Every Year After Recap Season 1 Episode 4 ‘Anatomy of a Romance’

The ghost of Sue hung over the story, the mother the boys adored, the neighbour who treated Percy like her own child. When she left her estate to be divided between her boys, and The Tavern specifically to Percy, it was as though she was still trying to keep this cliche that formed during childhood together. But, too much time has passed. Too much hurt has been felt. And, at the end of it, there was still that secret that for certain Charlie was keeping from Sam, even as the boys decided to contest the will. 

First off, this secret. It was not only alluded to during Charlie and Sam’s conversation, via a break in Charlie’s voice when Sam told him he was the only person he could trust (completely forgetting his girlfriend Taylor). Percy called her father Arthur for advice, and Arthur mused at how perhaps The Tavern was the change she needed. Percy was surprised by that, because she thought her parents wanted nothing to do with Barry’s Bay after what happened.

What happened? What was this big thing that caused a decade of panic attacks and casual sex? I am usually a mystery recapper; mysteries are my jam. I am used to answers being held back. But there is a way to handle the sprinkling of clues so that the mystery feels intriguing, and the emotional hook consistent through the episodes. I’m not getting that here. It was like a decision was made to hold back this one specific thing, and that was it. I suppose the show was made to be binged, and if you watch all eight episodes in one sitting, then holding back that big thing won’t feel like a big deal. But, I still wish this big secret were handled better in these early episodes.

What the episode did well was the juxtaposition of Percy and Sam’s relationship in the summer of 2014, when they were both 16, and in the present day, after their almost kiss at The Tavern. Back in 2014, they were still just friends who were both focused on what they wanted in life, Percy with a writing seminar, Sam with his hospital internship. Percy thought swimming across the lake would help her get out of her head and help with her writing, and Sam like a good friend offered his assistance. He helped her train and was there when she completed the challenge she set for herself. Afterwards, with Percy still on a high over her achievement, the two of them finally decided to cross the friendship line.

Sam was studying an anatomy textbook whilst Percy, who was supposed to be working on her writing, kept distracting and teasing him. Sam decided to share his knowledge of anatomy, and by the time he got to vastus medialis, it was pretty clear where this was going. The kiss led to a summer relationship that was intense enough for Sue to sit them down and remind them not to forget what they wanted out of life. 

Whether or not this was what Sue intended, with the summer ending and Percy about to leave again, Sam broke off their relationship. Sam spoke of being under a lot of pressure, especially since he needed a scholarship to get to college. Also, to be fair to him, they were going to be away from each other for most of the next year. But Percy has been ready for this relationship for years. Just when they finally made the leap, it turned out that Sam was not ready. He wanted her, but he could not ask her not to be with anyone else whilst they were apart. It was hurtful. 

Fast forward to the present day, and Delilah was cozying up to Percy because she wanted to buy The Tavern. Chantal was actually intrigued by Delilah’s idea of a members only place in the vein of Soho House. Percy ranted against old places turning into soulless mcmansions, and Delilah pointed out her old childhood home was set to become a mcmansion too. The three of them ended up breaking into the house and bonding, with Delilah admitting to the true state of her relationship with her husband, and Chantal confessing she did not want to get married. 

Someone must have called the cops, because they arrived and Chantal and Delilah were able to run off. Percy, however, was intent on carrying pieces of paper with her childhood writing, and was arrested. The Deputy happened to be Sam’s friend, and he bailed her out. 

Percy was not happy with finding him outside the police station. She told him she was tired of getting mixed signals from him. It felt like he wanted something more, but then he would pull away. She complained about never knowing where she stood with him, and declared that her heart could not take it anymore. Sam said he got confused when he saw her again. Later, back at home with Charlie, he said Percy being in town was bad for him. Perhaps their mother wanted to help Percy by giving her The Tavern, but he was her son. It was Charlie who proposed that they contest the will. 

Rating: B

Strays

🚤Charlie told Sam their mother did not always make the best decisions, and his example was her depression after their father died. Charlie did his best to hide the difficulties from Sam, who was 11 at that time, so he never knew. I understand that Charlie had his disagreements with Sue, but I’m not comfortable with him judging her for how she was after losing her husband.

🚤Sue called Arthur after Percy got her first byline at The Seattle Times; she wanted to make sure Percy would not abandon her fiction writing. Sue changed her will soon after their talk. 

You can access Recap Lab’s full coverage of Every Year After via this link.

Episode Title: Anatomy of a Romance

Episode Writers: Amy Rardin

Episode Director: Tara Nicole Weyr

Release Date: June 10, 2026

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