Candy Canes and Cruciverbalism for the Win.

Besides starring two of their most popular and high profile leads in this “fun-type” Hallmark, This one did not have a lot to offer other than a tepid romance and high jinks. And I am not a fan of high jinks.

Avery, played by vivacious Ashley Williams is an elementary school teacher whose life, in her sister’s opinion, is too boring. Also, I think there is some mention of a recent romantic heartbreak situation. Or I could be mixing this one up with every other Hallmark ever made. Since she and the rest of her family are going away for Christmas, she has signed Avery up for “The Great Holiday Dash,” a national TV show where the chosen contestants are paired off and compete with the other couples in a series of games in cities across the country. The last couple standing wins a million dollars each. Avery is paired off with hunky Wes, a recently retired Hockey Player played by Andrew Walker. She being the brains and he being the brawn. We know he’s not the brains because he tries to argue 2 of the other contestants out of their airplane seats E and F on the way to Boston, their first location, because his and Avery’s tickets says C and D. And, according to Wes, Cs and Ds look like Es and Fs. At first I thought this might be a learning disability situation which might have been interesting. But No.

I will say that the script had some cute lines and humorous banter in the beginning while the two were at odds. But as they start to be a team and fall in love, it starts to get boring and repetitive. They get to know the hopes and dreams, and in one case, the tragic past, of the individuals on 2 of the other teams, which is how we know which of the 8 or so teams will be the final ones to be eliminated. As for Wes and Avery, we find out that Wes is vaguely estranged from his brother and his family, and Avery was a shy kid whose teacher let her spend her recesses in the library reading books. And now she loves being a school teacher where she too can help shy bookworms avoid recess.

Unfortunately, once again this year, Hallmark has shoehorned two of their most beloved and seasoned stars into scripts that are not age appropriate. I really thought they had gotten away from that, but it seems like sometimes they just can’t resist. It’s not that people in their mid forties couldn’t do well in such a race, but the games once they got to their destinations seemed too silly and a few, downright awkward. Maybe I’m just a stick in the mud. How do I know this script was meant for a more youthful cast? 45 year old Andrew Walker’s character retired last year and is struggling to find what he wants to do with the rest of his life. When Avery asks him why he retired, he tells her that when a Hockey player gets to age 30, it starts to take a toll on his body. So probably 31 or 32, scriptwise? A case could possibly be made for 35 at the oldest. It was kind of weird, because he could have said 37 or 38 instead of 30. And as attractive as Ashley Williams usually is, she is no 35 year old.

I was very disappointed that the last minute bust up happened due to the ol’ overheard conversation where the eavesdropper leaves before the whole story comes out trope. That dropped it a whole star. It had to do with some skullduggery on the part of the producer to increase viewership. Wes was complicit, until he wasn’t. No points for guessing what the scheme this entailed. I won’t say which couple wins the 2 million dollars, but be assured that no couple leaves devastated and with their dreams crushed.