Review of “When Calls the Heart”, Season 11, Episode 12: Everything for Love

June 24, 2024

It’s starting again.

After the wedding in Season 11, Episode 12 of “When Calls the Heart” went off without a hitch, I assumed there would be a somewhat happy ending.

And it was, but it left some unexpected and emotional cliffhangers.

The script for season 11 of When Calls the Heart was very inconsistent. Nathan, Elizabeth and Lucas suffered the most.

Despite the extensive cast, many supporting characters did not receive enough attention.

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Mike and Mei’s walk to the altar should have been longer to give the audience more room to participate.

The proposal and wedding preparations all seemed rushed, which made Mike nervous and worried that they would bring bad luck by ignoring traditions.

I liked that Mike wanted Fiona by his side. These days, many weddings have a “maid of honor,” but 100 years ago, that wasn’t common.

Fiona: Hello Mike!
Mike: Well, if it isn’t my maid of honor.
Bill: Best wife?
Lee: It’s the 1920s. What are you going to do?

Poor Mike thought it was his fault for not buying Mei a proper ring and that he had ruined the wedding when Mei’s brother wrote to say he could no longer make it to the wedding.

TV shows like this are so predictable. When Mike unexpectedly disappeared, it was pretty obvious that he had gone to find Mei’s brother and returned with him.

Mei had to freak out her nervous bride, but this wedding was going to happen.

The unexpected commotion with the Chinese instruments when Mike proposed to her again and the way he introduced Mei’s brother were delightful.

Oh, you are without exaggeration the most beautiful sight I have ever seen.

Mike

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It meant a lot to Mei to keep her traditions alive at the wedding because family traditions were so important to her.

The little touches, from the floating lanterns to the details her brother added to the delicious cake Minnie baked to the touching toasts from Lee and Fiona, made this flash wedding perfect.

Elizabeth and Nathan ended the season by once again alternating between maturity and childishness.

Although they were happy that they were now officially together, Elizabeth and Nathan didn’t have to rush out and tell everyone – except their children – that they were a couple.

There was no need to squeal about the news to Rosemary or blurt it out to Lucas since he was busy dealing with his own problems.

They were sweet and flirtatious as they tried to organize a romantic picnic to which Jack invited himself.

The kids’ reactions were amusing. Allie was so excited as she had been hoping for years for the two to get together. Jack was too young to understand the romance part but he enjoyed being part of a family.

Allie: It’s really nice to see how happy she makes you.
Nathan: Nothing will change between you and me. We will continue to spend a lot of time together.

Elizabeth found sharing secrets entertaining, but she didn’t take the game seriously. She told an embarrassing story from her childhood when Nathan was ready to bare his soul.

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Nathan: I fell in love with you and it felt wrong because the reason I asked to be transferred here was to protect you after
Elizabeth: after Jack died.

It felt like they were in two different places, but they finally had a meaningful conversation about their past, and she didn’t blame him for Jack’s death.

It seemed like they were finally ready to take the next step.

This season the focus was on character development and finding their true calling.

It was heartwarming to see Faith realize that she didn’t need a romantic relationship to feel complete; rather, the show explored the concept of “motherhood” for her.

I’m sure Faith even knew that loving Lily would fill the gaping hole in her life, but when she feared losing her, she knew her life would never be the same.

At the beginning of the season, Faith would have jumped at the chance to practice medicine and work with Fiona in Nashville. She felt like her life was aimless, but now she wouldn’t want to tear Lily away from the home she loved.

For Lucas, it was a longer and harder road, as Chris McNally hinted at the beginning of the season.

As much as we like him, it was a challenge to keep a political storyline going throughout the season. He’s a wonderful actor and handled the complex material beautifully, but it almost feels like we’re back to square one.

How can I be an effective governor if I no longer trust my own judgment?

Lucas

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Lucas learned who his true friends were and they wanted to help him succeed. We would have preferred to see the Coulters, Henry and Bill help him with the idea of a new national park in Hope Valley, where he has their undivided support.

Hearing that he wanted to return to Capital City was unsettling, especially since he wanted Lee to be there. However, since Lee had recently been appointed mayor, that wasn’t going to work.

We got another cliffhanger that seemed fake and dramatic.

At first, it seemed like progress when Nathan and Elizabeth discussed their insecurities about their relationship after Nathan first came to town and confessed that Jack had taken his place at the training session.

It felt like the buildup to that cliffhanger when Superintendent Hargraves arrived and demanded to speak to Elizabeth about new information about Jack’s death.

Hargraves was Nathan’s superior when he was stationed at Fort Clay, and there was always tension between them. When he was last seen in Season 8, he was leading an internal investigation into a shooting under Nathan’s watch.

It was also revealed that Jack had replaced him on that mission at Fort Clay because he had been suspended years earlier for another offense.

Has Superintendent Hargraves arrived with more information about Nathan’s past that will reopen old wounds and tear Elizabeth and Nathan apart?

Whether you’re Team Nathan or not, this seems cruel. The two of them finally had a meaningful conversation about putting the past behind them, and then this? How does that serve the characters or the audience?

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And then there’s Allie. Nathan and Allie have solved their problems.

She was younger when she was afraid of losing him, but after the insecurities she faced with her biological father, she doesn’t have to go through that again.

This season lacked magic and while the wedding was helpful, the cliffhangers left a bitter aftertaste.