It’s so good to return to Hope Valley.
It’s been several months since we last visited, and although the town is bustling with people, it is not flourishing.
When Calls the Heart Season 10 Episode 1 suggests that the trying times the people of Hope Valley have been experiencing just might have an end in sight.
The most significant indicator that time has passed comes by way of Rosemary’s enormous belly.
Oh, Lee. We are on a big adventure.
Rosemary
She’s mere weeks from giving birth, so we missed all the excitement of a first pregnancy. That makes sense from a storytelling perspective, but Lee and Rosemary had tried for children for so long that seeing more of their grand adventure would have been fun.
Rosemary Coulter is such a funny lady. She’s so kind but also very willful and doesn’t often consider how her actions impact others.
I understand wanting to bank articles to use while she’s on maternity leave, but to suggest that Elizabeth’s hard work on an article would, hopefully, never be utilized seemed crass.
The same goes for how she reacted to Elizabeth’s donation of maternity clothing and even more for how she decided to dye it.
Had Elizabeth made it known that she wouldn’t want them back at some point? Desperate times call for desperate measures, and sometimes you even have to trade cherries for beet-soaked prunes.
Rosemary: See? I told you we could save money! Those cherries in the cherry cobbler aren’t cherries at all.
Lee: Dare I ask?
Rosemary: They’re prunes!
Lee: Prunes?
Rosemary: Soaked in beet juice. Half the price of cherries. Such a clever little recipe. I got a cookbook a the swap meet.
Lee: Prunes soaked in beet juice. Very resourceful, sweetheart.
It all culminated with her disappointment not to have been asked by Elizabeth to be her matron of honor, when in fact, Elizabeth thought it was apparent she wouldn’t want anyone else by her side.
Sometimes, I wonder how the two women are friends.
They have so many near disagreements (and actual ones) that it almost seems impossible. But they’re the very best of friends. It just goes to show that you can never make assumptions.
I’m thrilled that Lucas Bouchard has found true friends in Hope Valley. When he asked Lee to be his best man, I thought how far Lucas had come since he first arrived. He was so misunderstood, and people didn’t want to give him the benefit of the doubt.
He has made solid friendships and, like Lee, is doing as much as possible to help the community he calls home.
He is proving to himself that he deserves Elizabeth, but there’s never been a doubt in my mind that his heart is full of love.
Lucas has even hired Mike to run the Queen of Hearts. He’s embracing the community so beautifully. But what does he do with his time now besides buying beets and turnips from people’s overflowing gardens?
He has definitely learned a lot by being friends with Lee. The two of them single-handedly care for Hope Valley in ways others cannot, and they consider it an honor.
What lucky women Rosemary and Elizabeth are to have found such caring gentlemen.
We’ve still got three unattached ladies in town, but one of them seems to have a secret we aren’t privy to yet.
What happened between Nathan and Faith?
From how they’re both interacting with others, something definitely happened between When Calls the Heart Season 9 and 10, but it didn’t end well. They both seem to be stinging from the experience, but darn if they don’t continue to have longing looks, sheepish though they are.
Neither appears willing to say they’re ready to “bury the hatchet,” and they both suggest that nothing happened to give that impression.
They seem to protest too much, which usually means hidden feelings. And Nathan looked so sweet when he contemplated asking Faith to dance. I’m excited to see where their relationship grows.
Two of the other eligible bachelors in town aren’t at their best. Henry and Bill each have their troubles — one with the law and the other with their health.
Just like Lucas, Henry Gowen was once regarded as the bad guy, and it wasn’t difficult to understand why. Although he’s made quite a few changes in his life to be perceived otherwise, he still carries the burden of that guilt with him.
Blowing up the mine saved the town, and although he’s on hot water because of it, he’s got a lot of leeway with his current state. He can come and go while on bail, but he keeps returning to the jail cell.
Henry’s reasons for doing so seem to be two-fold.
On the one hand, he’s genuinely contrite about how he addressed that unfortunate situation. He believes that, until proven innocent or at least not culpable, he has to submit to some form of punishment.
It’s like he recalls the man he was, and to keep himself from becoming that man again, he doesn’t want to take advantage of the situation.
But it’s because of that chain around his neck that he can’t join the community he took the chance to save. If anyone deserved to be a part of that community dinner, it was Henry. It would have been an excellent chance to welcome him back into the fold.
Then again, Bill wasn’t there either. They both hide their pain differently, but it unexpectedly brings them together, too. Henry didn’t have many friends, but it seems like the tide is turning.
Elizabeth: You know, people pay a lot of money to take the waters at hot springs. There’s Colorado Springs. Saratoga Springs.
Bill: Health nuts, you mean.
Elizabeth: May I ask you what is going on? Did something happen with the doctors in Union City?
Bill: Do you always meddle so much? [sighs] All the doctors can agree on is that they don’t know anything. There’s something wrong with my lungs. I’m sure all those investigations in the mines didn’t help much.
Elizabeth: Faith would never betray your confidence, but I understand she made some suggestions.
Bill: Suggestions. Experimental treatments. Wild ideas that sound like a bunch of hooey and a lot of effort.
Elizabeth: Bill, we don’t know what’s to come, but there is one thing we can do, and that is be open to new experiences. Live life in the moment. Carpe diem!
Bill: Carpe what?
Elizabeth: Seize the day.
Bill could use a few more friends.
He’s got all the women in town trying to guide him toward caring for himself, but he’s so stubborn. Yet as soon as Henry gave him a little push to listen to those trying to help, Bill jumped into the healing waters of the hot springs.
Things have been dire in town, but if they can capitalize on those hot springs, they may be able to climb out of their despair.
If you watch When Calls the Heart online, you know Hope Valley has mostly thrived on businesses coming and going. But what makes Hope Valley special is its people.
It would make an ideal service community, and what better service than providing rest and relaxation and perhaps healing troubled bodies and souls?
Now, I have no idea what is to come, but it’s easy to imagine Lucas opening someplace that would fit that bill. It would give Lee somewhere to use his lumber and the farmers somewhere to use their produce, and it would create many jobs.
Sometimes, people look down on service industries, but the people of Hope Valley have been in the industry for their neighbors, and we’ve seen what they can do to soothe worried hearts and minds.
Do you think Hope Valley would make a good haven for the weary and those looking to rest and relax?
What do you think happened between Nathan and Faith?
Does it warm your heart to see Lucas being embraced by the community?
Welcome back to Hope Valley, my friends. I hope you’ll tell me how you enjoyed your stay!
Carissa Pavlica is the managing editor and a staff writer and critic for TV Fanatic. She’s a member of the Critic’s Choice Association, enjoys mentoring writers, conversing with cats, and passionately discussing the nuances of television and film with anyone who will listen. Follow her on Twitter and email her here at TV Fanatic.