‘This Is Us’ Season 1 Spoilers: What To Expect When The NBC Drama Returns

“This is Us” debuted in September 2016, quickly winning audiences over with it’s intricate and heart wrenching storylines. The show repeatedly introduced unexpected twists throughout the first half of Season 1 that have left viewers on the edge of their seats, awaiting its return to NBC. When “This is Us” came to a temporary end in December, Christmas Eve health crisis’ rocked the character’s worlds in both the past and the present.

The episode, titled “Nothing Bad Happens on Christmas Eve,” kicked off in the late 80s. While preparing for the holidays, a young Kate began having stomach pains. Her mom initially believed her daughter had simply eaten too much, but eventually realized she had been wrong. Rebecca (Mandy Moore) and Jack (Milo Ventimiglia) rushed their daughter to the hospital where they learned she needed to have her appendix removed. Rebecca assured her frightened daughter that she’d come out of surgery A-ok because, as the title suggests, bad things don’t happen on Christmas Eve.

While in the hospital Rebecca and Jack came across Dr. K (Gerald McRaney), who delivered their triplets. The physician had been hospitalized and was thought to be dying. His family was far away in another state, so Rebecca, Jack and their kids decided to pay it forward and keep him company. Randall, Jack and Rebecca’s adopted son, went above and beyond to bring a smile to the ailing doctors face, buying him a snow globe with his own money to thank him for helping to get him adopted.

Flash forward to present day, Kate (Chrissy Metz) is once again in the hospital. This time for an elective procedure. Kate brought her mother along to learn about gastric bypass surgery. Rebecca was shocked to learn that her daughter had been prescribed anti-depressants and was still struggling with binge eating and worried it may be her fault. She attempted to broach the subject with Kate, but their conversation was largely unsuccessful.

While Kate and Rebecca attempted to find common ground, Randall (Sterling K. Brown) and Beth (Susan Kelechi Watson) were celebrating the holidays with the big wigs at Randall’s job. While there, Beth learned that her husband had splurged on a major purchase and worried that he may be depressed. Randall agreed to get his money back from his friend Andy. In searching for him, the father of two found himself in a complex situation. Andy was on the roof of the building, ready to jump. Randall was able to talk him down.

The couple returned home to enjoy Christmas with their family. Once they arrived at the house, however, they found that more surprises awaited them. Toby (Chris Sullivan) showed up at Randall’s to be with Kate after their breakup, but Kate was not thrilled to see him. The pair talked and attempted to reach an agreement but Toby suddenly collapsed, cutting their conversation short.

So what can we expect when “This is Us” returns? Here’s a few clues:

Toby’s Fate Will Be Revealed

Metz was asked about the shocking Season 1 winter finale in an interview with Entertainment Weekly. During the discussion, she revealed that she was as shocked as anyone to learn that Toby may be dead. Yet Metz assured viewers that however the writers decided to follow up the winter finale, “This is Us” viewers were going to understand. She and Dan Fogelman, who created the show, have assured fans on separate occasions that answers will be given in the first episode after the finale.

Details About Kevin’s Past

Kevin (Justin Hartley) has been one of the hardest characters on the “This is Us” cast to crack. Thus far viewers know he has struggled with finding his path in life as it pertains to his career and that he did not mourn his father’s death for many years. Little else is known about it, but it seems that’s all about to change. During the Golden Globes, Hartley told Yahoo more details about Kevin’s past and why he is the way he is would be revealed in the episodes to come. He teased a number of “bombshells” as Kevin tries to find his way and continues looking for love, but he could not give any more spoilers away.

More Flashbacks

“This is Us” has existed in both the past and present since it’s premiere. The show will continue to play out that way when it returns. In fact, viewers should expect an entire episode in the past in the near future.

According to a report from The Hollywood Reporter, a Dr. K-centric flashback episode is coming. The episode will revisit moments from the pilot, which took place largely in the hospital on the day Kate, Kevin and the still-born brother were born. The episode was previewed during the Television Critics Association’s winter press tour, which provided stars like Moore and Ventimiglia an opportunity to watch certain scenes for the first time.

“The scene in the pilot from the hospital with Rebecca was muted and viewers don’t hear what we say, so we had never seen that,” Ventimiglia said in an interview with THR. “So seeing it, it was one of those things where you forgot about it. It was like finding this favorite pair of socks in a drawer and putting them on and wiggling them around. That was the silliest analogy...but it was very fun to see it.”

“This is Us” Season 1 returns Jan. 10 at 10 p.m. EST on NBC.