Another new episode of Heartland aired this Sunday on CBC Gem and a lot happened during it.
In the episode we saw Amy working with a unique client facing a tough business dilemma, while she and Nathan had to confront some difficult truths about where their relationship stands.
Meanwhile, Katie’s secret finally caught up to her, and Lou faced the shock of discovering what her daughter had been hiding.
All the while, Tim was presented with an exciting new opportunity, and Jack was shocked by his friend’s illness.
Want to know more about what went down in this episode? Then, keep reading this recap of Heartland season 18 episode 7!
Amy’s unique new client
I’ll start off as I begin most of these recaps – with Amy’s client horse storyline, which, this time around, was a truly unique one.
In this episode, Amy took on a rare client case with Rhiannon, a young woman trying to save her family’s bird sanctuary, Clear Sky Sanctuary.
What do birds have to do with horses, you ask?
Well, Rhiannon, recently grieving the loss of her father, sought to continue her family’s unique tradition of mounted falconry with her horse, Sword, and her hawk, Eerie, since the mounted falconry shows were what brought in most of the money for the sanctuary.
But there was a problem: Sword and Eerie weren’t working well together. And without the successful collaboration between the horse and the hawk, Rhiannon couldn’t do the shows and, therefore, would have to close the sanctuary, a legacy her father had lovingly maintained.
A story like Rhiannon’s hit close to home for Amy, so she was determined to do everything she can to help the trio.
Prefer listening to the recap over reading it? Then check out this video:
After observing Rhiannon’s interactions with Sword and Eerie, Amy quickly picked up on the source of the disconnection – Rhiannon’s bond with Eerie was solid, she even watched TV with the hawk. However, her relationship with Sword was still relatively new.
And it was understandable, after all, Eerie was more than just a bird, he was a reminder of Rhiannon’s father. While Sword was a replacement for her dad’s retired veteran horse that Rhiannon’s dad didn’t get to train before he passed.
So, Amy’s first order of business was to encourage Rhiannon to build a stronger relationship with Sword, much like the one she had with Eerie. And under Amy’s guidance, Rhiannon made strides in bonding with Sword, and the trio’s trust gradually improved.
Yet, when they tested the new bond by having Rhiannon, Sword, and Eerie perform together, things didn’t go so well.
Sword panicked at the sight of the creance (the cord attached to the hawk’s leash to prevent his escape during training), causing Rhiannon to let Eerie go so Sword wouldn’t get tangled up in the cord, and Eerie flew away, leaving Rhiannon devastated.
Luckily, they were able to find Eerie fairly quickly and Amy put together the pieces of what caused Sword to spook.
She realized that Sword’s anxiety was rooted in his fear of the creance instead of his dislike for Rhiannon or Eerie. And it stemmed from the time Sword got caught in a bailing twine when he was a colt and got cut up pretty badly, bearing the scars of it until this day. After all, horses have long memories, and he was still afraid of a repeat of the pain he endured because of the bailing twine.
So, Amy did some desensitizing with Sword to help him overcome his fear. And after some encouragement about Rhiannon needing to trust herself, Amy managed to talk Rhiannon into trying out their performance routine without Eerie’s leash. And it worked.
At the end of the episode, we saw a beautiful sequence of Rhiannon in full costume performing with Sword and Eerie seamlessly. Which means that Rhiannon will be able to keep her family’s legacy alive while also feeling more connected to her dad than she has since his passing.
I always love it when the show gives Amy interesting, challenging clients. And in this episode, we also got to see a new equestrian-related discipline that I don’t think has ever been showcased on Heartland, which is always interesting and adds a sort of newness to the show.
The beef wars heat up
The other big storyline of Heartland season 18 episode 7 was all about the family’s cattle business and their rivalry with Pryce Beef.
In the episode, we saw the fallout from Lou’s disclosure of Nathan Sr.’s illness to Jed, the CEO of Crown Shoppers.
With Crown Shoppers previously sourcing all of their beef exclusively from Pryce Beef, Nathan had a longstanding contract that helped sustain his family’s ranch. However, after Lou’s accidental revelation of Nathan Sr.’s Alzheimer’s to Jed in the previous episode, Crown ended their exclusive partnership with Pryce Beef, leaving Nathan scrambling.
It was good news for Heartland, though, since Crown Shoppers extended a new offer to Heartland Beef – now they were interested in Heartland to not only supply bison but beef as well.
The unexpected decision thrilled Lou, Tim and Jack, because it was a major breakthrough for Heartland Beef – the new deal gave them the financial security that they were seeking and secured the ranch’s future. However, the family’s celebration was cut short when Nathan, feeling the impact of Lou’s mistake, retaliated in a way that added even more strain to an already delicate situation between the families.
Nathan delivered a notice of lease termination to Jack, Lou, and Tim for Heartland’s use of the land they were leasing from Pryce Beef. Since it was a critical grazing area for Heartland Beef’s cattle and bison, they faced a threat to their recently expanded operation without it.
I mean, Nathan was well within his legal rights to end the lease. After all, Lou was the one to suggest they write a clause into the lease for just this type of situation. And he wasn’t taking away their water rights. But it was still quite a blow for Heartland, especially since Nathan gave them only 30 days to move their animals off his land.
The effects of Nathan’s decision rippled through the family, but Nathan maintained that he needed the land for his own herd now that Crown Shoppers weren’t interested in his beef anymore.
Fortunately for Heartland, with the expanded new deal with Crown, they now had the option to buy additional land from a neighbor who’s downsizing to replace the grazing area. Something that would also let them free themselves from their reliance on leasing the additional land they needed.
But this whole situation served to just further complicate things between Heartland and Pryce Beef. And this rift also cast a shadow over Amy and Nathan’s budding romance, leaving Amy caught between loyalty to her family and the bond she’d begun to develop with Nathan.
Family loyalty and heartbreak
While Amy was committed to helping Rhiannon, her personal life continued to be tangled with complications.
Early in the episode, we saw Nathan invite Amy on a picnic in an effort to make up for the interrupted dinner caused by business troubles in the previous episode.
And at first, the date was going really well, with Amy and Nathan talking and enjoying each other’s company. But when Nathan leaned in to kiss her, Amy pulled back.
She felt guilty for not telling Nathan about her family’s involvement in Crown Shoppers dropping him as their exclusive beef supplier. So, before she could allow him to kiss her and they could move further in their relationship, Amy decided to confess the truth about how Lou was the one to tell Jed about his father’s Alzheimer’s after Amy told Lou about it in confidence.
Amy tried explaining how she only told Lou about his dad because Lou was so worried about Nathan’s guarded nature, but he was understandably hurt by Amy’s revelation and pulled away, telling Amy that maybe he was right to be guarded.
After Nathan had some time to cool off and process Amy’s confession, however, Nathan softened and accepted Amy’s sincere apology. And while Nathan was helping Amy and Rhiannon find Eerie, they talked about setting boundaries for their relationship to prevent their family feud from causing further complications between them. Nathan even admitted to liking Amy.
But, sadly, the peace didn’t last long.
When they returned to Heartland after finding the hawk, Lou confronted Nathan about his decision to terminate the lease and asked if Amy knew about it. Amy was caught in the middle of their heated exchange, which made her realize that maybe it wasn’t possible to keep the deep-seated conflict between their families out of their relationship, no matter how much they liked each other or they wished that they could.
In the end, while out on a ride, Amy and Nathan both reluctantly acknowledged that they couldn’t move forward in their relationship under these circumstances. They both realized that they deserved a partner who could fully be part of their lives without constant clashes over family businesses.
Amy: “I think the term is total blindside, actually.”
Nathan: “I had to do it, though.”
Amy: “Yeah, I… I get it. You put your ranch and your family first.”
Nathan: “You’d do the same.”
Amy: “I would.”
Nathan: “Doesn’t mean it wasn’t a tough decision, though. If it was easy, I wouldn’t be here now.”
Amy: “In this scenario where we… don’t talk about our ranches, what exactly are you picturing?”
Nathan: “This. Us. Just together.”
Amy: “Okay. I see you joining us for family dinners. Getting in debates with my dad, learning from my grandpa.”
Nathan: “Discussing business strategies with Lou?”
Amy: “Does that seem all that bad?”
Nathan: “No, no. Seems… entirely right. Sounds wonderful.”
Amy: “Just not for you.”
Nathan: “I know I should argue that I’m not dating your family, but I’d be a fool the moment the words came out of my mouth. You deserve that picture, Amy.”
Amy: “You deserve it too.
Nathan: “Nah.”
Amy: “You’re a good man, Nathan Pryce. Don’t be a stranger.”
So, after coming to the sad conclusion that they couldn’t make their relationship work, at least not at this time, they shared a bittersweet farewell, each understanding the impossibility of reconciling their conflicting wants.
At the end of the episode, we saw Amy telling Lou that her heart was broken over her breakup with Nathan. And Nathan looked devastated at having to let Amy go, as well.
I really hope that this won’t be the end of their relationship. I mean, all the stuff with their families and businesses is complicated, and while I fully support them deciding to go their separate ways at this time, I just hope that by the end of the season, we might see a reconciliation between Heartland Beef and Pryce Beef which could also mean Amy and Nathan getting another shot at a romance.
Jack’s sympathy
The final storyline related to the rivalry between Heartland and Pryce Beef was one that actually could end up serving as a catalyst for a truce between the two families.
The episode began with Jack finding out about Nathan Sr’s illness, and it seemed to weigh heavily on Jack.
His initial reaction was empathy, understanding the challenges that Alzheimer’s presented for both Nathan and his father. Which led to Jack reaching out to Nathan and his dad by visiting Nathan’s ranch and trying to offer support by telling Nathan that he’s there as his dad’s friend, not the owner of Heartland Beef.
However, still processing the news of Heartland’s involvement in his business troubles, Nathan refused to let Jack visit his dad, telling Jack that it wasn’t a good day.
But Jack didn’t give up. And even Nathan’s decision to terminate Heartland’s grazing land lease didn’t deter Jack from trying again.
Sure, Jack wasn’t happy about Nathan’s sudden decision, but he was able to separate business from personal stuff and attempted to visit Nathan Sr. in person one more time. And before Nathan could turn Jack away again, his dad came out of the house and recognized Jack instantly.
They spent the day playing horseshoes and, since Nathan Sr. had a good day, Jack was able to connect with his old friend, providing a glimpse of happiness for Nathan and his father amid his condition.
It was such a nice gesture on Jack’s part to reach out to Nathan and his dad after he found out about the Alzheimer’s. Jack even told Nathan outright how he didn’t like the way things were handled in Vancouver.
While Jack’s words probably weren’t that much of a comfort to Nathan, Jack’s second visit seemed to really help not only Nathan’s dad to feel more like himself but for Nathan to also get a little reprieve amidst all the heaviness that comes with his dad’s illness.
And I’m really hopeful that this might also be the first step towards their families putting their feud to rest. Episode 1803 already proved that both families could be civil towards each other, and even get along well, so hopefully, that will be something that happens by the end of this season.
Tim’s new opportunity
Tim also had a really interesting storyline in this episode, which put him at a crossroads.
At the beginning of the episode, we saw Tim leading a class at his rodeo school when Rod Halo approached him. Rod is an executive producer for New West Sports, a sports network that had just secured the broadcasting rights to multiple major rodeo events across North America.
He had seen a video of Tim announcing at the Hudson Rodeo and wanted Tim to audition to be their new on-air host. The catch was that Tim would have to fly to Dallas for the audition since the network is based there.
At first, Tim turned Rod down, seeing that he would have to go all the way to Dallas, but the more Rod talked about the potential gig – an all-expenses paid trip to Dallas, five-star hotel rooms, sitting in a booth talking about rodeo and making Tim a star – the more Tim started considering it especially since it would allow Tim to return to his rodeo roots and get a second wind at something besides ranching.
Yet, Jack wasn’t supportive of the idea.
At first, Jack wasn’t keen on Tim leaving Heartland while their business was in a precarious position. But after Lou told them about Crown Shoppers’ offer to carry not just Heartland’s bison but also their beef, Jack’s argument of why Tim shouldn’t take Rod’s offer became invalid.
However, after Nathan delivered his bombshell about pulling the lease and Jack and Tim were out riding and talking about what to do about it, Jack finally admitted the real reason why he didn’t like Tim even thinking about Rod’s offer.
Jack feared that this new opportunity would pull Tim away from his responsibilities at Heartland, leaving the ranch and their business in his rearview mirror just like he had when Amy and Lou were little.
Tim: “Oh, well, I have not decided about that yet.”
Jack: “Aw, come on, Tim!”
Tim: “What? We solved our cashflow problems. Lou’s knocking it out of the park.”
Jack: “Yeah, well, we still have a herd of animals that’s too big for our own pasture. We’ve got fences to fix. We’ve got bison to wrangle. But you know, I guess that’s on me. I let myself believe that you were settled, that you were committed to the ranch and to the family.”
Tim: “I can do both. My daughters are grown, capable women. I’m not abandoning anybody. I’m disappointing you, but you’re always disappointed. And these aren’t the old days. I’m not that guy anymore, Jack.”
But Tim had a valid counterargument to Jack’s concerns – he’s not that guy who gives up on his responsibilities to chase his newest obsession anymore.
So, after a talk with Amy, during which Amy told Tim that ultimately it’s a decision he has to make himself, for himself, otherwise he could end up regretting his choice, and some careful consideration, Tim decided to take Rod up on his offer, choosing to chase his dream while it was still within reach.
I think this is a really interesting and exciting new direction for Tim, and I would love to see him explore it thoroughly. I’m just wondering if this will be something that ends up taking Tim away from the ranch more often, so much so that we won’t see him that often should we be so lucky to get more seasons of Heartland.
The truth comes out
Lastly, let’s talk about Katie’s storyline in this episode because we finally saw Katie’s secret-keeping come to a head.
At the onset of the episode, we saw Katie looking at the website for Vancouver Fine Arts School, the high school Jasmine went to, and that set Jasmine on a path to becoming a writer.
But just as Katie was murmuring about her mom never allowing her to transfer there, Lou interrupted her by coming into her room to tidy up and asking Katie what she’s working on.
Katie was evasive in her answers from the get-go, but even more so after Lou found a napkin from the wine bar where Katie’s writing class held their post-session discussions on Katie’s bed.
Katie pretended that somebody had left a stack of the wine bar napkins at Maggie’s, and she had just used one of them to write on after she ran out of room in her notebook. But we all know that that wasn’t true – Katie had been pretending to be older than she was to attend Jasmine’s writing class as well as go to the bar with the rest of the students after class.
So, later, when we saw Katie asking for Jasmine’s advice, telling Jasmine that she was contemplating moving to Vancouver, and Jasmine replied that they should meet up at the wine bar later that evening, I just knew that that won’t end well. And it didn’t.
Concerned after seeing the library being closed and failing to reach Katie, Lou found her daughter at the bar with Jasmine.
Jasmine was understandably shocked to learn Katie’s real age. And although Katie hadn’t been drinking, Lou was disappointed with her daughter’s dishonesty.
Katie tried to justify her actions by saying that she didn’t really lie to Jasmine, nobody just bothered to check how old she was, and that Katie didn’t tell Jasmine about her age because somebody finally talked to her like a real artist. But Lou set her straight by telling Katie that by lying about her age, she put Jasmine in a really bad position, one that could even ruin Jasmine’s career.
And Lou also finally realized that this was the reason Katie didn’t want Lou to get to know Jasmine.
In the end, after talking to Peter about Katie, Lou grounded Katie for three weeks, also taking away her social media privileges and deciding to vet any new activities Katie wanted to sign up for.
Katie tried to get out of the consequences of her actions. But when Lou wouldn’t budge, Katie finally admitted not only that she wasn’t sorry that she lied, because she felt like lying was the only way she could meet someone like Jasmine, but also told her mom about wanting to leave Heartland and attend an arts high school in Vancouver.
To Lou’s credit, she didn’t outright tell Katie no about the Vancouver school but that she would look into it. And I think Lou also handled this incredibly complex situation really well, especially given all the rest of the stuff she had to deal with in this episode.
I hope this will be one of those situations that again ends up strengthening the bond between the mother and the daughter. However, not going to lie, I am a little afraid that the opposite could be true and that Katie could end up leaving the ranch altogether and moving in with her dad.
Final thoughts on Heartland season 18 episode 7
It was interesting how two intense conversations happened in the barn in this episode.
The first one was when Amy and Tim talked about everything that was happening.
We don’t get conversations between just Amy and Tim all that often anymore. And the fact that this one was a pretty deep one was so refreshing. They not only talked about Tim’s rodeo host opportunity, where Amy gave him some advice, but also about Amy’s feelings for Nathan, where Tim advised Amy about how it’s impossible to keep her relationship separate from everything else going on.
And the second one happened when Amy and Lou put their fight on pause for a bit so Lou could vent to Amy about Katie and how parenting a teenager is really hard, while Amy told Lou about her breakup with Nathan and how her heart’ is broken.
Amy: "Yeah."
Lou: "Parenting a teenager is hard. It's harder than being a teenager, and that's saying something."
Amy: "Is Katie okay?"
Lou: "Yeah, Katie's okay. Just, you know, while I was busy trying to keep our business from crashing down around our ears, she was in a bar pretending to be an adult. She lied to me. She lied to her writing teacher. I can't even wrap my head around it."
Amy: "Well, you guys will come back together, you always do. You'll be happy to know that Nathan and I decided to go our separate ways."
Lou: "I'm not happy, Amy. I'm sorry. Please, you are not. I'm sorry that you're hurting. I'm sorry that I played a part in this."
Amy: "It's just we couldn't keep our relationship from getting tied up from everything else in our lives. And I know it probably wouldn't have worked, but... My heart's a little bit broken."
Lou: "It's okay if it's a lot broken. "
Amy: " You don't have to pretend. Lou. You know I love you, but... I'm so mad at you. What you did, it really hurt. I'm not ready to forgive you yet."
It felt so real for Lou to seek out her sister in a tough moment despite their argument and Amy telling Lou about her not being able to forgive Lou just yet. And I always love these honest conversations between the Fleming sisters.
This episode of Heartland expertly wove together themes of family loyalty, personal ambitions, and the challenges of following one’s heart.
Amy’s decision regarding Nathan was as poignant as it was inevitable, each of them realizing that their romance couldn’t coexist with their current family feud. Katie and Tim’s struggles to carve out their own identities amid the family’s expectations echoed themes of independence and self-discovery. While Amy’s client work and the Heartland Beef situation kept the ever-running thread of family legacy alive throughout the episode.
Read next: Recap of Heartland season 18 episode 8
What did you think of this episode?
Were you surprised by Amy’s decision when it comes to Nathan or Tim’s choice to take Rod up on his offer?
Please let me know your thoughts in the comments below. And stay tuned for next week’s recap!
Preview of Heartland season 18 episode 8
The next episode of the show will be called “Throwing Your Hat in the Ring,” and it will see Shane making a surprise visit, while tensions will boil over when Heartland Beef and Pryce Beef face off at the Hudson Farmer’s Market.