Amor Fati

I don’t know them personally, but every time Francois opens his mouth, I respect him more. He’s talented, committed, mature, cultured, loves acting for the craft and not the ego, is not afraid to speak his mind and always contributes to the cause in a meaningful and admirable way. He’s well loved and respected by his peers and within the HR enclave, he’s clearly tight with everyone.

If anything, the thought of them being together makes me happy, as Connor could undoubtedly benefit from a stable, supportive, fun and safe partner. I did see the posts his ex made to out and attack Connor and they’re legit scary. He came across as a clinically deranged dangerous narcissist, given what he said and allegedly did.

I went down a rabbit hole and decided to answer a million HR questions.

Thanks to @zo1nks for creating the OG list here.

1. Favorite episode

Episode 5

2. Favorite line

‘I might open / I might knock’ with See Line Woman starting to play

‘You’re scared. No, is okay’

'Shut your idiot face Marleau....'

‘No I love it, so you got what, tired of looking like shit?’

3. Favorite character

Ilya

4. Favorite scene

I wanna say the phone call in Russian, but I can’t watch it without bawling, so the bar reunion in Tampa.

5. Favorite sex scene

In the book: a tie between 1) when they come back from their friend’s concert 2) hiding in Ilya’s hotel room during the All Stars Game and Marleau knocks on the door

In the series: Shane’s first time

12. Favorite couple (books or show)

Ilya and Shane

15. Favorite fanart

The ones I reblog/like

18. Favorite minor detail

That the nurse who interrupts Shane and Ilya at the hospital looks like Shane’s mother - chef’s kiss subtle Jacob Tierney psychological detail mirroring when Ilya ran into Yuna the first time he hooked up with Shane. 

19. Favorite song from the show

It's honestly very hard to pick, Jacob did an incredible job with music... the original soundtrack is awesome (nod to Challengers), the licensed tracks as well... ATSS Harrison Remix, See Line Woman cover... the songs in French with perfect lyrics... I also LOVE how the music really punctuates the 'heat' (e.g. in the Tampa scene, right when Ilya gets final confirmation Rose is gone, the track of the following montage starts... so hot.

20. Favorite HR actor

Hudson Williams doesn’t get enough credit for the superb job he did with Shane. Without detracting anything from his performance, I do think Connor takes the ribbon because he truly knocked it way out of the park.

24. Favorite fandom inside joke

The fact that they never locked their hotel room door in the series. 

25. Something you want to talk about more

I’m wary of saying this because some people will start insulting Rachel Reid and she really doesn't deserve that.

Having read the books a few times, I did notice that the way Shane specifically thinks of Ilya is very much in the realm of physical attraction. He tells himself he bagged himself a ten, he is often portrayed ogling Ilya and reveling in his incredible beauty and I think it plays a part in making him feel shallow and selfish… it occurred to me that because the story is about two men, vs a man and a woman, the physical obsession/objectification doesn’t stand out as much… but Rachel seems to have internalized an obsession with beauty typical of the patriarchy.  So by this I mean, I see it as a shadow aspect of the positive way MM erotica helps women explore their identity and sexuality in a way that feels safer and freer of patriarchal interference. 

26. Something you dislike (show)

It’s not a ‘dislike’. The show looks amazing and I know that the hockey scenes couldn’t be more complex due to budget, and they were the least important anyway… but it’s so obvious it’s not them, as they didn’t have enough time to film enough action sequences to make it all glue together in a way that feels real. 

27. Something you dislike (book)

The barely one dimensional characterization of being Russian. 

The complete  absence of Shane’s Japanese heritage in his life

28. Something you wish they had changed

Something beyond ‘I love good vodka’ to characterize Ilya's cultural background.

29. Something you wish they hadn't changed

I think making Svetlana a childhood friend of Ilea’s made a lot of sense. But I also think that their no strings attached relationship was not explored enough. What I mean is… what is in it for Svetlana? She loves loves Ilya, but somehow is ok playing the side chick game. Which is actually quite a believable character, but not explored enough. 

30. Something you're glad stayed the same

The sexual chemistry

31. Something you're glad was changed

I love that Shane and Ilya are roughly the same size... there’s less of that ‘size difference kink’ where Rachel I think projects onto Shane a pretty male-gaze version of femininity (cute, freckles, adorable, scrunched up face like an angry kitten, long hair… you know what I mean?). In the series, they are just the perfect match, equal yet so different… the sun and the moon etc. Also kudos to Tierney & team for always making Connor look taller than Hudson, when it's the other way round.

32. Something you like about Shane

I think it’s better explored in the series, but I think Shane grounds Ilya and when he gets out of his head, he’s very maternal towards him, in the best possible sense. 

33. Something you like about Ilya

That is superpower is that he is such a good reader of people. It’s also largely untapped outside of the bedroom. 

34. Something you dislike about Shane

How his privilege, entitlement and to an extent ignorance of anything that’s not hockey can make him really selfish and blind.

35. Something you dislike about Ilya

What a complicated avoidant he is. 

36. Something you like about Scott

He changed the world by having the courage to be himself.

37. Something you like about Kip

He’s a sweetheart and again I think he grounds Scott. 

38. Something you dislike about Scott

Nothing

39. Something you dislike about Kip

He’s not really my type lol, but that’s no reason to dislike him (I don’t like the name Kip tbh)

40.  Favorite main character (books or show)

Ilya

41. Favorite minor/supporting character (books or show)

Harris. Maybe Luca Haas in the future. 

42. Least favorite main character

In the book, the Commissioner.

43. Least favorite minor/supporting character

Alexei. I'll also say that Yuna can be pretty overbearing... although we love her.

44. Something you think should have been addressed and wasn't (books or show)

As I said before, the cultural aspect of having a Russian and a Japanese-Canadian main character and not exploring that at all. 

45. Something that was addressed that you feel was unimportant (books or show)

On one side, I love that the series contains great moments where  parents/friends/peers show tangible ways to be an ally. On the other hand, when Shane and Ilya are not on screen, it can all feel a little hammy and on the nose (apart from the steamy Scott/Kip moments). 

46. The Big D: Discourse. Yay or Nay?

Book: yay. Series: nay (and that’s okay)

57. Something about the series (books or show) that inspires you

It’s full of positive life energy. It makes you want to live. And love. 

58. Something about the series that makes you happy

That it’s such a… game changer :) 

59. Something about the series that makes you sad

That giving creative control to artists to tell their stories according to their vision shouldn’t be such a rare miracle.

60. Something about the series that confuses you

Nothing

61. Something about the series that disappoints you

They gave Shane subtle ties to his Japanese heritage, but apart from the vodka and cliche’ drapey ‘Moscow’ sets, Ilya feels believable as a Russian mostly because of Connor’s incredible transformation in his demeanor and his wardrobe… nothing from the script on that front, apart the freaking good vodka (cringe). 

The beach scene was so obviously a virtual production set, but hey, it's ok.

62. Something about the series that surprised you

How well thought out it was. Jacob made the absolute most of every penny and every minute he had and made a little masterpiece AND masterclass in making the most of your limitations as an artist. 

63. Something you love about the cast

You can tell they loved working on it, they gave it their all, they love what they do and they love each other. 

64. Do you have what you consider an "Unpopular" opinion? Share with the class!

I LOVED both Hudson and Connor’s performances and I am hopeful they will evolve as really interesting, valuable artists. 

The only time I felt Hudson didn’t quite nail the performance was when he left the tunameltdown. It was abrupt and did not feel grounded at all in real feeling… I didn’t feel Shane’s shame/fear/control kicking in, I just felt Hudson’s deep discomfort with that scene. 

Connor as we know is clearly an insane talent with a whole world of potential in front of him. So he was amazing, but I also think there are a couple of things that show he’s a bit more inexperienced than we might think. Which is fine. One thing that comes to mind is when he moves his eyes really fast, which is usually a sign of trying to mask his real emotions. It works, but it feels a little contrived. The second is the Ep6 by the fire. His reaction when he hears the loon feels contrived. The way he later talks about his mother… it works but the feeling doesn’t come through. The pasta scene… it’s ok, but could be better. 

Easy with those pitchforks, I come in peace :) 

65. If you woke up in the Game Changers universe, which character would you want to be, and why?

Erm…whoever is Ilya’s one and only love and obsession ;)

69. Do you think you're more like Shane or Ilya?