The series The Summer I Turned Pretty, based on the book of the same name by Jenny Han, is now available to stream on Amazon Prime. The show follows Isabel "Belly" Conklin (Lola Tung) and brothers Conrad (Christopher Briney) and Jeremiah Fisher (Gavin Casalegno) as they grow up, become intertwined, break apart, and deal with everything in between. The series ends with secrets revealed and the hope that it isn't their last summer together at the beach house.
Deadline confirmed the series was coming back for a second season before the first had even aired. The show has received positive reviews so far, with The Hollywood Reporter describing it as "tenderly written and endearingly acted," though it isn't without criticism. Some criticisms of the series, particularly the chemistry in the romantic leads, still have room to be remedied in the coming season. With another book to pull from, let's explore where the next season of The Summer I Turned Pretty could go.
Following the Next Book
The most logical place for a second season to go is the next book in the trilogy, It's Not Summer Without You. The second book follows the event of an incident that takes its toll on everyone. In an attempt to maintain some type of control over his life, Conrad goes to the beach house in Cousin's, causing Jeremiah and Belly to go after him. While they don't initially know why he's there, they get on board with his reasons pretty quickly after they figure it out. Everyone goes through an emotional journey even more intense than in the first book, which provides ample opportunity for plots.
The timeline follows a similar format to the first book, with the majority of the text taking place in the summer, flashbacks to previous summers, and the months leading up to and after the incident. The big difference is the second book takes place over a couple of days rather than an entire summer. The first season of the show did a great job incorporating the flashbacks, so there's no reason fans shouldn't expect to see them in another season as well, especially as the flashbacks build on the established relationships of season 1.
The second book also has an additional narrator. Utilizing that in the series helps add to the story being told and the understanding of how the trilogy ends. If fans get a third season following the events of We’ll Always Have Summer, the final book, the additional narration will make sense. If a third season doesn't come, it will at least add another layer to the story and provide a window into how another character is feeling and thinking, which is (usually) not a bad thing. A second journey to follow is a great direction for another season.
Focusing on Susannah
In the first season, audiences were introduced to Jeremiah and Conrad's mother, Susannah (Rachel Blanchard). She has cancer, which she was trying to keep from the kids for the summer. The first book is from Belly's perspective, but the series was able to open that up, showing more scenes from her mother Laurel (Jackie Chung) and Susannah's point of view. If the series keeps with the flashbacks of the first season, Susannah can be a significant part of the season despite never physically appearing in the book. Her appearance may help explain the emotional turmoil that Belly, Conrad, and Jeremiah go through while providing subtle callbacks to what their life was before everything changed. Modifying the show's focus to be through this lens could make for an interesting perspective while not losing what the series is about.
Diving into Conrad
Conrad is the dark, mysterious brother of the two. He doesn't open up much over the course of the show, seemingly embarrassed about his feelings when he buys a gift that's clearly meant for Belly's birthday but doesn't give it to her and pretending the moment between them didn't happen on the dock. It's Not Summer Without You dives more into Conrad's feelings and actions, what's causing them, and how they impact the people around them. It certainly helps readers understand the character more, particularly as they move into the end of the trilogy, and it may help address the criticisms the show has received.
That said, the dynamic between Conrad and Belly will get worse before it gets better. Fans of the show likely picked up on that based on how the first season ended. With that, the series needs to show why that is, which involves giving Conrad some significant screen time on his own. A series allows them to do that more than a movie would. If the older Fischer brother had a more prominent role, maybe even as the additional narrator, it could give audiences a better look into him and who he is.
Belly Growing Up
Belly has already made great strides in growing up and becoming the person she was meant to be, which only continues in the second book. There's a new awareness from Belly about her friendship dynamic with Taylor and how she treats the people around her, which really builds on her growth in the first installment. As a coming-of-age series, watching Belly grow, develop, and become who she was meant to be is a key part of the series. It's also an important part of which brother she ends up with and where her life goes. Keeping that lens is a great way to go, but it wouldn't be a bad thing to introduce the additional views previously discussed.
While there's no word on when season 2 will hit our screens, you can check out another Amazon Prime project with similar themes hitting the platform this month.