Another new episode of Heartland premiered this Sunday. And after the excitement of the previous episode, this one brought some calm back to the ranch while still keeping things interesting.
From new challenges to new heartbreaks, the episode gave us a roller coaster of emotions. So, without further ado, here is our recap of Heartland season 17 episode 2.
Reading animals and people
At the start of the episode, we saw Amy visit Fairfield Stables. In particular, she was there to see Edwin, who needed help with his horse, Brady.
For those of you who don’t know, Edwin is the dad of Lyndy’s best friend from rodeo school. We met him back in season 16 episode 13, when Lisa asked Amy to work with Platinum Bow.
Amy and Edwin’s relationship didn’t start off on the best foot since there was a disagreement between Amy and Edwin, who also happens to be Lisa’s new stable manager, about what to do with Lisa’s horse. And then, they were awkwardly thrown together for a play date for Lyndy and Edwin’s daughter Rebecca.
But by the end of the episode, the two seemed on much better terms. And we saw them being friendly during the last two episodes of season 16 as well.
And apparently, since then, Amy, Lyndy, Edwin, and Rebecca have been hanging out quite a bit. Which means that the relationship dynamic between Edwin and Amy had become more that of friends. I would even say it was a bit flirty, as you can see in the first-look clip below.
So, it didn’t surprise me that Edwin took it as basically a date invitation when Amy told Edwin that she thinks that Edwin should retrain Brady for Combined Driving (aka carriage racing), and they decided to take that on together.
However, Amy, being the Miracle Girl she is, is MUCH better at reading the cues from horses than people, so she didn’t get the date thing AT ALL.
Meaning that first, Amy showed up to Fairfield to start working with Brady with Jack in tow, who had offered to use Buddy as the second horse for the carriage and to drive it. And didn’t quite get that the little picnic that Edwin had set up for them wasn’t really just some refreshments for them before they got started with the horses. Although, Edwin was pretty smooth about playing it off that way when he saw that Jack was with Amy.
And then she took Edwin’s invitation to meet up at Maggie’s for dinner later that night as just another play date for their daughters instead of the date that Edwin wanted it to be. So, while Edwin showed up all dressed up and ready to sweep Amy off her feet, Amy sat there with Lyndy next to her, looking ready to supervise another play date.
When Amy realized that dinner was meant to be a date, she was mortified, of course. And Edwin looked disappointed that Amy had misunderstood.
Edwin: “A date? It’s not a bad word.”
Amy: “Is that what this is?”
Edwin: “Apparently not.”
Amy: “How was I supposed to know?”
Edwin: “Oh, come on. Really? We’ve been spending so much time together, and I’ve totally been putting out the vibes.”
Amy: “You have?”
Edwin: “How can you be so intuitive with horses yet so clueless about a guy who’s into you?”
Amy: “You’re not the first person to tell me I’m better with animals than people.”
They managed to get through the dinner somehow, and the next day, Amy apologized again for making things weird and told Edwin that she didn’t want to jeopardize what they already have. So, Edwin backed off, and they went on to working with Brady and Buddy.
But things were still a little awkward. Especially since Lou encouraged Amy to give Edwin a chance. After all, last episode, Amy did tell Lou that she’s ready to start dating again.
Yet, one adorable water fight later, that mind you got Brady to get over his fear of water, and Amy and Edwin were back to their playful, bantering selves.
So, by the end of the episode, Amy, Edwin, and Jack managed to get Brady and Buddy in sync as a team and ready for carriage driving. Amy’s client was even interested in buying both horses to compete in horse-driving trials.
While Amy realized that she did want to give Edwin a chance, which is why she told him that if he ever wanted to ask Amy to dinner again, he should be clear that it’s a date. And I’m sure the fact that she caught Edwin shirtless while he was changing beside his truck after their water fight helped with that decision.
From the smile Edwin had after Amy told him to be clear when asking her on the next date, I take it that he hopes that there will be a next date. And I hope so, too, because those two have really, really good chemistry, and I would love to see them date, even if it is for a short time. Plus, their daughters are already besties, which isn’t a bad thing.
What do you think about Amy and Edwin? Do you want to see them dating, or would you rather see Amy with someone else, say Caleb, for example? Let me know in the comments! I love hearing what you think!
Too much pressure
While Amy was working with Brady, Logan was taking on Sunshine, his very own solo client horse.
It appeared that the champion team roping horse is afraid of flags. And since the owner of the horse wants to do a Grand Entry at a competition, Logan has to get Sunshine not to be afraid of the sound a flag makes.
His start was promising. Logan got Sunshine used to a flag and then started riding her with a flag in his hand. But he pushed a little too much too fast, and Sunshine freaked out, throwing Logan off, which sadly resulted in her being even more afraid of the flag than before.
Logan, of course, beat himself up about it, but he was still up early the next day to continue working with Sunshine.
And with a little encouragement from Amy and Katie, who Logan was becoming really good friends with, he was able to find a different way to help Sunshine.
Amy: “Logan, mistakes happen, okay? It’s how you recover from them and move forward. You can do this. I know you can.”
So, Logan took Katie up on her offer to help her search for Remi (more on that later) and used it as a chance to get Sunshine comfortable with a flag again, this time in a more informal setting.
And it worked.
During their trail ride to search for Remi, Katie and Logan realized that Sunshine was really comfortable on the trail ride even though Logan kept the flag close. So, after Katie suggested that maybe Sunshine was just feeling too much pressure, Logan had a lightbulb moment and decided to try a different approach.
By the time they got back to the ranch, sadly sans Remi, Logan and Sunshine were full-on galloping, and Sunshine wasn’t even bothered by Logan holding the flag.
So, it looks like the key was getting Sunshine familiar with a flag in a more relaxed setting.
Hopefully, this newfound confidence from working on his own and succeeding with his first client horse will last for Logan. And that we will see him working both on his own client horses and on some together with Amy.
And the next Mayor of Hudson is…
As I already teased in the recap of episode 1701, in this episode, we finally found out who is going to be the next Mayor of Hudson.
All through the episode, we saw Lou being nervous about the election and doing everything she can to ensure her win. But there was also doubt and apprehension about the outcome of the election.
While Lou did want to be the Mayor, she also knew the strain her position and the busy schedule that came with it put on her family, especially Lou’s relationship with Katie.
In the past seasons, we’ve seen the rocky relationship between the mother and daughter. And one of the big reasons for it being that way was that Lou was always so busy. So, it was really nice to hear Lou acknowledge that fear to her dad.
Tim, the campaign manager, of course, gave a pep talk to Lou about her just experiencing nerves before the big day.
Although Lou didn’t fully get Tim’s rodeo metaphor, it did get Lou ready to go out and knock on some more doors before the voters went to cast their votes.
Lou: “Okay. So, hypothetically, if I did want to avoid the whole eating dirt part… What would I do?”
Tim: “You strap yourself in, you hold on for dear life, and you make sure the ride’s not over until you decide it is.”
Lou:” Doesn’t the bronc have something to say about that, or, in this case, the people of Hudson?”
Tim: “You can’t anticipate every buck or spin that comes your way. It’s how you ride it out. And you don’t let go until you hear the buzzer.”
Lou: ” I’m not totally sure I understand your rodeo metaphor, but I have worked really hard at this. You know, I made huge sacrifices, so… Quite frankly, I do think I’ve earned a second term.”
Tim: “That’s more like it!”
Lou: “I guess there is a chance to make a difference right ’til the end. So? So I’m gonna go out swinging.”
On the day of the election, when Lou went out to meet her constituents one last time, she was once again reminded of the impact that her first mayoral term made on the community. So she was ready to face the music when it came time to hear the results.
But, unfortunately, she lost.
By 12 votes, no less.
Tim was furious and told Lou to demand a recount.
Lou, on the other hand, didn’t want to do that since that would send a message that she’s not willing to accept the loss. Lou was really shaken up by the loss, and, not knowing how to proceed, she called Amy for advice.
But when Amy told Lou about Remi (more on that in the next section), that put everything into perspective for Lou. So, she pulled herself together and congratulated Rick in front of the cameras, announcing him as the new Mayor of Hudson.
And when Tim was outraged about Lou doing that, about her accepting the loss so easily, she promptly told him that “sometimes, you actually need to know when it is time to let go” and told the family that they needed to get home ASAP.
So, it looks like we will be seeing Lou reevaluating some things this season, as well as, learning to go from Mayor Lou back to businesswoman Lou. And from the looks of things based on the description for the next episode (you can read it at the end of the article), Lou and Jessica will be teaming up to start another business.
I just hope that this won’t send Lou on too much of a spiral. It will definitely be an adjustment. I just don’t want it to ruin her relationship with her family, especially her newfound closeness with Peter and bond with Katie.
And, I also wonder how much we will see of Rick adjusting to being Mayor. I hope it’s at least a little bit since Rick is such a great character. Maybe Rick asking Lou for advice? That would be interesting to see!
To Remi
Speaking of Remi, if you read the description of this episode, then you already know that it said that the family will be facing a loss in this episode. And sadly, yes, in this episode, we saw the Bartlett-Fleming clan say goodbye to the family dog, Remi.
Heartland season 17 episode 2 started with Lyndy and Remi taking a walk around the ranch. But then Lyndy told Jack that Remy isn’t eating her dog food again, so the two of them decided to cook some chicken for the dog since that’s her favorite.
That already didn’t bode well for me, so when Amy asked if anybody has seen Remi later in the episode, I had a feeling that this won’t end well.
Katie offered to look for Remi since she wanted a break from writing a short story for a contest she’s entering. But she looked and looked and no Remi. She and Logan even went out on horseback to search further from the ranch house. However, even that didn’t help.
So, finally, that night, the night of the election, Amy rode out to a picnic spot on their property that Remi loved and found her other lying on the ground, breathing heavily.
And then, when Lou called Amy all panicked, Amy told Lou that Remi was gone.
The next morning, the family gathered at the picnic spot to celebrate Remi and reminisce about all the good and the bad times Remi had been there for them.
Jack: “Yeah, it really is the collection of people and animals you surround yourself with that sees you through all the days, good or bad. So, in honor of our good friend, let’s raise a glass of lemonade. To Remi for everything she brought our lives and for the love she shared with all of us.”
This was really a really heartbreaking story. But one that the show probably needed to tell because the real Remi, Amber Marshall’s dog, who played Remi on the show as well, passed away last Christmas at age 12.
So, Heartland got to honor Amber’s dog while also giving us a heartwrenching and then heartwarming storyline that made this episode better and managed to move the story season 17 is trying to tell along.
Last thoughts on Heartland season 17 episode 2
It was really nice to see Katie pursuing writing more seriously this season. What started off last season as something she discovered she liked to do might just be turning into a possible career for her.
And, although Katie was experiencing a bit of a writer’s block in this episode, by the end of the episode, she had the idea for her short story and now just needed to write it.
I just hope that the new hobby that the next episode’s synopsis mentions won’t distract her from writing.
READ NEXT: Everything We Know About Heartland Season 17
As for Tim and Jack’s beef with Pryce Beef, all through the episode, we saw Tim pester Jack about setting up a meeting with the Pryce family to discuss this whole situation. And Jack was promptly avoiding it.
Luckily, at the end of the episode, we found out why – Jack was trying to prepare himself for the big battle that the issue with Pryse is surely going to turn into, which is understandable. But once Jack admitted it to himself, he was ready to forge ahead.
So, Jack finally set up a meeting with Pryce Family Beef’s foreman to discuss the issue of the land Pryce bought from Sam in the last episode and that Heartland Beef so desperately needs for grazing their cattle.
Hopefully, we will see how that meeting goes and how this whole storyline resolves in the next few episodes!
Promo for Heartland season 17 episode 3
The next episode of Heartland, titled “The Heart Wants,” will see Amy helping Caleb with his son’s pony, Lou and Jessica starting up a new venture, and Katie trying out a new hobby, while Logan will be taking a big step in his relationship with Miley only for disaster to strike.
