If you would like to read my review of the last episode, click here.
Synopsis: A teenage patient hopes the surgical team can free her from a life of confinement at home; a young patient’s perfectly matched organ donor is causing a moral dilemma for the parents and the patient. (IMDB)
Writers: Thomas L. Moran and Johanna Lee
Director: Regina King
Rating: TV-14
Running Time: 41mins
So we’re back. This episode made some headway with Murphy while offering a pair of not new but compelling cases with a black tie fundraiser to tie it all together.
After Reznick joined the team in the last episode, they were joined by Dr. Alex Park (Will Yun Lee), another of Coyle’s residents. He was a little older than the others after enrolling in medical school after a 15 year career as a police officer. This episode saw them split up into teams to work two different cases. Reznick, Murphy, and Lim worked a case involving a teen girl named Spirit who was born with her heart in the wrong place and Browne, Kalu, Park, and Melendez worked a case involving a young boy named Eric with a rare blood type that needed a liver transplant.
Doctors couldn’t move the Spirit’s heart sooner because her rib cage was too small but moving it now would be easier said than done as her heart had enlarged to the point that it was now too big to fit in her rib cage. Meanwhile, it wasn’t clear if Reznick was trying to help Murphy or to get him off his game or both. Spirit’s condition did not allow her to live a normal life and she did not want to live that way any longer so she wanted the surgery now. Reznick found an experimental treatment that could expand Spirit’s rib cage so they could fit her heart.
It was very clear early on that Park was good at dealing with younger patients. Browne found a liver donor for Eric but the donor wasn’t on the registry because he was an inmate at a prison for committing murder named Boris. This was obviously an ethical issue but the consensus was that it was worth it. Park, being a cop, was skeptical about Boris’ motives as he believed this was merely a ruse as a means to escape. After learning where his new liver came from, Eric did not want it.
Reznick suggested that Murphy buy a new tuxedo for the black tie fundraiser later that evening but Murphy also asked Andrews for advice but he suggested he rent one since it was his talent that mattered more than his clothes. She kept forcing him to second guess himself during surgery and revealed that she didn’t respect him but she still liked him. The surgery was a success, allowing her to hug her parents for the first time.
The doctors could not take the Boris’ liver since he had am allergic reaction to the anesthetic and they could not try it again which made him angry. After briefly escaping custody, he grabbed a gun and killed himself, leaving his liver free to be transplanted. The doctors explained to Eric what he did and convinced him to accept to liver to make his sacrifice worth something (even though it probably wasn’t his intention). Ultimately, Park did not believe in Boris’ sacrifice. Eric wanted to send a card to Boris’ parents to thank them.
Earlier while trying to find a new keynote speaker for the fundraiser, Aoki began to have feelings for a young businessman named Aiden (Kelly Blatz) who agreed to speak. She shared her feelings with Andrews who thought it was a bad idea but who knows?
During the fundraiser, Murphy showed off his expensive tuxedo. Now he had to mingle but he felt incredibly uncomfortable with it all. Preston couldn’t stand watching Melendez talk to other women. She and Glassman connected over their similar issues. Kalu broke up with Browne because she didn’t remember the song when they had their first kiss.
Finally, Murphy tried to awkwardly mingle but Andrews came in to assist him.
Overall, this was a good episode with plenty of character moments sprinkled amongst a pair of compelling cases that are perhaps retreads of past cases which was fine. Park was an interesting addition to the team whose police officer background make him good with people and creates a different dynamic. It was also nice to see Andrews fill a mentor role for Murphy. Aoki’s storyline was too little too late and the Kalu and Browne breakup was a surprise that came out of nowhere. With 3 episodes left this season it will be exiting to see how it will end.
Score: 8/10
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The EIC of the coincidentally-named keithlovesmovies.com. A Canadian who prefers to get out of the cold and into the warmth of a movie theatre.
