S04.E06: Lim

[helenamonster]

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As Chief of Surgery Dr. Audrey Lim struggles to cope with the residual emotional trauma of COVID-19, she encounters a young war veteran fighting debilitating PTSD. After discussing his case with the team, Dr. Claire Browne suggests a radical treatment to help him. Meanwhile, still reeling from the recent loss of his mentee’s patient, Dr. Shaun Murphy declares he doesn’t want to teach the new residents anymore. And elsewhere, an eccentric patient keeps the team entertained.

Original airdate: 1/11/21

[Annber03]

Hey, show? Try not to scare me with an ending like that again, okay? Thanks. 

Oh, Lim :(. My heart goes out to her. I did like, though, the way she wasn't taking any of the stuff going on with the staff throughout the day. And I'm glad that Jordan was able to smooth things over with her and clarify a few things, and I liked Claire offering her support as well. 

The story with Ben was pretty heartbreaking, too. 

[ShortyMac]

10 minutes ago, Annber03 said:

Hey, show? Try not to scare me with an ending like that again, okay? Thanks. 

Oh, Lim :(. My heart goes out to her. I did like, though, the way she wasn't taking any of the stuff going on with the staff throughout the day. And I'm glad that Jordan was able to smooth things over with her and clarify a few things, and I liked Claire offering her support as well. 

The story with Ben was pretty heartbreaking, too. 

Same.

You could see something happening on the bike from a mile away.

[thuganomics85]

I guess it will remain a mystery about what birthday gift Shaun ended up giving Lea.  Hopefully he eventually figured out that there are gifts that are midway between stuffed singing frogs and sex toys!

So, as I suspected once I saw the episode title, this was basically like last season's "Claire" episode, where the episode put a non-Shaun character in the lead role, and basically makes her the main character this go around.  I'm finding it to be a pretty decent idea that allows the character to fleshed out more and let the actor shine.  Plus, I imagine it is also an opportunity for lighten Freddie Highmore's workload, which I'm sure he appreciates every now and then.  I guess it isn't too surprising that Lim is going through a rough patch at the moment.  Even looking past the COVID pressure she was under (and all the patients she lost), I wonder if she has truly dealt with the grief she likely still has over Melendez, and that can be factor as well.  Of course, I still remember way back in season two, when she almost died by a whole other virus.  In short, Lim has been through some shit!  I just hope she overcomes it/gets help before it's too late.  Christina Chang was great as always here.

Looks like Jordan has finally been given a potential obstacle, by being religious to the point that she isn't comfortable performing certain procedures that are against her religion, like abortion.  Not even going to delve into that debate right now, but I do think Lim had a point that there are some cases where abortion is needed to save a patient's life, and it could be quite problematic if Jordan is unable to perform it.  I guess we will see how this all plays out.

Why, of course a dead rat at their place has led to Reznick and Park acting like goofy children, and upping their antics.  They really do bring out each other's immature sides, huh?

The stuff with Ben/solider suffering from PTSD was good.  The actor did a great job with it.

No Glassman: I wonder if this was filmed when Richard Schiff was still recovering from COVID?

If Lea doesn't want those sex toys, I at the very least hope Shaun knows to just get rid of them and not try to offer them elsewhere, like other birthday presents or potential Secret Santa gifts...

[Annber03]

2 minutes ago, thuganomics85 said:

So, as I suspected once I saw the episode title, this was basically like last season's "Claire" episode, where the episode put a non-Shaun character in the lead role, and basically makes her the main character this go around.  I'm finding it to be a pretty decent idea that allows the character to fleshed out more and let the actor shine. 

A lot of shows I watch tend to have episodes named after individual characters at some point ("Criminal Minds" did that a lot, too). I tend to like those, too, for the same reasons you note. Though I also tend to get nervous if it's a drama series, because that usually means some major shit's going down for the character the episode is named after :p. This show is clearly no exception, it seems. 

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Of course, I still remember way back in season two, when she almost died by a whole other virus. 

Yes! That's right, good point! Wow, yeah, that would be a double whammy, surviving one virus only to have to deal with another one. And she survived the first one, but couldn't help patients survive this one. That would definitely add to her guilt and pain as well. 

[ShortyMac]

30 minutes ago, thuganomics85 said:

Of course, I still remember way back in season two, when she almost died by a whole other virus.  

That's right. It would have been interesting continuity if the writers had used that to make Lim susceptible to COVID, or using flashbacks/PTS.

[Poohbear617]

Dr. Lim was right with Jordan..rhere may come a time in which she wiuld need to do the procedure and there may not be enough time to pawn it off on another surgeon.  Her explaination at the end actually made me more angry at her.  

She was able to get a safe legal abortion, yet now she looks down on that woman, or would possibly deny her the same access to a safe procedure thatshe took full advantage of. She wants her religous beliefs to override that womans right, then move away from california and go to one of the states stripping away womens reproductive freedom...where i am sure they will give a female african american doctor the same chances she is being given where she is.  Jordan shows so much talent, i hated this storyline for her so much.

[bros402]

Yeah, Jordan should at least do it so she knows how to do it in the event of an emergency. If she doesn't want to do it after that.... she isn't going into OB/GYN, so she isn't gonna have to do them very often.

This was a good episode to come back with, and I imagine everyone called osmething happened with Lim and the motorcycle.

[possibilities]

Shaun trying to learn about empathy from the woman who claimed to be an empath was... odd. I would think he wouldn't believe her any more than Lim did. But I was also annoyed about him being a petulant brat refusing to teach, and bothering everyone about his present for Lea. 

I was annoyed by the Reznik/Park shenanigans, also. Out of character AND annoying.

I always find it distracting that patients on this show get brain surgery without any head shaving. 

 

[PinkRibbons]

I kept expecting a reveal that the singing frog was actually the perfect gift for Lea, signifying some inside joke or beloved memory.

[tennisgurl]

I honestly spent the whole episode being afraid that Lim would die, as that's been known to happen when a supporting character gets an episode dedicated to them, especially with Lim racing her motorcycle around. So I am glad that at she least she made it out of the episode in one piece, albeit worse for wear. She is really struggling, I would guess with a number of things, from losing so many patients to COVID to her lingering grief over Melendez. I am glad we got an episode dedicated to Lim, it was fun seeing what are usually main plots from an outside perspective (especially as she has to deal with the staffs quirks and hijinks) and to allow them to show more of her internal life. 

I found all the plots to be interesting, and I am really glad that they remembered Claire's previous issues and PTSD with the soldier, and also followed up with Ben losing his patient. 

Shaun, there is a happy medium between singing frogs and sex toys. 

Jordan will really just have to learn to perform abortions if she wants to keep studying medicine here, even if she is uncomfortable. While I don't think she will have to do it very often, like Lim said it could be the difference between the mother living or dying and she cant decide what procedures she will or wont do in a life or death situation. Jordan has done so well so far, I suppose she had to have some kind of thing to throw her for a loop. This also continues to convince me that Andrews having his niece here is a bad idea for everyone involved. Even if her reason for coming to this hospital has nothing to do with her uncle, its going to color so much of her time there, and people will always suspect that she is getting treated differently because her uncle is the president. 

Reznick and Park really bring out the childish and overly competitive side out of each other. 

[Fable]

I think Lim is a good and fair mentor.  When Shaun pointed out that instead of guiding him she took over his case, she rectified it instead of reprimanding him, and then in her next move, she pointed out to Shaun when he was making the same mistake. 

[possibilities]

I like Lim, so despite my other complaints about this episode, I was glad to see her get a showcase.

I do think they are confusing autism with immaturity in how they are characterizing Shaun, and it irks.

Wasn't CLaire mandated to go to counseling after her patient died in season 1? I wonder why Asher isn't getting the same thing.

[juno]

This episode was great. I am not afraid to admit that more Lim and less Sean is perfect. For the last few seasons I have been enjoying Lim more than any other character and her character has developed it seems more than the others. Unfortunately this is probably a one-off and she will be back in the b-plots again.

Kudos to Christina Chang, she was an absolute rock star in this episode.

[kicotan]

I liked the interjection of the empath.   There’s more to medicine than scientifically based tests and procedures...as much as Lim likes to gloat to the contrary.

Buggy things about this episode:

Jordan should have been cleaning out her locker as soon as she refused to do her job as a doctor because religion.  Obviously the hospital isn’t owned by Dignity Health, so she could always apply there if she wants to be certain she’ll never have to participate in medical procedures that go against her religion.  Her capitulation, then balking when it came time to doctor up should have been the absolute final straw.  Instead of apologizing, with her personal sob story, she should have resigned.

Ben dismissed being prescribed Gabapentin and Dilaudid because opioids make him “a little insane”.  Dilaudid is an opiod, but Gabapentin isn’t.  Nobody pointed that out to him.

Shaun should have been cleaning out his locker when he refused to teach because he’s “bad at it”...his need for his supervision to be supervised is sweet and all that, but should he have to have his hand held at this point?  Sex toys on his superior’s desk because he’s having trouble picking out the right gift to give for his first time as a boyfriend?

Lim asked for that ending...recklessly driving a $16,000 Italian motorcycle...although her leather should have been scuffed up a bit more.

[rmontro]

On 1/11/2021 at 11:25 PM, thuganomics85 said:

I guess it will remain a mystery about what birthday gift Shaun ended up giving Lea.  Hopefully he eventually figured out that there are gifts that are midway between stuffed singing frogs and sex toys!

Shawn was such an afterthought in this episode that they didn't even bother to resolve his storyline.  I suppose it's possible the gift he gave her was the party, but it's much more likely the employees got together to acknowledge her birthday.  I'm going to say he gave her both Llamas.

At the end, I was expecting Lim to get back on the motorcycle and start riding 100 mph again.

I actually kind of liked Park and Reznick goofing around, with the crocs and grills.  Makes me start to buy into their relationship, which I haven't done so far.

[TomGirl]

23 hours ago, possibilities said:

I do think they are confusing autism with immaturity in how they are characterizing Shaun, and it irks.

I totally agree with this!

[Driad]

With the way Shaun behaves, and the things he is still learning, I still think they should have started this series when he was younger, maybe the beginning of medical school.

[jabRI]

It was so wonderful seeing Sheila McCarthy again... LOVED her in 'I've heard the mermaids singing' and even 'Little mosque on the prairie'.

I cried at the end of the episode, could not hold it back.

 

[bros402]

5 hours ago, TomGirl said:

I totally agree with this!

100%

[MoreCoffeePlease]

Refresh my memory ... what illness did Lim have in season 2?

I was mad at Lim for riding her motorcycle recklessly (even though I know she is suffering). That is what causes accidents. What if her driving were to harm someone else?

I cannot even fathom the stress that doctors and nurses are under due to the pandemic. It would be worthwhile for the show to do public service announcements (1 per episode), where they highlight real-life health-care providers and somehow try to personalize the consequences of people not wearing masks, not being careful, etc. 

[catrice2]

On 1/13/2021 at 7:19 PM, TomGirl said:

I totally agree with this!

I was just coming here to say that I stuck with my, "I'm not watching" since Melendez was gone, but thank everyone for posting.   came to the boards just a few times, and only this time because the title was Lim.   

Other than Melendez, this is one of the main reasons the show no longer worked for me....they took every stereotype about Autism and gave it to Shaun and sometimes it is not as much Autism as other things.  I feel they did a good job of letting us know his back story and while I understand his parents and other things contribute to why he acts the way he does and not just the autism, a lot of what they showed was just tiring. 

From the way I read in a post toward the start of this post, this show has moved more toward ER or something...and I stopped watching that after a few years.   I will check in every now and then to see if they have better writing for Claire and Lim because they are the only ones I care about, and Andrews to a lesser extent.  Only because I like Hill Harper and Marsha Thomson and keep hoping they will bring her back as his wife. 

The Shaun/Lea story has no appeal to me. 

[Driad]

3 hours ago, MoreCoffeePlease said:

Refresh my memory ... what illness did Lim have in season 2?

I wondered too so I looked it up: https://the-good-doctor.fandom.com/wiki/Audrey_Lim

[ForReal]

On 1/11/2021 at 9:03 PM, Poohbear617 said:

Dr. Lim was right with Jordan..rhere may come a time in which she wiuld need to do the procedure and there may not be enough time to pawn it off on another surgeon.  Her explanation at the end actually made me more angry at her.  

Same here. I get that she regrets her decision, or at least feels remorseful about it, but she had -- and chose to use -- the freedom to make that decision, and it's not alright with me that she would take it away from someone else.

I recall Lim driving her motorcycle that way in the first season or so and living rather recklessly. Watching this episode, it really hit home how much she's lost. Melendez was a colleague, competitor, friend, lover...they had a long history. Now she has a bunch of younger people who need her and a colleague that second guesses her. I like that Claire tries to support her, but the woman needs more, I think.

[statsgirl]

I really enjoyed this episode because it felt real. Lim is carrying a huge load on her shoulders and there doesn't seem to be anyone that she can share it with. And less emphasis on Shaun and his cute quirks (which really aren't) is always better for me.

Most medical shows are big on surgery because it's showy and exciting but it's not always the bestmedical treatment. Instead of the ablation, which is risky and may not work, they should have tried one of the non-invasive treatments. There is some very promising work being done with MDMA which can retain the memories but removes the emotion from them.

[Avabelle]

I hated Jordan’s aversion to abortion due to her beliefs but what I hated moreso was how they jumped over hoops to get her to do the process. She’s an adult and they should have reprimanded her as soon as she said she didn’t want to do it. 

Her explanation that she had one previously made her even more of a hypocrite.