Can’t Let Go
Episode 5 of Virgin River Season 2 begins with Mel taking Stacie out for a run in the countryside. There, she learns there’s a memorial for Mark that she hasn’t been invited along to. To add insult to injury, the family believed that Mark and her were having issues and thought it was only a matter of time before they broke up. It’s been a while since we’ve had some flashbacks but we’ve got one now! In Afghanistan we see Jack cradling one of his buddies Lon as he bleeds out. He’s awoken by Charmaine though, who’s worried about the babies. Meanwhile, a perky Muriel waits for Connie to open her food truck to order coffee. It turns out she’s going dancing with the Doc later on that evening and thanks Hope, who shows up not long after, for letting this happen between them. Hope forces a smile but is obviously having second thoughts about this obviously stupid and contrived idea she concocted. Eventually Hope confronts Doc about the “date”. He reminds her it’s not, given it’s a group gig, and even invites her along to attend. Connie hears something on the police scanner and immediately confronts Preacher about it. She tells him to head over to her place later that day before turning her attention to Mel. In front of everyone, she outright asks why she wrote a birth control prescription for her niece. Stepping outside, Mel tells her about the birth control situation but typical Connie decides that she’s above the law and refuses to endorse it. Given Lizzie is 19, she can technically do what she wants. This isn’t the first time we’ve seen this of course, especially when she butt heads with Mel about baby Chloe last season. Anyway, after this confrontation Mel breaks the news to Jack about what’s going on with the ring. The source of Jack’s flashbacks soon becomes apparent when his army buddies arrive ready for their reunion. Preacher however decides to hang back for now and Jack tells him he’s not ready to talk about Charmaine so to keep it quiet. Jack heads out with the rest of the guys as they go motorcycling across the hills. When one of them, Zeke, jokes about following Jack in Afghanistan, the mood immediately changes and becomes awkward. However, they continue their afternoon, skipping across to play American football, until they find a dog down by the lake. So are we going to see if this dog belongs to anyone? Check the lost and found? Or the pound? Nope, Charmaine’s going to keep him instead and Mel is absolutely fine with it. Just remember that Mel was the one desperate to find Chloe’s Mother last season. At Jack’s Bar, new girl Jamie – the one who owns a restaurant – tucks in to the food and greets Preacher. The pair flirt a little, with her joking about taking him away and head-hunting him for her joint. Lizzie decides to use Ricky and invites him along to a party later than evening. However, he also asks him to bring some booze given he works at a bar. Predictably, Ricky falls for it hook, line and sinker, stealing bottles of tequila from the bar. Anyway, the party goes ahead but it’s a total bust. Instead, Lizzie and Ricky sit together and swig tequila from the bottle. She eventually kisses him and tells the boy that she “sees him.” Outside town, Brady and Calvin catch wind that the LA detectives (or Mike more specifically) are asking questions. Those questions however, manifest themselves in Calvin admitting that the logging business is a front for something far more lucrative – fentanyl. He promises to share the profits with him but his involvement could mean quite the lucrative pay day. That evening, Preacher heads over to Connie’s who reveals that Wes is missing and police are trying to find him. After hearing about Connie’s past, he apologizes to her for the abuse she suffered and opens up about what’s happening with Paige. Mel heads over to Hope’s place and breaks the news to Charmaine about what’s up with her. It turns out she just has low blood sugar. Meanwhile a very jealous Hope shows up at the dance class and decides to salsa with the closest hottie she can find – who just so happens to be the instructor. Muriel and Hope continue to try and show one another up as Hope worries about losing Doc. The night draws on and Jack awkwardly listens to his buddies talk about Lon, the soldier who died in Jack’s arms. They discuss how fearless he was and how difficult it was to tell his parents about his death. It’s all too much for Jack though, who continues to drown his sorrows in alcohol. Eventually he leaves and catches up with Mel, asking her about Stacie and the ring. Thanks to what Stacie mentioned before, she’s starting to doubt what the right move is here and whether she and Mark were really as tight as she believed. Given the ring belongs to Mel, Jack tells her she should do what she feels is right and if that means keeping the ring then so be it. Stacie overhears them though and immediately starts packing her things, angry that she’s not handing over the ring. That evening, Jack faces his demons and phones Lon’s parents. He apologizes for everything that happened to their son but it turns out they passed away. Tim, Chris’ brother, is the one who picks up. Unable to continue, he apologizes and drops the phone, sobbing.
The Episode Review
With a solid episode of Jack’s past coming back to him, echoes of this storyline from season 1 continue to bleed through here. The drama with him and the anguish he’s feeling is definitely a great inclusion to this season but it’s arguably the only well-paced piece that’s come from season 2. The love triangles continue with Hope now descending into jealousy in a storyline that absolutely everyone saw coming a mile away. I mean honestly, what did she expect? She convinced Doc to get involved with Muriel and for what? Because she’s ashamed to tell the town she’s dating Doc again? Well because of this indecisiveness, she could be about to lose Doc once and for all. Aside from that, the issues with Brady and Calvin remain frustratingly kept at arm’s length, along with the issues surrounding Wes’s death too. I’d imagine this will catch up with everyone sooner rather than later but for now we’ll have to wait and see.
