I’m often unapologetically vocal about how much I hate love triangles. Whether they’re in the romance novels I read or the TV and films I watch, the result is almost always a bitter taste. However, there are some exceptions here and there, and surprisingly, Hallmark’s When Calls the Heart is one of them. How the series works through the love triangle between Elizabeth Thornton, Nathan Grant, and Lucas Bouchard paints a complex and riveting picture of what it means to truly find the best-suited partner.
But when the choice is officially made, and one person is left without a partner? That’s something the show could (and will hopefully) fix in Season 12. Ultimately, the reason the love triangle works here is because both men are genuinely great, which means that it’s now time for Lucas Bouchard to find his other half, too. And he especially deserves a love story after everything he goes through in Season 11.
Lucas Bouchard Needs Someone Who’ll Match His Wanderlust
Or, in the words of Tinashe, someone “to match his freak.” A significant reason why he and Elizabeth don’t fit together as life partners is because they walk on two different paths. She adores Hope Valley, and while he’d happily stay for her, it wouldn’t be fair to him not to pursue his bigger dreams. It wouldn’t be fair to either of them. At the same time, as much as Lucas comes back and forth between Hope Valley, the quaintness that Elizabeth prefers is something he clearly compromises on, so it’d make more sense for him to find someone who’d want the same freedom and luxury he does. Someday, he hopes to climb Mount Everest. Lucas Bouchard is daring and he’s adventurous. Elizabeth declares as much in Season 9.
Couples don’t have to be the same in every area, but they should have similarities to a degree. One cannot be full of big visions while another’s remains more simple. This is where Elizabeth and Nathan are more similar and more kindred. Further, it could also be great for Lucas to find someone in a similar business or mindset about how to go about daily routines. He could use someone who’s driven by the same need to make changes and expand what’s already great.
There’s also the matter that Lucas doesn’t come from a stable home and wants the steady constant he had with Elizabeth. That’s where they work and why it was easy to believe he’d adore perpetually being beside her and Jack. However, he could have that same stability and home with another woman who’d also be okay with leaving it for a while.
Now, unfortunately, Hope Valley isn’t exactly bursting with single women at the moment, so whether we get a new addition or we begin to see someone else in a new light, this arc feels like the one that’s especially necessary for Lucas Bouchard. As an actor, Chris McNally is too charming for his character to continue being a pawn in other people’s games. Also, while I adore Elizabeth and Nathan together, I need Lucas to get his chance at a happy ending so we can get another gorgeous fall proposal with someone for whom it’s their favorite season. (I’d leap into the screen and marry him myself if I could.) And not something thoughtless either; in the same way we watched Rosemary and Lee evolve, I want to spend time with Lucas and whoever he’s meant to be with. I want to see all the little and big moments. Give me everything.
It’s easy to appreciate Lucas’ character development from a man who wants to evolve everything to a man who understands the difference between good change and unnecessary. That’s where his character shines best, which also works when we look at the growing friendship that’ll hopefully continue to build between Lucas and Nathan. If Rosemary and Elizabeth can get there, so can the two men. And then, hopefully, maybe, my selfish desires of seeing double dates could come to fruition.
Is there anyone in Hope Valley you want to see Lucas Bouchard with? Let us know in the comments below.
First Featured Image Credit: ©Hallmark