“Reba Is Beloved, and Justifiably So”: ‘Happy’s Place’ Co-Creator Explains Season 1 Finale and Teases Season 2

Reba McEntire and Melissa Peterman reunite as restaurant co-workers in Happy's Place

Happy’s Place co-creator, Kevin Abbott, is a fan of a good old-fashioned slow burn. During the first season, which celebrated its finale on Friday, audiences watched as Reba McEntire’s Bobbie moved back to Knoxville, Tennessee to take over the titular bar that she inherited from her father. There were plenty of surprises along the way for Bobbie — the main one being her first meeting with a much younger half-sister (Belissa Escobedo) who she didn’t know about.

As Bobbie settled into her new life, it certainly seemed like a relationship was beginning to blossom between her and the bar’s cook, Emmett (Rex Linn). But, now that we’ve seen the Season 1 finale, we can officially say that — despite the shipping of fans — Bobbie and Emmett didn’t take that plunge towards romance. However, Abbott is here to tell audiences not to fear and that it’s all in the cards — he just didn’t want to rush a good build.

Speaking with TV Line, Abbott said,

“That was the original intent — to actually have them a little bit further along than we did. That was an idea that I had from before we wrote the pilot, actually, but we didn’t go as far as that because of the scheduling. We only had 13 episodes originally ordered. We were putting some pieces in place just in case, but we didn’t know if we were going to get a back order, or how many [episodes] it was going to be if we did.”

‘Happy’s Place’ Hinges on Character Development

HAPPY'S PLACE -- "Acountability" Episode 114 -- Pictured: (l-r) Reba McEntire as Bobbie, Belissa Escobedo as Isabella

After the title landed a full-season order at the tail end of last year, Abbott knew there was time for the hopeful couple to build on an already solid foundation. Still, he didn’t want to rush things, so he hoped that NBC would renew the series for a second season — a wish that was answered last month. Now, with plenty of time on his hands to mold Emmett and Bobbie’s relationship, Abbott tells fans that it’s on the horizon, explaining,

“I don’t like to just jump into these things out of nowhere. I want to build to them so that, when they happen, it feels right. Ultimately, we got the pickup — a back five — after we’d wrapped the first 13. I just didn’t feel like I could successfully build the relationship to the point where I wanted it to be by the finale, so this is going to be something we’re going to get into next season. We can give the audience something to look forward to without taking it too quickly. When we get there, I want the audience to feel really satisfied.”

Season 1 of Happy’s Place is now streaming on Peacock.