Since it’s only Nancy Drew Season 4 Episode 3, on some level, we had to know it would turn out this way.
Because what writers in their right mind would allow their star couple to break a love curse only three episodes into the season?
But knowing we should have expected it doesn’t make it hurt any less.
Oh, and talk about pain.
In this one hour, they gave Nace fans many of the moments we’d been hoping to see, only to snatch it all away.
But let’s concentrate on the good stuff first. We’ll need that to make it through to the next installment.
Did we care that Nancy and Ace had failed to break the curse 36 times already? No, because they were working on it together, giving them opportunities to talk.
Ace: Are you still scared?
Nancy: Yeah. Having you here helps. Are you scared?
Ace: I should be. I’m cursed. But of all the times we have faced death, I have never been more excited to keep living.
And talk they did. It was sweet how hesitant yet curious they were to discover when the other had developed feelings for them.
That it was around the time of the wraith in Nancy Drew Season 2 for Nancy wasn’t a surprise to viewers, but that Ace, as a senior in high school, fell for Nancy, a sophomore, as he watched her struggle and then succeed with making a science experiment volcano explode was delightfully charming.
Nancy had no idea that she was even on Ace’s radar, but he was smart enough to see how special she was even back then.
Ace: When did you first know you had feelings for me? Was it that day in the warehouse before DetectiveCon?
Nancy: Earlier. After we defeated the wraith. You had been there for me so many times, but that one was… You know, I went to your house that day. I had this whole awkward speech prepared. But when I got there, you’d already left to go on that road trip with Amanda. God, I was jealous of Amanda.
Ace: I was jealous of Gill. And Park.
Nancy: How about you? When did you know? Was it after you drank Karen’s fake poison for me?
Ace: Earlier. The day you made the volcano erupt.
Nancy: That long?
Ace: That long.
And things only got better from there!
Nancy shared how she wanted to recreate her parents’ honeymoon photo in Paris at sunset with Ace, and he longed to watch the sunrise with her from a hot air balloon.
And we could picture every glorious moment of their future together.
This ardent affection should have had us bracing for what was to come. Instead, we just soaked in every romantic moment, only to have reality slap us in the face.
But attempting to break this curse certainly had its moments.
Nancy painting the sigil on Ace was one of the hottest scenes of the series. If Bess hadn’t yelled for help, Nace might have spontaneously combusted even without the help of the dreaded curse.
And then there was that kiss!
I know you’ve done this before, but for me, this is our first kiss.
Ace
Their first real kiss. Not a hallucination. Not a vision. Not something only one of them would remember, but a real, honest-to-goodness, jaw-dropping kiss.
When we witnessed the curse leaving their bodies, our hopes lifted that Nace might share many more kisses like that soon.
Talk about a tease.
We expected Ace’s life to be on the line if things went badly. So when Nancy was the one to collapse, we didn’t see it coming.
I know there are only so many minutes in an episode, but I would have loved it if they hadn’t jumped to Nancy waking up in the hospital. I wish we had witnessed Ace at Nancy’s side in the ambulance because all the terror he felt in those moments led to what was to come.
And what was to come has shipper hearts breaking everywhere.
Nancy: I am in this because of you. You said this is what you wanted.
Ace: I still do. I want to be with you more than anything, but it is not worth the risk. We were friends before for a long time. Even when we had secret feelings for each other, we shoved them down, and we could still be in each other’s lives. We managed.
Nancy: I know what it’s like to kiss you now! And for that to be real and not some hallucination, and I can’t pretend that never happened. I can’t go back.
Ace: I can’t go forward. Not like this.
It makes sense that Ace would feel this way. Emotionally, he’s where Nancy was a month ago when she was fresh off the terrifying vision of Ace dying in her arms after that car crash.
And Ace wasn’t the only one reeling from Nancy’s health scare.
Carson was shaken as he sat at Nancy’s bedside, waiting for her to wake up. But when she said she was ready to take on the curse again, concern turned to anguish.
Carson: What were you doing?
Nancy: We tried to break the curse.
Carson: You and Ace tried to break Temperance’s death curse. The curse that you said would kill him.
Nancy: Yeah, but it didn’t, and I’m fine. Temperance may have found a way to poison my part of the ritual, but when we try again…
Carson: Try again! You can’t be serious.
Nancy: Well, I’m not going to give up. Ace is my person. You don’t understand.
Carson: I don’t understand what? Love? I don’t understand wanting to be with someone so badly that I would do whatever it took. I watched my wife die. I understand everything. Sometimes no matter how much you want something, it’s not meant to be, and you have to give up and accept that and move on. I’m so sorry, Nancy. I lost your Mom. I can’t lose you too.
Carson lost the love of his life when Kate died; whether he admitted it or not, he’s far from over that.
And on a side note, hearing that it’s only been one year since Kate’s death was jarring. I had to remind myself that even though it’s been almost four years for viewers, the show’s timeline is much different.
Joining a widower’s support group could be good for Carson, but what this means for him and Jean is anyone’s guess. I don’t want Carson to end up alone, but I’m also not very invested in this relationship. Perhaps that will change by the time the series ends.
Even George and Nick had issues, although that had nothing to do with the curse.
After a breakup, people get space. They don’t immediately have to co-parent and co-run a business. I need space.
Nick
Nick and George have been so supportive of one another in recent weeks that it came as quite a shock when he somewhat angrily told her he needed space.
It’s not an unreasonable request, but it seemed strange because it appeared to have come out of nowhere, and my reaction mirrored George’s shock at Nick’s tone and words.
And it looks like Nick is about to go head-to-head with Councilwoman Brie.
So who was she speaking to on the phone when she told them she took care of the water thing? Whoever it was, she said she’d see them at the next town council meeting.
And I was surprised when Brie screamed as the black veins appeared on her neck. Nancy didn’t even realize when it happened to her, so I’m curious about their differences.
Elsewhere, it was good to see Birdie from Nancy Drew Season 2 Episode 13. It’s not often we get to check in with characters from previous episodes, and it was a nice twist to know that she’s now dating George’s sister, Jessie.
As for Avery, the school bully, shouldn’t there be a spell to deal with him? I mean, something that doesn’t turn him into an evil demon.
And I love that Bess has taken on the mantle of teaching the next generation about the supernatural. I worry that with members of the town being up in arms about the occult and the town looking to cut back, they could come in and ransack the Historical Society.
You have a right to learn all of this. I just might not have as much time to teach you as I thought.
Bess
I have this vision of the Glasses, who were blessedly absent this hour, bidding on the contents of the archive room.
And as happy as I was not to see the nefarious couple or their gorgeous son, Tristan, I was equally upset not to have Ryan around for a second episode.
Nancy needs both of her dads, and I especially missed him during Nancy’s collapse and hospital stay.
But the heartwrenching moment of the episode was clearly when Ace left Nancy with this Nancy Drew quote:
Nancy: What about the sunset in Paris? And the hot air balloon ride?
Ace: It would have been perfect.
Nancy: You’re not just leaving.
Ace: It hurts too much to be here.
So as we all lick our emotional wounds after this agonizing breakup, be sure to hit that SHOW COMMENT BUTTON below so we can share our misery.
Then come back for our Nancy Drew Season 4 Episode 4 review.
And then you can watch Nancy Drew online here at TV Fanatic.
C. Orlando is a TV Fanatic Staff Writer. Follow her on Twitter.