Although several months have passed, some fans are still trying to recover from the shocking events in “Saving Hope’s” explosive Season 3 finale, “All the Pretty Horses.” The episode captured the full circle of life, juxtaposing a mind-blowing death with a heartwarming birth (relive the episode with a detailed recap HERE). There were a flurry of emotions as fans sat on the edge of their seats in disbelief and tears. Now, we all await to see what will happen in the aftermath.
New parents, Alex and Charlie, are adapting to family life. While Alex is focused on figuring out how to balance parenthood with work, Charlie is still wondering if Joel is Baby Luke’s father. (Pssst, so are we!) CTV/Bell Media released a synopsis of the big changes we can expect to see in Season 4, warning fans that more obstacles lie ahead for our beloved ChAlex and Co.:
““Saving Hope” returns with new mom Dr. Alex Reid (Erica Durance) back at work following her maternity leave for her first day of a competitive fellowship. Set 11 months after the events of last season’s explosive finale, the doctors of Hope Zion Hospital are still reeling from the loss of Dr. Joel Goran (Daniel Gillies). But for Alex and her partner Dr. Charlie Harris (Michael Shanks), it’s back to business when their plans of starting off slowly on Alex’s first day are intercepted by a series of demanding medical incidents.”
As if that isn’t rough enough, Charlie begins to realize that “the usual rules of the “Ghost World” seem to be evolving.” It’ll be very interesting to see exactly what that means. Charlie has always felt that his gift is both a blessing and a curse. You can’t blame him for feeling frustrated when his supernatural encounters start messing with him in new ways. He’ll be even more cautious now that he has a family to care for as well. How will Charlie’s gift affect his family life?
Alex’s discovery of Charlie’s gift was a real roller coaster ride last season. While in limbo, Alex’s spirit spoke with him and they planned to have a family together. Unfortunately, when Alex awoke from her coma, her memories of limbo and her affections for Charlie were lost. Hence her hook-up with Joel. However, as Baby Luke grew within Alex, she gradually regained those memories and her passion for Charlie slowly rekindled. Once Baby Luke was born, all of her love for Charlie and her memories came rushing back. Phew! But we still don’t know how Alex feels about Charlie’s gift or if they’ve even discussed it again. Fingers crossed, this issue will be addressed in Season 4, especially if Charlie’s supernatural surroundings are beginning to change. You also can’t help but wonder if Alex will eventually become affected by her experience in limbo too. Charlie was warned that a piece of Alex was left behind. Did Baby Luke’s birth make her whole again or is something still missing?
Hope Zion is also bringing in a new batch of doctors who will surely mix things up. “Saving Hope” will introduce us to some fresh faces who will be learning from and competing with Hope Zion’s staff of superstars. New Junior a Residents include “the eager to please Dr. Cassie Williams (Kim Shaw), class clown Dr. Dev Sekara (Dejan Loyola), and the competitive Dr. Asha Mirani (Parveen Kaur).” New General Surgeons, Dr. Patrick Curtis (Max Bennett) and Dr. Jeremy Bishop (Peter Mooney), may also pose a threat to those who are trying to climb their way up the ranks, like Dr. Maggie Lin (Julia Taylor Ross). Meet the new kids on the block and get a look at Season 4 in CTV’s fun video. Watch HERE! (Fans outside of Canada can download Hola to view the video.) Suffice it to say that this is going to be a very busy season for Hope Zion’s finest.
While we’re excited to get to know all the newbies, many of us are still haunted by some huge questions lingering after the chaos of last season. Chief of Surgery Dr. Dawn Bell (Michelle Nolden) was eager to start a family of her own after briefly rekindling her romance with Charlie. When she sadly realized that she couldn’t have children, Dawn became taken with a sweet and spunky foster child, Giselle. Now that 11 months have passed, has Dawn adopted Giselle or has she moved on from the prospect of motherhood? CTV’s synopsis says Dawn “struggles to keep a lid on Hope Zion Hospital, and with her own personal crisis to deal with she finds herself in a darker place than she ever thought possible.” We fear that Giselle’s foster status might be a contributing factor in the darkness plaguing Dawn. Of course, Dawn isn’t the only one feeling gloomy. Joel’s death is taking a severe toll on the ones he left behind, especially his buddy, Dr. Zach Miller (Benjamin Ayers).
It has been great getting to know Zach more and more over the past few seasons. He’s more than a wise-cracking ER doc. This sensitive guy has quite a lot of baggage and Joel just added another carry-on. There’s no doubt Zach will be struggling with survivor’s guilt this season. Joel cleverly got Zach out of harm’s way and sacrificed himself for the sake of others. Hopefully, Zach we’ll see this as a new beginning and open himself up to others instead of pulling away. He seemed like he was ready to get more serious with Melanda. Has their relationship has evolved since last season? Will we see Zach spending more time with his kids?
Many of the characters we have grown to care for have found themselves at a crossroads throughout the course of the series. Maggie always seems to be a bit of a hot mess, especially when it comes to her love life, but this time around it seems like she’ll be having more of a career crisis. Will she still pursue a career as an OBGYN or has she moved on to something different? Will she be distracted or threatened by one of the new doctors? We’ve seen Dr. Shahir Hamza (Huse Madhavji) make a ton of progress over the years and we’re happy to see how hard he’s been trying to make a connection with his co-workers and friends. What kind of ” surprising new partnership” has Shahir developed? Has the bashful doctor found a new beau? We’ve also learned a lot about Dr. Dana Kinney’s (Wendy Crewson) arduous personal life and we’re worried about the challenges she will continue to face this season, both professionally and personally. What higher calling will she discover this season?
What do you think about all of the new additions, Hopefuls? What questions have been eating away at you over the hiatus? Do you think we’ll find out who Baby Luke’s father is? Would you like to see Alex develop supernatural abilities too? Do you think she’s more supportive of Charlie’s gifts now? Are you worried about Zach? Check out the Season 4 promo and share your thoughts below.
“Saving Hope” just announced on Twitter that they’ll be chatting with Durance and Shanks live on Periscope this Thursday, Sept. 24. Follow @SavingHopeTV for details and start submitting your questions for the stars now.
“Saving Hope” Season 4 premieres on Thursday, Sept. 24 at 9 p.m. on CTV.
This article was originally published on Examiner.com on September 23, 2015.
UPDATE (Summer 2016): ‘Saving Hope’ now airs on ION Television in the U.S. and still airs on CTV in Canada. Visit ‘Saving Hope’s’ ION TV homepage (HERE) or CTV Homepage (HERE) for details.
