There’s a scene in the first episode of ABC’s new series A Million Little Things that’s so weepy, it makes Terms of Endearment look like Teletubbies. (OK, that’s an exaggeration…maybe.)

It takes place at the funeral for Jon (Ron Livingston), who died by suicide days prior. “Jon, you say everything happens for a reason. I can’t find a reason for this,” his friend Eddie (David Giuntoli) says during a speech, as he holds back tears. The camera cuts to more sad, despondent faces in the church. Regina (Christina Marie Moses), the wife of one of Jon’s friends, is crying. Jon’s family is crying. Everyone’s crying. Then, right on cue, his teen daughter, Sophie (Lizzy Greene), stands up and sings Joni Mitchell’s “Both Sides Now.”

The entire sequence is an emotional juggernaut: It’s melodramatic, yes, but it’s highly effective. It’s catharsis dialed all the way up—and people will love it. Because they already love it on another show: This Is Us, NBC’s hit cry-fest that kicked off its third season yesterday, September 25. The similarities between This Is Us and A Million Little Things are numerous, from the way both shows are shot to the gooey emotional center.

There are some differences. A Million Little Things doesn’t feature a rogue Crock Pot or Mandy Moore in a grandma wig. Instead, we’re introduced to four friends—Eddie, Jon, Rome (Romany Malco), and Gary (James Roday)—who are thick as thieves. But when Jon unexpectedly dies, it sends their lives into a tailspin. What happens when you realize you don’t know your best friends, or even your family, as well as you thought? That’s the central question explored on A Million Little Things.

But most important, you’ll probably sob much like you’ve been sobbing over This Is Us the past three years. So, below, check out a non-exhaustive list of all the similarities your old favorite show and new favorite show have in common. (Don’t worry: They play on different nights and at different times, so you can watch both. Also, DVR exists.)

1. There’s a core group of people all the action is connected to. For This Is Us, it’s the Big Three. On A Million Little Things, it’s these four dudes. (The Emotionally Damaged Four?)

2. Everyone in this core group has a capital-P Problem. Gary is afraid of commitment and recovering from cancer, Rome is depressed and suicidal, and Eddie’s an alcoholic who wants to leave his wife, Katherine (Grace Park), who’s too good for him anyway. The reason Eddie wants out of his marriage is honestly mind-blowing, so I won’t give it away, but that leads us to…

3. The twists and turns on this show are enormous. The pilot of A Million Little Things starts off pretty standard, but the last few minutes offer up a development so juicy it’ll compel you to watch next week. And, according to the cast, there’s more where that came from. “There’s so much we can’t talk about,” Allison Miller (who plays Maggie, Gary’s new girlfriend) tells Glamour.

4. A death is at the center. If, “How did Jack die?” was the battle cry for This Is Us, then “Why did Jon die?” is the one for A Million Little Things. We probably won’t get a clean-cut answer to that mystery, though, and for good reason. “I don’t think there’s going to be a cookie cutter episode where you say, ‘Oh, that makes sense,'” Livingston says of Jon’s death. “To me, there can’t really be an answer to that question. I flip the question: This guy was surrounded by warm, intimate relationships of wonderful people who were there to support each other. Why didn’t he reach out? To me, that’s the mystery.”

5. Crying is a character in itself. Much of the marketing surrounding This Is Us focuses on the tearjerking nature of the show, and A Million Little Things will likely receive a similar treatment. The drama is so thick, you’d have to be a robot to not feel something—be it genuine pathos, skepticism, or a hearty mix of both. Either way, expect a whole new barrage of messages urging you to stock up on tissues.

6. There is humor. Interspersed on This Is Us are random bursts of banter either between the Big Three or their extended circles, and that’s the case on A Million Little Things too. In fact, the one-liners in the pilot are so frequent you have to wonder how these characters managed to say them when their friend just died.

7. It will move you. A Million Little Things does hit real notes that resonate. When Rome admits (in the middle of a hockey game, no less) that he was contemplating his own suicide when he received the call about Jon’s death, Gary puts his arm around Rome’s shoulder. It’s a subtle moment, but it says more about these friends than any tears or quippy jokes. Like the title suggests, it’s the small exchanges that truly define a friendship, and A Million Little Things should absolutely showcase more of those. “Let’s get into material that makes us challenge each other, soften our hearts, connect with other people: Just that simple human connection,” Moses tells Glamour. We couldn’t agree more.

A Million Little Things premieres tonight at 10 P.M. ET on ABC.

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