Heated Rivalry: Introductions and cigarettes
What smoking means to Shane and Ilya
Picture from: https://heated-rivalry.com/heated-rivalry-season-one/
If you’re here right now it’s probably because you’re very interested in the hit TV Show Heated Rivalry created by Jacob Tierney that debuted in November of 2025. Someone, somewhere shared this link with you because they know you consume everything about Heated Rivalry and “why not add a That subscription to that obsession?” Or, maybe you found it yourself. Either way, I see you and thank you for being here.
This little project is ambitious and incredibly outside of my comfort zone in so many ways. Writing is not my profession….at all….in any imaginable sense of the word. So, if you’re bored by my writing style or think it’s pedestrian filled with grammar mistakes, I do too. We’re in good company. Also, I have obligations outside of this little project like work and family. If I don’t publish on a rigid schedule it’s because I’m busy. That’s life.
Additionally, did you see the title of my listing - Definitely still an amateur. Because even though I think I am untangling the web of the subtext of this show, I’m definitely still….. Well, you know where that’s going. I have not had formal training in film anything. It was never an interest of mine as a young person and is nothing I currently work in either. Specifically, film analysis is something that I’ve only just started exploring in the last few years as a hobby.
To begin this endeavor feels like a drop of water that is the sea of content we’re drowning in with Heated Rivalry in the winter of 2026. (I’m happily drowning here. Please don’t misunderstand.) My droplet of content is nothing I’ve seen yet explored on any platform to the depths that I am craving. Yes, there are some shining examples of subtext exploration here and there but no one creator really consistently dives into all of the crevices that is this ocean of subtext. So, I’m going to try to lay out my thoughts with your help to try to shine a light on everything we see on film that has an extra layer of meaning.
Let’s talk about what my listing, Definitely Still an Amateur, is and what it isn’t so you’re not disappointed when we don’t go over that one thing you’re dying to learn more about.
What this project is:
- My project is about film subtext. My primary focus, for as long as my attention allows, will be the subtext in the TV series Heated Rivalry. Though it’s not in the current plan to explore other series or films, don’t be shocked if the conversation steers off course for a bit.
- It’s available to anyone who wants access to it. There might be a stray article that will go behind a paywall because of the explicit content discussed considering the nature of some of the scenes. But, my hope is to avoid that as much as possible.
What this project is not:
- This is not a gossip column. The personal lives of any of the creators or actors will not be discussed here unless it directly relates to the subtext of the film.
- This is not a project that will tackle minute character motivations like when an actor hesitates before one word and how the audience is supposed to know their every thought because of that pause. I just don’t think like that. There are plenty of sources for that online including podcasts like “Shelf Aware” that lend depth to these characters and meaning to their motivations. It’s a valid discussion to pursue; Just not something I’m going to go on about. There are too many content creators to list here. Feel free to comment below with your favorite creators.
- This is not a project to break down the technical aspects of filming like types of cameras, lighting techniques, sound and music selections, editing and shot angles. It might come up to support a theory but it will not be the major focus. There are creators like Valentina Vee on Instagram who you should seek for that content.
- This is not a project that will analyze any of Rachel Reid’s written work. Her books are the source material of the series and could have a valid place in discussing film subtext. But, anything beyond using her work as a reference for our discussion is not something I wish to pursue.
- A project about hockey. My knowledge is limited to just about what is shown on screen and it will probably be easy to tell. Thankfully the filmmakers only showed us the parts we needed to know to figure out the real story.
That’s the intro folks. There are some other smaller things that will come up later but we should really get started.
There are at least three widely accepted metaphors that have been discussed in the fandom up to this point. We will start with those as some of you may have knowledge of those metaphors and we’ll use those to move into more complex topics in the future. So, some of the focus of the first three articles I did not come up with on my own but do merit some weight to discuss here. I do extend those metaphors further but their bones are already out there. When I can find the source of those metaphors, the link to the source material will be included. If I don’t know the creator or I can’t find it please comment below with the source, if you’re aware, so we can give credit where it is due.
Why not open this article with the opening shot: A young Achilles in a beanie is trying to light a cigarette against a gray wall. He fails miserably until another cute young man with freckles shows up and introduces himself. We all know that scene - Shane Hollander offers his hand to Ilya Rozanov to shake and, after they touch, when attempted again the lighter magically produces a flame, or a spark, to light the cigarette.
Most viewers caught this ‘spark’ right away. Bravo! Because at the end of the day, that’s what starts this whole love story, this magical spark between the two of them. And, that’s what these articles will be about, finding the additional meanings behind the choices made by the film makers. But, I’m going to guess that’s about as far as most of you got on this little spark. And, that’s okay. The lighting of that cigarette made you think a little deeper about something other than what you saw on screen. You saw a physical spark from the lighter but you understood the real meaning which was to show us what is happening between those two junior hockey players. They absolutely felt a spark between their interactions and we got to watch that spark grow through the whole series. No one had to say “We felt a spark of mutual attraction” for us to know that is what they felt.
Now, the metaphor doesn’t stop there. Or, rather there is another very tried and true filming metaphor in that shot. We can look beyond the flame between Ilya and Shane to the cigarette itself along with some other key details in the shot to understand even more about this series. My friend, we’ll call her divi, and I were chatting about this scene and she pointed out a very important sign on the wall. It might not have even registered in your mind that the sign was there, ‘cause it sure didn’t with me either, or you just chuckled at the irony of this young man smoking a cigarette right in front of it. This IS Ilya Rozanov after all and, if you didn’t know before this shot, we soon find out that he is a little bit rebellious.
The sign is the ‘No Smoking’ sign in picture form. The one with the red circle with the line going diagonally through it with the picture of the offending item or action inside of it. It is clearly a ‘No Smoking’ sign. If you’re a super fan, you’ve seen pics of regular people standing in front of that wall and what is NOT there is the ‘No Smoking’ sign. So, the sign was put there for a reason. Ilya does not give one care that the sign exists but he most definitely saw it when he leaned against that wall to smoke that cigarette.
Also, we know from the line by Shane, “You’re an awesome player to watch”, that they are currently at a hockey practice while he motions with his hand in his pocket to the inside area in the background and behind him from whence he came. We KNOW that hockey is occurring just behind that wall and they were participating in it within the last few minutes. That same wall that specifically has that ‘No Smoking’ sign behind the man smoking that cigarette because he wants to (maybe even needs to) smoke and, importantly, in defiance of that sign.
Does anyone see where we’re going yet?
What would Ilya want, and maybe even need, that is also in defiance of the rules? That cigarette of course. But, could it be something else? Um, yes. I didn’t lead you on this long for it to not be. And, I did lead with ‘tried and true filming technique’ at the very beginning of this. So, let’s just say it. The cigarette is about a gay sex. [Let’s identify what this term means here so that there is no confusion. The term ‘gay’ can mean many things to many people in the queer community. But, for the sake of this story and what these articles will be about, let’s just establish ‘gay sex’ means sex between two cisgendered men because that is what this series is about.]
These little visual clues about sex were cleverly crafted after the creation of The Hays Code. You can look it up but the short version is that these were a set of rules developed in the early 20th century that restricted film makers from talking about or showing simulated sex on screen or even showing body parts that they considered private. If they did, those films would not be distributed to any audience. Filmmakers resorted to unique metaphors, innuendos, props and more to wink wink, nudge nudgeyou through the story they wanted to tell. And, it largely worked. Most audiences caught on.
Metaphors and the like didn’t develop because of The Hays Code as they were a key part of storytelling and filmmaking before that code but film creators had to get even more creative to share their story. I wonder if maybe they got away with more than they would have attempted if The Hays Code had not been enacted and enforced.
You can find countless other films that use this visual of a man smoking a cigarette looking at another man as code for gay sex. Cigars are a favorite prop of filmmakers as well considering their more appropriate shape. But, make no mistake that filmmakers utilize a myriad of other phallic shaped props to crudely get this point across; Hot dogs, erupting fountains, churros and more have all been used to show us what is on the mind of the people in the shot (maybe not always two men).
Okay. So what? Ilya smoking a cigarette means he wants to have sex with Shane. But, that is not the whole picture. We talked about that ‘No Smoking’ sign. That is very important. And, where that sign is posted is an important piece to this puzzle.
If Ilya isn’t supposed to smoke, and cigarettes are a metaphor for gay sex, the next logical leap is that Ilya is not supposed to engage in gay sex. Well, specifically in hockey because where is that sign posted? On the outside of the hockey rink where he and Shane Hollander just emerged from. Ilya is not supposed to have gay sex in hockey. Not literally on the rink but the idea of gay sex in hockey, among its players, is not acceptable.
This is exactly what those three pieces tell us. Smoking a cigarette equals gay sex. The ‘No smoking’ sign means he is not supposed to engage in gay sex. And, the sign posted on the rink wall behind Ilya tells us that he is definitely not supposed to do that in hockey. [There is one more layer to this metaphor I discovered upon writing this article you’ll see a little further down.]
Oops. Ilya Rozanov is smoking anyway. He does not give one care that there is not supposed to be smoking (gay sex) in hockey. He is going to do it anyway. And, guess who he is smoking next to? Shane Hollander.
Now, we all know Shane does a very good job of trying to convey to Ilya that smoking is most certainly not allowed here in his best I don’t speak your language and you probably don’t know mine very well either hand motion and with the most basic English possible. Poor guy. We all know he left the rink to talk to Ilya, otherwise why is he out there in the cold?! He’s not smoking.
Shane felt that spark between them on that first handshake and he is a little shy about talking to Ilya because he’s most certainly been paying attention to this guy and very much in awe of his talent. Shane is one of the best new recruits and when anyone can challenge him in hockey, he’s going to pay attention. The only one who is on his radar is Ilya because he is the only one who equals Shane’s ability.
Ilya is also paying attention for the same reason. They are both the most sought after players in the industry right now. They are not rivals yet (were they ever?) but they are definitely aware of each others’ skills and paying close attention to each other. And, here Shane is reminding Ilya that Ilya is not supposed to have gay sex in hockey. Ilya is not phased one bit and just keeps smoking. I’d like to think Ilya takes that chastisement as a challenge.
In the first 1 minute and 30 seconds of “The Rookie” episode in Season 1 we basically get the theme of the entire show: these two characters share an undeniable spark with each other but the rules of this sport dictate they aren’t allowed to follow that spark.
My friend, divi, and I were chatting about the cigarette metaphor and she concluded by the logic that smoking means gay sex we should see Shane smoke on screen too. This discussion happened before all of the episodes dropped and I agreed. Actually, I think I said, “he either won’t care, no longer bothering Ilya about it, or we will see him smoke too”. Ironically, another friend, Fiona, coming to the conversation later, leapt to the same conclusion that Shane will eventually smoke on screen. Is it possible we’ll see Shane smoke in a later season? I actually don’t think so now. We’ll take a detour a little bit later in this article to look into Shane’s feelings about this metaphor but for now let’s continue with this metaphor for Ilya.
The thing about metaphors in film is that usually they extend throughout the whole piece. Sometimes a metaphor can last for a moment like the lighter finally catching a flame to represent the spark of their attraction. But, other times you can find the trail of that metaphor littered throughout the film or series. The goal then is to verify that the hunch you developed about the metaphor still holds. Let’s check out a few scenes with Ilya and cigarettes.
The first scene on my radar is when Shane finds Ilya alone on the terrace of the building in which Shane wins MVP. At first glance, this is a typical snapshot of someone who smokes. They leave the event, step outside for a few minutes of quiet to themselves and have a smoke. Looks absolutely normal, nothing to see here. But, Ilya isn’t real. Sorry to say that out loud. I can hear your sad sigh through the screen. I amtruly sorry.
Connor Storrie was told Ilya would be smoking in this scene and so he did. And, not just to set a melancholy mood, but for the sole purpose to extend that metaphor.
We have to look at all parts of a scene and the dialogue to really understand it. So, what is happening in that scene? A slightly drunk Shane stumbles upon Ilya on that terrace. Ilya is smoking alone looking out onto the beautiful city skyline. Shane’s state of mind makes it difficult to read Ilya’s mood and subtle hints of distress (even more than normal). We know from the dialogue that Ilya’s heaviest thoughts are that he will return to Russia in three days. This is where the film makers trust we are smart enough to track where Ilya is going with this.
When he returns to Russia, Shane will not go. He never goes and, while we will get more into Russia and the dangers there for Ilya in a later article, Ilya will most likely not engage in gay sex there. That is definitely not allowed in Russia. Ilya knows it’s a long three months until his return to North America and the potential to see Shane again. We can infer there are more reasons why Ilya does not want to go back to Russia because there is much more, but for the sake of this discussion, we’ll limit our analysis of his despair to the cigarette metaphor.
That cigarette will likely be his last one before a long summer, or he isn’t having sex with a man, much less with Shane until he returns to North America. Additionally, Ilya is very alone in this endeavor until Shane stumbles upon him. He has to smoke in private, sometimes with Shane. No one else can see him smoking. In the North America, Ilya can smoke, have gay sex, in private. But, that stops once the plane leaves the tarmac on the way to Russia.
For another Ilya smoking scene, step into episode 5 “I’ll Believe in Anything” after Rose so gently coaxes Shane out of the closet. Ilya and Svetlana are laying on Ilya’s bed watching a hockey game. Ilya is smoking and Svetlana grabs the cigarette from him and says, in my translated version, “Since when did you start smoking again?” His response is “Haven’t started again. Just every once in a while.” In isolation, this just seems like a normal thing to chat about with your longtime friend-with-sometimes-benefits. Maybe you’ve both agreed to stop smoking but needed it just this once. May I remind you that THIS IS NOT REAL LIFE! Ilya and Svetlana are fictional characters. Ilya is smoking there for a reason. (So is Svetlana but that is another massive article coming to you in the very distant future. If I forget to mention why Svetlana smokes in that scene too, please remind me. It’s too good not to point out.)
Back to that scene, what happened in Ilya’s life prior to this scene and what is about to happen after it? Go back and watch it if you can’t remember. No, really. Stop reading this right now and take a look. I already told you what happens before that scene with Rose and Shane. Just look at what happens after that scene. I’ll be here when you’re done.
Did you catch it?
Ilya is hanging out at the bar in Florida for the Allstar Game. And, what starts happening again that had stopped? Ilya and Shane start having sex again after each having a much needed emotional breakthrough. We don’t even get to see the sex because that is no longer important to show us. Their emotional connection is what matters now. Since smoking cigarettes is gay sex for Ilya and we see that in the scene with Svetlana, we can predict that gay sex is about to start again. And, it does. Yay!!!
Did you catch the scene where Ilya isn’t smoking a cigarette that is in his lips? It’s a blink-and-you’ll- miss-it scene. Think about what happens right after that scene. You might have to skip past the amazing departure from their story line that is episode 3 to find the clues.
[Major detour here because of that last paragraph and almost a reason for scrapping this entire article. Divi read this article before publication and said something that sent me into a ‘did I get this metaphor right?’ spiral.
And, while this article originally stopped discussing most of the smoking scenes, minus the last one, at “find the clues” above. I felt the need to add something that unlocked another layer of this metaphor that we will have to discuss more in depth in a later article.]
Ilya is not smoking that cigarette at the end of “Olympians” episode 2. But, he just had gay sex with Shane. Shouldn’t it be lit? Well, he did smoke a cigarette when they were chatting in bed together. The scene then cuts to a short jump in time later where Shane is in the foyer by the door leading out of the room. As we see Shane clothed and ready to leave, the camera pans back to Ilya with that unlit cigarette in his mouth.
How did we all feel about the end of that scene? Hollow, untethered, confused, mad, sad, hurt? What we are feeling is exactly what they are feeling and Tierney does a magnificent job pulling us into their minds. We can see in both of their faces and demeanor what we are feeling inside about this encounter. And, for Shane we see his distress in the elevator with his unsent text messages and his head falling onto the elevator wall. He’s really trying to understand what just happened.
The sex part was great and something they both desperately wanted after a time where Ilya basically ghosted Shane during the Russian Olympics and after it. They missed each other but something was just off about it and he doesn’t know what or why. We see it in Ilya’s stony and hollow expression and dejected posture with that unlit cigarette hanging from his mouth.
So, what does this unlit cigarette mean? If you recall above we talked about the scene where Ilya smokes on the terrace right before he has to go to Russia. This is essentially the same scene, a parallel scene, where we should see the same thing happening with that cigarette because Ilya is about to go to Russia again. But, it isn’t. One cigarette is lit and he’s smoking it and one is not.
This one difference had me spinning and thinking about smoking a cigarette in a different light (Ha!). I think that the spark they felt between each other with that lit cigarette in that first scene is the fire inside the cigarette. No one can smoke a cigarette without fire, not even Achilles incarnate. Remember I said there was a fire metaphor you could figure out on your own? Well, here it is again. When Ilya smokes a cigarette (has gay sex) he can only smoke it now because of a spark inside of the cigarette (the attraction between Shane and Ilya). That unsmoked cigarette means something is most definitely wrong in their relationship.
They are functionally stuck to having sex in the shadows and slamming the brakes on any more development in their relationship because of the external homophobia that is within hockey. They can’t see how to move forward even if they want to. In effect, this makes their relationship regress. The spark dies.
Ironically, and probably very intentionally, that scene sets us up perfectly for the conclusion of the “Hunter” episode 3. We see two men deeply in love but unable to see how to move forward. Their relationship breaks down even though they seem perfect for each other and ridiculously in love with each other. (I bet you couldn’t tell which couple I was talking about there. That’s on purpose.)
Another way to confirm your own theory is ‘when does this thing NOT occur?’ We never see Ilya smoke at a club or in relation to any other men or any women (Besides Svetlana, I know! We will get to her.) The act of Ilya smoking is limited to Shane only.
Did I miss any smoking scenes or references to smoking? Maybe. Having only watched this show three times and on my cell phone means I have not memorized every detail. But, you can still tease out the subtext if you’re paying enough attention even with limited viewings. I will let you find the other scenes to see what you can tell about what smoking means to Ilya in that moment. If you have a question about a specific scene, feel free to throw it in the comments.
But, we can’t leave without mentioning one last smoking scene.
Parts of this next paragraph didn’t age well considering I wrote it before the fire inside the cigarette is the spark between those two lovers realization. I will use brackets to represent what I wrote and what should be scrapped.
Here is the promised Shane side quest. While this article is primarily about Ilya, it’s important to note that Ilya isn’t Ilya without Shane. Any time we see Ilya smoking or there is a reference about smoking it’s always in conjunction with Shane. [Some of you might think this is me actually saying Ilya smoking a cigarette is Ilya having gay sexwith Shane but I don’t think that’s the actual metaphor. The metaphor is gay sex in hockey and Svetlana is the reason why I think the metaphor shouldn’t specifically include Shane. I digress.]
I do think Svetlana’s role is significant and will be explored later. Also, you should see the process of figuring out subtext. It’s not easy and takes practice and careful thought (and friends willing to point out your inconsistencies).
Back to Shane. Shane’s feelings about Ilya smoking change over the course of the series. We see him first admonish Ilya for smoking, then he slowly bothers Ilya less and less about it.
There is one cute scene where Shane says something like “I can smell the smoke on you”. Ilya responds “It was one cigarette!”. Without the context of the tone of their voice or seeing the softness in their faces, those lines could be seen as aggressive towards each other. Instead we see two people absolutely adoring each other sharing this little jab.
It reminded me of when I’m frantically searching the house for something and my wife just looks at me with heart eyes, shaking her head. The look is “I love this woman and I think it’s adorable that she lost her headphones again.” We don’t even have to say anything and I know we’re sharing an inside joke. This sort of joke implies deep emotional connection and understanding. Shane is saying here “You know you shouldn’t be having gay sex. But, here we are again. I’m not so fussed about it anymore. It’s what we both want. I just want to remind you that this isn’t what we’re supposed to be doing but this is how we started and how it will probably continue for a very long time because our spark is undeniable.” Shane is not smoking because Ilya is smoking. Only one of them has to smoke to show us the spark between them is real and alive.
On your next watch, track how Shane responds to Ilya smoking throughout the series. That will tell you how Shane feels about having gay sex in hockey.
Continuing with that scene, Tierney doesn’t waste many lines. When Ilya says the “one cigarette” line this is Ilya telling us he only has sex with one man. And, that man is Shane Hollander. You could read it as Ilya’s admission again that “I just had sex with one other man (actually a boy) and that was Sasha years ago when we were kids.” I’d be willing to entertain it means both. But, the fact that they’re sharing this sweet moment with this joke that is between partners who really know each other, I think it’s about Ilya only having sex with Shane. That’s close to being allowed in hockey or not as bad as the alternative which is sex with many men. Because having sex with MANY men is certainly not allowed.
Back to Ilya, remember that the theme of the metaphor should run through the course of the whole film or series if it’s found in a few places. And, every time it appears on screen or is mentioned, it should fit the metaphor. Which means…..we should all go to “The Cottage”. Get in your lovebug car and drive along to the secluded place we all crave that is episode 6. I’m so happy we’re all here together!
Picture from: https://heated-rivalry.com/heated-rivalry-season-one/
Ilya smokes by the lake watching the sun rise while Shane hands his man a blanket and a cup of something hot to drink. They don’t appear to say anything to each other, now comfortable enough to exist in each others’ quiet company. Shane does not admonish Ilya for smoking. Therefore, we can infer from this metaphor that Ilya is having gay sex with Shane. And, we might be able to even guess that since Shane doesn’t push back on him Shane has finally accepted his sexuality and is freely AND joyously having sex with Ilya. Bravo! Shane has finally accepted that gay sex can happen even if it’s not allowed in hockey (remember that ‘No Smoking’ sign from the very first scene of this show? He just ignored that sign altogether.).
I feel like there should be joyous bells ringing in the background somewhere considering how beautifully that metaphor closes out at the cottage. Note that Shane doesn’t have to actually smoke here for us to see that he is most definitely fine with Ilya smoking or having gay sex with Shane and that spark is definitely back in their lives.
Let me just add that I do not believe the filmmakers are trying to convince us all to smoke nor do I think they would want Ilya to smoke if he was a real person. They just used this metaphor to tell us a part of the story without telling it to us explicitly.
Some questions I have for future seasons.
- What happens if we see Ilya stop smoking later? If the metaphor is carried over to other seasons, that’s not a good outcome for Hollanov.
- Will Shane ever smoke? I don’t think so but there is still some hesitation surrounding Shane about being in the closet. Maybe he will later when they are, presumably, both out in Season 2.
- Do we see other characters smoke in future seasons and, if so, can we apply this metaphor to those scenes? (Svetlana will be discussed. Do not fear!)
There was a metaphor proposed on Reddit about how the smoke from the cigarette is an emotional wall Ilya puts up between himself and Shane. (Thanks for the link divi.) The metaphor was proposed before all of the episodes were released. Divi and I batted around the idea that Jacob possibly created a double, yet opposing, metaphor from the act of smoking a cigarette. We might have had a hard time distinguishing by text messages the difference between the act of smoking and smoke emanating from the cigarette to try to accommodate those two incongruent metaphors. It was quite confusing. We were kind of talking around each other at that point trying to figure out if the ‘smoke-as-an-emotional-wall’ metaphor could work with the ‘smoking-a-cigarette-is-gay-sex-for-Ilya’ [the more updated metaphor that smoking for Ilya only happens with Shane and their mutual spark] metaphor.
I commented if Jacob was able to pull that off, hats off to him. Because we shouldn’t see Ilya continue to have an emotional wall between himself and Shane represented by the smoke if they continue to have sex and develop their relationship. As the season progressed, the ‘smoke-as-emotional-wall’ metaphor worked less and less. They became more open and trusting with each other even when smoke was right between them.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m definitely still an amateur. I am still mulling over some lines and specific elements that are unclear to me as of the writing of this article and I know my friends are tired of me whining about my inability to figure out what they mean. It could be that as I write more articles, my previous stances will crumble. And, that’s okay. This one nearly did before publication.
This Reddit blogger ‘aromaticchicken’ started off with a solid theory but with more episodes came more evidence and that specific metaphor just doesn’t work throughout the end of series, especially at the cottage. But, this kind of discourse only makes our analysis stronger. Or, obliterates it. Both are welcome in this space. My hope is that if ‘aromaticchicken’ on Reddit ever stumbles upon this article, they will forgive me for disagreeing with their take.
If you’ve come this far, thank you. Next up is Ginger Ale. And, I promise we will tackle more after these first few metaphors. My notes app contains 20+ ideas to write about. What have I done to myself? Sigh.
See you at the cottage!