Penultimate 'Parenthood': Zeek's Name Will Live On

"We Made It Through the Night," the penultimate episode of Parenthood , really didn't go easy on the tears, did it? While it did provide us with plenty of happy cries— including Amber having her baby— it's all leading up to the depressing fact we've known for quite some time: that Zeek isn't going to make it. It was all but solidified after it was revealed that Amber named her son Zeek to honor her beloved grandfather. (Okay, it probably was solidified when Zeek decided not to have another surgery, but this really drove it home and made sure you cried and cried and cried in the process.)

It was a long journey for Amber to meet and instantly fall in love with baby Zeek. Early in the episode, we saw Amber go into false labor. But not just regular false labor: comically over-the-top false labor, complete with crazy driving and a big family fight and what turned out to be gas. (Hey, we needed some levity in this episode.)

Amber was ultimately relieved when the baby didn't arrive, and admitted to her mom that she worried that keeping the baby was a mistake and she wasn't prepared to be a parent. Then Sarah assured her that her motherly instincts would kick in and tears were shed and then they played the guitar. The Bravermans do things a little differently.

Even with all that guitar playing and singing, Amber's baby still decided to come out. In the middle of the night, natch. Amber called her mom in a panic, asking her that no other Bravermans or Braverman-adjacent people be present for the birth. After a delivery that only seems to exist on television or in the movies (lots of screaming), Amber joyfully welcomed her son to the world.

Amber was willing to lift her no-Braverman-in-the-hospital room as Zeek and Camille came to visit. And, no matter how cheesy this show can get (I mean, they had a cake baking montage set to "Ave Maria" just mere moments earlier), you are made of stone if you didn't lose it as Zeek met his great-grandson for the first time. It was joyous and so deeply sad and life-affirming all at once. So, Parenthood in a nutshell.

Image: Justin Lubin/NBC