The Summer I Turned Pretty: Team Conrad
In what is supposed to be the “perfect summer”, Belly Conklin returns to Cousins Beach where she finds her childhood friends, Conrad and Jeremiah Fisher both striving for a relationship with her. In a summer of chaotic heartbreak, love, and self-growth, Belly must learn to navigate life while deciding which Fisher brother to give her heart to in the coming-of-age TV series, The Summer I Turned Pretty.
Throughout the show, the main character Belly, starts dating her childhood crush, Conrad, but in a turn of events, it leads to nothing but heartbreak for both characters. A couple months later, Belly finds herself in a new relationship with Conrad’s brother, Jeremiah. This drama-filled love triangle has had the internet divided over which Fisher brother is better for Belly even after the final episode was released.
Overall, although he’s not perfect, Jeremiah is still the better choice for Belly.
Throughout the show, Jeremiah has proven himself to be consistently more emotionally available, communicative, and supportive towards Belly than Conrad ever was, especially in seasons 1 and 2. Throughout Jeremiah and Belly’s friendship in season 1, he very clearly expresses his feelings for Belly, especially when he sees her getting close with Conrad. When he confesses at the beach house, he knows that he’s going to be rejected but wants to be honest with his feelings anyways.
This is very different from the way that Conrad had always acted towards Belly. Rather than being straightforward, he shuts down and acts like he has no feeling for her which leaves her feeling humiliated and confused. In season 2, when he saw Jeremiah and Belly getting close, rather than admit to his feelings like Jeremiah did in the previous season, he lies saying that he’s over her. This miscommunication is what ultimately leads to Jeremiah pursuing Belly and the love triangle that results in Jeremiah heartbroken.
Jeremiah was one of Belly’s biggest supporters during moments when she was doubting herself. He made her more motivated to pursue her goals and branch out her interests which elevated her personal growth, all the while giving her his full support. During season 2, Jeremiah is the one that convinces Belly to return to the sport that she loves, volleyball. He does this during a year that he knows that she’s struggling and reminds her that she’s a great volleyball player.
Not only that, but when Belly was expressing her insecurities during her birthday, saying that she felt like a side character in her own life, Jeremiah was immediately there to reassure her during her birthday and affirm that she has nothing to feel insecure about.
Many fans that are team Conrad argue that Belly and Conrad being each other’s first loves strengthened their relationship and made it so they never truly got over their feelings for each other. Although this did contribute to their relationship being the one that thrived in the end, it doesn’t make Conrad any better for Belly than Jeremiah, since their initial relationship wasn’t healthy for either of them. Additionally, Belly and Jeremiah had a better relationship even before they started dating because they were good friends first and were already emotionally compatible.
Throughout The Summer I Turned Pretty, Jeremiah remained one of Belly’s biggest supporters and was emotionally communicative with her throughout their friendship and relationship. Even though he wasn’t perfect, he presented better qualities for Belly than Conrad ever did.
