Virgin River fans call out ‘pointless’ storyline as they’re left baffled by character’s absence

Virgin River fans have been left disappointed by a ‘pointless’ storyline that saw a key character seemingly written out of the show.

Virgin River enthusiasts are expressing their irritation about a plot that appeared to fade into oblivion after seasons of anticipation.

Lexa Doig’s character, baker Paige Lassiter, quickly became integral in the series since her introduction in the first season, forming a tight bond with Preacher (Colin Lawrence).

Paige’s journey began as she fled an abusive marriage with Wes (Steve Bacic), seeking refuge in Virgin River, only to face further trials when pursued by Wes’s twin brother Vince.

The drama escalated when Vince shoots Jack Sheridan (Martin Henderson) and abducts Paige’s son Christopher (Chase Petriw). Although Vince gets arrested in season five, viewers were left discontented by Paige’s sudden decision to depart from Virgin River at the commencement of season five, disappearing from the show thereafter.

A dissatisfied fan aired their grievances on Reddit regarding what they felt was an abrupt and underwhelming resolution to a highly charged storyline, reports the Express.

Posting their dismay, the user questioned: “They go through all this s**t and in the end, she just leaves town and they don’t even end up together.”

Not only deriding the unresolved narrative, they also criticised Preacher’s latest romantic link with Kaia Bryant (Kandyse McClure), stating: “After all the built up, he ends up with this random firefighter with whom he has zero chemistry no less, unlike Paige.”

The viewer also questioned the overall purpose of the story arc, asking: “But really, what was the point of this entire weird, B-story arc about Preach doing all this for Paige?

“There is no payoff for him. I am thinking maybe the writers had a bigger role for the actress playing her and she probably could not fit it into her schedule or something – which makes sense given that she was pretty much entirely absent in later seasons and then only she came back to wrap up this loose end.”

Since Lexa Doig, the actress from Virgin River, scored roles in Goosebumps, The Power and Chucky, and appeared in the Aurora Teagarden Mysteries TV movies, it’s possible she couldn’t devote time to a whole season of the Netflix series.

Disappointment has also been voiced by other fans over how Preacher and Paige’s saga unfolded, diverging from the trajectory described in Robyn Carr’s novels.

“I’ve always wondered this as well. Went on so long and for what?” one viewer responded.

“I assumed the actress got another acting job so they wrote her off,” shared another fan.

A third chimed in: “They surely must have intended them to end up together as they are in the books. So IDK what happened but I agree it was just unnecessary.”

And a fourth added: “In the books, Preacher does end up with Paige. My guess is the writers didn’t know she was leaving the show.”

Speculations linger about whether Paige might return if her storyline with Preacher doesn’t pan out, especially after Preacher’s accidental confession of love in season five. Could he be ready to commit?