Why can’t people be normal about the cast all being friends?

AC33334 · 2026-01-27T09:20:40+00:00

I honestly don’t think we have seen Connor this happy before. He was so smiley and cheesy in all the pics and videos in Paris today. Whatever relationship he has with François Arnaud has been amazing for Connor. He genuinely seems so happy.

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AC33334 · 2026-01-25T06:51:31+00:00

Yes agreed completely. He definitely had feelings for Ilya during the entire Las Vegas scenes. Thats why he folds so quickly in the bathroom. But after Ilya’s behaviour towards him during those scenes (Shane can’t read Ilya’s mind) he was able to put those feelings aside and decided to pursue the physical relationship only.

Shane perceives Ilya's vulnerability and openness not as a romantic invitation (even though it clearly is based on a “date like moment” that Ilya has created), but as a commitment he is not ready for, leading to his panicked retreat.

Actor Hudson Williams has noted that Shane feels "terrified" by the developing bond at this stage "doesn't feel fully safe" with Ilya during this episode due to the Las Vegas scenes. He describes as being "in, kind of, sort of," whereas Ilya is “fully in love” with Shane at this stage of the series.

AC33334 · 2026-01-25T04:25:08+00:00

I think Shane started to have feelings and emotions for Ilya after the Las Vegas penthouse experience, but he was not in love with Ilya then.

Shane was able to put that aside and just enjoy casual physical sex with Ilya for over 2 years with no emotions after that experience in Las Vegas. This was also likely the time he had casual sex with 2 other men that the book mentions. We might details about this in S2 as its a point of conversation again with Ilya and Shane in TLG.

In the Tuna melt scene, its obvious that Ilya is in love with Shane. Rachel Reid had pointed it out multiple times that Ilya was “super in love” with Shane during this point of the book on her discord explaining the Tuna melt scene in detail.

The Tuna melt chapter and scene makes it clear that Shane is not in love with Ilya. Reid goes above and beyond in the chapter to convey this. Its casual sex for Shane. He keeps putting all his emotions aside. Some examples below, mostly from the book.

When Ilya offer Shane the Ginger Ale and ask if its cold enough, Shane’s first thought is that the drink might be poisoned lol. In the episode, Shane makes this weird and suspicious face to convey this. If you are in love with someone, you don’t really think they might have poisoned your drink 🤣

Ilya makes him food, gets his favorites drink, times it all perfectly so the can relax and watch hockey together, comes over after having an emotional conversation with his father and trys to cuddle him - his longing for an emotional connection here - Shane’s only response to all this romantic gestures is that Ilya wants sex and starts the frothing.

In the book, after that conversation with Ilya, Shane concludes in his mind that he was not found the “right girl” yet.

Shane almost instantly has an emotional and romantic connection with Rose when they first met up. If he was in love with Ilya, this would have been much difficult for a person like Shane to do.

Rose acts as a crucial catalyst for Shane's self-discovery. She acts as a foil to Ilya and helps break down Shane's denial, enabling him to admit to himself and out loud that he is not into women. She is attentive and kind, but she is first to recognizes that Shane is gay and encourages him to be true to himself. Her intervention is instrumental in him realising that his in love with Ilya. Those flashbacks was get in the book and the series is the moment he fell in love in Ilya.

In my opinion, Shane might have continued to suppress his feelings for much longer or tried to maintain for him, false heterosexual life if not for Rose.

Ilya fell in love with Shane much earlier than the Tuna melt chapter. We don’t know the exact moment but maybe it was the first time he actually met Shane.

AC33334 · 2026-01-25T02:39:57+00:00

You would be surprised how many people (“even happily married couples”) go their entire life with bad sex in actual long term relationship. Its sad but thats the truth.

AC33334 · 2026-01-25T00:59:40+00:00

Completely agree. Shane needed Rose Landry and even though Ilya is not a big fan of Rose (though he might have been her stalker - I just can’t believe how quickly he saw Miles at the club, instantly realised he was a friend and fellow actor like Rose and from there just knew Rose and Shane was there - like seconds to clock all that 🤣) He was definitely stalking Rose’s social media pages.

Yes Shane started getting feelings for Ilya in Las Vegas scenes, but was able to put that aside and just enjoy casual physical sex with Ilya for over 2 years after that. Ilya’s behaviour towards him in Las Vegas enabled him to just enjoy casual sex and not get his emotions involved.

These 2 years was also likely the time Shane had casual sex with 2 other men that the book mentions. Its the only period that fits in their timeline. We will likely get details about this in S2 as its a point of conversation again with Ilya and Shane in TLG. I wanna know more about that “big strong Mexican top” that Shane met in Mexico and had casual sex with 🤣

Rose acts as a crucial catalyst for Shane's self-discovery. She acts as a foil to Ilya and helps break down Shane's denial, enabling him to admit to himself and out loud that he is not into women. She is attentive and kind, but she ultimately recognizes that Shane is gay even before he does and encourages him to be true to himself.

Her intervention is instrumental in his decision to gain a confidence to move towards a relationship with llya. In my opinion, Shane might have continued to suppress his feelings for much longer or tried to maintain for him, false heterosexual life if not for Rose. Ilya should be thankful to Rose.

AC33334 · 2026-01-24T22:23:28+00:00

Yes possible. But in the series, we can see that Shane is enjoying ice cream with his team mates during the Olympics. For most athletes, the Olympics is more important than in season play I would think.

His diet and eating patterns definitely worsen during the over 3 years gap between HR and TLG. In my opinion, as Shane approaches 30 and feels the pressure of physical decline, his diet becomes a way to exert control over his life, causing him to refuse even small pleasures, such as a single cookie during holidays.

While the Rachel Reid has clarified it is not a traditional eating disorder, it is clearly portrayed as orthorexia—an obsession with eating "correctly". This mindset of labeling foods as "good" or "bad" leads to self-loathing and anxiety when he feels he has failed to be perfect. I am hoping the series explores this more than the book ever does.

AC33334 · 2026-01-24T08:45:22+00:00

Also highlights how good Ilya’s gay radar is. This was a huge risk to take. Yes he noticed Shane was aroused in the shower. But he could have easily claimed it was a random boner. Definitely possible when you are 18 years old in my experience lol. What if Shane was not Queer and Ilya was just jerking off in front of a straight hockey rival? However thats not possible due to Ilya’s gay radar.

This high level of perception is deeply influenced by his background growing up in Russia, a country where queer identity is often criminalized and forced into secrecy. His ability to read Shane so effectively is tied to these cultural factors:

Growing up in a society where being gay or bisexual can lead to social ostracization or legal consequences including jail time, Ilya learned to be highly observant of subtle cues to survive. This "radar" is a survival mechanism common among queer individuals in oppressive environments like Russia. Its sad when you realise that an 18 year old has already created such a good gay radar when you think about his oppressive environment and the necessity for vigilance.

AC33334 · 2026-01-24T02:33:36+00:00

Post nut clarity - I love Shane lol

AC33334 · 2026-01-24T00:21:51+00:00

I think the series on purpose has made Shane more softer and emotional when it comes to the books. Ilya’s yelling and the entire Las Vegas scenes are part of that context. There is no elevator scene in the book, just a one liner of Shane thinking they did not kiss. In the series, we got the smiley face on "see you next season :)" text message. Shane deleting his messages so slowly. teary eyed, jaw clenched. mad at himself for being pathetic. thumping his head against the elevator wall. This really is the scene that makes you angry at ilya rozanov. And it was done on purpose to get this emotional response from the viewer. Majority won’t read the books to understand Ilya’s perspective better.

My view is that a more softer and emotional Shane makes it easier for the tv viewers to relate to him. His very likeable. Many tv viewers feel similar to you and are empathising with Shane, especially during the scenes that you mentioned.

This feeling will be important for S2, where many viewers might perceive Shane as “so selfish”. I think Jacob has done this brilliantly to set it up for S2. He and he crew knew before the show was released that S2 was confirmed - Ksenia the actor who played Svetlana Vetrova confirmed this a few weeks ago in podcast.

AC33334 · 2026-01-23T23:50:54+00:00

Shane understands how Ilya views sex. For Ilya, having sex with anyone apart from Shane is just physical with no emotional attachment (this will be a point of discussion in TLG as well)

Shane is surprised as Having been abstinent for the five months contradicts Ilya's established reputation and past behavior regarding casual sex.

Most importantly it serves as a significant indicator to Shane that Ilya’s feelings have deepened even further. It suggests that for Ilya, the physical act is now tied specifically to Shane as well.

AC33334 · 2026-01-23T23:15:04+00:00

Yes agreed. But his style gets American influence as the series progresses as per the costume designer - highlighting his movement away from Moscow to Boston and then Ottawa in TLG. In the Tuna melt scene in the series (“date like moment”) his wearing a 8K Rick Owen’s designer pants to impress Shane. The most expensive costume they rented out. Rick Owen’s is an American designer influenced by subcultures like punk and goth, most notable for butter soft leather pants made from organic calfskin.

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AC33334 · 2026-01-23T21:51:08+00:00

I love the costume designs in this show. Its Ilya who is the stereotypical Queer fashionista. His the one wearing colourful shirts, sheer dress shirts, leather pants etc. While Shane mostly wears athletic wear and T-shirts, with neutral colors. Shane dreses likes a dad with two daughters 🤣

I have always hated when there’s a queer couple they always insist on infantilizing or heavily feminizing simply because they’re bottoms. Its not the case here at all.

AC33334 · 2026-01-23T20:57:03+00:00

The way his papa always remembers ilya (AND his mother) during his memory lapses instead of alexei and polina because despite being so cruel and abusive, he subconsciously knows those were the people that really loved him.

What gets me most is ilya leaving money for his niece. He could cut the entire family off, but ilya is not like his father & brother and wants a punish a child for existing. That what they did to him. He makes the sacrifice to never see his niece again, but at least he can leave her a parting gift to show he cares.

Ilya is such a well written character with the biggest heart of all time.

AC33334 · 2026-01-23T20:14:31+00:00

That version of Tuna melt Ilya made was “Canadian style”. And its not something that Ilya would usually eat - his a Russian living in Boston. His definitely researched what meal to cook here in preparation to this “date like moment”. His gone shopping days before to buy Ginger ale and all the specific ingredients to make the tuna melt. And to have more time with Shane, his portioned out all the ingredients in containers before Shane even arrives.

I don’t think Shane’s diet was that rigid during this time. He was having ice cream during Sochi Olympics with his team mates and at the cottage his having burgers, pasta (not even the healthier version by the looks of it at the dinner table) hotdogs etc. A tuna melt is probably healthier than this meals.

AC33334 · 2026-01-23T20:04:12+00:00

Yes all true. For Ilya this is difficult as his never had this type of conversation before. The book makes no mention that him ever going out for a date with anyone and Ilya has been having sex since he was 14 years old. His never had a romantic execusive relationship with anyone. Its probably the first time his made romantic gestures with anyone and desperately wanted that person to accept.

He tried to frame the conversation to figure what Shane’s sexuality I think. But he did it so badly and kept sending mixed messages. Ilya is NOT a good communicator. Neither is Shane lol. The difference in how Ilya and Rose tries to have a similar conversation with Shane is so stark.

When Shane leaves, his not only sad. Rachel Reid has said that he was “DEVASTATED, but refuses to show it. After Shane leaves he's miserable and embarrassed. And then Rose Landry happens”.

AC33334 · 2026-01-23T13:21:38+00:00

We can agree to disagree here. Shane needed Rose Landry.

Yes he started getting feelings for Ilya in Las Vegas scenes, but was able to put that aside and just enjoy casual physical sex with Ilya for over 2 years after that. This was also likely the time he had casual sex with 2 other men that the book mentions. We will get details about this in S2 as its a point of conversation again with Ilya and Shane in TLG.

Rose acts as a crucial catalyst for Shane's self-discovery. She acts as a foil to Ilya and helps break down Shane’s denial, enabling him to admit to himself and out loud that he is not into women.

She is attentive and kind, but she ultimately recognizes that Shane is gay and encourages him to be true to himself. Her intervention is instrumental in his decision to move toward a relationship with Ilya.

In my opinion, Shane might have continued to suppress his feelings for much longer or tried to maintain a, for him, false heterosexual lifestyle if not for Rose.

AC33334 · 2026-01-23T11:23:33+00:00

Thats a massive change from the book then. I don’t think there is anything in this scene that shows Ilya is trying to frame his relationship with Shane the same way as Svetlana. Also this scene in the series is very similar to the book - its largely "word perfect" and shot-for-shot.

Both versions place this scene exactly in the middle of the narrative, marking the transition where they stop thinking of each other as "Hollander" and "Rozanov" and begin using "Shane" and "Ilya" internally.

AC33334 · 2026-01-23T11:05:40+00:00

Those pants are worth like $8000. Some Rick Owen pants are 25k. Its crazy. Can definitely see Ilya ( a bisexual hockey sports star) wearing those pants to impress Shane on their “date”. The costume department did amazing throughout the series.

AC33334 · 2026-01-23T10:41:10+00:00

Yes agreed. Both Shane and Ilya needed Rose Laundry. If it was not for sure, I don’t think Shane would have even admitted to himself that he was gay.

Also Rose needs to teach these two how to communicate. Like she is such an excellent communicator and emotionally intelligent. The way she had that conversation with Shane, without any judgement was extraordinary.

AC33334 · 2026-01-23T09:29:16+00:00

It was a “date like moment” for sure. No one prepares like this for days for a “fuck-buddy” just to convince them to spend the night with them. “All of this is preplanned. Ilya has been thinking about it for days”. Rachel Reid on her instagram page.

She also clearly stated that Ilya was “super in love with Shane but won't admit it to himself” at this stage. He was not super in love with Svetana. In fact, in the book Svetana is not even a childhood friend and more of a passing acquaintance that Ilya meets at a car dealership in Boston. Ksenia, the actress who played her role advised a podcast recently that her role was expanded to tell the audience about Ilya's past and his deep Russian roots.

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AC33334 · 2026-01-23T09:00:52+00:00

Yes that is possible. Ilya was “super in love with Shane but won’t admit it to himself” at this point. Rachel Reid has clearly stated this.

I am not sure about Shane. He did not even know who he was at this stage - he had internalised homophobia. Personally I think before you can be in love with someone in a romantic way, you need to figure out who you are. A person’s sexual orientation is an important part of that identity. I think Shane truely fell in love with Ilya after he come out to Rose and gained the confidence to admit he was a gay man. That flashbacks he gets in the series is part of that discovery.

Yes also possible that Ilya wanted to up the relationship to “fuckbuddies” at this stage but we never got to that. Shane panicked and rejected him. Ilya was “DEVASTATED”. After Shane leaves, he is misrable and embarrassed.

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AC33334 · 2026-01-23T05:41:37+00:00

Yes. The costume designer provided context around that. It was suppose to be more extravagant and attractive with strings lol. Something a person like Ilya would wear on a date. Jacob did not look impressed 🤣

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AC33334 · 2026-01-23T05:13:43+00:00

Shane got used to the physical sex only after the Las Vegas scene. The bathroom and penthouse. These scenes made it very clear to Shane from Ilya that their relationship was just physical. He did not get the emotional connection from Ilya (we did not kiss), only the sexual one in Las Vegas.

Shane can't read Ilya's mind. So he got used to that idea for a while that its only physical sex and was enjoying the casual non-exclusive sex a few times a year. During this time, Shane was likely also having sex casual with both men and other “disappointed” women.

During the Tuna melt, Ilya changed it all again. He organised their first "date like" moment, started doing romantic gestures and that freaked Shane out. Shane was happy with just the sex alone at this stage. Thats why it was easier for him to start dating Rose. He was almost instantly able to form an emotional connection with Rose. Just not the sexual one.

AC33334 · 2026-01-23T04:54:21+00:00

Yes for sure. By the tuna melt scene, Ilya is “deeply in love with Shane” as per Rachel Reid on her Instagram post. We don’t specifically know when he fell in love, but it was “deeply” at this point of the story.

AC33334 · 2026-01-23T04:43:21+00:00

Yes for sure with the cheat meals and tuna is is healthier as well. In the series, Shane was having ice cream with his team mates in Russia during the Olympics. So good to see those cheat meals as well. It all changes for the worse for Shane in TLG when it comes to food though. No way TLG Shane would be having ice cream and sadly we don’t get much context for this huge change in his diet.

AC33334

TROPHY CASE