Virgin River Season 6’s 1972 flashbacks show the best side of Everett

Virgin River Season 6 is finally here, and we’ve seen flashbacks used like we never have before. Thanks to Episode 2, we finally know how Everett and Sarah first met.

Ever since its first season, Virgin River has been stacked with juicy storylines that fans have gotten stuck into since 2019. Across five seasons, viewers have followed nurse practitioner Mel on her fresh start from her former life, bringing plenty of drama along for the ride.

The Season 5 Part 2 ending brought some new tension to the fore – Everett, Mel’s biological father, has something important to tell her, and we’ve only just found out what that is.

It’s all informed plenty of new storylines in Season 6, including flashbacks to 1972. Here’s what we know so far.

Is there a time jump?

Yes. Episode 2 of Virgin River Season 6 features flashbacks of Mel’s parents, Sarah and Everett, first meeting in 1972. We see smaller, similar flashbacks in multiple episodes later in the show.

Netflix

In Episode 2, Plucky young musician Everett comes across hitchhiker Sarah on his travels. He’s instantly taken with her, explaining she’s on her way to a peace march in San Francisco. Their lives seem to be completely different. Sarah is engaged in new-wave politics, while Everett buries his head in the sand as the Vietnam War looms. 

Everett’s van gives out, causing the pair to pull into Virgin River for repairs (you’ll notice younger versions of characters including Connie and Bert here). It’s an overnight job, meaning Sarah and Everett need to camp out by the river. This is the night the photo is from, with Everett playing his guitar for Sarah. He tries to convince her to ditch plans to spend more time together, but as sizzling as their chemistry is, she doesn’t budge.

They talk about their beliefs and the future, with Everett saying, “I believe if I don’t kiss you, I will regret it for the rest of my life.” They spend the night together, making San Francisco the next day. They part ways, with Everett chasing Sarah down to try and see her again. She believes fate will bring them back together someday. Modern-day Everett says she was “a hopeless romantic, and the love of my life.”

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It’s later revealed that Sarah went back to Mel’s dad, with the two intermittently meeting up throughout the years.

In Episode 7, Everett takes Mel to a field with flowers planted by her mom after Chloe died. We see a flashback of young Sarah and Everett having a picnic, planting wildflowers as a “going away present” to him. When she promises to come back to see them bloom, Everett tells her he’ll be waiting, and they kiss.

Mel eventually picks flowers here for her wedding bouquet.

Flashbacks are integral to Virgin River’s storytelling

From the get-go, flashbacks are heavily featured in Virgin River, particularly fitting to telling Mel’s story after her initial move from Los Angeles.

Netflix

If you’re a long-time fan, you’ll likely remember flashbacks are how we found out the truth about Mel’s life before Virgin River. We see scenes with both her deceased husband and sister, alongside her initial pregnancy journey that led to her miscarriage.

This is similar for Jack, too. We learn about his military trauma after serving in the Marines when he was younger, leading to his battle with alcoholism.

As the use of flashbacks was more common in earlier seasons, their subtle phasing out has divided fan opinion.

“I’m indifferent but I didn’t miss them in the later seasons. I don’t think I hate them either but I have fast-forwarded through them before,” one posted on Reddit.

A second weighed in ” think it’s normal to have flashbacks if you’re human, maybe that’s just me but I can relate to thinking about the past, especially with unresolved traumas.”

“I liked them because they gave a look at her past & what brought her to her current state. My issue was that they went on too long, though screentime could have been used for other stories based on such short seasons,” a third stated.

Virgin River Season 6 drops on December 19. In the meantime, revisit if Paige will return, where Virgin River takes place, and how to read the original books.

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