Heartland

Heartland is a heartwarming, and exciting family series. My daughters and I love the show - it has become a real mother - daughters time for us. We love horses and the "Healing Horses / Healing Hearts" theme is really inviting and enduring to us. We have a large number of friends and family that share our feelings and interest in the show - which makes watching it even more exciting because my daughters love going to school the next day to talk with all of their friends about what happened on the last episode. We just finished watching the season finale and my daughters begged me to go online to find out if the first season will be coming out on DVD and when the second season will possibly start. We find the show very well acted, and extremely well written - the story line is infuriatingly enticing (we can hardly wait to see what will happen to the characters next). The fact that it is based in the Canadian Rockies is just a bonus and certainly must make filming the beautiful landscapes easier. The camera angles and lighting certainly create the right mood for the moment and really make the characters and setting believable. It is hard to believe that a story based on such a tragedy can bring such feelings of love and happiness to the surface, but this show really pulls it off. There is just the right combination of action, drama, romance and comedy to make it enjoyable for everyone watching. We look forward to the next season (we are saddened that the first season is over already). We surely hope that the first season will be brought out on DVD very soon as it is the type of show that one can watch over and over again.

Great story-telling in this series and every aspect is well produced: acting, writing, and the incredible scenery. I'm about halfway through the 12-season show, and am simply enjoying the heck out of it. The horses are great actors, too, and should win awards. It does seem everyone is doing most of their own riding, they make it all so very realistic. The lead Amy played by Amber is incredible, who knew one person could do so many different types of riding and do it well? Horse dancing, to dressage, to jumping, to rodeo, to racing, to communicating deeply with horses in a genuine heart-felt way gets conveyed incredibly well. There's lots of topics that reveal ranch life in today's world that is interesting as well. From wild horses to oil, class war, business vs. family life, addiction, native people's oppression and resilience, death and loss, relationship dysfunction, craziness and creative solutions (no sex). Then there's the whole healing aspect that comes from living in and/or visiting the land where the heart rules. The therapeutic work with the horses affects the people and vice versa in sometimes amazingly touching and profoundly metaphorical ways. The show goes deep and is lighthearted too. It cannot be an easy show for the actors to do because it is quite physically demanding. There's violence, though not too bad, fires, explosions, shooting, avalanches, rescues, fights, lots of action. The characters, including repeating characters and are so well-drawn and acted, you end up taking them to heart. There are a few places where what they do doesn't quite fit with them, what they know or would do in just a few situations, but otherwise the character arcs, their growth and development over the years is an incredible journey of the heart. Totally enjoyable for the whole family, too. If you don't love horses when you start this series, you will.

Sorry, that headline might make you think I hate the show, but actually I'm loving it, for all the same reasons others have mentioned. Heartwarming, wonderful acting, good stories. But honestly, Lou and Tim and just plain insufferable. They're both self-centered, passive-aggressive, and frequently bullies.

That said, the real reason I watch the show is the horses. I can't get enough of those beautiful horses. And the horsemanship. At first I thought there was some camera trickery going on or a stunt double for sure. So I looked up Amber Marshall's (Amy) bio and learned she's a bona fide equestrian. I love watching her ride.

First off, I'm a 32 year old man living in Upstate New York. I drive a truck and have seen a horse up close maybe 3 times. I love this show. The acting is great and the script is written very well. Every now and then, you can predict something, but very rarely can you be specific. Everyone talks about the horses and the heartwarming tales. I agree with all of that. I'm writing this as of the completion of the 8th season. Ty's character was my favorite. I loved Amy as well, but Ty is the kid with the troubled past. I enjoyed how his past became relevant more than once. It's not like he moved and everyone back home forgot about him. He grew as a person and a man. Great things were portrayed in this show.

Also the message Heartland and nature portrays. There is more to live than city living. There's more out there. And it's a richer life.

I strongly recommend this show.

Love watching the show. My daughter and grand daughter love it too. Grand daughter is 2 and says horsey show mama. She would have it on all the time. Too cute. Wish we had more heart warming shows like this. I like the values it teaches. Family is so very important, and this shows a family's struggles and victories. Sleepless nights I turn on Heartland and have a marathon till morning. Wishing episodes 6-8 were available here. I will just have to wait. The story line and cast are excellent. Awesome family show. Makes me want to get baby girl a pony. Would love to see Calgary someday. It truly is beautiful. Would recommend watching this series, it will fill your heart with joy. Grew up with horses at grandfathers. So the story falls right in with all I remember growing up.