State of the Shea, Pt. 53: The Bright Side of “Growing Pains”
You may think, after my last post lamenting the lack of romantic payoff in TGD 5x12 “Dry Spell,” that I’ve just gotta see some physical affection between Shaun and Lea to consider a TGD episode to be worthwhile for the remainder of the season.
OR, you may be aware (as a long-time reader of this blog) that I try hard to mine the really good stuff out of any episode– whether it’s #Shea on the rocks, #Shea with a (plot) twist, or #Shea straight-up delightful without so much as a pat on the other’s hand.
In the case of TGD 5x13 “Growing Pains,” we had the third option… and so much more, of course! Lots and lots of “growing,” with maybe just enough “pain” to keep things tilting to the dramatic side. As proven by that nasty gash in Kayla’s brother’s arm– damn– but I digress.
WHO (or what) “GREW” in this episode?
POTW #1 (Trent)
I got to thinking about why they featured this case in the ABC promo rather than the other one… was it just because it was the case to which Shaun was attached? Or was it the biohacking angle? Or did the writers put Shaun on this case because of the biohacking angle? (A-ha!!! Nailed it! Excuse me while I reach around to pat myself on the back…)
So it’s through Trent’s method of “self-improvement” that we see both his connection to friends… and the disconnect with his mother. Shaun, being in a tribal/community mood for most of the episode, found himself siding with Trent. Most of the time.
But we got a refreshing take on his brand of brutal honesty when it kind of worked with Trent, and kind of worked with Trent’s mom, but it worked best when he set about “trying to understand” them. Next thing we know, he’s got both mother and son hugging it out– and yes Shaun, you got to do the surgery! And even better (for Shaun at least), he got Lim putting him and the word “attending” in the same sentence!
As for second-banana-on-this-case Asher, his individual growth was essentially on pause this week– though in a nice little follow-up to last week, we saw him trading his Tinder time on his phone to shopping-for-birthday-gifts-for-Jerome on his phone.
But I started thinking of the big bro/little bro vibes we’ve talked about for Shaun and Asher, and I realized the scene with them in the resident’s lounge fit the bill nicely…
Big bro Shaun is actively seeking a solution for Trent’s damaged wrist; little bro Asher drifts in, seeking gift advice, and serious Shaun waves him off.
Pesky little bro Asher makes a crack about Shaun’s race car– excuse me, classic car– pajamas; annoyed big bro Shaun shuts down the sleepwear convo.
Once Asher contributes meaningfully to the Trent conversation, ShaunVision runs with the “cyborg” mention of Asher’s…
And next thing we know, Shaun is the one running (okay, speedwalking) to the St. Bon’s atrium– with Asher on his heels, trying to keep up – as the wrist implant idea is first presented to Trent’s mom.
(Shoutout to whoever at TGD decided Shaun should use a well-worn “Casper Public Library” bookmark for his medical journals! Outstanding attention to detail!)
POTW #2 (Kayla)
At first I was rather thrown by the pace of this story: patient Kayla is talking to Morgan, who is then talking to Glassman, who then “calls a meeting” about Kayla’s potential surgery, and then they are beginning the surgery… all before the first commercial break even hits! Yikes! Also, what???
But I guess they felt it necessary to give the rest of that POTW space to the conservatorship story within it… one that drew multiple comparisons in the Twitterverse to Britney Spears, which makes sense.
But my mind went to a whole other musical artist… does anyone reading know the name Lena Zavaroni?
This is Lena as I “knew” her in the mid-1970s– a little girl from Scotland with a big, big voice that never really hit it big in the United States, but did make an appearance on Johnny Carson’s Tonight Show. I had this album of hers, back in the day… I wanted to sing like she did.
To make a long, very sad story short… Lena became anorexic by the late ‘70s, tried to keep working but never really got proper treatment (very hard to come by, especially back then), and by the 1990s was also suffering from severe depression. In 1999, she underwent brain surgery (apparently considered “pioneering” at the time) in an effort to relieve her depression… and it’s difficult to say if it would have helped her long-term because she died from bronchial pneumonia less than a month after the surgery.
(There’s plenty on YouTube about her if you’re interested; also her Wiki page is a worthwhile read.)
I tell you all this to say that when they first discussed treatment for Kayla on TGD, I thought the story was going to be about what still sounds like a very touchy and/or controversial surgery (not sure how close it compared to what was done to Zavaroni 20+ years ago, though). Obviously, that wasn’t the case… but nonetheless I was surprised that the surgery was done on Kayla (offscreen, without much fanfare) with seemingly very positive results. It’s one of those times when I really hope TGD made a good choice, downplaying the dangers of such a surgery… but then again, I’m no expert!
#Parnick
I said on my post for “The Family” that I was okay with the Big Catch-Up that was Parnick’s development post-winter hiatus (and kind of post-Salen), but I hoped they weren’t backburnered again for the next two episodes. I got half my wish; they were definitely backburnered during “Dry Spell” (and God knows there was no room for them in that one anyway). But aside from the touch of deja vu I got when Park and Morgan strolled into the locker room with the latter complaining of the former’s “gravel” mattress (hello, farting episode), it was solid progress for them all the way around. I do find myself wondering if Park will be able to keep his pride in check long-term when it comes to the money issues. And, honestly, that’s the “catch” the writers will likely hang onto now. If they decide to break #Parnick up, all it could take is one argument… one careless one-liner from Morgan. (I pick her over Park because not only does she have the upper hand with the $$, but the sharper tongue of the two.) I hope they continue to get a fighting chance, though.
Jordan/Lea
Ever since Jordan made a tiny pilgrimage to Lea’s office during last season’s “Letting Go” to offer condolences for Baby Berry, we’ve been rooting for this friendship– particularly since Lea, the only TGD regular not in the medical profession, has struggled to make lasting connections aside from what she has with Shaun. (She and Claire were eventually on track for such, but the departure of Antonia Thomas put an end to that.). And, in fact, we’ve seen Jordan and Lea joined at the hip several times in S5– including Jordan’s engagement party assist in “New Beginnings” and her apartment/temporary crash pad when Lea was down and out in “Yipee-Ki-Yay”.
Now comes the brilliant idea to combine Jordan’s entrepreneurial chops with Lea’s mad coding skills as they work on a “gross but cool” gut bacteria tracking device, and all I can say is I hope TGD sticks with this arc rather than a) have it build further, then disintegrate quickly, or b) we never hear about it again. They’ve done a great job so far of pivoting Lea’s tech skills to better fit the hospital’s needs (once they decided she was to be Shaun’s long-term love). To keep a storyline going that involves two women– one a woman of color– pushing for success in a niche area that’s even MORE male-dominated than medicine and STEM fields are on their own? YES. PLEASE, YES.
By the way… I did a Twitter poll this past week to choose a name for this budding friendship. #DilAllen clearly got the most votes, but with my “Other” option garnering several other name suggestions, I’m not completely convinced we have a winner yet. Perhaps we’ll just have to wait and see where social media takes this one.
#Shea
On the surface, #Shea may have looked to skip some “growing” this episode in favor of #DilAllen time. But it was still there…
Last episode’s attempts at a “sex schedule” persevered here, though unsuccessfully with Jordan and Lea working past the 11:30-midnight “window,” I presume. (Hey Shaun, it was just one missed date– chill, dude)
Then there was That look. You know, the one that Lea fired Shaun’s way when he wanted to shower first? The one that would likely stop thoroughbreds in the middle of a race? That look assures #Shea Nation that while these two have plenty of hard work ahead of them, the non-verbal cues are coming along
j u s t fine.
The break room conversation– where Shaun’s “house rules” were laid out– was revelatory for Jordan, for us, and even for Lea (in that too-close-to-the-situation-to-see kind of way). It reminded us that a lot of the “growth” we witness in Dr. Murphy from week to week is perhaps better described as “adapting” to society and its expectations. And that Lea is, typically, the only one with the privilege of getting to see Shaun as he really is. Which sort of gives me superhero vibes, thinking of all the ways he likely has to “adapt” that barely get touched on in a typical TGD episode. It also reminded me of the significance of the final minute of “Frontline Pt.2” (the COVID episodes from S4)... the way Shaun oh-so-cautiously reintroduced Lea into what had for many months been his apartment, his private oasis from the numerous challenges of St. Bon’s.
Shaun/Lea/Jordan
And now it’s time to acknowledge This Look from Shaun, which is different from That Look from Lea both in intent and nuance. For this one compresses many thoughts– everything from Why is my junior colleague in my kitchen? To Is she seriously brushing her teeth in my kitchen sink? To How can I be in my most comfortable pajamas (that Lea probably bought him, don’t you think?) and yet be so VERY uncomfortable in my own home? – into one long, bewildered stare.
Despite the awkwardness, Shaun wanted very much to support the #DilAllen venture at hand– which I suppose is why he quickly drafted a set of rules as a coping mechanism. Of course, what makes perfect sense to Shaun (and is presented very matter-of-factly) comes across to Jordan as a passive-aggressive way of saying that he doesn’t want her in his home at all. But rather than drag that out into an episode-long misunderstanding, we get a lovely few lines from Shaun carrying the “belonging” message of the episode into new, somewhat unexpected places. (By the way, my extra giggle in this scene came when Shaun requested “no eye contact”... which Jordan repeats back to him, amazed… and then Shaun flips around his little notebook as if to say Yes Dr. Allen, I wrote it here in my book so it must be true.)
Not surprisingly, the last scene of “Growing Pains” was the perfect surmising of these three people, with Shaun’s “bad manners” inadvertently triggering the very solution Jordan and Lea needed. I also loved that, although it was Shaun who verbally declared ‘I am ignoring you,” it was #DilAllen who totally ignored Shaun from that point on, lost in their little breakthrough/celebration as they were.
AND NOW, A FEW WORDS ABOUT THE THREE CHARACTERS WHO WERE NOT “GROWING” MUCH…
With Lim, Andrews and Glassman existing in the episode almost exclusively for the leadership they provide, it’s like TGD was giving the grown-ups a rest for the week, leaving the growing to the rest of the cast. This is not to say that St. Bon’s current trinity at the top doesn’t have plenty more growing to do as they rebuild. But with the last two episodes dipping heavier into their recovery, particularly for Glassman and Andrews, it’s not surprising that they were back- burnered a little here.
In fact, you probably noticed that Shaun and Glassman didn’t share a single scene in “Growing Pains!” But not to worry; if the promos for “Pot Luck” carry any truth within them at all, Shaun and Glassman will catch up on the “growing” in a big way.
BONUS noteworthy detail in this episode: the way Shaun tried to mimic Lim’s beckoning to come into her office…
… but then realized the beckoning, while looking like a handwaving gesture, didn’t carry the same meaning as a handwave and therefore didn’t make sense for him to be doing it. (At least, I THINK that’s what Shaun was doing!?)
A literal “blink and you’ll miss it” detail from this episode which was pretty cool!
What did YOU think of “Growing Pains”? Hit up the comments with your thoughts!
