Thyme on the River

Pilot – Shit Show Beat Sheet

ACT I

Meet the Andersons - The Jeep enters the wilderness. Melissa is still working, Woody wants a family adventure, and Sahalie is losing her connection to civilization.

Meet River Lodge - Sam announces the lodge is for sale. Kathy grieves, Billie resists, and Autumn believes she should inherit the operation.

Inciting incident - Melissa sees the For Sale sign from the drift boat. Woody immediately recognizes what she's thinking.

Debate - Melissa pitches the business plan to Woody. He challenges the financial risk, their home, his father's inheritance, and Sahalie's future. Melissa sets up a tour and has a business plan. Woody refuses to read it.

ACT II

Meet the staff - The Andersons meet the staff and tour the lodge. Melissa only sees the good. Woody only sees the bad.

Meet the bad guys - Ranger Dick demands approval through him. Autumn restricts access to Cabin 6 and tells the Andersons the generator is old but works great.

Walk In disaster one - Chef Brian discovers Billie's unlabeled cottage-cheese-container organization system.

Decision time - The family stands beside the river. Sahalie finds something (Hunter) to love, Woody wants the view, and Melissa declares they're in.

The plot - Autumn asks Ranger Dick to obstruct the sale. He refuses outright sabotage but is holding back major information from the Andersons, and the bank.

Point of no return - The bank approves the financing. Melissa and Woody become owners of River Lodge - and its 56 toilets.

ACT III

Local trouble - Locals throw bottles, remind them they are outsiders, and announce that they aren't welcome.

Authority tested - Melissa introduces uniforms. Billie refuses. Melissa admits she needs to fire Billie but isn’t ready.

Sewer trouble - There is a septic issue, it seems to be recurring as it has a code name over the radio. Autumn takes Woody on a hike to investigate.

Major confrontation - Ranger Dick demands the historic table. Chef Brian and Billie explode in the kitchen. Melissa fires Billie and takes control.

Emotional consequence - Melissa asks Woody for help. He reminds her that she wanted a restaurant, while he wanted a different life.

Marriage vulnerability - Melissa admits she feels attacked from every direction. Woody reassures her that he still loves her.

ACT IV

Everything is broken - The defective stove, archaic reservation process, and Tracy's resistance demonstrate how much must change.

Hunter earns his name - Hunter kills the hummingbird. Guests threaten bad reviews while Melissa tries to deal with an impossible situation.

Financial reversal - Woody presents the $35,000 water-line bill. The couple cannot afford it, and Melissa realizes that her confidence has placed them in jeopardy.

Betrayal revealed - Ranger Dick's signature proves the work was known about before the sale. Melissa realizes everyone knew except the Andersons.

Sahalie's isolation - She searches for cell service by the river and tells Hunter she misses her friends.

Chef Brian collapses - The chef is discovered crying in a bathroom covered in fecal matter. Now Melissa has a restaurant with no chef.

Office drama - Melissa and Woody argue in her office. Woody challenges whether they are truly in this together.

Team bonding - Melissa and Kathy drink in the wine cellar, admitting they still love the place despite everything.

ACT V

Chef search - Melissa interviews replacement chefs. The first candidate is dangerously incompetent, and the staffing problem appears unsolvable.

Walk In disaster two - Dan and Jessica's walk-in encounter begins their enemies with benefits relationship and gives Melissa another problem.

Woody saves the day - Woody brings in Chef Pete, a fisherman who can actually cook. Pete prepares an exceptional meal. Melissa recognizes they have found their chef. For the first time, the family celebrates a real victory.

Tag - Ranger Dick announces the lodge's power will be shut off due to a fatal accident into a power pole. Woody goes to start the generator. Autumn reveals it hasn’t run in decades. Power goes out.