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When people use the word “endgame,” it doesn’t just refer to the Avengers. It also refers to couples or certain relationships that fans think is the be-all and end-all of the show. Many fans think that applies to Jack (Milo Ventimiglia) and Rebecca (Mandy Moore) on This is Us.

Milo Ventimiglia as Jack and Mandy Moore as Rebecca on NBC's 'This Is Us.'
L to R: Milo Ventimiglia as Jack and Mandy Moore as Rebecca on NBC’s This Is Us. | Maarten de Boer/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty Images

Only now, fans are having their faith shaken. In addition to having to endure the pain of Jack’s demise, fans also see that Rebecca is slipping into dementia. Now, some fans argue that her real soulmate may actually be the one who stayed with her longer: Miguel (Jon Huertas).

Is Rebecca’s true soulmate Miguel on ‘This Is Us’?

Fans discussed the issue on Reddit, and some compelling cases were made. The topic-starter posted: “I love Jack just as much as anyone else, but this is a fact. Rebecca is not only spending her final days with Miguel but she has spent the majority of her life with him. Miguel has shown her unconditional love and felt with all the craziness of their family. They are the real love story of the show.”

That sounds logical enough. Miguel came into a very difficult situation after Jack’s untimely demise, and the fan’s statement doesn’t criticize Jack for falling short in any way. The simple fact of the matter is Jack died.

And, if nothing else, Rebecca and Miguel are literally endgame: He is the one that is going to be there in the end when Jack cannot be. 

Another fan wrote: “When things like that happen, losing someone, it always almost feels like 2 different lives. I’m sure she is not the same women that married Jack. Then she was someone else when she was a widower. She went from a stay at home mom, to being the sole provider and when she did end up with Miguel she was not the same person anymore. That’s who he fell in love with.”

Is Rebecca’s true soulmate Jack?

On the other hand, Jack was and still is, one of the core players on the show. If anything, his death only intensified the bond viewers felt to his character, particularly because he died after one of those cruel tragedies life randomly dishes out.

The always-noble Jack initially survived a slow-cooker fire, only to succumb later to the effects of smoke inhalation. And this was after he saved his daughter Kate’s dog.

For those reasons, among others, with all due respect to Miguel, fans still ship Rebecca and Jack. One fan wrote: “Love Miggy, but a BIG HELL NO to them being the real soulmates.”

Another chimed in: “Agreed. It’s great that they are together, but Miguel is  basically a companion to her. She said once, “He makes me laugh,” etc. Have we ever even seen them kiss?”

Interestingly, right below the Reddit post is a picture of old Rose (Gloria Stuart) from Titanic. After she survived the sinking of that ship, she married and had children. But anyone who’s seen that movie knows that her Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio) was, to use another well-worn phrase, the love of Rose’s life.

What does the future (or the past) hold?

There’s a real-life parallel to this too. Paul McCartney happily remarried to Nancy Shevell. But few fans doubt that had Linda McCartney not died of breast cancer in 1998, Paul would be with her to this day.

As McCartney’s former songwriting partner John Lennon put it in 1980 before his own untimely death: “Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans.” That could be the very theme of This is Us.

If there is anything fans know about This is Us by now, it’s that the show can pull some major surprises that throw them for a loop. NBC ordered the show to run for six seasons, and they just started the fourth. With the show’s trademark flashbacks and flash-forwards, anything can happen.

In all likelihood, there is much more to Miguel than the show has shown us so far. And by the same token, we may find out more things about Jack.  The real endgame may not be known until This is Us tells its final story. 

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