(This article contains spoilers)
Life is a cycle, and for Dr. Wolf (Zachary Quinto), the cycle can be very vicious. At the end of Season 1 and in the first episode of Season 2, he thought his father, Noah (Mandy Patinkin), was back in his life after 30 years thinking he was dead. But after a short reunion, the elusive father disappears again without a word, not caring about the repercussions of his acts. Now, Oliver has to deal with this second abandonment.
Facing Delusions and Reality
While dealing with complex emotions, a new puzzling case lands at his hospital. What looked like a slightly confused woman turns into a case of complete delusion. Lauren Brooks (Molly Bernard) thinks she’s starring in a reality TV show, constantly surrounded by cameras, and sees everyone around her as actors pretending to be doctors. The episode goes meta in a lighthearted way with the actors playing doctors playing doctors (yes), putting the patient of the day in what she thinks is a fake hospital.
Besides working on her diagnosis and a way to treat her, Dr. Wolf navigates between his mother (Donna Murphy), Carol (Tamberla Perry), and Josh (Teddy Sears), three relationships that take different directions.
Carol is working on coming back to the hospital, but her reinstatement has to be voted on by the board, and it’s far from being simple. With the help of Josh and his military grade judgement, she hopes to be able to face the board with the best arguments.
It’s again a pleasure to see the bond between Muriel and Oliver tighten. No demonizing the mother, no accusing her endlessly of enabling her husband, they’re both victims of the same man, abandoned. But they’re together, and it means a lot to them, especially now that they finally understand each other better.
As a mother, Muriel tried to protect Oliver maybe too much, and in a stricter way than necessary. Thirty years later, Oliver is not the teenager she wanted to shield anymore, she finally sees him for the man he is, as imperfect as he can be.
For Oliver, it’s a bond he never had that is now stronger. Muriel is caring, understanding, and not as patronizing as she could have been. Being able to be open with her, to share a moment of vulnerability only she can understand is a big new step for them. And with her leaving the hospital and retiring, it’s a new dynamic that can start. Muriel feels like she did what she could to help Oliver and Carol, now she can look forward to different things in her life. Let’s hope she’s not forgotten.
Troubles in Sight
Not everything is going the right way though. Dr. Porter (Brian Altemus) doesn’t seem to want to leave the interns alone, and seems to always be at the right place at the right time to mess with people. Ericka (Ashleigh LaThrop) is still dealing with anxiety after being trapped in an elevator in Season 1. With the others, she makes it look like she’s doing well, but she’s only able to be operational thanks to her anxiety pills. Porter connected the dots and lets her face the consequences of her growing dependence.
As mean as it could be, it’s not Porter’s role to baby the interns. It’s no one’s role, really. Ericka is not well, but instead of reaching out to a professional, she’s creating a dangerous addiction. As a doctor, she knows it, but it doesn’t mean it makes things easier. Everyone has their vulnerable moments.
More than what Porter is doing, it’s his motivations that are debatable. He enjoys seeing her struggle. Instead of helping her, he doesn’t hesitate to blame her without knowing anything about her. It’s clear he’s trying to look like the only reliable team member, but it just can’t work.
Then there’s the relationship between Oliver and Josh. If in the previous episode, things looked rather neutral, this time Josh clearly advocates for himself and creates more boundaries. He won’t let himself be put on an emotional roller coaster because of the way Oliver deals with the problems in his life.
Now that his father is gone, Oliver wants to go back “the way it was before he came,” as if nothing happened, as if he never hurt Josh repeatedly.
From Josh’s point of view, it’s becoming an impossible situation. Oliver is keeping him out of his personal life, only reaching out when it’s convenient for him, when he feels like it. As soon as something goes wrong, he pushes Josh aside and keeps him in the dark. It’s unfair and painful for Josh, who has been nothing but supportive.
Things are very different for Oliver, it’s about protecting himself. He will move mountains for his patients and people he cares about, but when it comes to his own feelings and his personal life, he shuts the door to anyone trying to step inside, even with the best intentions.
Is it a consequence of his abandonment issues? He takes everything to heart, too much sometimes, and love is a powerful feeling that could potentially hurt him the deeper. Pushing away someone who loves you is also a defense mechanism. Oliver keeps Josh for the moments of his life where he’s less troubled, but he’s emotionally unstable, so where does that leave Josh? And where does Oliver think he’s going with constantly pushing people away until he feels like he’s feeling good enough?
And that’s a fascinating side of this character, someone who cares so much, someone who puts everything into taking care of others is actually the worst when it comes to his own feelings. And it’s also heartbreaking to see.
As much as so many want to see Oliver and Josh back together, it won’t likely happen so soon. And with what the end of the episode reveals, it can only be worse. Wolf checking himself into the psychiatric hospital that wanted to bring over his patient is unexpected. He looks troubled, vulnerable, but he’s not alone, Carol is there, supporting him. So what will happen six months later for him to take this decision? Is it real, or is it another one of his tricks?
