BIDDING COUSINS BEACH FAREWELL… BUT NOT FOR LONG?
BY EMILIE DEOREO PHOTO BY AMAZON MGM STUDIOS
SPOILER WARNING!!
On Wednesday, Sept. 18, Jenny Han’s The Summer I Turned Pretty series starring Lola Tung (Belly Conklin), Christopher Briney (Conrad Fisher), and Gavin Casalegno (Jeremiah Fisher) came to an end after three seasons. While some viewers were thankful for the conclusion of the popular Amazon series, others felt unsatisfied.
Since the novels’ original publication back in 2009, fans have followed Belly Conklin’s summers at Cousins Beach with anticipation, captivated by her evolving romantic relationships with two brothers, Conrad and Jeremiah Fisher, and her journey toward adulthood. Much like the Twilight craze that sparked endless “Team Edward” or “Team Jacob” debates, Han’s series inspired viewers to pledge loyalty to “Team Conrad” or “Team Jeremiah.” Over the course of its three seasons, the show explored Belly’s growth from a self-conscious teenager into a young woman navigating love, loss, and complicated family dynamics.
The rise of The Summer I Turned Pretty as a cultural phenomenon surprised many, including some of its most devoted fans. At a time when streaming platforms struggled to produce consistent hits, the show quietly became a breakout success for Prime Video. Its third and final season even drew in an astonishing 25 million viewers globally within its first week of release. Against a backdrop of superhero franchises and high-budget fantasy dramas, it was this quiet, earnest teen romance that became an organic smash hit.
Part of the show’s staying power came from its ability to balance lighthearted escapism with genuine emotional weight. Cousins Beach itself, with its hazy sunsets and idyllic houses, became a character, a dreamy backdrop for first loves, heartbreaks, and lifelong friendships. The use of music, especially Taylor Swift’s catalog, elevated key emotional moments, making the series a fixture on TikTok and cementing its place in Generation Z pop culture.
Still, for all its popularity, the series finale left many fans conflicted. While the show remained largely faithful to Han’s novels, die-hard readers noticed discrepancies in pacing and execution. Much of the long-awaited romantic tension between Belly and Conrad — arguably the heart of the story — felt rushed or unevenly portrayed without the internal voiceovers that had given readers access to Belly’s innermost thoughts. Her insecurities, particularly the fear that Conrad’s love might have been more about loyalty to his dying mother than true affection, sometimes appeared abrupt on screen. Without proper buildup, some of the emotional beats that were devastating in the books came across as sudden or confusing in the television adaptation.
With that, several subplots felt underdeveloped or hurried as Jeremiah’s sudden passion for cooking and his romance with Denise seemed to materialize out of thin air, leaving his arc less satisfying than it could have been. Steven and Taylor’s relationship, though beloved by fans, was given limited space to breathe in the finale, especially as they prepared for a move to San Francisco. Even the adult characters — Laurel, John, and Adam — received only brief moments of resolution, despite their significant roles in shaping the story’s emotional core. The result was a finale that felt spread too thin, devoting valuable screen time to secondary arcs at the expense of the central romance viewers had been waiting three seasons to see resolved.
The final episode itself leaned heavily into the kind of grand romantic gestures that have long defined the series. Conrad flies to Paris to confess his love to Belly, setting up a scene that initially appears ripe for one last romantic misunderstanding when he spots her riding through the streets on a red Vespa with a friend. Instead, the pair share a dreamy Parisian montage: sightseeing, exchanging vulnerable confessions, and finally, a heartfelt declaration from Belly that she chooses Conrad “in every world.” It’s a moment tailored for TikTok edits and fan compilations, and one that gave those on “Team Conrad” the payoff they’d been waiting for.
Meanwhile, Jeremiah embraces a new future as a TikTok chef and finds stability with Denise, while Steven and Taylor prepare to take the next step in their relationship despite looming uncertainty. Even Adam, the Fisher brothers’ estranged father, is granted a brief but meaningful moment of reconciliation. By the finale’s end, the show delivers a slew of happy ever after’s, capped with a flashforward of Belly and Conrad celebrating Christmas together in Paris.
Despite its flaws, The Summer I Turned Pretty maintained a heartfelt core that kept audiences invested. Jenny Han managed to translate the melancholic yearning of her novels into a television series that felt simple in concept yet rich in emotion. The plots could be soapy at times, but the characters’ feelings were always authentic and deeply felt.
The show closes with a note from Han herself: “Thank you from the bottom of my heart for the love you’ve shown The Summer I Turned Pretty all these years. Maybe we’ll meet again one summer in Cousins.” Since the episode’s release, it has been announced through Instagram that there is a The Summer I Turned Pretty film in the works at Amazon Studios. Plot synopsis, cast, and release date are yet to be announced.
Like the fleeting summers it depicts, the series left behind a lingering sense of nostalgia, warmth, and bittersweet longing. It may not have stuck the landing in every detail, but its cultural impact and its enduring portrayal of love, family, and growing up will keep it alive in fans’ hearts for infinity.
