What is Virgin River without its obstacles?

Mel and Jack are somewhat basking in the news of Mel's pregnancy on Virgin River Season 4 Episode 1. Still, it's not without some difficulties, and there are some concerning cracks in their relationship that could evolve into something as the season progresses.

Everyone communicates too much or not enough in our beloved Virgin River.

The premiere felt reminiscent of Virgin River Season 3 Episode 1, where we faced a slight time jump and felt as if we were dropped in the middle of things instead of the premiere picking right up where we left off

It wasn't a significant time jump, but it had a few jarring moments, and you longed for a bit of what happened in between.

Jack is still barely processing the news that Mel is pregnant, but the child may be Mark's and not his. We open with his sweet dream turned nightmare where Mark was back in the picture, and he and Mel carried on as if they all were a throuple.

In some ways, that's probably what it has always felt like. Mark has always been this ever-present force between Mel and Jack and Mel and the rest of the world.

Their relationship has always had this ghost casting over it, and now it feels more tangible with this child who could have Mark's blood pumping through its veins.

On top of that, Mel is concerned about having a high-risk pregnancy because of her previous experience.

Jack already had his hands full worrying about Charmaine's high-risk pregnancy, and now Mel faces even higher risks. You can understand why he's fretting so much and wants to prepare for the worst-case scenario.

Of course, that's in direct conflict with Mel, who is trying to go about this differently than the first time she was pregnant. Understandably, Mel is opting for what makes her most comfortable, and she needs to take everything daily to function.

When the two of them are in their bubble, it's the most wonderful, romantic, loving thing in the world. Jack telling Mel she's beautiful almost every time he sees her again is swoon-worthy.

But what makes their love feel so raw and real is the imperfection. They have the potential for some communication issues and tension as the pregnancy moves forward.

Jack still hasn't dealt with how he feels about the possibility that this child isn't his. It's like he's afraid to have any emotions on the subject because he doesn't want to hurt Mel. However, bottling things up is not suitable for him because we all know it'll boil over.

He also has genuine fears about her being high-risk. Jack wants all the best doctors and access to everything and wants to think ahead. It's perfectly reasonable.

But Mel is shutting him down a bit because of her needs, and it already feels like it could come at his expense. For example, he needed her to hold off on telling anyone about the pregnancy, but she told Joey after she said she wouldn't.

He needs her to at least consult with the doctor in L.A., but she doesn't want to because she's comfortable with the one she met.

For Jack, who already feels excluded from decisions that Charmaine and her husband are making regarding the twins, Mel unintentionally making unilateral decisions could bother him, too.

Charmaine, blessedly, only made a small appearance in the premiere, but even then, you can already tell the drama is around the corner.

Mel: I'm pregnant.
Joey: You're pregnant?
Mel: Yeah, I'm pregnant, and I don't know who the father is.

• Permalink: Yeah, I'm pregnant, and I don't know who the father is.

She accidentally shared that the twins are boys, and she hasn't told Jack yet, for some reason. But now, you already know it'll probably spread around town before she can, and he'll feel some kind of way about other people knowing about his own children before he does.

Somehow, the news about Denny hasn't made the rounds yet, but it'll be interesting when that happens.

I cannot wait to hear more of the backstory around Rose and how Doc thought she was dead for the past 40 years. Rose was the one who sent Denny to Doc, and she knew Doc wouldn't believe him at first.

What is the deal there? And how did she have a child and never tell him about it? I'm curious to see what Denny wants and how this will play out.

Doc already had his hands full, taking care of Hope. Her TBI had her forgetting that Lilly was dead, and Doc and everyone else was waiting on her hand and foot.

It's good to have Hope back. Her absence was felt. And it was absolutely heartbreaking when she kept asking about Lilly. However, it was worse when Doc told her everything that happened as she cried.

It was one of the strongest scenes of the hour.

With Doc taking more personal time, we'll likely get more of Doc, Hope, and Denny. Hope is dealing with so much as she recovers and grieves her friend. How will she respond when she learns that Doc has a child and grandchild they never knew about?

Doc: Rose? Rose is alive?
Denny: She's my grandmother. And I'm your grandson.

• Permalink: She's my grandmother. And I'm your grandson.

While he's dealing with personal matters, we'll get much more of Cameron. So far, he seems charming. Mel is right about how positive he always seems to be.

And he's already a hit with the town ladies since he's a new, attractive bachelor. The whole waiting room filled with women eager to play doctor with him was hilarious.

Cameron has his eyes on Mel; at least that's what it looks like. Hopefully, it's only a passing crush, and he'll ease up on the flirting when he realizes she's taken.

Thankfully, they didn't waste any time with the revelation of who shot Jack. After going the entire season without answering the question, it would've been disappointing if we went through another premiere without a concrete answer.

Did anyone expect Vince? It felt out of the left field, but if he showed up at the bar looking for Preach, and it escalated, then it's believable.

Preach's storyline during the installment was one of the most jarring. He had a hell of a cliffhanger.

It was weird to recall him down and out, taken down by Paige's friend, only to see him cooking during his first appearance in the premiere as he tried to catch the audience up with everything that happened through this exposition-heavy dialogue.

Vince took Christopher, and the authorities are looking into it, but there's nothing they can do now. It's the gist of what they mentioned during the hour.

Jack: Who is that?
Preach: It's Vince, the guy who took Christopher.
Jack: So it wasn't Brady.
Preach: What?
Jack: Brady didn't shoot me. Vince did.

• Permalink: Brady didn't shoot me. Vince did.

If not for that video footage of Vince the P.I. scored and Preach sharing it with Jack, Jack wouldn't have had those visions and remembered that Vince shot him, not Brady.

Meanwhile, poor Brady is stuck in prison with Jimmy and his buddies, with a half a million dollar bail and backed-up court dates.

Oh, and he doesn't have the woman he loves either.

Brady doesn't deserve this!

You felt for the guy when they showed that Brie hadn't been answering his calls. And now that Brady is out of the way, Mike is attempting and failing at asking Brie out. It's all so messy, isn't it?

Mike is determined to believe that Brady shot Jack and deserves to be in prison, and he doesn't seem keen on changing his mind. He probably won't even do so when Jack tells him the truth.

Brie loves her brother, and those sibling moments between the two are always the best. It's comforting to know that she's sticking around Virgin River.

She can't stay away, and she already has a job offer. I know she wants to give it some thought, but she needs to take it! Brie is right at home in Virgin River. She needs to stop fighting it.

We'll need her skillset to help Brady get out of there.

Brady is always too overconfident. It's unfathomable that he thought he could go through his time in prison without Jimmy trying something.

Thankfully, Brady held his own against Jimmy's shiv attempt, but then he got shanked anyway. My heart breaks for Brady right now.

Free, Brady!

Over to you, Virgin River Fanatics.

What did you think of the premiere? Are you worried about Brady? When do you think we'll learn the paternity of Mel's baby? Sound off below.

Jasmine Blu is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. She is an insomniac who spends late nights and early mornings binge-watching way too many shows and binge-drinking way too much tea. Her eclectic taste makes her an unpredictable viewer with an appreciation for complex characters, diverse representation, dynamic duos, compelling stories, and guilty pleasures. You'll definitely find her obsessively live-tweeting, waxing poetic, and chatting up fellow Fanatics and readers. Follow her on X.