When the stars of the gay hockey romance, Heated Rivalry, took to the stage to present, they coyly asked the audience if they’d watched the show.
After a smattering of applause, Connor Storrie said, “That’s a maybe, but their trainers have, and their moms have, and their daughters have.” To which Hudson Williams said, “Hi, moms!” and Storrie said, “Hi, daughters.”
And I, a mom and daughter, blushed.
Because, yes, I’d watched the show. More than once. I’d been following the meteoric rise of the two lead actors and had watched all their press content. I’d read both the book and the sequel, The Long Game, and was considering picking up the other four books in the series. I’d been listening to the soundtrack and now my children and I sing “All the Things She Said” at full volume on the way to school every morning. I’d done all of this in the span of a couple of weeks.
But then, after polling my friends, I discovered that all but one, an avid romance reader, hadn’t even heard of the show.
“My progress on gay hockey is zero and probably will continue to be,” texted one friend. Another said she would be watching it when she got a chance. A week later, the naysayer sent us a photo of her television with the caption, “It’s happening.”
It was the opening scene of Heated Rivalry. “OK, I’m starting now, too!” said the other. Two days later, the friend who originally had no intention of watching the show—now done—said she was sorry she didn’t watch it sooner. The other said it was helping her anxiety and giving her a break from the world burning. They began sending me reels I’d seen weeks ago. I dutifully “hearted” each one and sent them the TikToks I’d made of my dogs acting out the “will you come to my cottage this summer” scene.
We are elder millennials, newly 40, in the PTA. My demographic is colloquially referred to as “wine moms,” including this month when David Marcus of Fox News said, “organized gangs of wine moms” were committing crimes against ICE agents. ICE shot a woman in the face, David, but I can’t talk about that right now without having a panic attack, so I’m going to talk about gay hockey.
Heated Rivalry comes from Canadian television and premiered in the U.S. on Black Friday of last year. The finale aired on Christmas. I was fully obsessed, but couldn’t go to the cottage because I had to host Christmas with my darn family. At night, my house guests wanted to watch The Pitt (fine by me!), and I wasn’t about to suggest watching something with intimate scenes like those on Heated Rivalry with my dad. But the second my guests departed, once I got the kids to bed, I checked in with my Hollanov boys and wept happy tears as their journey came to a close.
I was a little early to the party. I write about TV, so when something is buzzy, I try to check it out because I need money to live. I’d read Kevin Fallon’s coverage of the show for Obsessed in early December and was intrigued but deep in the busyness that ensues between Thanksgiving and Christmas.
The other reason I caught on earlier because I’m divorced and therefore don’t share the remote.
Most of my friends’ husbands aren’t itching to watch Heated Rivalry. Some (the good ones) give it a try (once they’re caught up on Fallout). My friend, who hadn’t initially wanted to watch it, started while her husband was out of town. Others have told me their husbands didn’t want to watch it, but still sat in the room looking at their phones. (I bet they peeked.)
My good friends aren’t the only ones catching on late. Jenna Bush Hager, host of the Today show, didn’t watch it until guest co-host, Las Culturistas’ Matt Rogers encouraged her. She responded that she wanted to check it out, but she needed “some alone time” when kids weren’t around. When Connor Storrie appeared on Today this past week, a clip of Jenna staring wistfully at the television proved that she, too, had finally been put under the spell.
To be clear, the show is about/for/by queer men, but women are keeping it in the conversation in a big way. There have been a lot of “think pieces” about why women watch and read gay male romance, and how badly the people long for sex and non-tragic queer love stories.
Show creator Jacob Tierney and the two leads have shared some thoughtful insights about why women are drawn to the show. Those comments are right on, but as to why the show continues to grow and remain in the conversation, remember that the huge demographic that encompasses Gen X/Xennial/Millennials is the same people who watch Reels—not TikTok—and therefore get culture a little later than young people.
It continues to be a huge show because it’s well-made and rewatchable, so it’s keeping its original audience. And it’s gaining a new audience of people who are “getting around” to sitting down for some post-bedtime TV.
Heated Rivalry also rewards repeat viewing. In my case, because it keeps me from doomscrolling. I care about everything going on in the world, but feel helpless and overwhelmed. So instead of watching the news, I rewatch the show.
Many people have tried to speculate about the lessons Hollywood should learn from Heated Rivalry, including Golden Globes host Nikki Glaser, who joked there should be more shows about hockey. But the moms have taught us that Hollywood needs to let new shows (and movies) marinate for a second!
Some people are busy! Stop releasing things on major holidays (don’t get me started on Stranger Things). And stop acting surprised by the power women hold in the culture. Women watch more TV and read more books than men, especially romance, which is the #1 selling genre.
While it is a romantic story, fun and pretty to watch, Heated Rivalry is an important piece of culture that belongs to everyone who wants to participate, whether it’s to see themselves represented on screen, to yearn along with the yearners, or simply to escape to a place where people are doing OK.
And, to the husbands of Wine Moms out there: Go watch the show with your wives. You might learn something.
