There's A New Character On 'This Is Us,' Thanks To Randall
After addressing the possibility of formally adopting Deja in the This Is Us premiere, not much else is preventing Beth and Randall from making their foster child an official part of the family. She's enrolled in school with Tess and Annie, but as the episode "A Philadelphia Story" revealed, Deja was struggling to adjust to life in a primarily white suburb. Undoubtedly relating to Deja's need for people like her, Randall then introduced her to a new friend in William's old neighborhood. Who is Sky on This Is Us? The young girl was almost like a pseudo granddaughter to William when he was alive.
As far as we know, Randall and Beth's plans to revitalize William's old building are slowly but surely progressing, but any delays aren't preventing Randall from embedding himself into his father's old community. In "A Philadelphia Story," he brought Deja to the town's shabby rec center in hopes of her getting along with a local girl he knew, Sky. At the rec center, Sky and her friends were practicing a step team routine, and while it wasn't Deja's beloved drill team, she joined the girls' practice. While the episode didn't focus on their friendship too much, the story implied that Deja was grateful to have a friend her own age who came from a similar background.
By taking on the responsibility of William's old building, connections to him are to be expected among the other tenants. Although the show didn't include Randall's first meeting with Sky and her mother Chichi, "A Philadelphia Story" established that he knew of William's close relationship with them. Chichi arrived in Philadelphia when she was pregnant with Sky, initially rebuffing a healthy and sober William's friendly welcome to the building. Months later, when he heard Baby Sky's wails through the apartment walls, he offered to share his dinner with Chichi.
Subtly explaining why she was so guarded during their first meeting, the widowed Chichi explained to William that she abandoned her and her husband's dream of living in Texas in favor of her current situation. She then let William hold Sky, thus explaining a behind-the-scenes photo that creator Dan Fogelman posted over the summer. Chichi called William a natural with her daughter, sweetly tying Sky to Tess, Annie, and even Deja as William's first chance at being a grandfather figure.
Randall introducing Deja to Sky now creates a major parallel between himself and Deja. Making an appearance in the episode's 1990s timeline were Keith and his mom Yvette, the pair that Randall met at the local pool as a little kid. Keith was his first African-American friend, providing Randall with a community of people who could teach him about aspects of himself his parents didn't understand. While Deja grew up in a black community, she's now living in a whiter world, as young Randall did. Her budding friendship with Sky means she now has someone she can relate to despite her everyday life being in a different kind of environment. She may still be reeling from the anger she demonstrated at Kate and Toby's wedding, but a sense of stability is definitely taking over Deja's life.
Season 3 of This Is Us continues on Tuesday, Oct. 9, at 9 p.m. ET on NBC.
