By Emily Merchant

The TV show Virgin River can be found on Netflix listed under “Romance and Drama.” This show is produced by Ian Hay, who is also the producer of First Wave, Mech-X4, and Daydream Nation. It is based on the romance book series Virgin River by Robyn Carr, and it follows the story of Melinda Monroe, played by Alexandra Breckenridge, a midwife living in LA who was recently widowed after losing her husband.

Jack and Mel. Photo credit: Netflix.

One day she sees an advertisement for a small, beautiful, house out in Virgin River, a small town located in the mountains of Northern California. Melinda sees this as the perfect opportunity to get away and escape. However, upon arriving, she quickly realizes this getaway isn’t going to be what she had originally planned. The house pictured in the advertisement did not show the current state of the house, which is when the whole story really begins.

The owner of the bar in Virgin River, Jack Sheridan, played by Martin Henderson, comes across Melinda on his way into town and gives her a ride to the bed and breakfast so she can have somewhere to stay, seeing as she won’t be able to stay in the house she had intended to.

Hope and Doc. Photo credit: Netflix.

Not too long after arriving, Melinda, who often goes by Mel, meets Vernon Mullins, the town doctor, who is played by Tim Matheson. Seeing as she had previously worked as a midwife and a nurse practitioner, Mel tries to take an opportunity to work alongside him at his office. Hope McCrae, a close friend of Vernon’s, played by Annette O’Toole, suggests that Mel joins him, saying that he could use an extra hand. 

Some other characters that appear in this show are Paige Lassiter, the owner of a baking truck located in Virgin River, played by Lexa Doig, and John Middleton, played by Colin Lawrence, who goes by the name Preacher, one of Jack’s closest friends and the chef who works alongside Jack at the bar. Things get interesting with Paige’s story, seeing as both her and her son Christopher (Chase Petriw) have a bit of a rough past.

Multiple stories revolving around these characters take place over the course of a few episodes, creating a more immersive and engaging watching experience. 

As far as the production of the show itself, the acting is well done and believable, and it doesn’t feel like anything is being overdramatized. The acting taking place is accurate in response to events and things that are happening. The secondary characters are strong and help to move the story along.

Carly Lane from entertainment website Collider states that, “Where [Virgin River] succeeds, though, is existing within a very specific niche as melodrama and soapy-level storytelling at its finest, but never in a way that boasts too much intensity or grimdark formatting for its audience. In short, it’s perfect pandemic binge-watching material.”

I would recommend this TV show to anyone who enjoys or doesn’t mind a bit of romance and is looking for a show that is easy to follow and entertaining. This TV show is also great for binge watching; the episodes build on each other, oftentimes leaving the viewer hanging at the end of each episode, drawing them in to watching the next one.

Featured image credit: Filmaffinity.