her relationship with Jeremiah is not enough to overcome her feelings for Conrad. As such, this is the perfect scene to include in the teaser trailer for the season, which will show Conrad and Belly reentering each other’s lives as he helps her and Jeremiah prepare for their wedding that summer.
Even as she prepares to marry Jeremiah, Belly cannot ignore her feelings for Conrad, especially when he is constantly right there in front of her throughout We’ll Always Have Summer. Their breakup was never about a lack of love; Conrad was grieving because Susannah (Rachel Blanchard) was dying, and Belly projected her own insecurities onto his struggles. Instead of fighting to stay together, Conrad just let Belly dump him, because he felt like he didn’t deserve to be with her. Ultimately, this time apart is important for both Belly and Conrad’s individual growth, as they are able to get to know each other again two years later as slightly different versions of themselves. As The Summer I Turned Pretty TV series seems to be continuing to stick to the books, it’s clear that the final season will show the two finally finding their way back to each other.
Season 3 of The Summer I Turned Pretty will release weekly on Prime Video, starting on July 16.
