TGD Readers’ Choice: The Best (and Worst) of Season 5
We have been put on notice, TGD fans!
On Wednesday 8/31 ABC released the first 30-second promo of the new season, which can mean only one thing (lest we need to be reminded): Season 6 is close. Very close. Almostthisclose.
OK it actually means a second thing if you’re me: Get Season 5 in the rearview mirror already so we can put all the focus on what’s ahead.
So I’ve got it all here in this edition: the Readers’ Choices for best episodes of S5, worst episodes of S5, along with a bonus round of my personal picks for favorite #Shea scenes of S5 (not including the obvious ones like Shaun’s re-proposal and the wedding itself)...
Wait– what do you mean, you haven’t seen the new promo yet???
Oh, all right…
It’s a lot, huh? Blood, hostages, Lea scrubbing in… (yes, that’s her, Paige Spara’s Instagram confirms it)... and we’ll get to it soon, most likely when a few more clues have been dropped.
But right now, it’s time to round up The Creme de la Green Apple… AKA
OUR TOP EPISODES OF TGD SEASON 5
(NOTE: While some explained the reasons for their choices, not everyone did… so I provided the explanations in many of those instances.)
“Sons” (5 x 18)
The season finale gave us that wedding we’ve so long desired. The speech by Glassman; the officiating by Andrews; and that beautiful montage of Season 1-4 clips! I would have liked a little less Asher focus and a little more balance on such a pivotal episode, but even that was very well-acted! –TONY
“The Family” (5 x 11)
What makes it (my) #1 is the great balance the episode gave toward all of its characters. The Park/Morgan plot; the Lim/Andrews/Glassman plot. And of course, the crown jewel at the end of the episode! –TONY
“Expired” (5 x 7)
TGD generally excels at the “winter finale” that signals an end to the first part of the season, and with the Ethicure storyline in full swing by December– destined to end well before the season itself did– the stars were aligned for a humdinger. And we got one– but more than that, we got Glassman receiving desperately needed insight and lost “mojo” from an unexpected source (first wife Ilana). We got the somber-before-the-storm via Lea’s confession about the test scores (and Shaun’s stern response). We got two compelling cases-of-the-week that put both Shaun and Glassman’s trajectories into sharp focus. But best of all, we got a clear-cut reason for Salen to be kicked out on her ass (eventually)… and never a finer “kickee” was there than Lim, taking aim alongside Ms. Morrison’s blissier-than-thou waterwall. (And of course, we’ll never forget Shaun’s/Freddie Highmore’s pharmacy scene, … but the emotions were exquisitely different for those final moments of the episode. Just beyond compare.) – KELLI
“One Heart” (5 x 6)
This was unique: An episode that took place partially in flashback, and partially in another part of the country… that put Shaun and Park at odds over medical ethics… that kept Shaun and Lea out of touch with each other, yet still on screen… that gave Lea and Glassman an odd kind of quality time together… oh, and also got the ball rolling for Asher’s eventual reconciliation with his father! Plus we got perhaps my favorite wrap montage music of the season with Ben Abraham’s haunting “Satellite.” Stellar! – KELLI
“Potluck” (5 x 14)
Oh, and don’t forget “Potluck”... Hilarious! – Danielle
With Morgan and (Trippy) Lea as magic mushroom detectives, Park and Asher trippy-bonding and trippy-table dancing, and Shaun and Glassman working through some decidedly un-trippy OR angst, “Potluck” was a mighty entertaining boost to S5’s portfolio.-- Kelli
The HONORABLE MENTIONS (1 Vote Apiece)…
“Measure of Intelligence” (5 x 3)
This was the earliest episode of the season to make my list. Since it certainly isn’t here because of it being “the farting episode” (thanks, Morgan), and the striking-Marcy-from-the-wedding-guest-list issue has yet to develop into anything else… I guess I bring it in honor of the progress made in “Measure” with the Shaun-Salen dynamic. We got Shaun’s quick-rising frustration with the scrubs/soap/hand dryer combo. We got his angry confrontation with Salen. We got Salen seeming to treat Shaun with a fair amount of respect, and getting the things he asked for as proof of said respect. And then… we ended with poster-sized proof of Salen’s true, exploitive colors. –KELLI
“My Way” (5 x 15)
It was awesome seeing Shaun AND Lea using their brilliant skills to help treat the patient in this episode. And I know that reality shows aren’t everyone’s cup of tea, it felt like Sophie was at least trying to do right by Shaun and Lea out of gratitude for taking care of someone near and dear to her. – TONY
“The Shaun Show” (5 x 16)
The Claire surprise was well done and created a sweet ending, but two things stand out for me to make this a top 3. One was Lea’s fierce defense of Shaun when she perceived Sophie was taking advantage of Shaun, and the second was of course her confessional, explaining why she initially rejected Shaun but ultimately chose to be with Shaun. I would’ve dug deeper, but was grateful for the scene.-- STEVEN
THE TWO EPISODES on readers’ “Top” AND “Bottom” lists:
“Dry Spell” (5 x 12)
A close call with Ep. 14 “Potluck” (for top episodes), but I’m going with this one for the bold opening with Lea and the vibrator and the final scene which I wish was longer but was still so sweet and a rare look of Shaun actually smiling.-- STEVE
As for the worst episodes, the second half of the season was very problematic. I don't know what to pick. Maybe "Dry Spell". -- DANIELA
Shaun delivered one of his sexiest lines to date in “Dry Spell” (Tonight, there will be no brakes… only accelerators), but all my least favorite episodes of S5 were about great potential unrealized– and for all of #Shea Nation tired of seeing boxy flannel pajamas, we deserved so much better than this. – KELLI
“Growing Pains” (5 x 13)
As a whole, this one doesn’t spring to mind as much as other S5 favorites. But when I think when was it that Lea and Jordan started their business venture? Or when did Park and Morgan negotiate that next big step in their relationship? Or When did one of my favorite #Shea scenes of the season take place (see below), leading to a sweet and eye-opening chat about Shaun’s “house rules”? … They all came from this episode. –KELLI
It was part of the transition between the Salen arc and the late-season reality arc. And with the greater emphasis on cases and less emphasis on character development (albeit not none, as I did enjoy the Jordan-Lea plot), it ends up being my most “skippable” episode of the season. – TONY
As for our BOTTOM THREE of S5…
“Crazytown” (5 x 5)
To me, it felt like both Glassman and Lea were just so far out of character. Glassman was still in his funk, pushing Lea into the mindset of manipulating some of Shaun’s patient data. I think the following episodes that deal with this dilemma are very well done, but the setup presented in this episode weren’t quite as convincing.-- TONY
“Cheat Day” (5 x 10)
The biggest arc of the season, with so much at stake for so many characters, just ended with a quick whimper! And all that was left for the regular characters was able to be resolved within a couple of episodes. The premise of the Salen threat was captivating and intriguing, but the resolution was highly anti-climatic. –TONY
“The Lea Show” (5 x 17)
Because there was way too much (special guest star) Claire for the title to carry any weight. I liked The Lea Show sooo much better when it was called “Decrypt” (4 x 10). – KELLI
And here’s your BONUS: My favorite Shea Scenes of S5 that were not specifically the wedding or Shaun’s re-proposal
(Because, come on! — Signed, Captian Obvious)
These clips and the one earlier in the post come courtesy of the Shaun The Good Doctor account on YouTube.
(Agree? Disagree? The comments section is your friend!)
“Take a Good Look…” (From 5 x 2 “Piece of Cake)
From a scene so early in the season (and in this episode) that Shaun still liked what Ethicure was all about! A nice example of #Shea’s unique form of banter, punctuated with Shaun’s extended “good look” at his lady love.
“A toast— to me!” (From 5 x 3 “Measure of Intelligence”)
We had Shaun claiming victory (for the moment), we had as pleasant a conversation as anyone’s going to have on this show about Marcie Murphy, we had Shaun’s “disco fingers” as Asher and Jordan carried on with some glorious makeup karaoke… what wasn’t to love?
“No brakes… only accelerators” (From 5 x 12 “Dry Spell”)
It was a disappointing episode, as I said earlier… but dayum, this was a charming scene. If only they’d skipped the massage once she stripped down…!
“I shower first…” (From 5 x 13 “Growing Pains”)
“Is it more important to give people truth or hope?” (From 5 x 16 “The Shaun Show”)
There was a LOT of bang for the buck in this two minutes and 20 seconds. They started with the requisite “cold feet” question for the reality show (sweet with all its ‘he/she is my person’ talk, but a no-brainer), worked Shaun’s to-use-or-not-use-the-footage question into the dialogue (interesting, a bit more of a brainer), then Sophie stung Lea hard with the question about her initial rejection of Shaun (OUCH!)— putting a lot more reality into the reality show than the “cold feet” thing. Such a backward genre, that one.
“I can’t wait to marry you… but not like this” (From 5 x 17 “The Lea Show”)
Call me a sucker for seeing them so gussied up outside of their comfort zones. Call me silly for enjoying the dialogue here, despite Sophie letting them off the hook way too easy. Call me crazy for finding more joy in Shaun’s “ah” (after removing the abdominally-constricting cumberbund) than in the rest of the episode!
But please don’t call me out for citing TWO favorite #Shea scenes that were in TWO of my least-fave overall episodes! The unevenness of S5 was real…