‘Hart of Dixie’ continues to charm

Posted April 26, 2013

By STEPHANIE PARRA

For anyone with a love for small southern towns, the show “Hart of Dixie” is an appropriate series to follow.

Pictured (L-R): Travis Van Winkle as Jonah and Rachel Bilson as Dr. Zoe Hart. Photo by Robert Voets/The CW

Pictured (L-R): Travis Van Winkle as Jonah and Rachel Bilson as Dr. Zoe Hart. Photo by Robert Voets/The CW

The show, currently in its second season, centers on Dr. Zoe Hart. Hart, played by Rachel Bilson, is a typical New Yorker with an agenda.

During the pilot episode, Hart discovers she is turned down for a prestigious surgical fellowship she was destined to obtain. She then decides to accept an offer from a stranger, Dr. Harley Wilkes. Wilkes met Hart at her medical school graduation and proposed she join his small medical practice in Bluebell, Ala.

The show, which returned from its second season spring hiatus, made a strong reappearance to the small screen on Tuesday. The episode, titled “Why Don’t We Get Drunk?” strays from the show’s typical themes of love, laced with medical drama and comedy.

In this particular episode, Lavon Hayes (the town mayor played by Cress Williams) tries to make Bluebell a spring destination for college students, as it is located near the beach. Even though Bluebell is a fictional town in the show, its location is approximately where Point Clear, Ala., is located in reality. Hayes, on the show, does a great job at making the town seem as exciting as usual during this particular episode.

At the same time, other subplots continue to develop. George Tucker (played by Scott Porter), the town’s attorney and other protagonist, continues to demonstrate his feelings for Hart. Tucker, who had more of an active role during the first season, seems to be taking the main stage again.

Hart, on the other hand, plays down his feelings, as she is still healing from the heartbreak caused by Wade Kincella (Wilson Bethel), the uneducated bartender son of the town drunk. The love triangle continues to develop as other relationships on the show become more and more complex.

Pictured (L-R): Travis Van Winkle as Jonah and Rachel Bilson as Dr. Zoe Hart. Photo by Mike Yarish/The CW.

Pictured (L-R): Travis Van Winkle as Jonah and Rachel Bilson as Dr. Zoe Hart. Photo by Mike Yarish/The CW.

Still, Tucker is jealous as Hart tries, but fails, to find herself a rebound for her recently broken relationship.

She finds herself landing a date with Jonah Breeland (Travis Van Winkle), a hotshot doctor who is visiting his uncle in town for the spring season.

While Tucker tries, but fails, to make complications arise that would lead Breeland to cancel the date, Hart realizes Tucker’s intentions. Hart and Breeland go on their date, but sparks don’t seem to fly between the two.

While the audience may not immediately catch on to the foreshadowing provided by the interactions between Hart and Tucker, later scenes throughout this particular episode provide sneak-peaks into a blossoming relationship that is sure to sprout throughout upcoming episodes left throughout the season.

Through unexpected twists and turns, the show takes viewers on the emotional, yet comical challenges Hart faces while practicing medicine in the small town. This particular episode, “Why Don’t We Get Drunk,” is no exception to the show’s usual excitement.

  • “Hart of Dixie” (2011-present)
  •  8 p.m. Tuesdays on the CW
  • Genre: Medical drama/comedy drama
  • Starring: Rachel Bilson, Cress Williams, Scott Porter, Wilson Bethel
  • Created by Leila Gerstein
  • Rating: 4.5 out of 5