'This Is Us' Just Made Crock-Pot Owners Freak Out

this is us Left: istockphoto.com; Right: Photo by Ron Batzdorff/NBC
Lily Rose|

If you're a fan of This Is Us, last night's episode probably made you sprint to your kitchen to ensure that your Crock-Pot wasn't plugged in and shooting off sparks. The NBC show has given us many hints over the past two seasons as to what caused the death of Jack (played by Milo Ventimiglia), and the anxiety-inducing January 23 episode gave us the biggest clue of all.

The Pearson family's defective Crock-Pot (given to them by their neighbor George with a warning about its faulty switch) is most likely to blame for Jack's death. After cleaning up the dinner mess and heading to bed, Jack sets dish rags next to the Crock-Pot. The machine then roars to life on its own, shooting sparks and causing the rags to catch fire and quickly spread flames. 

Yes, viewers were emotional, but maybe not for the reason This Is Us producers were hoping.

"Me looking at our crockpot," tweeted @NY2Pgh with a GIF giving major scared side-eye.

"I get married in less than 2 months and suddenly I feel the need to remove the crockpot from the registry. WE. DONT. NEED. IT," wrote Lauren Luna.

"To do list: Call dad Hug dogs Cancel all super bowl plans, today and forevermore Unplug all outlets Buy Kleenex in bulk Throw away crock pot," listed Alexandra Fernandez.

"We're all done with cooking in a #crockpot now, huh?" accurately guessed @LikeAFineWino

But This Is Us creator Dan Fogelman stood up for functioning Crock-Pots everywhere. "Taking a moment to remind everyone that it was a 20 year old fictional crockpot with an already funky switch? Let's not just lump all those lovely hardworking crockpots together," he tweeted, taking a stand.

We're sure the Crock-Pot PR team is working hard to put out this er...fire (too soon?). The Daily Meal reached out to the brand for a comment and a spokesperson had this to say:

"Crock-Pot understands the concerns brought up by last night's episode of 'This Is Us,' and we too are heartbroken by the latest development in Jack's storyline. However, it is important that our consumers understand and have confidence that all Crock-Pot slow cookers exceed all internal testing protocols and all applicable industry safety standards and regulations as verified by independent third-party testing labs. For nearly 50 years, with over 100 million Crock-Pots sold, we have never received any consumer complaints similar to the fictional events portrayed in last night's episode. In fact, the safety and design of our product renders this type of event nearly impossible.

 

In addition, and most relevant to the concerns consumers are having after watching the recent 'This Is Us' episode, our Crock-Pot slow cookers are low current, low wattage (typically no more than 200 or 300 watts) appliances with self-regulating, heating elements. The product is designed to cook foods over a longer period of time at low temperatures and the switches connect to only 1 side of the power line voltage, so there is never a high voltage applied directly across our switches. The switches within our slow cookers are subjected to additional internal testing, which includes a Rotary Knob Endurance test, Rotary Knob Force Test and Flame Burning Test and constructed of self-extinguishing, flame resistant material.

 

Our hope is that the team at NBC's 'This Is Us' will help us spread factual information regarding our product's safety. While we know their primary mission is to entertain – something they have continued to excel in – we also feel they have a responsibility to inform. Just like many fans, we will be watching next week's episode to see how Jack's story progresses and, regardless of the outcome, we want consumers first and foremost to know they are safe when using their Crock-Pot."

 

Good thing we have these 10 easy and delicious Crock-Pot dinners to make while we wait for next week's episode!

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