5 reasons The Summer I Turned Pretty finale worked (and 3 reasons why it didn’t)

The last episode of The Summer I Turned Pretty aired on Prime Video on September 17, 2025. After three sun-soaked seasons of will-she-or-won’t-she shenanigans, we finally got the Big Answer: Belly chooses her guy. The age-old question, Conrad or Jeremiah, is finally put to rest.

The finale ended the coming-of-age at the beach era in the most bittersweet way possible. It is the kind of show that will probably live forever in Tumblr gifs and late-night nostalgia spirals, blending all the feel-good, tear-jerky teen drama staples plus Taylor Swift tracks that got stuck in everybody’s head all summer long at Cousins Beach.

The Summer I Turned Pretty Season 3 comprised 11 episodes, with Belly navigating the hurdles of adulthood. She is juggling all sorts of drama at Finch University, and then things roll all the way to Paris. But the stakes for that ending were through the roof.

Was it gonna stick the landing for book lovers, pull off something epic for the die-hard Conrad and Jeremiah fans, or finally give everyone an emotional punch they have been waiting for? Well, depends on who you ask. The Summer I Turned Pretty nailed some stuff, but it also missed some bits.

Let’s dive into five reasons the finale worked and three reasons why some people got left hanging.

Disclaimer: The article contains the writer's opinions. Reader's discretion is advised.

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5 reasons The Summer I Turned Pretty finale worked

Emotional payoff for Belly and Conrad

Belly and Conrad were the bread and butter of The Summer I Turned Pretty. Over three seasons, they ping-ponged between angst and almosts: Conrad had a brooding, can’t-look-you-in-the-eye vibe, weighed down by a mountain of grief and all his emotional baggage. Meanwhile, Belly is leveling up, figuring out who she actually is and what she wants, instead of just orbiting around the Fisher brothers.

The Paris scene in the finale is the big payoff, the will-they-won’t-they finally lands on they will. They drag all that old mess into the light, actually talk about it, and you can see they have both grown up a bit. Belly ditching Jeremiah and actually telling Conrad how she feels is a power move. She is finally making decisions for herself, not just letting life push her around. And Conrad, for once, lays it all out there. He admits he loves her, after SO much build-up, you get that sweet catharsis.

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Commitment to some core relationships

The Summer I Turned Pretty goes way beyond the main love triangle. It is not just about who ends up with whom. Take Steven and Taylor, their long-distance relationship is refreshing. For once, a teen drama that shows how much it hurts (but also matters) to juggle big feelings with real-life logistics.

Then there is Laurel, Belly’s mom. She gets her own tiny spotlight. It is not some tear-jerker moment, but just a realization that parents are people, too.

All these payoffs are what make the ending work. It doesn’t hammer home love conquers all; it is more like everyone has their own thing going on, people grow in their own ways, and not every happy ending is about romance.

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Expansion beyond source material: Paris sequence

Setting the finale of The Summer I Turned Pretty in Paris is a curveball, but the showrunners took a creative liberty of deviating from Jenny Han’s trilogy and forging their own path. Taking Belly and Conrad out of Cousins Beach and putting them in an iconic romantic location is a show’s way of saying that this new backdrop will give them a fresh start without old hang-ups.

It makes sense because Paris stands for new starts, growing up, and the guts it takes to just say what is on your mind. But you can tell it comes from love for the characters. Additionally, who doesn’t want to see someone have an emotional crisis in front of the Eiffel Tower?

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Satisfying soundtrack and visuals

The Summer I Turned Pretty knows how to play with your feelings. Every time the music kicks in, especially in those big moments when Belly is going through it, you just "feel" everything ten times harder. On top of that, dropping Taylor Swift’s Daylight right at the end was a gut punch, but the warm kind.

Additionally, the visuals at the beach house, Paris, trap memories in amber. Those spots are more than backgrounds; they are a little nostalgic, and it makes you hopeful for Belly, too.

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A letter to the fans and a sense of closure

The finale of The Summer I Turned Pretty wraps up with a letter from Jenny Han herself, and it hits a fourth wall. Three seasons in, everyone has been living and breathing Belly’s life: Awkward firsts, teary heartbreaks, and everything in between. Jenny’s letter is like she is sitting with you on the couch, saying that we did this together.

That note connects the whole journey, pulling reality and the show into one big hug. It is not just Belly growing up, but all of us. The note is a proper ‘I see you’ moment for fans who marathoned, sobbed, and cheered along.

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3 reasons The Summer I Turned Pretty finale didn’t work

Rushed resolution and pacing issues

For a finale that broke records for runtime, you would think they would give the big moments some room to breathe; instead, everything whizzed by. Belly and Conrad finally getting back together should have been this huge payoff, but it was wrapped up in a few shots. Where were all the staring into the sunset and deep talks we signed up for all season?

And let us not even get started on Conrad. He carries a whole lot of baggage the entire time, and suddenly, he is chill after one or two quick conversations? And then, out of nowhere, Jeremiah is in his chef era? Showmakers shoved these side stories in so fast that they distracted from the actual romance and all the emotional tension.

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Missing book epilogue and wedding scene

Among the points of contention is the missing wedding scene from the book. Belly and Conrad finally tying the knot is the iconic scene that seals their fate, but the series just cut it out. Instead of wrapping up Belly’s romantic arc, the show somehow left it unresolved.

The epilogue represented her transition into adulthood, with Conrad by her side. By excluding famous moments, fans are all over the place, guessing if they will drop a reunion episode or some spin-off. Without that wedding, the finale rings more like a commercial break than a true ending.

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Underdeveloped supporting characters

The Summer I Turned Pretty finale put everybody but Belly and Conrad to the sidelines. The supporting cast barely got any limelight or closure. Take Jeremiah, for example. He is suddenly into cooking, and then he just rolls over and accepts Belly’s choice without so much as a decent breakdown or maybe a little scene that ties it together? His whole thing faded out. Did the writers forget he was a huge part of that love triangle?

And then there is Denise and the other side characters. They were basically extras lurking in the background. There was no closure, no real moments, just…nothing. The show used to lean into the whole ensemble, making it richer and way more layered. Now it is all laser-focused on the main couple, and the rest feels unfinished.

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The Summer I Turned Pretty is a coming-of-age show based on Jenny Han’s books (also famous for the To All the Boys movies). This series hit Prime Video back in June 2022 and ran its course by September 2025. Three seasons are just enough to make you obsess over Belly (Lola Tung), who is caught up juggling her feelings between Conrad (Christopher Briney) and Jeremiah (Gavin Casalegno).