The Resident Season 2 Episode 12 Review: Fear Finds A Way
Jasmine Blu
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Are you guys, OK?
It was not the best installment for you diehard CoNic 'shippers who were hoping the couple could make it through the season without any hiccups.
In fact, The Resident Season 2 Episode 12 may have left many of you thoroughly grossed out and pissed off. Let's just delve right into what everyone will be discussing the most.
Conrad and Nic are at an impasse in their relationship, and it's hard to figure out where they may go from here. At least that's how it felt when Nic left crying, and Conrad was left wondering if Nic's lack of refuting his statement meant he was right all along.
Here's the thing, many of you have mixed feelings about Alec. Aside from Nic opening up to him and using him to avoid Conrad, Alec doesn't have a role in the downfall of CoNic. It could become a love triangle down the road, or maybe it never takes that path, CoNic's issues have nothing to do with Alec.
Related: The Resident Season 2 Episode 11 Review: Operator Error
In that sense, it was refreshing. If we're honest with ourselves, Conrad and Nic were gradually reaching a point where they were going to clash. The Resident Season 2 Episode 3 gave us the origins of CoNic and their struggles that led to their first breakup.
Conrad: Don't worry. House is off the table.
Nic: What?
Conrad: I let it go, but we can keep looking. If you still want to.
One of my observations at that time was that Nic's fears that Conrad had not changed or was incapable of it felt abrupt. She was having doubts during that time even though there was nothing that indicated that Conrad hadn't grown since the last time that they were together.
Say what you will about Conrad, but when it came to their relationship after he got his second chance, he has been nothing but consistent. He put in the work throughout all of The Resident Season 1 becoming the type of romantic partner that Nic needed him to be.
Conrad has opened up and shared his feelings. He is open and honest, and his conversation with Nic at the end of the hour is evidence of that. He has not only learned how to communicate, but he has learned how to communicate in a healthy way.
At the beginning of the season, Nic was afraid that Conrad was incapable of change or that his progress was temporary. After this hour, there is some merit to Conrad's fear; Nic is afraid that Conrad has changed and there is nothing left to fix.
If we're going to go deeper than that, Nic is afraid to face the fact that she is the one who needs "fixing" this time around. If Conrad isn't the screwed up one that she can put all of her attention into fixing and tending to, then she has to look inward.
Nic is the one who has been shutting down and pulling away. She's the one who has kept him at an emotional arm's length. Nic is the one battling severe anxiety without telling him about it.
Conrad: How about you and I stop dancing around the issue and just be honest with each other.
Nic: What do you want me to say?
Conrad: That we find ourselves in different places.
Conrad has learned to open up, express himself, and talk and communicate effectively. He has made amends with his father, and their relationship is better than it ever was before. Now, Conrad is ready to take the next steps with the woman whom he considers the love of his life.
He wants to get a house together, settle down, and make more formal commitments. These are things that Nic may have wanted once upon a time, but she's not in that place now. She won't say that though.
Their role reversal is bizarre but full-circle, and they both are aware of it. However, Conrad was the one who told it like it was. I loved that moment for him as an individual because it marked his growth and maturity since the beginning of the series.
It also was valid and something that crossed my mind as well. I understand why he feels like Nic's project. She often treats him the same as Jessie. It comes at her expense, too. Nic prefers to devote her attention to them rather than address problems of her own.
Conrad called her out good. At first, it seemed like she would flip out on him for making assumptions and looking at houses without asking her. Then it seemed like the children issue would come up again.
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I knew there was nothing casual about Nic's comment to Mina during Devon's wedding; she was serious.
Nic has a lot to figure out and work on for herself. She couldn't even take Conrad sitting her down to have a mature, honest conversation about their relationship. He wasn't being mean, nor was he suggesting that they couldn't work things out. He was letting her know how he felt.
Conrad: That's the problem right there. There's nothing for you to fix.
Nic: That's not fair.
Conrad: It's not about being fair, Nic. It's about being honest. I was a project for you.
Nic couldn't handle hearing it though. She shut down and ran out. Ironically, she also had a visible reaction when he told her that he let the house go. Nic is confused and doesn't know what she wants right now.
I know that for some of you, CoNic separating is difficult to accept and it may feel forced or like unnecessary drama. I understand why you may feel that way. I also understand that Nic needs to figure some things out.
The woman jumped at every opportunity she could to avoid Conrad during this installment. First, she went to jail with Alec to find their patient zero. Later on, she put herself at risk and ended up quarantined.
Everything about that hospital emergency gave me the creeps and grossed me out. To be fair, it's flu, pneumonia, and bronchitis season.
Dot-Marie Jones returned as Meg, and she was such a lovely character. Thankfully, she didn't die during this installment; that would have sucked.
After fears of Ebola, avian flu, and the plague, the source of the infection was none other than Sam who contracted it from the girl whom he loved. That is a hell of a story to tell the grandkids.
The case took up a lot of time and brought many of the doctors together, but Mina and AJ stole the hour. CoNic may be having their difficulties, but Raptfor is the embodiment of a power couple right now.
They're like a married couple without the marriage; they're work spouses, which is just as entertaining as real spouses. Mina was making it her mission to get AJ back into the OR again.
He was determined to punish himself by stepping back from operating, humbling himself, and seeking penance. Mina was not about to give up on the Raptor though.
Thankfully, she discovered that the heart valve was faulty. It wasn't effective in younger and more active patients, and that's why it failed. The most frustrating portion of the arc was when AJ still refused to accept her findings because he was loyal to his mentor and his mentor's judgment.
See when Dr. Okafor believes in something, or in this case someone, she will swim through a lake of fire and brimstone to reach her objective.
AJ
That was short-lived and led to the most epic scene of the night. I adored Mina and AJ's grand entrance into the restaurant as they confronted Benedict. I loved that AJ referred to her as the "yin to his yang" and would not let her be dismissed from the conversation.
Benedict sold his ethics and honor for a million and a half dollars. What a disgrace to the profession! He put people's lives in danger.
Fortunately, Bell is reevaluating his partnership with QuoVadis. Gordon's behavior must not have sat well with him in the aftermath of Bradley's death, and he wanted to do research. The messed up thing is that he should have done research a long time ago!
The last CEO Gordon worked with supposedly jumped to his death, but we know what that means. They took out the CEO. Randolph, you're in danger, man.
Additional Notes:
- Conrad's smile when he showed Nic the house was so pure, bright, and warm. He was so damn happy.
- Alec loves standing on things and barking orders a lot. At least we found out how he ended up with privileges at Chastain. Bell asked him for help. I know, I'm as surprised as you are!
- Mina and AJ are everything, and you will have to pry this 'ship from my already cold, but not dead hands.
- The entire sequence of the germs spreading was brilliant and gross. Also, Irving is an ass man, eh?
- QuoVadis and Gordon have to go down. NOW. Why is it taking the cops so long to talk to Devon about Julian?
Are you raging over CoNic? Were Mina and AJ confronting Benedict satisfying? How long before they can take out Gordon and QuoVadis? Hit the comments below!
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.
