The Canadian show “Heated Rivalry” has become a worldwide phenomenon, with fans praising the acting and the romantic nature of the show. Actors Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie landed their first major roles as two young hockey players who face hardship and struggles throughout their relationship.
So is it really worth the hype? We think so.
To hear senior staffers Leah Butcher and Charlotte Stephens’ opinions about “Heated Rivalry,” listen to their podcast where they share their thoughts.
Spoilers ahead.
Episode one: “Rookies”
In the pilot episode, Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov meet ahead of the International Prospect Cup. They are immediately pitted as rivals, and their tension off the ice is high. We thought this was an excellent introduction to two interesting and deep characters. While their relationship is initially centered around intimacy, we see it develop over the course of several years. However, timelines that could presumably be fit into hours of screentime are crammed into one episode, which made it confusing for us to follow; it felt very fast-paced.
We get a feel for the complexity of their relationship through the intimate moments: the infamous scene in the showers, the secret meetups in hotel rooms. The show does a great job of showcasing the two young athletes becoming less guarded around each other while having to maintain a professional appearance in public. One of our favorite, yet saddening, scenes in this episode is after Shane wins Rookie of the Year, and he’s slightly bitter over the fact that Ilya isn’t celebrating with him. On the rooftop, there’s so much tension and so many things unsaid, as both of them are avoiding their growing feelings for each other. This made us greatly anticipate how they would continue their relationship.
Episode two: “Olympians”
We see Shane and Ilya’s situationship of sorts evolve through text messages. This episode is more of a bridge between episodes one and three, so there’s not as much emotional depth. It definitely isn’t as heavy as the others.
They travel to Russia for the Olympics, and we get insight into Ilya’s background and how his family dynamics are. Because Ilya’s sexuality is strongly frowned upon in Russia, we felt sympathy for Ilya’s uncertainty surrounding and his relationship with Shane. Ilya pushes Shane away due to his emotionally avoidant tendencies, yet we don’t know exactly why. Because we didn’t know Ilya’s inner monologue or his feelings, he comes off as cold and harsh in this episode. This aspect felt disappointing to me, as viewers might not be able to grasp how Ilya really felt.
Nonetheless, there were definitely some heartwrenching moments during this episode. One of our favorite scenes is when Ilya wins the cup. Shane, who is at a watch party surrounded by his teammates, sees Ilya hoisting the cup, celebrating. Watching Shane have to pretend to hate Ilya and conceal his true emotions about him was honestly painful. Williams’ portrayal of a confused, lovesick Shane is phenomenal, especially his facial expressions when he confronts Ilya about his distance. Though it tugged on our heartstrings, that was incredible to watch.
Episode three: “Hunter”
“Hunter” is one of our favorite episodes from this season. We think the show did a great job highlighting Scott Hunter’s struggles both on and off the rink. This episode made us feel a variety of emotions, from happy and heartwarming to sad and sympathetic.
The relationship between Scott and Kip always brings a smile to our faces. They have great chemistry together, making the relationship feel very real. But their situation is genuinely heartbreaking. Due to Scott’s career, he can’t come out; due to the time period and the stigma around being gay, coming out could have ruined his career.
What makes us love this episode is that the show doesn’t villainize Scott for this; they set up the episode perfectly so you can see the struggle and pain Scott is going through. They also visualize how it’s not just Scott who is affected by this. Although Kip loves Scott, we see the struggle he goes through hiding his relationship from his best friends and his father.
Episode four: “Rose”
At the start of the episode, a detail that we love was that Shane and Ilya celebrate Shane’s wins. When Shane wins the Stanley Cup for the first time, they show Ilya smiling at the TV. When Shane wins for the second time, they show him texting Ilya.
Another detail that stuck out to us was when Shane gets jealous. When Shane and Ilya are at Ilya’s house in Boston, Ilya brings up liking girls, which makes Shane jealous. We love how Williams portrays Shane’s jealousy; he isn’t loud or reactive; he gets quiet, tense and has a subtle but notable tone shift.
On the other hand, we love how Storrie portrays Ilya’s jealousy as the exact opposite of Shane’s. This is best shown in the club scene, with added details. Though small, we love the details in the music and lights. When the show is focused on Ilya’s jealousy, the club lights are red, and they play “All The Things She Said” by t.A.T.u. But when it shifts to Shane’s jealousy, the song switches to a remix of “All The Things She Said” by a male singer, and the lights start to flicker blue. We love this detail because it visualizes each other’s jealousy. When the two finally lock eyes, Shane stands there tense with jealousy while Ilya reacts by dancing with a random girl.
Episode five: “I’ll Believe in Anything”
“I’ll Believe In Anything” is our favorite episode from this season. At the beginning of the episode, we get a bittersweet yet wholesome coming-out scene between Shane and Rose. We love this scene because it felt very real. The anxiety and shame from Shane pulled at our hearts, and the sweet reassurance from Rose warmed it at the same time. This scene also shows how much of a sweetheart Rose is and solidifies how much we like her character.
An important scene from this episode is the phone call when Ilya is in the alleyway in Russia. This scene genuinely breaks our hearts because of the pain and hurt in Ilya’s voice.
Our favorite scene from this episode was when Scott brought Kip down to the ice rink after he won the Stanley Cup. It has been two years since they were together. A detail we love from this scene is the song choice. “I’ll Believe In Anything” by Wolf Parade is perfect for Scott and Kip.
When Scott kisses Kip in front of the world, it genuinely brings us to tears; having the courage and bravery to do that takes a lot, and remembering how much Scott used to struggle being close to Kip in public adds to the emotions. This scene is also important to Shane and Ilya because it makes Ilya choose to go to the cottage.
Episode six: “The Cottage”
In a sentimental ending for the season, Shane and Ilya travel to the Hollanders’ cottage together. This episode is one of our favorites due to all the adorable yet vulnerable scenes that kept a smile on our faces.
We love how, in the cottage, their relationship is much more playful, as they can be truly comfortable and open with each other. One of our favorite moments was when they were discussing their futures and how much they want to have a future together. Shane realizes that Ilya could play for Ottawa, which is much closer to him. When they finally said ‘I love you,’ it felt so heartfelt, and we definitely shed some tears.
We thought the pacing of this episode was fantastic, and it showcased the love Shane and Ilya have for each other, not to mention the amazing chemistry that Storrie and Williams share. We also got thrown for a loop when Shane’s dad comes to the cottage, witnessing Shane and Ilya together. We were on the edge of our seats, not knowing how this would unfold. However, this confrontation between the two and Shane’s parents was nothing short of perfect. We thought it was funny that his parents were more surprised that he and Ilya didn’t hate each other (rather, the opposite). However, we were immediately tearing up again after the emotional and vulnerable conversation between Shane and his mom surrounding his sexuality. Shane’s feeling that he had to apologize for it was heartbreaking. This gave us emotional whiplash in the best way, especially when Ilya acknowledged Shane as his boyfriend. Safe to say, the sweet ending with them driving off into the sunset together felt perfect.
In conclusion, the hype is definitely worth it. We cannot wait until season two releases in spring 2027.
