Heated Rivalry Took A Risk In Season 1 That I Might've Hated, But I'm Really Glad They Did It

I realize that I'm a little bit late to the Heated Rivalry party, but I did show up. After all of the buzz surrounding the new series (Season 1 is available to watch streaming with an HBO Max subscription), combined with CinemaBlend's Riley Utley raving about hockey romance drama, I had to check it out. And yes, I powered through all six episodes faster than... a really fast hockey player chases a puck.* While it didn't surprise me that the show was great, what did was the big swing the series took with Episode 3, and the fact that it actually worked. And that's about as spoiler-free as I can get. From this point forward, major Heated Rivalry Season 1 spoilers ahead!

*I'm going to try to not make too many bad hockey jokes, references and puns (like how sp-icy this show is), but I might not be able to help myself.

Ok, to be clear, unlike some of the other new book-to-screen adaptations out there, I haven't read any of Rachel Reid's Game Changers novels yet, so the characters in this TV series are brand new to me, as are their stories. I'm familiar enough with how a lot of romance book series work these days though -- the main couple can change from one book to the next -- and I think Bridgerton is a good example of a modern show that has managed to shift its focus from one couple to the next each season, while also providing updates about or glimpses of past couples to check in with them. What Heated Rivalry did with Episode 3 was something different. And I think it was a big risk, but it really worked. You might say it was a "game changer" (not sorry).

As you presumably know, the first two episodes of Heated Rivalry focus entirely on Ilya and Shane's developing romance, as months and even years go by, while their not-so-rivalrous rivalry turns into something more. And then Episode 3 ("Hunter") happens, and completely abandons the central couple for one whole episode, instead focusing on Scott and Kip.

Now, I'm aware that the hockey-playing Scott and smoothie-making Kip are the main couple of Book 1 of the Game Changers series, and that we did meet Scott in a previous episode. But for the show to swerve so completely for an entire episode, barely giving us so much as a glimpse of the main couple, and focusing entirely on a new love story... well, that's a bold move. If I had disliked these two, man, I'd be frustrated, to say the least. Here I am, fully invested in Shane and Ilya, and now I have to get to know two totally different characters and not see the other ones? It's as if someone took the book I was reading out of my hands partway through, handed me a different book, and said, "Read this for a bit," then gave me my original book back. Fortunately, here, the thing they asked me to read was just as great as what I was reading.

I honestly think this could have been an awful experience. The reason it wasn't is that I immediately loved Scott and Kip and absolutely adored getting to see their smoothie-focused flirtmance turn into a full-blown romance. And then my heart broke for them when they ended things. Sure, I was happy to see Ilya and Shane back at the center of the story in Episode 4, but I was also waiting for an update on Scott and Kip.

Guys, when I tell you, as much as I was waiting to see if they'd get back together, nothing could have prepared me for Scott calling Kip down to the ice after winning the not-Stanley Cup and kissing him as his way of rekindling their romance, and also coming out to anyone and everyone watching. It was such a surprising and amazing return to their story, and having spent that earlier episode getting invested in their romance made this followup scene hit even harder.

I'm not saying every show should try a stunt like this. But I do love how this one played out. Actor François Arnaud also made some interesting points when talking about the differences between Shane and Ilya's episodes and Scott and Kip's story. I definitely think that factors into why it works. If Heated Rivalry has stuff like this up its sleeve in the future, I hope it works as well as it did in Season 1.

I also wouldn't complain if other romance-focused series took note of how well this worked. Pulling our attention away from the main characters is undoubtedly a gamble, but done right, it can allow the central story to simmer for a bit while we get to meet and fall in love with other characters for an episode. And then get an amazing payoff later in the season when those characters return for a huge moment.