The Resident Season 2 Episode 9 Review: The Dance
Jasmine Blu
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The Fall finale teased love, death, and betrayal, and it's safe to say that it delivered.
The Resident Season 2 Episode 9 left us with a couple of cliffhangers, and now we wait with bated breath until the series returns so we can find out if a character we have come to love will live to see another day.
No, I'm not talking about Julian, although she did well throughout the hour, for the most part, and I can't hate the woman. No, I'm talking about Marshall whose tender moments with Conrad were the best of the hour.
The Resident has proven that they know how to do midseason finales right after The Resident Season 1 Episode 9 which is one of the best installments of the series. They also have proven that they aren't afraid to kill characters off.
Yes, this is a hospital, and people are bound to die, but the number of people we became invested in even if it was for 45 minutes and died this season is far too high, so death was imminent for this finale. Worst yet, it was destined to be a primary or recurring character.
The finale ended with two lives hanging in the balance and no certainty as to if either of them will survive. Somehow, that's more harrowing than knowing for sure someone is dead.
Conrad: Amazing man. He's so warm with his daughter. I wish he were my father.
Nic: Well, right now, your real father needs you.
If Marshall dies, it will be agonizing, and I don't think my heart could bear it. We cannot lose that man after all the steps he took to make amends with his son. They're in the best place possible; they cannot rip him away from Conrad now.
Of course, the fact that they have seemingly made amends is the exact reason he's prime for dying on that table at the hands of Bell of all people. There is so much rich storytelling that can go in a million different directions if Marshall died now.
It would be another opportunity for Conrad to beat himself up. It could be the thing that drives him over the edge. It could be the closure he needed but leave him mourning what they could have had with their new relationship. It could also be something that causes more friction between Conrad and Bell.
Conrad was great during this installment because he never came across like a young boy as much as when he realized his father was sick. It's funny how parents can still reduce you to that no matter how old you are.
For the past 20 years, Marshall has been battling Crohn's Disease. Just as most of us suspected, he is sick and has been for a while, but Conrad didn't know anything about it because they aren't close and Marshall, much like Conrad, isn't a sharer.
Related: The Resident Season 2 Episode 8 Review: Heart in A Box
Conrad was surprised to learn about his father's medical condition, but at the same time, he knew that they weren't close enough for him to know much of anything about his father. It still had to piss him off that he knew something was up with his father during The Resident Season 2 Episode 6, but Marshall refused to tell him the truth.
Conrad's reaction to suddenly being thrust into the role of healthcare proxy and being responsible for making decisions on behalf of his father fit with their situation. There was a sense of panic about him, and he had frantic energy reminiscent of a teenager.
How quickly a knowledgeable doctor can lose all assurance when they become the relative of the person who is sick. It doesn't matter who you are or what you know, the complications of family dynamics take precedence, and it's a reminder as to why medical professionals are discouraged from working on their loved ones.
Conrad is always one of those characters who doesn't settle or stay still. He's always on the move and going to the next thing, but he was so full of nervous energy during this installment.
Czuchry's physical performance was so subtle and nuanced. You got the sense that Conrad wanted desperately to bolt when it came to all things that related to his father.
He's the guy who takes any challenge head-on. He runs towards them when it's for anyone else, but Marshall was a challenge Conrad couldn't deal with, and his default is running. The only thing keeping him from running away was Nic.
Nic is such an incredibly supportive figure to Conrad, and while it was romantic and swoon-worthy when Conrad said he needed her in The Resident Season 1, we have seen how deep and far that statement goes.
Related: The Resident: The Lost Potential of Priya Nair
Conrad does need Nic. She keeps him grounded. She's the buoy that keeps him afloat. Nic is his moral compass guiding him in the best direction.
Conrad: There must be someone closer to him than me. We're making progress, but there is a twenty-year gap.
Nic: He doesn't have anyone but you.
Conrad: That's kind of a testament to how he lives his life. Here he is sick. No one is visiting. I don't want this responsibility.
Rose never leaves her father's side, they finish each other's sentences. I barely know my father.
Nic: Well maybe you should fix that.
When he says that she is his everything, he is not kidding nor exaggerating. It should be beautiful, and in many ways it is, but there is a sense of foreboding too. Conrad is head over heels for Nic, and this is it for him. He's 100% committed, but this time, Nic is the one who has some issues to resolve.
As beautiful as it was that she supported Conrad through all of this with his father, it's also a reminder of how she hides behind being the caretaker and supportive person all the time.
He was able to be there for her when Jessie fell ill, but Nic is suffering from panic attacks and not being open about it despite always pushing Conrad to be more open.
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There are still a few ways she keeps him at a distance without realizing it. She needs to be taken care of too. She has to give him the opportunity to meet all of her emotional needs, and he's more than willing to do it.
Conrad is all-in, but Nic is carrying on with their relationship with trepidation, and her reservations about their relationship are concerning.
She doesn't want kids anymore, but she never mentioned that to Conrad. She said it in passing while joking around with Mina at the not-wedding. That was a shock to Conrad and his love for children has been building for some time.
He is fantastic with children. It's evident that he wants them, and his experiences with the plethora of child patients this season have highlighted that. When the timing is right, he's ready to try again, but Nic must be discouraged or experiencing the mixed up feelings that some women experience after a miscarriage.
She never got over that, and it's an unresolved issue that she has to sort through. It's interesting that CoNic are together this season, but Nic is the one pulling away, withholding, and with issues that she needs to work through.
She can't use her full-grown sister as a crutch. She can't distract herself with being the best nurse or being the all-knowing friend needling away at and advising others. And her unwavering support of Conrad during moments of crisis doesn't mask her issues.
But back to Conrad. His case with the father and daughter was a great way to draw parallels between their father-daughter relationship and his relationship with Marshall. It wasn't a fair comparison though, and no good can ever come from that.
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The woman also lost her mother when she was young, and her father became her support system and best friend. Their relationship was all of the goals, and poor Conrad was wistful whenever he thought about them and then his experiences with Marshall.
He was stuck in the past though, and he couldn't see the present or look forward to the future. It was good that Nic reminded him of that. Marshall was right there, and he has been making a genuine effort to improve his relationship with Conrad.
It's understandable that Conrad would be cautious, and who am I to say the guy should be more open to giving his father a chance, but Marshall was there and making attempts. That's better than most. The two of them needed a real conversation to air out their grievances and clear things up, and finally, that's what they had.
Matt Czuchry and Glenn Morshower were fantastic in their final scene. They nailed the loaded and weighted emotions behind two emotionally restrained men saying so much without saying it all.
Marshall: Conrad, I am flawed in many ways but not like that. I would sooner die.
Conrad: I'm glad you came back. You're my father, and I love you.
Marshall was honest with Conrad about his mother. His mother cheated on him, which left Conrad in disbelief, but Marshall didn't blame her. He knew all of his faults and where he failed as a husband and a father. Conrad also was able to clear up his nightmares regarding his father being abusive.
Marshall owned up to his faults and had no reason to lie, so I believed him when he said he would never do such a thing to any woman and didn't to Conrad's mother. But it's possible that Conrad spent so much of his life viewing his father as the bad guy or monster that he imagined him as such in his nightmares too.
There is a quote by the late and great series In Plain Sight that perfectly sums up how our perspective of our parents shift.
One of the most difficult moments in anyone's life is when the fog of childhood lifts and we see for the first time our parents as people.
Mary
Morshower deserves kudos for his portrayal of Marshall this season. He managed to make this hardened, imperfect man whom we had many doubts about a likable, well-intentioned person we wanted to see win.
So it's unthinkable that he could die on that table, and it would be under Bell's watch. Bell hasn't had any tremor issues in a while. HODAD was retired, but he rocked all the surgeries he was called to perform. Please, don't let Marshall be the first time he screws up in the OR this season.
God knows he already screwed up elsewhere. What's the point of hiring lawyers if you refuse to listen to them? It's infuriating!
Lane, the Queen of mind games, has successfully gotten into Bell's head and now he's once again willing to risk it all for her in some foolish attempt at protecting himself and the hospital.
I couldn't be the only one groaning when he called Gordon for money. Damn it, Bell! As sure as the grass is green, Randolph Bell will get in bed with the devil. I don't understand it.
There was some initial reluctance about Gordon and QuoVadis, but Bell ignored his first instinct and jumped onboard. There is a reason why you should follow your gut. Now, look at where he is? Why is he so pig-headed?
I can advance you the cash right away and we'll figure out quid pro quo later. There are so many ways a high profile doctor can help QuoVadis.
Gordon
Bell has dug himself a hole that he will have a hard time getting out of when QuoVadis is exposed, and all hell breaks loose. It's ironic that he went to Gordon because he's trying to protect his image and the image of the hospital, but he just put himself and the hospital in jeopardy by binding himself with QuoVadis.
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It's possible that it will take a while before QuoVadis is exposed since Julian is a goner. Even if she survives that crash, she is not going to be receptive to turning on Gordon after such a terrifying experience.
Also, where would she turn? Gordy with the great lies has serious reach. The freaking FDA is in on his fraudulent, scandalous actions.
I haven't been a Julian fan, but she at least tried to do the right thing, and I have to give her props for that. It's too bad she wasn't stealthier about it. She was so transparent when she called Gordon out and also when she went about checking up on him.
It wasn't going to end well for her, and by the time Gordon's driver scooped her up, and she was face-to-face with him, she didn't stand a chance.
Do you think that was Gordon's man trying to run her off the road, or was it just a coincidence chalked up to her being paranoid? Gordon was confident, and he had multiple people in the FDA. Did he need to kill Julian, or would he have done it as a lesson because he hates betrayal?
Julian: This is crazy. Meeting here today, the day of your wedding.
Devon: I'm not going to San Francisco with Priya.
Julian: You're not getting married?
Devon: I don't know what I'm doing. All I know is she took the job, and I'm staying here.
Julian: No, whatever happens between you and Priya has nothing to do with me. I'm not breaking up a marriage. And if you are staying here, that has nothing to do with us because I'm leaving Atlanta.
I don't think Julian will survive that crash regardless. Despite not being a fan of the character, I didn't want to see her die.
It also would suck for Devon. When Devon and Julian met up on his wedding day (side-eyes Devon), I thought she would tell him about QuoVadis or give him a cryptic warning. I didn't imagine he would call her there to dump his wedding angst on her.
I want to give Julian kudos for shutting him all the way down and telling him that she wouldn't be a homewrecker, but she initiated their flirting from the beginning and carried on with it when she knew he was engaged. There were mixed signals everywhere.
Devon was confused, and I was confused about the depth of his feelings for Julian because I didn't see it that way. Maybe Devon is latching on to what Julian represents more than her specifically.
I can't buy into anything else. The last-ditch effort to appeal to Julian hours before he was married, his confession that he has feelings for her, and the implication that it might be love, I was gobsmacked.
In the words of Tina Turner, what's love got to do with it? Devon, please.
I tried to put it behind me, but I can't. I can't marry you, not when I have feelings for somebody else. You deserve somebody who loves you and only you. It would be wrong for both of us.
Devon
Devon was at a beautiful place, set up for a beautiful wedding, and he looked magnificent, and Priya looked stunning, and he was looking like he was walking to his death.
Devon is my boy, but most of my sympathies were with Priya during this complicated mess. It's painful to know that he was considering going through with it and not saying anything because he didn't want to disappoint his parents.
Moms always know, and Mrs. Pravesh knew her son's heart wasn't into this wedding. She could have gone along with it and pretended like she didn't notice her son grappling with his issues, but she did an incredible thing, she gave him her blessing to do what's best for him.
I loved that she reminded him that she and her husband were an arranged marriage. She spoke of the man she loved before she got married. Even though she loves her husband (now), she still thinks about her former flame and the love lost. She still thinks about what could have been.
Devon's parents are traditional in many ways, but she wanted her son to marry because he wanted to do it, and she wanted him to marry someone he loves not because he feels obligated to do so.
There were many factors to why Devon probably wanted to go through with the wedding. It is interesting, however, that certain cultural components can have such a hold on a person even if they don't practice them or feel bound to them.
I want you to marry the woman who has your heart. I hope it's Priya, but Devon if it's not, don't do this for me or your father or anyone else. We just want you to be happy.
Mrs. Pravesh
There was a part of Devon who probably wanted to stick it out because it's so ingrained in his culture to do so. He knew he didn't have to marry Priya, but if his parents and their parents and so forth could marry out of duty, then why couldn't he in a situation that in many ways was better?
It also felt like Devon invested a lot of time into his relationship with Priya, and he didn't want to waste it. He has genuine feelings for her as well. It was messy and complicated.
Devon's heart wasn't in their relationship for some time though, so Priya had every right to be pissed at Devon for doing that to her on her wedding day. He could have told her about Julian many times before their big day.
It was humiliating for her! There she was an absolute vision, at a grand wedding she didn't want with friends and relatives who flew in from all over the globe, and all of their close ones seated and waiting, and Devon has an epiphany moments before they're supposed to get married.
Mrs. Pravesh was right to let Devon know that it wasn't too late despite all of that to back out, and Devon should have ended things if he wasn't into it. It still sucked for Priya though.
Priya deserved better.
Who are you? Not the man I loved. Get out. I never want to see you again. Get out!
Priya
It was amusing that the wedding turned into a drinking party with Devon drowning his sorrows in alcohol and the others giving him space but also not bailing on him either. He barely had time to get wasted before he got the alert about Marshall.
He's bound to find out about Julian soon as well. If he is in love with her, and she doesn't make it, he's not going to be in the best place given everything else that happened.
There is never a dull moment in their world. Those cliffhangers were intriguing, though I'm the most concerned for Marshall. I cannot wait to see what The Resident has in store for us when it returns!
Fun Bits and Other Tidbits:
- My inner Mina and AJ 'shipper squealed when they were standing side by side in the entrance looking like royalty. When will your faves ever?
- Irving can be silly and the comedic relief, but he's also a damn good friend and his support of Devon through the course of the day was touching.
- Micah is such a pure and lovely soul. He and Mina are polar opposites, but it's adorable.
- Bell staring at his assistant incredulously and asking if the kid has a learning disability was hilarious.
- I was so afraid that Grandpa would die that I had a hard time watching any scenes with him in them. The Resident has traumatized me with their emotional deaths.
- Bell is the last person father and son would want on their case, and now he's on the case. You have to laugh at that.
- Nic and AJ at the wedding talking about Mina without talking about her was the cutest. If they end up being the most unlikely friendship of all the friendships, it would be adorable AF.
- I love that the show went all out and showed the beauty of a potential Indian wedding. Everyone looked incredible. They are such beautiful ceremonies. I love this show's diversity and how matter of fact the show is while showcasing it.
Will Marshall survive? Will Julian survive? Are you thrilled Conrad and Marshall made up for good?
How much trouble will Bell and the hospital be in after this deal with QuoVadis? What are your thoughts on the Devon and Priya and Devon and Julian situations? Do you agree that Nic is the one withholding in the CoNic relationship?
Hit the comments below fellow Resident fanatics! Let's discuss everything!
If you need something to hold you over during this long holiday break, you can watch The Resident online here via TV Fanatic!
Jasmine Blu is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. She is an insomniac who spends late nights and early mornings binge-watching way too many shows and binge-drinking way too much tea. Her eclectic taste makes her an unpredictable viewer with an appreciation for complex characters, diverse representation, dynamic duos, compelling stories, and guilty pleasures. You'll definitely find her obsessively live-tweeting, waxing poetic, and chatting up fellow Fanatics and readers. Follow her on X.
