I keep circling back to Ilya Rozanov’s whole look in episode one, because there’s something almost hypnotic about the way Connor Storrie shifts the second he steps into Ilya’s skin.
The photo shoot scene?? The cheekbones, the heart-shaped mouth, the jawline that feels ripped straight from Shane’s internal monologues — it’s unreal. The curls, the angles, the shadows doing the absolute most… whoever lit that scene deserves a fruit basket and a handwritten thank-you note.
That little head shake when he’s spying on Shane for the first time? It lives in my brain rent-free. He’s confident, but still so young — listening to his coach, curious, trying to figure out how to handle the force of nature that is Shane Hollander. It’s soo unexpectedly..... tender.
And then the press conference. They both look so young, but Ilya’s stoicism paired with Shane’s trying-so-hard-to-be-serious energy hits is the perfect blend of sharp edges and soft youth.
But the moment that truly owns me is their first meeting in Saskatchewan. Cigarettes, tension, that spark of something neither of them can name yet. You can literally see Ilya being intrigued by Shane. (I know this moment becomes important in The Long Game.......WHICH I haven’t read yet - but sooon!!)
There’s just something incredible about how Connor doesn’t just play Ilya — he inhabits him. And ughhhh he looks so ridiculously good doing it. These GIFs are gonna be imprinted in my brainnn
