One year and a Christmas movie later, the Sunset Over Hope Valley recap series is back! All of the recap posts for season six will be written just like before; focusing on the major and minor stories of each episode, as well as sharing some thoughts to consider. With this recap series starting again, it’ll feel like a lot has not been missed. That’s how I felt when watching the season six premiere of When Calls the Heart, like I didn’t miss much between the end of the Christmas movie and the beginning of this season. In fact, it felt like coming back to a place that was familiar and comfortable. I realize that this makes up the charm of the show. This story is about a town that the audience can feel comfortable in, with characters that they can also become familiar with. Speaking of this town, let’s watch the Sunset Over Hope Valley as I recap When Calls the Heart’s season six premiere!

Just a reminder: If you did not see the season premiere of When Calls the Heart, there may be spoilers within this re-cap.

Season: 6

Episode: 1

Name: Phone Rings and Heartstrings

 

Major Story:

• There is much excitement in Hope Valley surrounding the arrival of the telephone. While most of the citizens are looking forward to having this new piece of technology in their town, Bill is skeptical about the amount of change that’s coming to Hope Valley. One day, Abigail gathers everyone in town to celebrate the town’s acquisition of its first telephone. When it’s time for the phone to ring for the first time, things don’t go according to plan. After experiencing some technical errors, Abigail contacts a representative from the telephone company. Several days later, to both Abigail and Rosemary’s surprise, a newcomer named Fiona Miller has arrived in Hope Valley as the new switchboard operator. When trying to assess the problem, Fiona discovers that Ned Yost’s lack of technical knowledge has caused the telephone not to work properly. After reconnecting some wires and fixing the problem, Fiona finds a way to make the telephone work. When the citizens of Hope Valley finally hear the ring of the telephone, Bill starts to realize that some change in Hope Valley can be a good thing.

Minor Stories:

• After going on maternity leave, Elizabeth returns back to school to teach the children of Hope Valley. One day, after school, there is a misunderstanding in who would take care of Jack Jr. In a written note, Elizabeth is told that Jack Jr. is with Clara. But, when Elizabeth visits Dottie’s Dress Shop, Clara tells Elizabeth that Jack Jr. is with Molly. This scenario causes Elizabeth to think about providing more stability in Jack Jr.’s young life. After Elizabeth teaches her students about how a telephone works, Laura, a recent graduate of the school, returns a book to Elizabeth. When Elizabeth learns that Laura likes reading Jane Austen’s novels, she invites Laura to borrow her collection of Jane Austen books. Several days later, Laura shares with Elizabeth that she’d like to go to college, but her family can’t afford it. Elizabeth comes up with a plan to hire Laura as Jack Jr.’s nanny and help her attend college. One day, at Yost’s Mercantile, Elizabeth reveals to Laura that she contacted her friend, who works at a prep school, and they were able to give Laura an invitation to that prep school. She also tells Laura that with the money she could earn as a nanny, she could use that income to afford the expenses of college. After listening to Elizabeth’s offer, Laura accepts the job.

 

• Tom, the owner of the saloon, decides to sell the saloon in order to take care of his family in Union City. When Bill and Henry hear this news, they both want to purchase the saloon. After Bill and Henry ask Lee if he could be their business partner, Lee told both of them that he had to talk with Rosemary first before making any business decisions. One evening, during a meeting with Rosemary, both Bill and Henry share their ideas for the saloon, which both include Rosemary’s involvement. When Rosemary and Lee learn that Bill and Henry each have half of the funds to pay for the saloon, they convince Bill and Henry to go into business together and purchase the saloon with their combined funds. However, things don’t work in Bill and Henry’s favor when Tom reveals that someone else has already purchased the saloon with a larger financial offer.

 

• One day, Jesse shares with Clara that he recently purchased a plot of land. Both Jesse and Clara are excited about the idea of Jesse being a landowner. When Jesse takes Clara to visit his plot of land, Jesse tells her that he’d like to marry her someday, but wants to put himself in a better financial situation first. Bothered by what Jesse told her, Clara wonders if there is anything that he could be hiding. After talking with Abigail about the situation, she tells Clara to talk with Jesse about she feels. The next day, after Clara tells Jesse how she feels, Jesse shares that when he was younger, he and some of his friends robbed a local store. Jesse was the only one in the group to get caught. While he served his time to make up for his crime, Jesse still wanted to give the store owner the same amount of money he and his friends stole. When Jesse discovered that the store owner was having difficulty running his store, he decided to send him at least ten dollars every month. Jesse then tells Clara that he wants to give the store owner a significant amount of money so he and Clara can start their life together with a clean slate.

 

• After Rosemary sees Carson and Faith helping Ned Yost at his store, she thinks that Carson and Faith would make a good couple. Soon, she decides to invite Faith and Carson over to her and Lee’s house for dinner. But Faith and Carson don’t find out that they were both invited until they arrive at Rosemary and Lee’s house. During dinner, Rosemary and Lee have a disagreement about who should buy the saloon. Meanwhile, Faith shares that she doesn’t cook and Carson says that he doesn’t like beans. When they leave Rosemary and Lee’s house, Faith and Carson discuss how silly it is that Rosemary thought they would make a good couple. However, Faith appears as if she wants to be in a relationship with Carson. The next day, Lee and Rosemary talk about the disagreement they had the night before as well as resolve their issues.

Some thoughts to consider:

• I’m really glad that Kayla Wallace has joined the When Calls the Heart family! The only acting performance of Kayla’s that I’ve ever seen was her performance in Once Upon a Prince. Her portrayal of Avery, Susanna’s sister, was fantastic, helping to make that movie even more entertaining! Speaking of Kayla Wallace, I just want to let you all know that she has been nominated for the Gold Sally Awards! Stay tuned for her nomination to appear in the voting polls.

 

• Before the season premiered, I read articles about the official synopsis for this season. There were several plot points with these articles that, to me, sounded confusing. However, when I watched this episode, the things that I had read in those articles finally started to make sense. One of these things was the incorporation of Chris McNally. I knew he was joining the show, but I wasn’t sure what his character’s significance within this story was going to be. After learning about the saloon’s fate, it provided some context to how Chris’ character could serve the overall narrative.

 

• I think this was a good start to the season! During the commercial break, there was a sneak preview of what’s to come. Based on what I saw, it looks like the creative team behind this show has made some interesting story-telling choices. I’m definitely curious to see where this story evolves as the weeks go on.

What are your thoughts on this season’s premiere? Is there something that you’re looking forward to seeing this season? Share your thoughts in the comment section!

 

Have fun in Hope Valley!

Sally Silverscreen