The Way Home Season 3, Episode 6, “Ain’t No Sunshine” Spoilers Ahead
It’s back to the past for The Way Home‘s “Ain’t No Sunshine.” While half the Landrys try to save an old friend, the others face their own pasts (and futures).
I’ll admit — I didn’t think they’d get to the witch song this fast. I thought it would be the season finale! Likewise, I think we all guessed Kat was the “her” Colton and Evelyn saw at the pond when they were kids, but I thought it would take longer to reveal it officially.
If there’s a theme in this episode, it’s rehashing the past. In some ways, it’s about our characters reconsidering their past; in others, it’s about retreading old narrative territory. The former is marvelous to watch; the latter, frustrating.
A Triangle Just Became a Quadrangle… Sigh
Unsurprisingly, it’s our characters’ love lives where things get the messiest. In 1816, Jacob joyfully reunites with Elijah. Their focus quickly shifts, though, as the Landrys plan to rescue Susanna. Kat crashes the wedding reception, only to wind up dancing with (of course) Thomas. “Disguised” in a hat and glasses, he’s also there to rescue Susanna. I admit, I laughed as they argued about who would do the rescuing. Unfortunately, they’re recognized. Despite Susanna’s insistence that she is the witch, Kat takes the fall and Thomas with her.
Kat and Thomas share a conversation in jail, as he tries to console her that her plan wasn’t a bad idea. Then, the jailer Thomas has bribed (I assume?) shows up and frees them. Once again, Kat chews Thomas out for taking advantage of a situation he knew would work out to “enjoy” a vulnerable moment with her.
Likewise, after the end of their rescue mission, Kat and Thomas have one more exchange. He’s flirtatious, but there’s a more resigned edge to it. She firmly cuts him off by telling him she needs to go home — a reminder that home will always be very different for both of them. But there’s an “until next time,” and later events make it clear we’re (still) not done with the 1800s.
Back at home, Elliot is clearly still smarting from the “temporary” conversation he overheard last week. When Emma says that he and Kat seem “forever,” he replies that he hopes so but that it’s up to Kat, too. Emma later returns, though, wanting to know what really happened with the breakdown of their marriage. She’s over it, but she needs to know: was the love real? Elliot assures her as well as he can without going into the time travel. He admits that he may have tried too hard or not hard enough — but he did love her. And then — shocker-but-not-really — she briefly kisses him. He doesn’t reciprocate; she pulls away quickly. They’re both weirded out. But… really? It feels like the show (not the characters, to be quite clear!) wants to “even the score” by having Elliot have an alternate maybe-love-interest, and it… is not working for me.
There are few things that irritate me as much as love triangle (quadrangle?) plots just to drum up drama for an established couple. Didn’t we just have an entire episode about appreciating the low-drama everyday joy? Don’t mistake me — I think Thomas and Emma are both fascinating characters in their own right. Honestly, this episode might be the most I’ve ever liked Thomas (mostly because he’s somewhat less smug than he was in Season 2). But the back-and-forth, and now Emma in the mix — it’s exhausting.
We Don’t Like What We Don’t Understand (In Fact, It Scares Us)
Let’s hop back to 1816 for the main adventure of The Way Home Season 3, Episode 6, “Ain’t No Sunshine.” Unsurprisingly, Thomas’s jailer allies turn on them instantly and deliver them to Cyrus. Cyrus offers Kat a deal if she can stop the “curse.” She obviously can’t, but she offers to give him knowledge so he can look like a hero to the whole town. That’s not good enough for Cyrus, who insists that the town needs a scapegoat other than Susanna. So her execution — and Jacob and Thomas along with her — will proceed.
We all know Kat won’t die here, but it’s tense watching her figure out how to save them. Then she remembers that the song about the witch (which she now realizes is her) had a reference to the moon vanishing — in other words, a lunar eclipse. She yells that if she’s killed, she will curse them further by stealing the moon. Just as Cyrus brushes off her claims, the eclipse happens. Susanna, followed by Elijah, riles up the crowd to force Cyrus to free them. I love the irony of using the mob power to set them free instead of harming them.
And Kat’s not done yet. She marches right up to a cowering Cyrus and demands that he not harm Susanna or Elijah and that Thomas and Jacob be left to live freely. “People fear what they do not know, and you haven’t even begun to know me,” she says. It is so, so satisfying to see Cyrus brought low and afraid in public. I do worry that Kat’s phrasing (that Cyrus “not lay a hand on” Susanna) might come back to bite them. After all, being locked alone in an attic would technically fulfill the terms….
Secrets Finally Revealed
The Way Home Season 3, Episode 6, “Ain’t No Sunshine,” doesn’t have a happy ending, though. As they get ready to jump home, Jacob comments that he wishes he could be there for Elijah longer. According to the timeline already established, Elijah doesn’t have many years left. Jacob tells Kat he knows that she would have wanted to do the same for Colton.
It leads Kat to finally reveal her role in Colton’s death. An angry and betrayed Jacob refuses to go back, shoving Kat into the pond without him. And then, on her way back home, Kat accidentally lands in 1965, the night Evelyn fell in the pond.
She rescues Evelyn first, but Colton has already gone in after Evie. Kat manages to unwind the weeds and stops the pond from grabbing Colton but gets transported again before she can surface. Back home, Del hurries to help her out of the pond. Much like her Season 1 breakdown, Kat absolutely collapses, confessing to Del that she both saved Colton’s life and ultimately caused his death. Unwinding that is definitely going to play a major part for the remainder of the season. And… could this finally be the impetus to have Del jump for the first time??
The Different Kinds of Love
The romance may have been a mess and a half in The Way Home Season 3, Episode 6, “Ain’t No Sunshine.” But the platonic love is stellar.
We don’t always get as much of Alice and Del’s relationship; it’s usually about either of them with Kat. After last week’s birthday-party blowup, though, they apologize to each other and talk over tea and pastries. Alice confesses her fears about her future. She’s increasingly worried that she’s fated to marry Max (and have Casey). Del reassures her that nothing can make her do anything. Ultimately, Del manages to explain to Alice why she doesn’t want to hear about 1974. She has her memories, and that’s all she has left — so she doesn’t want them twisted around.
Back in 1816, it’s once again the farewells between Kat and Susanna giving me all the feels. Susanna admits that, as much as she’ll miss her old home and all the memories there, she also knows that she will be safer under Cyrus’s protection. She’s already been attacked and accused of profiting from or causing the “curse.” A woman with knowledge — nothing scarier, apparently. Some things never change. They embrace and exchange “I love yous,” and I’m crying. Then, as the scene ends, Susanna pulls out the “My Katherine” painting… and beneath it is a rough sketch of Jacob with what looks like Teen Colton?! What?!
In the present day, there’s Nick and Elliot. Nick’s laid-back golden retriever energy is a welcome respite from drama and angst. He’s there to help Elliot work through the Emma situation with a “pep talk.” We see one of those in action in a flashback to Elliot’s wedding, where Nick urges him to move forward with his life — not knowing, of course, the real reason behind Elliot’s fears. Plus, Nick comes bringing good news: he’s moving back to Port Haven along with Claire!
What I’m Pondering
- Welcome back, running gag of people overhearing Elliot talking to Alice at the worst possible moments!
- Nick’s hair in the flashback. I cannot.
- Casey is back… and why are they talking to Sam? Does Sam know something about them? Or do they know something about Sam? I’ve wondered if Sam has a secret for a while, and now it seems almost certain a big reveal is on the way.
- “It’s called empathy, Thomas! Look it up!” I’m sorry, I laughed so hard. Also, big mood.
- Nick’s casual “tell her hi for me!” when Alice calls Elliot is very sweet. Trust Nick, of all people, to adapt to the whole time-travel thing and take it all in stride.
- We spend very little time in the ’70s this week. But the two scenes we do have are just of Del and Colton, sharing sweet moments as Del dreads having to go home. In one, Del draws on Cole’s guitar. In the other, they dance in his truck bed. It’s been such a joy to watch Jordan Doww and Julia Tomasone’s chemistry blossom this season – they’re absolutely marvelous as romantic leads.
- Alice and Max are going to be study buddies, and that can only end badly (I think?).
- One more love polygon complaint, and then I’m done (for this week), I swear! An interview last week with Chyler Leigh and Evan Williams included the actors comparing Kat and Elliot to Ross and Rachel. And… can we just not? Ross and Rachel became insufferable — give me Chandler and Monica’s dynamic instead, please!!
- Combine Susanna’s drawing with that one flashback earlier in the season where Colton told young Jacob about their hardworking Landry ancestors… and it seems pretty clear that Colton traveled to the 1800s at some point, too. The question is when.
Now streaming on Hallmark+: What are your thoughts on The Way Home Season 3, Episode 6, “Ain’t No Sunshine?” Let us know in the comments below.
First Featured Image Credit: ©2024 Hallmark Media/Photographer: Peter Stranks