Speaker 1: You're listening to I Choose Me with Jenny Garland.
Speaker 2: Hi.
Speaker 1: Everyone, welcome to I Choose Me. This podcast is all
Speaker 1: about the choices we make. And today my badass oldest
Speaker 1: daughter Luca is joining me from NYC because we are
Speaker 1: all obsessed with a little show called The Summer I
Speaker 1: Turn Pretty. And yes she's three thousand miles away, Fiona's
Speaker 1: at college, Lola's here with me and the show and
Speaker 1: Bellie's big choice has made me feel like we're all
Speaker 1: in one room. So this is going to be a
Speaker 1: great episode to talk about this The Summer I Turn Pretty.
Speaker 1: If you don't know a teenager, or if you aren't
Speaker 1: a teenager, you probably don't know what I'm talking about.
Speaker 1: But The Summer I Turn Pretty follows teenage Isabelle Bellie
Speaker 1: Conklin as her life is transformed. During this Cousins beach
Speaker 1: with our family and their longtime friends, the Fishers, who
Speaker 1: happen to be cutey batuities. It's a very complicated love
Speaker 1: triangle that forms between Belly and the sons of Susannah,
Speaker 1: Conrad and Jeremiah. The series explores the themes of first love,
Speaker 1: the heartbreak, the growing up, while also highlighting the strong
Speaker 1: bonds between mothers and children and lifelong female friendships. Let's
Speaker 1: go to one of my lifelong female friendships, my beautiful
Speaker 1: daughter Luca. Hi, Hi, mom, thanks for having me. Oh,
Speaker 1: I'm so glad you're here. Okay, we're just going to
Speaker 1: jump into this because we're so excited. We haven't seen
Speaker 1: the finale yet, so if you have, don't tell us anything,
Speaker 1: but we are going to talk about what we think
Speaker 1: should happen. What do you think is going to happen, Luca.
Speaker 2: I feel a little pessimistic. I don't think we're to
Speaker 2: get the ending that we want.
Speaker 1: Wait, what's the ending you want?
Speaker 2: Well, I think you and I agree that we're both
Speaker 2: Team Conrad.
Speaker 1: Listen, I've rethought that Team Conrade for sure in my heart.
Speaker 1: But then I thought back to the times when I
Speaker 1: was in the Triangle and I was one of the teams, yeah,
Speaker 1: back in the day, a long time ago, and I thought, oh,
Speaker 1: that that really did not feel good to be on
Speaker 1: one of the teams. So now I've decided to not
Speaker 1: try to not pick a team or say there are teams,
Speaker 1: but that's true, there are there are people out there
Speaker 1: that want both cases. I don't know who would want
Speaker 1: youremia at this point, just saying, but there.
Speaker 2: Like something I actually wanted to pose to you is
Speaker 2: that we always put the woman in the center of
Speaker 2: the triangle, just as like a culture like Kelly Taylor's
Speaker 2: center of the triangle. Even Twilight bella center of the
Speaker 2: triangle with the werewolf guy and yeah, got it. But
Speaker 2: with Belly, I feel like it might be a multi
Speaker 2: shape dimension and that's just how real life is. And
Speaker 2: maybe she'll have many more love shapes and triangles. And
Speaker 2: we have this new love interest, but I don't know.
Speaker 1: I know the guy, the new guy in town.
Speaker 2: He's from Spain, Mexico. In Mexico.
Speaker 1: He wants to go to her, to go to his grandma's.
Speaker 2: He wants to take her around the world, show her
Speaker 2: his family.
Speaker 1: But that's how it goes like in life. It's ever
Speaker 1: going to be just between you. And maybe you're lucky
Speaker 1: and you're into a love triangle because that's a fun
Speaker 1: place to be, but there's always going to be something someone,
Speaker 1: some other decision or choice that we have to make
Speaker 1: in our life. You're so right, but this is the brow.
Speaker 2: Up as part of that. That's right, it's part of that,
Speaker 2: and as your world expands, I think there's room for
Speaker 2: many triangles and many different and.
Speaker 1: That's what we're watching Belly grow up. We've watched her
Speaker 1: grow up. I mean, for those of you that don't
Speaker 1: have a teenager, don't know a teenager, don't speak teenage,
Speaker 1: you probably have no idea what we're talking about. But
Speaker 1: if you're a mom of a teen like me that
Speaker 1: got sucked in, and not only like I wanted to
Speaker 1: watch it because I wanted to hang out with you guys,
Speaker 1: secretly I want to be in your cool kids.
Speaker 2: I don't think that's true. I saw a couple of
Speaker 2: key scenes and you got hooked.
Speaker 1: I did, I honestly did. I got hooked, But I
Speaker 1: didn't stick around for the second season, I don't think.
Speaker 2: So.
Speaker 1: Now I'm back, and I feel so passionate about what
Speaker 1: is happening, Like I see her having this moment, this
Speaker 1: I choose me moment. Do you think she's Do you
Speaker 1: think that's what's happening?
Speaker 2: Honestly, I'm not team her choosing herself just for like
Speaker 2: the closure of this story.
Speaker 1: But wait a minute, because.
Speaker 2: What season did you have this moment where you had.
Speaker 1: To make a choice I think fifth season.
Speaker 2: Okay, well, then the season's continued. If we're gonna have
Speaker 2: the final conclusion when the season finale series.
Speaker 1: What blows my mind.
Speaker 2: I don't know if you can have this art, I
Speaker 2: don't know. It's just.
Speaker 1: Why does it have to be the series finale? Why
Speaker 1: can't it just be the season finale and then we
Speaker 1: can come back for more next year.
Speaker 2: Yeah, we fall in love with the characters. I feel
Speaker 2: like there's so much space for that world to keep expanding.
Speaker 2: Maybe it's not the end. Maybe there's a spin off
Speaker 2: of her life in Paris.
Speaker 1: I mean, I've watched that. It's been interesting. I like
Speaker 1: seeing her on her own in Paris. How about you.
Speaker 2: I mean, I'm feeling like I'm watching a different show now.
Speaker 2: I'm not gonna lie. I really love the world that
Speaker 2: the creator Jenny Hawn built in that specific place called Cousins,
Speaker 2: the summer of it, and now this show is kind
Speaker 2: of expanding into thall spanning in the winter, and I'm
Speaker 2: losing that kind of summer magic. But then it shows
Speaker 2: me as a viewer, but again, it's just because I'm
Speaker 2: like frustrated because there's not a lot of time left.
Speaker 2: I'm like how is she going to tie it all up?
Speaker 2: But I have faith. I have faith that she'll make
Speaker 2: it all shiny with a nice bow.
Speaker 1: It feels like she kind of already chose herself in
Speaker 1: a way, because she left all the madness, got on
Speaker 1: that airplane without seeing Conrad in the shadows. Yeah, and
Speaker 1: she chose herself. She chose to go to Paris, and
Speaker 1: then she continued to choose herself. She found an apartment,
Speaker 1: she found friends, she figured out how to get into
Speaker 1: the school that she wanted to get into.
Speaker 2: She's French, she's she has a job.
Speaker 1: Like she's choosing herself left and right. Yes, So it's
Speaker 1: as if she's already having her I choose me moment.
Speaker 1: That's how I feel. But I guess the show being
Speaker 1: that it's the finale, forever never coming back.
Speaker 2: Uh.
Speaker 1: They want like a bo they want something that we
Speaker 1: can all have closure with. You're right, and I want that.
Speaker 1: I want to know. Mm hmm. I feel like at
Speaker 1: this point, if she chose herself, I too would feel disappointed.
Speaker 2: But I don't think it's I don't think it's a
Speaker 2: love triangle anymore. I think that that it's definitely died
Speaker 2: off because she loves. I don't know. Are people still
Speaker 2: saying that she's going to go back and get back
Speaker 2: together Jeremiah. I feel like she But that made me
Speaker 2: sad too. Sorry. I have a lot of thoughts in
Speaker 2: there all happening and want give it to me that
Speaker 2: she didn't get the I Choose me moment at the wedding.
Speaker 2: That made me really sad. I really wanted her to
Speaker 2: have that like a moment where she decided to put
Speaker 2: herself first, and I didn't see that with Jeremiah.
Speaker 1: Wait and tell me what happened. Why did the wedding
Speaker 1: not happen? I watched it.
Speaker 2: I just can't didn't happen because Jeremiah called it off.
Speaker 1: Jeremiah called it off. Wait what dinosaur?
Speaker 2: Yep? Yeah, pretty crazy. So I really wish I saw
Speaker 2: a little bit more of like herself choosing her in
Speaker 2: that moment, but it wasn't possible, I guess at the time.
Speaker 2: And now she's finally getting there. So I'm proud of
Speaker 2: her from like a big sister perspective, like I'm cheering
Speaker 2: her on that she's doing it now. But I don't know,
Speaker 2: is it too little, too late in a way, or
Speaker 2: is it never too late to choose yourself. That's what
Speaker 2: you always say.
Speaker 1: I mean, it's never too late to choose yourself. But
Speaker 1: I just want her to have lasting love with someone
Speaker 1: that cares about her so much.
Speaker 2: Oh yeah, this is the kind of stuff that we
Speaker 2: talk about, you and me, Lolathiana, Like we sit around
Speaker 2: and we all talk about how this show relates to
Speaker 2: our identity as women and femal empowerment, and like we
Speaker 2: really dissect the characters and how it affects us. And
Speaker 2: I think the showrunner is super aware of that, like
Speaker 2: the impact she's having and giving a voice to women
Speaker 2: and such an amazing lead and having an Asian female
Speaker 2: lead which she had to fight for it, which is
Speaker 2: so crazy all the time, as perfect as belly. But yeah,
Speaker 2: I feel like we're seeing television change before our eyes.
Speaker 1: That's how I feel, I know as a mom. Like
Speaker 1: the first season I was in and I was like, oh,
Speaker 1: it's a little risque, but okay. And then season three
Speaker 1: they're like dropping f bombs and hooking up left and right.
Speaker 1: I'm like, Whoh, what age group is this show really for?
Speaker 1: I love a love story doesn't matter how old you
Speaker 1: aren't you always going to love a love story. So
Speaker 1: what's going on is the difficult choice between Conrad and Jeremiah.
Speaker 1: And even though the decision has been made, we don't
Speaker 1: want to spoil it if you haven't watched it yet,
Speaker 1: it has all just made us really stop and think
Speaker 1: and talk about choosing me. And this time it's not
Speaker 1: from Kelly, it's from Belly. How do you think that
Speaker 1: that message is landing for the younger generation that's watching
Speaker 1: this show? Because I know from my perspective the generation
Speaker 1: that grew up with Kelly Taylor, they are like, oh
Speaker 1: my god, this is it. She just having her I
Speaker 1: Choose Me moment and they fully get it and they
Speaker 1: fully relate. But when you're looking at it with younger eyes,
Speaker 1: do you feel like that's coming across and the importance
Speaker 1: of that message?
Speaker 2: I mean, I think so. I think the show started
Speaker 2: three four years ago, so we've even watched her grow
Speaker 2: up before our eyes and cheering her on, like I said,
Speaker 2: from a big sister perspective, and wanting her to keep growing.
Speaker 1: Right. Yeah, we're invested. I'm invested in Belly just like
Speaker 1: people were invested in Kelly. So I get it now.
Speaker 1: From me, It's so fascinating to look at it from
Speaker 1: an outside perspective, but with the wisdom of years and
Speaker 1: the knowledge of what choosing yourself can do for you
Speaker 1: in your life. So I just see it so crystal clear.
Speaker 1: But it also makes me remember that Kelly only chose
Speaker 1: herself for you know, a couple months, two months, maybe
Speaker 1: summer break, and then she was onto the new guy, So.
Speaker 2: That's interesting. I think people can go through phases where
Speaker 2: they prioritize themselves and then priorities can shift, Like when
Speaker 2: you're a new mom, your priority is not going to
Speaker 2: be yourself for a couple months, you know, sure, it's
Speaker 2: about coming back and always remembering that you can choose
Speaker 2: again to make yourself the priority and reinvest in yourself.
Speaker 2: So I think you can have choosing seasons.
Speaker 1: Oh my gosh. Well, one thing I know is that
Speaker 1: this show has been such a joy for me to
Speaker 1: get into with my daughters. Like we will watch the
Speaker 1: show and two of us will be in one house,
Speaker 1: and one of us will be across the country in
Speaker 1: another house, and one of us is far away in
Speaker 1: another house, and we all either get together to watch
Speaker 1: it or we wait as long as we can for
Speaker 1: the other people. But sometimes I can't wait that long.
Speaker 1: I'm not that impatient.
Speaker 2: Watch it during the day, just absolute badness.
Speaker 1: I know that's kind of like against the law, but
Speaker 1: sometimes I guess I gotta find out things, you know.
Speaker 1: I didn't have time to watch it, but I just
Speaker 1: love the way it's bringing multi generations together. And I
Speaker 1: really see that now again from such a different perspective,
Speaker 1: because that's what nine o two one to Ozho did
Speaker 1: for so many people and their kids, and now just
Speaker 1: being able to do that with my kids, I feel
Speaker 1: like everything is full circle, you know. It's just how
Speaker 1: things evolve, and it's meant to be that we're all
Speaker 1: watching it together. I love it.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I love you, mama.
Speaker 1: I love your baby. Thanks for hopping on teste laters.
Speaker 2: Ye