Off Campus review: A predictable but addictive hockey romance binge

Prime Video's Off Campus turns Elle Kennedy's beloved BookTok romance into a glossy binge-watch packed with hockey boys, emotional chaos, slow-burn chemistry and steamy college drama. But does the adaptation live up to the hype?

In Short

• Hannah and Garrett begin a fake arrangement that gradually turns romantic
• Ella Bright and Belmont Cameli bring believable chemistry to familiar tropes
• Supporting characters, especially Dean and Allie, add warmth and future intrigue

BookGram’s favourite hockey boys have officially entered their streaming era. Barely six months after a hockey drama, Heated Rivalry, had the world in a chokehold, another hockey romance series skates in with abs, angst and enough sexual tension to fog up the ice rink. This is Prime Video’s first instalment of the wildly popular Off-Campus romance series by Elle Kennedy. The Deal became a publishing phenomenon years after its original release, thanks to BookGram helping audiences rediscover emotionally damaged fictional men with abs.

This is not a show trying to reinvent romance television. It is here to give audiences yearning, banter, hookups, emotional healing and hockey players who somehow have time to look this good while allegedly balancing academics and competitive sports. Thankfully, it mostly succeeds.

Set at Briar University, Off Campus follows Hannah Wells (Ella Bright), a music student carrying the emotional scars of a traumatic past, and Garrett Graham (Belmont Cameli), the university hockey captain whose collapsing grades threaten his future on the team. He needs tutoring. She wants help getting another guy’s attention. A fake arrangement begins, feelings inevitably develop and suddenly everybody is making emotionally reckless decisions in oversized hoodies and varsity jackets. It is a predictable plot, yes, but also addictive.

Watch the trailer here:

The beauty of Off Campus lies in the fact that it never fights its own genre conventions. Instead, it leans into them confidently. The series understands that romance audiences are not always looking for shocking twists or groundbreaking storytelling. Sometimes, one simply wants to watch two attractive people slowly fall in love while pretending they are not already halfway there.

Ella Bright and Belmont Cameli anchor the series with an easy, believable chemistry that keeps even the more cliche-heavy moments engaging. Bright gives Hannah emotional depth beyond the standard “guarded girl” trope, making her vulnerability feel earned rather than manufactured. Cameli, meanwhile, plays Garrett with restrained charm — slightly cocky, emotionally messy and weirdly endearing beneath all the hockey-star swagger.

Their dynamic works because the show allows quieter moments to matter. Study sessions become flirtation zones, party scenes become emotional battlegrounds and lingering eye contact does half the storytelling. The series smartly avoids overcomplicating its central romance.

But where the adaptation becomes even more interesting is with its supporting characters.

Fans of Kennedy’s books know the Off-Campus universe thrives because of its ensemble. Garrett and Hannah may lead The Deal, but characters like Allie Hayes (Mika Abdalla), Dean Di Laurentis (Stephen Kalyn), John Logan (Antonio Cipriano) and Tucker (Jalen Thomas Brooks) became fan favourites long before the adaptation arrived.

Particularly compelling is the storyline involving Dean and Allie.

Even within limited screen time, their dynamic already crackles with the kind of chaotic chemistry that romance fans instantly latch onto. Dean enters the show as someone predictable to a fault — unserious on the surface, emotionally more layered underneath and armed with enough charisma to derail entire scenes. His interactions with Allie carry an ease that feels refreshingly natural, setting up what could easily become one of the show’s strongest relationship arcs moving forward.

The ensemble overall gives Off Campus a warmer, fuller texture. The friendships feel lived-in, the locker-room banter rarely feels forced and the show wisely understands that romance universes thrive when side characters are just as entertaining as the leads. It is essentially building an interconnected world where every emotionally unavailable hockey player is probably two episodes away from his own love story.

Of course, the adaptation does make noticeable changes from the books. Some storylines are modernised, emotional beats are streamlined and certain conflicts are softened for television pacing. At times, it feels like the show is accelerating relationship dynamics slightly too quickly, likely to establish future seasons early. Purist readers may not agree with every decision, especially when beloved scenes are altered or shortened, but the emotional core of Kennedy’s writing remains intact.

And importantly, the show preserves what made the books resonate so strongly in the first place: vulnerability.

Underneath all the flirtation and steaminess, Off Campus is really about emotionally stunted young adults learning how to trust people again. The series handles Hannah’s trauma with surprising restraint and allows Garrett moments of emotional honesty that prevent him from becoming just another generic romance hero. While the chemistry overall is strong, the shared intimacy from the book does not entirely translate onscreen. Those who have read the novel may find certain moments slightly underwhelming.

The writing does occasionally drift into overly polished “Gen Z dialogue”, where certain lines sound engineered to become viral edits online. The hockey itself is also mostly decorative. Sports fans looking for realistic gameplay or detailed athletic drama may walk away disappointed because the series uses hockey less as a competitive sport and more as an aesthetic mood board for emotional chaos.

But honestly, that is probably the point. Off Campus is not trying to become the next great sports drama. It wants to be a glossy, steamy comfort watch filled with longing, hookups and emotional growth. In that sense, it absolutely delivers.

In the current wave of romance adaptations dominating streaming platforms, Off Campus succeeds because it understands its audience completely. It knows viewers want chemistry, emotional payoff and just enough chaos to stay invested.

And between Garrett and Hannah’s slow-burn romance and the early sparks between Dean and Allie quietly threatening to steal the show already, Prime Video may have just found its next binge-worthy romance universe.

All eight episodes of Off Campus are now streaming.

- Ends