More than just a new season, Tuesday night's season premiere marked a new day for NBC's hit drama "This Is Us." No longer is the show trapped in the smothering morbid shadow of Jack's death, and there's actually a sense that the storylines could go anywhere now, that the mystery going into year three is "What's going to be the new mystery?" After a solid but maybe not spectacular sophomore run, to have your expectations reset as the credits run and the twinkly acoustic guitar music plucks away feels pretty reinvigorating – even with a premiere that mostly just set the table rather than serve anything too new or juicy.

So how are we starting this bright, new, revitalized season? With a whole bunch of strangers who I have no clue about. Who's this mom cooking dinner and warning her children not to get pregnant while the dad (I think?) heads out to ... somewhere? Are we adding even more timelines? Is this a questionable new Kevin movie? Am I just dumb? (Don't answer that last question.) Eventually we get our answer: It's Pittsburgh Steelers great Franco Harris, which ... sure. Not sure how this will tie into the rest of the show but let's go with it.

Staying with the football theme, "This Is Us" blitzed the audience with what we've missed since season two. Kate and Toby are trying again at a baby, with little luck. Kevin and Beth's cousin Zoe are still hitting it off after the wedding – albeit in secret so Beth doesn't know. And speaking of Beth and Randall, they're still all in on Deja despite her destroying their car at the end of last season (remember that?) and clearly still struggling with legally losing her mother. It's a lot of reestablishing relationships and storylines – which makes sense since "This Is Us" and the viewers have to get their feet back underneath them, especially in a season with new directions to head in now that it's escaped the Jack death spiral.

Here's something familiar, though: Randall's storyline is still the best part, even if just for Sterling K. Brown. The actor is an absolute delight, making the most of the show's now-famous emotional monologues but also just crackling with charisma in the modest scenes bantering with Beth (Susan Kelechi Watson, who equals his charm offensive).

Say, for instance, as the two discuss Randall's birthday plans. He wants to have an important talk with Deja, who's not only sulky about her mom leaving but is also starting to think more about the father who abandoned her long before then. Beth also has an important talk in mind: a chat with Kevin and her cousin, since she's convinced they're knocking boots (Beth, always on top of everything on this show) and therefore she might have to kill the both of them in the face. Thankfully Randall keeps the show from becoming an episode of "CSI" by forcing Beth to swear she won't confront the two – and not just swear, but swear on Oprah. It's a perfect scene to remind you how charming these performances are – and how clever and fun the writing on this show can be.

So while Beth's talk is temporarily cancelled, Randall drives Deja out to the apartment complex (that's right; that's still a thing too) to have one of those signature "This Is Us" monologues. And Sterling K. Brown sells it, talking about how similar the two are, how he also didn't have his biological father until late in his life – only to lose him less than a year later – and how he wants to be her official adopted father. But as Deja reminds him, they're not the same – and the more he tries to hint that they are, the more she's reminded of the ways that they're not. Then it's back home, only for Deja to pack up and hop out a window. Uh oh.

In classic "This Is Us" zag when expecting a zig fashion, however, Deja's not running away. Instead, she heads to a bike shop where the man she knows is her father works and busts out her own emotional monologue (she's at least got that in common with Randall) about how she's moving on from him and that she has a family that not only loves her but desperately wants to keep her – unlike he ever did. And in case that wasn't enough of a boss move, she works her less-than-deadbeat dad for some bonus cash to buy Randall's birthday present: a new pair of running shoes. And you don't know joy in this world until you've seen Sterling K. Brown react to a surprise birthday gift.

His favorite gift from Deja, however, is one that doesn't come wrapped: She volunteers to sign the papers to make her adoption official. Despite that scare earlier, Deja seems like she's sticking around – great news for Randall and Beth, as well as the audience considering that young actress is terrific.

You know who's a terrible actress, though? Beth's cousin, who is just awful at pretending she's not dating Kevin – so much so that Beth breaks her promise to Oprah (don't worry; she donated to her foundation in repentance) and almost immediately confronts the two about their obvious boot-knocking. Which thank the heavens, because a whole episode about the two pretending to not be in love would've been a little too contrived and a lot too sitcom-esque. Instead, we get Beth hilariously telling off the two not-so-secret lovebirds, Zoe describing Kevin as "abs like Batman and built like a truck" and Kevin cutely talking with Randall's little girls about asking her to the premiere of his new Ron Howard war movie. Definitely the better path to take, "This Is Us."

Eventually Beth settles down and gives the two a version of a blessing, but she's still profoundly concerned – not for her cousin but, in a mild twist, for Kevin, as she says that Zoe's background is complicated and she'll spit him out eventually. I assume we'll learn more about that backstory as the season goes along ... but not this week as Kevin's subplot gets a pretty short shrift, receiving the least amount of time of the main characters. Fair considering it's not the most rich or dramatic of the bunch – but I imagine, with Beth's foreboding warning, we'll get there.

Kate, on the other hand, is having a very dramatic episode as she and Toby snag a meeting with a big-time fertilization doctor on her birthday. Why everyone's making big, important plans on their birthday, I do not know; I just want to sit on a couch and relax on my birthday, not face massive choices about my family and my future. And, as if to prove my point, the doctor coldly shuts them down, noting that Toby's low sperm count due to his depression medication combined with Kate's weight makes them impossible for her to take on. It's brutal and chilly and THIS IS WHY YOU DON'T DO THESE THINGS ON YOUR BIRTHDAY.

Kate obviously takes the news hard, crapping all over her very cute carrot cake with a speech to their friends about how they'll never have kids and how she never catches a break. Toby, meanwhile, is quietly taking the doctor's visit like a bullet, putting on a good face but you can tell the gears are grinding – and painfully. But you know that thing Kate said about how she never gets a break? Well, the screenwriters agreed and had the doctor call her back at the last minute to apologize for her cold dismissal earlier and offer to take her on. It's going to be a risk – a 90 percent chance of failure – but it's worth a shot. But speaking of risks, Toby decides to help their chances by washing his medication down the drain. I have a feeling I'm going spend a lot of this season missing over-the-top goofball Toby. (Words I never thought I'd say.)

Back in the past, we see how Jack and Rebecca met – and, like most of their relationship, it wasn't entirely storybook for a seemingly storybook romance. After seeing her sing at a gig, Jack snags a few extra bucks from a friend and takes her out to a carnival. Even though money's tight, he shows her a good time, even managing to buy her a candy apple that leads to some cute flirtation. But then she brings up Vietnam, an accidental poke at an unhealed wound for Jack. Then he likes dogs and she likes cats. He likes pepperoni; she likes mushrooms. And in case you can't tell things are going poorly, it begins to rain – and Jack can't even buy a cheap umbrella. I sure hope it works out for these lovebirds!

Spoiler alert: It does. Before dropping her off, Jack explains his awkward behavior during the date: that Vietnam still hurts, that he hasn't found his place back home yet and that means that he doesn't have much money to treat her as she deserves. Also he's allergic to cats and he just simply hates mushrooms. (Amen, brother.) It's a classic Jack moment – one that wins Rebecca over and earns him a goodnight kiss to keep him smiling through his return home to his deadbeat dad.

So quick question: Steelers great Franco Harris, what were you doing here?

As it turns out, their date landed on the same night as the Immaculate Reception (Jack will probably be SO upset he missed it), a metaphor for the unexpected bounces and miraculous rebounds that life takes before putting you in the right place, snatching triumph from the hands of defeat. Sure, it's quite the labored setup for maybe a trite bit of life philosophy ... but I'll be damned if my heart wasn't smiling like Randall getting a birthday present during that final montage. And while some of it wrapped up a little too tidy – the doctor calling literally right after Kate and Toby let go of their disappointment was convenient – it stuck the landing. Plus, there's enough storm clouds mixed into the end – Toby's depression pills, some fluffy-haired dude with flowers at Rebecca's doorstep – to add a dose of realism to its Harris-inspired miracle talk.

But nobody will be talking about the past after the premiere; they'll be talking about the future. Last season's finale revealed a new timeline featuring Old Man Randall solemnly talking about visiting somebody, and this week's premiere added just a tiny new clue to the mystery. After picking up adult Tess, Old Man Randall calls Old Man Toby, who looks alone, ragged and sad that the person they're visiting probably doesn't want to see him. It's not much – but it sure seems to hint that they're talking about Kate, right? Who else would merit Randall calling Toby about a visit?

If I'm being greedy, I'd say I wish we got just a little more of that future timeline to set up that storyline for the rest of the season, as we're pretty much where we left off last March when season two ended. But this premiere had a lot of pieces to put back on the board – and, in general, it did so with charm and with just enough early moves to get a new game going. Plus, while we didn't get much of a look at the future timeline, the premiere did give us a look at the post-Jack's death future for "This Is Us" – and it looks pretty promising.

"This Is Us" tears rating

Though there were some real sweet moments mixed in Tuesday's premiere, the episode had to bounce back and forth between so many resetting storylines and reestablishing so much ground that there wasn't much time for heavy-duty emotions. My tear ducts got a break ... for now. But considering the warm fuzzy feels the premiere provided, I'll give this a Warmly Smiling Lumberjack Complete With Knowing Head Nod.

So, like, a 1 out of 10.