Sean (Freddie Highmore) and Park (Will Yun Lee) face tough medical cases that test their interpersonal skills as much as their surgical ones in The Good Doctor season 7 episode 2, "Skin in the Game." But before diving into those storylines, the episode begins with an update on adorable baby Steve.
At three weeks old, Lea (Paige Spara) and Sean's son is not gaining weight at the rate his doctor would like, so he suggests formula. The situation and its potential solution bother Lea. Cue Morgan (Fiona Gubelmann), who visits Lea and bonds over motherhood.
Morgan helps Lea assuage her "mommy guilt" during their lovely talk by making eloquent points that help Lea accept using baby formula.
New doctors, new cases
Shortly into the episode, we're introduced to the hospital's two new third-year medical students: Dr. Dominick "Dom" Hubank (Wavyy Jonez) and Dr. Charlie Lukaitis (Kayla Cromer). The duo are tremendously good friends, which helps them significantly throughout the installment. Charlie is on the Autism Spectrum and, accordingly, fangirls over Sean. If only the good vibes ended there.
While Charlie's Autism is a talking point from the outset, Dom's own issue takes a little longer to get revealed. It turns out Dom has hemophobia (issues with seeing blood), fainting upon its emergence. Thankfully, he doesn't strike his head too seriously the first this is revealed, or he would have been a patient in the hospital.
In the workup to his first (bloody) surgery, Dom encounters Charlie, who slaps Dom to stimulate his central nervous system, increasing blood flow to keep him from fainting in the OR. Dom does not have to wait long to learn if Charlie's cringy solution succeeds.
The good news? It works. Dom then uses Charlie's suggestion of snapping his rubber glove to stimulate it again. Why didn't Charlie try that first instead of slapping him? Either way, problem solved, I hope.
Patience with the patients
One of the episode's new patients is Rich (Ian Tracey), whose coughing spell was so severe he fainted and hit his head. His daughter also reports he has lost weight and increased fatigue. Sean diagnoses his ailment's source as quartz countertops, stating Rich needs a lung transplant. In the aftermath, he must move in with his daughter, Grace (Lucy Loken), who will take over as his primary caretaker.
The catch? Contrary to what Rich believes, his daughter makes her lucrative living as a sex worker. That fact is accidentally revealed by Charlie, whose attempts at humor inadvertently reveal Grace's online work. Rich tries to leverage Grace's concern for him to get her to quit her job. Grace refuses, leading to a stalemate.
Witnessing this father/daughter fight, Sean relates to Rich as a father, pointing out Grace is a good person, which matters most. When Rich wakes up from his procedure, he changes his mind, saying he wants to stay with Grace. Perhaps seeing the relationship repaired proved more satisfying to Sean than the surgery he performed.
The big gamble
Another patient, Sal (Peter Jacobson), recognizes Dom as a successful football player known as "the Dominator." Sadly, for Sal, he has a terminal brain tumor. As a gambler, Sal is convinced he's due for a good break, so when Dom mentions a TCR approach, it piques Sal's interest. While Dom's transparency with Sal does not enthuse Park, it also sparks Park to consider it. Park feverishly attempts the technique in the surgical simulator with discouraging results.
Considering the high stakes of the procedure, Park tries to leverage Sal's desire to live to make Sal vow to use most of the extra time Park could give him. Sal admits he is a gambling addict, falling somewhat shy of agreeing to repair his relationship with his ex-wife and their children. Park is pleased enough to continue with the risky surgery.
In a heart-pounding sequence, Park successfully completes the surgery to applause from those in the gallery, including Glassman (Richard Schiff). As for Sal, he wakes up from surgery, wasting no time picking up where he left off, to Park's obvious disappointment. Talk is cheap and actions are more expensive. A disappointed Park wishes Sal luck and leaves the room. Questions remain, though. Since Park got the entire tumor, does this mean Sal's time on earth is back to indefinite?
Sean and Charlie
During Rich's surgery, Charlie's stimming technique (touching her earring) compromises the surgical sanitation of the operating room, leading Sean to banish her from the theater. Of course, I wonder if in real life an earring would even be allowed in the operating room due to the sanitation risk?
Later, when Charlie and Sean appear on the cusp of mending their fences, things turn. To Charlie's surprise, Sean doubles down on his hard edge with her. Just because they both deal with autism does not mean their relationship will not face challenges.
As a Swiftie, an episode highlight was Dom playing Taylor Swift's "Bejeweled" to comfort Charlie and them dancing together. Dom and Charlie are excellent additions, naturally fitting into the ensemble. I look forward to seeing their journey from here.
Relationship troubles
Dr. Lim (Christina Chang) confronts Glassman (Richard Schiff) about leaving her out of one of the first decisions as part of their co-presidency, but it does not end there. To teach him a lesson, Glassman is greeted by a "Happy 80th Birthday" party in his office and compliments about how good he looks "for his age." After the hilarious scene, it's clear Lim and Glassman's next steps will be better synced.
In related Glassman updates, Sean and Glassman have yet to mend fences completely. Their relationship remains so icy that Sean refuses an invitation to baby Eden's party because Glassman will be there (I share Lea's confusion). But it cuts both ways, as Glassman still blames Sean for costing him his career as a surgeon.
Nevertheless, Glassman encourages Sean to attend baby Eden's party. What does this ultimately mean for them? To viewers' (great) relief, as Glassman holds baby Steve, the ice between Sean and Glassman appears to thaw further.
The Good Doctor airs Tuesdays at 10 pm on ABC and streams the next day on Hulu.
