Chesapeake Shores - Georgia On My Mind - Review: “A Healing Place”

This was a beautifully heartfelt and heartwarming episode that touched on a lot of things and left viewers with a lot of new mysteries. Kevin’s return home finally brought the entire family back together in Chesapeake Shores for the first time since the beginning of the season. I hope that Connor and Megan stick around for a little longer this time because the family still has a lot of healing that they need to do. I think this was one of my favorite episodes so far and it definitely set a very high bar for the upcoming episodes. This show somehow keeps managing to improve on itself every single week and each episode is even better than the one before it. Even last week’s low drama episode was still a fun hour of television. I’ve noted that one of the wonderful things about this show is the fact that it keeps its drama low-key and realistic. Based off of the preview for the next episode they may finally be tackling a slightly more clichéd storyline, but I’m actually kind of looking forward to that. I’m curious to see how this very grounded show will handle a love triangle involving sisters and a mutual love interest. But, for now, this particular episode was everything I hoped for and more. While it had considerably more drama than the prior episode, every bit of it was realistic and grounded in reality. It’s so refreshing to see a show use real life situations that are relatable to drive their show and not overblown unrealistic scenarios. It truly makes Chesapeake Shores something wholly unique and special.

This episode was full of a ton of heart and perhaps the most heartwarming part of the episode came with Kevin’s glorious return home. And that return came with the arrival of Georgia (Ali Liebert), Kevin's fiancée, whom I ended up really liking. I wish Kevin had told his family about her earlier and I am curious when he was planning on telling them about her. Was he going to wait until they were married and then drop that big surprise on them? I get that he has this strong need to protect his family, but at some point, he has to stop shielding them. And, honestly, I don't see why he felt the need to protect them from a woman he clearly loves and who has a deep love for him. Despite how much I like Georgia, I can understand why Megan had trouble accepting her, especially under the circumstances, but I hope that in time the family will start to accept because it doesn't look like she is going anywhere anytime soon. I love how brutally honest Georgia is with everyone, especially Megan because that kind of confrontation has been much needed. What really struck me is that Georgia's argument was so well thought out and articulated that at a certain point not even Megan could argue back against her. The little arm touch at the end indicates that there may be hope for these two to forge some sort of acceptance of each other in time. Liebert is a great addition to the cast and I hope that Kevin is convinced to stay at home and will convince Georgia to stay as well because I think Liebert could be a great regular for a hypothetical, but much hoped for, next season. She has a great energy that fits in perfectly with the entire cast.

While Georgia’s arrival was a big deal, the bigger news was the fact that Kevin was back home. I must commend Brendan Penny for his performance because he did honor to all the brave men and women who have experienced what Kevin is enduring. His performance was raw and truthful and it was obvious that he put a lot of his own heart into it. The pain that was on his face when Kevin was suffering made the moment feel so horrifically real. He handled everything this episode threw at him with extreme attention to detail and left me in awe of his performance. Penny has been missed since Kevin left town, so I really hope this time his stays considerably longer.

A lot of interesting things came out of the conversations with his family, but perhaps most interesting was the conversation he had with Jess. That scene strongly implied that at some point Jess sustained some sort of traumatic injury. That is the only logical reason for Kevin asking her how she got through it. This is the first we’ve heard of this event and it has left me extremely curious. I was under the impression that Jess was the only O’Brien to not run away from Chesapeake Shores, but her reference to returning home would imply that I was very wrong. Where did she go? How was she injured? How bad was it? What happened to Jess and why hasn’t it been mentioned before? There is a chance she too may have been in the military at some point, but that doesn't really seem to fit in line with her personality. I seriously need answers to these questions because the way Laci J. Mailey played that scene would strongly imply that this unknown event had a very powerful and profound impact on Jess. As soon as Kevin mentioned it Jess’ face dropped and there was this instant look of painful remembrance that flashed over her face. Mailey is extremely expressive and when she took on that serious look it definitely gave me pause. Something major happened to Jess and now the wait begins to learn what it was. I just hope they don't make us wait too long before starting to fill in that blank.

While we’re talking about mysteries, who in the world is Dylan O’Malley and what is his importance to Gran? Was she in love with him at some point? Did she pick Mick’s dad over him? The past few episodes have made it abundantly clear that something is lingering in Gran’s past. This mention of an upcoming trip left me quite intrigued and wanting to learn more. It seems like we’re about to get some answers about Gran’s mysterious past, and I just hope that we all like what is uncovered. I think Kevin having such vivid dreams about his grandpa and the family caused Gran to jump into action. She was fearful that her past actions had directly impacted what happened to Kevin and I can see her doing everything in her power to right her past wrongs to ensure he has a full recovery.

While Gran is getting ready to take off on a trip we finally got Bree back! She was noticeably absent from last week’s episode and I hope that there is never another episode without Emilie Ullerup in it. Bree is such an interesting and complex character and I love watching her evolve and grow. I loved her scene with Abby where they were both talking about different things yet, in the end; Abby noticed what was going on. She heard the change of tone in Bree’s voice and immediately everything became about her little sister. I think I said in my first review that Meghan Ory and Emilie Ullerup being in a series together was my dream casting scenario and scenes like this prove why. These two have very comparable energy and their careers have crossed paths before, in fact, Ullerup’s last show Arctic Air had her working alongside Ory’s husband, and they were both on an episode of True Justice together, but somehow they have managed to never work together in a scene before so I’m forever grateful for this show bringing them together. Every sister scene makes me happy, and I think Abby is an extraordinary big sister because in this moment her own stuff didn’t matter. She saw that Bree was in pain and wanted nothing more than to comfort her. That right there is the epitome of what a sister is supposed to me. So many shows get sibling relationships wrong, but this show gets them so right. Siblings sometimes fight, and they don’t always agree, but in the end, they are family and will always be there for each other. This need to protect the family is definitely a quality Abby and Kevin share as the eldest siblings.

Bree repaid Abby by grilling Trace for information regarding Leigh and his feelings for her. I really like how obvious it is that Trace has a soft spot for the O’Brien family. He helps out Jess for practically nothing then he refused to take any money from Bree for what he built her. I am happy that Trace made it very clear that there is nothing going on between him and Leigh. Though, I’m not sure how much good that is going to do now that it was revealed that Mick bought the building everyone knew Trace wanted. I want to hope that Mick has noble intentions and he’ll gift it to Trace, but I’m nervous to be that optimistic. The show needs to have some moments of dramatic tension to keep Trace relevant in the story and this might just be it.

Mick screwing over Trace would definitely cause some tension. The show either has to utilize this tension or fully bring Trace and Abby back together to avoid Trace’s forward character progression from stalling out. Though, I am glad that we finally got to meet Trace’s mom and dad because it allows his place in the world of the show to have a natural expansion beyond his ties to Abby. After meeting his mom it is obvious where he got his big heart from. And while his dad isn’t perfect, he does seem to care about his son. It's a strained relationship, but it doesn't seem beyond repair. I did find their conversation at Sally’s to be very interesting seeing as it once again brought up a mention of Trace’s obligation back in Nashville. If he’s sending money back every month it’s either to someone he feels like he wronged or perhaps a child we don’t yet know about. I suspect that the money is going towards whomever he hurt during the accident, but him having a mystery child would be quite interesting, though that may be too outrageous a path for this show to go down. I find it quite curious that even his own parents don't know why he's sending the money back. Whatever happened shook him enough for him to keep it from the very people that everyone usually confides in. Parents may not always be perfect, but when things like this happen they are usually the ones everyone turns to for guidance. I can’t wait for more light to be shed on this mystery as well. I feel like I've said that a lot about this episode and I like that because it has added more intrigue to this already fascinating show.

While all of this was going on, Abby had her hands full with the DOJ tracking her down for mysterious reasons. She’s involved in some sort of unknown SEC investigation and I can’t help but wonder if it has something to do with Wes. We know that he lost his trading job for undisclosed reasons and that would seem to fall in line with something the DOJ would be investigating. Could he have done something that could even affect his ex-wife? Or, is it something to do with her prior job? Could Wes’ girlfriend be causing some trouble over Abby messing up her plans for the client she brought into the firm during the pilot? One thing is obvious; this is going to get worse before it gets better. If this costs Abby custody of her daughters that would shatter her, but at least she is with her family who will fight for her with all they have.

After weeks of repeatedly clashing with various members of his family, I’m glad that when Abby needed Connor he came through for her with advice. Though I’m not sure how good it was for Abby to shut down the DOJ agent, but at least it bought her some time to try and piece together what is going on. I just hope that his giving of legal advice without being a licensed lawyer doesn’t come back to bite him in the butt. That lady behind him in line made a bit of a big deal about it, so I can’t help but fear that this isn’t the last time we’ve heard of that woman. Though, this show keeps surprising me, so maybe it won’t be a big deal. However, it is an interesting opportunity to really delve into Connor’s story. Also interesting on the Connor front is that it appears that he may have a very determined new love interest. Maybe that’s what he needs, is someone special in his life to help him start to deal with his own issues. She made him smile and Andrew Francis has a stunning smile so I support her sticking around and continuing to try and secure a serious relationship with Connor. If the show doesn’t exploit the legal advice without a license storyline then at the very least this new girlfriend storyline will give the show a lot of opportunities to grow and evolve Connor like they have with his siblings. He has a lot of growing up that he needs to do, so I really hope that

This coming week will see televisions begin to be populated by new and returning shows. The genres will span the gambit from family dramas to outrageous comedies to serious dramas and the fantastical world of comic book drama and action adventures. These shows will fill our screens with more drama than we’ll be able to wrap our brains around and more unrealistic scenarios than can be easily imagined. The one common ground they will all share is that the chances of them happening in the real world run on the side of slim to none. Even the shows with firm ties to normalcy will still depend on unrealistic scenarios to drive them. Thankfully, for a few more weeks we will have the sanity of Chesapeake Shores to help balance out all the serious levels of drama we are about to be inundated by. Don’t get me wrong, most of the shows I love and adore fit into one of the above categories, I enjoy seeing those unrealistic scenarios portrayed, but I also love seeing normalcy every now and then. A show like Chesapeake Shores just couldn’t exist on any other network because it is too different. Its normalcy, its firm footing in reality, makes it a scary show for a big network. To the big networks, even “reality” shows aren’t really even rooted in reality. What happens on most “reality” shows is a dramatized version of reality with reshoots taking place constantly because certain moments just aren’t dramatic enough. Sure, Chesapeake Shores has its drama, but it’s drama that could realistically happen in everyday life like Megan not approving of Georgia or Kevin being wounded at war or even Bree being cheated on by Martin. These things happen every single day across America and the world. It is real drama with realistic tension and resolutions that don’t require the audience to stretch their understanding of the world to understand. That is what brings me back to this show week after week and what made this episode something uniquely special. It was more dramatic than the prior episode, but every emotionally raw moment felt relatable and I know that when this season ends I’m going to really miss that. But, fortunately, we still have many more weeks left to enjoy this realistic and heartwarming show. The drama seems like it’s about to ramp up, but I’m confident that it’ll be dealt with in such a way that none of us will have trouble accepting it as a real life scenario. One thing is for sure, Chesapeake Shores is as healing for viewers as it is for those who inhabit it.

This was a powerful episode that dealt with a lot of serious situations and left us with a ton of new mysteries to excitedly wait to see play out. I for one can’t wait to see what the upcoming episodes of this uniquely real show hold for viewers.

Be sure to tune into Hallmark Channel next Sunday, September 25th at 9/8c to find out what is ahead for the O’Brien family.

Hit the comments with your thoughts about this episode. Do you like Georgia? What do you think happened to Jess? Who is Dylan to Gran? Why did Mick buy the warehouse out from under Trace?

All images in this article are credited as follows: Copyright 2016 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: Ricardo Hubbs

About the Author - Aimee Hicks

Aimee works for a newspaper in North Carolina and has a BA in Broadcasting and Cinema. She has been a TV lover since before she really understood what TV was and has a passion for analyzing performances and theorizing what may happen on her favorite shows. Her interest in television covers just about every genre, but her first love is the sci-fi/fantasy genre. For the 2016/2017 season she will be reviewing Chesapeake Shores, Dark Matter, Frequency, Gilmore Girls, Jessica Jones, Lucifer, and Orphan Black. She will also be handling the Best Scene Polls for Supergirl and previewing several new and returning shows. She also oversees the popular SpoilerTV feature, Performers of the Month (#POTM) which highlights the most outstanding actor and actress from each month. You can email her at aimee@spoilertv.com.

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