Sullivan’s Crossing

If you want to find a new “warm bath” type of show, and you’ve watched every episode available of Virgin River and Heartland, come stay awhile at Sullivan’s Crossing, a fictional campground in Nova Scotia.

Adapted from the New York Times-bestselling novels by Robyn Carr (who wrote Virgin River), Sullivan’s Crossing is a father-daughter story just as much as it is a romance. Viewers follow Maggie Sullivan (Morgan Kohan) from her big city life as a hotshot neurosurgeon to her idyllic hometown, Timberlake, N.S. A scandal in Boston has chased her home, where she must confront a painful past and a broken relationship with her dad, Harry “Sully” Sullivan (Scott Patterson).

She also reunited with people she adored there long ago, including her best friend and the Cranebears, a Metis couple played with care by Tom Jackson and Andrea Menard. They add substance and cultural learning to the show; Edna Cranebear is my favorite character. The Cranebears help Sully run the rustic, cozy campground, which, of course, is being threatened by a modern new development. (The Nova Scotia scenery is stunning and adds a dreamy, travelogue-y element to the show.)

Kohan is solid as the main character. She brings integrity and calmness to the role, even though she is way too young to be a renowned neurosurgeon. But it’s Patterson who is most compelling as Sully. He’s fractious, wounded, and growly and just begging for redemption. Everyone on this show has secrets, and Sully has a whopper he’s been keeping to himself for years. Clearly, it’s eating away at him, and nothing but the truth will heal him. Fans of Gilmore Girls will recognize him from his role as Luke Danes, but here he is a crankier, darker version of Luke. After a while, you forget he was Luke at all.

Watching Sully and Maggie slowly repair their relationship is one of the joys of tuning in to this former No. 1 show on Netflix. Another is witnessing the neighborly bonds in the community. One reason I believe these “warm bath” shows are so popular is that people long to be seen, known, and accepted, not just fitting in but belonging. In places such as Timberlake, your neighbors accept your quirks and flaws and love you anyway. They show up for you when things are hard, and won’t let go until you are on your feet again.

This is the kind of community we as God’s children were created for, to give and to receive love, grace, and forgiveness. Even though Sullivan’s Crossing is a TV show, it’s inspiring to think about how neighbors can wrap their arms around each other in times of joy and sorrow.

Rated TV-14, the show was made for the CW, so it is network-TV friendly. There are a handful of sensual scenes, but no nudity. All three seasons are now streaming on Netflix. (The CW, Netflix)