Ride Season 1 Episode 5 Review: When It Rains
Laura Nowak
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It's challenging to follow your dreams when life gets in the way, and Ride Season 1 Episode 5 showed how these resilient women kept going.
Both Isobel and Missy have had to live up to the McMurray legend since they married fantastic bull riders, but they're trying to survive and prove they are successful on their own too.
"When It Rains" showed how strong these two leading leadings were.
Isobel's pride and joy is McMurray Ranch. She has done everything to save it, and she panicked when a bad storm could destroy the hay and the horses.
She used to have bigger dreams, but those died when both her husband and Austin died of bull riding accidents. Now, all Isobel cared about was keeping Cash safe and the ranch afloat.
Isobel grew frustrated that while she struggled to serve ribs and coleslaw at the Harvest Dinner, Hank kept pitching his idea of a Canyon Rodeo Stadium with a McMurray Museum.
Why wouldn't Hank let this idea go? Was he sweet on his best friend's widow, or did he feel obligated to look after her? There is something about him that's hard to read.
There is something possessive about Hank, like he wanted to take care of Isobel and resented seeing Cody there too.
Isobel doesn't need a man to take care of her. She's been doing fine on her own. However, it would be nice if she didn't have so much to worry about.
We've never heard much about Isobel's marriage before. However, Isobel, like Missy, for years, was the woman who followed her husband's dreams.
Hank: Dusty wanted this. You wanted it too.
Isobel: Yes, and that’s when Dusty lived by my side in a completely different reality. While you have been able to go and have your big dreams, I have to wake up every single day and worry about how I’m going to hold on to this ranch.
Isobel seemed happiest nurturing the animals than dealing with the bull-riding business.
However, going into business and displaying Dusty's and Austin's trophies may save her beloved ranch.
She's desperate enough to sell her soul to the devil, even if that means partnering with Hank. Hopefully, they find a trustworthy investor like Gus.
Missy and Cash attended the Frontier BBQ, and they both had something to prove as well.
This was Missy's first year as an attendee and not as Austin's wife, so she needed to prove her worth and advertise Cash as the next McMurray bull rider.
The traumatic events of the last year started catching up with Missy as she kept flashing back to previous BBQs and seeing Austin with a female fan.
This revelation opened up an entirely new can of worms.
Most people that saw Missy and Cash together assumed that they were dating, including this fan.
I guess I can’t imagine getting over someone like Austin and moving on.
Other Woman
It bothered her that Missy had already moved on from Austin, and Missy was suspicious that this woman knew so much about her husband.
Missy and Cash noticed Austin seemed off in the weeks leading up to his death, but neither knew why. Now, Missy worried he had an affair.
Is Austin actually dead? He may have discovered what Valeria was hiding and made her keep some unseemly secrets from his family.
The love triangle heated up, and while I enjoyed both men, I didn't particularly appreciate how they both acted like they owned Missy. Cash hated that Gus has a hero complex, partly because it made it even harder for him to measure up.
I see Missy holding your hand through all the bull riding and the BBQs because she’s got a feeling for you, and it’s pity. One day soon, she’s going to realize she’s tired of being your babysitter.
Gus
Cash meant well. Missy was tired and upset from the revelation, but she could tell Gus herself if she didn't want to see him. She didn't need him to protect her.
They acted like a couple of stereotypical men laying claim to their woman in a brawl.
Poor Cash. He always felt like he doesn't measure him -- in bull-riding or getting the girl. In essence, he's the least judgmental person since he is also flawed.
Valeria's and Tuff's relationship issues finally got resolved after Valeria gave him the silent treatment for invading her privacy on Ride Season 1 Episode 4.
Isobel quickly lost her patience with their antics and was more worried about the impending storm.
Apologies unspoken keep things broken.
Isobel
Valeria and Tuff were close, maybe even closer than she was to Missy, so it hurt that he wouldn't talk to her about his concerns, but Tuff felt so betrayed that Valeria left right after Austin died.
This was some of Jake Foy and Sara Garcia's best work in this fraught confrontation, as Tuff admitted that Valeria never opened up.
When I needed you the most, you weren’t there. I went looking for you, but with no family or friends to track you down. My best friend was gone overnight, and all that trust was broken.
Tuff
Valeria has never felt safe and loved. She lost her mother as a teenager and has been afraid to trust people since then.
The McMurrays have been the only family she has ever known, and she's terrified she has lost them too.
That was probably the hardest thing Valeria ever admitted, and thankfully Tuff recognized that. He may be tough on her, but Valeria is his best friend, like his sister.
Families fight, but they fight for each other. Hopefully, she'll realize that soon.
"When It Rains" finally answered some questions about Valeria's past but opened more questions about Austin's disappearance.
Did Austin cheat on Missy? What was their marriage like? Will Isobel be satisfied showcasing Dusty and Austin's trophy's in a McMurray Museum?
Are you enjoying the twists and twists in Hallmark's newest family drama? Comment below:
To catch up on all of the McMurray drama, you can watch Ride online via TV Fanatic.
Laura Nowak is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow her on X.
