State of the Shea Pt. 62: “Signs” of Their Times
If only the posterboard-and-sharpie signs were the most important varieties within this episode-!
But alas, the situation with Lim, Glassman, and of course Shaun became a lot clearer in “A Big Sign”… and equally as complicated. So I’m gonna start there.
VITAL SIGNS
(Do yourself a favor and read through the above series of Tweets, courtesy of reader Daniela… it’s the more concise version of what I think we all need to keep in mind on Lim’s paralysis storyline. My more meandering version is what follows…)
LIM
Lim’s in mourning. Sure, she’s alive… but there have probably been more times than she’s willing to admit that she’s struggled with her new paralysis to the point of wishing she hadn’t survived Owen’s attack. And plenty of other times when she thinks Just WTF kind of “life” do I have now?? Because the idea of being confined to a wheelchair for the foreseeable future– especially when you’re a top-flight surgeon with a love of adventure, and the Ducati motorcycle to prove it– must be utterly terrifying. She’s sad, she’s furious, she’s bewildered, and she seems desperate to pin the blame on Shaun…
… But so far, it’s not how culpable Shaun is as much as it is how willing Shaun is to accept any culpability. To Shaun, “I saved your life” is the end of the conversation because, for him, saving lives was the very reason he got into medicine. (It’s also why the idea of shortening her life, a.k.a. Glassman‘s original possible solution with the resection of the liver, was off the table for him.)
Lim is through with keeping a stiff upper lip on her situation, though, and part of this next stage is getting real with the doctor she holds most responsible. Just how fraught is this scenario? Well…
Lim has, until now, consistently been Shaun’s biggest professional supporter outside of Glassman.
Lim has dealt with criticism (most notably from Andrews) that she’s coddled Shaun too much and not letting him deal enough with the realities of being a surgeon.
And as far as basic apologies go, remember how she was the one to all but reach down Shaun’s throat and pull the “I’m sorry” out of him in S3’s “45-Degree Angle”?
In her own mind, though, Lim surely feels she’s done the right thing in encouraging Shaun to trust himself with risky decisions.
On top of all this, she was very fond of Shaun personally. (Who gave the best speech at the #Shea engagement party last season? HINT: It wasn’t Glassman…)
But now she’s up against a doctor she trained who not only insists he made the right choice in “going rogue,” but through no real fault of his own, lacks the empathy to even begin to process the ways she is suffering.
(I say “no real fault” for a reason. More on that in a minute.)
GLASSMAN
Glassman is in a thoroughly unenviable position with both Lim and Shaun. He feels partially responsible; that much was crystal clear in his “What if??” conversation with Lim. Shaun taking some responsibility would help lighten his load, and of course could help matters with Lim (eventually?)
When I live-Tweeted the episode last week, I spoke of Glassman “wanting to have it both ways”-- protecting Shaun as much as he could in the formal M&M, but confessing– when pushed by Lim– that he felt Shaun had made a mistake. As with Lim, though, it’s more complicated than that…
He wants Shaun to own his decision for the mistake he feels it is, but he’s an all-or-nothing guy in these scenarios– either teetering on eggshells for fear Shaun will spiral into something unnecessarily negative, or sledgehammering Shaun with his frustrations. Walking the line between is TOUGH for him, if only because he loves and cares so much for Shaun. (I suspect we’ll get a better sense of that in the “Shrapnel” episode.)
He’s known Shaun longer than anyone else at St. Bon’s, and with that history comes the concern that Shaun’s failure to own responsibility for this will ultimately take him backward, not forward, in his hard-fought career.
He’s also keenly aware that Shaun continues to be noted for his ASD as well as his talents and abilities, and that this particular mistake might be held more harshly against Shaun than it would neurotypical doctors.
SHAUN
Is it possible that Shaun might– perhaps unknowingly– lean into his ASD tendencies when he doesn’t want to deal with the reality of a situation? Particularly with regards to empathy and processing the emotions of others? That’s hard to call, and some might take issue with the idea of Shaun “using” his ASD as an excuse. (That’s OK if you do; I’m spitballing here.) Doesn’t it seem like that’s where Glassman is going with his anger, though? The Shaun, you know better than this now vibe I’m seeing in preview clips?
Here’s what I DO know: Shaun adores Lim. He respects her immensely, appreciates all she’s done for him, and (until now) has felt he could come to her for any reason. He may not yet understand all of Lim’s anger, but the severing of half their relationship– the friendship part? He can’t help but understand that after last week’s closing scene. If Glassman’s words can’t get to him yet, maybe Lim’s lack of them will.
And now, on to the decidedly less “fraught” goings-on from last week…
SIGNS OF AN ONGOING EVOLUTION (The “Wet Cement” year)
Do the new married-people dinner plates mean that the “soothing” pattern Shaun chose when they first roomed together are now donated to Goodwill? Or are they just used for microwaving Triscuits & cheddar? #Shea Nation wants ANSWERS! (Remember, they were discussing who got the plates when Lea moved out at Carly's suggestion in my least favorite TGD episode ever, S3’s “Mutations.”)
Anyway, the dishes thing was a common issue if you have a dishwasher, and the writers must’ve seen this as a springboard to use with Julianne, Shaun’s marriage counselor POTW. (Fun fact: my husband and I haven’t had an automatic dishwasher since our days of living in an apartment in the late 90s, so scraping the dishes before washing is mandatory in this house if we don’t want a stopped-up kitchen drain!)
One of the things that’s interesting about it is that it’s a debate for a lot of married couples, not just one that’s ASD/NT. The difference comes in Shaun‘s difficulty with doing something different when he has his “backed by research” responses at the ready for his side of the debate. Consequentially, I found myself on the fence with this question: if they are going to have #Shea interact with a marriage therapist so early– for any reason– shouldn’t it be one who can readily broach unique ASD/NT issues?
For one thing, I don’t know how easy it is to even find a therapist with such qualifications (though one with ASD “experience” is probably a different story). For another (as we well know), Shaun and Lea have been learning and growing in this relationship for several years now, so I’m not sure what even an ASD expert could tell these particular newlyweds that they don’t already know. And for a third (!) thing, #Shea was utilized in “A Big Sign” as a lighter subplot– much as Jordan’s “crush” was– to offset the growing tension of Lim’s storyline. To go any deeper than they did with Shaun, Lea, and Julianne in this particular episode would have felt out of place. Still, I’m left wondering if it was better to treat the “bad habits” conversation as if they were a typical couple when they aren’t. Was there a way to acknowledge the difference properly with Julianne?
TGD opted to keep the ASD/NT discussion between Shaun and Lea– and I must say, what I enjoyed about how they did this came not so much in the adorable, Love, Actually- esque conclusion (they just throw us the biggest bones to chew on sometimes with Shea, don’t they?) but that discussion (in the imaging room). That really made the difference this time.
I mean, think back to when they first roomed together four years ago. In their first real face-off, Shaun started with an agitated conversation (about the need to keep the TV remotes in their proper place, if I’m not mistaken), and Lea responded in not-so-kind with so much more agitation that Shaun practically shut down, leading to Lea’s famous first visit to Glassman‘s house (“I think I broke Shaun!”).
Now, flash forward…for one thing, Shaun is more subtle in his own way with how he deals with Lea’s “bad habits”… even though it’s really not subtle, lol. And in addition to being the picture of patience when necessary, Lea has learned to keep most of her frustrations to herself. Not that that’s the best idea either, but it’s safe to say she picks her battles. Their imaging room chat was honest yet remarkably calm, and it even gave us the imagery (pardon the pun) that prompted Shaun’s heart-melting gesture in their final scene.
By the way, in the imaging room did you get flashbacks to the S3 episode “Fixation” where Shaun called Lea over on her lunch break to show how much he was trying to be flexible (with the alphabetized cans, toilet paper on “wrong”, etc.) and his text to her was, as it was here, inaccurate regarding the level of “emergency” the situation warranted?
Which brings me to my other nit-pick of the night with them: Even though Lea did say “Shaun, at some point we need to figure out a way (to differentiate via text if a situation is an emergency or not),” I think the two of them would have had this kind of thing sorted out by now; this could be one of those casualties of different writers handling #Shea from episode to episode. If it was me writing, I probably would’ve had Lea say “Shaun, I think you forgot to add the (insert whatever symbol he is supposed to add for an emergency… or a non-emergency)”.
All in all, though, I embrace the idea of them touching on issues like this just after getting married. Yes, they have been together for almost as long as the show has been on the air as far as living in the same apartment goes. But, especially for Shaun, everything surely resonates deeper than ever– along with the importance of “not failing” as he would say. Hence his hilarious and short-lived meeting of the divorced… and, much more importantly, his interaction with a professional marriage “expert.” We all know how much he respects experts!
So please enjoy this gorgeous collage created by @EndgameShea…
… as well as David’s assessment of what took the scene to the next level!
WARNING SIGNS
If Combat Danni’s actions in last week’s “Change in Perspective” were the prologue for her issues with following orders, should her action of releasing her patient Katie from restraints be “a big sign” that CD is, as Lea called her last week, TROUBLE (trouble in all caps)? Park was none too pleased with her until he softened– along with us– hearing CD share the story of her leg amputation with Katie’s mom as a way of illustrating– and connecting– on the challenges of parental decisions.
That conversation truly brought out CD’s kinder/gentler side in a way that was, obviously, much more authentic than last week’s efforts with the heart patient’s wife. Which was crucial, given that the “chain of command has never been her strong suit” (as she told Park in her apology). Will her efforts to improve be enough to keep her at St. Bon’s for the long haul? I wonder if it depends on how much of his own (insubordination) medicine Shaun can take when he’s in charge of her…
(By the way, I really liked the way the writers dealt with the amputation– both in CD’s sharing of it, and the explanation of why it wasn’t being discussed among the other doctors. “Shaun wanted to (ask about her limp), but we told him he wasn’t allowed” fit the situation– and the show– like a glove.)
SIGNS OF ANOTHER SHOE BEING OUT THERE SOMEWHERE, WAITING TO DROP…
“It doesn’t take a scientist to understand what’s going on, baby.”
So unlike CD, it seems Handsome Dan can do no wrong so far. He’s studly to many, modest, kind, escorts old ladies around the hospital, fist bumps to young patients… oh yeah, and as we learned last week, he also adores his grandmother. All we need is him knitting sweaters for disabled vets and/or rescuing kittens in his free time, and we’ll have a full house of just-too-good-to-be-true.
So when will we see the catch? Will he have a long-distance girlfriend, or a wife he never speaks of? A criminal record? A history of being a Cubs fan? (Sorry, it’s World Series week and I’m a Chicago native who prefers the White Sox- I HAD to.)
If TGD intends for only one “Danny/Danni” to move forward from this season, I kind of wonder if they’re waiting to see which character fits in better before sharing any HD darkness.
Proceed with caution, Jordan.
Little Bitty Signs (based on airtime this week) But Still Important…
MORGAN- the AWOL character of the week
When I read the synopsis of “A Big Sign” I thought Morgan would be deducing Julianne’s brain issues after coming to her to discuss the issues that prompted her breakup with Park. Instead, we only got Morgan in ONE scene— this one here— and, aside from the mention in the Meeting Of The Divorced, she was absent. Two things to draw from this:
1) AWOL characters are bound to continue from time to time with such a crowded canvas— at least, until the latest “newbies” are better established.
2) #Parnick is D-O-N-E done. I thought there would be a more drawn-out end to this affair, but I think I thought wrong.
(Of course, this is TGD’s cue to give them an emotional scene in the “Shrapnel” episode and make me eat my words…)
Jasher: The “who knew??” characters of the week
First of all— they’re now living together, which apparently happened during the 3-month timehop.
Second of all— they’re already past the “honeymoon stage” of that development, summoning Julianne to discuss their issues.
Which, for now, were solved with the help of a St. Bon’s janitorial closet.
(Jordan may not have cared for that detail, but I found it as ironically delightful as Jerome and Asher did.)
Losing Julianne— The “how far they’ve come” runner-up scene of the week
(Shaun and Lea’s scenes still get first prize)
Not so long ago (nearly two years back), we watched Asher & Shaun struggle with the loss of Asher’s first patient. The situation was notably different— Asher had made an early diagnosis mistake that Shaun failed to catch, making the man’s passing more preventable in that case— but still, here they were again. It was clear that Julianne was unafraid of death’s possibility after her first flatline experience, and that surely helped. Yet she’d given both men a shorthand assist in their personal lives; in fact, it turned out the final bit of advice she’d ever dole out was to Shaun.
So there was most definitely an impact when Shaun, Asher and HD lost her to… whatever each respective doctor believed in. But it was so much more measured than before. As should be expected at this point, I guess. Kind of remarkable to see it in action nonetheless.
(Also, a huge shoutout to director Rebecca Moline’s eloquent handling of the entire operation sequence! )
What did YOU think of “A Big Sign”? Leave a comment and share your impressions!
