Small-Town Romance
10 ‘Virgin River’ Couples, Ranked
[Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for Virgin River Season 6.]
Wedding bells are ringing in the air as Virgin River returns for Season 6. Mel (Alexandra Breckenridge) and Jack (Martin Henderson) finally walk down the aisle in the new season, which dropped on Netflix on December 19. There were obstacles along the way, of course, but it is heartening to see the show’s central couple make it to such a huge milestone in their relationship. The new season and their farmhouse-chic ceremony have Swooon thinking about all of the Virgin River couples we’ve seen over the past six seasons.
There have been some misguided affairs, tragically brief love stories, and everything in between on this show. It’s why we keep coming back season after season. And what better way to celebrate all the different flavors of romance on Virgin River than by ranking our favorite duos? Cheers to Season 6 and Jack and Mel’s wedding. Here is who made the cut for our Virgin River couples ranked list.
Let us know if your favorite couple is here. Would you have ranked a certain couple higher?
Virgin River, Season 6, Streaming Now, Netflix
10. Charmaine and Jack
Maybe Jack and Charmaine (Lauren Hammersley) had better days when they first started hooking up, but we met them at a very sad point in their short tenure together, and it only got worse from there. Trying to keep Jack when he clearly wasn’t interested led Charmaine to making some truly poor decisions, and it just made everything else about them so tragic. We’re glad to see Charmaine has learned the error of her ways and that she and Jack have managed to forge a healthy friendship. We hope they can keep it up.
9. Ricky and Lizzie
Ricky (Grayson Gurnsey) and Lizzie (Sarah Dugdale) performing Romeo & Juliet will go down as one of the most painful things I have ever had to watch. They were a cute enough puppy love kind of couple, but they can’t hold a candle to some of the more lasting relationships on the show. Some first loves are meant to be just that, and these two did what they needed to do together.
8. Preacher and Paige
It’s obvious that Preacher (Colin Lawrence) cared so much for Paige (Lexa Doig). He almost died and then was arrested for her! But there was just too much other hard stuff going on in Paige’s life for this relationship to ever take flight. They’re not at the bottom of the list because the potential for something great was always there, but the drama was too much for them to surmount.
7. Brie and Mike
Brie (Zibby Allen) and Mike (Marco Grazzini) make the perfect couple on paper. She’s an attorney, and he’s a cop. They’ve known each other forever, and they are both really hot. What else could a TV couple need? Well, they need a spark, and these two unfortunately don’t have it. Brie is so obviously still in love with someone else, and unfortunately, that’s made a lot of their scenes in the past two seasons feel really strained. They could be so good, but we know they aren’t endgame at this point.
6. Preacher and Kaia
Season 6 did a lot to move Kaia (Kandyse McClure) and Preacher up the list. I did not trust this woman in Season 5 with all of her secrets and her creepy ex-husband. It felt like Preacher was signing up for another wave of drama, but Kaia proved herself by sticking around through Preacher’s trial this season. It seems like she’s ready to set down some roots, and Preacher might finally get the lasting love he deserves. Fingers crossed these two stay on the up and up.
5. Doc and Hope
Doc (Tim Matheson) and Hope (Annette O’Toole) are the epitome of a rollercoaster couple, but after renewing their vows at the end of Season 5, they seem to be on the right path. They’ve learned to talk to each other and proven that they are going to show up for each other even when things are hard. Yes, they got into another big fight at the end of Season 6, but we also saw them use their communication skills and work it out. They may have spats, but at the end of the day, these two are a team. They’re an example for all of the younger couples on the show to follow.
4. Lizzie and Denny
Lizzie has grown up a lot since her first arrival in Virgin River. While she and Ricky were puppy love, she and Denny (Kai Bradbury) are showing they have what it takes to be a real powerhouse couple. They are already expecting a child and trying to figure out how to navigate Denny’s disease together. That is some really, really heavy stuff for a young couple, but it’s impressive how they’ve both stepped up. They have a tragic and difficult road ahead, but they are putting faith in their love and putting in the work to make a happy life while they have it. They’re one of the most inspiring couples on the show.
3. Muriel and Cameron
Muriel (Teryl Rothery) and Cameron’s (Mark Ghanimé) relationship was so short-lived, but it was objectively the best part of Virgin River Season 5. It was such a sweet romance, and they really seemed to bring the best out in each other. The depth of their connection was proven in Season 6 when Cameron helped Muriel navigate her cancer diagnosis. It’s a shame (but also SO VALID) that Muriel doesn’t want kids at this stage in her life because this relationship had all the best ingredients for a great TV love.
2. Brie and Brady
Sometimes a TV couple has so much chemistry that it can make you overlook a cheating scandal. I’m not proud of it, but that is definitely the case for Brie and Brady (Benjamin Hollingsworth) on Virgin River. These two started out hot and then became a little toxic for each other, but the sparks never fully died. In fact, they came roaring back to life in Season 6. Yes, they are both with other people, and that’s really bad, but Brady standing over Brie while she was lying on the pool table at Jack’s Bar is also the steamiest scene the show has given us to date. You may not agree with all their decisions, but Brie and Brady are by far the most exciting couple to watch on the show. We can’t wait to see how they handle the affair in Season 7.
1. Mel and Jack
I mean, duh, right? Who else was going to be #1? Jack and Mel have really put us through it waiting for them to finally get married. They took their sweet time actually becoming a couple. They broke up for about five minutes somewhere in the middle there. They’ve navigated drinking problems and miscarriages together. They are the central focus of the show, and the real reason we come back every season. It’s hard to imagine Virgin River without them, and we hope that we never have to. They have the drama, but they also have proven they are in this for the long haul so they also count as a comfort couple. That balance is hard to walk, but it is what makes them one of the greats.
