When Calls the Heart Season 13 Episode 3 Review: When Anger Rears Its Ugly Head, Humanity and Trust Prevail

Critic’s Rating: 4.4 / 5.0

4.4

I’ll scream it from the rooftops: When Calls the Heart Season 13 is my favorite in a long time.

When Calls the Heart Season 13 Episode 3 continued the community focus, mainly by integrating the Benson Hills residents into Hope Valley and beginning the fire investigation.

Lee Coulter (Kavan Smith) was the episode’s MVP because he was so passionate about arresting MacGinty that he reacted rashly, and Lee is one of the town’s leaders.

It was refreshing to see so much focus on the Coulter family and on how Mike and Mei helped Maisie adjust.

The school year began again, and Elizabeth struggled because many of the children only wanted to return home, so it took some creative activities to get them to come together. That’s where we saw the most community use in “Back to School.”

Lee Coulter Was the MVP of When Calls the Heart Season 13 Episode 3

Lee Coulter (Kavan Smith) was the episode’s MVP. Lee is usually down-to-earth and cool-headed, so it seemed different to see him so angry and insistent that MacGinty set the fire.

I suspect MacGinty is involved, but I understand why Nathan and Bill want solid evidence and not just Molly’s hunch that she saw him. I loved that more of the town was involved in this investigation, though.

There’s something about MacGinty that grated on my nerves. He’s a smug jerk who assumed the law was on his side, and he could needle Lee and get away with it.

He crossed the line when he taunted Lee about Goldie. Again, while we’ve never seen Lee that angry, I didn’t blame him for punching MacGinty.

I love it when a series showcases that good characters are flawed. Lee Coulter is an outstanding person, but even he had his limits, one being the destruction of the park, which was his daughter’s legacy.

He’s determined to prove MacGinty was responsible for the crime, and for his sake, I pray he’s right, or Lee will go crazy trying to prove it.

Rosemary Realized a Way to Reach Lee and Gwen

I love Rosemary. She’s somewhat controlling, but she’s fiercely loyal to her family, and it crushed her when she couldn’t help Lee or Gwen.

It became apparent quickly that Gwen was a daddy’s girl. She missed her father, so she responded better to anything Lee asked her to do, infuriating Rosemary, who wanted her to wear a pretty dress to school.

While they got Gwen to school, she still defaced a desk with Rosemary’s silverware.

Lee also had a horrible day after being arrested for punching MacGinty, and Rosemary knew Gwen looked up to Lee.

Sure enough, her husband’s attitude slowly changed after he saw how proud Gwen was of him for fighting, and he didn’t want her to get the wrong idea.

Lee Coulter was an honest man, so he wanted to teach her honest values. While I wish her father to recover, that girl lit up when she learned to carve wood with Lee.

They both needed another purpose.

Even Strong Leaders Need Assistance

Maisie Hickam has always been strong and opinionated, and she has tried to maintain that persona so her community could depend on her.

However, Mike and Mei saw through those cracks, and we learned more about the Hickam family dynamics.

Back then, many families valued boys more than girls, and Mike was the only boy among five sisters.

His sisters, but especially Maisie, took care of him, and now he wanted to look after her, but she feared looking weak.

She only agreed to let him and Mei take some residents back to Benson Hills to salvage some of their belongings, and I loved that Mei brought something back for Maisie.

The fact that she kept a photo of Mike as a baby showed how much she loved her brother, so Mei appealed to her as a sister-in-law, saying family helps one another.

It will be interesting to see if Maisie truly moves in with them, since she is often bossy. She usually gels better with Mei than Mike, but I love their family moments.

Elizabeth Found Creative Ways to Teach Her Class About Community and Trust

There was a fine line between needing to keep busy and stay distracted and wanting things to go back to normal.

The children from Benson Hills had been through the worst thing imaginable. They’d lost their home and every possession inside. While they survived, that’s a difficult thing for a child to process.

They wanted to be grateful, but they hated having hand-me-downs or feeling like it wasn’t their school or their teacher, no matter how hard Elizabeth and some of the Hope Valley students tried.

Elizabeth couldn’t get them interested in Reading or History, and finally tried an outdoor Field Day, pairing Hope Valley students with Benson Hills students.

It was the first time the students worked together, and you saw many of them laugh as they jumped over hay or maneuvered through barrels.

They could act like children again, and the lines weren’t as drawn as they had been when they began trusting each other.

It was one of the community-focused stories this week.

You’re Not Alone in This

Many fans, including me, suspected that Cooper and Toby may have accidentally started a forest fire.

They would have never started a blazing fire on purpose. Neither boy has a malicious bone in their body, and they were clearly suffering.

Cooper and Toby wouldn’t leave each other’s side during school, even when Elizabeth asked them to interact with other students or participate in field day activities.

Initially, it seemed like they had difficulty processing the fire, but then it made me wonder if they felt guilty and didn’t want to feel happy again.

Thankfully, they didn’t want to break the fragile trust of the new school community, so they told Elizabeth the truth.

Hopefully, the boys really did put out the fire properly, because I wouldn’t want them to suffer excess guilt and fear.

I’m sure Elizabeth will do what she can to learn the truth without putting them in the line of fire.

Other Happenings in Hope Valley

I had hoped we were done with Edwin. Hopefully, his meddling doesn’t wreck things for Lucas as he and Edie grow stronger every week.

Lucas works better helping the residents of Hope Valley than he does in his campaign meetings. Hopefully, he won’t backslide. I’ve been enjoying the writing for him.

I’ve also enjoyed how Nathan and Elizabeth were both frustrated with the aftermath of the fire and how they came together for their own quiet time.

Their romance wasn’t the episode’s central theme, but I like seeing how they support each other in their everyday lives.

Oliver and Allie were also feeling each other out. Part of me wondered if they were wrong for each other because Oliver already works as a Mountie and wasn’t interested in the books Allie was.

But I was wrong, since he was eager to learn about the books she read and to impress her. He’s still a boy, wanting the girl to like him.

It’s so cute, and I can’t wait to see more of them.

Over to you, Hearties. What did you think of “Back to School?’ Were you surprised by Lee’s actions? Do you think the boys accidentally caused the fire, or is MacGinty behind it?

Let us know in the comments,

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