Nathan’s Journey: Dismantling his Identity as Protector

This blog post was written by me, but I’m adding @notawriter32 and @ghostwriterheartie (both on IG) as coauthors because so many of the ideas in here are theirs. We were talking about some of the “Protector Nathan” videos that popped up this week and stumbled into this theory as we were chatting. A lot of people think that Nathan is going to further embrace his role as protector in light of Little Jack’s illness - but we have another theory to posit.  

Nathan Grant came to Hope Valley with one purpose - to protect Elizabeth Thornton and her son. Anyone who watches the show knows this purpose is derived from the guilt he feels because his actions and decisions resulted in Jack Thornton taking his place on a training mission that ultimately claimed Jack’s life.

And that purpose has defined who he is for the six seasons he has been on the show, up until the beginning of season 12. 

But season 12, in our collective opinion, is about the end of his journey towards dismantling that piece of his identity. And while season 12 is not complete, there are some key pieces of the promos from episode 11 that really shine the light on this idea.

First though, we want to be clear that Nathan will always have the innate desire and need to protect his family when necessary - that’s not what we are talking about here. We are talking about him making it an integral part of the way he views himself and his role in his family’s lives and, most importantly, in his relationship with Elizabeth.

We first see Nathan as Elizabeth’s protector in season 6 - in all honesty, an innocuous piece of the puzzle, as he protects her in the saloon from Amos Dixon, but it is the first time he formally steps into that role.

In season 7, we see him step into the role again, this time however, with a lot of pushback from Elizabeth. During the windstorm, she goes out to help Emily, he finds them both and brings them back to the cabin, only to chastise her for putting herself in danger - despite her finding Emily without incident. When he tells Bill about the exchange, Bill reminds him that Elizabeth is stronger than she looks - a warning very early on that Nathan perhaps should have heeded. They settle their differences, and Nathan acknowledges that she has good instincts.

It is also at this point that Nathan and Elizabeth develop a code that they use throughout the series. “Be Safe” becomes a part of their lexicon after Nathan tells her that the reason he wants her to be safe is because she matters to him. It is then used multiple times over the years, and to the viewer, is their way of telling the other person that they care and love them - all enveloped in the guise of protection.

In season 8, this identity is solidified for the viewer with the Ft. Clay reveal. He specifically states that he came to Hope Valley because he knew Jack had a wife and child and he felt it was his duty to protect them. Elizabeth again bristles against this notion, asking why he would assume that.

And then he reveals a key piece integral to our theory. He felt guilty for falling in love with her because he felt like it betrayed Jack and his memory. It was this feeling of guilt that led him to hold back when it came to Elizabeth at first - that it was a betrayal, that he didn’t deserve to love her because it was his actions that led to Jack’s death. It’s such a heavy feeling at first that he considers taking a promotion and leaving Hope Valley to avoid the crushing weight of it all. It’s a stumbling block that remains in place throughout the series, even as we enter the penultimate episode of season 12.

Through seasons 9 and 10, we see him step into the protector role in much more subtle ways (crediting @Stephanie_heartinmotion here for her Protector video) like taking the plea deal to protect Lucas from jail time (indirectly protecting the life she was trying to build with him), or being the only person to step in and truly question her decision to leave Hope Valley with Lucas as he runs for governor, protecting her purpose. 

In season 11, we begin to see this identity get challenged and shaken. First, Elizabeth is confronted with a man from her past that has sexually harassed her. He’s there to comfort her, and then as she reveals the story, you can see his protective instincts build up, and ultimately explode as she reveals that her harasser, Higgins, has been talking to Anna - a child his daughter was friends with. But Elizabeth stops him - he can’t do anything about it, Higgins is sly, he’ll slither out of trouble yet again if Nathan goes after him. Once he has calmed down a bit, he realizes it’s her place to challenge Higgins, she’s the one that has to do it. And he helps her by being by her side and doing what he can within his role as a Mountie. He didn’t protect her from Higgins, he supported her.

Another thing we see in season 11 is how this part of his identity is extended beyond Elizabeth, and is of course expanded to include Allie. It’s likely that his experience in raising a young Allie, and protecting her from the truth of her past, shaped him to be the kind of man that would ask for a reassignment to a small town to protect the family of Jack. But for the viewer, we’ve never really seen overly-protective Uncle Nathan or Allie’s Dad. Nathan learns a valuable lesson in episodes 9 & 10 of season 11, that he cannot protect Allie from the truth about her biological father. She will get hurt - that is a fact he cannot change - and in fact, his “protection” of her hurt her further, because she felt lied to. But, Nathan is given the lesson again that he needs to be there for her, to support her no matter what she’s feeling. And he does so in one of the most breathtaking scenes of season 11.

Even the scene in episode 11 of season 11 on the balcony of the saloon is relevant here. Sure, he’s protecting Elizabeth from “Shaw” but she has to be willing to take that leap too. She has to be brave enough.

Episode 1 of season 12, however, serves to remind the viewer of the stakes here. Nathan is bombarded with mentions of Jack, days after finally kissing Elizabeth for the first time, and the guilt resurfaces, despite Elizabeth’s insistence that he needs to let it go. He begins thinking about how Little Jack will be affected by the news, already planning how to protect Little Jack from getting too hurt by it, feeling like he has to “answer for it.” 

However, there is a key moment with Rosemary that we think begins to shift his thinking. “You aren’t giving yourself enough credit.” She points out to him that there is more to him than the protector, that he makes her happy, both of them happy. And after that, he symbolically gives Elizabeth a box to keep Jack’s medal in, literally protecting Jack’s legacy. We all talked about how symbolic it was in the moment, but now we also see it as the first step in letting something else protect Jack’s memory. It’s not all on his shoulders. 

The rest of season 12 is a masterpiece in showing how he stands beside her, how he supports her: he’s sitting in the chair listening to her talk about teaching, listening to her vent when she goes on the radio show, even suggesting she go back on the radio to answer the letters of support she received. He watches with delight as she also supports him, bravely stepping into the Diane DiMarco role with gusto to ensure his cover story with Toddy remains in place. He even uses the words “[your husband] worships the ground you walk on” indicating that they are on the ground together, as equals - a very different situation from her relationship with Lucas, who put her on a pedestal. He trusts her, he recognizes her bravery.

This may be an unpopular opinion, but episode 9 of season 12 represents Nathan really accepting that Elizabeth is brave and is capable and is written exactly the way it is to inform the viewer of those facts. First, he tells her matter-of-factly that he’s going out on stakeout. He’s keeping it calm for her, knowing her history, but she’s giving it right back, bravely accepting that this is his job and not giving him cause to worry about her. And when it came to her search for Allie, she has good instincts - he says he trusts them and he does. There is no emotional blow up about her going out to find Allie and Oliver, there is even very little emotional reaction to her being safe, because he has accepted that Elizabeth will do what she needs to protect what’s important to her, and will do so smartly. She doesn't always need his protection. 

And in episode 10, he also acknowledges that his innate desire to protect his family, in this case Allie, again may have hurt her - his blow up at McGinty may have spurred the trespassing charges. He takes responsibility and tells Allie and Oliver this, and, this is important, Elizabeth finds his taking responsibility “appealing.” It’s been made clear throughout the series that Elizabeth doesn’t look to him for protection. More often than not, she feels suffocated by it, or ignores it entirely to pursue her problem on her own. Does she appreciate it when he is there for her? Yes, of course, but she doesn’t view him in the role of “protector” in her life. She doesn’t need that from him.

However, he still deep down retains that identity as protector going into episode 11, and it reveals itself as their faith is shaken. “I came to Hope Valley to protect Elizabeth, but this…I feel powerless.” His entire purpose for being in Hope Valley and a key part of himself for the past 6 years has been shattered with one conversation. Because he cannot protect Elizabeth from what’s coming. This is the final lesson, the final bit of healing that Nathan needs to go through in order to truly be with Elizabeth. And Bill is there to help him through it: “Elizabeth Thornton is as brave as they come,” (a reminder of what he already knows), and “Your job is to be there when it counts.” Nathan’s job isn’t to protect Elizabeth. It’s to love her without abandon and accept her unconditional love of him in return.

Something he has never fully allowed himself to do. 

The choice Nathan made after Jack’s death was exactly as Rosemary said in season 8, it was noble and selfless for him to uproot his life and come to Hope Valley to protect the family of the man he felt he had traded places with. And he did it well - he’s literally saved her life, but he’s also figuratively saved the life she chose. He made that promise to Jack, and to himself, and to Elizabeth. But that promise was made in the shadows of a tragedy, and has left Nathan feeling like he's sitting in that shadow for a long time. 

@notawriter32 shared the following poem with us because she realized how it fit this story:

TO BREAK A PROMISE

Make a place of prayer, no fuss,

just lean into the white brilliance

and say what you needed to say

all along, nothing too much, words

as simple and as yours and as heard

as the bird song above your head

or the river running gently beside you.

Let your words join

one to another

the way stone nestles on stone,

the way water just leaves

and goes to the sea,

the way your promise

breathes and belongs

with every other promise

the world has ever made.

Now, let them go on,

leave your words

to carry their own life

without you, let the promise

go with the river.

Have faith.

Walk away.

from

THE SEA IN YOU: Twenty Poems of Requited and Unrequited Love

© David Whyte and Many Rivers Press

This is what she said about the poem: …promises can have seasons. And there are times when a promise you have made no longer serves you or the person you made it to. And you have to be willing to let it go.

Should the writers be taking us on the journey we have theorized here, Nathan will need to let that promise go. This season has been focused on legacies and promises. Nathan needing to release his promise parallels the Canfield’s story this season, shedding their promise of protecting Angela in order to let her soar. Elizabeth shares her story of a broken promise, ending her engagement with Lucas when it was clear they wanted different things out of life, to help guide Fiona to following her own heart. Even Emily’s story as a budding entrepreneur has shades of it, releasing a promise she made to herself to want to become a teacher so she could be like Elizabeth and feeling embarrassed by the thought of changing her mind. It also is contrasted in Lucas’s storyline where there are promises you must keep - in his case, the need to keep his promise to Lee to create the National Park at all costs in order to maintain their friendship. It is also contrasted in Bill and Rosemary’s storyline, as Bill grapples with keeping his promise to Rosemary in light of reconnecting with Georgie (and maintaining protocol).

It flips the script that I think many Nathan fans have in their heads - that he has been ready and waiting for Elizabeth since season 8. And perhaps he was on the surface - he was waiting for Elizabeth to open her heart to him. Elizabeth has done her work - she’s grieved the loss of Jack and the life she was supposed to have with him, conquered her fears, and accepted Nathan into her heart for who he is, not what he is. But once she opens her heart to who he really is, he’s faced with the reality that identifying as her protector was the way he coped with the guilt over Jack’s death. He avoided actually working through that guilt, likely because this identity as Elizabeth's protector is so wrapped up in his identity as Mountie, but now he has to face it. He has to realize his promise to Jack before he met Elizabeth can no longer stand as he made it, not only because he is more than that promise, but because Elizabeth sees him (and has always seen him) as more than just a promise he made to her late husband. 

Once Nathan lets his promise go, he will let go of that piece of his identity, the role of protector to Elizabeth and her son and of Jack’s legacy. He can step out of the shadow, and not feel like he’s replacing Jack. It will allow him to shed the guilt he feels over Jack’s death, and open his heart to love Elizabeth and Little Jack with everything he has, with nothing standing in the way. 

Their relationship can no longer be defined by Jack and his death. Nathan and Elizabeth’s relationship has to stand on its own two feet.*

We said in our group chat at the end of episode 1 that this season was going to be about Nathan’s journey - and what a subtle, yet beautiful journey it has been. We can’t wait to see how it all plays out. 

*These two sentences render my last blog post null and void and I accept that in the name of the best storytelling this show has ever exhibited.

A Teacher and a Mountie

I am nearly through with a rewatch of WCTH with my kiddo. It was the first time since returning to the series in the summer of 2023, before season 10, that I went back and watched from the beginning - which is interesting because my thoughts about the show and my feelings about characters have changed a lot since then.

A trusted WCTH friend asked me when I finished S5, what I thought about those seasons now, knowing all we know through season 11. And my answer will likely ruffle a lot of feathers.

I said, my one takeaway from watching seasons 1-5 again, is that this show is as Ms. Oke said, one about a Teacher and a Mountie.

But that Mountie is, and forever will be, Jack Thornton.

*insert flames, tomatoes, swords drawn, whatever*

I know. How beautiful is it to have Nathan and Elizabeth together, seemingly restoring that vision? I couldn't ask for more when it comes to the moments we've had between them. It's been a beautiful story. 

But the fact remains that the heart of this show is rooted in Elizabeth's love for Jack Thornton, and her being with another Mountie isn't going to change that. 

Why is this going to ruffle feathers? Well, I've already seen NUMEROUS comments indicating that there was too much Jack in episode 1 of season 12, even some DMs to me, which, hi, do you follow me? There will never ever ever be enough Jack on this show for me. Nathan fans do not look kindly on mentions of Jack, and with fairly good reason the way his legacy was weaponized in season 8. But we wanted depth, right? We wanted Elizabeth in a relationship with deep conversations, stakes, challenges - well everyone, this is their deepest story. And it's the deepest story WCTH has tackled, because in the end, there is no easy way out. Someone hurts. I'll talk about that later.

But I want to talk about why I think this first, before talking about episode 12.1. Because it's important.

When they wrote Jack off the show, they knew they had to continue Jack's legacy, otherwise, what was the point of the previous five seasons, so they wrote Elizabeth pregnant with his son and namesake. And for season 6, that was where the writers could deliberately insert mentions of Jack's memory and it fit the story. 

However, an interesting moment happens at the beginning of season 7 that shifts where this memory is going to live on the show. And that's when Elizabeth gives Lucas the copy of her short stories and he criticizes them for not been deep enough. Sure, she wanted him to be honest, but of course, telling her that "good writing comes from the heart," as if her short stories inspired by her life and Jack's didn't come from the heart, went over like a brick and she would never mention Jack to Lucas on screen until the Ft. Clay storyline (which was more about Nathan anyways). With a little help from Nathan, she realizes she can reset her writing focus to her son and being a single mother, while protecting Jack's memory by leaving those stories alone. 

And from that point on, Jack is never a part of her relationship with Lucas. 

Of course at the end of season 7 and the start of season 8, we see Elizabeth grapple with the fear of loving another Mountie (which knowing what we know now, was more about the depth of her feelings for Nathan and less about the Serge). And we get the Ft. Clay storyline. Erin Krakow and Kevin McGarry fought to have this storyline included, and it shadowed the end of season 8 heavily. It made Elizabeth's choice at the end of season 8 to feel anticlimactic, because why introduce such a heavy storyline between two characters who aren't going anywhere.

But the majority of my theory is actually focused on season 9. The sunshine and rainbows season for Elizabeth and Lucas (with a minor issue of him being put in jail that barely puts a damper on anyone's day). 

Jack Thornton is mentioned one. single. time. in season 9. 

Once. To Nathan after the race. And a good memory, one that is rather unconnected to his memory as a Mountie - a connection held in place for all conversations Elizabeth and Nathan had about Jack up until that point. 

And it's not just that Jack isn't mentioned to either man in Elizabeth's life. He is mentioned once. Period. Nothing to any other character, no mention in her journal.

Once. 

And that season, in my opinion of course, is where the heart fell out of the show. You have Elizabeth embarking on this brand new relationship, and yet there is no mention of her widowhood, except the existence of Little Jack. Elizabeth took off her rings in season 8 and promptly forgot Jack Thornton.

Or so it seemed.

The glaring change in season 10 that I noticed while watching live (remember, I binged 6-9 before 10 started to catch myself up after leaving when Jack died) was the sudden reappearance of Jack Thornton in the story. Little Jack asking about his daddy. Elizabeth giving him the Mountie hat, visiting his grave. And to me, the red flag that signaled maybe not all was as it should be, Elizabeth admitting that she had avoided talking about Jack with Lucas for all those years. 

I wrote this in a fic, and I'm writing it here. Jack Thornton was the best part of Elizabeth's life up until this point. Lucas never knew the best of her. How can you marry someone and not know the best of them? 

Season 11 continues the Jack thread, a little less in your face, but definitely there with Tom Thornton coming to town and Little Jack learning to ride. And those stories? They are enhanced with the knowledge that Nathan is living with this guilt and now that guilt is resurfacing because there is potential for him to be with Elizabeth. Tom Thornton comes to town and Elizabeth is with Lucas? Who cares? But with Nathan? You have a whole host of conversations about shadows and legacy and all that goes along with it. 

And the season ends on a Jack Thornton cliffhanger, just as these two have confessed their love.

I had planned to write this last week, before the premiere, but I ended up really sick. That being said, I'm really glad I didn't because Episode 12 was the epitome of this theory for me. 

There was so much Jack in this episode, and of course as a Jack fan, I loved it. But some people feel it was too much, too much sad Nathan, too much time spent on a dead guy's legend. 

But that's the point. You're supposed to feel overwhelmed by it all, because that's what Nathan feels in this moment. He's insanely happy to finally be with Elizabeth, but in the literal week after kissing her for the first time, he's bombarded with Jack's legacy from what feels like every direction. 

This is what Nathan's life is going to be for the rest of his life. 

Sure, it will get easier, and then harder when he has to tell Little Jack, and then easier likely. But that deep-seated guilt running through him? That's never going away, no matter what Elizabeth tells him to do. That's what the moment at the end of the episode when Elizabeth says that she wants to keep Jack real for Little Jack and her was about - she doesn't want to have to hide Jack away. She did that before with Lucas. She doesn't want to do it again, especially now that her boy is older. But she also knows it's not easy for Nathan to hear about Jack all the time - it hurts him, deeply. 

Her sigh when he said he would never want Jack to forget who his father was? That's what that is about. She's relieved she doesn't have to hide Jack away. Nathan will protect Jack's legacy, which is what he came to Hope Valley to do in the first place.

And then he hands her a box to literally protect a part of Jack's legacy, with no thought as to his feelings at all.

Believe me, I'm here for Nathan and Elizabeth blissful and romantic and steamy/spicy/ritzy whatever we get this season. But the one criticism I've always had with WCTH is that the writing is very surface level. This story is deep, and hurts. I was emotionally broken after watching it the first time. Elizabeth Stewart wrote a masterful episode that I think really hit home the point I'm making here.

WCTH is about Elizabeth Thatcher, a heiress that goes out west to teach and along the way falls in love with Mountie, Jack Thornton. It's a story about a Teacher and a Mountie...

And when that Mountie dies? It's about her love for that Mountie and all the ways his legacy impacts her life moving forward, even when she finds love again in red serge. 

Lucas' Grand Gestures (and why Nathan barely had to try...)

I am reupping my disclaimer here: I'm here for critical discussions of characters, but blatant disregard for the fact that this is WCTH and every person on this show is inherently good, yet fallible, won't be tolerated here. I love both Nathan and Lucas, I just think one character is more suited to Elizabeth than the other. 

Throughout my short time in this fandom space (mostly just Season 11), I am amazed at the vitriol spewed across "team" lines. I see it less in Nathan spaces, probably because most people there are happy to see their ship sailing and most of the bitterness has worn away, but I somehow managed to get all of the really cruel Lucas fans to keep popping up in my Twitter feed. The ones that truly have nothing nice to say about Nathan.

One of the common sticking points, though for a lot of people who would rather see Elizabeth and Lucas together seems to be that Nathan hasn't really "tried" to win over Elizabeth, or court her, or do anything romantic for her. Which, when you just count the moments, sure. They haven't even managed a single date without someone or something interrupting them, he even "makes" her cook dinner for their family meal. Compared to Lucas' swoonworthy "grand gestures," Nathan does seem to fall short in the romance game.

And while that may cause some people to discount him, it clearly hasn't deterred Elizabeth. 

Why?

I believe it's because, from the beginning, Lucas did everything he could to insert himself into Elizabeth's life, while Elizabeth did what she could to insert herself into Nathan's life. Lucas' grand gestures were a way to ensure he could gain Elizabeth's attention - why would she notice or continue to cross paths with the saloon owner otherwise? And we rarely see her go out of her way to interact with Lucas. On the other hand, while Nathan was written to cross paths with Elizabeth because of Allie, Elizabeth spends a good portion of the beginning of their relationship inserting herself into their lives, in a way that is deeper than any of the parent/children pairs we've seen on the show. As a result, Nathan doesn't need to try to gain Elizabeth's attention - he already has it.

Let's go season by season to see how this evolves:

Season 6: How they meet is interesting - Elizabeth meets Lucas by happenstance in the street. She does initiate the conversation, but it is very much driven by Lucas. Elizabeth herself gives up nothing about her. On the other hand, she had to deliberately go meet Nathan, and immediately shares quite a bit of herself to him. Lucas gives Elizabeth the library building, and continues to support it, ensuring their connection to the library at least. Elizabeth dives deep into Nathan and Allie's past (not the best example, but she knows more about them than Lucas at this point). I will admit, Elizabeth does a little inserting herself into Lucas' life when he leaves to go help Jeanette - but she pays dearly for it, ending up a hostage to Amos Dixon.

Season 7, Christmas Special: I feel like this whole episode is just a microcosm of my whole theory. Lucas sets up the Christmas festival, and delights Elizabeth with the lanterns he told her about from his childhood. On the other hand, Nathan is on the verge of leaving Hope Valley - which we now know for certain was because he was falling in love with her -  and Elizabeth inserts herself into his and Allie's Christmas by inviting herself to help them find a Christmas tree and decorate it, even offering her own ornaments in the process.

Season 7: The first scene in this season again highlights this dynamic - Elizabeth awkwardly approaches Nathan about Allie's school paper on Queen Victoria, and Lucas interrupts. Later, Lucas inserts himself into her writing, offering to read it, and subsequently sending it to his mother to read later in the season. He also inserts himself when he invites her to the reading in Union City. And this I think is where she begins to fall and really pay attention to those grand gestures. This is after Elizabeth helped Nathan navigate things with his father, unsolicited mind you. Both of these set up Nathan's jealousy - to this point, he hasn't had to put effort into getting Elizabeth's attention, and he's losing it because Lucas is doing all these wonderful things for her. Not to mention their fight in the cabin during the windstorm. Nathan is also grappling with his own feelings and guilt (of which Lucas has none) so he's hesitant in asking Elizabeth out (inserting himself) multiple times. He finally manages, but the prisoner transfer squashes that really quick.

Season 8: I think this season starts out with Nathan as both confident and desperate - if that's possible. He has some good things happen: Allie's dad is in jail, he might buy Bill's land. But then he recognizes Elizabeth pulling back from him, and blurts out that he's in love with her. While one might think that would push Elizabeth away - and it does in that moment - she's right back to pushing into his life, both with the inquiry, the adoption, and the information about Ft. Clay. During all of this, Lucas is pushing up against Elizabeth's boundaries, foisting his mother on her, taking her on dates, holding her hand in public, almost kissing her (Side note: Anyone can complain about how Lucas wasn't patient here. It's my one weakness, I cannot understand what the writers thought patience was and how they haven't used the word to describe Nathan who is standing right there...), continuing to insert himself deeper into her life. And yet - she's still not really doing any of the reaching here in regards to her relationship with Lucas. And we all know how season 8 ends, so let's move on...

Season 9: This is where things shift a little - we do see more effort by Elizabeth to be a part of Lucas' life, but I still think he's doing most of the heavy lifting - like watching Jack. But she's still very much a part of Nathan's life by her own actions - she's there in the hospital room multiple times (he did ask for her), she's part of Allie and Robert's "interrogation" after the ice cream fight, she even offers to teach him to drive, despite him asking for Lucas to do it. 

Season 10: This season actually feel like it had the least amount of Elizabeth pushing her way into Nathan's life, and most of their interactions in the first half were small, but almost always initiated by her. Lucas is still blinding her with his grand gestures, but as she mentioned in season 9, they aren't necessary. And I think by the time he tries to give her a whole house, she realizes that the motive behind the gestures was "notice me" and not really what she wants (same as the party in Season 9). Then, even the small stuff gets irritating, like the flowers he buys for her in the street. And she's still initiating interactions with Nathan, like asking him to stay for apple juice and approaching him at the ball about his speech. Nathan, for the past two seasons, has been content to allow Elizabeth to interact with him on her own terms. But that changes the second he realizes that she's doing something that's likely to compromise her happiness, and he finally steps in and inserts himself into her life by asking what she wants in the schoolhouse. 

Season 11: Once Lucas is out of the picture, Nathan now has the space to start inserting himself: the chocolate egg, being there for Tom, asking for help with Allie, actually asking if they are more than friends. And Elizabeth continues: throwing his birthday party, saving the bone for scout, going with him unasked to find Allie, asking him to teach Jack to ride. It's so much more of a reciprocal relationship than anything we ever saw her have with Lucas.

So, in my opinion, Lucas' grand gestures were his way of getting Elizabeth to notice him at first, but not to open up to him, especially about her past. Their relationship was all about the future, and what a grand future it would be. But because their relationship lacked personal depth, the grand gestures eventually fizzled out and were the death knell of their relationship. 

Nathan never needed to do anything "romantic", because Elizabeth immediately (despite her confession to wanting to hate the next Mountie) connected with Nathan and offered parts of herself in ways that were subtle, with their relationship really focusing on their pasts. Nathan always had Elizabeth's attention, but didn't really know what to do with it for a long time (because of his guilt). When he started to lose it or her, he reacted rashly, pushing her to admit her feelings to him. But once the dust settles, he can give her pieces of himself in a very similar way that she gave herself throughout the series. Their interactions are very much about navigating life's trials with someone there to support you, to love you, through the good and the bad. They live life together. 

About Me!

Welcome to my blog - a place for me to expand on ideas about the tv show When Calls the Heart (and maybe others, eventually). I'm a shipper at heart, and have spent many years involved with fandoms of all shapes and sizes, and in various genres. Usually, I'm content to lurk and enjoy the creative pursuits of other members of a fandom, but once in a while, I'm inspired - usually to write one-shot fanfics - but something about WCTH recently has grasped me and held on tight. I feel like I have lots to say about the show, and there isn't enough space on socials to expand, so I figured I would start a blog - not sure what you are going to see here beyond some of my theories and reflections on the show, but hopefully you'll enjoy!

As I said before, I identify as a shipper - I love TV romances and can usually spot my ship of choice within a few interactions (I pride myself on calling Anna/Mr. Bates from Downton Abbey while watching their first scene - and I sill adore them). I've been an avid fan of a variety of shows and romances for the past 25 years (I'm in my 40s lol), including M*A*S*H, CSI, Castle, Downton Abbey, Mr. Selfridge, Star Wars, and of course WCTH.

I started watching WCTH I think in season 3. Netflix recommended it to me, and I was intrigued by the idea of a show focusing on a teacher and a Canadian Mountie - some of my friends in high school were fans of Due South, and the references stuck with me I guess. I will admit - WCTH is an absolute guilty pleasure show for me - I don't take it very seriously (time and distance do not exist in the world, nor do all the storylines make the most sense) - but I love nearly every character on the show and fell in love with Jack and Elizabeth early on. One of my friends and I watched the show religiously together, until they killed off Jack's character. 

To say I was devastated was an understatement. I realized in season 4, after Jack left for the the NW Territories, that it was his and Elizabeth's romance really keeping me engaged. And then it was gone. I watched the Christmas Special when she gave birth to Little Jack and decided to call it quits. That decision was only reinforced when I heard they were bringing in *two* men to replace Jack and I could only imagine the mess a love triangle storyline could create.

And I was 100% correct. I would occasionally see an article about WCTH during seasons 6-9, and would read it to keep tabs on what was happening. I was curious as to which eligible bachelor would ultimately get Elizabeth in the end, but not invested enough to watch the show. 

Last summer, before season 10 aired, I was unemployed and figured it couldn't hurt to try to watch beyond Jack's death - I knew Elizabeth was engaged to Lucas at the end of season 9, so my perspective is a little different than those members of the fandom who weathered the storms of seasons 6-9. While watching those seasons for the first time, I was a little confused as to how she would end up with Lucas, as I noticed her interactions with Nathan were much deeper, but I will admit that not having the emotional connection to either one of them allowed me to rejoice for Elizabeth once she was engaged again (the woman deserves to be married for more than a week - please let her get married soon). 

I started watching live again in season 10, and what a season to return to the show. I spent the whole season wondering if  Elizabeth and Lucas would break their engagement, once the cracks started forming, and wondering if Hallmark would even allow something like that. I was here for the chaos - again, no emotional investment in either character - and it delivered. And once Elizabeth had a panic attack about Nathan's safety and Nathan walked into that schoolhouse and asked Elizabeth what she wanted? I was sold on Nathan and Elizabeth being together. Season 11 brought obsession -  I couldn't think about anything else beyond this show (I'm usually an avid reader - my reading has STALLED since April lol). I got inspired to write a couple of fics, create an instagram account, and now a blog to write down my many gripes and thoughts about the show. So welcome! I encourage healthy discussion - and I actually refuse to tolerate any notion that any characters on the show are truly bad people. Hope Valley has good people, with good intentions, and most of their conflicts arise when they don't agree on how to accomplish something good.