I’ll list the top 5 season one episodes. It is undoubtedly the toughest “Top 5’s” to rank.
5. Both Your Houses
This episode focuses on the tragedy of Opal McHone losing her baby due to the falsehood of how to cure liver grown. It’s the ailment of suffering from an enlarged liver. This episode does not involve David or Neil as often as you would expect. This is one of the reasons why I give it a lower ranking. There’s nothing wrong with focusing more on the people of the cove. In fact, it gives a clearer representation of what goes on in the area. It’s needed for the series. It shows the hardships of what they go through and how the mission and doctor can be a helping hand.
4. A Closer Walk
David is doubting whether he should continue to be a preacher. He never gained respect from the people in the cove. Christy explains to David that it’s not about respect, but rather helping others. Those there belittle him and tempt him at the same time. It was expected that anyone with one child at the school was to lend a helping hand to fix the schoolhouse. Well, Ault Allen decides to slack on helping rebuild the church. The most serious scene concerns David working with the community to help clear brush in the area. Even when Ault’s gunshots fly at him on purpose, he doesn’t back down and shows his fearless attitude of not being pushed around.
3. Eye of the Storm
Like David, Neil is unsure of himself. He doesn’t know if his experiments will have any effect to cure Becky. Perhaps he will fail completely, but it’s important to try and give it your all. Christy encourages him as he expresses grief over the death of his wife, Margaret. This episode also shows the struggle of a family trying to survive. In the cove it can be difficult to provide for your children. This episode illustrates Christy’s compassion and encouraging attitude. The stormy quarrels and problems of the cove eventually pass.
2. Lost and Found
Rob Allen is focused solely upon his writing and meeting his goal of winning a writing contest. His brother Little Burl, goes missing and he realizes that there are more important things than what meet the eye. Family is one of them and the history that comes along with it. It’s shown that the families of the church and school work together to help find Burl. Quite often today, it’d be a toss up of whether or not you would get any help. We’re shown the fine line of trying to learn in school, all the while working to survive.
1. Pilot
This made for TV movie really encompasses all that the novel possibly could in such short time. Of course there are some big omissions that were in the story. But you have to understand it was marketed as a TV movie and you only have 1.5 hours to tell the story. They had to get it past the test screening for a group of people to judge it, before airing it on TV. This was one of the keys for a potential series. Riding on nearly 20 years to bring it to TV, executive producer Ken Wales knew it is now or never to show it to the world.
Final Thoughts
The Pilot fully embodies the traits and values of the series. All of these episodes were difficult to rank, specifically Lost and Found and Eye of the Storm. It’s obvious my thoughts may change over time among all of the episodes. In all reality, it may be more important to point out the episodes which I feel don’t belong in the Top 5. Those are Judgment Day and Amazing Grace. What they both have in common is that their main focus is on characters who aren’t residents of the cove. They weren’t kind, and brought more problems to the area. But really, every episode in the season dealt with problem after problem.
The visitors disappeared just as suddenly as they appeared. Dr. Ferrand, head of the mission, comes in with a vengeance, upset with their way of handling things. The episode focuses upon his “rules” essentially. Although it has a good message I think he should have been given a side story, instead of being the main focus. You can say the same with Amazing Grace. Theodore Harland and Margaret were center stage. While Margaret was married to Neil, she’s only a minimal part of the series. In fact, in the novel she did die. Looking outside of the cove gives a sense of misdirection. However looking within it and within the lives of the characters is intriguing. This is where the series thrives.