In many ways, Jackie hit rock bottom this week.

No, she didn't sleep with Eddie again or even snort a new round of drugs. But she lied to O'Hara, the one person to whom Jackie could actually be open and honest.

In "P.O. Box," Jackie deceived her best friend, went against her husband's wishes, discovered her lover might be working at the hospital again and learned that her daughter has a serious mental problem. It was a really bad day.

While we still feel like the show is spinning its wheels a bit on the Eddie/Jackie front, and that it never really followed up on the major confrontation between Jackie and Kevin a couple weeks ago, supporting characters have grown into their roles so well that each week still delivers a series of laughs and worthwhile storylines.

Take Zoey and Lenny. The former has been a source of comic relief since the pilot, and the burgeoning romance between these two is slowly playing out at a perfect pace.

I complained last week about Coop's breast-grabbing tic being a lame gimmick at this point, but who didn't laugh hysterically throughout the scene that depicted Lenny defending Zoey's honor against the gesture, only for him to repent immediately upon learning it was a reflex? Great stuff.

The evolution of Akalitis has also been nice to see. Last season, she was stuck in elevators and cooing over lost babies. Just forced, lame ways to include her light-hearted character.

But she's more focused this season, often a small part of the action, and clearly a woman that means business, but not in the (scary) way Jackie does. It's a nice, necessary balance between female authority figures.

Overall, I'd like to either see less of Eddie (just sit him on the sidelines for a few episodes) or more movement in some direction between these two. They've been threatening each other in various ways for awhile now, with no real end in sight.

I've predicted for awhile that the season may very well end with Jackie taking the most drastic of steps to free herself from this affair, but it feels more frustrating than gratifying each week to see her take nothing but baby steps to get there.

Still, give me a few Zoey one-liners and the acting of  Edie Falco every Monday night and I am one happy TV viewer. How about you? Here are a few winning Nurse Jackie quotes from this week:

Jackie: There can be no secrets in this house. | permalink

Jackie: Go be with your girlfriend.
Eddie: She's not my girlfriend. You know who my girlfriend is. | permalink

O'Hara: If you and Kevin die in a fiery plane crash, they will be mine.
Jackie: We don't get away much.
O'Hara: So let me pay for a trip! | permalink

Jackie: Coffee, banana, Vicodin.
O'Hara: Breakfast of champions. | permalink

Jackie: How am I supposed to help her if everything is a secret? | permalink

Matt Richenthal is the Editor in Chief of TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter and on Google+.