Heated Rivalry's Best Episode Yet Will Shut Down Any Haters

Freeze! This article contains major spoilers for "Heated Rivalry" season 1, episode 5, "I'll Believe in Anything."

I am so in love with you, "Heated Rivalry," and I don't know what to do about it.

The Canadian romance series about two rival Major League Hockey players — Canadian golden boy Shane Hollander (Hudson Williams) and his Russian rival Ilya Rosanov (Connor Storrie) — has had me (and many, many others) bodychecked and pinned to the glass for a month. Since arriving on HBO Max in the states, it's become must-watch television, even if prudes and non-believers have already written it off as nothing more than "the gay hockey show." A majority of the early discussions of the show centered on the stunning eroticism prominently displayed in the first three episodes, but as the season soldiers on, what fans of Rachel Reid's New York Times Bestselling novel source material already knew has finally emerged to center ice: "Heated Rivalry" is one of the best new shows of 2025.

Writing sex scenes that feel genuinely sexy rather than awkward is difficult on its own, and making them reveal character and relationship dynamics is even harder. "Heated Rivalry" succeeds at both, and because we aren't given direct insight into the characters' thoughts, everything has to be communicated through performance, direction, and dialogue. This is a relationship evolving from purely physical to deeply emotional. That shift is complicated, which makes it compelling to watch. Early on, the lead characters' interactions emphasize desire, but as their feelings grow, the focus moves toward quieter, more intimate moments that reflect real connection rather than just lust — without ever invalidating the importance of the physical attraction that brought them together in the first place.

But episode 5, I'll Believe in Anything," should firmly put the show in the Emmy conversation.

The first major moment of the episode is when Shane's "girlfriend," Rose Landry (Sophie Nélisse), gently inquires if he's gay. Coming out is hard enough, but Shane is being asked to confirm a truth that's obvious to anyone who knows how to look for it. As an actor and a former theater kid who admits 80% of her boyfriends have left her for men, Rose picks up on the small, albeit obvious tells that Shane "kind of prefers being the hole rather than the peg." In the heterosexist world of men's professional hockey, a player being gay has never been possible, so the things she picks up on wouldn't ever cross anyone's mind in the MLH.

Williams has been phenomenal as Shane "always worried, always in his head" Hollander all season, but this conversation boasts some of his finest work yet. A quiet pain simmers underneath the weight slowly being lifted off his shoulders. He finally has someone who knows the truth about him, and Williams lets every conflicting emotion and molecule of subtext completely wash over him without saying a word.

Nélisse has already proven herself to be one of the industry's brightest young stars (I will never forgive her season 1 Emmy snub for "Yellowjackets"), but this moment would have tipped into Very Special Episode territory without her pinching the conversation. She swiftly dispels Shane's belief that his homosexuality is a problem by saying as much, bringing warmth to a frankly horrifying scenario for Shane and showcasing the kind of allyship that every queer person deserves to have in their life. Nélisse beautifully elevates the nearly word-perfect recreation of the scene from Reid's novel, and it's impossible to imagine anyone else as Rose.

Every so often, an up-and-coming actor will deliver a breakthrough performance so strong that it completely changes the course of their career and the landscape of pop culture. That's precisely what Storrie has done as Ilya Rozanov. Considering the language barrier of his character, the actor's microexpressions tell the real story of how the character is feeling, and he gives viewers a glass seat view to watch him search for the English words to verbalize it adequately. It's a sensational, subtle performance that has been laying the groundwork all season for what is arguably the best monologue delivered on television in 2025.

While on an international phone call following the funeral of Ilya's father, Shane gives him the space to say whatever he wants in Russian. The result is a masterclass in depicting intimacy without physical touch. Men are already seldom permitted to let themselves feel the scope of their emotions, and the vulnerability on display from Storrie is just gutting. The stoic Slavic comes completely undone for the first time this season, telling Shane that he hates Russia, his family uses him, he hates that he wasn't there to take care of his father, he's grateful to his old friend Svetlana (Ksenia Daniela Kharlamova), and he knows she loves him and he loves her too ... but not the way he is in love with Shane.

If Adrian Brody can win an Oscar for speaking in AI-enhanced Hungarian in "The Brutalist," Storrie can have an Emmy for delivering a riveting five-page monologue in perfect Russian — a language he didn't speak before prepping for this show. Or, as Williams rightfully posted to his Instagram story, "Give my baby that weighty golden winged woman holding the atom statue already."

Jacob Tierney has been a Canadian treasure since the 1990s, but anyone who thinks that "Heated Rivalry" is nothing more than softcore drama fundamentally doesn't understand the level Tierney is operating on as its showrunner. Every emotional beat in the series packs a wallop because he builds up to every single one of them. He parallels stolen, sweet, secretive moments of public affection under the guise of "guys being dudes" around a hotel pool during All-Star Weekend with similar behavior on the ice during the game. Hockey is used to time-stamp the length of Shane and Ilya's growing relationship, but it's also a barometer of their romance — and it's electrifying.

As he proved on "Letterkenny" and "Shoresy," absolutely no one in the industry can block a scene to specific music like Tierney. (I will never be over episode 4's needle drop or the aughts-era Canadian indie goods like Feist and Wolf Parade.) This only heightens the power of scenes cloaked in silence or underscored by the brilliant Peter Peter. The cinematic flourishes Tierney sprinkles throughout each episode are better than any candy trail left in the forest since viewers know no witch is waiting to eat us on the other side. His mirrored storytelling is a gift to fans who meticulously analyze each episode frame-by-frame, yes, but it's also a signature style. Tierney is a visual storyteller who lures folks in by ensuring every last second is all killer, no filler, but he never forgets to let the story and characters breathe. It's a shame I don't trust the Emmys to recognize "Heated Rivalry" for the spectacular series it is, because, save for shows like "The Pitt" and "Pluribus," nothing in 2025 has come close.

Penultimate episodes are traditionally the boldest episodes of a season, and while I'm sure the season 1 finale is going to have me squealing with joy and kicking my feet the entire runtime, episode 5 should silence any naysayers who've already written the show off as "smut." (For the record, sex is a vital aspect of storytelling, and if you disagree, you should probably unpack that on your own time and dime.)

"Heated Rivalry" is incredibly faithful to Reid's novel — meaning, a core group of those watching already knows how Shane and Ilya's story ends — and yet viewers are still drawn in each week. It's because Reid is a wickedly talented romance author, and Tierney knew exactly how to amplify the brilliance already on the page. The lines that fans are incessantly quoting come from her original text.

When episode 3, "Hunter," elected to adapt Reid's novel "Game Changer" and focus on fellow hockey player Scott Hunter (François Arnaud) and Kip Grady (Robbie G.K.), viewers who were drawn in by the carnality between Shane/Ilya may have been thrown off base, but it was all part of the larger narrative culminating in episode 5's final moments. Arnaud and G.K. play the pivotal moment when Hunter comes out to the world after winning the Stanley Cup by kissing the man he's been loving in secret on the ice. It's a climactic moment that proves that happiness is found when you don't have to hide, and the same could be said for those doubting the show.

"Heated Rivalry" is layered, nuanced, beautiful sunshine found in a world desperately trying to keep us in the dark. Don't be afraid to let it in.