‘This Is Us’ gave us the death we’ve been dreading — and it was beautiful

From the moment Randall (Sterling K. Brown) first met his biological father in the “This Is Us” pilot — and subsequently found out he was dying — we’ve known William’s (Ron Cephas Jones) demise was on the way. We didn’t expect for it to come so soon, but it came nonetheless in Tuesday’s (Feb. 21) incredibly emotional episode.

“This was an episode we’ve planned since the pilot, but in my wildest dreams I never imagined it would turn out this well,” showrunner Dan Fogelman said in a release. “I’m obviously incredibly proud of this episode… And, obviously, incredibly biased. But I hope this one moves you as it moved me. I suspect it will.”

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Despite his recent panic attack, Randall decides to travel with William back to Memphis, where he grew up, to reconnect with old family and revisit his father’s childhood town. Obviously, “This Is Us” couldn’t pass up the opportunity for a good flashback — but this time it’s to William’s childhood, rather than one of the Big Three.

William’s past has been murky so far, even where Randall’s birth mother is concerned, but it was pleasantly surprising to find out that he had a relatively happy and fulfilling life despite losing his father before he was even born — not the path you’d imagine for a heroin addict.

Between his loving mother and outspoken cousin, Randall had a happy life in Memphis. Up until the end there, this episode was really a celebration of Randall’s life. We admit, we got teary at the absolutely heartbreaking parallel between Randall caring for his sick father and William looking after his sick mother. Cancer seems to run in the family, and both children had to watch parents they loved slowly fade away. We can only hope Randall’s support system helps him avoid the dark turn William’s life took after losing his mother.

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But in the end, William knew his time had come — and he was grateful that he had two beautiful people looking after him in his life.

“The two best things in my life were the person at the very beginning, and the person at the very end,” Williams says.

Cue tears.

We can’t even begin to talk about the reunion between William and his mother in what can only be described as heaven. Give us a few days, it’s still too raw.

Now that William is gone, the final two episodes of Season 1 feel like they’re ramping up to another major death: Jack’s (Milo Ventimiglia).

We can’t imagine “This Is Us” dropping yet another emotional bomb on us so soon after William, but it also seems inevitable this season finale will finally reveal the mystery of how he died, and the effect it had on the family.

“This Is Us” airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on NBC.

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