All Episodes Talk: What's Up Doc?

[ktwo]

Quote

Here's a thing the show did that I liked: bringing back minor characters, even years later.  The doctor who talks to Luka about his trauma was a psych intern early on.

Right. He supervised Lucy’s psych rotation!

[Bastet]

4 minutes ago, WendyCR72 said:

They stayed married for a while. Chuck ended up in some helicopter (I know!) mishap, and Susan realized she did have genuine feelings for him. They had their kid. (And there was a creepy - probably supposed to be charming? - scene where Chuck was in the lounge wearing some contraption, "breast feeding" the baby. Why I recall THAT, I don't know. And sorry, but I can't believe Susan named her kid Cosmo.)

EWW - she has a kid with that guy?  (And names it Cosmo?  Sorry, that only works for Kramer.)

His helicopter crash was the one that killed Romano, wasn't it?  That's why I was sad to see him show up - beyond the fact I find him gross, and want him the hell away from Susan - because it means we're getting close to that storyline.

[voiceover]

2 hours ago, Bastet said:

Ha – the huge painting of Carter on horseback is fantastic.  If we've seen that during previous trips to Gamma's house, I've somehow missed it.

Yep.  The ep when Carol was summoned to the house to meet Gamma, as re: the clinic she hoped to open.  Anna was there too, because Carol had inadvertently spilled the beans about the Carter family fortune.  So Anna went along, ostensibly for support, but really just to pull a Gotcha!

The painting was hanging outside the reception room.  The butler told the women that it was Carter and Marigold (whose name we knew from Season 1, since Carter was forced to admit it to the father of a schoolmate.  In front of Benton).

The house interior changed, significantly, between those times.  Bugged the crap out of me.

eta: Now there's a response on every page.

Edited November 10, 2017 by voiceover

[Bastet]

5 minutes ago, doodlebug said:

We saw it when Carol and Anna visited Gamma to raise funds for Carol's clinic in Season 4. One of the staff told them it was Carter and his horse, Marigold.

Oh yeah, I vaguely remember that now.  (I remember their visit, but had forgotten about the horse painting - I probably just heard them rather than actually saw it, because "Marigold" is what triggered my memory.)

[WendyCR72]

1 minute ago, Bastet said:

EWW - she has a kid with that guy?  (And names it Cosmo?  Sorry, that only works for Kramer.)

I know. And I agree. I'm sure Donal Logue is a great guy, but Chuck...I never bought he was Susan's type. But the second run, it's clear that TIIC really had no real idea what to do with Susan, so she had little arcs and then, yeah, they threw her at Chuck.

I was glad when she said she was divorced in S15.

[Zoe]

I don't remember having feelings either way towards Chuck, but it really bothers me that in the end of all the hookups in the show, the only successful relationship is Doug and Carol!

Edited November 11, 2017 by Zoe

[absnow54]

Benton and Cleo technically make it (of the couples we've met so far) and Abby and Luka. Most of the major pairings that failed is because the killed half the couple off. 

[walnutqueen]

3 hours ago, WendyCR72 said:

I know. And I agree. I'm sure Donal Logue is a great guy, but Chuck...I never bought he was Susan's type. But the second run, it's clear that TIIC really had no real idea what to do with Susan, so she had little arcs and then, yeah, they threw her at Chuck.

I was glad when she said she was divorced in S15.

Meh, this is the same Susan who "loved" Mark Greene Beane, her sister Chloe, and Li'l SUZEE (not to mention a cowboy whose name escapes me).  She was all over the place.  ;-)

Blech, blech, blech.  Carter abroad - and not in a good way.  I didn't like those episodes back then, and I still don't like them.

[Zoe]

1 hour ago, absnow54 said:

Benton and Cleo technically make it (of the couples we've met so far) and Abby and Luka. Most of the major pairings that failed is because the killed half the couple off. 

Oh right, forgot about Benton and Cleo. It's hard to consider Abby and Luka a success, though I guess technically they were.

[RedbirdNelly]

watched the episode last night when Leon is sent on the bus to Baltimore. I was glad to see him go but really found it unlikely anyone would expect him to make it there safely by himself. Would have worked better for me if Pratt had hired someone to go with him or they made up a reason for Gallant to take yet another road trip. 

 

This morning I watched the episode when Abby learns her brother is missing after dodging her mom's calls. Given everything, I could not get how she would ignore her mom. You have no idea why she's calling until you talk to her. Also, after knowing her brother is missing, she gets home and doesn't listen to the 19 messages on her machine. She has no idea if message 19 is a call from her brother that he is ok or a hospital that has him or whatever. You've got to listen to them even if you think it is 19 messages of Maggie saying "call me." Bugged me though I suppose I should assume she listens off screen?

 

With the Ed Asner doctor in the clinic--are we supposed to think he takes Carter's donation and skips town? did I fast forward past something? I was not sure what we were supposed to think. 

[rcc]

13 minutes ago, RedbirdNelly said:

watched the episode last night when Leon is sent on the bus to Baltimore. I was glad to see him go but really found it unlikely anyone would expect him to make it there safely by himself. Would have worked better for me if Pratt had hired someone to go with him or they made up a reason for Gallant to take yet another road trip. 

 

This morning I watched the episode when Abby learns her brother is missing after dodging her mom's calls. Given everything, I could not get how she would ignore her mom. You have no idea why she's calling until you talk to her. Also, after knowing her brother is missing, she gets home and doesn't listen to the 19 messages on her machine. She has no idea if message 19 is a call from her brother that he is ok or a hospital that has him or whatever. You've got to listen to them even if you think it is 19 messages of Maggie saying "call me." Bugged me though I suppose I should assume she listens off screen?

 

With the Ed Asner doctor in the clinic--are we supposed to think he takes Carter's donation and skips town? did I fast forward past something? I was not sure what we were supposed to think. 

Yeah, whatever happened with that Carter money. Was the Ed Asner character a con artist?

[walnutqueen]

14 minutes ago, RedbirdNelly said:

With the Ed Asner doctor in the clinic--are we supposed to think he takes Carter's donation and skips town?

 

Just now, rcc said:

Yeah, whatever happened with that Carter money. Was the Ed Asner character a con artist?

Yes and yes.  Carter was conned.

[doodlebug]

49 minutes ago, RedbirdNelly said:

watched the episode last night when Leon is sent on the bus to Baltimore. I was glad to see him go but really found it unlikely anyone would expect him to make it there safely by himself. Would have worked better for me if Pratt had hired someone to go with him or they made up a reason for Gallant to take yet another road trip. 

 

This morning I watched the episode when Abby learns her brother is missing after dodging her mom's calls. Given everything, I could not get how she would ignore her mom. You have no idea why she's calling until you talk to her. Also, after knowing her brother is missing, she gets home and doesn't listen to the 19 messages on her machine. She has no idea if message 19 is a call from her brother that he is ok or a hospital that has him or whatever. You've got to listen to them even if you think it is 19 messages of Maggie saying "call me." Bugged me though I suppose I should assume she listens off screen?

 

With the Ed Asner doctor in the clinic--are we supposed to think he takes Carter's donation and skips town? did I fast forward past something? I was not sure what we were supposed to think. 

Leon was apparently able to get around Chicago on public transportation since he had different jobs and came to the ER looking for Pratt a couple times.  Of course, he would have to change buses once or twice to get to Baltimore, but maybe he'd done it before.  Getting him out of town was the main goal, I guess.

The way Abby speaks to her mother, let alone the way she treats her, is really quite awful.  Abby's a middle aged woman and she acts like a pouty 13 year old much of the time. For someone who claims she's so devoted to helping her family, she doesn't walk the talk.

Yes, Asner was apparently a con man, but the storyline made very little sense.  The cop said he'd been running the clinic for just a few weeks.  He met Carter in the ER.  How did he know Carter had access to family money and was gullible?  Carter had done very little with the family charity to that time.  Then, Asner stopped taking his diabetes meds so he could go to the ER in hopes of getting Carter as his doctor?  What were the chances?  It made no sense.

[voiceover]

Watching "Orion in the Sky" again.  I forgot about the moment when Mekhi Phifer's Pratt is struck dumb when he has to tell the cancer patient, he's dying.  It's almost unbearable to watch.  He makes me imagine Pratt, years from now, telling that story to a despairing med student.

Edited November 11, 2017 by voiceover

[Bastet]

I didn't watch it in its entirety because I'm watching football, but I caught the important parts of Orion today.  I cried.  I love that Mark just left, sharing a look with Susan, "Don't let your work become your life" with Kerry, and Morganstern's "You set the tone" with Carter, but not telling anyone he wasn't coming back.  I also liked the salute with his recurring patient.

His conversation with Jen was a mixed bag.  A doctor and a lawyer don't yet have a college fund set up for the kid who's only a few years away from entering college?  And, while I certainly understand her desire to believe they can discuss this all when he brings Rachel to St. Louis, I have very little patience for people who refuse to accept reality, so she bugs me in that respect.  This isn't some hypochondriac fretting, "Oh, I'm going to die" for no reason, this is a doctor with a terminal illness saying, "I am probably going to die before then; we need to talk about some things for our daughter."  But, when she said she was sorry they had such a rough go of things, he said they both made choices, she said they were pretty good together for a while, and he said he wouldn't change a thing - that part was very nice.

[walnutqueen]

4 hours ago, doodlebug said:

Abby's a middle aged woman and she acts like a pouty 13 year old much of the time.

A dynamic that's not exactly foreign to some mothers & daughters, regardless of their respective age  ...    ;-)

[voiceover]

Just saw the scene between Carter & his mother, talking about Bobby's death, that ends with her saying, "I love you!"

Oh. My. GOD.  I'm wrecked.

[absnow54]

2 hours ago, Bastet said:

I have very little patience for people who refuse to accept reality, so she bugs me in that respect.  This isn't some hypochondriac fretting, "Oh, I'm going to die" for no reason, this is a doctor with a terminal illness saying, "I am probably going to die before then; we need to talk about some things for our daughter."

I thought that was one of the few moments of humanity that Jennifer ever showed. She knew he was dying, but she wasn't ready for it to be over. Denial is a stage of grief, and I think that's what that scene was supposed to show. 

[Bastet]

1 hour ago, absnow54 said:

I thought that was one of the few moments of humanity that Jennifer ever showed. She knew he was dying, but she wasn't ready for it to be over. Denial is a stage of grief, and I think that's what that scene was supposed to show. 

Yes.  Thus the first part of my statement, that I understand her desire to believe they have the time to wait until St. Louis to discuss it.

[Gigi43]

Another great moment  in "Orion In The Sky", Mark seeing right through  Pratts apology,  "Someone told you  I'm dying?" Great delivery.  Mark wasn't even  my favorite  character,  I didn't  even like all of the story, but damn it's a classic  episode.

[justduckey]

I watched the Africa episode this time the same way I watched it 14 years ago...I didn’t. Just nope. Don’t care. Not interested. I’ve akways disliked episodes not centered in the er and this one was the worst.

[Zoe]

I can't  believe the Africa episode was the season finale. I don't think that would fly these days.

[ch1]

I liked the first two Africa episodes.  I thought they were well done.  I didn’t like the others though.  They went to that well too many times.  What I liked the most about them is the writers finally made Carter and Luka friends.  Something that should have happened way before that.

[Bastet]

17 hours ago, voiceover said:

Just saw the scene between Carter & his mother, talking about Bobby's death, that ends with her saying, "I love you!"

Oh. My. GOD.  I'm wrecked.

I love that story arc because I am a fan of anything that puts Mary McDonnell on my screen, but I also love it as someone who has become quite attached to Carter over the years*.  It doesn't erase his childhood, or excuse the fact "He died, and I lost my mother," but for him to finally truly understand that it had nothing to do with him, that losing Bobby just broke her, is important.  "I love you.  Do you hear me?  I love you."  And hug.  It's a lovely moment (and, gods, do I love her coming back to be with that little kid, instead of running away, even though it means she's going to watch it all happen again), and I like to imagine they grew into a decent relationship, especially once she found her way separate from the rest of the Carter family.

*I have a friend who adopted a cat about halfway through the show's run, and named him Carter after the character.

[Chit Chat]

18 hours ago, Gigi43 said:

Another great moment  in "Orion In The Sky", Mark seeing right through  Pratts apology,  "Someone told you  I'm dying?" Great delivery.  Mark wasn't even  my favorite  character,  I didn't  even like all of the story, but damn it's a classic  episode.

I just watched this episode today.  I loved seeing Mark start telling patients how he really felt:  The lady with the hangnail complaining about how much pain she was in, and without missing a beat he said "I've got an inoperable brain tumor.  I win."  Then he let the drug & alcohol-addicted pregnant woman verbally have it after giving birth to her baby who is very underweight, and will have fetal alcohol poisoning - among other serious issues.  No tact or diplomacy with them.  I loved it!   I know it wasn't the ethical way to behave, but at that point, who cares?  

For the most part though, I really didn't enjoy these later episodes.  Too many far-fetched scenarios with the cast, IMO.  I can now see why I quit watching the show around this time when it originally aired.  

[desertflower]

Mary McDonnell was really great. Did she ever come back; I can't remember?? I know his dad came back when Kem lost the baby; it was a wonderful scene when Carter sees him in the hallway.

I don't like the Africa episodes. I know terrible things happened (and continue to happen) there and I shouldn't stick my head in the sand but I skipped the final one they did (Pratt goes over, I think?) because I found the first ones so depressing. 

Sad to read about AE's molestation. 

[Bastet]

11 minutes ago, desertflower said:

Mary McDonnell was really great. Did she ever come back; I can't remember?? I know his dad came back when Kem lost the baby; it was a wonderful scene when Carter sees him in the hallway.

No, by the time they got to that point in ER, she was already in Vancouver doing Battlestar Galactica.  But, yes, she was great (as always); she got an Emmy nomination for her guest spot as Eleanor.  Michael Gross was great casting as Carter's dad, too, and I'm glad that with Gamma's death, Carter is starting to make some headway in his relationship with him.

[RedbirdNelly]

On ‎11‎/‎11‎/‎2017 at 2:27 PM, doodlebug said:

 

Yes, Asner was apparently a con man, but the storyline made very little sense.  The cop said he'd been running the clinic for just a few weeks.  He met Carter in the ER.  How did he know Carter had access to family money and was gullible?  Carter had done very little with the family charity to that time.  Then, Asner stopped taking his diabetes meds so he could go to the ER in hopes of getting Carter as his doctor?  What were the chances?  It made no sense.

It truly makes no sense which is why I was really thrown by it. Ed Asner shows up in the ER with health issues episodes before and Carter goes by and sees the clinic. What kind of long con was that? He had no way of knowing he'd get treated in the ER by a rich doctor. . . I suppose we're supposed to think he really ran a clinic but once he realized Carter was loaded, decided "the heck with this lifestyle; I'm going to tear up this check and go back to the ER and see if eh hands me an even bigger one. . " ??? this would mean he was a real doctor who chose to practice in a low paying way for years and suddenly decided to con people? none of it adds up. Would have been more realistic for Carter to go by and find that the guy sucks at managing money so he's accomplished nothing with it. . .

On ‎11‎/‎11‎/‎2017 at 8:44 PM, Bastet said:

Yes.  Thus the first part of my statement, that I understand her desire to believe they have the time to wait until St. Louis to discuss it.

I had the same thoughts as Bastet on this part. I just think it's selfish (maybe too strong of a word) to not let the terminal person have the conversation they want to have when they obviously do not have other options.

[doodlebug]

3 hours ago, RedbirdNelly said:

It truly makes no sense which is why I was really thrown by it. Ed Asner shows up in the ER with health issues episodes before and Carter goes by and sees the clinic. What kind of long con was that? He had no way of knowing he'd get treated in the ER by a rich doctor. . . I suppose we're supposed to think he really ran a clinic but once he realized Carter was loaded, decided "the heck with this lifestyle; I'm going to tear up this check and go back to the ER and see if eh hands me an even bigger one. . " ??? this would mean he was a real doctor who chose to practice in a low paying way for years and suddenly decided to con people? none of it adds up. Would have been more realistic for Carter to go by and find that the guy sucks at managing money so he's a . .ccomplished nothing with it.

I had the same thoughts as Bastet on this part. I just think it's selfish (maybe too strong of a word) to not let the terminal person have the conversation they want to have when they obviously do not have other options.

The Asner storyline was such a waste, they took a terrific actor and an interesting premise (Carter getting involved in charitable pursuits and getting swindled due to his lack of experience/gullibility) and messed it all up.  The audience deserved better and so did the actors.

I got why Jen didn't want to have that talk with Mark right then and there in Doc's, although surely she knew that they needed to get some details worked out for Rachel.  It bugged me that she completely shut him down; she could've asked if they could get together privately at the house or arrange a phone conversation or even ask him to write down the specifics so that she would be able to reference it as needed.  I also think when Mark talked about helping with Rachel's education, paying for her wedding; he wasn't implying that there wasn't money available for those things.  I just think he wanted to know that HIS money that would be left to Rachel was specifically earmarked for that stuff.  He wanted to know that he was going to be playing a part in the important events in Rachel's life, even if only via her inheritance.  I think it is an extension of his conversation with Elizabeth where he wanted to write letters for his daughters to receive at special moments so they would know his hopes and dreams for them didn't end with his death.

Edited November 13, 2017 by doodlebug

[desertflower]

Romano is such an ass when he takes over the ER, but it sure is fun watching Paul McCrane tear it up. 

Edited November 13, 2017 by desertflower

[absnow54]

The Asner storyline was such a waste, they took a terrific actor and an interesting premise (Carter getting involved in charitable pursuits and getting swindled due to his lack of experience/gullibility) and messed it all up. The audience deserved better and so did the actors.

And Carter is so loaded, the money he was swindled out of was little more than an "aw, shucks" con. He seemed to be more concerned with whether Ed Asner was managing his diabetes.

[voiceover]

Okay, I missed a big chunk: how does Abby get to be angry and sulk, when I thought her brother's performance at Gamma's funeral was enough to break those two apart?

And what up with the construction?

[rcc]

11 minutes ago, voiceover said:

Okay, I missed a big chunk: how does Abby get to be angry and sulk, when I thought her brother's performance at Gamma's funeral was enough to break those two apart?

And what up with the construction?

Carter went to Africa even though she didn't want him to go. But her brother gets a pass because of his illness when he ruined Gamma's funeral. Not an Abby fan and it gets worse by the day.

Weaver apparently ordered the construction.

[Bastet]

The episode in the Congo was TV's usual patronizing treatment of African nations, but I did enjoy this exchange with Mary McCormack and Carter:

“Nobody at home gives a damn what happens here.”
“There’s no oil here.”

A typical day in the ER when the new med students start is a good episode.  Watching Romano, who’s always trying to deny care based on costs, be told he can’t have the kind of prosthetic arm he wants because the insurance company denied it as an unnecessary upgrade is pretty damn fun to see.  So was his “Amputee surgeon has to pay for his own arm to work in the hospital where he lost it” tirade with the hook arm in Kerry’s office.

But how did Abby not see the letter missed the rubbish bin, or at least overhear Frank muttering about picking up after her?  Obviously that asshole is going to a) read the letter and b) share its contents with the world, because he’s an asshole.

Edited November 13, 2017 by Bastet

[rcc]

I don't understand why Romano didn't pay the difference in what the insurance company would pay since he had to have made a big salary as a surgeon. But I do understand his anger because he was doing his job and the insurance company should have given him a better arm.

[absnow54]

John Carter's brand new, fancy iPod!

Zac Efron sighting as the kid with the GSW that Abby tried to passive aggressively treat in the trauma room. 

Edited November 14, 2017 by absnow54

[movingtargetgal]

We lost electricity last Friday and I did not get to see what Abby's brother did at Carter's Gamma's funeral.  Could someone fill me in?  He didn't fall into the open grave did he?

Edited November 14, 2017 by movingtargetgal

[slasherboy]

I'm watching Season 10, Episode 3, "Dear Abby" and I'm wondering, "Who are these people?"  I've recently missed about 90 minutes over a several episode period and there's all these new people that I don't know and don't want to know.  I don't recognize any of them or the storylines so I guess I bailed before this the first (and only) time around for me.

I will say, Luca is wearing a fashionable hospital gown ... white with vertical gray stripes, in 3 shades of gray-ness.  Relevant today!

Did anybody ever say what was in Abby's letter from Carter?  I know he dumped her, but did they read the specifics?

[justduckey]

Yay! Another Africa episode right on the heels of the last one means I can FFF through this one, too, thus getting me through today’s 3 episode in record time!

[desertflower]

15 minutes ago, movingtargetgal said:

We lost electricity last Friday and I did not get to see what Abby's brother did at Carter's Gamma's funeral.  Could someone fill me in?  He didn't fall into the open grave did he?

Sadly, yes...yes, he did. Abby tried to leave him in the car but he got out and took a piss by the gravestones. Carter, Abby and Carter's dad got up to go calm him down. He lost his balance, knocked over a floral spray and then fell into the grave. It was as awful as it sounds. 

[doodlebug]

6 hours ago, voiceover said:

Okay, I missed a big chunk: how does Abby get to be angry and sulk, when I thought her brother's performance at Gamma's funeral was enough to break those two apart?

And what up with the construction?

Because Carter had the nerve to decide to go to Africa even though she didn't want him to leave. Hence, he was automatically wrong and everything was all his fault.  That's the Gospel according to Abby.  Now, she, of course, could up and leave on a moment's notice to chase a crazy relative and he had no right to even express an opinion; Abby's world is all about Abby. She told him she was sorry that her brother turned his grandmother's funeral into a circus and, therefore, he had no right to continue to be upset about it.  And, since Gamma was dead and buried, he had no right to continue grieving, either. He was supposed to move on immediately because, once again, it's the Gospel according to Abby.  After all, her brother could've run off again and who was going to foot the bill for another wild goose chase?  Who was going to write prescriptions for her family?  Alas, you ain't seen nothing yet,  Fast forward a couple seasons and get a load of what she does to punish Luka for having the nerve to go to Croatia to visit his dying father.  She is positively livid that he would even consider leaving her in Chicago for even a moment and she makes him pay.  She really is a pretty awful excuse for a human being.

Kerry, now that she is in charge of the whole hospital, manages to suddenly find the funding to remodel and expand the ER.  I think TPTB figured that, after 10 seasons, it was time for a new set, and, of course, they also needed a storyline.

40 minutes ago, desertflower said:

Sadly, yes...yes, he did. Abby tried to leave him in the car but he got out and took a piss by the gravestones. Carter, Abby and Carter's dad got up to go calm him down. He lost his balance, knocked over a floral spray and then fell into the grave. It was as awful as it sounds. 

Abby left him alone in a Carter family limo with access to the mini-bar despite the fact he was floridly manic and had already told her he had not been taking his meds.  Yes, she really IS that dumb.  Eric was not only manic and unmedicated, he was drunk; thanks to her.

Edited November 14, 2017 by doodlebug

[movingtargetgal]

OMG!!!!! I was joking when I asked that.  It is a running joke between my husband and I that whenever we see a gravesite scene that someone is going to fall into it.  It stems from when I was a counselor in training.  I was having my very first one to one session with an inmate/client and he tearfully told me that he had been so high during his father's funeral that he "slipped" and got stuck between the grave opening and his father's casket.  It took them 5 minutes to get him out.  He was so devastated telling his story but all I was doing was trying to hold back my inappropriate laughter, which I did (thank god).  I did not think it was Ha Ha funny.  It was such a sad pathetic situation but that mental image was a bit overwhelming.  My supervisor was wonderful and helped me to see that I was not a horrible person just very human.  

[doodlebug]

10 hours ago, slasherboy said:

I'm watching Season 10, Episode 3, "Dear Abby" and I'm wondering, "Who are these people?"  I've recently missed about 90 minutes over a several episode period and there's all these new people that I don't know and don't want to know.  I don't recognize any of them or the storylines so I guess I bailed before this the first (and only) time around for me.

I will say, Luca is wearing a fashionable hospital gown ... white with vertical gray stripes, in 3 shades of gray-ness.  Relevant today!

Did anybody ever say what was in Abby's letter from Carter?  I know he dumped her, but did they read the specifics?

As far as the new characters, 2 of them end up dead and one is widowed before the show ends, so don't bother getting too familiar.  Others, like ‘Coop’ and the surgeon who sexually harasses Elizabeth in the OR and ER, disappear without a trace.

I suppose it is a sign that times have changed that the behavior exhibited  by Dorset would not be viewed as flirtatious these days and would get a well deserved reprimand. I do remember being disappointed in Elizabeth at the time for giving a slime ball the time of day.  

We never hear what Carter wrote to Abby, presumably he told her he didn't want to keep torturing himself or her and agreed with the message she sent him when she tossed him out of her apartment in the middle of the night, asked for her key back and put a bag of his stuff outside his locker at work.  I recall a lot of people being angry at Carter for breaking up with her via letter but, since he wasn't coming back anytime soon, I don't think a phone call was going to be any better.  And, considering he tried to talk to her in the ER before he left and she shut him down with a bunch of passive-aggressive bullshit; I don't think he was wrong to presume she didn't want to continue the misery, either.  The letter just finalized the end of a relationship that she clearly didn't value anyway.  Not to worry, Abby latches onto her next victim toute de suite.

10 hours ago, movingtargetgal said:

OMG!!!!! I was joking when I asked that.  It is a running joke between my husband and I that whenever we see a gravesite scene that someone is going to fall into it.  It stems from when I was a counselor in training.  I was having my very first one to one session with an inmate/client and he tearfully told me that he had been so high during his father's funeral that he "slipped" and got stuck between the grave opening and his father's casket.  It took them 5 minutes to get him out.  He was so devastated telling his story but all I was doing was trying to hold back my inappropriate laughter, which I did (thank god).  I did not think it was Ha Ha funny.  It was such a sad pathetic situation but that mental image was a bit overwhelming.  My supervisor was wonderful and helped me to see that I was not a horrible person just very human.  

Well, I hope your client didn't stumble around peeing loudly on a nearby gravestone to get everyone's attention before he got stuck in the grave.  Eric did, of course.

Edited November 14, 2017 by doodlebug

[RedbirdNelly]

11 hours ago, movingtargetgal said:

OMG!!!!! I was joking when I asked that.  It is a running joke between my husband and I that whenever we see a gravesite scene that someone is going to fall into it.  It stems from when I was a counselor in training.  I was having my very first one to one session with an inmate/client and he tearfully told me that he had been so high during his father's funeral that he "slipped" and got stuck between the grave opening and his father's casket.  It took them 5 minutes to get him out.  He was so devastated telling his story but all I was doing was trying to hold back my inappropriate laughter, which I did (thank god).  I did not think it was Ha Ha funny.  It was such a sad pathetic situation but that mental image was a bit overwhelming.  My supervisor was wonderful and helped me to see that I was not a horrible person just very human.  

off topic from ER but thanks for your post. There are some things in life that are visually funny (partly because we've all watched cartoons or half hour comedies where things like that happen but no one gets hurt in real life so it's ok to laugh at the cartoon/show), but in real life it's not ok to laugh. I've been there (though not as a counselor) and I've felt guilt about it--but nice to see I'm not alone.

[ktwo]

Ah, Coop. I remember liking you so much when these episodes first aired, and then you disappeared into the ether leaving us with Morris, who it takes me like five years to tolerate. 

Can someone explain what happened with Pratt? He was due to go to work - matches?  - at Northwestern and then he just decides he's going to stay working at County? How would that possibly work? 

[doodlebug]

2 hours ago, ktwo said:

Ah, Coop. I remember liking you so much when these episodes first aired, and then you disappeared into the ether leaving us with Morris, who it takes me like five years to tolerate. 

Can someone explain what happened with Pratt? He was due to go to work - matches?  - at Northwestern and then he just decides he's going to stay working at County? How would that possibly work? 

In real life, it doesn't.  Residency programs are strictly regulated, there are only X number of residents permitted at any given level at a time.  In addition, the match includes a legally binding contract that Pratt would've signed to be at Northwestern on a certain date and time.  If he signs the contract (and he would've done so, months before) he either shows up or he is out of the residency.  While it is possible to change your mind for whatever reason (usually major health or family issues, not on a whim); it has to be done through the usual channels just as anyone would change their mind about starting a new job.  Pratt had been at County for more than a year at that point, had expressed nothing but contempt for the place and then changed his mind overnight the night before he was done?  Not likely and not really possible.  Presumably, County had all their places filled in the match which means he couldn't stay there even if he wanted to, the ER residency would lose its accreditation for having more residents than permitted.

Coop was a likeable guy who seemed to be fairly bright and motivated, hence, he had to go.  ER in the early seasons was a place where all the doctors were competent, dedicated and generally decent human beings.  By Season 10, it was filled with miserable complainers, many of them incompetent and lazy.  Coop just didn't fit in with that ER.

Edited November 14, 2017 by doodlebug

[Bastet]

If I was supposed to like Coop for daring to be an asshole to ER's Chief Asshole, the technique did not work on me.  The way he spoke to Romano, making fun of his disability, was disgraceful, and that doesn't change just because it's Romano. 

The only time I am not offended by any variation on "being someone's bitch" is when a woman who has been called a bitch uses it to turn the tables on the man who used that slur against her, so Kerry responding to Romano calling her a bitch by saying, "I'm your boss.  Which makes you my bitch" was pretty much tailor made for me.

[desertflower]

3 hours ago, ktwo said:

Ah, Coop. I remember liking you so much when these episodes first aired, and then you disappeared into the ether leaving us with Morris, who it takes me like five years to tolerate. 

 

Ha, yes! I had forgotten about Coop but then as soon as I saw him I remembered really liking him. And same thoughts on Morris...I did end up liking him by the final season but it took a long time.

Chen really was a bitch to Neela when she first arrived. It wasn't her fault Pratt showed her attention. Chen was a nervous med student herself at one time; it would've been nice if she'd helped out another young female doctor instead of treating her like crap because of her petty jealousy. Disappointing writing for that character.

I know this is so, so, shallow and there are much bigger takeaways I should have from the Africa episodes but I will say it anyway: Luka and Carter are super hot in Africa. (And not just their temperature!)  Must be the sunglasses and the sweat! (And not when Luka has malaria, but the rest of the time!)

[Bastet]

20 minutes ago, desertflower said:

Chen was a nervous med student herself at one time; it would've been nice if she'd helped out another young female doctor instead of treating her like crap because of her petty jealousy. Disappointing writing for that character.

I hated that bit of sexist stereotyping, too, as well as Corday having sex with the obnoxious doctor.  Because, of course, when women object to a man's blatant arrogance and patronizing, they're secretly turned on by it.

Chen springing her rude parents on Pratt, and then getting mad because he only wanted a casual relationship (when he'd done nothing to lead her on that he wanted more), was another low point in the writing.

[absnow54]

I hated that bit of sexist stereotyping, too, as well as Corday having sex with the obnoxious doctor. Because, of course, when women object to a man's blatant arrogance and patronizing, they're secretly turned on by it.

I know people have been ragging on Donal Logue, but I'd take him any day over greasy, stand up surgeon. The scene where he was working the trauma room and Susan and Abby were so put off by his "charm" while Elizabeth was hanging off his every word was kind of funny though.