The Way Home Season 4 Episode 7 gave fans a deeper look at Tessa’s life in the ’20s, while also revealing how Sam’s connected to the pond, which, honestly, was a bit of a letdown if I’m being honest.

There was so much mystery surrounding Sam, particularly how he knew KC and about time travel, but now we know they simply sought him out because he’s a big part of their Landry family in the future, essentially confirming that Del and Sam end up together. 

It hasn’t been confirmed that KC is Jacob and Abigail’s child from the future, but there’s almost no question about it, though there’s definitely something concerning happening in the future. 

When Alice invites KC to dinner, things take a bit of a negative turn, with KC running off, before telling Alice that they only see secrets, lies and fighting in a timeline that’s romanticized in the future. 

KC also leaves with an ominous reminder—everything is a countdown to something, which is true, but a little unsettling in terms of how it’s delivered. 

They seem to be hinting at a life-changing moment in the future that’s concerning, though honestly, I don’t think anyone has the mental capacity to try to worry about the future while still trying to crack the mysteries of the past. It almost feels like someone in a future timeline is dying/KC is dealing with an illness, but it’s not entirely clear, though they tell Alice they wanted to “have a little fun before everything changed.” before telling Sam that “I guess that time’s up.”

Alice and Kat have quite enough on their hands right now, as the former chose to defer her college, feeling that she needs to stay behind in Port Haven for now and do some soul-searching. And I don’t disagree—Alice has been living in the past for far too long, never fully prioritizing the here and now. Going off to college doesn’t really fit into the narrative, at least not right now, when she doesn’t know who she is, what she wants out of life, and doesn’t know how the saga in the 1920s with Elliot wraps up. While there will always be lingering questions and what-ifs, she’s in the thick of it now and needs to see it through.

Kat’s also got a full plate after jumping into the pond in 1925 without Elliot. She blames herself for letting go and leaving him behind, spending much of the episode getting blocked by the pond from returning. A quick visit to the 1970s reunites her with Fern, who is so glad to see her again after all these years, though her advice about “Landry women being cursed” when it comes to love isn’t exactly reassuring in a moment where Kat just lost her loved one to time travel. 

Who knows how much time will have passed once she finally sees him again? He could be an entirely changed man. And while everyone reminds her to trust the pond because what’s meant to be will be, the hard truth is that Elliot could be in danger in the 1920s. 

In fact, I’m starting to worry that he’s the one who gets shot in the Lingermore mines in 1926, especially after they see a newspaper clipping on his bed that shows him getting arrested in 25 under the name Tom Buchanan and as the mob boss, the Big Fish. Is Elliot finally finding his edge in the 20s? I’m scared for him, but lowkey excited to see this new persona. 

Kat then realizes she’s been harboring all this guilt, thinking she left him behind when in reality, it was his plan all along to stay back—he was obsessed about finding out the truth about his mother, he took a sabbatical from work and before they jumped a few episodes ago, he told Kat he loved her no matter “what happens.”

This was planned—a realization that stings when Kat realizes he never trusted her enough to tell her. 

And we thought Kat was reckless when it came to pond travel. Oh, how the tables have turned. 

When Kat asks ’70s Fern what she should do about Elliot, she simply tells her that the key is the key, a clue lending itself to the sticky key in her piano at Elliot’s place. 

When a worker comes out to check it out, they find a love note (on a page from the Alice book that Tessa gave Fern, no less) from Cliff Kane to Fern, which leads Alice and Kat to believe that he’s potentially Colton’s grandfather—but why hide it?

And why is it coming to light now?

Kat saw Cliff make his feelings for Fern known, a mutual feeling, as she passionately kissed him back, though he pulled away as she remained engaged to Grayson Goodwin. But we know that he gets married to someone else, as Kat reminds Fern not to stay with him because she feels indebted to him, so what really happened to make Fern think Landry women are cursed in love? She told Kat she wanted to find a man who would take care of her and make her feel safe, so what happened?

Lots of declarations of love were at play, as Jacob and Abigail also made things official, which is a love story I’m surprisingly finding myself invested in. 

Meanwhile, Del finally remembered that in her Colton-concussion haze, she told Sam that she loved him, realizing that she no longer had to keep him at arm’s length and herself from being happy. Del is very hot and cold, and I know the storyline meant to underscore her dedication to Colter, but it was just kind of a mess for no reason. It’s about time she moved on—it doesn’t mean she doesn’t love Colton, it just means she’s prioritizing her happiness for the first time in years. 

As for Alice, she ended up meeting Griffin during an impromptu trip to NYE 1979, ringing in the new year with Evelyn, Vic and Tessa, as Coyle’s announced he was shutting down. 

While it was so nice to see her again in that orbit, she also realized that there was a tape that caught her mother in the 70s, as Evelyn recognized her as the White Witch from the painting. Alice thought she had taken care of the problem, throwing out the tape, but it somehow appeared in Monica’s box of nostalgic items for the upcoming 45th anniversary, which will surely be hard to explain to the town. 

We still don’t know what happened to Griffin, but it’s a question Tessa poses to Elliot when they finally have a brief chat, which infuriates him as she doesn’t ask about him or his father. 

Tessa is very much avoidant in the conversation, trying to waltz around the topic of abandonment, but Elliot is determined to get some clarity, as she finally tells him that leaving him behind and jumping in the pond was what she thought was best at the time. It’s unclear if she still harbors those feelings or if she bonded with Elliot during his time in the 1920s, explaining why he’s taken up a life of crime to connect and impress his mom. 

As for Alice in the present, Noah is thrilled she’s sticking around Port Haven, even if they will still be dating long distance, but he seems like the kind of guy that you just get stuck with in a small town before one day realizing that you let life pass you by. Alice doesn’t deserve a small life, especially after seeing so much of the world at different points in time.

Other Thoughts

• I feel bad for Danny— he knows something is off, especially cause Jacob makes weird comments about “back where he’s from,” but he doesn’t know the full truth. 
• Fern admits she didn’t know the truth about Fern, thinking time travel was her family’s secret. She idolized Auntie Coop and how independent she was, which explains why she didn’t mention anything to Kat. 
• There’s also the possibility that Cliff dies in the Lingermore mines explosion, leaving a pregnant Fern behind. 
• Kat and Alice should know better than to demand that KC tell them the future, but it is strange that she told Sam what happens, so he definitely knows how everything turns out. He asks KC for permission to tell Del what he knows, but she warns him about revealing too much. 

What did you think of the episode?