Dear Edward (Season 1), Episodes 1, 2 & 3: Recap & Ending Explained

Dear Edward (Season 1), Episodes 1, 2 & 3: Grief is one of the hardest subjects to tackle in a narrative. We all have our ways of dealing with it, and it is hard to limit it to following only a particular way. ‘Dear Edward’ focuses on the same subject through its multiple narratives. Following a tragic plane crash, bereaved people try to figure out how to live their lives without their loved ones. Based on a novel by Ann Napolitano by the same name, the series is developed by Jason Katims. It is now streaming on Apple TV+.

Dear Edward (Season 1), Episodes 1, 2 & 3 Recap:

Episode 1: Pilot

Directed by Fisher Stevens, the first episode is written by Jason Katims. In this episode, we get introduced to narratives of different people before the plane crash. Edward (Colin O’Brien) goes to his favorite falafel stand with his brother – Jordan (Maxwell Jenkins). He is worried about their family moving from New York to Los Angeles. So, as his older brother, Jordan tries to relieve his stress about this big change in their lives. Edward was bullied in his public school when he was in the second grade. Therefore, their parents decided to home-school him and Jordan.

Jordan starts doubting his worth when he sees his younger brother being smarter in his studies and music. Instead of being stuck at home, he wants to attend a regular school. Before moving to L.A., he speaks with his mother – Jane (Robin Tunney), about it. She is a writer who is getting a job in Hollywood. That is why the family is moving to the west coast. Because of this job, she gets a first-class seat on the plane while her husband, Bruce (Brian d’Arcy James), and both their sons sit in economy class.

Besides them, Akua (Cadienne Obeng) is traveling to California for her audition to star in a Spike Jonze film. She is auditioning for the part of a Ghanaian drug addict. She lives with her little daughter, Becks (Khloe Bruno), in New York. Her friend from back home – Kojo (Idris Debran), wishes she was in their native country with him, working with him for his business of porta potties. But she wants to pursue her creative passion instead.

Then, we meet Adriana (Anna Uzele) and her grandmother, Mrs. Rose Washington, who is a Congresswoman. Adriana does menial work for her grandmother and feels like she is not accomplishing anything. During their dinner together, Rose tries to make her consider a future in politics after her death. However, Adriana does not see herself as fit for the job, which is why she rejected it at the moment. The next day (the day before the plane crash), Adriana meets a woman and her brother, who suffers from mental health issues and requires serious help. She considers it purposeful work and provides him with the required support.

So, she persuades Rose to support this noble cause. Just a phone call from her can get him instant help. Since Rose does not want to be partial, she denies doing so. But she sees Adriana’s strong urge to help and eventually decides to help. Unfortunately, that man dies before receiving this aid. So, Adriana feels that her efforts are futile. As a result, she suddenly decides to give notice to her grandmother to leave the job. At the time, she was dropping her to the airport.

We also meet Lacey (Taylor Schilling) and John (Carter Hudson), a couple who have tried having their own kids but have failed repeatedly. The past miscarriages have taken a toll on both of them. Due to their growing age, John plans to look at the alternative of adoption. But Lacey is against it for a personal reason.

Besides them, we meet Dee Dee (Connie Britton), who goes to meet her daughter, Zoe (Audrey Corsa), after a long time. She makes every possible effort with her money to recreate a strong bond with Zoe. She also reminisces about the good old days she experienced with her. Zoe worries that she is doing it as a way to distract herself from worrying about her distanced father – Charles (Ted Koch). Dee deflects from speaking about it and pretends everything is normal. Meanwhile, Charles is about to get on the plane.

During the journey with all these people, the plane hits turbulence. It makes us all of them worried for their well-being. Jane comes back to the economy class to stay with her family during this time. But she is escorted back to her seat since it is a time of emergency. She texts her sister Lacey and says that she loves her. Charles sends a similar text to Dee Dee. Just like them, all the passengers start realizing the inevitable.

The plane crashes soon after, and then, a police officer (Joe Tippett) from a nearby station arrives at the scene of the crash. He finds 12-year-old Edward under a piece from the airplane. He becomes the only passenger to survive the tragic incident.

Episode 2: Food

While the first episode focuses on the hours before the crash, the second starts dwelling on the topic of grief. Since Edward becomes the sole survivor, he suddenly receives the limelight from the media. However, at his young age, he is still unsure how to navigate his feelings about losing his family members. Just the day before, he could speak with them any time he wanted. Now that would never be possible. He silently processes these emotions while his aunt, Lacey, takes him back to her place.

Since he was used to spending most of his time with Jordan, he couldn’t stop feeling his presence around him. Meanwhile, the media gives him so much exposure that a neighbor invites herself to their place to gift a meal to their family. On the other hand, Adriana goes back to her old workplace to take back her stuff. She meets Amanda, who asks for her support to win the election, as Rose Washington’s granddaughter. Adriana accepts her request at the moment.

On the other hand, Dee Dee proceeds with her life as if it is just another day of her life. However, when she goes to visit Charles’ gravestone with Zoe, all of a sudden, she breaks down. Later, she goes to meet their accountant, who lays out the financial details for her. He mentions the burden, which would require them to spend wisely and sell some of their current possessions. He mentions selling his condo in California. She had no idea that he had one, which makes her suspicious, especially because of his increasing distance from her before his death.

Meanwhile, she attends a support group meeting for the relatives of the plane crash victims. That’s where Dee Dee meets Linda (Amy Forsyth), who lost her partner on the flight. She is pregnant with his baby, but his parents do not know about that. So, she is worried about how to break the news to them. In this meeting, Lacey is considered a celebrity for being the aunt of ‘the Edward,’ who survived the tragedy.

Due to Akua’s death in this tragic incident, Kojo comes to New York to take care of Becks. He wants to procure a passport for her, among other things so that he can take her back with him. Seeing him not being able to control this young kid, Adriana advises him to give her some time to adjust. She also gives him her office contact for quick help with his documentation issues. Back at home, she keeps reflecting upon what her grandmother said to her. So, she decides to run for the elections herself. She later meets Kojo again and shares this plan. He motivates her to pursue this dream.

Because of the shock of his parents’ loss, Edward refuses to have any food. Lacey and John carry forward with their wishes. But when Edward’s nutritionist urges them to make him at least something, they decide to make steady efforts in that direction. While Lacey is trying to have a child of herself, Edward becomes a way to fill that hole in her life. She wanted to have her biological child because of the constant sense of comparison with Jane. While her sister had a good career and two healthy kids, Lacey had neither.

Anyhow, she keeps up with her efforts to make him feel safe and secure. He finally has a meal, and Lacey gets a sigh of relief. Later, she makes a bed for him and tries to make him feel at home. But, without Jordan, he cannot feel the same way. He decides to go to the neighbor’s place and asks her daughter, Shay (Eva Ariel Binder), if he can sleep on the floor of her room. While she finds his request strange, she accepts it. He sees it as a way to live how he used to, with his brother.

Episode 3: Stuff

Edward stays with Shay for the night and recalls the beautiful memories from his past. He sees his piano being delivered to his new home and briefly recounts the experience of playing it. Shay further asks about it with curiosity. But it brings back the painful memories, which is why he rushes out of the room.

Meanwhile, Linda is going to meet her partner’s parents. She seems incredibly anxious about this meeting to the point all her luggage falls out of her trolley bag. She reaches the lavish home of her partner’s parents and informs them about her pregnancy. At first, they assume as if she is making a cruel joke. She gets teary-eyed and shares further details. Later, during their meal, they tell her that she should live in their home. They assume that she sought help from their wealthy family because of her poor living conditions. She feels like her feelings are being betrayed by them. She makes it clear that she only wanted to inform them about it.

Meanwhile, Dee Dee goes to L.A. to check the properties that Charles owns. She then reaches out to the condo property she had no idea about. That’s when she learns he was distant because he was working for a charitable cause for the LGBTQIA+ community. She gets surprised to hear it since she considers him a staunch Republican. But this revelation makes her emotional since he decided to keep it away from her.

Earlier, a girl gives a decapitated head of a doll to Edward and runs away. Shay traces down where it might have come from and invites him to go to the city to know more about it. He is hesitant at first but eventually agrees. They go to the museum and look for where it may have come from. During their walk, he sees the building where he used to live. Since she is hungry, they decide to get something to eat. Instead of a touristy place she chooses, he takes her to the falafel stall he used to go to with Jordan.

The seller does not know that Edward survived the plane crash. So, he asks whether they returned to New York. It makes him think about what he has lost, not just the people but the time he was going to spend with his family. So, he throws the falafel in a trash bin and leaves in a panic.

Meanwhile, Adriana preps for her speech as a new nominee in the elections. Her toilet suddenly starts making weird noises. She tries to repair the damage with a plunger. But it does not help her in any way. Later, she meets Kojo, who struggles to build a healthy communication pattern with Becks. He meets Adriana, who speaks with him about the ballot for the election. He offers his help to get enough signatures for her to run in the election. She rants about all the stress she is going through while he manages to calm her down.

Then, she talks about her toilet issue. Since he is in the business of the portable toilet, he asks her what sound it is making. That makes Becks laugh for a moment. Back at her place, Becks opens up to Adriana about losing her mother. She finds someone with whom she can share her feelings without any judgment. Kojo finds comfort in that fact.

Dear Edward (Season 1), Episode 3 Ending Explained:

Dee Dee goes through the stuff in Charles’ apartment. She sees all the photos he had with the young members of the community. There was also a photo of him with a man who looked like someone he loved. This makes her even sadder since he felt he needed to keep it a secret from her. Linda calls her after her disappointing meal with her partner’s parents. She asks if she can come to her apartment. Dee Dee invites her and asks her to bring some alcohol.

After watching a TV football match with Adriana, Kojo and Becks go to their new place. But the moment Adriana sees its damaged state, she takes them back to her apartment. Becks gets mesmerized seeing her big room. After putting her to bed, Kojo decides to leave. Since Adriana is anxious about the election results, he assures her that she will win.

At Dee Dee’s place, she opens up to Linda about her marriage with Charles. During those years, she felt valued as a trophy wife for him. But that left her not paying attention to him as much. To relieve their pain and anger, they decide to go to a local place where they can destroy things to make themselves feel more relaxed.

Back at Lacey’s place, she sees Edward by himself in the storage room. He tells her that he went to the city during the day. Lacey gets angry out of care for him and tells him never to go to the city without her permission. She then takes him to join her in some welding lessons. Now that he needs to adjust to regular schooling, he tries to find peace with it. Meanwhile, the girl who met him in a shop before and hugged him now leaves a letter in front of their apartment. John picks it up and keeps it in a box of all the letters Edward has received so far.

Watch Dear Edward (Season 1) Trailer

Dear Edward (Season 1) Episodes 1, 2 & 3 Links: IMDb, Wikipedia
Dear Edward (Season 1) Episodes 1, 2 & 3 Cast: Colin O’Brien, Connie Britton, Anna Uzele, Taylor Schilling, Amy Forsyth, Idris Debrand

Where to watch Dear Edward

Akash Deshpande

Obsessed, fascinated, and always nerding out about cinema! You can find me in the corner of a room ruminating over the last TV series I watched.