The newest episode of Heartland was all about the Hudson rodeo and the stakes ran high both in the arena and out.
From Amy’s growing connection with Nathan and Caleb’s quiet struggle to redefine his role in her life to Jack and Tim’s unexpected turn as rodeo announcers, this episode highlighted the complexities of relationships, family, and personal ambition.
We also saw Logan stepping up in a colt starting competition, showing both his skill and insecurities, while Katie continued her coming-of-age journey as she navigated the divide between independence and family.
Ready to dive deeper into all the drama and triumphs from this week? Then keep on reading this recap of Heartland season 18 episode 5.
The bison business
We’ll start off the recap with one storyline that wasn’t connected to the Hudson Rodeo, and that was Jack, Tim, and Lou’s newest venture – bison.
The episode kicked off with a shot of Lou and Jack looking over their new herd of bison as they grazed on Heartland soil.
After all the twists and turns that they went through to get to this point, it was bittersweet to see them finally take that leap. It was a bold step, for sure, but it also represented more than just a new business opportunity – Jack, Lou, and Tim were determined to make this venture their big comeback story.
It is sure to bring more challenges for Heartland Beef than just paying for the herd and getting all the supplies they need. But I have full confidence in Jack, Tim and Lou that they can overcome them and make this new venture the fresh start they need to get their business thriving again and to redefine the family’s ranching legacy.
Friendships and rivalries
Now, let’s move on to all the storylines from this episode that were connected by one running thread – the Hudson rodeo, which brought an array of emotions for all of our characters.
We’ll start with the ever-growing relationship between Amy and Nathan, which took a turn in a somewhat of a love triangle direction in this episode.
Since the last episode, when Nathan came clean to Amy about his dad, their relationship has been closer than ever. And this episode’s storyline only solidified that.
No time to read the full recap? You can listen to it instead here:
Early in the episode, after Amy saw Nathan practicing some roping and Amy showed off her roping skills as well, Nathan suggested that he and Amy participate in a team roping event together.
Understandably, Amy hesitated initially, aware of the underlying tension between their families. However, Nathan encouraged Amy not to let other people’s opinions stop her from doing what she wanted, and she eventually agreed.
So they practiced their roping and were having fun doing it. However, Caleb wasn’t too excited about Amy’s choice of partner.
Caleb arrived at Heartland just as Amy and Nathan were practicing together, and his discomfort about the situation was apparent. He, of course, didn’t show it, but unlike Amy, who hasn’t realized that Caleb still feels way more than friendship towards her, a few people did notice that Caleb has feelings for Amy.
One of them was Nathan, who dropped by just as the family was having their big pre-rodeo dinner to ask Amy about Caleb and their relationship.
Amy assured Nathan they were just friends. But when Nathan questioned if Amy was sure that Caleb feels the same, she told him about the time last season when Caleb wanted to be more than friends and reassured Nathan that now they are back to being just good friends.
Amy: “Sure, but that’s not the only reason you came by. Let’s stick with being open and honest. Come on.”
Nathan: “I guess I was wondering what the deal is with Caleb. You know, the guy who I saw in your motel room last year and who’s apparently sleeping under the same roof.”
Amy: “If I didn’t know any better, I’d think maybe you were a little jealous. He’s a friend. He’s a good friend, but that’s it.”
Nathan: “And he feels the same way?”
Amy: “There was a time when he was a little confused, but we got it sorted out, and we both know where we stand.”
Nathan: “Mm-hmm. OK.”
And then Lou noticed Caleb’s predicament, too.
She saw the way Caleb was watching Amy with Nathan and advised him to make Amy see him in a new light if he wanted to be more than just a friend to her. Which led to Caleb deciding to enter the saddle bronc event at the rodeo without any practice, hoping to showcase a side of himself that would catch Amy’s attention.
Luckily for Caleb (who admitted it himself later on), he didn’t end up competing because Amy asked for his help with Nathan’s dad.
Shortly before Amy and Nathan were scheduled for their turn in the team roping event, Nathan received a distressing call: his father, struggling with Alzheimer’s, had gone missing along with his truck.
Amy immediately volunteered to accompany Nathan to search for his dad, and, when they saw Nathan’s dad’s truck in a ditch on the side of the road, they feared the worst.
They did eventually find Nathan Sr. safe but disoriented since he had wandered off into the woods after crashing his truck. But the stress of his dad going missing and them not being able to find him at first was a little too much for Nathan, and he started to have a panic attack.
Fortunately, Amy was there for Nathan and helped him calm down. And a while later, at Amy’s request, Caleb arrived at the scene to help Nathan get his dad’s truck out of the ditch while Amy sat with Nathan Sr. in Nathan’s truck.
Nathan’s brief breakdown only aided in deepening the connection between Nathan and Amy because she had a chance to see his vulnerable side again and support him during an emotionally charged situation. And although Nathan had to reluctantly tell Caleb about his dad’s Alzheimer’s after Caleb was concerned that Nathan Sr. had a concussion, it also helped Nathan get to know Caleb better and see what a good friend he was to Amy.
Finally, at the barn dance that evening, Caleb desperately wanted to talk to Amy about something, only to be interrupted by a woman from Caleb’s old rodeo days approaching them and Amy insisting Caleb dance with her. And then Nathan showed up and took Amy for a spin on the dance floor while Caleb watched from afar.
By the end of the episode, Nathan and Amy seemed to be closer than ever, openly enjoying each other’s company and their budding romance. All the while Caleb seemed to realize that its too late for Amy and him and ended up telling her that he’s not going to be around anymore because he’s flying a new supply run, which doesn’t include Hudson.
I have a suspicion that the bad news about his new supply run wasn’t what Caleb wanted to tell Amy before the woman interrupted them but that seeing Amy with Nathan happy together was so painful that he decided to cut himself out of her life by lying about being assigned to a new supply run.
But only time will tell if I’m right or not.
What did you think of Amy getting herself caught between Nathan and Caleb?
I’m sure she wouldn’t see it that way because Amy seemed not to realize that both men are head over heels for her. But it was clearly a love triangle that the writers have set up here, and we’ll have to wait and see if Caleb’s abrupt exit from Amy’s life will stick or if he will be back and shoot his shot with Amy one last time before her relationship with Nathan gets any deeper.
Competition and growth
While Amy, Nathan and Caleb ended up not competing at the rodeo, Logan was the one member of the Heartland extended family that did compete.
Ever since Tim suggested Logan try colt starting competitions in episode 1802, he went back and forth between wanting to do it and not being sure if he’s good enough. So, it was exciting to see that in this episode, we finally saw Logan do his first competition.
But his first time competing was truly a trial by fire since he was paired with a colt named Houston, who was named after all the tornadoes they have there. And the stiff competition and high expectations Logan put on himself didn’t help.
Amy tried to help Logan as much as she could, coaching him to take it slow and stick to groundwork. Fortunately, he took Amy’s advice to heart, slowly building trust with Houston rather than rushing the process like his competitors, despite moving slower than the others. And his approach worked brilliantly.
Having built a solid foundation with the horse, Logan demonstrated control by having the colt follow Logan’s every cue while doing the obstacle course in the arena. And Logan even decided to end his run with a touch of showmanship by standing up in the saddle while blindfolded, a daring move that harked back to Amy’s competition days, which earned him second place.
Although Logan placed second in his very first colt starting competition, which was very impressive, his disappointment in not winning was palpable. And even Miley’s encouragement couldn’t soften the blow.
Miley was a bit perplexed about Logan’s sour mood after placing second out of 12 people, especially after he told her that by winning, he wanted to prove her that he really has a future. But to us, it just showed that he’s still struggling with self-worth, which has been a recurring theme for Logan all throughout this season.
An unlikely partnership in the announcer’s booth
A humorous subplot that also took place in Heartland season 18 episode 5, featured Jack and Tim in the rodeo announcer’s booth.
How did that come about?
Well, at the start of the episode, rodeo announcer Gene Luckman called Jack to invite him to help out in the booth since Gene thought it would be great to have “a little commentary from a rodeo legend” during the Hudson rodeo.
However, on the day of the rodeo, Gene came down with laryngitis and lost his voice, so Jack was left to do the commentary alone. And Jack’s inexperience in the booth showed since his deadpan delivery wasn’t exactly thrilling the crowd.
After finding out about Gene’s illness, Jack asked Tim for help, but Tim refused, since he was a bit sour about Gene initially asking Jack instead of Tim to join him in the booth. However, seeing Jack fumble and the crowd not loving his commentary, Tim decided to put his pride aside and go save Jack from further embarrassment.
And the two of them as announcers, with their playful banter and humorous jabs at each other, worked like a charm. The crowd loved them. Their unlikely dynamic and banter entertained the audience and kept the rodeo lively.
It added some really great humor to the episode, showcasing, once again, what a wonderful comedic duo Tim and Jack can be.
Coming-of-age struggles
The final storyline of the episode revolved around Katie and her search for independence.
In the beginning portion of the episode, we saw Katie struggle a little in the writing class after the creative writing teacher, Jasmine, asked Katie to share “a poignant personal story about becoming an adult.” And then, when Jasmine asked the class to write a short story about a memorable coming-of-age moment as their next assignment, it got Katie thinking about growing up and being an adult – something that weighed heavily on Katie since she was pretending to be over 18 in the writing class.
Then, at the rodeo, Katie felt a sting of embarrassment when Lou introduced herself to Jasmine and mentioned that she’s a published author herself, even going as far as offering to give a copy of her book “Mom’s the Word” to Jasmine. And it was made worse when Jasmine suggested that Lou should join one of their post-class get-togethers.
Feeling overshadowed and frustrated by Lou’s intrusion, Katie expressed her irritation, emphasizing that writing class was her space to explore her interests without Lou’s involvement. And Katie also mentioned to Lou that she didn’t like Lou telling Jasmine about her mom book since, in Katie’s mind, Jasmine is a “real writer,” unlike Lou, who published a “random collection of online musings.”
Katie was so worked up about this that she ended up leaving the rodeo early, which led to Lou talking to Jasmine and making excuses as to why Lou couldn’t join the writing class’s get-together anytime soon, to distance herself from Katie’s thing.
Luckily, the mother-daughter duo talked it out at the end of the episode, during which Katie not only thanked Lou for pulling back but also admitted that she hasn’t been feeling like herself lately due to feeling torn between childhood and adulthood.
Lou: “You didn’t leave me much choice. I was trying to respect your wishes after you were completely disrespectful to me. You know, you asked me not to treat you like a kid, but you were acting like one.”
Katie: “I’m not happy about the things I said, OK? I’ve just been going through a tough time. I haven’t been feeling like myself lately. Sometimes, I don’t even know who I am. But I am really, really sorry.”
Lou: “I remember what that was like. Being on the edge of two worlds. Not quite an adult, but not a kid anymore.”
This heartfelt moment brought Lou and Katie closer. And hopefully, now that Lou knows a bit more about what’s going on with Katie, her support will also help Katie navigate young adulthood a little easier.
Final thoughts on Heartland season 18 episode 5
This episode beautifully balanced drama and humor. It was a true showcase of the show’s ability to weave together diverse storylines into a cohesive narrative that left fans eagerly anticipating what’s next.
Read next: Heartland season 18 episode 6 recap
What did you think of the episode?
Do you see a future for Amy and Nathan, or does Caleb still have a chance with Amy? And how much did you love Jack and Tim’s stint as rodeo announcers?
Don’t hesitate to share your thoughts in the comments below!
Promo for Heartland season 18 episode 6
The next episode of Heartland will be called “Sisters,” and it will see Lou, Amy, and Lisa head to Vancouver for a girls’ trip, where Lisa will find herself caught in the middle between the two sisters when truths are revealed that could threaten to tear them apart.
I think Lou should mind her own business wiwth Nathan and Amy. Caleb is good as a friend but that is it. He is not as grounded or mature as the Nathan character and Nathan is what Amy needs. Another great recap!
Thanks, Jayn!
Agree to both points. Lou really does need to mind her own business. It’s the one thing that has always annoyed me. I think there’s too much history as friends for Amy to see Caleb as more. He’s like Ty’s brother in her mind.