Virgin River showrunner Patrick Sean Smith has revealed plans to expand the beloved Netflix series with a storyline focused on Mel Monroe’s parents relationship – but fans of the show aren’t too happy with the news.
The upcoming prequel will explore the romance between Mel’s parents – Everett and Sarah – which was subtly hinted at in season six.
During the sixth season, Mel is working to build a relationship with her newly discovered biological father, Everett, after learning about her mother’s affair.
Viewers were introduced to a younger version of the couple through a series of flashbacks set in the 60s, which has set the scene for the new prequel.
According to Patrick, the prequel will start during the 1960s, and remain “romance-forward” and “character-based,” following Sarah and Everett’s story while exploring the cultural and social issues of the time.
Speaking to Variety, Patrick expressed: “We wanted to dissect more of Everett and Sarah’s relationship, not just their romance but also the origins of Virgin River itself in the 1970s.”
After the news broke out, fans took to Reddit to give their opinion on which characters the prequel will follow.
A Virgin River viewer prompted the question: “Why a Mel based prequel? She’s not even a likeable character” to which others replied with similar thoughts.
One fan replied: “Agreed!! A prequel about Doc, or about a Virgin River at the beginning would be much better. I hate that Mel’s parents show up… after that in my opinion the whole series is sinking.”
Whilst another chimed in, stating: “The flashbacks were a snooze-fest this season. The thought of a spin-off based on those two is just ‘NO THANKS.”
As a third wrote: “Those flashbacks were horribly boring. I felt like the writers were grasping for straws on that one and should’ve just not done it. It was also just dumb and not remotely believable.”
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Additionally, some fans picked up on the fact that the novels by Robyn Carr – which the series is based on – featured Mel’s parents as her biological parents, with no affair mentioned.
One fan wrote: “This storyline was created for the prequel. In the books Mel’s parents were her biological parents. Didn’t like any of it and definitely would not watch the prequel.”
As another agreed highlighting the books storylines, saying: “They have such good source material – the books – which they are ignoring.”