‘This Is Us’ 5×06 Recap: “Birth Mother”

This week’s episode had Randall learning all about his mother! And there were more than a few surprises along the way. Randall and Beth took a trip to Hai’s farmhouse. But they were shocked to discover the property that once belonged to Laurel now belongs to Randall! There is little time to process that as Hai launches into the story of the woman he calls the great love of his life. So read on for our This Is Us 5×06 recap!

Laurel’s Story

Laurel came from a distinguished New Orleans family. Her only joys in life were her older brother and her Aunt Mae. A woman her domineering father disapproved of and forbade her to see. But when her brother died in Vietnam, it was Mae she turned to for comfort.

Image via NBC

At Mae’s suggestion, Laurel waded into the water and screamed out her sorrow. And this is how she met Hai, who mistakenly thought she was drowning. Hai and his family were refugees from Vietnam. Laurel and Hai met again at the farmers’ market and over time fell in love. But there was a big problem in their path. Laurel’s father expected her to marry her much more suitable boyfriend. Laurel and Hai made plans to run away together, but ultimately Hai could not abandon his family. So Laurel went without him.

The Truth Comes Out

At this point in the story, Randall starts to lose his patience with Hai. He came for answers as to how his mother did not die the day William said she did. Randall’s frustration is understandable. But it’s also a great way for the show to skip over the parts of Laurel’s story we already know. Hai’s narration serves as a perfect counterpoint to William’s. Hai responds by saying Laurel did die. Full cardiac arrest. But she was revived and taken to the hospital. When Randall asks why she didn’t go back to the apartment, Hai replies that she went to prison for drug possession. And with the Pittsburg prisons overcrowded, she ended up serving her sentence in California. So five years later with just enough money for a one-way ticket, she returned to her Aunt Mae’s farm.

Image via NBC

Laurel had convinced herself that she wasn’t good enough to be her son’s mother. So she settled into her new life selling vegetables at the farmers’ market and exchanging hellos with Hai, who had married and had a family of his own. Until one day with his children grown and moved away and his wife dead, Laurel didn’t show up at the market. Going to the farmhouse, Hai learned that Laurel had been diagnosed with an aggressive form of breast cancer. But despite the sad circumstances, the two rekindled their love and spent the time she had left together. On her deathbed, Laurel told Hai that her biggest regret was that her son never knew how much she loved him.

Circle Around

Randall and Beth return to their hotel room where Randall writes everything down in his journal. He then makes his way back to the farmhouse. Taking off his clothes, he wades into the water where he envisions both the younger and older versions of his mother. Laurel urges him to let it go. Randall tearfully says he can’t and then complies and gives out a guttural cry. Side note: There are not enough kleenexes in the world to get through this episode.

Image via NBC

Driving home, Beth notices that her husband is different. Randall says he is. Knowing that both his parents loved him. So now he’s ready to let go of all the bad things. To that end, he calls Kevin hoping to make amends. But Kevin is distracted by the fact that he’s stuck in Vancouver and Madison has gone into labor and he’s trying to get home to her!

So what did you think of This Is Us 5×06? Can Randall actually make a clean break of things? Will Kevin make it home in time for the birth of the twins? Kidding. We’ve all seen the promo for the next episode. The bigger question is what has happened to Kevin? Drop a comment below to let us know your thoughts or follow us on Twitter @capeandcastle. Be sure to also check out our site for more articles and more on all things Disney and beyond!