Hart of Dixie- 3x2 review

Hart of Dixie- 3x2 review

My largest complaint about the second half of the second season of Hart of Dixie is twofold:

1) That the show's refreshing, unique and peerless emphasis and commitment on friendship and platonic connections was sidelined in favour of romantic relationships.

2) That the intended protagonist character/show lead, Miss. Zoe Hart, was written in such a way that I felt wasn't consistent. Zoe became very difficult to empathize with, and was making selfish and rash decisions that failed to feel organic and in line with the character growth and character development that had occured throughout the series' first season and a half.

After viewing the season three premiere and now episode two of the third season, I can say with confidence that Hart of Dixie has returned to form in a big way. 3x1 and even more so 3x2 have silenced my concerns, and have even surpassed the turnaround hopes I held for the show.

Packed to the brim with friendship and platonic connection scenes (Zoe and Lavon, Lemon and Wade, Zoe and AnnaBeth, Zoe and Brick, George and Lavon), 3x2 thrillingly also presents Zoe as much more cute, charming, warm and amicable than I have seen her in ages.

I greatly approve of the hints flashed of Zoe's possible maturing, with regards to her direct and sincere conversation with Wade at the episode's end.

Lemon and Wade are two characters that have grown up substantially since the beginning of the first season. Their friendship and interactions have been extremely enjoyable, and I love their dynamic in this episode---especially their continual willingness to make personal sacrifices for one another. As much as their interests and goals differ, they make such a good team. They both have one another's best interest at heart, and that comes through in 3x2 when they altered their fake relationship breakup plan several times to suit the evolution of the various situations that both find themselves in (Lemon's newfound  Carter wooing and Wade's desire to make Zoe jealous.  In 3x2, we continued to be treated to seeing Lavon Hayes at his most positive, upbeat and passionate. 3x2 indicates how much Lavon cares for his cousin Linley, while reaffirming how quick he is to be a source of endless support and encouragement to Zoe. Lavon and Zoe's friendship thankfully continued to be allocated  screentime, and I liked how he was so eager to help make Joel feel welcome and throw a dinner party for him.

Perhaps my favourite new feature of season 3 is that with Magnolia no longer in the show, Brick is not only freed up to interact and spar with Zoe more, but also with other members of the cast. Brick laying down the law with Wade was one of the highlights of the episode for me. He was stern and intense and reasonable all at once in his Wade talk.

 I loved Tim Matheson's performance in this episode. Brick is such a compelling character, and it is not secret that his relationship with Zoe is one of my favourite aspects of the series. Brick's scene with Zoe in 3x2 when she brought Joel into his office was priceless. I love how Brick once again tried so hard to deny his affection and warmth for Zoe Hart, yet regardless of what he said to her (about being "banned"), his soft spot for her came flying out with subtlety.

Brick also amused the heck out of me, when he was chatting up Carter Covington. He was determined to be a protective father, but instantly saw that Carter appeared to be the anti-Wade, and instantaneously warmed up to him.

It's quite nice to see Zoe dating a man in Joel who is not overtly jealous of her exes. I was so impressed that Joel even expressed interest in figuring out the truth about Lemon and Wade's "relationship". He just does his Joel thing and doesn't seem to require approval from others to be satisfied (he was a little disappointed that Lavon didn't like his book, but even that didn't stop him from going out there and being himself to a T).

Tom and Meatball both delivered stellar performances in their limited time in the limelight. I also enjoyed that the writers played into AnnaBeth's ongoing conundrum of loyalty, as she continued to try to be friends with both Lemon and Zoe. AnnaBeth had a admirable straight up, to the point, undramatic mentality when she realized that both Lemon and Zoe would be attending the party for Joel. AnnaBeth of yore would have freaked out about Zoe and Lemon both attending, but AnnaBeth handled it with a cool and calm demeanor here. Continuity to Lemon and Zoe's rivalry was even delightfully openly acknowledged, when Lemon took pleasure in announcing to Zoe that she would see her at the party (implying that Lemon would be coming to the party), knowing full well that it would grind Zoe's gears, and saying it to do exactly that.

So far in the two episodes that have aired in Season 3, I feel Hart of Dixie has excelled in having an interesting and effective balance between lightness, drama, friendship, romance, comedy, character dynamics and growth and situational plot. I loved this episode. I thought it was one of the best in the series and I am thrilled with Season 3 so far!