SHOW vs BOOK DIFFERENCES
Jacob Tierney's adaptation is incredibly faithful to Rachel Reid's books - but faithful doesn't mean identical, and there are some changes that made reading the book alongside watching the show that much more interesting.
"He deserves sunshine, and so do you". The Moscow phone call where we hear what Ilya says in Russian. We're breaking down every change: Big plot shifts, tiny character moments, all of it. Whether you read the books first or binged the show and now you're curious about the source material, this is your guide to everything that are different between the books and the show.
Locker Room Shower Scene
After the iconic locker room shower scene, the show reverses who leaves first. In the book, Ilya leaves the shower and gets dressed first. In the show, Shane is the one who leaves the shower first.
Scott Kip Dialogue Additions
The lines "Or, I pick or" and "He deserves sunshine; and so do you" are new dialogue added to the TV show in S01E03 that does not appear in the Game Changer book.
Shane Coming Out to Yuna
Shane’s scene coming out to his mother, Yuna, in S01E06 is a new scene created for the series that does not appear in the book.
Shane's Apartment
In the book, Shane buys an entire separate apartment just to have sex with Ilya in secret. The show cuts this and simplifies: Shane just brings Ilya back to his actual apartment through the back entrance.
Hockey Team Names
The show changed team names from the books: Montreal Voyageurs becomes Montreal Metros, and Boston Bears becomes Boston Raiders.
Ilya's Russian Monologue
Ilya's Russian monologue doesn't exist in the book. That chapter is written from Shane's perspective, and he doesn't understand what Ilya is saying. The show created the monologue from scratch, and it became one of the most heartbreaking scenes in the season.
Svetlana Relationship with Ilya
The show transforms Svetlana from a casual long-term hookup in Boston (book) to Ilya's childhood friend from Russia (show). The change deepens her connection to Ilya and makes her more perceptive to his relationship with Shane.
"Like I Love You"
After Shane suggests naming the charity after Ilya's mother for suicide prevention, Ilya says "She would have loved you" in both the show and the book, but "like I love you" part is a new addition to the show.
Swapped Dialogue at the Cottage
"How could we let this happen?" "We were both very stupid and irresponsible." Shane and Ilya swap these lines in the cottage episode compared to the book.
Alexei’s Name Change
Ilya’s brother’s name is changed from Andrei in the book, to Alexei for the TV show adaptation.
Ilya's Father Sickness
In the Tampa All-Star game coming out scene, in the book, Ilya doesn't cry after revealing his father had Alzheimer’s (which is changed to dementia in the show), and Shane therefore doesn't climb onto Ilya to comfort him.
Shane's Heritage Focus
Shane’s heritage is not addressed as directly in the book, but the show includes specific lines like 'breaking barriers' in S01E01 and talks about in the conversation with Rose in S01E04.
Shane Car Change
In the book, Shane drives a Jeep Cherokee to the cottage, whereas in the TV show, the car is explicitly mentioned as 'not a Jeep' and is British.
Blue Moon Over Brooklyn
In the Game Changer book, Kip’s "Blue Moon Over Brooklyn" smoothie does not contain extra banana, but the show adds it, and also changes the socks Kip gifted to Scott from a blueberry pattern to bananas.
Scott's Hair Colour
In the Game Changer book, Scott Hunter has blond hair. While in the TV show, he has dark/brunette hair.
Ilya's Bear Tattoo
In the books, Ilya has a large bear tattoo on his left pec because he plays for Boston Bears, but in the TV show, his team name changs to Boston Raiders, and therefore the bear tattoo is omitted.