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‘This Is Us’ Season 5 Episode 6 ‘Birth Mother’: How did Laurel's brother Jackson die? Meet Randall's late uncle

Recounting the past, Hai begins, 'Your mother was a Dubois. Most distinguished family in town. A lot of pressure'

A heartbreaking tale unfolds on ‘This Is Us’ as the sixth episode begins. Who really was Randall Pearson's biological mom Laurel? Titled ‘Birth Mother’, the 40-minute drama is dedicated to her past, her childhood and her loved ones. 

The last episode ended with Hai Lang (Vien Hong) telling Randall Pearson (Sterling K Brown): “I wish I could show you the places she lived, the things she loved.” The new episode picks up right where it ended as Randall and Beth Pearson (Susan Kelechi Watson) drive up to the town to meet Hai.

“Randall, welcome. It's nice to finally meet you. This house, this lane, it was your mother's. And now it's yours,” Hai tells them and asks, “You must have a million questions.” He then says, “I'll tell you what I know. Your mother's story from the beginning.” 

Recounting the past, Hai begins, “Your mother was a Dubois. Most distinguished family in town. A lot of pressure. Her mother was Elizabeth (Kellita Smith).” Through snippets from the flashback, Hai narrates how Laurel would run off to a woman named Mae and would take a dip in the lake. When she first runs off to her, Mae recognizes her footsteps and Laurel tells her, “I forgot you have eyes at the back.”

She swims in the lake with flowers on her hair. When she is late to be back home, her brother Jackson (Keyon Bowman) covers up for her as their dad scolds them. But Paul Dubois (Chi McBride) catches her tiptoeing up the stairs and sternly asks her, “Laurel where have you been? I will not tolerate a disobedient child.” Laurel hates to be away from Mae. But she has Jackson. Their close bond is just beautiful and it seems like the only thing that fills her with joy at home. Not much was known about Jackson, except that he fought during the Vietnam war.

One day, the bell rings at the Dubois household. Police officers come into the mansion with a letter and Laurel understands. Jackson had died during the Vietnam war. Mourning her loss, she cries, “I can't believe he is gone. Jackson is really gone. What am I gonna do without him?”

To rip off the pain from her chest, she steps into the lake and takes a dip. Tears flow out of her eyes and roll down her cheeks. And then she lets out a loud scream. This was Laurel's way of letting go of her pain. As Hai tells Randall the story, tears roll down his cheeks and he says, “I just met and lost an uncle in the course of five minutes.”

‘This Is Us’ premiered on Tuesday at 9 pm ET on NBC after the mid-season winter break with Episode 5 titled ‘A Long Road Home’ on January 5, 2021. Catch the next one Episode 6 titled ‘Birth Mother’ on January 12, 2021.