The Good Doctor Season 1 Episode 11 Review: Islands Part One
Kaitlynn Smith
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The Good Doctor returned from winter hiatus with an average episode that ruined Shaun's budding relationship with Lea.
On The Good Doctor Season 1 Episode 11, Shaun goes on a road trip with Lea to escape Dr. Glassman and his job. In the hospital, Drs. Melendez and Browne work with Dr. Andrews on a separation surgery for conjoined twins.
Many people guessed in the comments of my last review that Shaun would go to Lea's, and you were correct.
I have been a vocal supporter of Lea's relationship with Shaun in the past, but her road trip with Shaun made me incredibly uncomfortable.
Lea has always allowed Shaun to be himself around her. She has been understanding of his autism, and she has been a true friend for Shaun.
There is something to be said for a friend, or girlfriend, who pushes you and challenges you. That is what she did by sharing music with him in this episode.
Lea went too far with other things, though.
Tequila, stat!
Shaun
Shaun had never driven a car before and was uncomfortable with driving on a street. So why did Lea think it was a good idea to burn rubber and cause him to swerve the car?
Shaun had never had alcohol before, and he explicitly said he had no interest in drinking it. For some reason, though, she gave him a tequila shot and got drunk with him.
This was peer pressure, plain and simple.
There is also the issue of their romantic relationship. She "taught" him how to date and had him kiss her. Then, she told Shaun she was moving across the country.
Shaun does not handle change well, and she has seen this in the past. Dropping this information on him in the middle of their breakfast was obviously going to upset him.
Shaun: I like trees.
Lea: Yeah? What else do you like? Besides reading medical journals and watching reruns of old cop shows.
Shaun: I like you.
The preview for the next episode hinted that Shaun is going to give his two weeks notice in order to follow Lea. While I have been supportive in the past of Lea and Shaun developing a relationship, this infuriates me.
I realize the chances of him actually going are slim because the entire show is about him. The fact that it is even a possibility, though, is a disservice to Shaun and the audience because it goes against the premise of the show.
The most enjoyable part of the episode was the conjoined twin storyline.
Emily and Elizabeth Hinkler were fantastic as Jenny and Katie. They were funny and charming, even getting Drs. Andrews and Melendez to love them.
My fiancee, who does not watch The Good Doctor, even sat and watched it all with me to see what happened to them because she happened to be in the room when they first appeared.
I was rooting for them from the moment they came on screen. I was more stressed during both of their surgeries than I have been during any other patient's on the series so far.
I particularly enjoyed their scene with Claire, when she was convincing Katie to do the surgery. It was an emotional moment for all three characters, but Jenny inserted a little joke in the situation to lighten the mood.
I felt like I really knew who they were by this moment.
Wait...so am I the awful mom or the disgusting trailer in this story?
Jenny
The episode ended on a cliffhanger with these two.
They are so compelling, and I desperately hope both of them will wake up and be okay.
I will be devastated if they are not.
Unfortunately, I am still frustrated with the way the writers have handled Claire's sexual harassment storyline.
On The Good Doctor Season 1 Episode 10, the writers turned her harassment into a story about Jared. I hoped they would rectify the situation when they returned from hiatus. They did not.
Instead, Claire threatened Dr. Coyle by saying she would find the other women he harassed unless he got Jared's job back.
This storyline is obviously timely. It is not surprising that current events about workplace harassment are being reflected on TV shows. For that to work, though, it need to be sensitive to the survivors who are telling their stories. The writers of The Good Doctor have fallen short.
Claire: You are not a victim. Not even close. But you will be unless you convince Andrews to reinstate Jared.
Dr. Coyle: Are you threatening me?
Claire: No. I'm just informing you that there is no way I'm the only resident that you tried to intimidate into having sex with you. And I will make it my mission in life to find every single one and get them to file a complaint against you, unless Jared gets his job back.
Rather than focus on Claire telling her story to Dr. Andrews, Jared has become the focal point. In doing this, Claire's report of the harassment to Dr. Andrews was ignored.
If Dr. Coyle has received any punishment for how he treated Claire, it has not been more than a slap on the wrist.
While this is reflective of what happens in many places when sexual harassment is reported, it would be nice to see the person who actually did the harassing to receive some sort of consequence.
What did you think of "Islands Part One?" Be sure to watch The Good Doctor online and then share your thoughts with us in the comments!
Kaitlynn Smith was a staff writer for TV Fanatic. She retired in May of 2018.
