All Episodes Talk: What's Up Doc?

[absnow54]

23 minutes ago, doodlebug said:

I would also dispute that going on an alcoholic bender because of a single bad day at work and home because one cannot reach their spouse to vent and complain is NOT 'normal human behavior' by any stretch of the imagination. 

But she wasn't trying to call Luka to vent and complain. She was calling him because their son could have died and she was terrified and couldn't reach him all day. They're supposed to be a team when it comes to Joe, and in this instance, he wasn't there to bear some of the load. Abby's relapse is by no means Luka's fault, they were both put in a really awful position, and Abby had a moment of weakness, which is really dangerous for an addict. 

[KBrownie]

7 minutes ago, absnow54 said:

But she wasn't trying to call Luka to vent and complain. She was calling him because their son could have died and she was terrified and couldn't reach him all day. They're supposed to be a team when it comes to Joe, and in this instance, he wasn't there to bear some of the load. Abby's relapse is by no means Luka's fault, they were both put in a really awful position, and Abby had a moment of weakness, which is really dangerous for an addict. 

Exactly.  This wasn't just some run of the mill bad day at work.  Abby's son, the one whose traumatic birth they've already gone through, is brought into the ER unconscious with a possible life-threatening head injury and she has to deal with that without her partner and the baby's father.  Sure, Pratt, Sam, Chuny, et. al were there as support (and she did express her gratefulness and thanks for their support), but that isn't the same as Luka.  Most people in that same situation would be extremely frustrated that they couldn't reach their spouse/parent of the injured child, nevermind someone with an anxious personality such as Abby has and who has stressed to Luka before that they are partners/in it together.  Nevermind the fact that Luka, as Joe's father, needed to know what was going on.  Abby wasn't looking to vent or bitch at him about the situation.  She was looking for the support and understanding that only he could offer.  Like she said before, it's totally different when it's your kid on the table.  Abby was 100% wrong for her subsequent actions and choices no doubt, but just to ignore all of the many extenuating circumstances is dishonest at best.

[doodlebug]

26 minutes ago, KBrownie said:

Exactly.  This wasn't just some run of the mill bad day at work.  Abby's son, the one whose traumatic birth they've already gone through, is brought into the ER unconscious with a possible life-threatening head injury and she has to deal with that without her partner and the baby's father.  Sure, Pratt, Sam, Chuny, et. al were there as support (and she did express her gratefulness and thanks for their support), but that isn't the same as Luka.  Most people in that same situation would be extremely frustrated that they couldn't reach their spouse/parent of the injured child, nevermind someone with an anxious personality such as Abby has and who has stressed to Luka before that they are partners/in it together.  Nevermind the fact that Luka, as Joe's father, needed to know what was going on.  Abby wasn't looking to vent or bitch at him about the situation.  She was looking for the support and understanding that only he could offer.  Like she said before, it's totally different when it's your kid on the table.  Abby was 100% wrong for her subsequent actions and choices no doubt, but just to ignore all of the many extenuating circumstances is dishonest at best.

So, Abby is incapable of staying sober unless Luka is immediately available to her 24/7 for the rest of their lives? He was out of the country with his sick father; not on a wild weekend in Vegas with the guys.  Sounds like the definition of co-dependence to me.  Perhaps Luka was also having a stressful day. Does that entitle him to veer out of control and cheat on her?  She is an addict, she cannot drink, EVER, no matter what.  If she’s so damned worried about her kid’s possible concussion, what is she doing getting plastered instead of monitoring him, caring for him?  She has an AA sponsor, why not call her before drinking? Abby is as selfish and self involved a character as has ever been on TV.  She doesn’t need anyone to feel sorry for her, she feels sorry enough for herself. I feel sorry for her poor little boy, her patients, her husband.  If she is truly incapable of remaining sober without Luka handcuffed to her, then she should never have had a child, should never, ever have gone to med school.

Edited December 29, 2017 by doodlebug

[doodlebug]

52 minutes ago, absnow54 said:

But she wasn't trying to call Luka to vent and complain. She was calling him because their son could have died and she was terrified and couldn't reach him all day. They're supposed to be a team when it comes to Joe, and in this instance, he wasn't there to bear some of the load. Abby's relapse is by no means Luka's fault, they were both put in a really awful position, and Abby had a moment of weakness, which is really dangerous for an addict. 

What was Luka going to do about it from Croatia?  Even in the midst of the crisis, he couldn’t get back to Chicago instantaneously.  Abby wanted him on the phone so she could whine and moan and cry and obsess just like she did during her pregnancy.  And he was supposed to coo and comfort and sympathize wif poor widdle Abby and her bwavery and tell her how fabulous she is for taking care of her kid without his constant presence and attention to her.  Luka lost two kids, but he managed to keep his shit together because he couldn’t depend on her for support when Joe was in the ICU.  It is totally ridiculous for anyone to expect their spouse to never leave their side ever in case something bad might happen.  Abby may well have a pathological anxiety disorder; but it’s not Luka’s responsibility to make sure she never has to deal with it.

if the tables were turned and she was gallivanting across the countryside with her mother or brother off their meds; does anyone think she would think twice about leaving Joe and Luka without a backwards glance?  Does anyone think she’d make any effort to be available should Luka have a crisis? We saw how supportive she was when Carter’s grandmother died.  We all know the answer.  Abby’s #1 concern is Abby; what she wants, what she needs.  It is everyone else’s job to cater to her, never vice versa.

[absnow54]

I think we're just going to have to agree to disagree on this one. Luka's a doctor too, and Abby often has a myopic view on medical treatment when it comes to treating her son in times of crisis, while Luka can keep a level head. That's the kind of support he could have offered over the phone, and the kind of support I think she was looking for. And even so, if my kid had nearly cracked his skull open and then I'd crashed my car, I'd really want to hear my husband's voice too, and I'd be really frustrated if I couldn't reach him. I don't think that makes someone a selfish person. It's not like Luka's been gone for a weekend, he's been gone for nearly a month at this point. He's not a villain for leaving to care for his sick father, but the situation their family is in right now is hard.

That said, I often dislike Abby too. I cheered when she misdiagnosed the kidney patient and the intern called it totally obvious (like sorry kidney dude, but she's always right, and I hate it... which is why I hate Gates because he's the current resident know it all) and I loved it when her flower girl called her out for complaining all the time, but in this particular episode, I felt really bad for her.

[slasherboy]

How old is Harold supposed to be?

I'm sad Stanley Tucci left.  Did he really go because of his son's problems, or because of his fling with Abby?

[walnutqueen]

56 minutes ago, slasherboy said:

How old is Harold supposed to be?

I'm sad Stanley Tucci left.  Did he really go because of his son's problems, or because of his fling with Abby?

19.

Pretty sure it was the son's problems.

[doodlebug]

BINGO ALERT:

POP TV is running a 'Before They Were Stars' ER marathon on New Year's Day featuring episodes with Kirsten Dunst, Jessica Chastain, Ewan McGregor, Octavia Spencer and more starting at 11:30 AM.

[MinorL]

I felt like the entire Blackout episode was just babies crying. It was too much. 

[Bastet]

I missed Stanley Tucci?  Damn; I love him.

I didn't wind up taking the tree/decorations down today, but I did turn the episodes on in the background as I otherwise puttered.  Nothing much struck my fancy.  This show is limping towards the finish line.

[absnow54]

8 hours ago, MinorL said:

I felt like the entire Blackout episode was just babies crying. It was too much. 

That poor set of twins playing Joe. I swear they have to cry in every scene. Did they constantly wake them up from a nap then throw them in front of a camera?

Question from the last episode. After Neela catches Abby drinking in her apartment and they fight, Neela runs into Luka and he asks if she's seen Abby. Neela says that she hasn't, but not in a shifty "I'm lying to you" way. Are we supposed to believe Neela is covering for Abby (and if so, why?) or are we supposed to think their confrontation never actually happened. It was such a weird choice to me. 

[doodlebug]

14 minutes ago, absnow54 said:

That poor set of twins playing Joe. I swear they have to cry in every scene. Did they constantly wake them up from a nap then throw them in front of a camera?

Question from the last episode. After Neela catches Abby drinking in her apartment and they fight, Neela runs into Luka and he asks if she's seen Abby. Neela says that she hasn't, but not in a shifty "I'm lying to you" way. Are we supposed to believe Neela is covering for Abby (and if so, why?) or are we supposed to think their confrontation never actually happened. It was such a weird choice to me. 

I think we were supposed to think that Neela wants to stay out of Abby's marriage.  I don't think she was so much 'covering' for her as not wanting to stir up that hornet's nest. If she told him she'd seen her, he'd want to know where.  If she told him where, he'd be asking her what Abby was doing at her apartment.  So, she told the lesser lie.  Also, it fit into the storyline as they wanted to tell it; by this point in its history, ER was kinda lurching from story to story and logic and continuity weren't really part of the plan.

Edited December 30, 2017 by doodlebug

[Barb1959]

I just love Harold!

[justduckey]

Omg with the incessant Joe crying. 

[doodlebug]

1 hour ago, justduckey said:

Omg with the incessant Joe crying. 

If Abby was your BadMommy, you'd be hysterical, too.

[desertflower]

Re: Pratt....yes, the actor decided to move on and he asked them to kill his character off in a dramatic way. He dies in the ER after being injured in the explosion mentioned earlier. There is a nice moment with him and Frank, I remember, and it was very sad, but mostly I just remember thinking it was too much at that point to kill another character. You almost get numb to it when it happens for the gazillionth time. 

I was watching a travel show today and they were featuring Croatia. It was very beautiful and I kept thinking of Luka trying to explain to people about the beaches and how nice it actually is there. 

[doodlebug]

15 minutes ago, desertflower said:

Re: Pratt....yes, the actor decided to move on and he asked them to kill his character off in a dramatic way. He dies in the ER after being injured in the explosion mentioned earlier. There is a nice moment with him and Frank, I remember, and it was very sad, but mostly I just remember thinking it was too much at that point to kill another character. You almost get numb to it when it happens for the gazillionth time. 

I was watching a travel show today and they were featuring Croatia. It was very beautiful and I kept thinking of Luka trying to explain to people about the beaches and how nice it actually is there. 

I’ve been to Croatia, it is spectacular.  Blue, blue water, gorgeous lush islands, beautiful cities with amazing heritage.  Lovely people who have a wonderful sense of humor and warmth.  Most do not look like GV, alas.

Mekhi Pfifer was the third regular cast member to request his character bekilled off (Kellie Martin and Anthony Edwards were the others).  TPTB should’ve turned him down; it was just too much at that point, after so many other deaths.

[walnutqueen]

11 hours ago, doodlebug said:

If Abby was your BadMommy, you'd be hysterical, too.

If screamin' Joe was my kid, I'd be driven to drink, too.

[movingtargetgal]

Abby is a great doctor and cares about her patients, however, she is not a warm, loving and nurturing person.  She is rather cold and brittle in her personal relationships and I think baby Joe picks up on this, which is why he cries so much.  If Abby had not accidentally gotten pregnant I don't think she would have had children.  I am not saying Abby does not love Joe it is the fact that she will never be a warm fuzzy person or mother.  There is always a feeling of tension under the surface with Abby and she will snap at Luca and her coworkers frequently.  She is uncomfortable with being emotionally open to anyone including her son.  Abby is not a bad mother she is very insecure in her ability to be a good parent.  She is so afraid of screwing it up that she is not able to fully enjoy being a mom.  To quote a movie I once saw "Being a mother is hard.  If it weren't fathers would be doing it."

[desertflower]

5 hours ago, movingtargetgal said:

She is so afraid of screwing it up that she is not able to fully enjoy being a mom.  

This seems to sum up the majority of Abby's relationships! A lot of the friction between her and Carter was from her constantly pushing him away or flat out asking him why he wanted to be involved with her and her craziness. She just assumed she would mess everything up and could not fully enjoy the relationship and accept that this man loved her. 

I have a friend who does this. She has some issues from her past but if you try to offer support she dismisses you as someone who couldn't POSSIBLY understand her troubles because she is just SO damaged.  Sigh. I have compassion to a point but then it's like come on! Let people love and support you, already. 

[RedbirdNelly]

On ‎11‎/‎23‎/‎2017 at 5:47 AM, doodlebug said:

I thought Elizabeth told her she didn’t include anything too ‘girly’.  Also, it was pretty clear that Elizabeth didn’t know what Kerry was planning until she got to her place and saw she was packing and had her passport out.  I cannot picture Kerry asking Elizabeth for girls’ baby clothes without telling her why, nor can I imagine Elizabeth doing it, she clearly thought it was a bad idea.  

watching end of season 10/about to start on season 11. I agree that Kerry was thinking of dashing with Henry but nothing indicates she was planning to disguise him as a girl using Elizabeth's clothes. I just watched the episode where Kerry overhears that Abby failed her boards and inappropriately tries to pressure her not to rank County because Kerry is afraid County will get stuck with one less intern than it needs. So typical Kerry. Abby is nice to her, provides support and Kerry right away drops any sense of humanity and goes straight for the non-emotional response to a situation--no support back to Abby but tries to dump this possible problem on another hospital. They did write Kerry consistently that way throughout the show. Moments of nice followed by abrupt cold hard logic.

I found it odd that so many of the ER staff were at Neela and Abby's graduation. No one really wants to go to graduation ceremonies besides my mom. I would not go to one for non-family unless I had the world's closest friendship and was asked to. yet, there is Sam along with loser dad and her kid! Who takes their kid to this--Sam is not that close to Neela or Abby. I know it was done to show the "happy family" view to Luca--but still. Not realistic for Sam plus loser dad and her kid to be there--and really not realistic for Luka or anyone else to go.

As others have posted the Kem/Carter baby episode is so sad and well done. I can't imagine having to live through labor in that situation.

[absnow54]

They did write Kerry consistently that way throughout the show. Moments of nice followed by abrupt cold hard logic.

I always wondered why they didn't make a bigger deal of Kerry giving up Chief of Staff to save Luka's job, especially when he turned around and fired her a few months later, because that was a huge departure from the Kerry we'd seen throughout the series.

[doodlebug]

59 minutes ago, absnow54 said:

I always wondered why they didn't make a bigger deal of Kerry giving up Chief of Staff to save Luka's job, especially when he turned around and fired her a few months later, because that was a huge departure from the Kerry we'd seen throughout the series.

Yeah, it was out of character for her, and it ended up leading to her own job being lost when Luka had to trim the budget.  Alas, the writing during that period was just not strong enough to emphasize the irony of Kerry finally accepting blame for something and having it come back and bite her.

[RedbirdNelly]

haven't gotten to that part but Kerry giving up something like that for someone else does not fit. She has consistently let others take the fall--such as cutting Genie's job while giving her a raise and making Dr. Dave the fallguy when she forgot her pager. . .

[doodlebug]

24 minutes ago, RedbirdNelly said:

haven't gotten to that part but Kerry giving up something like that for someone else does not fit. She has consistently let others take the fall--such as cutting Genie's job while giving her a raise and making Dr. Dave the fallguy when she forgot her pager. . .

The episode involved the hiring of Clemente (John Leguizamo's character), an ER doc who had a past history of problems that he brought along with him to County; culminating in his mental breakdown.  Kerry hired the guy in the first place, knowing of his previous problems, without consulting anyone.  Then, Luka was ER chief and had to handle a guy who was apparently using drugs, involved in a domestic violence situation and ultimately came unhinged. His medical license was then suspended and County was worried about patients he treated coming back to sue.  Kerry was given the option of claiming that Clemente's problems should have been recognized by Luka and he should've fired the guy sooner.  We didn't see a lot of her process when it came to deciding to fall on the sword for Luka and resign as hospital chief rather than force him out; but I think we were supposed to think that, with her new love interest, her new job prospects in TV and her general contentment with her personal life; she just wasn't that ambitious anymore and that she no longer saw her job as the most important aspect of her life.

And, of course, in real life, TPTB were winnowing the herd and all of this was prelude to writing Kerry out of the show.

Edited January 2, 2018 by doodlebug

[TigerLily20]

4 hours ago, RedbirdNelly said:

As others have posted the Kem/Carter baby episode is so sad and well done. I can't imagine having to live through labor in that situation.

I knew this episode was coming and man it was hard to watch, I also agree, I just can't imagine going through labor just to know that your child is not going to be alive.  It really was well done.

[Bastet]

I came in at the end of Haleh catching Jeanie up on everyone - something about Carter maybe coming home for something, so can anyone give me a rundown on what the others are up to?

Robert Gossett, yay.  And Lorraine Toussaint, even better.  It's a good guest star day.

Edited January 2, 2018 by Bastet

[slasherboy]

Bingo!  Chip Esten (Deaconn Claiborne) from "Nashville" and the guy who played Mike on "Breaking Bad".

Edited January 2, 2018 by slasherboy
Deacon, not Dean.

[absnow54]

Not exactly Guest Star Bingo, but the military couple were played by Andrew Walker and Rachel Boston who are both Christmas movie/Hallmark Channel mainstays. 

[slasherboy]

The docs playing ice hockey had to be the stupidist thing on this entire show (maybe not THE most, but definitely in the Top 10).  I don't want to watch 90 pound Neela slamming that puck around.  I want to see blood & guts.  And not on the ice!

Watching the marathon yesterday made me sad for the early seasons ... seeing Mark & Doug especially.

[doodlebug]

5 hours ago, Bastet said:

I came in at the end of Haleh catching Jeanie up on everyone - something about Carter maybe coming home for something, so can anyone give me a rundown on what the others are up to?

Robert Gossett, yay.  And Lorraine Toussaint, even better.  It's a good guest star day.

Jeannie only asked about Weaver and Carter.  She was told Weaver wasn’t there anymore (she moved to FLA to work as a medical reporter on TV).  Jeannie knew Carter was in Africa, Haleh told her he was coming back to Chicago soon.  Jeannie had been in contact with Doug and Carol, wanted to visit them sometime.   The twins are in 3rd grade by this time and Doug and Carol love Seattle.

I was mainly sad that Jeannie and Reggie weren’t together anymore, they were a cute couple.  It seemed like no one but Doug and Carol got a happy ending on this show.

Edited January 3, 2018 by doodlebug

[justduckey]

Just started the Jeannie episode but I’m confused as to why we’re seeing her. Maybe it hasn’t been explained yet but I wasn’t expecting her until season 15.

 

ETA- nevermind I see that that’s her kid. Hadn’t realized how much time had passed bc I thought he was still like a young child. I think it’s the warped speed that we go through episodes that’s confusing me. 

Edited January 3, 2018 by justduckey

[Zoe]

I can't believe Jeannie and Anspaugh were in the same episode but didn't interact.

[absnow54]

4 hours ago, Zoe said:

I can't believe Jeannie and Anspaugh were in the same episode but didn't interact.

Especially in an episode where she basically realizes her child is terminal. I guess the writers didn't anticipate people binging the show so that 10 years was only a few weeks to remember storylines. 

[desertflower]

I'm very behind due to the holidays. I'm watching the episode where Abby goes to the Mommy and baby class and then hangs out with the nannies at the park and both scenes are so ridiculous. I'm not saying judgy moms and gossipy nannies don't exist, but seriously? The moms attack her the moment she introduces herself? And on the very same day she and Luka discuss hiring a nanny she stumbles upon a group of them who ALL sleep with the husbands they work for and are openly discussing it. So stupid. 

I do like that they brought Timmy the clerk back and that Morris called him Not Jerry. Heehee.

[RedbirdNelly]

watched the last episode of season 10 last night. There was a nice moment when Abby gets her board results and is happy. It's atypical to see her just express joy and that was nice, followed by Carter nicely telling her he never doubted. I always like the moments of friendship on this show. Same with Pratt being concerned about Jing May's black eye.

[doodlebug]

2 hours ago, desertflower said:

I'm very behind due to the holidays. I'm watching the episode where Abby goes to the Mommy and baby class and then hangs out with the nannies at the park and both scenes are so ridiculous. I'm not saying judgy moms and gossipy nannies don't exist, but seriously? The moms attack her the moment she introduces herself? And on the very same day she and Luka discuss hiring a nanny she stumbles upon a group of them who ALL sleep with the husbands they work for and are openly discussing it. So stupid. 

I do like that they brought Timmy the clerk back and that Morris called him Not Jerry. Heehee.

I think the Abby storyline was meant to be funny, but it wasn't.  It was just dumb. For that matter, her kid was born 10 weeks premature and was something like 2-3 months old at this point, why would she want to expose him to a bunch of other babies' germs?  He's barely at his natural due date and nearly died, several times.  In real life, her pediatrician would've told her to keep him away from other kids.  And the other moms might be judgmental beyotches, but they'd probably save that for after-class gossip.  Same thing with taking him to a playground, what was a young infant going to do there?  Why would she hang around a playground with a newborn? As for not hiring a nanny, remember when County had its own daycare center?  Couldn't the kid be enrolled there when he was old enough with other arrangements during the overnight shifts?  So many questions, so little sense.  I think we were supposed to think, "Oh, poor Abby, she doesn't fit in with the other mommies who are so mean to her!' and ' Poor Abby, she can't hire a nanny now because it turns out they are all skanks out to destroy her marriage!'.

By this point, the notion that Abby is a neurotic trainwreck incapable of functioning in everyday life is just not that humorous.

Edited January 3, 2018 by doodlebug

[Earl Is Dead]

7 hours ago, absnow54 said:

Especially in an episode where she basically realizes her child is terminal. I guess the writers didn't anticipate people binging the show so that 10 years was only a few weeks to remember storylines. 

Based on how poorly written so many of the characters are in these later seasons, I wouldn't be surprised if there were no longer any writers around from the early days who knew or cared about the characters' backstories.   

Does Jeannie stick around for additional episodes?   Yeah, yeah - I will go home and watch tonight and find out, but I'm impatient, and it really didn't feel like there was any resolution to her sub-plot.

[doodlebug]

1 hour ago, Earl Is Dead said:

Based on how poorly written so many of the characters are in these later seasons, I wouldn't be surprised if there were no longer any writers around from the early days who knew or cared about the characters' backstories.   

Does Jeannie stick around for additional episodes?   Yeah, yeah - I will go home and watch tonight and find out, but I'm impatient, and it really didn't feel like there was any resolution to her sub-plot.

I don't think she does, and, no, there really wasn't much closure there.  I guess we were supposed to see that Jeannie, one of the old timers, thought that Pratt was a good doctor; because, hey, telling is better than showing!  However, I will say that ER is kinda true to life in the sense that we and the docs don't really know the outcome for most of the cases that pass through.  I'm still miffed that Jeannie and Reggie weren't still together.  He was in the episode, surely they could've shown he and Jeannie disagreeing on approach to Carlos' situation without splitting them up.

[keetmommy]

Quote

 

So I know they sent Alex off to boarding school, but they are acting like he never existed,,

[WendyCR72]

2 hours ago, keetmommy said:

So I know they sent Alex off to boarding school, but they are acting like he never existed,,

The downside there being...?  :-)

[Zoe]

2 hours ago, keetmommy said:

So I know they sent Alex off to boarding school, but they are acting like he never existed,,

Sam did mention him being home when she invited Tony and Sarah out in yesterday's batch.

 

I just realized Sarah's grandmother is Frances Conroy. She looks younger now in all of her Ryan Murphy roles than she did then!

Edited January 4, 2018 by Zoe

[Earl Is Dead]

Hey, it's baby vampire Jessica (aka  Deborah Ann Woll) as new nurse! She was one if the best things about True Blood.

[CarolMK]

I'm behind a few episodes and struggling with season 14. I'm watching strictly out of curiosity now. Just saw the one where most of the group plays ice hockey. I'm trying to imagine the actors agreeing to sign up for that one. Anyway, it did seem as if it was supposed to be funny, and I guess it was, but also seemed strange to see them all getting irritated and angry over a hockey game. Also, the prison guard in there who was trying to redeem himself for having put an innocent man to death. If I had more time, I'd rewatch to try to figure it out but my DVR will just get loaded up of back episodes. Looks like the whole series will end around Martin Luther King's birthday. 

[WendyCR72]

3 hours ago, Earl Is Dead said:

Hey, it's baby vampire Jessica (aka  Deborah Ann Woll) as new nurse! She was one if the best things about True Blood.

Or, to be more current, it's Karen, the wannabe reporter who escaped from Fisk, Daredevil, Frank, Foggy, and and Hell's Kitchen!

[absnow54]

The Debanko/Dr Blonde Lady story is such a waste of screen time. Who are these people? Nobody cares. I feel like Grey's Anatomy really impacted the show's later seasons, and not in a good way.

For those who have checked out, Season 15 starts up tomorrow, so we're almost in the home stretch. The return of Anthony Edwards (along with Dr. Romano) in Heal Thyself should air first episode on Tuesday, Carter shows back up sometime on Thursday, Old Times (the return of Doug and Carol, and the Carter/Benton reunion) will be the last episode next Friday, and the finale will be the last episode on the following Monday, January 15th. I think the finale is a 2 hour episode, so they may shift the schedule around that day, since it's currently in an hour-ish slot. The Pilot starts up again Tuesday, January 16.

[LizDC]

Sam is annoying.  Arguing with Gates about treatment for that boy who fell in the freezing water and berating that kid whose dad had the broken arms - she’s displaying all the traits that made Carol such a buzzkill.

[RedbirdNelly]

I watched Season 11 episodes 1 and 2 last night. General notes:

a) at first I thought it was just in my head, but for episode 1, you do hear Noah Wylie say "previously on ER"--I think because the car crash into the river part started straight after where Season 10 ends so maybe cutting that out didn't work; it just made me happy to hear it.

b) I hate the Neela doesn't want to be a doctor storyline. I wish they would have had her match at county. Having all characters they want to keep match there is more realistic to me than someone finishing medical school and wanting to not at least complete their intern year. Neela doesn't come across as an emotional person--and the logical approach even if you don't think you want to practice is to suck it up for 1 year so you can be licensed and have options. It always helps to have options. After the intern year is the time to think about other career paths. Neela doesn't seem like the type to act so stupidly. I can see having doubts--just not how she handled them. I haven't gotten to the part yet where she starts working at a convenience store which is even worse.

[justduckey]

I really like that Dr. Coburn is counseling Abby. It makes sense. And I like that she’s been there since season 1. I’m clinging to her and Anspaugh appearances bc they’re the only things connecting the show of 2008 to what it once was in its hey day.

[doodlebug]

6 hours ago, absnow54 said:

The Debanko/Dr Blonde Lady story is such a waste of screen time. Who are these people? Nobody cares. I feel like Grey's Anatomy really impacted the show's later seasons, and not in a good way.

For those who have checked out, Season 15 starts up tomorrow, so we're almost in the home stretch. The return of Anthony Edwards (along with Dr. Romano) in Heal Thyself should air first episode on Tuesday, Carter shows back up sometime on Thursday, Old Times (the return of Doug and Carol, and the Carter/Benton reunion) will be the last episode next Friday, and the finale will be the last episode on the following Monday, January 15th. I think the finale is a 2 hour episode, so they may shift the schedule around that day, since it's currently in an hour-ish slot. The Pilot starts up again Tuesday, January 16.

Tomorrow is a red letter day!  Our long national nightmare is almost over!  The third episode on Friday, The Book of Abby, is Dr Lockhart's last appearance as a regular on the show.  She makes a brief cameo in one of the last couple episodes, but, for most of the season, she is blissfully offscreen being God's gift to medicine at an ER in Boston while continuing her run as the worst wife and mother ever.

 

19 minutes ago, justduckey said:

I really like that Dr. Coburn is counseling Abby. It makes sense. And I like that she’s been there since season 1. I’m clinging to her and Anspaugh appearances bc they’re the only things connecting the show of 2008 to what it once was in its hey day.

I thought that Coburn's appearances as Abby's AA sponsor were virtually the only redeeming feature of an otherwise miserable, depressing and gloomy storyline.  The actress, Amy Aquino, is one of those reliably talented performers who is great in almost every role she plays and ER was no exception.

Edited January 4, 2018 by doodlebug