The 11 Biggest ‘Heated Rivalry’ Book Changes in Season 1 So Far
[Warning: The following contains MAJOR spoilers from Heated Rivalry Episodes 1-3.]
Crave’s Heated Rivalry is gloriously book-accurate, right down to the number of spicy scenes that made their way from the page to the small screen. We’re only three episodes in, and we’ve already noticed a number of lines pulled directly from Rachel Reid’s hockey romance of the same name, which follows rival hockey players Shane Hollander (Hudson Williams) and Ilya Rozanov’s (Connor Storrie) years-long secret romance.
As with any book-to-screen adaptation, though, a change in format means some adjustments to the story are needed. Up until Episode 3, most of Heated Rivalry‘s differences have been minor. However, the show threw viewers a major curveball when it spent an entire episode focusing on an entirely different couple: Scott Hunter (François Arnaud) and Kip (Robbie G.K.). Check out every difference we’ve noticed since the show started airing, and check back for updates as episodes drop.
Don’t forget to let us know what you think of the changes so far in the comments section at the end of the page!
Heated Rivalry, Season 1, New Episodes, Fridays, HBO Max
More focus on Shane's Japanese-Canadian heritage
Shane’s cultural identity is hardly brought up in the book, but we do know his mother is Japanese and his father is Canadian. In the show, however, it’s mentioned right away in Episode 1. First, one of the head honchos of the Montréal Meteors claims that they are “breaking barriers” by signing someone of Asian descent. Later on, Shane’s mom, Yuna (Christina Chang), tells her son to take his brand deals seriously because kids who don’t see themselves a lot in hockey are looking up to him.
“I felt like [his cultural identity] needed to be said out loud because his name is Shane Hollander, so you can whitewash him in your brain really easily when you’re reading a book or when you’re listening in a way that I don’t want to with this show,” creator Jacob Tierney told Teen Vogue.
It's Ilya's idea to film the commercial with Shane
Admittedly, this one isn’t a huge change, but we had to point it out. Shane and Ilya’s experience filming the commercial in Episode 1 is almost identical to the book, aside from two differences. The first is that Yuna is there overseeing things. The second is that Ilya asked for Shane to be included in the commercial. Shane, understandably, is shocked when Ilya reveals this to him. After their homoerotic stationary bike race, it’s the first evidence of how down bad Ilya is for Shane, even though they’ve hardly interacted at that point.
Scott Hunter has an increased presence
Scott is playing an even greater role in Shane and Ilya’s romance than he does in the book. On the page, he only interacts with Shane at the Olympics, which we do see in Episode 2. However, the show decides to involve him in the All-Star Skills Competition. During the event, Ilya tells Shane his hotel room number, while Scott sits right next to the latter on the bench. Though many fans thought Scott overheard the exchange and clocked what was going on, Aranud denied the theory.
Shane's parents are more involved
Speaking of the addition of Yuna’s involvement in the commercial, she has a much larger presence in the show than she does in the book, as does Shane’s dad (Dylan Walsh). She’s just as obsessed about hockey as she seems in the show, but until the end, she rarely physically shows up throughout the events of the story. That hilarious moment when Ilya’s on his way up to hook up with Shane in his hotel room, and he bumps into Yuna in the elevator? Entirely original to the show. So is Shane’s lunch with his parents in Episode 1.
Shane's diet is brought up earlier
Shane’s excessive dieting becomes a more significant topic in The Long Game, the sequel to Heated Rivalry, but it’s hardly brought up in the first book. It seems the show is planting the seed earlier: In Episode 1, when Hayden (Callan Potter) invites Shane to dinner with his family, Shane warns him that he’s on a “macrobiotic diet.” Hayden jokingly tells his wife to prepare “bird food only” rather than steaks.
It takes Shane and Ilya longer to go all the way
In the book, only two weeks pass between Shane and Ilya’s All-Star game hookup and the first time they go all the way. (If you want a chapter-by-chapter breakdown of all their book sex scenes, look no further.) The show, however, decides to make Shane and Ilya wait for it and draw out the tension over two years. The lead-up is spent developing Ilya and Shane’s bond as they communicate over text, which is something they don’t do to the same extent in the book. In that time, Shane also comes to terms with what he wants from the more-experienced Ilya. Fall 2013 is when they take that next step, which takes place in Episode 2. The show also moves Shane and Ilya’s first time from a hotel room to Shane’s apartment, making it feel more personal.
Svetlana is Ilya's childhood friend
When Svetlana (Ksenia Daniela Kharlamova) surprises Ilya in his apartment in Episode 1, he had assumed she was in Russia. That’s because, as we find out in Episode 2, they are childhood friends who grew up together, which isn’t the case in the book. Though they are friends-with-benefits and see each other while Ilya’s hooking up with Shane, Svetlana and Ilya don’t have nearly as much history in the book. Ilya meets Svetlana at a car dealership when he moves to Boston. Will their background create even more angst between Shane and Ilya? Possibly.
In the book, Svetlana is of Russian descent, and her dad is a former Boston hockey player. It makes Svetlana extremely hockey-minded, like she is in the show. She showcases her knowledge of the sport in Episode 2, especially during her conversation with Ilya and Sasha (Kaden Connors) at the post-Olympics gala in Russia. That scene is entirely original to the show.
Sasha is involved in the story
Speaking of, Sasha doesn’t even physically appear in the book like he does in the show. Ilya does tell Shane that he has experience with men, his first one being with his coach’s son back in Russia. He’s only occasionally mentioned in the book from there on out, but the show takes it to a whole other level by having him try to tempt Ilya in Episode 2, during the aforementioned scene with Svetlana. The show is upping the drama by putting a face to the name, so we get it. Still: Get away, Sasha!
Shane doesn't have a 'f**k building'
“F**k building” is pretty crass, we know, but we’re taking cues from Tierney. He told Teen Vogue that Shane doesn’t have “f**k apartment” in Montréal as he does in the books because “[they] couldn’t afford that many locations.” Let’s back up a little bit: Shane, the worrier that he is, decides to purchase an entire building to keep his hookups with Ilya discreet. It’s totally overkill, but also, so very Shane.
When Ilya approaches the abandoned-looking building, he thinks about being murdered in the dark, vacant parking lot. He says something similar to Shane in Episode 2. Even though the building isn’t empty, Shane still has Ilya avoid the main entrance and go up a side stairwell. At least he has a little more chill in the show versus the book.
Cliff clocks that Ilya has a 'Montréal girl'
What Hayden (Callan Potter) is to Shane, Cliff Marlow (Franco Lo Presti) is (kind of) to Ilya. Like the book, the show makes Cliff one of Ilya’s closest friends on his team. This one is a more minor change, but again, we thought it could be worth pointing out. While Cliff is none the wiser that Ilya’s discreetly hooking up with Shane — let alone a guy — he does point out in the show that Ilya has a “girl” in Montréal in Episode 2. He also ribs Ilya for blushing while he’s texting Shane in their locker room. OK, Cliff! You’re more observant than we thought you’d be.
The entirety of Episode 3
Episode 3 spends 45 minutes covering the events of another book in Reid’s Game Changers universe, which charts Scott’s romance with barista Kip. In that way, it’s completely different from the Heated Rivalry book — and the show changes a few things about Scott and Kip’s Game Changer book journey, too. It makes sense that the show would include their story, it’s worth noting, because the two books have overlapping timelines.
Scott and Kip’s meet-cute plays out pretty much exactly the same on screen, and like the book, their relationship moves at the speed of light, with Kip all but moving into Scott’s apartment in a matter of days or weeks. The show doesn’t make that clear, though we do know the entire episode covers four months. Admittedly, the speed makes more sense in the show because it aims to condense three quarters of the book into a single episode.
Because of its length, the show cuts out quite a few sex scenes between Scott and Kip. There’s also a greater focus on Kip’s grad school aspirations in the episode. In the book, his relationship with Scott and feelings of inadequacy next to him is mostly what prompts Kit to make that move. The show, instead, makes that goal separate from their relationship. Also unlike the book, Scott doesn’t offer his boyfriend a $50,000 check for his birthday to pay off his college loans. (A good move on the show’s part.) Kip denies it, of course.
Like the show, the book features appearances by one Ilya Rozanov, since both his and Scott’s teams are in the playoffs. However, in the book, Scott punches Ilya for getting under his skin. The show instead has Shane start a fight with Scott after a game, once the latter chirps that Shane is starting to sound like “him” (aka Ilya).
Finally, Game Changer also places increased emphasis Kip’s isolation from his friends and family due to his secret relationship with Scott, which ultimately leads toward their third-act argument and sort-of break up. Episode 3 gets them to that point, too, but it’s far less angsty.
