tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15835627842885997022024-03-18T19:44:18.711-07:00State of the SkateA figure skating blog that's
"fiendishly entertaining"
-- Audrey Snowden, International Figure Skating MagazineKelli Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06009713326652591943noreply@blogger.comBlogger853125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1583562784288599702.post-6775128745211768282021-09-16T21:21:00.002-07:002021-10-06T22:08:42.910-07:00AN IMPORTANT MESSAGE ABOUT THIS BLOG, A.K.A. The State of "State of the Skate"<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgmopO31MMP52bCOuYGd-FlmYmhhAYXm6ooALVidDWelZ6EBuys8uFBdrkto-XcYbGDTm_qwZbWuTdeaaslvYYF7mfoK9SZymnRX_G5S03q0KOVpeLwFMjd3027Pinr9MZS3TRy8lXrQnt/s2048/Me+and+Lex+skating+rink+1+12.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgmopO31MMP52bCOuYGd-FlmYmhhAYXm6ooALVidDWelZ6EBuys8uFBdrkto-XcYbGDTm_qwZbWuTdeaaslvYYF7mfoK9SZymnRX_G5S03q0KOVpeLwFMjd3027Pinr9MZS3TRy8lXrQnt/s320/Me+and+Lex+skating+rink+1+12.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me at the rink with my daughter Lexie back in 2012.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /><b><i>NOTE: As explained in this post from September 2021, State of the Skate is now State of the SkateMUSIC and has moved to a new location! Here's the link: </i></b><div><i><b><a href="https://impala-cuboid-xsgf.squarespace.com/stateofskatemusic" target="_blank">https://impala-cuboid-xsgf.squarespace.com/stateofskatemusic</a></b></i></div><div><i><b><br /></b></i></div><div><i><b>I hope to see you there!<br /></b></i> <br /><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;">Hey State of the Skate-ers, </span></span></p><p><b id="docs-internal-guid-64c0c884-7fff-6d29-83da-cea12d3bd8b9" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;">It’s been a while, hasn’t it? The last skating-related thing I wrote about was 2021 Worlds, and U.S. Nationals ahead of that. Otherwise, this space appears to have been overtaken by a very enthusiastic fan of some couple on some show about a “good” doctor (wink). (Hint-- it was me)</span></span></p><p><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;">Part of the reason for my lack of skating posts is easy to attribute to COVID and the lockdowns, postponements, and cancellations that have permeated just about every non-essential activity in life. But a bigger part of it came from me taking a harder look at this blog I started way back in 2008 (!) and wondering if I really wanted to keep it going or not. </span></span></p><p><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;">(It turns out that I DO, so if that floats your boat, keep reading.)</span></span></p><p><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">State of the Skate</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> has been a part of four different Winter Olympic cycles thus far. I’m not sure how many blogs and/or podcasts (and all platforms related to those two) have come and gone in that time! But of those currently active-- including Jackie Wong’s Rocker Skating, Dave Lease’s This and That, and Ryan Stevens’ Skate Guard-- the most interesting ones benefit from the same things as ever: a strong voice, a unique niche, or both. </span></span></p><p><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">So the basic question I’ve pondered is… do I want to continue </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">State of the Skate</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> as what it’s primarily been for the past several years? Competition previews, predictions, and post-mortems? </span></span></p><p><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">could</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> do that. But like other aspects of present-day figure skating such as coaching dramas, COVID conflicts, and an obscene number of athlete assault and abuse cases (because even one such case is one too many), I know there are plenty of folks who cover these territories and do it much better than I can. </span></span></p><p><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Meanwhile, over the past couple years my mind has continued to drift back to a post I wrote in early 2018 called <a href="https://stateoftheskate.blogspot.com/2018/02/the-carmen-karaoke-theory.html" target="_blank">“The ‘Carmen Karaoke’ Theory” </a></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">which sought to explain why skaters continued to skate to excerpts from Bizet’s opera </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Carmen</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> ad nauseum… and why, even in the advent of vocals being permitted in singles and pairs competitions, </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Carmen</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> remained a steadfast choice (with vocals or without). </span></span></p><p><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;">Fun fact about that post-- I tried to sell it as a stand-alone article to a number of different online publications, hoping that 2018 Olympic fever would propel it to bigger audiences. When I was unsuccessful in that attempt, it ended up on my blog in the midst of all activities Pyeongchang. </span></span></p><p><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;">So while I didn’t get where I wanted to with that article, it definitely sparked my interest in writing about the music that drives this sport. For whether programs are created from a coach’s CD collection, an athlete’s favorite film soundtrack, or an engaging-but-obscure cut that began making the rounds a few years ago, every skater uses music.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;">And… there are often stories behind the music itself. Stories about the composers, the source material, the inspiration-- it depends, of course, on the kind of music involved. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-4fd8e27b-7fff-1116-3c98-1ebe09607fcf" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;">So much music! So many stories!</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;">Someone who knows a little about skating should try and tell some of them! </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">🙋🙋🙋</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;">That’s where I’m going with this…. State of the Skate is becoming… (Should there be a drumroll? Pretend there’s a drumroll)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: x-large;"><b>State of the SkateMusic!</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;">And…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;">You’ll find <b>State of</b></span></span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b> the S</b></span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>kateMusic</b> on my brand new website… hopefully as soon as next week!</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;">Watch this space for updates on when it goes live… I’ll get into more detail about the new format at that time.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;">In the meantime, thanks SO MUCH for reading up to now, and I hope you’ll continue to find yourself reading in the future!</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"><b>UPDATE: State of the SkateMUSIC is now live... check it out at this link: </b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: large;"><b><a href="https://impala-cuboid-xsgf.squarespace.com/stateofskatemusic" target="_blank">https://impala-cuboid-xsgf.squarespace.com/stateofskatemusic</a></b></span></span></p><p> </p><div><br /></div></div>Kelli Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06009713326652591943noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1583562784288599702.post-48012775306836325602021-09-09T21:55:00.027-07:002021-10-06T22:01:16.786-07:00#Shea Altar-Bound, Part 2: Anatomy of a Season Premiere Promo<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="text-align: left;"><b><i>NOTE: State of the #Shea has a new home!! Here's the link:</i></b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://impala-cuboid-xsgf.squarespace.com/stateofshea " target="_blank">https://impala-cuboid-xsgf.squarespace.com/stateofshea </a><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><b><i><br /></i></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><b><i>As of this moment, there are two posts at that link. Click on the picture for either one and you should be able to read... and leave a comment, of course! </i></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><b><i><br /></i></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><b><i>I hope to see you there!</i></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><b><i><br /></i></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><b><i>If the link isn't working for you, please let me know and I'll give direct links for each post. </i></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><b><i><br /></i></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><b><i>Thanks, as always, for reading! </i></b> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="text-align: left;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/90/15/9015DDDF-522F-FA6D-064C-FE94E7BB4AE7/160271_0083-450x0.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="450" height="256" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/90/15/9015DDDF-522F-FA6D-064C-FE94E7BB4AE7/160271_0083-450x0.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This is a Shea stan account,</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> says the current bio line in </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(official) </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Good Doctor </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Twitter account. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">That was one of the early signs-- seeing that change simultaneous with the S5 poster reveal, which you see at the top. Then came some “Save the Date” animation from TGD Twitter, featuring images of Shaun and Lea alongside “the date” of September 27-- already tattooed in our memory banks as Season Premiere day. But seeing a digital version of the notification commonplace to many a wedding guest’s mailbox reinforced the notion that the #Shea wedding is going to be the S5 starting point. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">THEN came this </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">TV Line Exclusive</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> which provided:</span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A TGD article featuring quotes from showrunner David Shore</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Five promotional stills, all of which appear to be from the engagement party</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A 30 second ABC promo ...</span></p></li><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">With 18 shots from the show</span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Who knows if they’re all from “New Beginnings” (episode 1)...?</span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">David Shore knows, but won’t tell us</span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Some fans are freaking out after seeing this peek into the new season...</span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">… and others are more chill.</span></p></li></ul></ul></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="420" data-original-width="620" src="https://tvline.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/the-good-doctor-season-5-premiere-1.jpg?w=620" width="320" /><br /><span id="docs-internal-guid-22b52c67-7fff-b745-7b58-9b186e9aab17"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Things are likely to start snowballing with every day closer to the 9/27 season premiere-- they’ll probably release a “sneak peek” scene within 48 hours of my posting this, for instance-- so I’ll jump in here while I can so we can do what we looooove to do while awaiting a new episode…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/948486824187412480/jD-P9un2_400x400.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="400" height="400" src="https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/948486824187412480/jD-P9un2_400x400.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">LET'S ANALYZE!!!!</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And we begin this with a friendly reminder that TGD promos, particularly the ones assembled for U.S. television by ABC, are often itty bitty, 30-second carnival rides for the strong-yet-delicate emotions of #Shea-shippers. Sure, they lure us in with the eye candy that is, say, Shaun and Lea sharing an affectionate moment in the kitchen of their loft. But several out-of-sequence clips and sound bytes later, we’re quite likely to grumble </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I don’t really know what the hell’s going to happen there, but I definitely don’t want to wait three long weeks to find out. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Add some decidedly ambiguous commentary from showrunner David Shore-- as was the case with the TVLine article-- and ta-da! We’re putty in the producers’ hands all over again. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Here’s the promo that was released September 2nd:</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/lM4QPuTVwiM" width="320" youtube-src-id="lM4QPuTVwiM"></iframe></b></div><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><br /></span></b><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Now let’s break that down into the 18 different shots that went into those 30 seconds: </span></span></p><ol style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px; text-align: left;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFeAGVdrTTY7FJ8MIhQHaUGabCHfpXyONsPhbGvLvb2zr_zwZ472wg3CUPkL4RxGGXgl-NKgvhwjKOALzLF9nik75rUte8rv_-bvBJgorSZS_WUvZN5ksZm-KGlukcmYmkUuRuQlk-Z72W/s1920/TGD+5+1+promo+Shea+kitchen.png" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="113" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFeAGVdrTTY7FJ8MIhQHaUGabCHfpXyONsPhbGvLvb2zr_zwZ472wg3CUPkL4RxGGXgl-NKgvhwjKOALzLF9nik75rUte8rv_-bvBJgorSZS_WUvZN5ksZm-KGlukcmYmkUuRuQlk-Z72W/w200-h113/TGD+5+1+promo+Shea+kitchen.png" width="200" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">#Shea paradise</span></td></tr></tbody></table><li aria-level="1" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Lea squeezing Shaun’s arm and kissing his cheek while he makes pancakes for two </span></span></span></p></li><ol style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: lower-alpha; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">All looks well in #Shea Land… at a glance, anyway.</span></span></p></li></ol></ol><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><ol start="2" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">OR shot #1 where we pick up Lim’s line “Planning a wedding is a big undertaking”...</span></span></p></li></ol><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><ol start="3" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">OR shot #2-- Dr. Shaun Murphy saying “All that matters to me is marrying Lea”</span></span></p></li><ol style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: lower-alpha; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">NOTE: I originally wrote this as Shaun </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">responding</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> to Lim’s statement with those words, but then thought better, remembering what we </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">hear</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> in these promos is often as disjointed as what we </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">see.</span></span></p></li></ol></ol><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><ol start="4" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5o400deXsK_qlSxoK5XveOOzVXlCnuCBEIXib2DtU-asUDO5A8m1Tp6CsAP42bbDqhQTlusi1S2d2GTS0xKsYtsEUBasUG43DmPNALnLhYK2t_EZoSHuFPpY1m5otwa0I4X68VIhMzXW7/s1920/TGD+5+1+promo+Lea+nightmare+1.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="113" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5o400deXsK_qlSxoK5XveOOzVXlCnuCBEIXib2DtU-asUDO5A8m1Tp6CsAP42bbDqhQTlusi1S2d2GTS0xKsYtsEUBasUG43DmPNALnLhYK2t_EZoSHuFPpY1m5otwa0I4X68VIhMzXW7/w200-h113/TGD+5+1+promo+Lea+nightmare+1.png" width="200" /></a></div><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Lea in bed, gasping as if she’s just awoken from a <br />nightmare.</span></span><p></p></li></ol><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><ol start="5" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Shaun asking “Are you okay?” to Lea, sitting up in bed, again looking as if she’s recovering from a nightmare...but wearing something different than in the previous shot (as many eagle-eyed viewers noticed), prompting the question DAMN, GIRL..? </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjebsNpch3ZMOwTAp-MWXU6uLC0cyZIEDMohyH-9Fr26H6Q3k2kgvNpmGJMSTD1BkR9O76LS-ScrFQCKYldSzmJwzoqSZrAaz6el0u_2yF2yoBPK-QCKPMbg-j13o4YhCaoS4vt0eYknCFd/s1920/TGD+5+1+promo+Lea+nightmare+2.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="113" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjebsNpch3ZMOwTAp-MWXU6uLC0cyZIEDMohyH-9Fr26H6Q3k2kgvNpmGJMSTD1BkR9O76LS-ScrFQCKYldSzmJwzoqSZrAaz6el0u_2yF2yoBPK-QCKPMbg-j13o4YhCaoS4vt0eYknCFd/w200-h113/TGD+5+1+promo+Lea+nightmare+2.png" width="200" /></a></div><p></p></li><ol style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: lower-alpha; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">NOTE: I do realize that DAMN, GIRL is not actually a question. And that I might have been the only one “asking” that. </span></span></p></li></ol></ol><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><ol start="6" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsk7MkHDigw4kmOl7gWPicIeJxy8NqDqkUVjShzu9ZjpddWsO3q8inwKlQfjiA318mB9gpvBaxVxgyub9spzYLhJjd9bGaWexMGWiz-PAxXfHn20lQNbgsCkkNFYlJjhYIZTrN9smGOLfC/s1920/TGD+5+1+promo+Lea+to+Jordan.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="113" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsk7MkHDigw4kmOl7gWPicIeJxy8NqDqkUVjShzu9ZjpddWsO3q8inwKlQfjiA318mB9gpvBaxVxgyub9spzYLhJjd9bGaWexMGWiz-PAxXfHn20lQNbgsCkkNFYlJjhYIZTrN9smGOLfC/w200-h113/TGD+5+1+promo+Lea+to+Jordan.png" width="200" /></a></div><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Lea says “I just want this wedding to be perfect,” appearing to say it to Jordan.</span></span></p></li><ol style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: lower-alpha; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Heh. That sentence. I </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">just</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> want this wedding to be </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">perfect</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. We’ll get back to that.</span></span></p></li></ol></ol><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><ol start="7" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbnOl7vDa0BRSv7yiw0z6y1scS9UVIstP8ecejp28X7bxevxVjYZRQYFUkPlYeb9166T8n0fkEVHg0M3Ie59KyvPc9rh0yRs6KOgMVLH3eQUaR2fiq0yhrRhDyqbVdW-l_ljXneWl4fjFD/s1920/TGD+5+1+promo+Jordan+to+Lea.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="113" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbnOl7vDa0BRSv7yiw0z6y1scS9UVIstP8ecejp28X7bxevxVjYZRQYFUkPlYeb9166T8n0fkEVHg0M3Ie59KyvPc9rh0yRs6KOgMVLH3eQUaR2fiq0yhrRhDyqbVdW-l_ljXneWl4fjFD/w200-h113/TGD+5+1+promo+Jordan+to+Lea.png" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Jordan says (</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">presumably</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> to Lea), “If you aren’t willing to <br />risk little things…” </span></span><p></p></li></ol><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><ol start="8" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Quick shot of Shaun looking anxious in the doctor’s lounge</span></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0SYKvLdEt2t5WS6QN6GJ8r1QHsajpf4nqFLamGg9ivF5l1yGikZoYSfCzTzizU5GKuNXTP4JGnf3sDbwYp6vsnoLznevbCAib3tq2929uZdZm3oVeWJdKMluqEy-zRKZzVuIFQfPc47V5/s1920/TGD+5+1+promo+Shaun+anxious.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="113" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0SYKvLdEt2t5WS6QN6GJ8r1QHsajpf4nqFLamGg9ivF5l1yGikZoYSfCzTzizU5GKuNXTP4JGnf3sDbwYp6vsnoLznevbCAib3tq2929uZdZm3oVeWJdKMluqEy-zRKZzVuIFQfPc47V5/w200-h113/TGD+5+1+promo+Shaun+anxious.png" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(This may or may not have a thing <br />to do with the wedding.)</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p></li></ol><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><ol start="9" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Quick shot of Lea at what looks to be the #Shea engagement party, turning away from someone (Looks like Lim?) and wincing</span></span></p></li></ol><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"></b></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjvZbaJlcacx7fWWuqfMpMVH2T0EWHJq3N-DvlqSopeKLvn4ZYz6Wc_ujVNgVxhCcIzwx9REb5mP7N3zci5Yt6odicKSbrV7m0ZK7SUmN2L1s3VpZXKaeYq54O73_ptEhq0Rnh-wcG7x9M/s1920/TGD+5+1+promo+Lea+party+cringe.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="113" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjvZbaJlcacx7fWWuqfMpMVH2T0EWHJq3N-DvlqSopeKLvn4ZYz6Wc_ujVNgVxhCcIzwx9REb5mP7N3zci5Yt6odicKSbrV7m0ZK7SUmN2L1s3VpZXKaeYq54O73_ptEhq0Rnh-wcG7x9M/w200-h113/TGD+5+1+promo+Lea+party+cringe.png" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(See previous caption.)</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"></b></div><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b><p></p><ol start="10" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Quick hospital shot of Jordan, Morgan, Andrews (holding a clipboard), and Wolke</span></span></p></li></ol><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"></b></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQpJB6hNFAhv7PZlOe8dIgb8RNTZ6On6CP8AL74a8t34YkqNZ7IjrLKvA-Qo86YvueW25IAurjIfk8snS2jN0IyvV-gpaostnvcKobL6773Ekby2i-Q0yqMf9e4K0KJHt5fV4OZA1rfrvj/s1920/TGD+5+1+promo+4+shot+St+B.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="113" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQpJB6hNFAhv7PZlOe8dIgb8RNTZ6On6CP8AL74a8t34YkqNZ7IjrLKvA-Qo86YvueW25IAurjIfk8snS2jN0IyvV-gpaostnvcKobL6773Ekby2i-Q0yqMf9e4K0KJHt5fV4OZA1rfrvj/w200-h113/TGD+5+1+promo+4+shot+St+B.png" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Probably nothing to do with #Shea</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"></b></div><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b><p></p><ol start="11" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Quick shot of a weary-looking Glassman, dressed but with tie hanging off shoulders in his bedroom, bed unmade, pizza box alongside him… (aside from the #Shea shots, this was the most interesting shot in the promo for me. Even if we can presume this is just Glassy in breakup mode.)</span></span></p></li></ol><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"></b></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaiIs7nUjEP9tykftCIulGQtYt3D1mFpB0clBnGQOcOBB83wSWO8a3Zj0VBmXXcKEK1xjMXlfhlaaYP0txyDUjZi3mZZtPDbJhwISj3Rjmz6QwKOod0sqX_mTa9O3gR4vWqvyucvt5ZyyI/s1920/TGD+5+1+promo+Glassy+solo.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="113" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaiIs7nUjEP9tykftCIulGQtYt3D1mFpB0clBnGQOcOBB83wSWO8a3Zj0VBmXXcKEK1xjMXlfhlaaYP0txyDUjZi3mZZtPDbJhwISj3Rjmz6QwKOod0sqX_mTa9O3gR4vWqvyucvt5ZyyI/w200-h113/TGD+5+1+promo+Glassy+solo.png" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Most definitely nothing to do with #Shea</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"></b></div><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b><p></p><ol start="12" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Quick shot of Park alongside a whiteboard of different recovery timelines (for a patient), looking like he’s on the edge of an unfortunate realization</span></span></p></li></ol><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"></b></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUjnYZJgrFGAPNDCaI-PBai3W8YFcWnyCzsIOWL_9cAQuJ6Rji1Amo8OLcykP0Qows0m49ejcPiPZTvQfzoX0mKPXRzMqJeA6lrmCzUnfwHqeZrTpJ8innYhgaEIM-h0ON8wBqFP0zQkOa/s1920/TGD+5+1+promo+Park+solo.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="113" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUjnYZJgrFGAPNDCaI-PBai3W8YFcWnyCzsIOWL_9cAQuJ6Rji1Amo8OLcykP0Qows0m49ejcPiPZTvQfzoX0mKPXRzMqJeA6lrmCzUnfwHqeZrTpJ8innYhgaEIM-h0ON8wBqFP0zQkOa/w200-h113/TGD+5+1+promo+Park+solo.png" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Still has not a dang thing to do with #Shea</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"></b></div><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b><p></p><ol start="13" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Jordan again, same scene as before: “... You’ll never get the chance to have the big things go right.”</span></span></p></li></ol><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-l3Xh7JE6eamdYcS2uBxKcncs81KwzvJDjw0rJydSm2Y8DaPBQQthcfQWj_gjJHgITrcF08wRdG3siZCWw-T2zhIPsXS8tLZ3RM_CboMabu7bAI5vRUXKZVuXP6Bn9UGhPvYCEAF2v59s/s1920/TGD+5+1+promo+engage+party.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="113" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-l3Xh7JE6eamdYcS2uBxKcncs81KwzvJDjw0rJydSm2Y8DaPBQQthcfQWj_gjJHgITrcF08wRdG3siZCWw-T2zhIPsXS8tLZ3RM_CboMabu7bAI5vRUXKZVuXP6Bn9UGhPvYCEAF2v59s/w200-h113/TGD+5+1+promo+engage+party.png" width="200" /></a></span><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><ol start="14" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Shot of Shaun and Lea at that #Shea <br />engagement party, looking content</span><p></p></li></ol><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><ol start="15" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhY1Z6uJBNVjdEnlRYrU7OBXcGK584tuilC_phhCgIMVAGaS0SI1PGoZp-J7sj7juDFUZfeUUwRohvS2Lnu1_9w8v3HaRa9L67BZLkqOFxj0aIu-Z4ItkWMjS3HCKqVlz83QppoS_bi5iY/s1920/TGD+5+1+promo+altar+shot.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="113" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhY1Z6uJBNVjdEnlRYrU7OBXcGK584tuilC_phhCgIMVAGaS0SI1PGoZp-J7sj7juDFUZfeUUwRohvS2Lnu1_9w8v3HaRa9L67BZLkqOFxj0aIu-Z4ItkWMjS3HCKqVlz83QppoS_bi5iY/w200-h113/TGD+5+1+promo+altar+shot.png" width="200" /></a></div><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">appears</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> to be a shot of Shaun <br />and Lea’s wedding, taking place outdoors</span></span></p></li></ol><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><ol start="16" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> As the clergyman (or whoever that guy is; we’ve never seen him before) says “Shaun, to you take Lea to be your wife…” we see a shot of Shaun with head held high, gazing at Lea… </span></span></p></li></ol><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><ol start="17" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTXwKzFv2FPkUmzDymW6Z6RKPduvsuO9o43V1Of_PHa9MdsUIsdYAjmo8vEBGDJAVh3Nfl-LD1y-yfCOkERh47bTuyjZF-TS-kw36dJHst86-IGRw-19P_BIlfI51EU7Q0LrHD9ThQF5Q5/s1920/TGD+5+1+promo+Lea+altar+CU.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="113" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTXwKzFv2FPkUmzDymW6Z6RKPduvsuO9o43V1Of_PHa9MdsUIsdYAjmo8vEBGDJAVh3Nfl-LD1y-yfCOkERh47bTuyjZF-TS-kw36dJHst86-IGRw-19P_BIlfI51EU7Q0LrHD9ThQF5Q5/w200-h113/TGD+5+1+promo+Lea+altar+CU.png" width="200" /></a></div><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Then a close-up of Lea, looking… um, I want to say “pained” but that seems wrong. More like she’s stressed but trying to smile through it?</span></span></p></li></ol><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><ol start="18" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTciGQu9JRqAFhLwC9-Qe09pNlGj8prQsVqd8dQqAAXrs9L0OEJo8ZBFr-tgBbdXeSndyGr1l-Ty0Q38xS6yI6vTGn5XrqIfEcqgNb8z5SdUqSf6TPYxE-xBv8QuyShN9ESKLYVcikv6zj/s1920/TGD+5+1+promo+Shaun+altar+2.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="113" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTciGQu9JRqAFhLwC9-Qe09pNlGj8prQsVqd8dQqAAXrs9L0OEJo8ZBFr-tgBbdXeSndyGr1l-Ty0Q38xS6yI6vTGn5XrqIfEcqgNb8z5SdUqSf6TPYxE-xBv8QuyShN9ESKLYVcikv6zj/w200-h113/TGD+5+1+promo+Shaun+altar+2.png" width="200" /></a></div><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Finally a close-up of Shaun appearing to hang his head as we hear (in voice-over) him saying “I’m sorry.” (That VO actually starts while we’re on the Lea CU.)</span></span><p></p></li></ol><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">And then, </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">if you are anything like me, you may have heard yourself laughing and/or groaning…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">With your eyes rolling back into your head…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Saying “Really, ABC? You’re trying to sell us on the notion of Dr. Shaun Murphy getting cold feet at the altar as he stands there with the love of his life? REALLY?!”</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://cdn.prdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/really-with-seth-and-amy-snl.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="600" height="133" src="https://cdn.prdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/really-with-seth-and-amy-snl.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thanks, Amy and Seth</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">I guess promos are just gonna keep on promo-ing. So rather than harp on the silly stuff, let’s do a quick game of </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">WHAT ARE THE FACTS AS THEY PERTAIN TO SHAUN AND LEA?</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Fact #1: We’ll be witnessing an engagement party. That, in and of itself, hints at the timeline picking up not long after Lea’s marriage proposal in Guatemala. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Fact #2: Lea is having difficulty sleeping. (I’ll go ahead and speculate “nightmares” like the rest of y’all.)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Fact #3: Lea is on the impossible mission of many a bride-to-be… a “perfect” wedding. And Shore’s comments in the </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">TV Line </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">article indicate a deeper dive into what constitutes “perfect” awaits. (If you read my previous post about <a href="https://stateoftheskate.blogspot.com/2021/08/shea-altar-bound-part-1-wish-lists.html" target="_blank">a #Shea Wedding Wish List</a>-- and/or if you’ve been elbow-deep in wedding planning yourself at some point and time-- you may have chuckled at Lea’s confession as well.)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Fact #4: All Shaun cares about is marrying Lea. AWWWWW. (Yeah, from that we can interpolate that Shaun couldn’t care less about the details-- which may or may not drive Lea bonkers-- but all we really have to go with right now are Shaun’s exact words.)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Fact #5: There is a wedding scene.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Is it THE wedding scene? Or is it part of Lea’s nightmares? Is it a nightmare because she dreams that Shaun leaves her at the altar with “I’m sorry”? Or is it more circumstantial (she’s dreaming of an outdoor wedding but a thunderstorm takes them by surprise)? </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Fact #6: Jordan gets to deliver the line of wisdom upon which this early-season drama may or may not hinge… depending on what actually goes down in the season opener. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Oh, and it’s not a particularly pertinent fact, but they found a way to get every member of the principal cast into the promo except for Dr. Mateo Rendon Osma (Osvaldo Benavides). Considering what we’ve seen thus far is a standard 30-second promo as opposed to a nearly 2-minute “official trailer” spanning the first 3 episodes (<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hfyYVWlr7QI " target="_blank">like this one they produced last year</a>), that’s kind of impressive. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://tvline.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/the-good-doctor-season-5-premiere-4.jpg?w=620" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="420" data-original-width="620" height="135" src="https://tvline.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/the-good-doctor-season-5-premiere-4.jpg?w=620" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Oh, and Dr. Rendon </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">was </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">among those featured in the promo<br /> stills… see?</span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Now, back to that good old speculation…</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">Are they getting married right away or not?</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Here’s what happened when I posed a similar question on Twitter last week:</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsqWHvfnV0wQSOi7G_6wrrhdKW1CCpfrCo5L5XcyEtaGccsAH0UlsJaR64s190_1kc8wB1lfwW-q4DXOl4d1YPFSwU5rNM4I0tVk-RzM3fJRYePxBH7hHz3fku66WNWPDY1MeKohmykaQy/s1920/Shea+wedding+poll.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1920" data-original-width="1080" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsqWHvfnV0wQSOi7G_6wrrhdKW1CCpfrCo5L5XcyEtaGccsAH0UlsJaR64s190_1kc8wB1lfwW-q4DXOl4d1YPFSwU5rNM4I0tVk-RzM3fJRYePxBH7hHz3fku66WNWPDY1MeKohmykaQy/s320/Shea+wedding+poll.png" width="180" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span><p></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">We talked about this at length <a href="https://stateoftheskate.blogspot.com/2021/08/shea-altar-bound-part-1-wish-lists.html" target="_blank">last time</a> (before all these promo materials came out), and it seemed many of us were in agreement that it would seem a shame to skip the buildup drama that weddings bring to a script. On the other hand, we’ve seen not just the “promo wedding” but photos from various IG stories that make a viewer wonder if they’d have spent THAT much time dolled up for a location shoot if it wasn’t the real deal. (Paige Spara’s photo captioned “the one where they get married” certainly fuels that fire.)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">On yet </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">another </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">hand, we have Shore dropping trademark teases like </span><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">“We are working towards (the wedding)... I can’t say [exactly] when it will happen, but we are working towards it.”</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">That’s three “hands,” isn’t it? Hmmmm. Let’s not overcomplicate this.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">My answer, for now, is</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">SEASON OPENER, aka 5:1 (“New Beginnings”)-- unlikely.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">EPISODE 5:2 (“Piece of Cake”)-- possible. Less unlikely. Guess we can’t rule it out.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">EPISODE 5:3 or later-- Still hopeful it’s this one. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">A few other mental notes I took in watching this early look at season 5:</span></p><br /><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If the show is staging a full-on engagement party (and possibly a full-on “nightmare” wedding), will the real #Shea wedding ultimately be a quieter, more intimate affair?</span></p></li></ul><div><br /></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And if we’re starting the season with an engagement party, would they really jump to a wedding (intimate or otherwise) in the following episode? Seems like there’d have to be at least a minor time-lapse for that to happen-- which isn’t unprecedented, I guess (there must’ve been at least a small jump between “Frontline Pt.2” and “Newbies” last season), but would still be unusual.</span></p></li></ul><div><br /></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This particular promo marks the first time that a season premiere of TGD is showcased primarily from Lea’s perspective rather than Shaun’s. Yeah, he’s right there in the thick of things, but </span><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">she’s </span><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">the one with the (probably) nightmares, </span><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">she’s</span><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> the one wanting things perfect, and </span><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">she’s</span><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> the one (supposedly) in jeopardy of rejection via Shaun. If they DO issue a longer S5 trailer, I suspect the big-picture focus will be back on Dr. Murphy. But what we’ve seen so far sends an interesting message about </span><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Good Doctor</span><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> five years from where it started: not just a “he” journey now, but a “he” and “she” becoming a long-term “we” journey.</span></p></li></ul><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">New beginnings, indeed!</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">No wonder the official TGD Twitter account changed its bio.</span></p></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p></p></span></div>Kelli Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06009713326652591943noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1583562784288599702.post-62185889069866578482021-08-23T10:21:00.002-07:002021-08-23T12:57:32.387-07:00#Shea Altar-Bound, part 1: The Wedding Wish Lists<p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/73/84/7384CD57-DB1C-D551-89F3-9C0461FAD1B3/156723_6088-450x0.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="361" data-original-width="450" height="160" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/73/84/7384CD57-DB1C-D551-89F3-9C0461FAD1B3/156723_6088-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It seems they've stood...</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/1E/BA/1EBA957D-CCB4-D058-9029-67CFC622BF1E/158273_2329-450x0.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="450" height="160" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/1E/BA/1EBA957D-CCB4-D058-9029-67CFC622BF1E/158273_2329-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And talked... </td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/2A/AB/2AABA453-F74C-AD6B-64AE-403610D2BE9C/158885_8074-450x0.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="450" height="160" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/2A/AB/2AABA453-F74C-AD6B-64AE-403610D2BE9C/158885_8074-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">... Like this before</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">I have to confess that I’ve a couple larger than usual distractions holding up this post. One is becoming increasingly typical this time of year for me-- for us-- as my husband Dan and I helped move our firstborn back to Purdue for year THREE as a network engineer major. It’s not a very long journey; just a few ticks over an hour, and aside from a handed-down sofa that had to be stuffed through some uncooperative doorways (are there any “cooperative” doorways when it comes to moving a sofa?)... there wasn’t much to it this time. </span></p><span id="docs-internal-guid-9f5d16e7-7fff-93d9-e848-b09662947654"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">But next year we have our son in his fourth year of college AND our daughter (the second born/youngest) graduating high school and starting a university adventure of her own, so I know there will be a lot more “to it” in 2022. Which is as it should be, of course. But let’s just say I’m grateful for one more year of preparation.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The other distraction I spoke of actually has to do with this very small corner of the internet you are so kind to visit… I am building a new website! Without getting into much detail, I’ve maintained this blog on Blogger for a looong time and have new things I am (finally) ready to try and do. Don’t worry, State of the #Shea is most definitely continuing… how could it not… #Shea Nation has given me my largest readership (that’s a word, right?) to date! So thank you!</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Here’s the thing, though…as my extended stay with Blogger surely proves, I move with extreme caution, especially when it involves technology (and I’m putting this new site squarely in that category whether it truly belongs there or not). So while my current goal is to have parts of the new space “live” ahead of September 27-- which is the season premiere of TGD, for those who hadn’t heard-- I’ve got a lot of learning (and decision-making) to do in the next 5 weeks. It’s pretty overwhelming, but I’ve gotta get it done, you know? </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">(Just my sharing this "in public" is daunting, as it means I actually need to carry it through this time and not just talk/think about it.)</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">So wish me luck, stay tuned for updates, and THANK YOU for helping give me a reason to push this particular boulder up the hill.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎👰🤵</span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎👰🤵</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎👰🤵</span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">AND NOW… LET’S TALK ABOUT A WEDDING.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Or should I say “Let’s </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">keep</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> talking about a wedding,” since the conversation has continued in some shape or form ever since Lea’s proposal in early June. In fact, when filming on TGD season 5 began this past week, the #Shea Twitterverse freaked and geeked out over three things that felt like hints that Shaun and Lea’s wedding was leading off the entire season:</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-6c7ddb4f-7fff-5c7b-41b5-0c6958f87925" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><ol style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0mh8NoxZfD8PcVaHWMFQtQs9ckZ5V3bwYtjDeX93toyMsWtvFNwCq3wvHOyJcH-thzCnqD0ms7GguG6TP8QaLvr4oVIpUMulYdIlJUpcK-XEjvPIYqST6Gf0tbJL1WwPcE1DReve2kq6m/s1920/Screenshot_20210822-010844.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1920" data-original-width="1080" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0mh8NoxZfD8PcVaHWMFQtQs9ckZ5V3bwYtjDeX93toyMsWtvFNwCq3wvHOyJcH-thzCnqD0ms7GguG6TP8QaLvr4oVIpUMulYdIlJUpcK-XEjvPIYqST6Gf0tbJL1WwPcE1DReve2kq6m/w113-h200/Screenshot_20210822-010844.png" width="113" /></a></div><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Paige Spara posting a couple of photos to her IG with hair and makeup done in a way that might suggest they were shooting a formal occasion</span></span><p></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Bria Samone Henderson sharing a pic of herself in a purple dress-- a dress one might wear in a formal situation-- on </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">her</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> IG</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Additional social media implications that Antonia Thomas (Claire) has been up in Vancouver this week, despite the fact that she departed the series last season</span></span></p></li></ol><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I must admit that, aside from being skeptical about these “hints” (TGD, being misleading with sneak peeks?? Where have I heard that song before?)I was feeling a little bummed. Of course I’m as eager to see the #Shea wedding as you probably are… but… I’m looking forward to some build-up. Maybe not a full season’s worth, but winter finale, maybe? Eh, we’ll get back to that..</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Anyway, what could those “hints” be about if not the wedding itself? First thing that came to my mind was </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">engagement celebration</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">… but what are we working with, really? Paige’s straightened hair and perhaps a makeup upgrade? Could be something; could also be a certain look they’re imparting on Lea this season in general. Bria’s dress? Possibly a wardrobe test for a future episode… and it’s worth remembering that there’s all kinds of reasons that Jordan (Bria’s character on the show, now a series regular) might dress up. We don’t know all that much about her, after all…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">As for Antonia possibly being there? I’m stumped on that one, but offer the possibility that “Claire” might need to be around for a day or two even if she’s simply being featured in a FaceTime or phone conversation from her new digs in Guatemala-- they wouldn’t have to go off-site in Vancouver to recreate that. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Oh, one more thing: When the ladies at @EndgameShea tagged Barclay Hope (the actor who played Mike Dilallo last season) in a Tweet this past week, the exchange looked like this: </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH_umQGd0w3byV9adBsjBCYT5EGDPtI72-u91wlS0neQuN7unJ1KaVCF6IHeoKztCZIhEuBKNO9hQ6_U0UJWE7yJh6QQ4q2pODW_C_j-HCQxrREilyz5Z7DLAE6p89XhIMdOL-ctNMS8-d/s1920/Screenshot_20210822-010815.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1920" data-original-width="1080" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH_umQGd0w3byV9adBsjBCYT5EGDPtI72-u91wlS0neQuN7unJ1KaVCF6IHeoKztCZIhEuBKNO9hQ6_U0UJWE7yJh6QQ4q2pODW_C_j-HCQxrREilyz5Z7DLAE6p89XhIMdOL-ctNMS8-d/w181-h320/Screenshot_20210822-010815.png" width="181" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">Assuming Lea’s dad will attend the #Shea Shindig of the season, whenever it may be… it doesn’t appear that Mr. Hope has been back on the TGD set yet. Unless he’s playing coy about it, or has been instructed not to reveal anything … always a possibility, I guess.</span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">IN ANY CASE, we’ll know a little more as September 27 approaches. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Oh! I forgot to mention that one more thing that could have been interpreted as a wedding day “hint” was the title of the season premiere episode, which was also revealed this week…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><span id="docs-internal-guid-eb920391-7fff-11cf-7098-deba6d3d4c3b"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“NEW BEGINNINGS”</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Easy to see why this would fire everyone up too, but let’s not forget that the “moving forward” theme spotlighted #Shea but extended many different directions with the S4 finale: #Matlim, #Parnick (did I get those hashtags right???), Andrews, Claire (cue that FaceTime call??)... even no-longer-newbies Dr. Jordan Allen and Dr. Asher Wolke as they settle into year two; even Glassman, assuming he and Debbie will follow through with divorce proceedings. </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">My capacity to be wrong remains as high as ever, but that’s my .02 on what we know so far. </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But with this year’s premiere date coinciding with the 24th anniversary of my </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">own</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> wedding, I’ve been mining my memory for issues that crept in-- sometimes </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">loudly stomped </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">in is more like it-- as Dan and I inched ever closer to that day. A partial list: </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Guest list debate: “I don’t even know that relative, why do I have to invite them?” </span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Multiple mama dramas (MY mom… but it worked out OK)</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Bridesmaid/MOH re-assignment drama (but it, too, worked out OK)</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Issues with details, specifically wedding veil, reception hall (before and </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">during</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> said reception), and flower girl dresses… which my mom made herself… yes, part of the Mama drama</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Wedding rehearsal drama (had some no-shows or plane hadn’t arrived yet-shows)</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Post rehearsal </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">dinner</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> antics (again, see Mama drama)</span></span></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I should probably add that my mother was, at the time of my wedding, a certified flower show judge and a veteran wedding cake-maker who also had a few years of catering experience. She was brilliant when in her element, but also tended to bite off more than she could chew at times.. (I may circle back to this if it becomes relevant to #Shea matters.)</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Could we see anything like this with Shaun? With Lea? With Mama D (Pam)? Or anyone else? Maybe, maybe not. But we know a smooth sail from the Guatemala airport to the wedding altar is out of the question, so let’s see what we have to say thus far about the options… </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">WHEN IN SEASON 5 SHOULD THE CEREMONY TAKE PLACE?</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The most popular choices I’ve seen land in mid-season-- the winter finale getting the most nods, though I think some have said they’d enjoy a Valentine’s Day wedding. Some still seem excited at the thought of it happening right away; a lesser number are content with waiting till the season finale (or close to it). </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">My preference, as I said earlier, would be something mid-season. There are just too many options thrown away if they rush the preparation. Winter finale sounds lovely, but assuming they return to a more “normal” pattern of episodes, would they be sacrificing a mini-cliffhanger if they do it then? Or would something about the wedding BE the mini-cliffhanger…? I’m not crazy about that idea at all… unless it involves something that doesn’t spoil Shaun and Lea’s day. Like, say, new guy Dr. Osma being dragged off to jail at the end of the night when the long-held arrest warrants catch up to him…? Just an idea.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I’d even be OK with an end-of-season wedding bash, except for one thing: what if S5 proves to be TGD’s swan song? Sure, it’d be a great way to go out-- but the greedy #Shea fan in me wants more than a projected </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Happy Ever After, ASD/NT style</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. I want to hear Shaun and Lea call each other “husband and wife” as long as possible. And yes, like most of you, I want to see them in at least the early stages of raising a family. If it can only be VERY early stages (with Lea pregnant again, this time carrying to term), I’d take that. But if the ratings, or Freddie, or some other factor determines S5 is TGD’s final season, we’ll likely be denied all those things-- unless the wedding happens earlier in the episodic cycle.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><br /><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">WHERE SHOULD THEY GET MARRIED? CHURCH? SOMEWHERE IN THE HOSPITAL? ELSEWHERE?</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I say it’s going to be at the hospital on that balcony they used for the prom dance in season three or that beautiful final dance in the spilled milk episode. </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">--Steven</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; padding: 12pt 0pt 12pt 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Pam is the controlling type, she may horn into the conversation and insist on a church. I don't think Shaun would care, but Lea may push back with a vengeance, because mom… </span><span style="color: #222222; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(or I'm full of it and maybe Lea wants a traditional wedding in a church). Or, they could have the state deputize someone (Glassy?)-- Juliana</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; padding: 0pt 0pt 12pt 0pt;"><span style="color: #222222; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Many of us are associating a church wedding with the Dilallo parents’ (OK, probably just Pam) hijacking any plans Shaun and Lea might conceive on their own. But logistically speaking (for a TV show, anyway), Steven pointed out in the longer version of his answer that a church or other sort of unique location could be a lot harder to pull off. So another recurring idea I’ve seen-- that Lea eventually does away with family wishes, leads with her heart, and has the wedding elsewhere-- seems to suit the needs of the show better anyway.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; padding: 0pt 0pt 12pt 0pt;"><span style="color: #222222; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Some, such as Sheree, fully support the idea of an outdoor wedding-- and we know the production crew has dedicated multiple days to shoots in certain Vancouver-area parks and nature preserves for happenings far less monumental than the wedding of the titular character. Beautiful as I think that could be, I wonder if such a big event would be too expensive if it was weather-contingent. I also wonder if the nature of Shaun’s character would endorse such a plan… he’s a dedicated Weather Channel watcher, so he surely knows the likelihood of rainfall, high winds, excessive heat, etc. in San Jose. If the odds were too high for one or more of those things, he could make a very strong case for an indoor, more climate-controlled environment. (And unless Lea has her heart completely set on it, I suspect Shaun could bring her around to his way of thinking. At least on this matter.)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Juliana mentioned Glassy possibly being deputized by the state to officiate; she also mentioned there could be a revelation that one of the series regulars was ordained at some point by Universal Life Church. If they went that direction, who’s your guess for the job…? I have Lim, Park, and Jordan on my shortlist… (Except Jordan would be ordained in some other fashion, given her background of faith)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">WHO WILL ATTEND THE WEDDING?</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">RE: The Attendants… </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I can’t wait to see how they handle the wedding party. Will Glassman be treated like an honorary father of the groom? Or would he be Shaun’s Best Man? I personally prefer the former, allowing Park to roll into the Best Man spot…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Will the show develop a significant Lea-female friendship? Morgan? Jordan? Even a reference to an off-screen long-time Hershey friend would give us something to look forward to in a Maid of Honor. I’d be disappointed to see the other female regulars as bridesmaids “just because,” but I’d love it if they could earn their spots! -- TONY</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I don’t have much to add to this except that if Claire is in attendance, I hope she sings. Maybe during the processional…?</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">RE: Controversial guests…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">My top possibilities for pot-stirrers are your top possibilities: Shaun’s mother Marcie and Lea’s presumably-still-estranged brother Donnie. I cannot fathom the show skipping a major dramatic opportunity and failing to at least discuss Marcie as a possible guest; whether or not they’d go ahead and actually bring her to the wedding is another story. As for Donnie… I sincerely hope we not only meet Donnie at last, but get him to the wedding (even if he and Lea have reconciled by then, he could still make things interesting). Given that he didn’t merit a mention during last year’s “Parenting” episode, I worry that the writers won’t pursue it/won’t cast him/will hope we’ve forgotten all about him. But I’m the one always reminding us to “trust the writers”... so I should stay positive about this, right?</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">It's important, IMO, for them to go there (HERSHEY) and to have a sort of parallel to “Friends and Family,” but Lea's edition so she can solve any issue she might have had in the past to keep growing into her future with Shaun. --VALE</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><br /><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">WHAT WILL THE ACTUAL WEDDING DAY BE LIKE?</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I’ve seen plenty of wishes for #Shea’s wedding day to be simply the shiny happy celebration they deserve…</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.2818181818181817; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; padding: 12pt 0pt 8pt 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #222222; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The unthinkable will probably happen (a medical emergency in the middle of the ceremony is the least I can think of). But they have other 19 episodes for that, so... please be nice just for once!-- Daniela</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.2818181818181817; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; padding: 4pt 0pt 8pt 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #222222; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">But even Daniela admits, earlier in her comment, that she was “probably delusional” for thinking David Shore and Co. will give everyone a break for the duration of the wedding day.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.2818181818181817; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt; padding: 4pt 0pt 0pt 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #222222; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">As for me, my questions circle around the variations they might do on a few TV wedding tropes:</span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="color: #222222; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.2818181818181817; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">How will St. B get incorporated into the wedding? Will there be a mid-ceremony medical emergency, as Daniela offered? Or could one or two St. B’vites be forced to miss the wedding while on-call? (Or will an on-site ceremony eliminate that problem?) </span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="color: #222222; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.2818181818181817; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Regardless of location, will either Shaun or Lea (or both) have some sort of delay that results in a frantic and/or amusing hustle to the altar?</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="color: #222222; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.2818181818181817; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">What (admittedly silly) traditions will be honored… and which will be broken? Will Shaun “see the bride” ahead of the ceremony, either by accident or because they need to see each other for some reason? Will Lea wear something old/new/borrowed/blue? And maybe the most anticipated one: what will their first kiss as husband and wife look like? (I’m kind of hoping Shaun will “dip” Lea during that kiss-- just me?)</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="color: #222222; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.2818181818181817; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I’m also hoping for something that would feel very #Shea to all of us… that both Shaun and Lea are jumping for joy at the ceremony’s end. Actually I hope they jump all the way down the aisle during the recessional, if there </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">is</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> an aisle!</span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.2818181818181817; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 12pt; padding: 0pt 0pt 8pt 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #222222; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Whoops, getting ahead of myself. I guess it’s time to ask…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.2818181818181817; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; padding: 4pt 0pt 8pt 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">WHAT WILL THE CEREMONY BE LIKE?</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="color: #222222; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“Lea in a white gown! Please, don’t make her get married in jeans and combat boots…”</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="color: #222222; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">-- Daniela</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Yeah, we could spend a week just discussing Lea’s dream gown, trying hard not to dwell on the stunning bride look that Paige delivered in that Watermark commercial…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/iC1Sbwzlx_8" width="320" youtube-src-id="iC1Sbwzlx_8"></iframe></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span><p></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Like Daniela, I hope they go full bridal formal for Lea. Even a cocktail-length dress seems too simple…</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNFbs2n0oEO35GF3u5k_gjxdzlBnEVkdAt8rAmtAe90WxNCZrXp7V_AqJmaOtIIENysMtUsGbz-Vt2VuYHDFwbPiT1_FeOnqwEr0ZskmOgvp3jwd4LfU_gGhC1E51kJrYRsmm53ffj6tMV/s1183/scan0022.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1183" data-original-width="788" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNFbs2n0oEO35GF3u5k_gjxdzlBnEVkdAt8rAmtAe90WxNCZrXp7V_AqJmaOtIIENysMtUsGbz-Vt2VuYHDFwbPiT1_FeOnqwEr0ZskmOgvp3jwd4LfU_gGhC1E51kJrYRsmm53ffj6tMV/w133-h200/scan0022.jpg" width="133" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me with the pink<br />Chuck Taylors at <br />my own wedding<br />in 1997</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br />But as for what shoes to wear: as someone who went with an alternate look for my own wedding, perhaps I should exempt myself from this conversation… </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(I wouldn’t mind boots underneath the gown)</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">As for Shaun, we all remember that he bought the Armani tux back in Season 1 (for the gala at St. B) after much debate about renting vs. purchasing. I hope this fact either comes up in conversation-- seems Shaun is too practical-minded to wear anything BUT his Armani, knowing how much he spent on it and how few opportunities one has to wear a tux-- OR we simply see him in a tux on the big day and, when comparing it to the one he wore in S1, can “confirm” it’s one and the same. (Though the wardrobe folks on set may be the only ones to know for sure)</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The ceremony itself is likely to be relatively short and sweet-- maybe the length of an average “act” of the show (6-7 minutes tops, if we’re lucky?). I know daytime dramas often stretch those ceremonies to take half the hour or longer (at least they </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">used</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> to), but that’s a lot easier to do when you’re on the air five hours a week and have time to burn…</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">By the way, this need for a short ceremony probably puts another point towards Shaun and Lea having a wedding somewhere other than a church. And for those suspecting Lea’s family roots are Catholic, surely a wedding with a “full mass” (including communion) is out of the question!</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Short ceremony or not, I’m hoping that if Claire is there she will sing. Perhaps for the processional?</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">In any case, I think we’re in agreement on the part of the ceremony we anticipate the most: THOSE VOWS…</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The vows are what I am the most excited for just hope the writers have them be "personal" vows and not just generic. Or a mix of both. -- Sheree</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I so want them to say their own vows, a kind of continuation or reiteration of their "more" statements. – Pamela</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Assuming the writers agree, I kind of picture Shaun carefully writing out what he wants to say on a series of index cards-- but then, getting flustered halfway through, tucking them back into his pocket and speaking spontaneously. Part hilariously honest, part heartstring-yanking, ALL earnest Shaun. </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><div><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">WHAT WILL THE RECEPTION BE LIKE?</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I think it’s crossed most #Shea fans’ minds that Shaun might be thrilled by a “big” wedding/reception, no matter where they are held. But several have pointed out that he’s likely to try and accommodate whatever Lea wants in this regard; as long as his friends from St. B are in attendance, he’ll be comfortable enough. </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Really, all we care about are two things. OK, three things (I added one on my own):</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ol style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Will there be dancing?</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Will there be karaoke?</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Will we get to see them cut the wedding cake? (Bonus points if the show comes up with a really cool cake-topper… fondant his-and-her toilet paper rolls, anyone?)</span></span></p></li></ol><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">There’d BETTER be dancing-- a #Shea first dance, and anything that can follow it (Glassy and Lea, for instance, as Daniela suggested)! When Shaun’s attempt to dance with Lea last season was cut short by her queasiness, we felt cheated. GIVE US A BETTER DANCE MEMORY, PLEASE. Could be “Islands in the Stream” or one of the countless options put forth via YouTube fan videos… just pick one and go with it!</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(Does anyone think the show might do a thing where Shaun and Lea do something choreographed? I’ve heard Freddie Highmore can’t really dance at all; that’s what I think would be most adorable about a choreographed piece-- Shaun/Freddie would be trying equally hard to get it right!)</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">And dang, a karaoke machine seems absolutely mandatory for this shindig doesn’t it? End of discussion. </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">A few random reception questions I’ll throw out there:</span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Who will catch Lea’s bouquet (assuming she has one)? Will Lim, Morgan and Jordan all be fighting to NOT catch it, with their arms at their sides, bouncing it off their bodies like a soccer ball? (My God that would be funny, if I do say so myself)</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Who will drink the most… then say something provocative and regret it later?</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Will there be </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">receptionus interruptus</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">… something dramatic that grinds the fun to a halt?</span></span></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">That last one brings me to the wild card question…</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><div><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">WHAT “DRAMATIC PAUSES” WILL THERE BE BETWEEN NOW AND THE MOMENT SHAUN AND LEA LEAVE FOR THEIR HONEYMOON (which I hope they get, even if-- sigh-- it all happens off-screen)?</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Will we get to see Shaun give Lea an engagement ring? If so, how big a deal will be made about it?</span></span></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 0pt; padding: 12pt 0pt 0pt 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">He probably wouldn't think of a ring until someone like Park asks him if he's gotten one yet. Then he may obsess about it, asking everyone he meets about where should he get it, what should it look like, etc. When a jeweler asks him about the size, he may go into a tailspin! Good comic material. --Julianna</span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">If the question of inviting Marcie Murphy (Shaun’s mom) does surface, as I think it has to, will it be Glassy’s doing? Or Lea’s? Would Shaun possibly declare it himself-- after, say, a particularly gripping medical case that got him thinking about his only surviving blood relative?</span></span></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And regarding Donnie Dilallo (Lea’s brother): Since it seems unlikely we’d get TWO episodes (at least by the time of the wedding) where Lea’s family is featured, will Donnie and Lea’s relationship end up being on display throughout the wedding episode?</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span></span></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">One issue that I have NOT heard any of #Shea Nation discuss at any length is Lea’s previous marriage/wedding/husband. I think this is due to the fact that the whole matter was downplayed last season once Lea brought it out into the open. And while I don’t anticipate a surprise appearance by the ex-husband, I </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">do</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> wonder how much her previous wedding will impact what Lea wants to do this time… or maybe more to the point, how it will inform Mike and Pam Dilallo’s input. After all, we’ve no idea how elaborate wedding #1 was, though if “everyone expected it” as Lea said I can’t help but think it was more than a trip to the courthouse.</span></span></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Speaking of Mike and Pam…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.2818181818181817; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; padding: 12pt 0pt 8pt 0pt;"><span style="color: #222222; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">A scene between Lea’s parents and Dr. Glassman would be pure gold! I’m sure that I’m not the only one wishing that. But it doesn’t need to happen necessarily at the wedding. Maybe right before would make even more sense. I can already picture it in my head --Daniela</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="color: #222222; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I’d be remiss, I suppose, if I skipped over the question of how Shaun’s ASD might factor into things… except that it’s already been discussed in many regards. One lingering question I guess I have is whether or not Shaun might get overwhelmed at some point with the whole thing-- the formalities, or the fact he’s actually marrying this woman he’s loved for so long, or the aspects of the big day itself-- and will need someone (hopefully Lea) to calm him down… cue that seeing-the-bride-before-the-ceremony tradition being broken? But as much as Freddie and Paige would rock such a dramatic moment, I don’t know if they’d go that route. Shaun’s lack of serious meltdowns last season seemed a marking of Shaun’s growth and maturity since we first saw him in 2017. What do you think?</span></span></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(BEFORE YOU ANSWER, HERE IS BIT MORE INPUT FROM READERS ABOUT THE PENDING NUPTIALS IN GENERAL… and don’t go away just yet; if you keep scrolling you’ll find one more #Shea Interactive Challenge to carry us towards the season premiere)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">All that we love about and that define the distinct characteristics of the Shea relationship: unique, fun, funny, romantic, and heartwarming. The show needs to treat it as THE big event that it is and what Shea deserves as the central couple and heart and soul of the show, without cliche drama like cold feet or someone stopping the wedding ceremony. -- Pamela</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The main character of the show is getting married so it can't be something like what we saw with Glassy and Debbie for example. I hope they pay attention to details such as the place, Lea's dress and hopefully we will see Shaun giving her an engagement ring. --VALE</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">They are a young couple with a long life ahead of them. I want that they celebrate that and their love for each other.-- Daniela</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; padding: 12pt 0pt 12pt 0pt;"><span style="color: #222222; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">David Shore said the writers will have fun with the wedding; there's lots of material to play with! Not to mention the buildup, the honeymoon (road trip!!??), Lea's dress, bridesmaid(s) best man,etc. I can't wait! -- Julianna</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; padding: 0pt 0pt 12pt 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; padding: 0pt 0pt 12pt 0pt;"><span style="color: #222222; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">YOUR FINAL INTERACTIVE CHALLENGE, SHOULD YOU CHOOSE TO ACCEPT IT…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; padding: 0pt 0pt 12pt 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; padding: 0pt 0pt 12pt 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">OK, so we’ve discussed favorite episodes from S4 and the upcoming S5 wedding, but what about a SEASON 5 WISH LIST? I know it’s kind of hard to separate such a thing from the wedding plans, but we all know this is not the #Shea Show 24/7. What developments would you like to see for other characters? For Shaun and Lea as individuals? Are there any particular medical issues (under-represented or otherwise) or controversies you’d like to see addressed this year? </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">If you’ve got such a wish list, please send it to KLawrence997 at gmail dot com! </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><div><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div></span>Kelli Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06009713326652591943noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1583562784288599702.post-38735219427327263272021-08-10T22:42:00.004-07:002021-08-10T22:45:19.988-07:00TGD Season 4 in Review: 25 Standout Scenes (and Lines)<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi27okNHQCFtHIw_PQKfAitKXZ6bndUVHqvO4_sa4ci7MdyCAWPhr3sAxC2W7TZa6QzcS8fZsLhWgCj9vdi3s7DPJGE0b5N5UcXoEwX4QjYp-abwDBqOkJAELhbSjpYolqH2czN4boN_dAb/s4608/IMG_20210611_230432.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi27okNHQCFtHIw_PQKfAitKXZ6bndUVHqvO4_sa4ci7MdyCAWPhr3sAxC2W7TZa6QzcS8fZsLhWgCj9vdi3s7DPJGE0b5N5UcXoEwX4QjYp-abwDBqOkJAELhbSjpYolqH2czN4boN_dAb/s320/IMG_20210611_230432.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; white-space: pre-wrap;">You’re ready to talk about Season 5, aren’t you?</span></p><span id="docs-internal-guid-6a20af6a-7fff-b6e2-e320-6eea02bd9e30"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Yeah, I know. We’re two months past the season finale now, and </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">less </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">than two months from Monday 9/27 (the date that ABC is publicizing as TGD’s Season 5 premiere). Time to look forward, not behind… right? Well for the most part, I agree. And to that end, we are going to start talking more about THE WEDDING (!!!!)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">... in the next post.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Because there are just a few things I still want to highlight about </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Good Doctor’s</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> 2020-21 season, and most of them I’ll likely cover with this piece. Thanks to the Tokyo Summer Olympic Games that just concluded-- I’m a big-time Olympics fan, if the fact that I wrote an entire book about a Winter Olympics mainstay (figure skating) wasn’t a tip-off for you-- I’m inspired to present this collection of my favorite S4 #Shea moments in a results-oriented format. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I know this will only scratch the surface of all the #Shea moments we got to experience this past year, and in fact it’s wild to think that I devoted three posts last summer counting down #Shea’s best pre-couple roommate moments (here they are, in case you’re interested)... and this season we may have gotten more #Shea scenes than in the first three seasons combined! But I’ve whittled (??) it down to just (???) 25 noteworthy clips, featured below.</span></p><br /><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Big shoutout here to the YouTube channel known as </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun The Good Doctor</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">… I don’t know if its administrator reads the blog or not, but you can find just about every #Shea scene you’d ever want in that video library (plus a lot of very fun edits), and I was grateful to find what I needed there. Especially when a lot of the ABC-released clips this season tended to showcase multiple TGD scenes in a single link.</span></span></span><div><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">🥇🥈🥉🥇🥈🥉</span></span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🥇🥈🥉</span></div><div><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-0c752ecd-7fff-a081-4f12-70f500e53794"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The categories in THIS “Olympics” are as follows… </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#Shea scenes (under 1 minute 45 seconds)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">BRONZE MEDAL </span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">🥉</span><span style="font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;">: </span></p></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“Drive away! Drive Away!” (From 4:11 “We’re All Crazy Sometimes”)</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/rMX1tnmyj8o" width="320" youtube-src-id="rMX1tnmyj8o"></iframe></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Admittedly, this homage to </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Starsky and Hutch </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">is anything but deep and dramatic… which is exactly what I love about it. I hope the writers continue to find room for a #Shea caper like this one now and again… whether the end result is Lea announcing a pregnancy or not. </span></p><br /><br /><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SILVER MEDAL </span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">🥈</span><span style="font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;">:</span></p></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“It’s my fault if we get bugs” (From 4:17 “Letting Go”)</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/OVWWxCOrO8c" width="320" youtube-src-id="OVWWxCOrO8c"></iframe></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun’s silent communication at its finest. Well, unless you count the most heartbreaking scene in “Dr. Ted,” which you won’t find in this collection of videos as I can’t see “rewarding” a clip that is so excruciating for some to watch. But these final moments from “Letting Go,” with Lea rambling her depression and guilt over the miscarriage, is most riveting to me when Shaun gently but firmly takes her by the shoulders. It’s as important as the hug that follows, somehow.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">GOLD MEDAL </span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">🥇</span><span style="font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;">:</span></p></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“Will you marry me?” (From 4:20 “Vamos”)</span></p><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/hnrWhrGdhCM" width="320" youtube-src-id="hnrWhrGdhCM"></iframe></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(a technicality; this clip is 2:23 but the Shea part is only 1:40)</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">How could I go with anything else??</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">--</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The “also-rans”... (think of these as clips that were up for a medal too, finishing 4th or 5th)</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bkeb693fALU&t=28s ">“Maybe you’re a more mature person than I am”… </a> (from 4:8 “Parenting”) </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A thoughtful, revealing scene that led to Shaun’s pivotal conversation with Lea’s parents.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href=" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UL0hh-JAtyc " target="_blank">Shaun helps Lea with baby Isabella</a> (from 4:20 “Vamos”)</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">The shortest scene on my list, devoid of dialogue but full of emotion and importance.</span></p><div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">🥇🥈🥉🥇🥈🥉</span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🥇🥈🥉</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-9ff4a60a-7fff-3940-d120-4bb438b24b3e"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">#Shea scenes, 1:45 or over</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">BRONZE MEDAL </span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🥉</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;">:</span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“I am canceling Date Night”</span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pI1iJ0iW1P0&t=39s" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></a><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(from 4:5 “Fault”)</span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/pI1iJ0iW1P0" width="320" youtube-src-id="pI1iJ0iW1P0"></iframe></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It was waaay too short of a Date Night (and we’re still holding out hope for a deleted scene from this sequence in the S4 DVD package), but a lovely way to get them out of the apartment (in a COVID-cautious manner, no less) AND showcase the not-so-selfish side of Lea that we already knew she possessed (even if </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">she</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> didn’t).</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><div><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">SILVER MEDAL </span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🥈</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;">:</span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“We’ll raise her to be strong.” (from 4:14 “Gender Reveal”)</span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Q3E_TEAXs2s" width="320" youtube-src-id="Q3E_TEAXs2s"></iframe></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">So much to love here that it almost was my gold medal pick. Shaun’s doula surprise, their combined wishes for their unborn daughter verbalized, the loving words, the tender kisses… </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">GOLD MEDAL </span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🥇</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;">:</span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“Are we really doing this??” (from 4:12 “Teeny Blue Eyes”)</span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/rQWNHlq_8kQ" width="320" youtube-src-id="rQWNHlq_8kQ"></iframe></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; white-space: pre-wrap;">… but, of course, it was in this scene that Shaun and Lea made the decision that kept us on the roller coaster for the next four episodes. One small step for #Shea, one giant leap for the couple that supposedly was not going to make it past the first half of the season.</span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Also-rans:</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_aevsSiXgJU" target="_blank"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“Maybe now isn’t the right time”</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></a><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(from 4:12 “Teeny Blue Eyes”)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">AND</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=39a6-7cT3Es" target="_blank">“Even looking at your blue eyes breaks my heart”</a></span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=39a6-7cT3Es" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (from 4:19 “Venga”)</span></a></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Two dark (literally), sad scenes that rocked us in their respective episodes but clearly cannot by on my podium because… well, because I said so. (But I’m certainly glad we have enough happy moments to make the podium rounds.) </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; white-space: normal;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">🥇🥈🥉🥇🥈🥉</span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">🥇🥈🥉</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">#Shea handling ASD-related conflicts</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-2a4d5e6c-7fff-19d9-a33c-77804e5c090d" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">BRONZE MEDAL </span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🥉</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;">: </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“Not a compliment!” (From 4:3 “Newbies”)</span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/O6QDlKkFn-E" width="320" youtube-src-id="O6QDlKkFn-E"></iframe></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; white-space: pre-wrap;">It was an early skirmish and kind of a silly one; Shaun’s first time in the dog house of #Shea land. But it was also a great example of how the “brutal honesty” of one on the spectrum can dent an ASD/NT relationship… and also how it can pound that dent right back out. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; white-space: pre-wrap;">I also LOVE the way Paige Spara delivered the “Not a compliment” line-- a classic example of how Lea refusing to pander to Shaun’s disorder.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">SILVER MEDAL </span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🥈</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;">:</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“...and.that scares me more than anything” (From 4:13 “Spilled Milk”)</span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/_y71m2gH5E0" width="320" youtube-src-id="_y71m2gH5E0"></iframe></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Clocking in at three minutes, this scene-- which takes place the morning after Shaun and Lea’s “you don’t feel anything for our baby?!” argument-- is surely one of the longest they had in S4. It starts with Lea’s confession that Shaun’s disconnect could lead to long-term resentment on her part. Then it pivots to something with the potential for joy, as Shaun obliges her request for him to “talk to the baby”... but then we all collectively sink back in our seats as it becomes clear that Shaun’s medical background + ASD is still working against Lea’s hopes, and her disappointment is palpable. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">It’s tough stuff to deal with, but I’m glad they gave the show took time with that scene, allowing viewers to not only absorb it more completely but to appreciate the closing scene (when they both hear the heartbeat for the first time) all the better. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">GOLD MEDAL </span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🥇</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;">: </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“You always know how to fix things” (From 4:10 “Decrypt”)</span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/0Jv8PdAnBac" width="320" youtube-src-id="0Jv8PdAnBac"></iframe></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I’m giving this scene the gold because it went a couple different ways with the ASD/NT issues and did both brilliantly. In the first part, Lea is desperate to get words of approval from Shaun that he cannot deliver; when she realizes the analogy she’s set up doesn’t work for Shaun (“I don’t know what you want me to say”), she backs off, decides she’s asked too much of him, and (kindly) vows to figure out her dilemma alone. But then Shaun sees an opportunity to explain his actions in a previous scene in a way that not only gets him off the “you don’t respect me” hook she’d hung him on, but gives Lea what she wanted in the first place… approval. And best of all, her approval ultimately comes from within.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Also-ran:</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1vFksb7AkMs " target="_blank">“That is my guy”</a> (From 4:14 “Gender Reveal”)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; white-space: pre-wrap;">I kept this just off the podium because the ASD/NT clashes, while quite present, were also resolved quickly thanks to solid communication.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9tBlxwcM7c" target="_blank">“…This is for the purpose of me having sex with you.”</a> (From 4:7 “The Uncertainty Principle”)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I might’ve put this one on the podium if Lea had been less respectful of Shaun’s shower sex concerns… been more selfish… and just gone ahead and planted a kiss on him before he could protest. Just sayin’.</span></span></p><div><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><br /></span></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; white-space: normal;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">🥇🥈🥉🥇🥈🥉</span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">🥇🥈🥉</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">#Shea one-liners:</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-72a04a1a-7fff-35a5-41af-a0da3b04f4bc" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">BRONZE MEDAL </span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🥉</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;">:</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">LEA: Vaccines don’t cause autism, Mom… wanna talk about religion now?</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(From 4:8 “Parenting,” written by Patti Carr)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">SILVER MEDAL </span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🥈</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;">:</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; white-space: pre-wrap;">SHAUN: I don’t like your body because it’s excellent, I like it because it’s yours. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; white-space: pre-wrap;">(From 4:3 “Newbies,” written by Thomas Moran and David Renaud)</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">GOLD MEDAL </span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🥇</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;">:</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">LEA: Shaun, our relationship will not end in natural disaster.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SHAUN: It did begin in one. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(From 4:7 “The Uncertainty Principle,” written by Doris Egan)</span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_KFHuAgqgs" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></a></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Also-rans:</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">SHAUN: We want to keep our coordinates close to each other for the rest of our lives.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">LEA: We certainly do. (From “Uncertainty”/Egan)</span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M_J24Tf9IbY" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></a></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">AND... </span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">SHAUN: I searched ‘eating meat near me,’ which was a mistake…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(From “Parenting”/Carr) </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bkeb693fALU&t=28s" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></a></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(Note: I kept this off the podium because I’m not sure it translates as funny in other languages. For those who don’t get the humor: “eating meat” can be construed, in English, as slang for fellatio.)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; white-space: normal;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">🥇🥈🥉🥇🥈🥉</span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">🥇🥈🥉</span><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><br /><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">#Shea with a supporting cast member</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">BRONZE MEDAL </span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🥉</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;">: </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Mock meet-the-parents dinner with Glassman and Morgan (from 4:8 “Parenting”)</span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Rw5B7bCLngw" width="320" youtube-src-id="Rw5B7bCLngw"></iframe></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Part endearing, part hilarious, part revealing… all in ways quite different from the actual dinner Shaun and Lea had with the Dilallos. Even if Debbie should’ve been there instead of Morgan… or Morgan should’ve had more lines… I think of it fondly.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">SILVER MEDAL </span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🥈</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;">:</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> “Stop bagging” (w/Sofia and baby Isabella) (from 4:20 “Vamos”)</span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Y1PENXf8N1E" width="320" youtube-src-id="Y1PENXf8N1E"></iframe></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Lea made it around the most important corner of her life to date in this scene. What’s not to love?</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">GOLD MEDAL </span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🥇</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;">:</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Phone call w/Pam Dilallo (from 4:17 “Letting Go”)</span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/OmfWM4vdrzk" width="320" youtube-src-id="OmfWM4vdrzk"></iframe></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">When these two are too heartbroken to talk to each other with ease, an ill-timed phone call from Mama D proves cathartic for Shaun… and re-breaks the ice for both of them. For me it’s a stunning highlight of Doris Egan’s script for this episode. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><br /><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Honorary medals… both from 4:8 “Parenting”</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Shaun and… Lea’s parents</span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/s6dIziKwe_Q" width="320" youtube-src-id="s6dIziKwe_Q"></iframe></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Lea and… Glassman</span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/STyam49ELH8" width="320" youtube-src-id="STyam49ELH8"></iframe></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">No explanation needed on either of these, I presume…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">OK, so here’s where you get to tell me what you agree with, what I missed… and before you wonder “what about ‘best kiss’ or ‘best handhold’ let me assure you that it would have taken me another two days (at least) to get this posted if I tried to rank either of those!</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">But by all means, submit your suggestions 😉</span></span></p><div><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div></span></div>Kelli Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06009713326652591943noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1583562784288599702.post-90685866124486511792021-08-01T10:56:00.000-07:002021-08-01T10:56:02.990-07:00The Best and Worst Episodes of TGD S4: a Readers' Poll<p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://tse2.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.ZqtCJZr6VgBFZsVv3rMVJAHaEj&pid=Api" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="291" data-original-width="474" height="291" src="https://tse2.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.ZqtCJZr6VgBFZsVv3rMVJAHaEj&pid=Api" width="474" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In case you missed it: A few weeks ago, I asked readers to send me their picks (and reasons) for the top 5 episodes of </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Good Doctor</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Season 4 as well as their 3 “worst episode” picks.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">For a judging panel of just 7 readers-- OK, 6 readers plus myself-- we put a helluva lot of interesting thoughts out there. WHICH IS AWESOME. Thanks to all who took the time to vote!</span></p><span id="docs-internal-guid-195caa7c-7fff-35ae-fe32-b649fbdfff21"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Are the seven voices that ultimately responded in line with the hundreds that apparently read the blog? I’m truly curious. So whether you’re a frequent commenter, a first-timer, or would rather email me with your thoughts on the unofficial “study” you’re about to read (KLawrence997-at-gmail-dot-com), I hope you’ll speak up.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This was great fun to compile- I hope you enjoy it too! </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">One note: several people, myself included, indicated there were certain episodes they’d include on their list if I’d allowed giving more than five “best” votes… that’s why there is an Honorable Mention category. (That’s HM for “Best”, not “worst”)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Off we go… starting with </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p></span></span><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">THE TWO S4 EPISODES GETTING NO VOTES EITHER WAY... </span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/D9/4F/D94F9784-3ACC-F4E5-C1F8-ED30C0E2935C/156723_9219-450x0.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="450" height="133" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/D9/4F/D94F9784-3ACC-F4E5-C1F8-ED30C0E2935C/156723_9219-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><i><b>The Uncertainty Principle</b></i> (shower scene, ex-husband discovery, cowbell) <br /></span><p></p><p><b><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">and</span></b></p><p><br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/CC/DA/CCDA04B2-C7E0-8D07-E17A-90A0103487F1/158639_6104-450x0.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="450" height="133" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/CC/DA/CCDA04B2-C7E0-8D07-E17A-90A0103487F1/158639_6104-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><i><b>Spilled Milk </b></i>(Where Shaun feels disconnected from Lea until they hear the baby's heartbeat for the first time)</span><p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">As for the 18 episodes from S4 that made the list of our judging panel, read on...</span></p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/E2/78/E278917D-31C4-2B85-3612-896950E75F5A/158206_0356a-450x0.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="450" height="133" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/E2/78/E278917D-31C4-2B85-3612-896950E75F5A/158206_0356a-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><u>S4 Episode with the most "Best" votes (6): <i><b>Decrypt</b></i></u></span><div><b><i><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></i></b></div><div><b><i><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></i></b><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"Paige starring, directed by her friend, Freddie. As someone who has coded, the storyline was interesting to me. As TGD does often, it tapped into what’s happening in the world."-- Julianna</span></span></p><p><b id="docs-internal-guid-8c438eba-7fff-d6f9-3e01-7963f47d472c" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"With Freddie beautifully directing an episode highlighting Lea's work crisis and allowing Paige to brilliantly shine, of course this exciting episode would make my list of favorites. Plus it included 2 memorable songs that have made my list of favorite TGD songs."--Pamela</span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"Well, a Lea-centric episode, what else do I need to add? Her interactions with Glassy were pure gold!"-- Daniela</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span id="docs-internal-guid-b42bf5d4-7fff-75b8-4777-a20b75a8bee7"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"This was the easiest pick of all, directed by Freddie and with Paige on the so-deserved spotlight... loved Decrypt and how it focused on a Lea side that we had never seen before. And Freddie's directing is amazing always, the way he focused on details, how he places the camera strategically to focus on something yet to cover the whole scale... everything so artistic, but with his special signature. It's a visual pleasure to see his work. And he took the best out of Paige too." -- SHEA ENDGAME</span></span></span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/73/BE/73BE50AD-87E5-45F2-CFD1-EF45ED642A88/157910_1486-450x0.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="361" data-original-width="450" height="160" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/73/BE/73BE50AD-87E5-45F2-CFD1-EF45ED642A88/157910_1486-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><u>S4 Episode with 4 "Best" votes plus 2 Honorable Mention: <i><b>Parenting</b></i></u></span><p></p><p><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"I made a wish list for S4 during the many long months we were waiting for S4 to finally start, and one of the things I put on the list was 'Shaun stands up to Lea's parents on her behalf.' </span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; white-space: pre-wrap;">I got that wish in this episode, and that scene played out beautifully." --Amy</span></p><p><b id="docs-internal-guid-5342fa3e-7fff-baed-e3b2-051c878c286d" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"Shaun’s confronting Lea’s parents in the hotel lobby sums up the season for me. Shaun’s love of Lea will not be shaken and he’s resolute in defending it. And the scene between Glassman and Lea-- Glassman still harbors doubts, like the audience, of Lea not being at (the level of) unconditional love like Shaun is… But you see he sees something different with Lea this time. -- Steven</span></span></p><p><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"I want to mention this episode too because it felt so well balanced. And I loved it, I have watched it easily like 10 times hahahaha "-- SHEA ENDGAME</span></span></p><p><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"We’d been waiting for this one a long time, and for the most part, it didn’t disappoint… AND… we got some great interaction between Glassy and Lea that we’d also been awaiting a long time. Just didn’t think we’d get it HERE as a bonus."-- Kelli</span></span></p><p><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"All in all, it was a very enjoyable episode. But the particular reason why I loved it so much, is because for the very first time Glassman’s role in Shaun’s life was stated out loud. I’ve already explained that what totally captured me, at the very beginning, about <i>The Good Doctor</i>, was the Shaun-Glassman relationship. It’s something I’ve always cherished, and hearing Glassy being called Shaun’s dad for the very first time was priceless. As it was priceless not hearing Shaun replying that he hated fathers. </span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; white-space: pre-wrap;">He really came a long way!" -- Daniela</span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/9E/D6/9ED61ED2-C137-E4C8-A5F0-1C74E582BAB2/159594_4005-450x0.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="450" height="133" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/9E/D6/9ED61ED2-C137-E4C8-A5F0-1C74E582BAB2/159594_4005-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><u>With 4 "Best" votes: <b><i>Vamos</i></b> </u></span><br /><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">"Because the proposal of course! The writers </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">finally </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">gave them a break. Also what a great sendoff for Claire, especially her final scene with Shaun. Just beautifully done."-- Julianna</span></span></p><p><b id="docs-internal-guid-06515713-7fff-6fd9-cb27-fe0a343d55c4" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">"Everyone had major life changes… but </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">in my totally biased opinion, the best change came for Shaun and Lea. I would be surprised if this episode didn't make anyone's five favorites list." --Amy</span></span></p><p><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"A neat bow to wrap up the season. The proposal was that feel- good moment you carry over to the next season, and it was brilliant to have Lea propose to Shaun. It was explained as it had to be on her terms, which meant to me she had to reach the unconditional love that Shaun has for her."-- Steven</span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"It was emotional, it flowed beautifully and closed many storylines but also opened others. And Shea, the silent scenes between Shaun and Lea taking care of the baby... always Paige and Freddie deliver so well, they transmit so much with just a simple look. Claire's ending was beautiful, it felt so right... she was made for this and you, as viewer, remain hopeful that the character already found her place. It was amazing. And also, the simplicity yet the meaningful Shea scene of the proposal... Freddie said 'I hope that it feels honest, true and meaningful' I can say that without a doubt that's how it felt." -- SHEA ENDGAME</span></span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/4D/BF/4DBF1E8C-8181-18F0-1144-D81960D8A1E0/158538_2388-450x0.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="450" height="133" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/4D/BF/4DBF1E8C-8181-18F0-1144-D81960D8A1E0/158538_2388-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><u>With 3 "Best" votes: <i><b>Teeny Blue Eyes</b></i></u></span></p><p><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-6a6130df-7fff-636e-cd25-eaae1116d580"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: large;">"Yes, Lea was navigating some serious doubts about the pregnancy (thank God she got to talk to Claire about them), but watching Shaun deal simultaneously with the on-the-spectrum Dr. Chambers, who made him second-guess his own abilities…he had to grow up a lot in that hour. Still, his priority throughout was Lea's happiness-- her decision was his decision. The way they arrived at their ultimate choice together was a thing of beauty."-- Kelli</span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; white-space: pre-wrap;">"The emotional pregnancy decision was handled very well. The change of heart at the end to keep the baby is my most favorite Shea scene of S4. The storyline of autistic Dr. Chambers was also my favorite medical case of the season." -- Pamela</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"I loved seeing Shaun struggle to understand how he could be a good father. And the parallel between him and Dr. Chambers was so beautifully developed. Great television indeed!"-- Daniela</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><u>With 1 "Best" and 1 Honorable Mention: <b><i>We're All Crazy Sometimes</i></b></u></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/FD/A9/FDA96053-BABB-1B5C-DD0D-1A828231AF9E/158273_2321-450x0.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="450" height="133" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/FD/A9/FDA96053-BABB-1B5C-DD0D-1A828231AF9E/158273_2321-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div><br /><p></p><p><b id="docs-internal-guid-8cb83f01-7fff-7b39-8695-0a3162ac281a" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"Lea acting crazy; Shaun leaping into the moving Striped Tomato like Starsky or Hutch! I had to laugh when he happily said, 'I hurt my knee!'"-- Julianna</span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"I have a soft spot for this one… not only because it’s where we first learned of the pregnancy, but it was such a fun little adventure for Shaun and Lea as they graduated to bigger (much bigger) challenges. It was the best way the show has paid homage to the Striped Tomato since they first unveiled it in 'Islands.'"-- Kelli</span></span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/1D/79/1D795517-4CB7-BE39-2F3D-ABA7D7EFC6C9/158668_7357-0x300.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="240" height="200" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/1D/79/1D795517-4CB7-BE39-2F3D-ABA7D7EFC6C9/158668_7357-0x300.jpg" width="160" /></a></div><u><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">With 1 "Best": <b><i>Gender Reveal </i></b></span><br /></u><p></p><p><br /></p><p><span id="docs-internal-guid-783d7160-7fff-6d64-d2b3-67b8f07c70cc"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“There was SO much to love about this episode that having Shea kisses at both the start AND finish was mere sprinkles on the icing of the cake. Lovely conflict resolution with the symbolic presence of the doula… great underlying theme (womens’ needs being underserved in healthcare) that got the respectful script treatment that the 'Salad' episode was lacking... and since the next ep ('Waiting') wasn’t so much about #Shea’s </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">own</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> baby, this was the episode where 'she' felt the most real… like this was really going to go the distance. (Those bastards.)”--Kelli</span></span></span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/B6/CB/B6CBEAB2-1FD8-E127-466B-266C8C2556B8/159088_1696-450x0.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="450" height="160" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/B6/CB/B6CBEAB2-1FD8-E127-466B-266C8C2556B8/159088_1696-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><u>Also with 1 "Best": <i><b>Letting Go</b></i></u></span></p><p><span id="docs-internal-guid-44c97682-7fff-df9d-71a1-3857506e0c6e"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“I know it was a follow-up on heartbreak for #Shea nation, but it was also a really well-constructed companion piece to ‘Dr. Ted’ that gave us refreshingly more Lea perspective than expected. Shaun’s handling of the grief was intriguing to watch too-- that phone scene between Shaun, Lea and Pam Dilallo is going to make a list of mine somewhere.”-- Kelli</span></span></span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/80/FE/80FECB6D-76DA-2F12-BBC5-3B634DF0D5EC/156335_6279-450x0.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="450" height="133" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/80/FE/80FECB6D-76DA-2F12-BBC5-3B634DF0D5EC/156335_6279-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><u>With 1 Honorable Mention: <b><i>Fault</i></b></u></span><p></p><p><span id="docs-internal-guid-13e52e5b-7fff-417b-ce01-ebb9f42458f0"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“In an episode focused on Shaun’s leadership struggles, we got lots of #Shea extras: Shaun studying up to be a better supervisor (until Lea’s ‘sleep’ suggestion)... the list of Lea likes (Skittles, </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">RuPaul’s Drag Race</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, etc.) … the ‘date night’ (for a few minutes anyway)... and the intertwining ‘I’m glad you’re here/me too’ in the aftermath of Shaun and Wolke’s loss, which we ALL needed to get us through the holiday break.”-- Kelli</span></span></span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">OK, now we're gonna build in the other direction... time to start recognizing episodes that received "worst" votes...</span></p><p><br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/A6/CF/A6CFBA63-DC18-7E1D-541C-0701CED36F1A/156581_GDR-402-32-450x0.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="253" data-original-width="450" height="112" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/A6/CF/A6CFBA63-DC18-7E1D-541C-0701CED36F1A/156581_GDR-402-32-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><u>With 1 Honorable Mention and 1 "Worst":<b><i> Frontline Pts. 1 & 2</i></b> </u></span><p></p><p><br /></p><p><b id="docs-internal-guid-cf129a2d-7fff-8285-0d8f-26b8cc0bb250" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“There are parts of ‘Frontline’ Parts 1 and 2 that I LOVED (Shaun and Lea; Shaun and Glassman; Park and Shaun; Park and Shaun on video chats with Kellan and Lea at the same time) and parts that I HATED (especially Nurse Petringa dying, and the knowledge by the time of ‘Lim’ that these episodes contributed heavily to Lim's PTSD).” -- Amy </span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">--</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“I know it had to be done and it was well done, I’m not angry, disappointed, etc like some, but damn it was depressing.”-- Julianna</span></span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/64/60/64606394-6520-B258-0971-3B4C93E73A60/157041_5308-450x0.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="450" height="133" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/64/60/64606394-6520-B258-0971-3B4C93E73A60/157041_5308-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><u>With 1 "Best" and 1 "Worst": <i><b>Venga </b></i></u></span><p></p><p><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“Love the Guatemala storyline, and Freddie’s obviously fluent Spanish.”-- Julianna</span></span></p><p><span id="docs-internal-guid-965a2b24-7fff-4fc6-ab05-2fc278eccd01"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">--</span></span></p><p><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“The first part of the finale was weak imo... Storywise, I thought it lacked on touch and symbolism, which it should have had because of the meaning within the whole plot.The Shea scene of the episode was weak too... I understand that there is always a lack of time to develop more, but (Lea’s mention of possibly going back to Hershey) seemed like out of nowhere since we barely saw Shea together during the whole episode.” --Shea Endgame</span></span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><u>Also with 1 "Best" and 1 "Worst": <i><b>Not the Same</b></i></u></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO6-AGkYw7lkMv1MpM8TsUGWH_Bf12-gVJtGowkNqUW1i3EuImCZ2mgo38BeuQxBvJZbucq3YcmlvrUOjA3RYkQtxc_xjshESkf3U4O-16kNYY10LVjsbfQHFusXIg1ZmCrc0a-hzWmQwO/s3264/20201126_015416.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2448" data-original-width="3264" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO6-AGkYw7lkMv1MpM8TsUGWH_Bf12-gVJtGowkNqUW1i3EuImCZ2mgo38BeuQxBvJZbucq3YcmlvrUOjA3RYkQtxc_xjshESkf3U4O-16kNYY10LVjsbfQHFusXIg1ZmCrc0a-hzWmQwO/w200-h150/20201126_015416.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div><span id="docs-internal-guid-1b84fa6d-7fff-d5c1-7dcd-7c9ab4a4896d"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“Shaun got to work with Morgan in this one, and ever since Morgan and Shaun were teamed up during the quarantine in S2 and she was the one who told the nurse how to get Shaun back on his feet after he melted down... I have enjoyed Morgan and Shaun working together, and it was nice to see it again here. But mostly I love this episode because of all the Shaun and Lea goodness: them doing yoga together, Shaun giving Lea his bank password, Shaun asking Lea to move back in with him, Lea doing yoga at work and giving Shaun that look, her agreeing to move back in while looking into the future (she said she'd move in in a year anyway, so she was looking to her future with Shaun right from the start!)” -- AMY</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><div><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div>--</span></span></div><div><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“Maybe the execution of this milestone in #Shea history (Lea’s return to living with Shaun) got gummed up a bit timing-wise due to the need for the ‘Frontline’ episodes-- we’ll probably never know for sure-- but for me, what started well (the yoga sequences) got too rushed, starting with Lea’s lunchtime chat with Shaun (or was it mostly with herself? Oh, if she’d only had some real connections with the rest of the cast in the first half of S4!), and ending with her all moved back in by episode’s end. Put it this way: if this couple had been anyone BUT #Shea, I would have had serious doubts about their longevity after watching ‘Not The Same.’”-- Kelli</span></span></p><div><span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div></span><p></p><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/B2/97/B2979FED-5224-B15C-3075-B81DE831C7F2/159271_0212-450x0.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="361" data-original-width="450" height="160" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/B2/97/B2979FED-5224-B15C-3075-B81DE831C7F2/159271_0212-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><u>With 3 "Best," but 1 "Worst": <b><i>Forgive or Forget</i></b></u></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u><br /></u></i></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><u><br /></u></i></b></span></div><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-2da0965d-7fff-e70f-fa76-906377ba0bfc"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"Love the Shaun/Lea interactions. I love that Lea, depressed herself, saw that Shaun was sad too and suggested that they hike instead of going home. Also, Lea the budding, if very reluctant, surgeon! And Shaun’s quiet recognition of her in the ambulance, 'Yes, I am' [very lucky]. -- Julianna</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"Reason 1 (for 'best'): All the awesome Shea content and what makes them so wonderful for us shippers--their love on display, their chemistry and humor when bickering, their mutual respect and support for each other and hello!!! Lea being Shaun's hero by saving his foot surgically!!!</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"Reason 2: Being lucky enough to see the sets in Central Park in person, seeing Freddie and Paige going to/from the forest set and watching Antonia film the scene in the park. So memorable!!!" </span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">-- Pamela</span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><div><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div>--</span></span></div><div><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"I think this choice will be unpopular... but I was very disappointed in this episode. Too many topics thrown there without a logic, none adequately explored (Claire and her dad, Debbie and Glassy, Shaun and Lea’s camping). It felt like a cacophony of rushed things. I had completely different expectations for this episode."-- Daniela</span></span></p><div><span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial; font-size: 9pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/79/DB/79DBC031-3A72-301D-1D19-941A7B02402B/158885_5930-0x300.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="200" height="200" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/79/DB/79DBC031-3A72-301D-1D19-941A7B02402B/158885_5930-0x300.jpg" width="133" /></a></div></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><u>With 2 "Best," but 1 "Worst": <i><b>Waiting</b></i> </u></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><u><br /></u></span></div><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-157e302a-7fff-45b8-5b53-487c76ddcbd8"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"The episode I rewatched the most....even though it was quite emotional and would produce tears with each viewing of the scene of the mothers' learning that their sons were going to make it. I also really appreciated seeing Lea involved so much with the mothers, really showing character development and growth." --Pamela</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"It was a very emotional episode, reflecting on such relevant aspects of parenthood. Freddie’s performance was outstanding in every way." -- Daniela</span></span></p><div><span><br /></span></div><div><span>--</span></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"I didn’t like Shaun being called 'incompetent' by the ungrateful mom and then pushing (accidentally I understand) Lea into Shaun. It was another episode showing Shaun failing and unable to solve the medical problems, which were a hallmark of the first two seasons. I know Park needed some redemption so it was good that he made the save. (I also didn't like) ending the episode on a downer with Lea collapsing in the plaza. Knowing what it leads to makes it worse. -- Steven</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><div><span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div></span></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEs2_Smksu5Yc5Gkc2VoRSdWmr6KOhTkUOXC-PbBQ_oByWOmRvfH_d9XwYfAh0hFhcxhVWMCh4HhkOXxMMLs8W34ztWfzibD8PVMX5C9ZMcewrL6zQsaCY5x7hfcI9CC5oIT2nQrriR5lq/s3264/20201118_222845.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2448" data-original-width="3264" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEs2_Smksu5Yc5Gkc2VoRSdWmr6KOhTkUOXC-PbBQ_oByWOmRvfH_d9XwYfAh0hFhcxhVWMCh4HhkOXxMMLs8W34ztWfzibD8PVMX5C9ZMcewrL6zQsaCY5x7hfcI9CC5oIT2nQrriR5lq/w200-h150/20201118_222845.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><u>With 3 "Worst" (and zero "Best"): <i><b>Newbies</b></i> </u></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-428e4dcf-7fff-9c08-7305-a10e4d049824"><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> "Sorry, but the very absurd fight between Shea made of this episode one of the weakest of the season. It surprises me because the writer was Thomas L Moran, so to me it felt weirder that the conflict was so shallow, as they never ever gave the proper time to Lea's self-esteem issues, when it was soooo necessary." -- SHEA ENDGAME</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"With two of the first-years gone by season's end, this newbies intro/post COVID storyline feels like a wasted episode; should have been about the fallout of S3 finale stories." -- Pamela</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"Didn’t care for the know-it-all candidate who was telling everyone how to act. But obviously not a great Shea moment as Lea eggs Shaun on to communicate and then socially awkward Shaun commits the error of inadvertently insulting Lea. She gives off the vibe of <i>I’m going to dump you</i> until Shaun pulls off a save at the end with an inspiring speech…" -- Steven</span></span></p><div><span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div></span></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><u>Also with 3 "Worst": <i><b>Lim</b></i> </u></span> </span> </div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/1A/9C/1A9C46C4-E07F-9A9A-8522-FB76973730EB/156563_5682-450x0.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="450" height="133" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/1A/9C/1A9C46C4-E07F-9A9A-8522-FB76973730EB/156563_5682-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-20918440-7fff-0fbe-9d42-b3e6faf54aac"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">"...Simply because there was no Shea, and I'm not counting the birthday gift search as Shea content-- especially when they don't even show what Lea's bday gift was."-- Pamela</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"Exploring Lim’s PTSD was a good idea, but I didn’t like the episode’s execution. Once again, Shaun was there only as comic relief. His only significant scene was his teaching breakthrough in the OR." -- Daniela</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“Ugh… While I appreciated the attention towards the mental health needs of our dear Chief of Surgery, it was a big ol’ bait-and-switch on the promo side of things for #Shea fans… the first of many this season of course. And then to all but keep Lea out of the entire episode ?? Too much." --Kelli</span></span></p><div><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div></span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><u>Finally, with the majority of the "Worst" votes (5)... probably to no reader's surprise... </u></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><u><i><b>Irresponsible Salad Bar Practices</b></i> </u></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRCykKF_45diBX_0qY7oZyBVC2c47gMVX2LDd4Bn2orb7ywQ7AXo-f_vNJFH44dBQPFB41ghbTs2MrBELWt4r6ly06950wFrEv-m4qhpyENXx0Ew6vc0erN2ao0RUculUuk1Tb3BvjtSCV/s4608/IMG_20210217_110052.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRCykKF_45diBX_0qY7oZyBVC2c47gMVX2LDd4Bn2orb7ywQ7AXo-f_vNJFH44dBQPFB41ghbTs2MrBELWt4r6ly06950wFrEv-m4qhpyENXx0Ew6vc0erN2ao0RUculUuk1Tb3BvjtSCV/w200-h150/IMG_20210217_110052.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-9da7f821-7fff-6e49-07d8-4e23fe69ccc4"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"The case of the transgender pregnant man was SO important, beautifully portrayed and acted that it hurts me bad that this episode had such bad sides stories. The whole racism plot, I know is important and it's an issue that needs to be visualized, but to overload the episode with political and social troubles was too much and cost the show to have the worst imdb voting during its 4th season. To all of this, let's add the absurd Shea subplot, how they portrayed their relationship as a ridiculous sketch, what was the learning Shaun got out of this episode ? Seriously, nothing. All we saw was Lea acting like him and his crush simply puffed away because the woman liked pickles... OK? Aside from all that, the unnecessary dream kiss we saw bothered me terribly, especially when the leading characters hadn't had touched in like four episodes before this one. It all felt odd and sincerely off." -- SHEA ENDGAME </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"...as an episode, as a whole, I won't be watching this one again."-- AMY</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">"Salad </span><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(it's not even worthy enough to include the whole title)</span><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> - </span><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">poor execution of some worthy issues AND she who shall not be named."-- Pamela</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"The episode was poorly executed: they wanted to address too many social issues at once, so no one was adequately explored. Again, Shaun’s role was reduced to comic relief." -- Daniela </span></span></p><div><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial; font-size: 9pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div></span></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">BUT WHAT ABOUT <i><b>DR. TED</b></i>...???</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/E4/CE/E4CE0A25-DB4A-9960-B932-5A1637933332/158951_9066-0x300.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="200" height="200" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/E4/CE/E4CE0A25-DB4A-9960-B932-5A1637933332/158951_9066-0x300.jpg" width="133" /></a></div><br /><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-10695cb8-7fff-a25e-5ddf-40bbac03e49e"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-300a3f26-7fff-8e98-8571-f7e469912aec"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">All 7 respondents had something to say about "Dr. Ted"… but not everyone was in agreement on whether that was good or bad. This gives TGD 4.16 the distinction of being The One With The Biggest Mix of Feels. (Like “Irresponsible”... not really a surprise!) Here’s a truncated version of all 7 responses: </span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">"Admittedly, I struggled with the decision to include this episode because I haven't been able to rewatch it nor do I know if I can. It absolutely gutted me and to this day, when I see scenes included in fan videos, I get very emotional. This one hit me harder than any movie or TV show has in recent memory. I felt the baby's loss so profoundly. I included it for the artistry of the episode: the drama, the direction, the emotional impact and ESPECIALLY the performances with the highlight being Lea's heartbreaking sob upon finding out about the baby just by seeing Shaun's face." -- Pamela</span></p><br /><br /><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.2839972727272726; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; padding: 0pt 0pt 8pt 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">"I know it’s an unpopular opinion, because it was a very sad episode. And I agree, it broke my heart, and I would have loved a completely different outcome. But it was a masterpiece, in every sense of the word!"-- Daniela</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">"The whole episode has so many different stages, you laugh, you cry, you worry, you feel and that's exactly what a great show should be. 'Dr. Ted' is a rollercoaster of feelings, a wave of emotions. I know many are still sad about the baby; it <i>is </i>sad, but Shea is still together, stronger than ever. I keep the fact that they love each other so much and are able to stick together after such a difficult test. Life is not easy and our reality check was this episode."-- SHEA ENDGAME</span></p><br /><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“</span><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ooh, Child/Things are gonna get easier… </span><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">they </span><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">did</span><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> get easier, they ARE getting easier, but what a beautifully sad work of art this was. I know and respect the pain “Dr. Ted” brought to some viewers, but from a writing/directing/producing angle, I can’t help but tip my hat.”-- Kelli</span></span></span><br /> </div></div></div><div><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"I’m not listing 'Dr. Ted' in the list even though it was such a disappointment to have Lea miscarry. Like it or not a very emotional episode and well written."-- Steven (NOTE: I'm counting this as the HM)</span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">--</span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-f74f0051-7fff-bb66-ec0a-ebad4a6741d7"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"Paige and Freddie were OUTSTANDING in this episode, they truly were, for every second of it, and when Shaun and Lea left the hospital after losing their daughter, all of the other doctors, their friends, watching them leave, coupled with Shaun hugging Glassman after Lea's D&C, was truly heart-rending, but the whole thing was just so incredibly sad." -- AMY</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">"I know TGD is a drama and there will always be some things that we don’t like, but I was looking forward to SheaBaby. Although I had a bad feeling after the end of </span><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Waiting."-- Julianna</span></span></p><div><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">--</span></div><div><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-9d59c5cd-7fff-43df-190e-e9464fcfecb0"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13pt;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">SO---! Was it anything like you expected? </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Have you found a kindred #Shea spirit aligning with your thoughts of the season?</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Or are you dismissing some of these thoughts with the familiar words </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">We’re All Crazy Sometimes</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">…??</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The comments await!! </span></span></p><div style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></div></span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial; font-size: 13pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div></span></div>Kelli Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06009713326652591943noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1583562784288599702.post-70128168932793911172021-07-22T22:01:00.002-07:002021-07-22T22:01:32.540-07:00TGD Season 4 In Review: Love Lessons & Affection "Trasextories"<p><span style="font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwVJ2lI8CFsAVeehpMvGV_r8YJijmRLnZYN65AnOwAw5jAMqgpzqyLGbEOMXJe9mfbHDsqdA_SSyfUOJuEv56XaRLB0XRhgy-gU5GActMD4m4MNJN41MpHsJPDm_Ck8Yq9z6TV8XthfJ8F/s4608/IMG_20210402_211542.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwVJ2lI8CFsAVeehpMvGV_r8YJijmRLnZYN65AnOwAw5jAMqgpzqyLGbEOMXJe9mfbHDsqdA_SSyfUOJuEv56XaRLB0XRhgy-gU5GActMD4m4MNJN41MpHsJPDm_Ck8Yq9z6TV8XthfJ8F/s320/IMG_20210402_211542.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Before I get started: the plan is to compile the results of Interactive Challenge #1 (best and worst episodes of S4) on NEXT week’s post, so stay tuned for that. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Meanwhile, Interactive Challenge #2 is on deck! Details will come at the bottom of this post!</span></span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-692366b7-7fff-a729-f83f-8fb0562c1c0f" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">If you were here in the early part of TGD Season 4, you might recall me mentioning the idea of Shaun now keeping a mental book-of-love in his incredible brain-- a book filled with blank pages, getting written upon, one by one, as his brave new world with Lea opened a little wider. </span></span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Now that the “book” has closed on S4, what sort of lessons did it contain for Shaun? And Lea, for that matter? She’s probably been in love at least once before-- </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">cough </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">ex-husband </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">cough</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">-- but I think it’s safe to say that her love for Shaun is unlike anything she’s ever felt for anyone else.</span></span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Well, I took a stab at it-- jotting down the highlights, as I saw them, in the 20-chapter evolution of #Shea for 2020-21.And then I did a little more…</span></span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I thought about two trajectories many of us followed </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">very </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">closely this season:</span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">#Shea moments of demonstrative affection-- kissing, hugging, holding hands, etc.</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">#Shea sex talk, a.k.a. references to all the sizzle we weren’t privy to see for ourselves</span></span></p></li></ul><p><span style="font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">And after christening the combo of the two "Trasextories"... I jotted down the highlights (such as they were), episode by episode, for those things as well. In fact, I assigned numbers as a means of indicating the level of sex talk and/or affection demonstrated in each episode… you’ll see what I mean as you read more…</span></span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">And then? I did one more thing. You’ll see what that is later. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Ready for all these JOTTINGS? (Never thought I’d be highlighting that word, especially in plural form, but here we are…)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: large; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;">🍏💍🚗</span><span style="font-family: Arial; white-space: pre;">🍏💍🚗</span><span style="font-family: Arial; white-space: pre;">🍏💍🚗</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6Kl7Icbu6c3MIrhxyw8mUxEF82rKkVJXr1HLN0zYPhrjAeGkHW45owv8f-cThu5oGyMUeQmmmoGI1AZMui54wCAGrXnXYL9FIr7YvgJX5XosfLbKA7XgYYgEP8xC9cQhEcYP8qIgGswWy/s3264/20201104_221204.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2448" data-original-width="3264" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6Kl7Icbu6c3MIrhxyw8mUxEF82rKkVJXr1HLN0zYPhrjAeGkHW45owv8f-cThu5oGyMUeQmmmoGI1AZMui54wCAGrXnXYL9FIr7YvgJX5XosfLbKA7XgYYgEP8xC9cQhEcYP8qIgGswWy/w200-h150/20201104_221204.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><u>Frontline 1</u></span></span></p><span id="docs-internal-guid-153ea0b4-7fff-3b7a-95dd-e592d52d4b97"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Love Lesson:</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> You can miss the one you love, even if it makes all the sense in the world not to be with them… Shaun’s original stance was otherwise. (Also, Shaun “learned” what was the proper length of time for him and Lea to date before she stayed over... )</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Affection:</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Lea blows a kiss... <b>1 point</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sex talk:</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Shaun talks about missing sex with her (in fact he admits to this while still being adamant about not missing Lea herself); tells Park things like “We have sex… a lot” and “Physical intimacy is beautiful!” But when Lea attempts to teach Shaun about phone sex (via their respective laptops), Shaun becomes frustrated quickly, saying “I don’t want to pretend to have sex with you, Lea, I want to be with you!”</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">To which Lea simply replied “I miss you too, Shaun.” <b>8 points</b></span></span></p><div><span><br /></span></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u>Frontline 2</u></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/A6/CF/A6CFBA63-DC18-7E1D-541C-0701CED36F1A/156581_GDR-402-32-450x0.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="253" data-original-width="450" height="112" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/A6/CF/A6CFBA63-DC18-7E1D-541C-0701CED36F1A/156581_GDR-402-32-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Love Lesson: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Love without physical proximity is difficult… and the longer it goes, the more difficult it gets. <br /></span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Affection: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The hug in the final scene; Lea putting her head on Shaun’s shoulder. <b>2 points</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sex talk: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Only the indication that Lea planned to spend the night when she and Shaun finally reunited.</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> But Lea was barely in this episode. <b>1 point</b></span></span></p><div><span><br /></span></div><div><span><br /></span></div><div><span><br /></span></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRqmudUR5d1_HkL9EWeo-nStNc8-g_QVg4-gAPrbw7SRItN2lTDYTJAVUBQyjDmNBub5Y7AGz34UFm4YnLjBRpsdYRFN0TMYsWF7Zf_BNgEyo8Nylf5LmfCJD7e7zid1V7N_cFeB3CRcOd/s3264/20201118_222750.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2448" data-original-width="3264" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRqmudUR5d1_HkL9EWeo-nStNc8-g_QVg4-gAPrbw7SRItN2lTDYTJAVUBQyjDmNBub5Y7AGz34UFm4YnLjBRpsdYRFN0TMYsWF7Zf_BNgEyo8Nylf5LmfCJD7e7zid1V7N_cFeB3CRcOd/w200-h150/20201118_222750.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><u>Newbies</u></span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Love Lesson: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For Shaun: sometimes you’ve got to fine-tune that “brutal honesty” to express your feelings in a way that leaves your loved one feeling loved. For Lea: Keep up the communication, but stay patient… it’ll be worth it when you do.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Affection: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Just the hug and “I love you” at the end. <b>2 points</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sex talk: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Breasts. Quite a bit of talk about breasts. (If only Shaun had stopped there…) <b>3 points</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><div><span><br /></span></div><div><span><br /></span></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u>Not the Same</u></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4o2c-JHRWH5tCmLAdbNnFtxirfOjbjRZxgRWJ-4-k05FuI6ujNDqtsdKc_EiZnHC169VDPca7t086wEwqb5gK-WYgXIjI6UmUh9Bp8CkjXmCRcpx9I1uhoLJqRvAYw-irEfLxUCEu8Ikl/s3264/20201126_020157.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2448" data-original-width="3264" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4o2c-JHRWH5tCmLAdbNnFtxirfOjbjRZxgRWJ-4-k05FuI6ujNDqtsdKc_EiZnHC169VDPca7t086wEwqb5gK-WYgXIjI6UmUh9Bp8CkjXmCRcpx9I1uhoLJqRvAYw-irEfLxUCEu8Ikl/w200-h150/20201126_020157.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Love Lesson: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For Shaun... Convincing your former roomie-turned-beloved to move back in is not as easy as you might think. (But in his case, it was close!) For Lea: Convincing your former-roomie-turned-beloved that moving back in is complicated is not as easy as you might hope. </span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Affection: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Kisses in the final scene. <b>5 points</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sex talk: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Nothing outright (though the whole “living together as a couple” thing has obvious implications). <b>1 point</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/C9/4B/C94B5E8E-1A9B-9201-49F5-1BB838206203/156335_3369-450x0.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="450" height="160" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/C9/4B/C94B5E8E-1A9B-9201-49F5-1BB838206203/156335_3369-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><u>Fault</u></span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Love Lesson: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For Shaun… date nights for live-in couples are fun, but work still has to come first at times. For Lea… sometimes you’ve got to be the bigger person and sacrifice your enjoyment. (For BOTH… it’s great to be newly cohabitating when one of you feels partially responsible for a patient’s death.)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Affection: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Laying together (fully clothed), intertwining fingers, holding each other. <b>4 points</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sex talk: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“There is one cure for sleeplessness that my mother did </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">not</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> tell me about”-- Lea’s coy invitation for Shaun to give up work prep for the night because he just got a better offer. (It didn’t take long for him to accept said invitation.) <b>3 points</b></span></span></p><br /><br /><br /><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u>Lim</u></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/62/EC/62EC5992-F4AC-6AA8-4F77-C27FD343B492/156563_5747-450x0.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="450" height="160" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/62/EC/62EC5992-F4AC-6AA8-4F77-C27FD343B492/156563_5747-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Love Lesson: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For Shaun… choose your birthday gifts wisely, and maybe don’t wait until the day before. For Lea… don’t have a birthday when Shaun’s boss is in the midst of a serious mental health crisis. (</span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">kidding</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">)</span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Affection: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Just that distant shot of the hug they shared in the hospital common space (or whatever it was). <b>1 point</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sex Talk: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Do Shaun’s sex toy gifts count? I’ll say yes, given they factored significantly into Shaun’s comic-relief role in this episode. <b>1 point</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/73/84/7384CD57-DB1C-D551-89F3-9C0461FAD1B3/156723_6088-450x0.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="361" data-original-width="450" height="160" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/73/84/7384CD57-DB1C-D551-89F3-9C0461FAD1B3/156723_6088-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /><u>The Uncertainty Principle</u></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Love Lesson: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For Shaun… the longer you get to know the person you love, the more you learn about them… and sometimes the things you learn are completely unexpected… which led to his whole epiphany about weathering change, and ringing the cowbell if one feels they are straying too far off course. For Lea… (<i>this is mostly speculation</i>) don’t “forget to mention” things that help him know more about who you are; trust that he can handle it and won’t hold it against you.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Affection: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Though the looks exchanged in the early (unclothed) moments of the episode are tough to ignore... holding each other's hands after Lea's news about the ex-husband was the only demonstrative act we witnessed. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>2 points</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sex talk: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Something involving a shower…? 😉 <b>7 points</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/70/A2/70A21F46-6853-8009-D03D-020ECCB2F9E5/157910_1239-450x0.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="361" data-original-width="450" height="160" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/70/A2/70A21F46-6853-8009-D03D-020ECCB2F9E5/157910_1239-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u>Parenting</u></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Love Lesson: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For Shaun… meeting your loved one’s parents for the first time is an important event, but standing up for your loved one when they hurt her is even more important. For Lea… never underestimate your loved one's ability to diffuse a difficult situation.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Affection: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Nothing more than a touch of the shoulder at the dinner table as far as physical affection went... but</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">then said </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun, when Lea refers to her parents as “the ones who are supposed to love me most”: “They don’t. Not the most. Not anymore.” (Referring to himself as the one who has assumed that role-- a sweet moment despite the fact that Shaun wasn’t discerning between a partner’s love and a parents’ love.) </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>2 points</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sex talk: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">None. <b>Zero points</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u>Irresponsible Salad Bar Practices</u></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN-rX6luBWEBk_PSwwk_Swivs21XB1I4uGt8ermgnwffAJECC1P18gErv54w4MkN6z4mLQYVv6NzZ4lahiXqoLrjhzAp6U2gyDgA7J3cLqvs0aCCy0Ym0U5vV3AjB8rDxqiuJZuQ3p0OYO/s4608/IMG_20210217_111010.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN-rX6luBWEBk_PSwwk_Swivs21XB1I4uGt8ermgnwffAJECC1P18gErv54w4MkN6z4mLQYVv6NzZ4lahiXqoLrjhzAp6U2gyDgA7J3cLqvs0aCCy0Ym0U5vV3AjB8rDxqiuJZuQ3p0OYO/w200-h150/IMG_20210217_111010.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Love Lesson: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For Shaun… just because you find a woman attractive and/or have a romantic dream about her doesn’t mean you have to question your relationship with the woman with whom you live and love. For Lea… it pays to know your man well enough to detect what kind of things will help him overcome his crush. For BOTH: Honesty and security are the best policy.</span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Affection: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lea taking hold of Shaun’s arm and leaving the hospital shortly after their joint encounter with Dr. D’Souza.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> <b>1 point</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sex talk: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">None. <b>Zero points</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/DC/4D/DC4D7864-50A4-4D4C-B758-079D44AA4580/158206_0586-450x0.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="450" height="133" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/DC/4D/DC4D7864-50A4-4D4C-B758-079D44AA4580/158206_0586-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u>Decrypt</u></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Love Lesson: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For Shaun…loving a woman is wonderful, but respecting her--in words, but especially in actions-- is priceless. For Lea… give him enough time-- especially in stressful situations-- and he’ll remind you in triplicate why he’s “probably the most wonderful man you’ve ever known.”</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Affection: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun brought Lea lunch (that she didn’t eat) when she was working tirelessly… Lea gave Shaun a brief peck when they were sitting and talking in the hospital corridor. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>1 point</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sex talk: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">None. <b>Zero points</b></span></span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u>We’re All Crazy Sometimes</u></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFZG8ptq-6BklnHULk5lG2iL7D1JL5oEkXuwINVnIBFczQMepayV8CumV3l6bk983jlpiOnj9VmHgH2xjPrq6UY-V8H_u1bHmD8vAzylZQ3Ngq0W4h1JFLEwrvqOQIfcXrNG8ox_DDwzHU/s4608/IMG_20210310_221046.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFZG8ptq-6BklnHULk5lG2iL7D1JL5oEkXuwINVnIBFczQMepayV8CumV3l6bk983jlpiOnj9VmHgH2xjPrq6UY-V8H_u1bHmD8vAzylZQ3Ngq0W4h1JFLEwrvqOQIfcXrNG8ox_DDwzHU/w200-h150/IMG_20210310_221046.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Love Lesson: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For Shaun… supporting the one you love (even if you think she’s wrong) is important, but if you think it’s a kind of “wrong” that crosses a line, you need to call her on it (eventually). For Lea… when your rational fears lead you to drag your love into some irrational behavior, it’s probably time to tell him that you’re pregnant 😁</span></span></span><div><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(But, um, only if you actually </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">are.)</span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Affection: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Holding hands in the middle of the living room just after Lea’s news is shared. <b>2 points</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sex talk: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">No talk (again), but this episode proves that obviously, somewhere along the line, all that earlier season “talk” turned into action… <b>Zero points</b></span></span></p><div><span><br /></span></div><div><span><br /></span></div><div><span><br /></span></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/08/0A/080AF502-4FF3-7B87-0413-CCE50D273BFA/158538_2694-450x0.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="450" height="133" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/08/0A/080AF502-4FF3-7B87-0413-CCE50D273BFA/158538_2694-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u>Teeny Blue Eyes</u></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Love Lesson:</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Sometimes, the sacrifice you think you have to make is no sacrifice at all.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Affection: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">clasping each other’s hands as they concluded an abortion was the answer… holding hands in the waiting room… Shaun puts an arm around Lea and draws her to him as they realize they’ve changed their minds. <b>5 points</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sex talk: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">None. <b>Zero points</b></span></span></p><div><span><br /></span></div><div><span><br /></span></div><div><span><br /></span></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u>Spilled Milk</u></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/64/E0/64E07E1D-D858-A60B-730B-27A0A8ABD95E/158639_5819-0x300.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="200" height="200" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/64/E0/64E07E1D-D858-A60B-730B-27A0A8ABD95E/158639_5819-0x300.jpg" width="133" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Love Lesson: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For Shaun: adapting to change may be brutal, but it’s an absolute necessity-- especially when dealing with your unborn child and its mother. For Lea: as difficult a time as it is to be patient and understanding with your partner, stay honest and don’t give up.</span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Affection: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Kiss in the morning (brief), dancing (attempt), Shaun’s head on Lea’s stomach while she strokes his hair, clasping hands as they see the image of their child for the first time. <b>4 points</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sex talk: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun expressed a desire for sex first thing in the morning, but Lea shut him down because his minty toothpaste breath wasn't agreeing with her nauseous self. (Shaun described this later to Glassman as "living with a stranger who doesn't want you to touch or breathe on them," eventually incorporating this frustration into his feelings of disconnect from Lea.) When Lea gets an idea to "help him feel better connected," she gets on the bed… but then has to stop Shaun from beginning to undress, for sex was not the idea she had in mind. <b>3 points</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>NOTE: </b>Remember that the re-connection comes when Shaun and Lea hear the baby's heartbeat for the first time at the end of the episode. </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For the remainder of S4, sex is no longer discussed outright between them… and nearly all moments of deep connection are affiliated with their baby.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/59/C3/59C37019-6336-355C-0719-6DCA6F41D430/158668_7396-450x0.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="450" height="133" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/59/C3/59C37019-6336-355C-0719-6DCA6F41D430/158668_7396-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><u>Gender Reveal</u></span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Love Lesson: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For Shaun... learning the gender of your unborn child is about more than a set of genitals… it’s the closest tie yet to its identity. Also-- don’t try to be absolutely everything your pregnant love needs; it will never work (and that’s okay). For Lea.. stick to your guns and communicate your reasons for doing so calmly. He </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">is</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> listening.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Affection: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Celebratory kisses after finding out they were having a girl… and a couple more after Shaun surprises Lea with his new support/inclusion of her doula into their birthing plan. <b>7 points</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sex talk: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">About the </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">female</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> sex, plenty. About Shaun and Lea’s sex life, not so much. <b>Zero points</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/79/DB/79DBC031-3A72-301D-1D19-941A7B02402B/158885_5930-0x300.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="200" height="200" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/79/DB/79DBC031-3A72-301D-1D19-941A7B02402B/158885_5930-0x300.jpg" width="133" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /><u>Waiting</u></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Love Lesson: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">There’s nothing like being in the midst of a crisis involving young children and their single moms to make you appreciate your own situation. (Until you find yourself falling into a crisis of your own, that is.)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Affection: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Facing each other and intertwining fingers on their way out of St. B -- <b>3 points</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sex Talk: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">None. <b>Zero points</b></span></span></p><div><span><br /></span></div><div><span><br /></span></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u>Dr. Ted</u></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/37/23/3723A724-AB74-4DA4-902A-A0B22B6E1EA5/158951_9171-0x300.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="200" height="200" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/37/23/3723A724-AB74-4DA4-902A-A0B22B6E1EA5/158951_9171-0x300.jpg" width="133" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Love Lesson: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Even the most honest person in the world feels a need to hide from the truth when he knows how much it will hurt his loved one… but he can’t.</span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Affection: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Included</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">holding hands… Shaun sharing his toy scalpel with Lea in the hospital… Shaun holding Lea as she sobbed. <b>6 points</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sex talk: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">None. <b>Zero points</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><br /></b></span></span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0nlKJ8IGH26LDehS1p_7Q5RU5-CUczdpyHTBw1LMMox3soan4u6esfMoBwgQrkTkRfhDPw94k_Er0R6RdOReNotI4-KfHpkxlpbVIWUJZryS09J6sywGV7eAO3qOk8cBeT09tpEK9_PFZ/s4608/IMG_20210521_123627.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0nlKJ8IGH26LDehS1p_7Q5RU5-CUczdpyHTBw1LMMox3soan4u6esfMoBwgQrkTkRfhDPw94k_Er0R6RdOReNotI4-KfHpkxlpbVIWUJZryS09J6sywGV7eAO3qOk8cBeT09tpEK9_PFZ/w200-h150/IMG_20210521_123627.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u>Letting Go</u></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Love Lesson: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For Shaun… A shared pain can be dealt with in different ways, but try to meet your mate halfway to where she is as soon as possible. For Lea… tell him the details of your heartache in any way that works.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Affection: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun taking Lea gently by the shoulders, then into his arms in the final moments-- <b>4 points</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sex talk: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">None. <b>Zero points</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><div><span><br /></span></div><div><span><br /></span></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u>Forgive or Forget</u></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/5D/0E/5D0E2766-95C7-1E4D-ACE3-6DB1BD57C797/159270_2457-0x300.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="200" height="200" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/5D/0E/5D0E2766-95C7-1E4D-ACE3-6DB1BD57C797/159270_2457-0x300.jpg" width="133" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Love Lesson: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For Shaun… surprise planned “distractions,” even when they don’t go anything according to your plan, are deeply appreciated. For Lea… don’t forget to compromise a little. Even if you have every reason not to. You’ll be amazed what the world can teach you if you do. </span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Affection: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun putting his arm around Lea near the campfire, spooning in the tent, kissing in the tent, kissing/head on shoulder/holding onto each other at end-- </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>8 points</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sex Talk: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">No specific talk, though they were surely on their way to some actual sex until their leaky tent literally poured cold water on the whole thing. (Still, it was the first time we’d seen them horizontal in five episodes, and the only time we saw them like that post-miscarriage.) <b>2 points</b></span></span></p><div><span><br /></span></div><div><span><br /></span></div><div><span><br /></span></div><div><span><br /></span></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWMAp9cy0bVKrixlYlMa8FHhkcKBDf0SB3ErJiMDy-iqZWMsOd0bzoPTu7tEgTjwYOY9j_mRxFLxKBjKRoYwXM-hPIIr3yn8b4hyphenhyphenNrj3JmmiCtdWRkG4hgVeFByCkEPMKTTkko6vUvdpoA/s4608/IMG_20210602_121001.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWMAp9cy0bVKrixlYlMa8FHhkcKBDf0SB3ErJiMDy-iqZWMsOd0bzoPTu7tEgTjwYOY9j_mRxFLxKBjKRoYwXM-hPIIr3yn8b4hyphenhyphenNrj3JmmiCtdWRkG4hgVeFByCkEPMKTTkko6vUvdpoA/w200-h150/IMG_20210602_121001.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u>Venga</u></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Love Lesson: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For Shaun...You may feel yourself healing several weeks down the road from a crisis, but that doesn't mean your partner is. Stay attentive. For Lea… it's okay to tell him you're not yet ok. In fact, it's absolutely necessary that you do. FOR BOTH: Remember that the two of you are a team.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Affection: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">holding hands after Lea shares her thoughts about returning to Hershey-- <b>3 points</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sex Talk:</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> None. <b>Zero points</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><div><span><br /></span></div><div><span><br /></span></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><u>Vamos</u></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/AE/DF/AEDF6900-2898-91D2-68C0-7EAFE371ED2C/159449_2924-450x0.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="450" height="160" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/AE/DF/AEDF6900-2898-91D2-68C0-7EAFE371ED2C/159449_2924-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Love Lesson: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For Shaun: Trust your ability to be what she needs when she needs it most… even if that means putting her needs ahead of your own. For Lea: keep your heart open even when it's broken; he'll find a way to help heal it. (And when he does... ask him to marry you!)</span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Affection: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lea’s head on Shaun’s shoulder on the bus and waiting for the plane… the MARRIAGE PROPOSAL… the kiss that followed… leaping off the bench and announcing their news while holding hands-- <b>9 points</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sex Talk: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">None. <b>Zero points</b></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></span><div><span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;">🍏💍🚗</span><span style="font-family: Arial; white-space: pre;">🍏💍🚗</span><span style="font-family: Arial; white-space: pre;">🍏💍🚗</span></span></span></span></div><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-6fa0eed1-7fff-d637-40c3-b7beaf65379d"><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">OK, here’s what I did with all those numbers. Graphs can be SO helpful. Are you laughing yet?</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p></span></div><div><span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiOu80Ifzh_tOlAOJBNmIdgtBYdFXypIftLXEvwhGgSGBMq6Af1wBOTWMfYQ4s5ElSpzN-qO65hWBJjaiC9Pa9sIcyka7IKil6OAlfK6UjQHIrR8mtLwHWGIE5h8UNzuvbRPUa4HrOw59i/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" data-original-height="336" data-original-width="576" height="374" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiOu80Ifzh_tOlAOJBNmIdgtBYdFXypIftLXEvwhGgSGBMq6Af1wBOTWMfYQ4s5ElSpzN-qO65hWBJjaiC9Pa9sIcyka7IKil6OAlfK6UjQHIrR8mtLwHWGIE5h8UNzuvbRPUa4HrOw59i/w640-h374/image.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>A Tale of Two #Shea Trasextories</b></td></tr></tbody></table><br /></b><p dir="ltr" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; white-space: normal;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Maybe there are no real conclusions to draw here, especially if COVID protocols had anything to do with the way things rolled, but I’ll give it a shot anyway:</span></span></p><div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-b68e91b7-7fff-12d6-87e7-9a9bc35e42d9"><ol style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The surplus of “sex talk” in the first half of the season served at least three purposes…</span></p></li><ol style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: lower-alpha; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Establishing the fact that Shaun and Lea were now a couple</span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: lower-alpha; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Reinforcing the notion that they were in the early, horny, “honeymoon” stage of their couple-dom (so to speak; not to be confused with the </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">actual</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> honeymoon stage to come after they are married)</span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: lower-alpha; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Filled in for what might’ve been seen on screen, if not for COVID (but we know Shore and Co. are pretty spare with the love scenes as a rule, so…)</span></p></li></ol></ol><br /><ol start="2" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The relatively slow build of demonstrative affection, while counter-intuitive to the aforementioned surplus of “sex talk,” represented the progression of their cohesion as a #Shea unit</span></p></li></ol><br /><ol start="3" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And the pregnancy-- which, while tragically cut short, still served as the catapult sending this relationship into the deep end of the pool-- marked the time at which demonstrative affection overtook “sex talk” for the rest of the season.</span></p></li></ol><br /><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">That the heads-or-tails I’ve made of my informal study thus far. How about you? Do these love lessons stack up to your own thoughts? What “lessons” did I leave out? And do you think there’s anything to be made of the trasextories, or is it classic over-thinking? The comments are yours to explore… </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;">🍏💍🚗</span><span style="font-family: Arial; white-space: pre;">🍏💍🚗</span><span style="font-family: Arial; white-space: pre;">🍏💍🚗</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.656; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>AND NOW, HERE’S INTERACTIVE CHALLENGE #2!</b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-36611d12-7fff-f344-6619-61efeec6369a" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.656; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I know you’re thinking about it, so… may the #Shea wedding conversation commence! </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">My starter question is:</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.656; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What details of Shaun and Lea’s forthcoming wedding occupy your mind the most right now? </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.656; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Email your response, with “#Shea Wedding Details” in the subject head, to me at KLawrence997-at-gmail-dot-com.(Please email me rather than leaving your choices in the comments.)</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></p><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr8LNU0VvcnJN1HiUWy04zTJsZfnd212hgY723KeVGr26mR_UNGPQI32c6wofGYE8IImO-JIQh1hF4_oulk4jnyd4YbAXhuztuw-hzr0S1BxKGXLRvTXImIoPsd6wRgjoCpcDay-X0OB4O/s4608/IMG_20210528_212327.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr8LNU0VvcnJN1HiUWy04zTJsZfnd212hgY723KeVGr26mR_UNGPQI32c6wofGYE8IImO-JIQh1hF4_oulk4jnyd4YbAXhuztuw-hzr0S1BxKGXLRvTXImIoPsd6wRgjoCpcDay-X0OB4O/w320-h240/IMG_20210528_212327.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></div></span></div></span></span></span></div></div><div><span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></span></span></div>Kelli Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06009713326652591943noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1583562784288599702.post-86049873128685197572021-07-11T23:23:00.029-07:002021-07-14T20:08:42.803-07:00THOSE PROMOS Part 2... and Your 1st Interactive Challenge for the Summer!<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://tse4.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.hXLK-s6NxKCbwZSbSYt4eQHaHa&pid=Api" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="160" data-original-width="160" height="122" src="https://tse4.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.hXLK-s6NxKCbwZSbSYt4eQHaHa&pid=Api" width="122" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://vader.news/__export/1611719861226/sites/gadgets/img/2021/01/27/lea_y_shaun.jpg_423206264.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="800" height="181" src="https://vader.news/__export/1611719861226/sites/gadgets/img/2021/01/27/lea_y_shaun.jpg_423206264.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://tse4.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.RTnII2ZWnoxSB2iRgUhezQHaCa&pid=Api" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="154" data-original-width="474" height="65" src="https://tse4.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.RTnII2ZWnoxSB2iRgUhezQHaCa&pid=Api" width="200" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>NOTE: I've extended the deadline on the interactional challenge at the bottom of this post. Scroll down for details...</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Before I dive into 19 more promos from the back half of TGD Season 4 (only missing ONE from CTV this time), here’s a great question posed by Daniela in the comments last week: </span></span></p><p><b id="docs-internal-guid-35f00170-7fff-2940-f061-1fdabe954023" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>It struck me how season 4 tag line was “How Do You Heal a World Turned Upside Down”, that obviously referred to the pandemic, when there were only two episodes about Covid in the whole season.</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>So, given that The Good Doctor has usually more layers in the messages they wish to convey, can you see some other meaning to those words, in the context of the stories told this season?</b></span></span></p><p><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In all honesty, I was kind of disappointed when this tagline (and the image that accompanied it) remained the “look” of S4. As a lead-in to the “Frontline” episodes, it was effective-- visually striking, with a somewhat provocative question at hand. But there was one caveat for me: since the show’s title is in reference to one specific person… and that one specific person was featured in the image, as he has been with every season… I felt like the question “How do you heal…” was being posed as something </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">only</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Dr. Shaun Murphy might be able to figure out. As if his savant syndrome could clue him in to COVID remedies, vaccines, etc. that no “regular” doctor would be able to discover. </span></span></p><p><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Just me?</span></span></p><p><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">And then, once they moved beyond those first two episodes, I think the tagline was misleading-- a casual viewer could see it (for instance, it’s what pops up when making selections on your DVR of Hulu) and think “Ugh-- they’re still in pandemic mode” and not watch based on that assumption. I came across a number of viewers on Twitter this season who thought that very thing… wonder if the tagline could have been a contributor?</span></span></p><p><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">So my guess is that they didn’t want to switch it up once the pandemic episodes were over-- for consistency’s sake or whatever-- but my personal feeling is that it was a tagline better used this past season on a medical drama that stayed in COVID zone all season long, like </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Grey’s Anatomy</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> or </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Chicago Med.</span></span></p><p><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">What’s your thought? Did the tagline work in ways I haven’t considered? Let me know your thoughts in the comments…</span></span></p><p><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">But in the meantime, I have a new/old fleet of ABC and CTV promos to discuss…</span></span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">We did the first half of the season already. Did you miss it? <a href="https://stateoftheskate.blogspot.com/2021/07/a-longer-look-at-s4-those-promos-pt-1.html" target="_blank">Take a look here.</a></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎💍</span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎💍</span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎💍</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>ABC 4.11 "We're All Crazy Sometimes" PROMO</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/GhgTQ6sdkNw" width="320" youtube-src-id="GhgTQ6sdkNw"></iframe></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span><span style="font-size: 7pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 7pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span><span style="font-size: large;"> * </span></span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Unusual in that both cases of the week <i>appear</i>
to be front and center…<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span><!--[endif]-->But they’re both being used to get us to (the
part where the announcer ramps up the drama with) “an ending that will leave…
you… STUNNED”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span><!--[endif]-->Because how would we be “stunned” if they spent
the promo explaining what was going on with Lea and the Striped Tomato? <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span><!--[endif]-->Most of #Shea Nation figured it out anyway
(including the “stunned” part… OK, especially the “stunned” part), but as ABC’s
hype machine goes, I thought they did very well with this one. Choice of shots
was good, editing order good (putting Glassman’s and Andrews’ agitated OR
selves in the final seconds was a decent attempt at a red herring), and
considering how plenty of viewers reacted on social media, they didn’t oversell
the pregnancy bombshell.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
</p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span><!--[endif]-->My one complaint? The flatline we hear at the
end as Shaun ponders Lea’s news… yeah, it made sense in relation to his
case-of-the-week, but it had nothing to do with anything being shared at the
end of the promo. Utterly unnecessary.</span><o:p></o:p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>CTV 4.11 "We're All Crazy Sometimes" PROMO... is the one promo I could not locate this time.</b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>ABC 4.12 "Teeny Blue Eyes" PROMO</b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Na49LhMTiJ0" width="320" youtube-src-id="Na49LhMTiJ0"></iframe></div><br /><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"> * </span><span style="font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">This time we’re back to featuring zero medical
cases in the promo, with the pregnancy taking center stage instead. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> <span> * </span></span>Shaun’s ASD gets a mention in the promos for the
first time this season (not counting the generic one that uses “I want to be
known as a good doctor… not a good autistic doctor,” which Shaun actually said
back in S3’s “Influence” episode). <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>When comparing this to the CTV version, it’s
impossible to ignore the music choices in each… so take note that the ABC
version ran a song with the lyrics “I’ll never leave your side” playing as
Shaun and Lea sat in the clinic waiting room… another reinforcement, perhaps, of
ABC mostly promoting <i>the character</i> (Shaun) as opposed to CTV mostly
promoting <i>the characters </i>(TGD cast).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>When watching this in real time, there were
plenty of viewers (#Shea fans included) who thought Lea might choose to abort
the baby—with Shaun’s endorsement, of course. And as it happened, they came
much closer to that option than some of us expected. But it still looks to me
like the promo is setting it up to look as if Lea was heavily leaning one side,
and Shaun the other (with the inclusion of “I love you… I want this child,”
which as we know now is something Shaun said before his autistic doctor/patient
started belittling him into his own doubts about parenthood). What do you
think? <o:p></o:p></span></p><p></p><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div><div><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">CTV 4.12 "Teeny Blue Eyes" PROMO</b></div><div><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></b></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/blhVq8mo7D0" width="320" youtube-src-id="blhVq8mo7D0"></iframe></div><br /><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></b></div><div><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol;">·</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> *<span> </span></span><!--[endif]-->The pregnancy dominates the CTV promo as well,
but where ABC started with Shaun’s matter-of-fact announcement to Glassman, CTV
starts with shaky-voiced Lea saying “we have to talk about what we… wanna do…”
as a sorrowful-sounding cello kicks into the background music. Pretty different
tone to this one.<b><o:p></o:p></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>Claire gets an even bigger role in this promo
than in the ABC version— as is often the case with CTV, I found out. Whatever
will they do now that she’s off the show? <b><o:p></o:p></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>Another interesting contrast: Shaun’s ASD is
mentioned here, too, but rather than Shaun and Glassman discussing it, it’s Lea
asking Claire about the likelihood of the child inheriting it… followed
immediately by Shaun’s wish for Lea’s happiness and Lea saying “maybe this isn’t
the right time…” So once again, it sounds to me like the promo is setting a
stage where Lea chooses abortion, and Shaun goes along with it in a quest to
make her “happy.” But THIS time, it also feels like CTV was making it out to be
an ASD-related decision on Lea’s part (which was anything BUT the case, as you’ll
recall). Just the fact that they took Lea’s ASD question out of context was
extremely off-putting to me; what Lea actually said in the scene with Claire
was <b>“This isn’t at the top of my list, but since you are a doctor… </b>Shaun’s
ASD, is it…” followed by Claire’s response. And before <i>that</i> happened was
Lea’s endearing “I hate poop!” comment… which, frankly, I’d much prefer to be
in the promo. (Maybe that’s why I never worked in a promotions department when
I did TV, though…)</span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> ABC 4.13 "Spilled Milk" PROMO</b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/qcSYautgPak" width="320" youtube-src-id="qcSYautgPak"></iframe></div><br /><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #0563c1;">·</span><span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="color: #0563c1;"> </span> * <span style="color: #0563c1;"> </span></span>The first half of the promo is devoted to Claire
and her estranged, terminally ill father… and the second half is about Shaun
and Lea’s disconnect early on during the pregnancy. One might think those two
storylines to be completely unrelated to each other—but one would be wrong.<u><span style="color: #0563c1; mso-themecolor: hyperlink;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #0563c1;">·</span><span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="color: #0563c1;"> </span>*<span style="color: #0563c1;"> </span></span>What the ABC version does, quite nicely, is take
Shaun’s line from the blood-drawing scene with Claire (“It’s difficult to feel
for someone you don’t know yet”) and use it to fuse the two promo halves
together. <u><span style="color: #0563c1; mso-themecolor: hyperlink;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span class="MsoHyperlink">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span></span>Claire’s part of the story is condensed
pretty well to its essentials…trying to include talk of Mama Breeze in there
would have been a mistake. Shaun and Lea’s part, on the other hand, could have felt
a lot darker if they’d included anything just before or just after Shaun placed
his head on Lea’s belly. As it stands, I’m amused they ended up using a few
moments of the Lea’s I-can’t- stand-the-toothpaste-smell sex rejection—by far
one of their lightest moments of the episode— to demonstrate the distance
between them.<span class="MsoHyperlink"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;">CCTV 4.13 "Spilled Milk" PROMO</b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/QgxG_kHo_Vs" width="320" youtube-src-id="QgxG_kHo_Vs"></iframe></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span><!--[endif]-->Meanwhile, CTV did its “longer clips/fewer edits”
thing and focused solely on Claire and her father. (Another rare promo that
doesn’t feature Shaun at all, much less Lea.)<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>No, they didn’t discuss Breeze in that extra
time… but we <i>did</i> see and hear Jordan twice (in what would be the ONLY
time a Newbie got featured later in the season). </span><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;">CABC 4.14 "Gender Reveal" PROMO</b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JGGUqqLYxs4" width="320" youtube-src-id="JGGUqqLYxs4"></iframe></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: #0563c1; font-family: Symbol;">·</span><span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="color: #0563c1; font-size: xx-small;"> </span><span style="color: #0563c1; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt;"> </span><span style="color: #0563c1; font-size: xx-small;"> </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #0563c1;"> </span>*<span style="color: #0563c1;"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">This is one of those times when I think the show
could have really benefited from promoting one or both of its Cases of the Week
(which included a man needing a mastectomy, and a woman with ignored symptoms
that eventually manifest into Parkinson’s). In addition to both cases being
relatively unique—even for TGD—they commanded more drama than what we saw with
Shaun and Lea. Imagine using Shaun’s line “My daughter is never coming to see
you!” in the promo!<u><o:p></o:p></u></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>Except wait—that would have spoiled the gender
reveal. AND WE HAD CTV’s version for that… so… never mind.<u><o:p></o:p></u></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>What I mean to say is that constructing the
promo around #Shea’s “doula drama” and the titular gender reveal was kind of
cute/funny (cue Shaun’s taking notes in the maternity ward), but for a show
that thrives on emotional heft, I find it a surprising choice in retrospect…<u><o:p></o:p></u></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span><!--[endif]-->…or do I? Since we’ve talked a lot about
dramatic arcs on TGD, and we all suspected we were 3 or 4 episodes away from Shaun’s
biggest challenge of the season… maybe it was, indeed, time to keep the
promotional material as lighthearted as possible.<u><o:p></o:p></u></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>In which case, never mind. (Again.)</span><u><span style="color: #0563c1; mso-themecolor: hyperlink;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;">CCTV 4.14 "Gender Reveal" PROMO</b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/qBpJxibzCt8" width="320" youtube-src-id="qBpJxibzCt8"></iframe></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol;">·</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> <span> * </span></span>Between CTV “revealing” the gender within the
first seconds of this promo, and the wrong sneak peek (with Shaun discussing
their daughter) making it on to IG platforms well before the show aired, it’s a
good thing TGD wasn’t hinging on the boy-or-girl drama for excitement (eyeroll)<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> *<span> </span></span>Interesting that CTV went a very similar route
as ABC on this one with all attention focused on the doula, the massage woes,
and Shaun’s “research”.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span><!--[endif]-->One thing they added: Claire saying “That’s
great news, Shaun!” about them having a girl, with Shaun responding “Why?” Hmm… I’ll say they added it because it let
them have a <i>Claire</i> scene in the mix.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> ABC 4.15 "Waiting" PROMO</b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/lwx5AY8fhT8" width="320" youtube-src-id="lwx5AY8fhT8"></iframe></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol;">·</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>This one is an even split between the basic
premise—two very young gunshot victims fighting for their lives—and the way
Shaun is reacting to the premise as an expectant father.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>The episode itself is a firm pivot towards the
heavier drama we’ve come to expect in the back end of the season, and from the
very first shot in the promo (with the St. B’vites standing in wait for the
victims), we are keenly aware of that fact. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>With so much tension to go around in this 30
seconds—including Lea’s brief appearance, which came right after one of the
waiting-room moms nearly shoved her backwards—there was hardly time to sound a
warning about another cliffhanger ending involving a baby/<i>the</i> baby/their baby.</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> CTV 4.15 "Waiting" PROMO</b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/3IlI18ZQrzc" width="320" youtube-src-id="3IlI18ZQrzc"></iframe></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol;">·</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span><!--[endif]-->Again, CTV follows ABC’s lead and shows very
similar footage setting up the premise. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span><!--[endif]-->Also again, CTV opts <i>not </i>to make the rest
of the promo about Shaun’s impressions… focusing instead on the boys, their
moms, and brief flashes of the OR and waiting room.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">
</span></o:p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>Lea is seen (twice) but not heard from… while
Claire is heard from (the soundbite about “resolving issues peacefully”) but
not prominently seen.</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> ABC 4.16 "Dr. Ted" PROMO</b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/I7uehq_fQQA" width="320" youtube-src-id="I7uehq_fQQA"></iframe></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span><!--[endif]-->As we know now, the challenge of this promo was
to play up things that wouldn’t directly give away the fact that Lea and Shaun
were about to lose their child. Focusing largely on Shaun’s Dr. vs. Dad
struggle was a good way to do that.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>In the ABC version, the key words for Lea were “You’re
gonna need to have surgery.” The possibility of losing the baby isn’t discussed…<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>But Shaun’s fears are well-noted as we see him hand
off the toy scalpel to Lea just before surgery.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>Also it’s important to note that in the
days/hours just before “Dr. Ted” aired, the ABC promo changed to include Shaun
rushing to get an oxygen mask on Lea, as well as an inclusion of Shaun’s lines
about “not being able to protect Lea/Giving her more time to hope”—almost as if
they’d reconsidered their strategy, trying to help cushion for us the inevitable
blow. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> CTV 4.16 "Dr. Ted" PROMO</b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ASxdQqsEhGM" width="320" youtube-src-id="ASxdQqsEhGM"></iframe></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol;">·</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>CTV sets a tone much like the ABC promo, with
similar (or same) clips taken from similar scenes.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span><!--[endif]-->One difference: Shaun’s “We could lose the baby”
included rather than Claire telling Lea that surgery is necessary. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>Another: Instead of seeing Shaun go to Glassman with
his frustrations about not being on Lea’s surgical team, we have more time with
Shaun, Lea, and Claire taken from the early part of the episode. </span><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> ABC 4.17 "Letting Go" PROMO </b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/YEx9G9imcA8" width="320" youtube-src-id="YEx9G9imcA8"></iframe></div><br /><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></b><p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span><!--[endif]-->The aftermath of “Dr. Ted” bore an ABC promo
featuring both Shaun and Lea, but leaned heavily towards Shaun’s struggles at
the hospital. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>The sequence of St. B events that is presented
is misleading; by showing Shaun race into the OR yelling “You have to stop!” it
appears his incorrect diagnosis came at a more critical time than it actually
did (remember that it was this interruption on Shaun’s part, which actually
came <i>after</i> Glassman tells him to “go home,” that actually put him back
in good stead with the visiting surgeon). <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span><!--[endif]-->On the other hand… they started with Lea talking
to Shaun about “getting back to normal” (the opening scene) and ended with
Shaun folding Lea into his arms (the closing scene), so it was a rare time that
we kind of got the gist of the #Shea storyline for “Letting Go” simply by
watching the promo.</span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;">C CTV 4.17 "Letting Go" PROMO</b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/x57sIb1PyeE" width="320" youtube-src-id="x57sIb1PyeE"></iframe></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol;">·</span><span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: xx-small;"> </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">* </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: xx-small;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Meanwhile, CTV’s post-"Dr. Ted" promo featured
Shaun, Andrews, the visiting surgeon, Shaun, lots more Shaun… and no Lea.
Unless you count the back of her head (when Shaun tells her “I can’t stay this
way”)… which I don’t. And while I get that it’s called <i>The Good Doctor</i>,
not <i>The Grieving IT Director</i>… to include zero Lea content in the episode
following the miscarriage is a pretty callous decision.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>And it’s not often that I’ll throw the hype flag
on CTV, but by focusing almost solely on his interactions with Andrews and the visiting
surgeon… and including the “I would have fired him” line without the context
provided by Andrews’ response (“Dr. Murphy is having some personal problems right
now” or words to that extent)… CTV’s promotion crew seemed determined to make
it look like Shaun’s job was on the line. That just doesn’t sit well with me.</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> ABC 4.18 "Forgive or Forget" PROMO</b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/mvImjwCR3Zs" width="320" youtube-src-id="mvImjwCR3Zs"></iframe></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol;">·</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>For ABC, it was all #Shea all 30 seconds: They
pack, they camp, they snuggle in a tent, they have a medical emergency in the
middle of the nowhere forest. (Hey, I’d watch that.)<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>Unlike the previous ABC promo, there was no real
way to edit the scenes out of sequence… and no reason to anyway, since the
drama provided by Shaun falling and Lea stepping up to the plate as “surgeon”
was more than enough.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>Claire’s follow-up with her father was in this
episode too, but unlike the “Spilled Milk” promo, there was no real way to connect
her forgiveness journey with #Shea’s efforts to heal. So ABC opted to showcase
the latter.</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> CTV 4.18 "Forgive or Forget" PROMO</b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/zrHWakqXtq0" width="320" youtube-src-id="zrHWakqXtq0"></iframe></div><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></p><p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;"> *</span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">CTV opted to feature Claire and Miles (dad) in
their version… so watching the two “Forgive or Forget” promos back-to-back gives
the impression that there are <i>two</i> episodes of TV going on there, not
one. (And also creates one of those rare Shaun-less TGD promos.)<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>But supplementing Claire’s personal drama in
this episode was her Case of the Week, which just happened to be about the way
a couple’s choices were impacting the well-being of their daughter. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span><!--[endif]-->So while Lea and Shaun were ignored in this
promo, I really appreciated the way they took Claire’s line “You need to stop
thinking about what’ll make you feel like a good parent, and start thinking
about what your daughter needs” and overlaid it with Miles coming to her door
at the end of the episode. </span><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> ABC 4.19 "Venga" PROMO</b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/4SUQB-ioJIM" width="320" youtube-src-id="4SUQB-ioJIM"></iframe></div><br /><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></b><p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol;">·</span><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>Establishing that the St.B’vites + Lea (surely an honorary B’vite at this point) are on a mission trip in this episode… check.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>Establishing the difficult challenges they will face as a unit while on said mission trip… check.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>Establishing Morgan, Lea, Shaun, and Claire as characters who could be profoundly affected personally and/or professionally by what happens on this trip… check! (I mention them because they each got a close-up in the back half of that promo.)</span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> CTV 4.19 "Venga" PROMO</b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/VZbDC3YHijo" width="320" youtube-src-id="VZbDC3YHijo"></iframe></div><br /><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></b><p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>Establishing the mission trip (with quick shots
of all the cast on their way into the airport)…check.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span><!--[endif]-->Establishing the difficult challenges, albeit
with some slightly different shots… check.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>Something I only noticed with repeated viewing:
while they chose the same line as ABC to end with (“Focus on the miracles, or
you won’t be able to help any of them”), the CTV version accompanied that with three
visuals: the Lim-assisted birth, the nursery shot with Baby Isabella’s parents
(and Lea’s face reflected in the glass), and Claire walking away from the
bulletin board-o-cases. It leaves me wondering if they thought viewers would
only be able to relate to “the miracle of LIFE”…? But I might be overthinking
that big time.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> ABC 4.20 "Vamos" PROMO</b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/4NeI4hU-Q34" width="320" youtube-src-id="4NeI4hU-Q34"></iframe></div><br /><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></b><p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">* </span>For ABC’s version of the S4 Finale promo, I found a lot to like…but a few things were truly puzzling, too.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>On the plus side: the music choice (decidedly upbeat, which fit the tone of the actual episode nicely)… the message of the title cards “The end of their journey… is just the beginning,” which also fits the episode like a glove… and the way all cast members on the trip got featured in one way or another. (Even those NOT on the trip, when you include Glassman’s appearance). <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>Puzzling, though, was overlaying Claire’s “you deserve to be happy” (which was taken from a different episode entirely) with her goodbye hug to Shaun…<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>Also puzzling was Shaun’s “People need to move forward… I want to move forward.” It’s puzzling because while he said the first part during his goodbye to Claire, <i>he never said the second part. At least, not in this episode. </i>Maybe it was taken from a deleted scene, as some have suggested… maybe it was from an earlier episode, perhaps in a totally different context… or maybe they even edited some of Shaun’s words together to make it sound like he said that line (it wouldn’t be the first time they’ve done that).<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * M</span>y guess: they wanted to hint at what was coming (the proposal), but with Shaun uniquely positioned as the propos<i>ee</i>, they didn’t have any visuals from the show that would really help along their “hint”… so they constructed an audio hint instead while staying on the bus shot of #Shea. Inauthentic? Maybe. But I guess it worked, huh?</span><o:p></o:p></p><div><br /></div><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> CTV 4.20 "Vamos" PROMO</b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JPEiLhPDNx8" width="320" youtube-src-id="JPEiLhPDNx8"></iframe></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol;">·</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span><!--[endif]-->While the CTV version wasn’t radically different
from ABC’s—it couldn’t be; all the doctors were there on the trip doing the
same basic things—it used a whole other set of scenes (with only one brief
Shaun appearance, and again, none of Lea) to paint the picture. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span><!--[endif]-->Did they know this would be Claire’s last
episode when they assembled the promo? Given that it starts with Claire’s jaw
drop over the MatLim pairing, continues with the debate about whether Claire is
ready to take on a uniquely challenging surgery, and ends with the good news
from said surgery (“Your mom’s gonna be all better”), I’d say yes. But if they
were <i>that</i> invested in promoting Claire’s story, wouldn’t they want to include
a little hint about the way it was about to end…? The “There’s something I want
to talk to you about” line on the bus? Anything??<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> * </span>And with all the attention directed both to
Claire and a couple smaller developments—the power outage during the surgeries,
MatLim’s tryst—the CTV promo not only ignored Shaun and Lea during this final
promo, but also Park, Morgan, Andrews, and any of the others that were chosen
for the dozen surgeries. For a season finale that really brought something new
to every TGD character (and a few key Guatemalans), the decision to focus so
exclusively on Claire—whether it’s her final episode or not—it’s another
head-scratcher for me. </span><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎💍</span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎💍</span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎💍</span></p><div><br /></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">OK, HERE’S THE INTERACTIVE PART…</span></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-f80ef12c-7fff-cb59-d83f-5ec3c983ed7c" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">It’s always fun to include you guys when I can, so here is your first mission of the summer (should you choose to accept it)...</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ask yourself </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> What are my 5 favorite TGD episodes of Season 4… and WHY? </span></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Also ask yourself </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> What are my 3 LEAST favorite episodes of TGD Season 4… and WHY?</span></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Then, list ‘em-- with a top pick, second fave, worst episode, second-worst, etc..-- and email them to me at KLawrence997-at-gmail-dot-com.(Please email me rather than leaving your choices in the comments.)</span></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">You do NOT have to explain your choices if you don’t want to…! I just want to leave that option open because I know some of you will have a lot of fun with it.</span></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>I originally wanted to try and get the results of this challenge up the weekend of the 17th/18th, but I'm going to push that back a little, so... the new deadline for this is MONDAY, July 19th!</b></span></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Please feel free to participate, even if you’ve never left a comment on this blog and don’t plan on starting that anytime soon.</span></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: 74.1pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p></div>Kelli Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06009713326652591943noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1583562784288599702.post-68313554439483617032021-07-04T22:48:00.000-07:002021-07-04T22:48:11.165-07:00A Longer Look at S4... THOSE PROMOS pt. 1<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://img3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20101101135640/logopedia/images/d/d5/ABC_logo_2007.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="800" height="124" src="http://img3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20101101135640/logopedia/images/d/d5/ABC_logo_2007.png" width="124" /></a><a href="https://tse4.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.A_ZP3RrRrVHCTdedePjQ5wHaE8&pid=Api" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="316" data-original-width="474" height="114" src="https://tse4.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.A_ZP3RrRrVHCTdedePjQ5wHaE8&pid=Api" width="172" /></a></div></div><br /><p></p><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.underconsideration.com/brandnew/archives/ctv_logo.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="258" data-original-width="800" height="53" src="https://www.underconsideration.com/brandnew/archives/ctv_logo.png" width="162" /></a></div> <a href="https://tse1.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.hW4ajjRhtLgwa6ya_1qCxwHaE8&pid=Api" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="316" data-original-width="474" height="85" src="https://tse1.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.hW4ajjRhtLgwa6ya_1qCxwHaE8&pid=Api" width="127" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-26afb7fa-7fff-d0c5-9fd0-7602324fba11"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">They can’t hurt us now, so let’s have some fun with them instead.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We’re talking promos this time around-- those 30-second teases for an upcoming episode of </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Good Doctor </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">that have the potential to intrigue and thrill us into the following week… but, as some of us know all too well, they can also send us into a 7-day (or longer!) tailspin of anxious speculation. Sometimes with good reason, sometimes (cough-Dr. D’Souza-COUGH) without.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The good news, in those latter cases, is that promos become irrelevant pretty quickly. It’s mostly from the magic of YouTube that we can even re-watch them at this point. So why give them another minute of our time now? Because while watching the efforts of a network-- or in most instances here, TWO networks-- in retrospect, we might pick up patterns or techniques to help us deal with the promos of season 5 more rationally.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Or not. For those of us who </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">enjoy</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> giving our nerves a test run on the regular, I truly don’t want to spoil your fun. Maybe you should skip this post…?</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">But I’ve no idea how effective this informal study will be… y’all will probably find more details to discuss than I’m laying out here, anyway. </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">So if you’re still reading, here’s how this works:</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ol style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I know TGD has an international audience (just knowing where my regular commenters hail from is proof of that!), but for the purposes of this post I’m only looking at the promos produced within ABC (the network where TGD airs first-run episodes in the U.S.) and the ones produced through CTV (where TGD airs first-run episodes in Canada).</span></span></p></li></ol><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ol start="2" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">This post is only focused on Episodes 1-10 of S4; a look at promos for Episodes 11-20 will come next time. </span></span></p></li></ol><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ol start="3" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">As you’ll see, I’ve located all the ABC and CTV promos for S4 1-10…. with three exceptions. Unfortunately, I haven’t yet been able to track down the CTV promos for 4.6, 4.7, or 4.8… but if you have access to them or have a link to do so, please let me know and maybe I can include one of these missing promos in the next round. </span></span></p></li></ol><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Watching so many of these at once gave me a better sense of why I tend to like the Canadian promos better (despite a profound case of </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lea-lack</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, which I’ll get back to shortly): CTV promos are often slower-paced focusing on more true content from the show, with considerably less hype than ABC (in this case, “hype” = flashy-quick edits, bursts of intense dialogue, and things taken out of context for drama’s sake).</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Perhaps it’s because CTV promos are routinely shorter than their ABC counterparts? While both networks leave a few seconds at the end for the “tag” (a reminder of the show being promoted and when to watch it), CTV follows that tag with an additional reminder about streaming programs on the CTV app. </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Oh, one more thing to note Almost as interesting as watching these promos post-season is taking note of who was featured in them the most on both versions. Check out my unofficial tally...</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(Since I’m missing 3 promos, the end number marks their presence out of 17 promos, not 20.)</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Shaun: 16/17</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Lea: 11/17 (almost entirely ABC promos)</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Any</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Newbie: 10/17</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Glassman: 9/17 (almost entirely ABC promos) </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Claire: 8/17</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Lim: 6/17</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Morgan: 6/17</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Andrews: 5/17 (almost entirely ABC promos)</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Park: 3/17</span></span></p><div><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div></span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-size: large;">🍏🏎💍🍏🏎💍🍏🏎💍</span><div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">ABC 4.1 "Frontline, Pt. 1" PROMO (plus some all-purpose S4 promos at the end, including the one that starts with Shaun saying "Until I met Lea...", which I'm ignoring for the purposes of this discussion but go ahead and watch 'em if you like!)</span><br /></span><div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/tyXcoH6Vjeg" width="320" youtube-src-id="tyXcoH6Vjeg"></iframe></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>ABC 4.1 "Frontline Pt.1"</b></span></div><br /> * This contained scenes from upcoming episodes as well, as early-season promos often do (specifically it was the clips from Shaun's Glassman rant on the front lawn that you see in the thumbnail).</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span> *<span> As ABC promos go, this was </span></span>about as straightforward of a Season Premiere teaser as we could have hoped for. However, I found it interesting that while the COVID-inspired tag line used for the entire season is built into the graphics (<i>How do you heal a world turned upside down?)</i>, and the episode was clearly marketed as pandemic-oriented... ABC didn't include the words "pandemic" or "COVID" anywhere in this 30-second spot.<br /></span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> * What they <i>did</i> include was a fair amount of #Shea (yay). ABC has used #Shea for TGD promotion a LOT this past season, from the 15-second spot I mentioned earlier to episodes where Lea wasn't even featured ("Lim")... which explains in part why we've been so emotional about the ABC promos. </span></p><span style="font-size: large;"><br /><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/K6cuJVVuNP8" width="320" youtube-src-id="K6cuJVVuNP8"></iframe></div><br /><div><br /></div></div></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span><b>CTV 4.1 "Frontline Pt.1"</b></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span> *<span> Like ABC, CTV employs Shaun's rant from part 2 of the episode for this part 1 promo...</span></span><br /></span></div><div><span><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span><span><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> * <span> But unlike ABC, they only use "I want this to be over"-- keeping more of the focus on the COVID story in general, not how Shaun and Lea are dealing with it. To that end, CTV also goes ahead and references COVID by name in its promo.</span></span></span></span></span></div><div><span><span><span><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></span></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span><span><span><span><span> * </span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> The o</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">nly time we see Lea is in a moment of the both-sides-of-the-door shot, which falls in line with the way CTV apparently sought to promote the episode. The woman featured more prominently in this case? Claire, who gets a rant of her own included in the final seconds. </span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/biHfwy-39PI" width="320" youtube-src-id="biHfwy-39PI"></iframe></div><br /><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]-->n<b style="text-indent: 0px;">ABC 4.2 "Frontline Pt.2" (using a very similar thumbnail to the previous ABC promo)</b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="text-indent: 0px;"><b> * </b>Starts with Melendez and Claire, which is where part 1 of "Frontline" ended (as you'll recall).<br /></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="text-indent: 0px;"><span> </span><span> *<span> Touches </span></span></span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">more on the specific dramas of part 2: Shaun dealing with the wife of his COVID patient, Morgan with Nurse Patringa, Park with the lady who delivered her baby while hospitalized with the virus.</span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span> * <span> #Shea is featured, even though Lea's time in this episode is even more limited than in part 1.</span></span></span></p></span></span><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span><span><span> </span><span> * <span> The Newbies (who didn't debut until 4.3) are </span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; text-indent: -0.25in;">also featured, but there was room for it because this particular promo was twice as long as the usual promo... which is also why it says "<u>This season on </u><i>The Good Doctor" </i>(trying to tease as much as they could with only 3 episodes completed at the time).</span></p></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/nNuDskLhO-I" width="320" youtube-src-id="nNuDskLhO-I"></iframe></div><b><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></div>CTV 4.2 "Frontline Pt.2"</b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol;">·</span><span style="font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 7pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 7pt;"> </span> * </span>This promo is remarkable for the fact that Shaun isn’t seen or heard in
the entire thing… the only promo lacking his presence that I think I’ve
encountered this season. (Also no Lea, no Claire, no Glassman... Morgan is the only regular that's really featured.)<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> <span> <span> *<span> It's a</span></span></span></span></span>lso remarkable because of its emphasis on Nurse
Patringa… only a recurring character on the show, but the one COVID staff fatality we witnessed at St. B.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> <span> * <span> </span></span></span></span>No newbies mentioned yet (but remember, the CTV
promo for pt.2 was only :30 while the ABC version was 1:00).<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> <span> *<span> </span><span> Remember what I said earlier about the reasons I prefer CTV promos? This one is a very good example of that.</span></span></span></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"><span></span></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kFY660cuLXY" width="320" youtube-src-id="kFY660cuLXY"></iframe></div><br /><b style="text-indent: 0px;">ABC 4.3 "Newbies"</b><p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span> </span><span> *<span> This time the </span></span>Newbies take center st</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">age for real. Consequetially, w</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">e only see Shea in the opening moments;
despite the conflict between them that is a primary subplot of the episode,
none of it is mentioned. Even Lea's line "At least you know he'll be a totally honest boss" is out of context; it <i>sounds </i>like an endorsement, but as you might recall she was HELLAPISSED at that moment.</span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span> </span><span> *<span> Nonetheless, if you look closely you'll see a reaction shot of Shaun borrowed from his tense scene with Lea (the one where she ends it asking him to "just... leave me alone") during Lim's lines in the promo.</span></span><br /></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span> </span><span> *<span> It strikes me weird now that the only spoken line from a Newbie in this promo is from a character who didn't even stick around past this episode. </span></span><br /></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Wingdings;">n</span><span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: xx-small;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: xx-small;"> </span>*<span> The b</span></span>iggest basic question, as laid out in this promo: how will Shaun lead
these newbies as a brutally honest doctor who asks inappropriate things at inappropriate times.
In other words… being Shaun. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/o7DIrRGOAtk" width="320" youtube-src-id="o7DIrRGOAtk"></iframe></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><b>CTV 4.3 "Newbies"</b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span> *<span> </span></span> The Newbies
take center stage in this promo too, but in a different way…<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span> *</span> …because
the biggest basic question in <i>this</i> one is about how they’ll fare and what
the senior residents as a whole think of them, rather than <i>How will Shaun do with
this challenge?</i><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> * For some reason I thought it was smart of them to include Wolke's line about "God complex? I have that..." Again, interesting that the Newbie line in <i>this</i> promo underscores himself (Wolke) rather than underscores Shaun's potential difficulties ("You can't ask that question in a workplace!" as uttered in the ABC version). </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span><span style="font-size: x-large;"> </span><span style="font-size: large;">*<span> </span></span></span><span style="font-size: large;">Noticing a
pattern yet? Lea is still MIA in the CTV promos at this point, save for that brief
shot I mentioned in 4.1. </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/WJueo1WKwwQ" width="320" youtube-src-id="WJueo1WKwwQ"></iframe></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>ABC 4.4 "Not the Same"</b><br /></span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span> *<span> </span></span>To me, it's refreshingly
straightforward: a little bit about #Shea, a lot about Shaun working with the
Newbies.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span> * They m</span>anaged to
capture the essence of the #Shea conflict of the week without going into the
whole <i>Why is it ‘not the same’? </i>thing, which would have devoured at
least a few more precious seconds.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span> *</span> It was nice that
they got Glassman involved in the most hyped-up part of the promo (Him asking "what kind of mistake?" as we see the drama ramping up for his patient... and Jordan and Olivia).</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/LAX_j-tXDj8" width="320" youtube-src-id="LAX_j-tXDj8"></iframe></div><br /><b><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">CTV 4.4 "Not the Same"</span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span> *<span> </span><span> This one s</span></span>tarts,
interestingly enough, with an answer to that question that was avoided in the CTV “Newbies”
promo: <i>How will Shaun do with this challenge? </i> (Answer: not great; he finds the two currently
under his supervision—Jordan and Olivia—“distracting”. It sounds familiar because ABC used the "distracting" line as well.) <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span> *<span> </span><span> T</span></span>he rest of
the promo deals exclusively with Shaun’s Case of the Week (pregnant lady with one strong twin and one weaker one).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span> *</span> Despite the
relative importance of Shaun and Lea’s moving-back-in question (and eventual
answer), Lea is once again absent. <o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/tpG0OYfjYtg" width="320" youtube-src-id="tpG0OYfjYtg"></iframe></div><br /><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">ABC 4.5 "Fault"</b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">n<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> <span> *<span> </span></span></span>Lea isn’t featured at all, though the still of
she and Shaun lying together in the final moments of the episode is the
thumbnail (as you see above… which in itself feels like a bait-and-switch for those
catching the promo for the first time on YouTube).<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">n<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span> * <span> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->This is the winter finale they had to promote
without much of season under it yet, so the emphasis is Shaun’s struggle with
how much responsibility to give “his” Newbies (specifically Wolke, in this
case) and the consequences of not doing enough up-front.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal">
</p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">n<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span> *<span> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Wolke’s role in this promo is probably the
biggest of any of the Newbies in the entire season. Guess it’s no surprise
he’s a cast regular in S5.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/vMzTI5ssbvQ" width="320" youtube-src-id="vMzTI5ssbvQ"></iframe></div><br /><b style="text-indent: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">CTV 4.5 "Fault"</span></b><p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="text-indent: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span> <span> *<span> </span></span></span>Unlike ABC’s promo, nothing is said about “Fault”
being the Winter Finale.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">n<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> <span> *<span> Still t</span></span></span>here are several similarities to the ABC version,
including Wolke’s “Code blue!” and Lim’s reprimanding of Shaun (though a
different part of the scene is used). <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">n<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> <span> *<span> </span></span></span>Shaun’s “You are not good… and <i>I</i> am not
good…” was great to include-- it reminds us that he's as hard on himself as he is honest about his feelings on the Newbies' progress.</span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span> </span><span> *<span> Wo</span></span>lke’s semi-serious “Did we break him…?” line still cracks me up.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">n<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span> * There was </span></span><!--[endif]-->still no Lea featured, which meant she barely
got a promo mention on CTV until after 2021 started.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Hgys2v0LTNU" width="320" youtube-src-id="Hgys2v0LTNU"></iframe></div><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px;"><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px;"><br /></b></p>ABC 4.6 "Lim"</b><p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol;">·</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> <span> *<span> </span></span></span>This—the first episode to air after the 6 week
hiatus—is where the promos get misleading as to what’s featured in the episode
itself (ABC’s version at least). <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> <span> *<span> </span></span></span>It's the “Lim” episode, but you’d never know
it… yes, she’s included in the promo, but only in a supporting role to Shaun, who
ABC features in a sort of re-introductory way... a</span><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: georgia; text-indent: -0.25in;">s if to shout to viewers <b>“Have you met the Good Doctor lately? He’s
teaching patients now. He’s not doing a great job of it, but he’s still always
working to better himself—in both his professional </b></span><b><i style="font-family: georgia; text-indent: -0.25in;">and</i><span style="font-family: georgia; text-indent: -0.25in;"> personal life.” </span><span style="font-family: georgia; text-indent: -0.25in;">Which is nice, but was ABC </span><i style="font-family: georgia; text-indent: -0.25in;">that </i><span style="font-family: georgia; text-indent: -0.25in;">unsure
that a supporting character’s big episode would attract viewers? Or would it
have been promoted any differently had they not kicked off January with “Lim”?</span></b></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> <span> *<span> </span></span></span>Of course, the BIG mislead for #Shea fans this
time around was the notion of seeing Shaun and Lea actually celebrating Lea’s
birthday. After all, the whole promo started with his quest for his gift to be
“awesome”, only to see it be used as comic relief against Lim’s increasingly
dire PTSD situation (and Lea’s lobby “party” serve as literal background while
Lim toiled in crisis). This was certainly a bellwether of things to come,
promo-wise.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">·<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> <span> *<span> </span></span></span>The smaller mislead: the famous shower scene tease,
which ended up being for an entirely different episode. What started as
quite the thrill for #Shea fans who first took note of this promo on New Year’s
Eve became an aggravating bone of contention... especially once the scene airs in its entirety (see below).</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="text-indent: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">C**** REMEMBER... I DON'T HAVE A CTV PROMO FOR "Fault" AT THIS TIME*** </span></b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="text-indent: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span> (But if I did, I think it's a safe bet that we wouldn't hear anything about Lea's birthday on it.)</span></span></b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="text-indent: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span><br /></span></span></b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="text-indent: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="text-indent: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/TO28z2aGkpY" width="320" youtube-src-id="TO28z2aGkpY"></iframe></span></b></div><b style="text-indent: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><span><br /></span></span></b><p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px;"><span> <span> A</span></span>BC 4.7 "The Uncertainty Principle"</b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span> *<span> </span></span>Aaand we’re
back to the shower scene (in the episode in which it truly appears), but here we learned it probably wasn’t going to be as enticing a scene as we hoped (or at least
were crossing our fingers about… remember, we were 7 episodes in at this point, and had only
been treated to one brief kissing scene back in 4.4).<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span> *<span> Here was the</span></span> rare promo
where nothing was shown or said about a patient, a procedure, or a crisis in the
OR. (I'd say it was a lighter episode all the way around, but Lim was recovering from her PTSD-fueled motorcycle accident that no one knew about... until Claire happened upon the wreckage at the very end of the episode.)<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span> *<span> </span></span>While we
were all thrown for a loop by the discovery (in this promo) that Lea was
previously married, it was a far less dramatic development once the episode
aired. It’s not that the promo was especially misleading, in this case… it was
more about us jumping to conclusions. (THIS time.)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="text-indent: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">C**** REMEMBER... I DON'T HAVE A CTV PROMO FOR "The Uncertainty Principle" EITHER*** </span></b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="text-indent: 0px;"></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="text-indent: 0px;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Ca2qhU445xs" width="320" youtube-src-id="Ca2qhU445xs"></iframe></b></div><b style="text-indent: 0px;"><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b><p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px;"> ABC 4.8 "Parenting"</b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; text-indent: 0px;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"> </span><span><span style="font-size: large;"> *<span> </span></span></span></b><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; text-indent: -0.25in;">Okay, so maybe it’s not so rare after all: no patients,
procedures, or OR medical crises in this promo either.</span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">n<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> <span> *<span> The i</span></span></span>nclusion of Claire’s line “you’ve been preparing
for this your entire life” helped underscore the importance of this milestone
for the audience. And if that didn't get the point across, the “This is the Moment” music pumping underneath certainly did.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">n<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span> * <span> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Shaun and Lea are definitely front-and-center here;
her parents aren’t even seen in the ABC version of the promo until the last few
seconds (and not heard from at all).<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>C**** NO CTV PROMO FOR "Parenting" EITHER*** </b>BUT for what it's worth, </span><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: georgia; text-indent: -0.25in;">I recall the CTV version started with the
awkward dinner scene (the real one, not the simulation with Glassman and
Morgan) and</span><span style="font-family: georgia; text-indent: -0.25in;"> Shaun’s reference to hemorrhoid surgery (while Pam Dilallo looks to have a minor coronary as she strangles out the words “Excuse me?”)</span></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Zj0VYpQB7p0" width="320" youtube-src-id="Zj0VYpQB7p0"></iframe></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span><p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">ABC 4.9 "Irresponsible Salad Bar Practices"</b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span> </span><span> </span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;"> <span style="font-family: georgia; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; text-indent: -24px;"> UGH! <i>This </i>one... the launcher of countless glares, and <i>eighty-four </i>comments on my blog, which devoted an entire post to the promo itself. How did it mislead thee? Let us count the ways... </span></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">n<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span> * <span> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Mislead #1: The Dr. D’Souza kiss tease that was
actually a dream kiss. (It was far from the first promo to ever pull this trick, but still...)<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">n<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span> *<span> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Mislead #2: Lea actually being upset about Dr. D’Souza (and a possible real-life kiss except no, it wasn’t, it was just a
dream kiss). As I said at the time, it took serious WORK to find a shot of Lea in this episode that might convey betrayal... and then they slow-mo'd it a little too? Genius. Evil genius, yes... but still genius.</span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">n<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span> *<span> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Mislead #3: oh, sure, NOW they promote Lim’s
PTSD crisis (using a little bit footage from the “Lim” episode to make it look like Lim's OR incident was more intense than it actually was).<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal">
</p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">n<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span> * <span> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Mislead #4: Neither Shaun’s crush, or Lea’s
reaction, or Lim’s struggle had anything to do with the cases of the week: a
trans man with a pregnancy? A black woman taking the hospital to task for
racial profiling? Remember those? Why, it’s almost as if someone was afraid to promote the
episode for what it was…oh, wait.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/fF8xCXVq4DA" width="320" youtube-src-id="fF8xCXVq4DA"></iframe></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="text-indent: 0px;"><br /></b></span><p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="text-indent: 0px;">C CTV 4.9 "Irresponsible Salad Bar Practices" (courtesy of Shea Endgame)</b></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">n<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span> *<span> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->In all honesty, the CTV version isn’t much
better. Same focus on Dr. D’Sousa and “the kiss”…<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">n<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span> * <span> There's in f</span></span></span>act <i>more</i>, in a way, because Lim’s
PTSD storyline is completely ignored in this version… to say nothing (again) of the Cases of
the Week.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="text-indent: 0px;">
</b></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">n<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span> *<span> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->One point I'll put in CTV’s corner comes from their inclusion
of Lea’s “I still look at other guys sometimes” scene with Shaun… they were at
least presenting the subplot for what it was (lighter, nonsensical) rather than
manipulating that shot of Lea looking upset (it was when she was breaking to Shaun
the news about D’Souza’s salad bar habits) in order to scare #Shea nation
into a tizzy.</span><o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/PsiegyfqVlw" width="320" youtube-src-id="PsiegyfqVlw"></iframe></div><br /><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-indent: 0px;"><span> A</span>BC 4.10 "Decrypt"</b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">n<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span> *<span> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Lea is heavily featured, as you’d hope for/expect in this lovely Lea-centric episode.</span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">
</span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">n<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> <span> *<span> Other than the all-important mention "You have 24 hours (to figure this out),"</span></span> </span><!--[endif]-->tense dialogue exchanges between Lea and
Glassman are not shown. What <i>is</i> shown? Claire busting the cabinet-that-wouldn’t-open with an
ax, that's what.</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">n</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> <span> *<span> The promo e</span></span></span><span style="font-family: georgia;">nds with Shaun’s encouraging line “You always know how to fix things"... <i>note to Shaun's foot, the one that'll be in serious peril 8 episodes down the road: <b>You ain't seen nothing yet</b>.</i></span></span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/v_P8WDQCSWU" width="320" youtube-src-id="v_P8WDQCSWU"></iframe></div><br /><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="text-indent: 0px;">C CTV 4.10 "Decrypt" (courtesy of psycho_Bates on Instagram)</b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]-->n<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span> *<span> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Claire and the ax <i>start</i> the promo in this case.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]-->n<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> <span> *<span> </span></span></span>Again, the gist of Lea’s mission comes across in record time…
though with some slightly different scenes/sound bites.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="text-indent: 0px;">
</b></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]-->n<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span> *<span> </span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Though the same Shaun/Lea scene is featured (the
one where he ends it telling her he respects her), I don’t think the sound bite
chosen for Shaun in this promo-- "I'm not always 100 percent sure, but I'd still do the surgery" is as strong.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: large; text-indent: 0px;"> 🍏🏎💍🍏🏎💍🍏🏎💍</span></p><div><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: large; text-indent: 0px;"><br /></span></div><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><span> What's your take on these promos now that they're in the rear-view mirror? Hope they weren't triggering for anyone... get ready because we'll dive into the back half of the S4 promo shelf (starting with "We're All Crazy Sometimes") next! </span><br /></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b style="text-indent: 0px;"><br /></b></p><b></b></span></div>Kelli Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06009713326652591943noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1583562784288599702.post-30186478854446405112021-06-19T23:52:00.138-07:002021-09-24T15:09:13.763-07:00State of the #SHEA Part 40: Dime Por Donde Vas (Tell Me Where We Are Going)-- "Vamos" pt. 2<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7xAtTZnppWuU6t1ORWwXydl-18i0v-kQsvBTOUtd93SDCH8liZg1JUjZM25HsNUmFAUddYB2HNPm-fkz_GTtciGcRUoYN8J_7LycjlkIaUmcY218esUSQfdyNLoApFNhkxF1Fddyd5941/s4608/IMG_20210611_230432.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7xAtTZnppWuU6t1ORWwXydl-18i0v-kQsvBTOUtd93SDCH8liZg1JUjZM25HsNUmFAUddYB2HNPm-fkz_GTtciGcRUoYN8J_7LycjlkIaUmcY218esUSQfdyNLoApFNhkxF1Fddyd5941/w320-h240/IMG_20210611_230432.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-b146e4de-7fff-8c84-b97b-dec39a3a83eb"><span style="background-color: #112233; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><i>The proposal was one of the nicest I've seen on tv shows, as well as the acceptance. It was so fitting for Lea and Shaun. Like many others, I expected Shaun to be the one to propose, not because I wanted him to be the one to do it, but because we're still accustomed to the stereotype of the man proposing to the woman. Although, in that case, a part of me didn't entertain the idea of Lea possibly being the one proposing also because I thought that she wouldn't completely be in the state of mind that would make her think about it. But it fits Lea's character for sure, as you said Kelli she's a free spirit who doesn't do what other women do!--Syl</i></span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="background-color: #112233; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-e82e4178-7fff-ce7e-9968-5c2e64f4962e"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Remember how, at the start of <a href="https://stateoftheskate.blogspot.com/2021/06/state-of-shea-part-38-journeys.html" target="_blank">my “Venga” post</a>,</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> I said comparing the tone and content of the S3 and S4 finales of TGD was beyond apples-and-oranges; that it was more like apples-and-plantains…? </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">While I most definitely stand by that comparison, I find myself caught up in those differences now that we’ve seen the “Venga”/”Vamos” episodes in their entirety. With S3, we had a natural disaster shaking multiple relationships to their very core… with one true beginning (Shaun and Lea) and one true ending (Claire and Melendez), while one’s relationship to surgery itself (Morgan) and one’s future with St. B itself (Park) both came away greatly clouded.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">With S4, it’s kind of like Shaun and Lea not only found their way to </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">another</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> new beginning, but created enough good vibes to spill over and “infect” the rest of the cast. From soon-to-be-single Dr. Andrews to soon-to-be-single Dr. Glassman to the no-longer-singles (Park, Morgan, Lim) to the who-cares-if-I’m-single (Claire), there was a whole lotta hope making the rounds…</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Come to think of it, maybe that foreshadow from “Venga”-- about how </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">newlyweds are full of hope</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">-- was a spill-over situation too.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Oh, before I go any further… ice cream, CHECK. </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-1Vm5ZJcVx2h5wtWDWbrERlMtNJJxRlUqQhZG2ibiRrTdQtnmFs3xnMWM2AJApf7RwSZo5XwLgowddE3ZHMLTtU5A2fbdNR4NjOU-cukhQJcZT1P0YMYVWfr-aJfVOP-dM4Chr3alQ8X3/s4608/IMG_20210618_220927.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4608" data-original-width="3456" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-1Vm5ZJcVx2h5wtWDWbrERlMtNJJxRlUqQhZG2ibiRrTdQtnmFs3xnMWM2AJApf7RwSZo5XwLgowddE3ZHMLTtU5A2fbdNR4NjOU-cukhQJcZT1P0YMYVWfr-aJfVOP-dM4Chr3alQ8X3/w150-h200/IMG_20210618_220927.jpg" width="150" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(The good stuff… CHECK)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(Giving my pint of Halo Top the night off-- CHECK)</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I hope you have yours… let’s dig in.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">🍏🏎💍</span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎💍</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎💍</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #15202b; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><i>“I really liked the fact that Lea didn't allow language to be a barrier when helping Sofia and Isabella. She found a way to communicate with her. In one way or another, for me it was, in part, Lea's maternal instinct.”-- Vicky</i></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-7f029253-7fff-9511-c430-46fbc668b824" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><i>“I really think that holding the baby, with Shaun at her side throughout part of that long night, was the healing factor for Lea. She was so desperate to lose track of her and Shaun’s journey. She had briefly forgotten that together they could accomplish everything. But being there with him, holding the baby whose life she helped saving, made her remember all that. And I think that the sequence of scenes and the way they were filmed were perfect to show that kind of process taking place. Nothing else was needed, no straightforward explanation, no words.”-- Daniela</i></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #15202b; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><i>“The scene of Shaun and Lea helping Isabella was very exciting. Much meaning in this scene, like ‘Now we are a team. We can do it together. Today and the rest of our lives.’-- Vicky</i></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><i>“It was so sweet to see Lea smile so brightly looking at the baby and then at Shaun, and to see Shaun feel seemingly happy to see Lea be happy.</i></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><i>Lea looking softly at the baby then turning to stare deeply into Shaun's eyes - while she had said that looking at him hurt because his blue eyes made her think of their baby - may mean that she found hope that someday (soon!) she would be holding their baby, and from that moment she felt that things will be eventually alright as long as she's with Shaun.”-- Syl</i></span></span></p><div><span style="background-color: #112233; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div></div><div><span style="background-color: #112233; font-variant: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-39041e68-7fff-3a99-3a0d-28d0ea18dc5c"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/41/63/41636AFD-2841-B038-4DBC-FB5D80C13795/159594_6041-450x0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="450" height="133" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/41/63/41636AFD-2841-B038-4DBC-FB5D80C13795/159594_6041-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">OK, before I dig in </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">much</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> I want to give a shoutout to these comments about Shaun and Lea’s time in the nursery (where I put most of my attention in the last post)... Syl and Daniela’s words are from the comments section; Vicky’s are from an extensive Twitter thread that you can find under the hashtag #TheGoodDoctorS4Finale.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Now I want to take a look at some of the other characters…</span></span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #15202b; color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><i><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“About Shaun's response to the proposal, it was very sweet because it was so natural. He's very aware of what he wants with Lea and the relationship, so he didn't have to think of an answer because, in his mind and in his heart, he already had one.”--Vicky</span></i></span></p><div><span style="background-color: #112233; font-variant: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: #112233; font-variant: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: #112233; font-variant: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh08fDoynQiw7ypc429_KMOjYPpeUBZof29yr5DpRgJueOeO09xOaqpMv3Byq8M2qH9m0RSlIaowBPoEOJoZOkTb-f2VeGXq0YqiuolvsMCDzTz1dsOrsSHHmicvpx1YCrFx-6BK_sPQMR8/s4608/IMG_20210611_225730.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh08fDoynQiw7ypc429_KMOjYPpeUBZof29yr5DpRgJueOeO09xOaqpMv3Byq8M2qH9m0RSlIaowBPoEOJoZOkTb-f2VeGXq0YqiuolvsMCDzTz1dsOrsSHHmicvpx1YCrFx-6BK_sPQMR8/w200-h150/IMG_20210611_225730.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><span><br /></span></span></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Ah, Vicky, you’re so right (this was also taken from her extensive Twitter thread about the finale). A lot of people have commented that Shaun said “Of course” the way others might say “Well, DUH.” I’ve been thinking of his answer being more of a literal thing, as in:</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">LEA: Will you marry me?</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">SHAUN: Of course, (name the time and place and I’ll be there because) I love you.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Which would also account for the time lapse between his answer and his realization that this wasn’t just ANY question she was asking him…</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">OK, we’ll get back to the proposal later. Where was I… Oh, THE OTHERS. I’ll do this alphabetically-- </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><u>Andrews (and Ana)</u></span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">First of all, kudos to Andrews actually getting a hint of a </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/1E/19/1E197813-0B2A-56C7-AAAB-225DC33BB442/159451_3634-450x0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="299" data-original-width="450" height="133" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/1E/19/1E197813-0B2A-56C7-AAAB-225DC33BB442/159451_3634-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></span></div><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br />storyline-- at least a promise of things to come-- with the Guatemala episodes. With the Niece Olivia storyline crumbling away mid-season, it’s one of those times when I wonder a) how far in advance Shore & Co. decided Livvy’s fate, and b) how Andrews’ portrayer (Hill Harper) felt about it, knowing it would also take Andrews out of the storyline ring once again. </span></span><p></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-3f52fd93-7fff-2963-b668-72a7ec889cfd" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But here we got something of an Andrews bombshell: not only were he and his wife separating, but it was because she’s leaving him for another man? Ouch. Also, oof. Also, woah. It came as a surprise not only because it’s a story that has completely taken place off-screen, but because on the few occasions we </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">have </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">had a reference to Isabel since S1-- such as in S3’s “Fractured” or S4’s “Frontline” 2 parter-- Andrews appeared to adore his wife. Even as recently as the “Dr. Ted” episode, he spoke of he and Isabel as one cohesive unit (when having to deal with questions about their efforts to have a family).</span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">As little information as we have about that relationship, there’s really no place to complain about a storyline not making any sense. Do I wish, as with Glassman & Debbie, that they could find a story for Andrews that didn’t require</span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/BC/AE/BCAEF33A-6C12-050A-4A11-4F7316459E89/159451_3849-450x0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="450" height="133" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/BC/AE/BCAEF33A-6C12-050A-4A11-4F7316459E89/159451_3849-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></span></div><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">his marriage to dissolve? Certainly. But they seem to be looking for a clear path to Andrews as a single man (for the first time in nearly 3 decades!) in S5, and this-- from the unexpected flirtfest with Ana, to his confession about the marriage in ruins, to his parting ways with his wedding band in the name of life-saving medicine-- unabashedly sets the stage for exactly that.</span></span><p></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><u><br /></u></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/90/57/9057BE1E-3275-6D2E-EF31-067E43783CD0/159449_5174-450x0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="450" height="160" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/90/57/9057BE1E-3275-6D2E-EF31-067E43783CD0/159449_5174-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></span></div><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><u>Claire</u></span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I know the haters are neither reading this blog post of mine nor paying attention to much with TGD (aside from their own assorted desires for vindictiveness), but the way Claire’s exit was crafted so lovingly is a testament to Shore and Company, AND the character they created, AND the person playing her… it just seems all the more ridiculous to question the show’s intentions for this woman.</span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/D4/41/D441A930-E57F-C214-0A24-198AF80DBBD3/159449_4573-450x0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="450" height="160" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/D4/41/D441A930-E57F-C214-0A24-198AF80DBBD3/159449_4573-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We had a BIG hint at Claire’s next career move when they showed the hug between her and Shaun in the promo for “Vamos”, but even then, I wasn’t convinced she’d be gone for good. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What about her relationship with her dad? </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I wondered.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> What about that much-anticipated (?) battle among the fifth-year residents? Aren’t we going to see her in a happy, well-balanced relationship at SOME point? </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">All good questions, I guess (as Lim would say/did say), but when Antonia Thomas is ready to call it a day, what can you do-?</span></span><p></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The answer was a little journey of self-discovery for Claire in her final TGD season: Start with a profound effort at closure for her relationship with Melendez, Then build that friendship with Lim while also adapting to a leadership role (with the Newbies). Then test that leadership role in a different way when Newbie Boardshorts asks her to coffee… forming a loose bond that ultimately foreshadows her own future (remember, it was Boardshorts who left St. B to take his skills to more needy areas of the world, prompting Claire to look outside the St. B box herself with that European tour search).</span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Then test that friendship role with Lim as the latter’s PTSD requires significant interference (for lack of a better word) on Claire’s part to get her on a path out of the dark. THEN bring Claire’s estranged father into the mix, creating a mini-arc that not only helps Claire clear the Breeze that still lingers like an unrelenting fog (see what I did there), but points her toward an actual future with surviving parent Miles. For however long he has, anyway… he’s still terminally ill, right?</span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Perhaps the best thing about Claire’s exit, for me, was how her heart-on-her-sleeve approach was treated like the beautiful asset it is. Or, at least, as it is perceived by Dr. Karla through the Guatemalan lens. </span></span><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: georgia; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For a character whose very first scene in TGD’s pilot was cavorting with a fellow resident in a bunk of the on-call room (telling Dr. Kalu “We don’t have ‘a relationship’, we have </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: georgia; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">sex</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: georgia; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">” if I recall correctly), she’s taken quite the ride over this four years. I’ll miss her, but her departure from the show-- all the way to her influence of the final two episode titles of S4, and getting the last scene/last words-- could not have been done any better.</span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/14/AC/14ACE867-BF65-91CF-A83D-7E228AC6AEC5/159449_2342-450x0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="450" height="133" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/14/AC/14ACE867-BF65-91CF-A83D-7E228AC6AEC5/159449_2342-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></span></div><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></span><p></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Small correction: perhaps the VERY best thing about Claire’s exit is that it may have taken us back to GhostMelendez’s final words about how he “can’t wait to see” what lies ahead for her, but it DID. NOT. dredge a single hint of a Melendez specter into her exit. I don’t know if the lingering Melendaires of the world were bitching about this or not; I highly doubt it was even considered (especially when Lim mentioned “losing a friend last year” in the same episode and didn’t say his name). And last I heard, Nick Gonzalez is shooting a new series in Australia, so… let’s just say the need to move on is strong all the way around here. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Vamos</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, indeed.</span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(Okay, that covers the two individuals. What about the two non-#Shea couples?)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(Uh-oh, I mentioned Shaun and Lea again; another commenter is approaching the mic)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><i>“It’s amazing how much Shaun has grown, and Lea has a great deal to do with that. She helped him from the day she met him. Sure, she gets impatient at times; frankly that’s understandable...</i></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-869a80bf-7fff-bcdc-98ec-c11306649c96" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><i>“Shaun has always been ahead of Lea as far as moving forward with the relationship. That’s why it was important for her to pop the question, particularly, given her emotional struggle. That showed she was unequivocally into the relationship.”-- Julianna</i></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: #112233; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/AE/DF/AEDF6900-2898-91D2-68C0-7EAFE371ED2C/159449_2924-450x0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="450" height="160" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/AE/DF/AEDF6900-2898-91D2-68C0-7EAFE371ED2C/159449_2924-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></span></div><span style="background-color: #112233; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: georgia; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Ain’t that the truth, Julianna! From wanting to uproot his San Jose residency and accompany her back to Hershey (S1), to wanting them to be roommates (S2), to wanting them to pursue romance (S3), to wanting to live together </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: georgia; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">again</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: georgia; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">, now as lovers… some of Shaun’s “wants” have been premature, and rooted in the naivete of a man who entered the relationship game considerably later than his neurotypical peers. But with the exception of his S1 “request”, Lea has come around to his way of thinking time and time (and time) again.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Maybe this time, it was as simple as Shaun keeping this one, ginormous “want” all to himself because he feared asking too soon… if ever.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For better or worse (no pun intended), he’s probably wanted to marry Lea longer than he’s ever realized. When he said “I love you, Lea. I want to be your boyfriend” back in S3, he said </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">boyfriend</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> with such reverence it was clear he regarded the opportunity as few others might. To upgrade that one day to Lea’s </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">husband? </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I wonder if he dared to dream that far, even after they resumed living together.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-ae2236fa-7fff-2870-8d6c-4923dff2c1c8"></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Whoops! I went off on a #Shea tangent again. Where was I on this part dedicated to THE OTHERS? Oh, right, I’m up to “M”... as in</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/99/3D/993D15A4-305A-9FE7-790E-C3B59D52DD0F/159450_3399-450x0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="450" height="160" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/99/3D/993D15A4-305A-9FE7-790E-C3B59D52DD0F/159450_3399-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><u>MatLim (Mateo and Lim)</u></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-475cd3ff-7fff-bac8-33f3-97afbc2cecfb" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Maybe it has something to do with the number of Latinx fans on my personal Twitter feed, but DANG, if Dr. Mateo </span><span style="background-color: #f8f9fa; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Rendón Osma </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">isn’t one to quickly have fans saying </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Melendez who???</span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Dr. Audrey Lim may not have been with TGD since the very beginning as Claire was, but her importance as a calm, cool-to-a-fault figure of authority should never be taken lightly. Along with that comes, as it did with Claire, a healthy dose of us quietly wishing for something good to come her way-- especially this year. So no wonder some of us (ME!) were looking at those preview photos from “Venga” and hoping the sparks we saw already flying between Lim and Dr. Mateo were legit.</span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/E7/A4/E7A4218A-F125-4AB5-2FCB-5EA92EE7C4D3/159362_3382-0x300.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="200" height="200" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/E7/A4/E7A4218A-F125-4AB5-2FCB-5EA92EE7C4D3/159362_3382-0x300.jpg" width="133" /></a></span></span></div><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br />And to hear Osvaldo Benavides was joining the cast next season? For me, that did indeed cushion the blow of Thomas’ departure. The fight for meaningful screen time on TGD will obviously continue in S5-- lest we forget, the newbie characters of Jordan and Wolke will both have expanded roles now-- but I see Mateo (I guess I’ll start calling nicknaming him “Osma” at some point, since Shaun is the only guy I call by his first name) as a great asset for whatever amount of time TGD still has on the air. His looks, and his chemistry with Lim… terrific bonuses. But most important-- I just liked the character from the moment he came on screen. What more can you ask? </span></span><p></p></li></ul><div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/BD/CA/BDCA53F0-938F-17B6-A68E-370BE5FEE6CF/159449_5041-450x0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="450" height="133" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/BD/CA/BDCA53F0-938F-17B6-A68E-370BE5FEE6CF/159449_5041-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></div></div><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-0ad43ba5-7fff-5763-86fc-604a5cd77936"><u><br /></u><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><u>ParNick (Park/Reznick)</u></span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Real talk time: As the finale approached and news spread that newbies Jordan and Wolke were moving to series regulars next year, I couldn’t help but think Guatemala would end up calling away at least one existing regular… but rather than presume that to be Claire, I feared it would be </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Morgan</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> that was a goner-- the fact that she’s no longer in the surgical mix, combined with that was looking more and more like a dead-end situation with Park, prompted me to wonder if Morgan could be the one to connect in Central America (a funny thought, now, considering how much emphasis was placed on Claire’s bighearted nature and she and Morgan appear to be polar opposites in that regard). Anyway, I didn’t want it to be Morgan… I think a character like that is much tougher to do without than, say, a “Claire”.</span></span></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But what the hell are they doing with Morgan and Park?</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> I kept wondering. Like I’ve felt the past two seasons with #Shea (though with admittedly less concern), #Parnick seemed wound into a futile situation: a friends-with-benefits deal that left one urging the other to spend more time in the dating ring (?)... then a colleagues, no-benefits deal that left other colleagues rolling their eyes in collective frustration (??)... then a we’re-nothing-to-each-other scenario on the mission trip that started with all the passive-aggressive drama of a dozen high school relationships I either witnessed or participated in myself--</span></span></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Aha! That’s it! From wisecracks, to amateur private eye work, to practical jokes, to the yes-I-care/no-I-don’t/hey-come-back-I-was-just-kidding stuff, Park and Morgan tread so many miles of elementary-school romance (sexual component notwithstanding), I was starting to think they could seriously benefit from conversations with relative novice Shaun. (It could still happen in S5!). </span></span></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Even the “You think you love me?/I do/I think I love you too” exchange on the bus felt much younger than they actually are… and put reader Amy Danko in a certain <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bb4FMn-IWEY" target="_blank">Partridge Family frame of mind…</a></span></span></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">But the real reckoning of #Parnick came when Morgan attempted to perform surgery in an emergency situation in Guatemala, only to have Park finish her work when her RA pain became unbearable. I’d been waiting much of the season for Morgan’s anguish about her career to boil over; now it appears the reason we hadn’t seen it was her offscreen PT progress… and, presumably, an odds-defying strategy to get back into the OR. (While once again I’d have appreciated seeing some of this during the season, we know how these things go on TGD.)</span></span></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">For a while there during “Vamos” I thought she was going to pull it off, truly creating a game-changer of a moment. But if she’d found true success with her surgical efforts in Guatemala, her sweet and vulnerable conversation with </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/71/F4/71F4EC21-5D89-B3A4-ED5B-07C06FA11246/159449_5043-450x0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="450" height="133" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/71/F4/71F4EC21-5D89-B3A4-ED5B-07C06FA11246/159449_5043-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></span></div><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Park-- you know, the one that apparently caused him to call his girlfriend back home and break up with her that same night-- might never have happened. It was an incredibly effective way to finally bring these two together for real…</span></span><p></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Now, if the writers can just work on developing Park’s character even more in S5-? When Kellan disappeared after his contributions to "Frontline," half of Park's storyline opportunities disappeared as well. </span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-ab6dc88e-7fff-404f-e0b4-ffab576c7c75"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Before I get back to our personal Main Event of this season finale, there are a few things I wanted to note about the Spanish-language pair of songs used near the end… and hold up, it appears I’ve got another reader who can’t wait any longer to speak his mind:</span></p><i><br /></i><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>“...Even my lofty expectations were greatly exceeded. While I didn't count out the possibility of Lea proposing, I certainly didn't foresee it going the way it did. The feelings were pure; they were genuine. It was so low-key, and yet, it resonated so greatly.</i></span></p><i><br /></i><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>And the reactions from the others were nothing short of great joy and happiness. I just loved Park's bro-hug with Shaun, followed by his more robust "big brother" type hug with Lea. They've all had a role in the Shea journey, at one point or another. And that celebration felt like a major "St. Bonaventure family moment."-- Tony</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitD-bAX8fSdpvk9fyhfAAeA3ce6eLlVKgQnQK5gdglFBPD9PXiSZ0iUaH4pRGv1d0hbDG1QryUyTk3RTHX34DT5B7RKJ17Iv3Db6wJ_1_xNtEbkuJgaCU52w19I0Kh7xAUn5lwF_0MBasb/s4608/IMG_20210611_230438.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitD-bAX8fSdpvk9fyhfAAeA3ce6eLlVKgQnQK5gdglFBPD9PXiSZ0iUaH4pRGv1d0hbDG1QryUyTk3RTHX34DT5B7RKJ17Iv3Db6wJ_1_xNtEbkuJgaCU52w19I0Kh7xAUn5lwF_0MBasb/w200-h150/IMG_20210611_230438.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span><p></p></span></span></div><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-48657332-7fff-6cc5-bcb1-c032948a6d84"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Well said, Tony! Even when we </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">know </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">we’re going to love what TGD does with #Shea, it never ceases to amaze me how </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">much</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> I end up loving it.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">The reactions you mention in your second paragraph happened while the second of the two songs played… And I will get to that as soon as I finish mentioning</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">“El Invento” (The Invention) by Jose Gonzalez, described in Wikipedia as a </span><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Swedish </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indie_folk" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">indie folk</span></a><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> singer-songwriter and guitarist from </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gothenburg" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Gothenburg</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> (Sweden)...</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: #ffffcc; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">“The song is about the questions—who we are, where we’re going, and why? Whom can we thank for our existence? Historically, most traditions have invented answers to these questions. Thereof the name of the song: The Invention (god).” - José Gonzale</span><span style="background-color: #eeeeee; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">z</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">“El Invento” was heard in the final act of the finale, starting with the little clips of the doctors saying goodbye to their respective cases... and faded out for good just before Lim sat next to Claire and gave her the final push for taking the Guatemalan offer. (The last lyrics we heard were, in English, “Tell me where you’re going, and tell me why.”)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">The music video features a side-by-side translation of Spanish to English lyrics.... (see below)</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/j3_Zz0O4pDo" width="320" youtube-src-id="j3_Zz0O4pDo"></iframe></div><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span><p></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Then, a few minutes later, we hear "Hasta La Raiz (To the Root)" by Natalia Lafourcade... </span><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">a Mexican pop-rock and folk singer and songwriter who, since her debut in 2002, has been one of the most successful singers in Latin America (again according to Wiki). </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">It’s heard just after it hits Shaun that he and Lea have reached a new pinnacle in their relationship... and plays to the very end (the shot with the “ugly dog” that belonged to Claire’s first surgical patient-- the one that had to cede his spot on the roster during the mission trip).</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">The 1st verse (in English), heard as Shaun and Lea run toward the others:</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">I keep crossing rivers,</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Walking through forests,</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Loving the sun</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Every day I keep pulling thorns</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">From the depths of my heart</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">At night I keep igniting dreams</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">To clean every memory with sacred smoke</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">And then the chorus, which I think is the last thing we hear as Claire begins her new journey:</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">I carry you inside me, to the root</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">And, that you may grow better, you will be here</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Although I hide myself behind the mountain</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">And find a field full of sugar cane</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">There will be no way, my moonbeam,</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">For you to leave</span></p><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">With “El Invento” as the quieter, more introspective piece (literally asking </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Where are we going?</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">) and “Hasta La Raiz” as a jubilant, not-quite-so-literal response of </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">This is where we’ll be headed now… </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">what a glorious way to close out the season, musically speaking.</span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/IKmPci5VXz0" width="320" youtube-src-id="IKmPci5VXz0"></iframe></div><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">🍏🏎💍</span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-weight: 700;">🍏🏎💍</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-weight: 700;">🍏🏎💍</span></div><div><span style="font-weight: 700;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-20d12c91-7fff-c2c1-023c-2889c644aaf3"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="color: #aabbcc; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><i>“I’m sure that Kelli will touch this in her second part, but I just wanted to offer something to think about, in the meantime.</i></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="color: #aabbcc; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><i>Do you remember how many times we asked each other when the moment of Shaun’s annual meltdown would have come? Well, it never did. And he was put through very tough situations, for sure.”-- Daniela</i></span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Thank you, Daniela, for making this one such an effortless segue! 😀</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/47/1B/471BBE18-714F-1339-E9BC-9E792624298D/159449_4914-0x300.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="240" height="200" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/47/1B/471BBE18-714F-1339-E9BC-9E792624298D/159449_4914-0x300.jpg" width="160" /></a></span></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br />It’s true-- the annual Shaun Meltdown made no appearances in S4. There were moments when it seemed imminent-- the rock-throwing in “Frontline Pt. 2,” his </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">How can I be a good father? </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">bridge conversation with Claire in “Teeny Blue Eyes,” and any number of his Glassman office consults spring to mind as examples-- but it all speaks to his growth and maturity that nothing escalated to meltdown status. Hopefully Freddie Highmore isn’t disappointed by this fact; such past scenes have been exquisite showcases for his acting abilities. And we’ve yet to know what kind of turmoil they’ll subject Shaun to in S5, so anything’s possible. But steady-Eddie (or steady Shaun, LOL) was his underlying status for a whole lot of S4.</span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimgjD-FxWAthp47YqeQRDzMOdIMgQhIqXX5Q4Z-2VuvICJjburm_I6ApBkQ7WulMitjSpsS_yOehuhX0zg1uYoyH0d1QY3OgrUVdAdMC4W0tgmVJLX_aPyJxaigK4TXNHfYiNZcvx16uIo/s4608/IMG_20210611_225723.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimgjD-FxWAthp47YqeQRDzMOdIMgQhIqXX5Q4Z-2VuvICJjburm_I6ApBkQ7WulMitjSpsS_yOehuhX0zg1uYoyH0d1QY3OgrUVdAdMC4W0tgmVJLX_aPyJxaigK4TXNHfYiNZcvx16uIo/w200-h150/IMG_20210611_225723.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><p></p><i><br /></i><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><i>“This season has been about Lea growing into those words (“You make me more, Shaun”). Shaun’s answer to the proposal “of course. I love you” is pure Shaun. He’s always had the love for Lea. Lea needed to build up to this point. Shaun this season was steady as a rock for Lea. No matter the challenges and they threw a lot at them to say the least Shaun was steadfast and his love for Lea wasn’t going to be shaken. She needed to get to that place, and the proposal was Lea saying that yes she’s there too.”-- Steven</i></span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Steven, I love the idea of Lea “growing into those words” she told Shaun at the end of S3. I recall many of us saying </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">I’d really like to hear her tell him HOW he makes her “more”... </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">even if it was just to prove that it was more than a great line. The answer to that question, based on the events of S4, sound </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwiFVv3iCYvacFqdiF-zNCLj8TSrbn1G8jNVyL4tWu5ZQ0-IpcpjTlsAJI7GD6UhUHhEFopRTmLQWnxAXNsCTOHZA1Zr7THEUzk_-XZclDowQgNbCPdhiEagQqKymEG6QetGPA-Y9B_Zu2/s4608/IMG_20210611_225005.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwiFVv3iCYvacFqdiF-zNCLj8TSrbn1G8jNVyL4tWu5ZQ0-IpcpjTlsAJI7GD6UhUHhEFopRTmLQWnxAXNsCTOHZA1Zr7THEUzk_-XZclDowQgNbCPdhiEagQqKymEG6QetGPA-Y9B_Zu2/w200-h150/IMG_20210611_225005.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">like the makings of an upcoming summer post-- so for now, let’s just say that both Lea’s pregnancy and her subsequent miscarriage grew her into someone even more beautiful-- inside and out-- than any of us can really measure. </span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Here are some additional things I didn’t really think through in predicting Shaun as the proposer rather than </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">propose</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>e</i>: </span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The wish he verbalized after hearing Lea’s Hershey mini-bomb was to “make Lea less sad”-- to “want her to feel better.” Did he have a particular plan in mind? Other than </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">ask Dr. Glassman</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, I don’t think he did. So what </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrBUuvG8hCJW9JrXnAmwxqq-xf3wuK-eIARpSyvKIfBkQya98hxym44IQA3EaXxFf8ULPsj2q16gcmazdji9gfgah3rz16eBNPdbuvMylOJ4UYF0uirfHwpdRh98BdTdRiwBO0duOCGYqu/s4608/IMG_20210611_224305.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrBUuvG8hCJW9JrXnAmwxqq-xf3wuK-eIARpSyvKIfBkQya98hxym44IQA3EaXxFf8ULPsj2q16gcmazdji9gfgah3rz16eBNPdbuvMylOJ4UYF0uirfHwpdRh98BdTdRiwBO0duOCGYqu/w200-h150/IMG_20210611_224305.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br />happened, in joining Lea for the overnight ventilating session, was Shaun being not just “himself” but </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">the best version of himself. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Attentive, compassionate, determined… generous with his time, and selfless in his needs-- the latter of which was reflected from the last moments of the “Venga” episode onward. </span></span><p></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As I mentioned a moment ago, back in “Frontline Part 2” we saw Shaun distressed and throwing rocks at Glassman’s bedroom window, wondering </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">if loving someone was worth it </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">when you couldn’t even spend any time with them in person (as was the case with him and Lea during TGD’s version of the pandemic). More thorough reviews of Season 4 will come later, but I think about what Shaun has come back to repeatedly this year, from small disturbances in the #Shea landscape to the biggest ones in more recent weeks: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Yes. It’s worth it. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Be yourself-- then be </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">more</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, as you know you’re capable of thanks to this woman-- and you’ll find your reward within her.</span></span></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I guess I’m keeping all this in mind because of how </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1-k0pQO4WXBzNSKt9yc6ZgBkL3KF3Mxm3Az7WBU__ilgCyK9UseQcN_CjK-H2bxCAKBCAPD8xDXITPjUwaomiIXoWndWPAUzrhnur4GGFoQJIw1b4z3VAX11N62DDQKdqDHY6Z3c-jSqw/s4608/IMG_20210611_222523.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1-k0pQO4WXBzNSKt9yc6ZgBkL3KF3Mxm3Az7WBU__ilgCyK9UseQcN_CjK-H2bxCAKBCAPD8xDXITPjUwaomiIXoWndWPAUzrhnur4GGFoQJIw1b4z3VAX11N62DDQKdqDHY6Z3c-jSqw/w200-h150/IMG_20210611_222523.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></span></div><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">remarkably chill Shaun turned out to be about the Hershey thing. A part of me wonders if, as he and Lea made their way to the airport (and Lea had not yet revealed her decision), he had resolved that any trip Lea ended up making to Hershey would be a relatively short one… that they’d survived months apart earlier in the year; they would survive this too. (This may have been a naive take on matters, but I could certainly see him reasoning in this way.) Another part of me wonders if Shaun might’ve been just that confident that Lea wouldn’t leave-- that the cathartic situation in which they were immersed made all the difference. I think I’m going to stay with what that “first” part of me said :) What do you think?</span></span><p></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Putting all this together, and circling back to what I said in the “Venga” post about Shaun needing a certain “motivation” for wanting to get married… I guess the answer is one I hadn’t really considered: Lea herself.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">What a great way to start this next part of the journey.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">NOTE: Though I might pop in and out of the comments as they're made on this post, my next #Shea post won't be for at least two weeks...</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">But don't worry, I won't leave you in the lurch over the summer! There's plenty to discuss in the off-season!</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">💒🎊👰💍🤵</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/78/5F/785FF1F6-02EC-2160-C9E0-8BBA2E4099A1/159449_2752-450x0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="450" height="213" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/78/5F/785FF1F6-02EC-2160-C9E0-8BBA2E4099A1/159449_2752-450x0.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span><p></p><br /><br /><br /></span></div><div><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></span></span></div></span></div></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /></span></div>Kelli Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06009713326652591943noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1583562784288599702.post-77211740381733736652021-06-12T23:01:00.010-07:002021-09-24T15:07:40.972-07:00State of the #SHEA Part 39: Aquí Sigues Dentro (Here you are, still inside)-- "Vamos" Pt. 1<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_ZRVTurebQQlatoBrhYu4KwIyOpsTv9dcmDXTjGXQnx97F7DEzopZeqJoeMKqD-pXRnSE7NBzdH-canEl905bIM5b_HqSV4PDmom9jhh8H5Bh3APQk670jTNvvqMDTL-uxj6OaOYUK6Hb/s4608/IMG_20210611_225742.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_ZRVTurebQQlatoBrhYu4KwIyOpsTv9dcmDXTjGXQnx97F7DEzopZeqJoeMKqD-pXRnSE7NBzdH-canEl905bIM5b_HqSV4PDmom9jhh8H5Bh3APQk670jTNvvqMDTL-uxj6OaOYUK6Hb/s320/IMG_20210611_225742.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span id="docs-internal-guid-c8cb6f8f-7fff-ed0a-b45c-58e790f30a98"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">This whole Lea-did-the-proposing curve ball reminds me of the time I was in AP English in my senior year of high school, and we were assigned to 1) read an exceedingly well-done essay, and then 2) write a paper about all the ways our own writing didn’t measure up said exceedingly well-done essay. (Aren’t English teachers fascinating people?)</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Apparently I was pretty good at pointing out my weaknesses, for I got an “A” on that… in a class where I was a solid “B” student. It was like being told </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Yes, I agree that you suck as a writer in all the ways you articulate! Well done!</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(And then that student went on to write a book and get it published 26 years later… so kids, let that be another lesson for the file on People Whose Opinion Doesn’t Have To Matter To you!)</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">ANYWAY… technically speaking, I got it wrong about #Shea. Shaun didn’t ask Lea to marry him; Lea didn’t say yes. You know what this means? It means I have to eat ice cream.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Wait-- no it doesn’t. The important thing is that there was a proposal and an acceptance! Who said it doesn’t matter… you don’t have to--</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Yes, yes it does. I said if I got it wrong I’d “eat my words, along with some ice cream and a big ol’ spoon.” A deal’s a deal.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(</span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">crickets</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">) </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">WHERE IS MY ICE CREAM?</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Dammit, I forgot to put some for myself on the list this week.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">OK, here’s what we’ll do: For anyone who anticipated Shaun proposing on </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Good Doctor </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">season finale, treat yourself to some ice cream while reading today. I’d also love it if you share what brand and flavor you’re enjoying-- either in the comments or on Twitter. If you don’t have any right now either, get some for next week’s post.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For anyone who anticipated </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lea</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> proposing… eh, you’re too smart. No ice cream for you.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">And for the fence-straddlers who simply said THERE WILL BE A PROPOSAL AND AN ACCEPTANCE… you can grab one of those little bitty spoons and see if someone with ice cream will give you a taste. OK?</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">🍏🏎💍</span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎💍</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎💍</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-4223b7d9-7fff-90dd-af2d-0c01a0279a33"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Everything about Lea being the one to break tradition and propose to her man made sense: she’s a bit of a non-conformist; a free spirit who doesn’t often do as other women do (drive a vintage car, change her own flat tires, thrive in the men-driven STEM world). She’s taken on cybersecurity demons, towing company scammers, and the impossibly daunting challenge of performing emergency surgery in the middle of nowhere. The </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">very relationship she’s in (NT/ASD)</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> is highly unique, for crying out loud! How does anything about Lea Dilallo scream “traditional”?</span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Except for one, huge caveat: Lea hadn't been herself of late. Crushed with sorrow and turned inside out by grief, she’d reached a point where separating from the one closest to her heart actually seemed like the solution-- or at least the start of one.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-bb44c991-7fff-936a-fb39-a25b26556578" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">How could </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">this</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> version of Lea-- the one who found herself telling Shaun she couldn’t look into his blue eyes without missing their baby girl terribly-- find a way back towards happiness itself in a week’s time, much less a proposal? </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I think it all comes back to that concept of keeping their coordinates closely aligned, as introduced by Shaun in “The Uncertainty Principle” (4.7) after learning Lea had an ex-husband. They’d done a pretty good job of navigating their world as a team this year, but the pregnancy is what raised the stakes significantly. Every step on this new course strengthened their bond exponentially, from the very decision to embrace their new future to the highs and lows of prenatal development.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">As for the abrupt tragedy that left them brokenhearted (as one), they got through the early phases of it together-- but a situation so complex and emotionally fraught can remain an all-hands-on-deck kind of thing indefinitely. That’s the part they learned the hard way.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It’s easier to see how couples can unravel over such losses-- a miscarriage, an infant, a child at practically any age-- when you think of all the ways they need to be strong </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">before</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> the loss to weather everything that happens </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">after</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> it. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">But those coordinates… that alignment! Shaun and Lea had it all going for them all the way up until the weeks leading into Guatemala. These were weeks we couldn’t really see, other than the camping trip of “Forgive or Forget,” but we knew they were coming and we knew they’d be difficult. Head-back-to-Hershey difficult? Maybe not. But that’s because those are the words of a woman who’d strayed off course. (In opening up to Shaun during the Guatemala trip, at least he was spared the sound of that cowbell ringing… had she opted to ring it at all.)</span></span></p><div><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-fa3e872b-7fff-9043-8426-8292a8f86dd8"><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">My point is that Shaun and Lea hadn’t drifted far enough apart yet to make reconnecting the Herculean task it is for others. As you likely know by now, it all came together in relatively little shared screen time, and with very little dialogue…</span></span></p><div><br /></div></span></div><span id="docs-internal-guid-36ff5aeb-7fff-5afc-6f4d-44899270b565"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(As I’ll break down now)</span></span></p><div><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div></span><p><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">🍏🏎💍</span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎💍</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎💍</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/CB/F0/CBF090E6-57BB-8F75-8516-68D4ACE9AF3C/159450_3248-450x0.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="450" height="213" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/CB/F0/CBF090E6-57BB-8F75-8516-68D4ACE9AF3C/159450_3248-450x0.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; white-space: pre-wrap;"><p style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><span style="font-size: large;"><b>PART 1: </b>Shaun/Lea in their hotel room, getting ready to head to the hospital the morning after Lea’s revelation (making this the fourth of what was supposed to be a 10-day stay)… </span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>LEA: How are you feeling?</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>SHAUN: I want you to feel better. So if going home might make you feel better… it’s a good thing.</b></span></span></p><p><span id="docs-internal-guid-71ad075b-7fff-0ee4-b881-5a5a658cba05"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDJG8bxJ5UjsuyWXuW7hvKshwhrtekNLM2O6y08RhAeEyPrRAMLmyGD96_FLn7mPeqYPxsr4HWyjiTT8FI9PV1sGu_9WQ6XOjx6XmgC728cBr1a1oZPPD39bqEEJenZeXSayJhRPcL2CBl/s4608/IMG_20210611_222530.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDJG8bxJ5UjsuyWXuW7hvKshwhrtekNLM2O6y08RhAeEyPrRAMLmyGD96_FLn7mPeqYPxsr4HWyjiTT8FI9PV1sGu_9WQ6XOjx6XmgC728cBr1a1oZPPD39bqEEJenZeXSayJhRPcL2CBl/w200-h150/IMG_20210611_222530.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Lea’s face in response to Shaun’s words was a puzzle to me. <span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">She's spent the past year getting more attuned than ever to Shaun’s ways of communication; nonetheless, she still must have plenty of “I don’t know what you’re thinking” moments such as Claire alluded to in her final moments with Shaun. I think this was one of those times. Unless she was simply stunned by the selfless nature of Shaun’s words, that is...</span></span><p></p><p><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilrXSf7URds2D9AwGHCHwtiljD-QMOz5sWTnlG60rcPmVDrqwmMVnMF8bx8NbOHaVd-3SPLibP2kk9lqyzhQthLf9zFYiRP4fg_Zrwu3xlwruSsz11kqXWR1ZGM-Rnwmak6NqnBmqbuqI3/s4608/IMG_20210611_222957.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilrXSf7URds2D9AwGHCHwtiljD-QMOz5sWTnlG60rcPmVDrqwmMVnMF8bx8NbOHaVd-3SPLibP2kk9lqyzhQthLf9zFYiRP4fg_Zrwu3xlwruSsz11kqXWR1ZGM-Rnwmak6NqnBmqbuqI3/w320-h240/IMG_20210611_222957.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>PART 2: </b>Lea is back at the nursery, learning about Bella’s low oxygen levels. (I loved the way Sofia and Lea worked through their language barrier throughout their acquaintance, didn't you?) When Lea fully realizes Bella’s problem, I presume her “I’m so sorry” is punctuated by the realization this sounds like the very problem that caused her miscarriage. Or similar enough.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Even though that power outage emphasized in the PR release for "Vamos" was surprisingly short… at least, to me... I still expected that to be where Lea’s “tech support” role might kick in. (Shore named this as her role there in some of his interviews so I just went with it.) Not sure why I’d think that…! </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJlfLnj8ZNH5PTe2FhVQL_bIpyQn26D2Iemr4NpSJrG1QY2efI5JUmiY2F3ZV5J8FQbrHxiV23XiHWyNuKm70uAC-Iv3jUtUFXv0mD3qHnoQ27zRg7xfcV9zEOnVs2hr5oaeLkKGrj8ejB/s4608/IMG_20210611_223005.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJlfLnj8ZNH5PTe2FhVQL_bIpyQn26D2Iemr4NpSJrG1QY2efI5JUmiY2F3ZV5J8FQbrHxiV23XiHWyNuKm70uAC-Iv3jUtUFXv0mD3qHnoQ27zRg7xfcV9zEOnVs2hr5oaeLkKGrj8ejB/w200-h150/IMG_20210611_223005.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br />I suppose her <span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">real</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> role could have been as simple as, say, helping with a video call connection gone wrong. Guess it’s a good thing Shaun’s connection to Glassman’s office was crystal clear…</span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Otherwise, maybe it was primarily a volunteer effort on her part, e.g. getting blankets for patients, getting a nurse’s attention when someone needs it… </span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-2a9d3e31-7fff-d372-5eab-189f69a31b9e"></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">But then came the reason that emerged by circumstance: Sofia and Bella. And Shaun.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>PART 3: </b>Lea/Sofia/baby Bella. Bella’s in trouble; the nurse brings in a ventilator. Meanwhile, Shaun has his conversation with Glassman.</span></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/29/25/29257AF3-ECE0-0036-F672-271D31F0D083/159450_5350-0x300.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="200" height="200" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/29/25/29257AF3-ECE0-0036-F672-271D31F0D083/159450_5350-0x300.jpg" width="133" /></a></div><span id="docs-internal-guid-2c33ffbc-7fff-eb6d-f5d1-6aedc10ed499"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What can be said about Shaun and Glassman’s conversation that hasn’t already been said? </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The mentor retreats, </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> as Andreas noted on Twitter. Partly inspired by his own dry well of Good Relationship Advice, and partly by careful observation… Glassy handed the wheel right back to Shaun and gave him an encouraging nudge.</span></span></span><p></p><p><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1VkUVBHPsLwaRNL1HeJHcuryxsafHzpP8zx7FBQuCJXOC6RS2OWUzD2Owd9U0eIIpWqLmh58xaHSZS76X916tpWmpD3S7fd5P8xhDmLp786xSLFIXUwWZBt4TRB1Uv4FZ3UxNSIciD5HR/s4608/IMG_20210611_223824.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1VkUVBHPsLwaRNL1HeJHcuryxsafHzpP8zx7FBQuCJXOC6RS2OWUzD2Owd9U0eIIpWqLmh58xaHSZS76X916tpWmpD3S7fd5P8xhDmLp786xSLFIXUwWZBt4TRB1Uv4FZ3UxNSIciD5HR/w320-h240/IMG_20210611_223824.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>PART 4: </b>Lea returns to the nursery the next day and finds Sofia working with a handheld ventilator because the electric one had to be used elsewhere. The nurse had to be elsewhere too. Lea vows to stay and help “as long as it takes”.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMsCA61Zm7ur-UmzKtR5kd4QEC7ev08b78-x1DqLau-Z3z-tWl2KjAivmUkVYOLc2VAYM1_q9zVvD3mIzIL5g4GA76STMbXfcMHLevmexTzdxV3kimydCSV00hqR5KfVro1s37dJoYorLF/s4608/IMG_20210611_224007.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMsCA61Zm7ur-UmzKtR5kd4QEC7ev08b78-x1DqLau-Z3z-tWl2KjAivmUkVYOLc2VAYM1_q9zVvD3mIzIL5g4GA76STMbXfcMHLevmexTzdxV3kimydCSV00hqR5KfVro1s37dJoYorLF/w200-h150/IMG_20210611_224007.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It’s not tha</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">t I ever really doubted Lea could be so utterly selfless…but if she had panicked and run off to find someone, </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">anyone </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">other than her to help in such a dire situation, who could’ve blamed her? But Sofia didn’t know quite what she was asking; knew nothing of Lea’s past few months of heartache-- she just knew she was a kind American who’d gifted her with tiny baby socks a day or so earlier. </span></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-ee55f128-7fff-3416-a2c1-8f0394f19dd8"></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">When push came to shove, though, Lea didn’t need much time to mull a decision. She was needed, so she was in. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQqZxTbKb4TczYHOL_r-uup3oCNPcddzP8u1q7gsuC98MeTBBKuH1ZdmMR2oU-lVosfmjszpCSEeJYNIrHzdlY1kL_KKmFNLT0fhqKZIuczBMXcRM-5uU2UvaAoY0jjtx8Vbcg8IOaFijr/s4608/IMG_20210611_224126.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQqZxTbKb4TczYHOL_r-uup3oCNPcddzP8u1q7gsuC98MeTBBKuH1ZdmMR2oU-lVosfmjszpCSEeJYNIrHzdlY1kL_KKmFNLT0fhqKZIuczBMXcRM-5uU2UvaAoY0jjtx8Vbcg8IOaFijr/s320/IMG_20210611_224126.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>PART 5: </b>Lea’s working the ventilator. Sofia is exhausted but wants to take over…Lea convinces her otherwise. Lea keeps going. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-08af3607-7fff-a8c0-001f-83d37db8b724"></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">This is a long night for every St. B-vite on the trip, so for solidarity reasons alone, it’s nice Lea had her own critical job in those wee hours. Sofia’s desperate need for shut-eye lets us know just how late in the night/early in the morning it was getting… </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvlF4243wMxlLy3W1vHIVNXZVUf3Qppk5OmlRhaMv1x3gCyf7fMBgXurCTUgQiKZHBDblYx5CayKh-HNSGwTQ1yptqNhJPhaLo5_jatRWuelIikU5uppoLdU36pfvzCOcvG8lAIUOKEF3P/s4608/IMG_20210611_224241.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvlF4243wMxlLy3W1vHIVNXZVUf3Qppk5OmlRhaMv1x3gCyf7fMBgXurCTUgQiKZHBDblYx5CayKh-HNSGwTQ1yptqNhJPhaLo5_jatRWuelIikU5uppoLdU36pfvzCOcvG8lAIUOKEF3P/w320-h240/IMG_20210611_224241.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">...All of which made Shaun’s coming on the scene in the 11th hour (technically 3 or 4 AM) all the more touching.</span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>PART 6: </b>Lea w/baby… Shaun comes in and silently takes over for her. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Really, they could have scripted this a little differently and made it even more poignant; I wouldn’t be surprised if there is a deleted scene of Shaun coming down the hospital corridor yawning, sees Lea through the nursery window, and straightens up and walks towards her. As presented, though, we assume he’s just come over from the OR (still has his surgical cap on), spotted Lea, thought of her well-being immediately, and came to help.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidEXC0JuaEDc7jPcsNEVNoDfC-AvBGz-K-o_EGJcIKAqHrXB-lmnam5On2fj9So2KVYqNq6ZvirmBs5FXb1zdHOngNLxbmPjaWNp8qROVuxMpeHO-Ec4XIe6qMNl3gs-Hsi6sBSZeFz1jn/s4608/IMG_20210611_224259.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidEXC0JuaEDc7jPcsNEVNoDfC-AvBGz-K-o_EGJcIKAqHrXB-lmnam5On2fj9So2KVYqNq6ZvirmBs5FXb1zdHOngNLxbmPjaWNp8qROVuxMpeHO-Ec4XIe6qMNl3gs-Hsi6sBSZeFz1jn/w200-h150/IMG_20210611_224259.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The looks of quiet compassion between them speak volumes. They </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">have</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> to. Lea’s primary reason for even thinking of returning to Hershey was that Shaun had an ability to move past their collective grief that she didn’t have. Was it because his ASD has kept him from fully accessing his feelings so far? The jury is still out on that I guess; I’ve seen some viewers speculate that Shaun might not hit his fullest moments of grief until next season but it seems quite possible that Lea was correct.</span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3dmBKcwx-q6iR4if6MFFxc-9_RuoT3ONXe5Y9YlPCkzqmDL4yPgNg0ilw9g-UO4zBbNzuNw5PSvJx7uhyphenhyphenD_jlyzv3zCP1PYhhlrFObtkIetZf-tdU-xvOU8zVmWyQRTb5FpS7G-TdW4WR/s4608/IMG_20210611_224305.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3dmBKcwx-q6iR4if6MFFxc-9_RuoT3ONXe5Y9YlPCkzqmDL4yPgNg0ilw9g-UO4zBbNzuNw5PSvJx7uhyphenhyphenD_jlyzv3zCP1PYhhlrFObtkIetZf-tdU-xvOU8zVmWyQRTb5FpS7G-TdW4WR/w200-h150/IMG_20210611_224305.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But the point is not where Shaun was in his own grieving...it’s where THEY are. If she’s still struggling, then they’re both struggling. As I reminded in the last post, it was absolutely crucial for Lea to keep communicating her grief to Shaun for him to even try to understand it. Now that she’d done that, Shaun’s job as he saw it was to support her in every way possible. His way of saying that-- “make her not sad</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">”</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">His way of </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">doing</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> that was to remind her that they’re in this together (working through the night to manually ventilate Bella).</span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-c20495e4-7fff-972a-a40c-b8d36614501e"></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKriYsWF1fnjwwQhWRdTrImkqzl8f8EDHHRWPgRFt4eZSSAXdgsbtoglAzOyCVG_rstBj93SAHSDl-XaE1D5D7dvwAautuAu26YVeywcPjdVPPIch72RxvMAX9TgmSntiFjMJdS7EU9tJH/s4608/IMG_20210611_224307.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKriYsWF1fnjwwQhWRdTrImkqzl8f8EDHHRWPgRFt4eZSSAXdgsbtoglAzOyCVG_rstBj93SAHSDl-XaE1D5D7dvwAautuAu26YVeywcPjdVPPIch72RxvMAX9TgmSntiFjMJdS7EU9tJH/s320/IMG_20210611_224307.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br />Such a lovely irony in that this crucial scene was played out without a single word… Ironic because we’re used to Shaun and Lea <span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">needing</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> the words at times (see previous statements about communication), and because it’s typically very difficult to follow Shaun’s lead if it is based on something like eye contact. But one year into their coupledom, the eye contact isn’t just there for Shaun and Lea where it isn’t with Shaun and others… it’s everything. It’s </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">you’re not alone; we’re in this together. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It’s </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I know what assisting this baby means to you and I want to help make this happen. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It’s </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">nothing matters more to me right now than being with you.</span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKlKYrQxC-2FcfG2JM1qYzyeZa3SupkPah5wT7ZqHztj-rVGWCht09C21iKJrk8qprptfz2bLVP_A_rtP-KxztlZ9o6VaPxrRISE5juwUr5Ps_2TBUZKnUZqd0sgViIvQidAwUIiwPBqOn/s4608/IMG_20210611_224825.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKlKYrQxC-2FcfG2JM1qYzyeZa3SupkPah5wT7ZqHztj-rVGWCht09C21iKJrk8qprptfz2bLVP_A_rtP-KxztlZ9o6VaPxrRISE5juwUr5Ps_2TBUZKnUZqd0sgViIvQidAwUIiwPBqOn/s320/IMG_20210611_224825.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">PART 7: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun and Lea w/Sofia. Shaun listens to the baby's lungs and, with his encouragement, baby Bella is soon breathing on her own. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Did you catch the steroids parallel? It was steroids that were given (in utero) to Shaun and Lea’s baby girl with the hope that they would foster her lung development when it became necessary. It was also steroids that were needed to help baby Isabella breathe on her own/get enough oxygen. So, again, it wasn’t just about helping save a baby girl but about helping save a baby girl struggling in a way similar to their unborn baby girl.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">By this scene, another hour or two has passed from the time Shaun joined them in the nursery (judging from the daylight in the background of the Park/Morgan scene ahead of this). I don’t know how long it takes for steroids to take effect, but it must’ve been at least 10 hours of doing the handheld ventilator alone, and a day before that when she got on the electric ventilator. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Shaun surely knows Bella’s chances for success at this point, but Lea’s still hesitant-- it takes five long seconds for her to “stop bagging” and place the little ventilator into Shaun’s outstretched hand. Perhaps guilt continued to linger in her mourning; that fear that she’d done something to cause the miscarriage making her worry that if she stopped helping a moment too soon with Bella…?</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">But it doesn’t take long before Bella’s little gurgle fills the room like a symphony. Shaun is pleased, and Lea is delighted-- as is mama Sofia, of course. But she has one more request of Lea…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-985a26c0-7fff-ddcd-22c0-94c9102ffb53" style="font-weight: normal;"></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-985a26c0-7fff-ddcd-22c0-94c9102ffb53" style="font-weight: normal;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmgCBNhn1dE0MtuJiT-PuXmkBe5TFuTlubJ32PizO5RqIngPxULSgyeDWirRSQ9LPTjYG5Sq57WyEolu_xeEEZ6dki9zWpjYeuDqZeOhWhqqWFPVFt49WxyhZrqafaX5EfVlG0kdqC_rw_/s4608/IMG_20210611_224921.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmgCBNhn1dE0MtuJiT-PuXmkBe5TFuTlubJ32PizO5RqIngPxULSgyeDWirRSQ9LPTjYG5Sq57WyEolu_xeEEZ6dki9zWpjYeuDqZeOhWhqqWFPVFt49WxyhZrqafaX5EfVlG0kdqC_rw_/s320/IMG_20210611_224921.jpg" width="320" /></a></b></div><b id="docs-internal-guid-985a26c0-7fff-ddcd-22c0-94c9102ffb53" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></b></p>When she first offered to let Lea hold Bella a few days earlier, it was an effort of friendliness/politeness that was ultimately declined with Lea too heartbroken to say yes. (It occurs to me now that Lea would have probably been around 30 weeks along during the Guatemala trip if not for the miscarriage-- still a ways from full-term, but the this-could-have-been-her factor must have been very strong… sigh.)</span></b><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqHsI7nDBp4jtz-HUqLZ_G_CaBb7UX6AaE4QPfzj7XkwJ4j_PNnBawkdqlJ5r3eE1z9vSy3-o9F4ioxjNel_xzovnw3XSk0LnZx-0Bqqbt_2gEK0CQB7xVAneJCGxOIIUkJNBLrlmlHJRu/s4608/IMG_20210611_224935.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqHsI7nDBp4jtz-HUqLZ_G_CaBb7UX6AaE4QPfzj7XkwJ4j_PNnBawkdqlJ5r3eE1z9vSy3-o9F4ioxjNel_xzovnw3XSk0LnZx-0Bqqbt_2gEK0CQB7xVAneJCGxOIIUkJNBLrlmlHJRu/s320/IMG_20210611_224935.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br />This time, though, it’s like Sofia is offering all she has as a thank-you to the woman who literally stood by her on the longest, darkest night a new mother can have. And “all she has” is this beautiful, precious bundle of life that she now senses Lea can appreciate almost as much as she does. </span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">She’s right, too. Lea still looks a little fragile and scared when Shaun translates Sofia’s request, but you can see her take a little breath of courage as she faces Sofia, her eyes saying </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ok-- for you, I can do this. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Holding Bella is a transformative moment for Lea. What she thought would shatter her just a few days earlier lifts her to a new place of peace instead. It’s not permanent. We all know that. But it’s the crack in the clouds-- that glimpse of light, of <i>hope</i>-- she needs so desperately.</span></span></p><div><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPotoCX-GjzkZLlmPgm9VahtQkdqoFRPPzq869Nfbprgm9p-P4shL_siZg-lYAzPjEE2DkdTzfPJxEG9k5MNgIrIbjBiKf3bjTU0xExGcL-exmWz9iwjBfweXP5doucp0W9EqfJ5paV1-R/s4608/IMG_20210611_224950.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPotoCX-GjzkZLlmPgm9VahtQkdqoFRPPzq869Nfbprgm9p-P4shL_siZg-lYAzPjEE2DkdTzfPJxEG9k5MNgIrIbjBiKf3bjTU0xExGcL-exmWz9iwjBfweXP5doucp0W9EqfJ5paV1-R/w200-h150/IMG_20210611_224950.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinCmOi_TkP8Vv4yGP6irxEqQTnXfhvCU3gDRTfC2udElXJm4Fq7Xv2UqZMezLmnEEt1rad7s9JpRrTuJJDmJE3LTjQ021QpU6yl51aR9UQ6bTnz7UQcxzMp1gW1J0Ly9dLtimCkduqWwPx/s4608/IMG_20210611_225000.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinCmOi_TkP8Vv4yGP6irxEqQTnXfhvCU3gDRTfC2udElXJm4Fq7Xv2UqZMezLmnEEt1rad7s9JpRrTuJJDmJE3LTjQ021QpU6yl51aR9UQ6bTnz7UQcxzMp1gW1J0Ly9dLtimCkduqWwPx/w200-h150/IMG_20210611_225000.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgeD0UCTrn69mvVhnWDUtlT5jDSXT8qHWAVMz4zFS1JBFvYyrVUbtICaikScy3yxpDpikMc7F98vfrLEBY4PBbKeiJRDIgVWpDLkjg6Dw8M4ioo179xItEYVXMNhYSRvyEYf0YV-bVeZWo/s4608/IMG_20210611_225005.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgeD0UCTrn69mvVhnWDUtlT5jDSXT8qHWAVMz4zFS1JBFvYyrVUbtICaikScy3yxpDpikMc7F98vfrLEBY4PBbKeiJRDIgVWpDLkjg6Dw8M4ioo179xItEYVXMNhYSRvyEYf0YV-bVeZWo/w200-h150/IMG_20210611_225005.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>To Be Continued... next week! Along with:</b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>Cool observations and well-said summaries that you guys have made, either already on Twitter or soon in the comments</b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>Thoughts on all the other non-#Shea happenings of "Vamos"</b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>Some recognition for the two Spanish-language songs used at the end of 'Vamos"... (Hint: the title of this post ("Aqui Sigues Dentro") is a lyric from one of them.) </b></span></div>Kelli Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06009713326652591943noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1583562784288599702.post-54517673988878936422021-06-03T10:18:00.140-07:002021-06-12T14:40:02.467-07:00State of the #SHEA Part 38: Journeys (The "Venga" Episode)<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlSP6z6RO8oVC1pU2oKm0ZUgmocKF0R4CjXKOIIQUbSVmRa2NSmWEjXg51cVzb3wxQeixBChGF13Hd2_UAZwNvbNDXuJ1BEihiMytLg-se2Shf9dJHxaiISLTavRbKI1FsCGNfq03fpKAx/s4608/IMG_20210602_120744.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlSP6z6RO8oVC1pU2oKm0ZUgmocKF0R4CjXKOIIQUbSVmRa2NSmWEjXg51cVzb3wxQeixBChGF13Hd2_UAZwNvbNDXuJ1BEihiMytLg-se2Shf9dJHxaiISLTavRbKI1FsCGNfq03fpKAx/s320/IMG_20210602_120744.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /> <p></p><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-98865cd6-7fff-fae6-630b-f126eaf6db31"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">So, about that foreshadow of foreshadows that was in the “Venga” episode…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Yes. There was. Did you see it??</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">You didn’t see it???</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">MUST I DO ALL THE HEAVY LIFTING AROUND HERE??? 😂</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I’m just messing with you. Kind of. Because there </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">was </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">a clear foreshadow in my judgment...</span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and I can neither confirm nor deny any other hints floating around cyberspace in the coming week, but I will allude more directly to said foreshadow somewhere along the course of this post. Does that make it some sort of an “Easter Egg”? Yes. Let’s go with that.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(Because if I tell you now, you won’t read the rest of the post. And that will make me sad. Which will kind of make me like Lea. </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This isn’t the time for me to be like Lea, ok???</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Eh, you’ve probably retraced the show’s steps and figured it out anyway by now...</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">So let’s start talking about the rest of TGD SEASON 4 FINALE PART 1 and see where we end up…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">🍏🏎</span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As I said when I wrote about last season’s penultimate episode, the scriptwriter of “part 1” takes on the challenge of not only setting up more complex (two-part) plotlines, but the challenge of creating enough conflict, engagement, and tension throughout the </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">first</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> part to hook us through to the second. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Having said that… it’s a bad idea to compare last year’s two-part finale to this one. Natural disaster vs. mission trip? Activity of one night vs.10 days? Three main characters of the show in peril vs a wall of faces and files competing for life-changing operations? Yeah, it’s kind of like comparing </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">apples</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> to </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">plantains</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">… which is to say, even more different than apples and oranges.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Oh, and rather than #Shea officially beginning their path as a couple, we have #Shea at a fork in the road. Or so it seems. Of course we’ll get back to that.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-6bb68f4c-7fff-2b40-84b2-2750a2aa6c86"></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">But anyway, in Part 1 of this “Plantain” we also have…</span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>A UNIQUE SETTING.</b></span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-left: 72pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The mission trip is set in Guatemala, and that fact alone brought both excitement and concern to TGD’s many Latin America viewers. Excitement-- or maybe curiosity is the better word-- over how Guatemala would be represented… and concern because, historically speaking, even the best that TV and film has to offer still tend to lean on stereotypes too much when depicting another country or culture. In this instance, one only has to observe the yellowish/sepia filter used on the Guatemalan scenes (at least the outdoor ones) to know a certain “look” has been crafted here. I asked a couple of you for input…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-left: 72pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">From Vale, who lives in Chile: “There were too many cliches, stigmas, the yellowish filter… there is a pattern: many try to portray Latin America as if it was the WIld West. And in my opinion, that’s wrong.”</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-left: 72pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And from Naty, who runs the TGD Argentina account on Twitter: “The scarcity of green (in the exterior shots)... it looks as if it were the WIld West and it is not… they could have improved the scenery…” And while she applauds the show for using actors of Guatemalan descent (something she has confirmed herself), the authenticity of such things as the Guatemalan accent were mostly lost, she says, by the abundance of English used over Spanish. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-left: 72pt; margin-top: 12pt; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">As for the medical issues raised in Guatemala, Naty points out there are definitely issues that apply to Latin America as a whole: “One of the things we have in common is the collapse of the healthcare system, especially in rural areas. The limitations are practically the same (from country to country)... the only differences are the geography and the weather.” She also commended TGD for bringing up a patient’s dental issues in one particular case; adding that dental health care simply doesn’t exist everywhere. “Endocarditis kills many, many people a year in rural areas of Central America,” she added.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-left: 72pt; margin-top: 12pt; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(Feel free to bring up your own thoughts on the portrayal of Guatemala in the comments-- I know a lot more could be said about it here, but I’m gonna move on at this point…)</span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>TENSION VIA “THE KIDNAPPING”:</b></span></span></p></li><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: circle; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Okay, maybe the term Mateo used should have been “emergency kid-delivering”?? For while I didn’t exactly relish the thought of Lim and Mateo being in danger, “kidnapping” seemed pretty extreme once we were all up to speed. Certainly was a great way to bring those two closer together… (as if they needed help? I’m not sure they did.)</span></span></p></li></ul></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-03c00165-7fff-7610-9ec8-a3a9b0063446" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px; text-align: left;"><li aria-level="1" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>CONFLICT WITH PARK and MORGAN</b></span></span></p></li><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: circle; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As uncertain as I am of where these two will actually stand with each other by the end of next Monday night, part 1 set them up for </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">something</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> rather effectively: Morgan looking pretty miserable in Park’s presence from the airport onward, Park witnessing the “thank-you-for-trying” scene with Morgan and the dad in the corridor, Park looking like the wind had been knocked out of him by a linebacker with Morgan’s verbal take-down in the bar parking lot… amidst all the other activity in the episode, #Parnick could’ve easily gotten lost in the shuffle. But the time they got was pretty powerful.</span></span></p></li></ul><li aria-level="1" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>ENGAGEMENT (of sorts) wth the decisions being made about the dozen cases</b></span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 12pt;"></p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The premise of the mission, as laid out by Dr. Mateo when the St. B’vites first arrive, is mighty compelling: decide on 12 patients/operations that can be done there in a way that attracts more potential patients and, hopefully, more volunteer doctors. But the simple fact that the cases have to go into one of just three piles on that table-- and then have to be subject to a ton of scrutiny by the entire medical team-- ramps up the human interest factor. Speaking of human interest… we had Claire challenging the integrity of separating the patients’ personal stories from their assorted ailments. We had Mateo-- the very one advising “It can’t be a competition of who has the saddest story; there’d be too many winners.”-- turning around and using a patient’s elite-athlete status (a futbol star in “excellent cardio health”) to defend his own choice. </span></span></blockquote><p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2mjmLSHH4V-0wVUvV3h-tNTwiWmw-6YMI-aotchNp7xG2F3vpi9me0LVvKopX5MH_Dg2JWFw68hPTEV-2vNQEjan1M-FLOB1McLRNkM-tIvtDh6LcNr9-5dFo_iW-xIHKeYtvZFkIFII7/s4608/IMG_20210602_115228.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2mjmLSHH4V-0wVUvV3h-tNTwiWmw-6YMI-aotchNp7xG2F3vpi9me0LVvKopX5MH_Dg2JWFw68hPTEV-2vNQEjan1M-FLOB1McLRNkM-tIvtDh6LcNr9-5dFo_iW-xIHKeYtvZFkIFII7/w200-h150/IMG_20210602_115228.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><p></p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br />And then we have Morgan present her case: “She just got married last week…” she adds after discussing the patient’s tumor. “Dr. Reznick…” Mateo begins to say, warily. But Morgan presses on: “... which is medically relevant because studies have shown that optimistic people have better long-term prognosis… and </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">she is full of hope</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">.” </span></blockquote><p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWjUcU44YxyVhlGkKuDClz23-ATx5B8IyAxD32N9R36N-FOo84AX6RxT5XSBsdTx14lsKpyaB-08pI0MWbG41nwiy8s8cFQoCog0stEjwLbjiPBffPumFdeH5za_ltifinv7JOEWeSO30L/s4608/IMG_20210602_115229.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWjUcU44YxyVhlGkKuDClz23-ATx5B8IyAxD32N9R36N-FOo84AX6RxT5XSBsdTx14lsKpyaB-08pI0MWbG41nwiy8s8cFQoCog0stEjwLbjiPBffPumFdeH5za_ltifinv7JOEWeSO30L/w200-h150/IMG_20210602_115229.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><p></p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>Cue to a shot of Shaun taking notice of this, in his unique way… </span></blockquote><p> </p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">Just after Morgan’s patient gets pinned to the board, we cut to that shot of Lea, looking for blankets, about to get gutted by the sight of the happy family in the nursery.</span></blockquote><p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-jLue7k_iMymOwzdabapzv_5aAJqZX-VPpLjRV-QaYDE5aYrigXfGZy6jNbRlDtZfxsTcCglGKJlidWZaLJ6gWxyOBba2AIJAJi7VNgaR-ajIB8XDfC68BjsoNyRt2TPrLqvTR5YDZs5m/s4608/IMG_20210602_115452.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-jLue7k_iMymOwzdabapzv_5aAJqZX-VPpLjRV-QaYDE5aYrigXfGZy6jNbRlDtZfxsTcCglGKJlidWZaLJ6gWxyOBba2AIJAJi7VNgaR-ajIB8XDfC68BjsoNyRt2TPrLqvTR5YDZs5m/w200-h150/IMG_20210602_115452.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf_E5MeNdAGTtkhww7Bkoei2fR1rfe5wmsO-Sjp-pnpyC9WGnBsdptE7CcO0_EZ9vx7FMlWKs1ojWq1kLL5vpqQsyq1SgEZO9LqvLqzHfVp303_L27xKDuWpmkWNVXj84ClYHIzz7eM_vm/s4608/IMG_20210602_115456.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf_E5MeNdAGTtkhww7Bkoei2fR1rfe5wmsO-Sjp-pnpyC9WGnBsdptE7CcO0_EZ9vx7FMlWKs1ojWq1kLL5vpqQsyq1SgEZO9LqvLqzHfVp303_L27xKDuWpmkWNVXj84ClYHIzz7eM_vm/w200-h150/IMG_20210602_115456.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><p></p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Do you see it yet? Yes? Maybe? If not, ask yourself </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">why would they have those lines in there otherwise… why would Morgan, of all people, be pushing optimism and hope… and why would they show Shaun reacting oh-so-slightly? </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></blockquote><p> </p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">OK, I’m moving on for now...</span></blockquote><p></p></li><li aria-level="1" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p><br /></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>ROMANTIC INTRIGUE VIA LIM AND MATEO</b></span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 12pt;"></p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">For what it’s worth, I was cheering for Lim big-time on this. Not sure what will become of these two long-term, if anything, but it was delightful to see her get some of her mojo back after her exceedingly rough year.</span></span></blockquote><p><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">INTRIGUE WITH ANDREWS AND NURSE ANA</b></p></li><li aria-level="1" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">Also for what it’s worth…When Andrews became all dimples-and-darts during that one scene with short-haired beauty Nurse Ana, I know speculation ran high that Andrews joined the trip last-minute to escape some troubles he may have been having with his wife (echoing, maybe, Glassman’s apparent separation from Debbie). But when he assured Lim there was nothing to worry about, I believed him… my totally speculative guess is that Andrews and his wife-- who just came up in conversation for the first time in ages during the “Dr. Ted” episode-- are considering a Guatemalan adoption, and that Andrews is quietly working with Nurse Ana to facilitate that possibility. </span></p></li><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I know some of you want it to be Shaun and Lea who come away with an adoption-- we’ll circle back to that later too. Speaking of which...</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">🍏🏎</span></span>🍏🏎🍏🏎🍏🏎🍏🏎🍏🏎</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">And now, back to #Shea</span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Shaun is, as we thought, doing this mission trip without “the boot” from last week’s camping trip (from “Forgive or Forget”)... so this trip is an indicator that more time has passed… anyone know how long it takes an injury like that to heal? Three weeks? A month? 6 weeks? Anyway, if you factor in the three weeks between “Letting Go” and “Forgive or Forget,” they’re likely two or three months or so down the road now from the miscarriage of their baby girl.</span></span></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9LpJJX_f5lFTagsWwrznRFbBC0ANdM6wg0Xxei6hd4x6ksaEZ758tLlb3foE-08N1Wig1JXYfQpgsSwS8IgHr40tmdp8zDIeT5awzO_Eb7UVbBP7YlXlMPtTKFZq5sdaSKsLyDPizo4Uz/s4608/IMG_20210602_114624.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9LpJJX_f5lFTagsWwrznRFbBC0ANdM6wg0Xxei6hd4x6ksaEZ758tLlb3foE-08N1Wig1JXYfQpgsSwS8IgHr40tmdp8zDIeT5awzO_Eb7UVbBP7YlXlMPtTKFZq5sdaSKsLyDPizo4Uz/w200-h150/IMG_20210602_114624.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Glassman finally gets an exchange with Lea—<br />their first time sharing a scene since we saw her playing poker at his house at the end of “Decrypt” a million years ago—and while it couldn’t possibly make up for all the missed opportunities in between, it DID manage to capture the upgraded-but-still-edgy relationship they share in a very brief period of time with Glassman’s offer “to talk” if she needed someone (“I’m not going to do that.” “I know.”) If nothing else, it served as a sweet snapshot to hold up against to last season at this time—when his disdain for The Way She Hurt Shaun was felt all the way across the brewpub. (Pre-earthquake, of course.)</span></span><p></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">As for Shaun and Lea, it’s hard to say how they’d progressed in grieving immediately prior to Guatemala, but I inferred that Lea had slowly been getting to a place where #SheaBaby’s memory didn’t stop her in her tracks every other minute… and Shaun's most emotional moments are still to come. Once they are doing mission work in Guatemala, though, it’s like someone has thrown a giant magnifying glass on both #Shea and the things that make them stronger and more vulnerable, respectively.</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj91NA3gIkfRSDr7MJaeG98JkU9fmOn1XmohI2Giqdt7Tx-b3p1xjdEOiX9evYpJ4PD9l444djzNXT9rSX06yLgTVzCzuk6qZ3q5hyphenhyphen3QTKBD6AqKn2w6Ubmr5lBiqnYMY_amB43UUwZVRw/s4608/IMG_20210602_114918.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj91NA3gIkfRSDr7MJaeG98JkU9fmOn1XmohI2Giqdt7Tx-b3p1xjdEOiX9evYpJ4PD9l444djzNXT9rSX06yLgTVzCzuk6qZ3q5hyphenhyphen3QTKBD6AqKn2w6Ubmr5lBiqnYMY_amB43UUwZVRw/w200-h150/IMG_20210602_114918.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span><p></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: large;">Shaun is fluent in Spanish, giving him a rare communication advantage over his fellow doctors (though he was still hard on himself for neglecting to tell his patient that his ailments were treatable)</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: georgia; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lea, with presumably much less to do in </span><span style="font-family: georgia; white-space: pre-wrap;">these <br />“evaluation” days of the mission than when the operations take place next week (her official role on the mission is Tech Support), has idle time serving as an enemy here, leading her to dwell in her sorrow… especially after becoming aware of Sofia, Oscar, and baby Isabella.</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Shaun brings rash cream to rural shepherds, finds exciting challenges in the patients he sees, and even gets a spell of </span></span><b style="font-family: georgia; white-space: pre-wrap;">***ShaunVision *** </b><span style="font-family: georgia; white-space: pre-wrap;">…quelling many(?) a viewer concern that Shaun’s gifts are no longer shining through as they once were. (I posted somewhat sarcastically about this during the show Monday night, and got a fair share of responses that, um, overlooked my snarky efforts completely. Heh.)</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: large;">Lea… has apparently been getting barraged with phone calls from Mike and Pam Dilallo. Ugh. (I guess Shaun couldn’t intercept those forever.) More on this in a minute.</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: large;">It bears repeating that Shaun can neither pick up cues nor sense emotions like neurotypical people do. Lea pretty much HAS to tell him she’s sad; otherwise if she’s trying to spare “the trouble,” she’ll succeed.</span></span></p></li></ul><li><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2u198kDT6g17k3t2GiZvLy0Dc-XQG0zuebUHXnnp1UPySSvAoAFfzb3KyiJGzPFYJ5AF_12jmb6m6KElOubQT1m_htEewPYX8V_c3AM4W0W0pESqCsX-onkPaxa4022iSs-DpVG8Z0dUp/s4608/IMG_20210602_120430.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2u198kDT6g17k3t2GiZvLy0Dc-XQG0zuebUHXnnp1UPySSvAoAFfzb3KyiJGzPFYJ5AF_12jmb6m6KElOubQT1m_htEewPYX8V_c3AM4W0W0pESqCsX-onkPaxa4022iSs-DpVG8Z0dUp/w200-h150/IMG_20210602_120430.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></li><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: large;">But only if Shaun were to watch Lea pack for this trip would he have known she’d brought along the tiny pair of pink socks that Mama D apparently gifted her with a while back. Maybe she hoped passing them on to Sofia’s Isabella would be a kind gesture that also alleviated her from seeing such a painful visual reminder (what if she’s been toting those little socks around since the miscarriage?). But Lea’s grief is currently a private affair, ready to tighten its grip on her at will. Giving away every gift she ever received on her baby’s behalf won’t change that.</span></span></p></li></ul></ul><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></ul></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhapt54vqYv6CsJaFS_lk1-3umGemOp8IACz7WqgMBel-OFvZC1UjLdlQBCf17Whoq4D0tt334o7azRZcOMj7xOe_kdAVAFZtBC5qWiwm-7LzgAtgliam333OYpCl7xF2ZQo5xJazptYpPW/s4608/IMG_20210602_120453.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhapt54vqYv6CsJaFS_lk1-3umGemOp8IACz7WqgMBel-OFvZC1UjLdlQBCf17Whoq4D0tt334o7azRZcOMj7xOe_kdAVAFZtBC5qWiwm-7LzgAtgliam333OYpCl7xF2ZQo5xJazptYpPW/w200-h150/IMG_20210602_120453.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Claire is the one to notice it-- first at the bar, as she notes Lea looking adrift (it was just after Shaun offered Lea the drink he was bypassing because of the next morning’s surgery). That was followed by their little hospital corridor conversation the next day, where Lea's reasoning for keeping things to herself included the awareness that Shaun can't fix what's hurting her... and Claire says</span></span></p><p style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>“It’s not about (Shaun) fixing it… it’s about the two of you just being in this together.”</b></span></span></p><p style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(Quick question here: is anyone else intrigued by the fact that a year ago, a certain infamous conversation focused on how Shaun’s ASD can’t be “fixed”.. And now we’re talking about how Lea’s grieving can’t be “fixed” either…? If someone else wants to flesh out this parallel, have at it!)</span></span></p><p style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">By design, I suppose, Shaun and Lea’s time together in the “Venga” episode is limited almost exclusively to that scene in their hotel room near the very end. So let’s get to that…</span></span></p><p style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(A side note here: I’ve heard some take issue with the whole idea of Lea hiding her grief from Shaun in this episode, noting her tendency to try and match Shaun’s honesty with her own. Was the situation in “Venga” less than believable, structured simply to heighten the drama? I say </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">no</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, giving TGD the benefit of the doubt because of the amount of time passed since the miscarriage creating lots of leeway for change in the grieving/sharing process. But YMMV (your mileage may vary), as they say. What do you think?)</span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I think it’s when Lea references the baby as “she,” and references Shaun’s blue eyes as a painful reminder of what they’ve lost, that Shaun really starts to feel the gravitas of their situation. Actually, scratch that-- it’s just before, when Lea says “nothing” can be done to make her feel better, that serves as gut punch #1. The “she”-- that’s gut punch #2. And to hear Lea say </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">looking into his eyes</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> hurts… oof. What a helpless feeling.</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And if that weren’t bad enough, this is where Shaun (and we) learn that Lea’s parents want her to </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“come back to Hershey for a while.”</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">This felt like low-key trolling on Mike and Pam Dilallo’s part. The insinuation, to me, is a retread of their declaration earlier in the season that Lea isn’t up to the challenge brought on by a relationship with Shaun. Were they worried about Shaun? Did they suggest they BOTH come for a visit? Nope. Did they encourage Lea to be honest with Shaun about her pain? Also nope. Grrrrrr.</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“Do you… want to?”</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Shaun says in response to all this. You can tell he is dreading her answer. If she says she wants to, he’s supposed to want that for her too, right? </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What about me? What about us? </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">He must be thinking, deep inside...along with wondering where those questions are supposed to fit in amongst his everlasting desire for Lea to be happy.</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lea: </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“I think it would be good for me to get some time away… from everything…”</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Note that she didn’t say she wanted to, for whatever that’s worth. Again, I think this is a combination of her ever-judgmental parents getting in her head + her (completely understandable) state of mourning + her own nagging self-doubt; that voice now questioning if she can be what </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">he</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> needs her to be, which at the moment probably translates to be “not sad."</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD8N7Xg7Dl5TxsuvHVWpwgyXQoNlzbwZErXGoHTSCzDjpZF-cdn13W09w0Z1qIbgi5DogveJRZqWS41Z_R6JVQMl0_beumEhs0JaPD5H70Eefrkh_bYwnzRW2T5P8-H0Jg8oti8mkYKaUO/s4608/IMG_20210602_121001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD8N7Xg7Dl5TxsuvHVWpwgyXQoNlzbwZErXGoHTSCzDjpZF-cdn13W09w0Z1qIbgi5DogveJRZqWS41Z_R6JVQMl0_beumEhs0JaPD5H70Eefrkh_bYwnzRW2T5P8-H0Jg8oti8mkYKaUO/w200-h150/IMG_20210602_121001.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><p></p></li><li aria-level="1" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun then reaches out and takes her hand; not </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">one of us should be surprised because it has become their default connective move over the course of the year. But when they go back to the two-shot of them sitting on the bed, you can see how very rigid Shaun’s body has become. He’s clearly shaken by this, perhaps his greatest lingering fear about the two of them… that Lea would go away again (specifically, go back to Hershey, PA). Doesn’t matter how temporary it may be; to him, there’s every chance in the world that she wouldn’t return. </span></p></li><li aria-level="1" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“I’m sorry you’re sad” </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">is all he says. Maybe because it’s all he can get out truthfully in that moment without making it about him. But I think he’s just too stunned to say anything else.</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p></li></ul><p style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Before I jump into the theories, some general thoughts that I think are worth sharing, and/or repeating if I’ve said them before:</span></span></p><ol style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun is the central character on TGD, which makes him and Lea the central couple on the show. #Shea is not everyone’s cup of tea-- God knows there are viewers who continue to make that painfully clear. But the show has very clearly invested in making them the heart and soul of TGD, and for those of us still supporting the show on a regular basis-- all the way into a season 5-- I don’t think it’s crazy to think we’ll continue to be rewarded for our efforts for the foreseeable future. </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In other words… to worry about #Shea splitting up is to borrow trouble. So why do it?</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For me personally, I don’t need to look any further back than one season ago to recall some seriously mixed emotions. The pattern of the show is clear-- Shaun’s biggest crisis comes in the final arc (last several episodes of the season), with a more-than-satisfactory resolution by the end of the final episode. Nonetheless, I was anxious as hell watching the earthquake episodes: </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Why is Shaun getting told he should give up on Lea? When will Lea have this epiphany she needs to have already?! How will this work out??? </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And need I remind anyone that the finale itself was entitled “I Love You”--? The moment I’d heard that news, I felt relief that they were going to be OK… nonetheless, I remained anxious as the episode played out. (Yes, I know Lea wasn’t the only woman saying those words in the episode, but she was the only one saying them to the TITULAR CHARACTER on the show.) My point: if we made it through all that, we can get through this…</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And to me, "this" feels like nothing more than a red herring. (“Red herring”: </span><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">something that misleads or distracts from a relevant or important question, </span><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">by Wikipedia’s definition.) It’s a GOOD red herring, in that it’s believable that The Dilallos would try and prompt Lea to pull away from her life with Shaun. But NOTHING in the promotional material-- where they’d want to play that up big-time-- indicates #Shea is in danger. What do we see instead? </span></span></p></li><ol style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: lower-alpha; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Shaun and Lea together in the hospital nursery, perhaps providing aid to baby Isabella based on how distraught Sofia looks in some of the pictures.</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="2" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: lower-alpha; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Shaun and Lea sitting together in two different places with Lea’s head on Shaun’s shoulder, another familiar sign of affection and togetherness we’ve seen many times this year.</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="2" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: lower-alpha; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/CD/5F/CD5FBFB8-ABAF-850C-1863-5698A2A08CC0/159449_4857-0x300.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: black; font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="240" height="200" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/CD/5F/CD5FBFB8-ABAF-850C-1863-5698A2A08CC0/159449_4857-0x300.jpg" width="160" /></span></a></div><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Lea looking VERY happy in this one shot.<br /></span></span><p></p></li><li aria-level="2" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: lower-alpha; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun turning to Glassman (via FaceTime or whatever) with his fears. Glassman telling him (in context? Out of context?) “You can do anything… you’re good at this.” Shaun saying the words “People need to move forward… </span><span style="background-color: white; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I</span><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> want to move forward.”</span></span></p></li></ol><li aria-level="1" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">All of which goes to me thinking </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">They are drawing the dots VERY close together, guys. All we’ve got to do is wait until Monday and CONNECT THEM.</span></span></p></li></ol><p style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Still don’t believe me? Still thinking of how they pulled the rug out from under Melendez fans a year ago? All I can offer is that you put your critical thinking caps on extra tight, and re-read numbers 1-4. If I’m totally wrong about this, and all the fear-mongers on Reddit and Facebook and Twitter prove to be right, don’t worry-- I’ll come back and eat my words (along with a healthy amount of ice cream and a big ol’ spoon). </span></span></p></ul><div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">🍏🏎</span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-a767e45f-7fff-ca3f-6212-cb6fe0603334"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>THEORIES… oh, Lord, do we have THEORIES… </b>here are some of more realistic ones by my judgment (I'm not even going to bother with anything suggesting they're going to split up; you can find those elsewhere if you're truly interested):</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><ol style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun will insist on following Lea to Hershey—for real, this time. </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Except… again… if she’s saying she wants to “get away from everything” he may presume she doesn’t want him there.</span></span></p></li></ol><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span></span></p><ol start="2" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Something will happen to baby Isabella or her family that prompts Lea/Shaun towards adoption. </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Except… first and foremost... they’re not ready. Maybe they should go home and adopt a rescue dog… if Shaun could handle it, that is… I’m semi-serious about that. But for a variety of reasons, I just don’t think this is the way for #Shea to go at the present time.</span></span></p></li></ol><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ol start="3" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Something will happen during their time saving baby Isabella (whatever is prompting them there in the nursery) that will prove cathartic for them as nothing else has to this point… something clearly uniting and reminding them that this loss of theirs is precious and unique and they need EACH OTHER to keep healing and moving forward.</span></span></p></li></ol><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ol start="4" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">At some point, once these two have worked through all they need to work through in the first several acts of “Vamos”... he will propose. It may be in some low-key fashion completely unique to Dr. Shaun Murphy, but I’ve never been more convinced that by the end of “Vamos,” Shaun will ask Lea to marry him and she’ll say yes.</span></span></p></li></ol><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Here’s why:</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I think it was Andreas who said earlier in the season—during one of numerous discussions about marriage in the comments—that Shaun would need to feel a specific motivation at this point in order to decide it was time to propose marriage. In other words, he already has the love of his life sharing a home with him, and as far as we know, to this point she hasn’t pressured him towards a bigger commitment. (In fact, given that he knows Lea was married once before, he may have presumed she would not be interested in another go-around unless she said so directly.) </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">So, </span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">we’ve wondered,</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"> how could that motivation manifest itself? For the tax and/or legal benefits of being married? Maybe, but for obvious reasons (I hope) I didn’t want him reaching that conclusion… at least, not out loud. Because of their unexpected baby? I definitely thought about it, but sadly, that motivation no longer exists. Because it remains a wildly popular convention of social (and/or religious) culture? That’s a reason I could see Shaun supporting… but it still leaves me a little cold.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Back to that foreshadowing we go...</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“She just got married last week…” she adds after discussing the patient’s tumor.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“Dr. Reznick…” Mateo begins to say, warily. But Morgan presses on: </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> “... which is medically relevant because studies have shown that optimistic people have better long-term prognosis… and she is full of hope.” </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(For sake of argument, I’m going to presume that the idea of making Lea his wife someday is not a particularly foreign one to Shaun.)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">On the surface, it might feel to us a little TOO simple of an equation: If a newlywed is “full of hope”… then Shaun might rationalize (over-simplified or not) that he and Lea stood a better chance of a hopeful future if they got married—preferably ASAP. But that’s just one part of the trigger here. The bigger picture is that he doesn’t want to lose Lea, he doesn’t want to lose a chance at future children with Lea, and (again, most importantly) </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">if she relocates to Hershey for ANY period of time, he fears she may never come back. </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Whether or not that is a reasonable fear is beside the point—the Hershey card is out on the table, for the second time in their time of knowing each other… and he can’t unsee it.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The motivation is there… the foreshadowing seed has been planted… everything’s teed up.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Are you as excited for Monday yet as I am???</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/38/87/3887052F-64B6-1EA0-5267-6C405DC039EC/159449_4789-900x0.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="800" height="256" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/38/87/3887052F-64B6-1EA0-5267-6C405DC039EC/159449_4789-900x0.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span><p></p><div><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div></div></span></div>Kelli Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06009713326652591943noreply@blogger.com26tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1583562784288599702.post-89692889582282734062021-05-29T12:46:00.098-07:002021-05-29T19:56:23.693-07:00State of the #SHEA part 37: The Many Distractions of "Forgive or Forget"<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt0PQ1GcvTAz2MERSAm5bZ7k1Pbusv6uoe_gbKVgwNjzngSeYQZgk-CU4AwQvIP_EJaBBnA4h0ZZNrqhQIRQ57T2OTZfiK0ZE0cp0TiQA8p9EdCa_m6L0Is0OTa9HtSzU4RnOeJPCLS8-7/s4608/IMG_20210528_212327.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt0PQ1GcvTAz2MERSAm5bZ7k1Pbusv6uoe_gbKVgwNjzngSeYQZgk-CU4AwQvIP_EJaBBnA4h0ZZNrqhQIRQ57T2OTZfiK0ZE0cp0TiQA8p9EdCa_m6L0Is0OTa9HtSzU4RnOeJPCLS8-7/s320/IMG_20210528_212327.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> <span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In a season where </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">many </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">TGD episode titles have had direct connections to #Shea, “Forgive or Forget” turned out to be… not one of them.</span></span><p></p><span id="docs-internal-guid-721d317a-7fff-7e4b-63f9-d49bb8512e06"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">When I first saw that title back in April, and we were all trying to figure out what it had to do with storylines on the show-- well, frankly, it was a little alarming. There was already some concern about the meaning of the previous episode title “Letting Go” (with good reason, it turns out). Could “Forgive or Forget” be an extension of that </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">letting go</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> process? Was it about the different perceived ways Shaun and Lea might be dealing with a #Sheababy tragedy? Was Shaun moving on too fast for Lea’s liking-- or at least seemed to be? Was Lea caught up in blame, in dire need of self-forgiveness (even though the miscarriage was no one’s fault)?</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Or… in the event that all was still well with the pregnancy… was “Forgive or Forget” about Glassman’s lingering guilt over deceased daughter Maddie (which seemed renewed with Lea’s pregnancy)? Was this the episode where Debbie was going to call him on the way it was consuming him, leading to an emotional breakdown on Glassy’s part unlike anything we’ve seen from him since S2?</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(Not exactly, where these two were concerned. But I sure do like that option better than what we got in the actual episode. I’ll get back to the Glassmans.)</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">So let’s do a quick take on where “Forgive or Forget” took those theories:</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Was</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Shaun moving on too fast for Lea’s liking? </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">No, two important things established early in the episode were 1) It was 3 weeks since the last time we saw them, and 2) As Shaun stated “All we’ve done is work and neither of us feels any better .” So it would appear that communication between the two of them keeps improving in the aftermath of the miscarriage.</span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Was</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Lea caught up in self-blame-- or maybe I should say </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">still</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> caught up in self-blame, as there were strong indications of it in “Letting Go”? </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Hard to say. She’s obviously still in mourning/still healing, but there weren’t any direct references to blame… if only because they were “distracting” themselves with the camp trip. We’ll have to see what comes from the Venga/Vamos 2 parter. </span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Was</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> “Forgive or Forget” about Glassman’s lingering guilt over Maddie? </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Uh, no. You might say they went a different direction… or even re-visited an old direction.</span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Was </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">this the episode where Debbie called him on the way it was consuming him? </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">No! That would have been better! Dangit, I’m still mad about this. I’ll get back to the Glassmans.</span></span></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">In other words, there was a lot of “other” forgivin’ and forgettin’ going on in this episode… with mixed results:</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Claire and her father Miles: can’t </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">forget</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, CAN </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">forgive!</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> This was one of my favorite happenings of the night (aside from the #SheaObvious). Claire was due for some goodness, as maybe we all can agree. I assume this means we’ll see more of Miles in S5? </span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Case-of-the-week #1 (the teen and her parents)-</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> forgive </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(though from my tenuous grasp of their issues, it seemed more about the parents needing to realize the error of their ways than their daughter struggling with forgiving them…? OK, I wasn’t giving the patients my full attention in this episode. There, I said it. Watch what I have to say about….</span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Case-of-the-week #2 (Mushroom guy): </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">forget…?</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> As in, “Forget your crazy mushroom extracts as a means of curing your depression?”... “Forget your mode of treatment for this patient, Park”... “No, YOU forget YOUR mode of treatment, Morgan”... “Forget it; neither of you have any objectivity” (that’s Jordan speaking)? Or at the end… “Forget what I said about forgetting your mushrooms” (that’s Morgan talking to Mushroom Guy)...? Am I getting close on any of this? </span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Speaking of Morgan and Park: given the choices I guess this is more in the </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">forget</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> column-- </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">forget being friends, forget being friends-with-benefits, forget we even know each other. </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Is that what Park was trying to say in another one of their locker-room conversations? Hmm. These two are a lot more fraught than they need to be, it seems. I guess the bigger problem lies with Morgan, but Park’s repeated attempts to redefine things on his terms is irritating too. Will this hot mess of a non-relationship reach some kind of boiling point in the season finale? Or will David Shore pull something similar to what he did last year with Claire and Melendez-- except rather than kill one of ‘em off before taking the relationship further, one of them will stay in Guatemala…? </span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Ah, crap, I’m back to the Glassmans before moving on to all things #Shea…. OK, this discussion may or may not break out into a longer one over the summer, depending on how much conversation it continues to generate. For now, I’m going to do my best to keep my thoughts succinct…</span></span></p></li><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“Forgive or Forget” brought Glassman’s wife Debbie back to the show for the first time since the “Frontline” 2-parter that opened S4… only to have their marriage uprooted over the course of 3 scenes (3 ½ if you count Glassy discussing his apparent overbearing nature with Lim), and ending with the two of them separating.</span></span></p></li></ul><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Word on the Twitter street is that this development was actually scheduled for earlier in the season-- with, one presumes, more than one episode to set it up-- but Richard Schiff (Glassman) and Sheila Kelley (Debbie)’s real-life battle with COVID resulted in them postponing and/or shelving those plans.</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Speculation on that same Twitter street spanned everything from </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sheila Kelley has a new acting gig so maybe this was a necessity… </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">to </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">with the 2 remaining “newbies” (Asher Wolke and Jordan Allen) returning as regulars next year, they had to make cuts somewhere… </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">to </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Well, Glassman and Debbie were kind of an odd match anyway that got married much too soon… it makes sense that it’s not working out.</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">My take is probably in the minority, but here it is anyway: </span></span></p></li></ul></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 72pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">1) I agree that Glassman and Debbie got married much too soon, but TGD is taking the easy way out by not using the hasty set-up that TGD created (!) to explore the Glassman’s union (and they haven’t. Not really.) </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 72pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">2) If COVID kept this storyline from moving forward earlier in the season, why not push the whole idea into Season 5 instead, rather than rush through the breakup as they did? (And if there was concern S5 wouldn’t happen, just leave the storyline alone… what would’ve been the harm in having Glassman’s marriage continue into oblivion?) </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 72pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">3) Excuses about not knowing Sheila Kelley’s availability into S5 fall flat; no, we don’t know exactly what lies ahead for her career-wise but we DO know she’s married to her TGD co-star… if they insist on bringing Debbie’s role on the show to an end, I think it might be easier to work with her schedule than the average actor. </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 72pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">4) As someone who has studied the visual medium-- both formally and on the job, during my 25 years in the industry (nothing NEAR the heights of network TV, but the industry nonetheless)-- I’ve always felt that scripted series in particular owe something more to their viewers than tends to be delivered. What I mean by that is that people pick up so many cues from TV-- how to interact, to problem-solve, to simply BE in the world-- and I don’t think TV writers/showrunners take that responsibility as seriously as they should. My point in this particular case is that IF the show opts to have Glassman marry a hospital barista after a very brief (and much delayed, due to his cancer) courtship, then I feel it’s the show’s job to play that unique situation out to the best of its ability. If the marriage ends in divorce after a few years of intermittent (but consistent) scenes of Glassy and Debbie doing nothing but bicker over small stuff (or “big stuff”; God knows gun control debates aren’t small stuff)... that’s one thing. To feature Debbie in slightly more than a half-dozen episodes over two years since they got married… only to use the same essential argument from their early days (HER GUN) as a launching pad to a larger problem that </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">we have not been privy to see at all over the past 16 episodes </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(GLASSY’S DOMINEERING WAYS)... that’s something else. To me, that “something else” translates to a decision that Glassy and Debbie’s relationship wasn’t worth the time and effort, even though they made the time and effort to get them married in the first place… and that’s a hellalousy message to send to viewers. </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">OK-- surprise! That wasn’t very short after all. Excuse me while I put away the soapbox…</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">What am I here for again? OH, Shaun and Lea’s not-so-excellent adventure, 2021 edition--</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKG8TeTH5R-ZwAKqWNuxSFis3spsW1KNVqMS4PiGw2Ui4zpfTxc06du07W9BpAgqJd6ZZUxmj2TejKjeORhM8v67iVU0WsnIRfHjW75ZF1bmfU6rAIbru8AqNBXtNLLlfV1D5LVG9qDZL7/s4608/IMG_20210528_212311.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKG8TeTH5R-ZwAKqWNuxSFis3spsW1KNVqMS4PiGw2Ui4zpfTxc06du07W9BpAgqJd6ZZUxmj2TejKjeORhM8v67iVU0WsnIRfHjW75ZF1bmfU6rAIbru8AqNBXtNLLlfV1D5LVG9qDZL7/s320/IMG_20210528_212311.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I loved the self-contained nature of Shaun and Lea in this episode-- no hospital, no computers, no… distractions? Ah, but </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">everything</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> was a distraction, and while the camping trip may have simply kicked the can of their shared pain down the road-- all the way down the road to Guatemala, perhaps-- every distraction also created another suture to make their bond even stronger. (See what I did there?? Sorry, couldn’t resist)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">You have to start this adventure knowing the potential comedy of errors that it can bring. Show of hands-- who here has camped and experienced any or all of the following:</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(I’m raising my hand for each and every one of these)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">All “open” campsites are taken, and you’ve shown up w/o reservations</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Rain-- brief showers, day-long soakers, and/or thunderstorms</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The feeling that you’re “not camping but tailgating” (to paraphrase Lea)</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">You discover at nighttime that you have a group of drunks nearby</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Tents that become too wet to sleep in</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Campers that sleep in cars instead (NOTE: I have friends who did this on our trips, but I wasn’t one of them)</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Not just rain but a TORNADO warning... and rain heavy enough to send your girl scout troop leaders to the nearest </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">town to run all the sleeping bags through a dryer cycle</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">while you, as the youngest member of your troop, weep with fear and homesickness in the back </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-small;">of one of the leaders’ cars while a much more mature girl scout (age 11 or 12) is tasked with calming you down… </span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">oh, sorry. Just me on that one? 😟</span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Anyway, this was one of those rare times when we basically knew how the story would play out, but were dying to witness the details in getting to that last shot of the night, back home on the sofa. And thanks to the deft touch of Thomas L. Moran and David Renaud-- two scriptwriters who have a lot of experience with #Shea by now-- the details were delightful, even in the sitcom-ish predictability within the first 20 minutes:</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXyZ1qewlSQWPZrghJ5bMvEk2S_cIZFEoGL8usWXq-rXt9thth2vhaeXniQfSdIrAAbFsMC5g4UXaVXVHv3xLRDV8HtxXvCc-Mb1N04u7FBd6ApFZFCN7Q4I372ZlRARpJ6rLJGcgNYnHA/s4608/IMG_20210528_211931.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXyZ1qewlSQWPZrghJ5bMvEk2S_cIZFEoGL8usWXq-rXt9thth2vhaeXniQfSdIrAAbFsMC5g4UXaVXVHv3xLRDV8HtxXvCc-Mb1N04u7FBd6ApFZFCN7Q4I372ZlRARpJ6rLJGcgNYnHA/w200-h150/IMG_20210528_211931.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></span></div><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Their entrance was denied at Yosemite because Shaun didn’t realize how fast those “open” campsites get snapped up each morning (Veteran camper Lea probably would have thought of this, actually, but we’ll give her a pass because she’s not at the top of her game right now… or maybe she was just silently crossing her fingers because she didn’t want Shaun to be disappointed)</span></span><p></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The campground they choose instead is crowded, reeks of gasoline, and has RVs blocking any remotely decent view.</span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Just as they get to enjoying themselves a little with the well-made fire and marshmallows to roast, a thunderstorm rolls up out of nowhere and takes them by surprise. (The most unrealistic development of the night in my book, but again, the first part of the story was built in sitcom-ish fits and spurts.)</span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDdUIo7z5Gb01r8K_ERfOkhnP0b_08AmjS0Aggen9VC_eSgeOHkoKLdjnnoLAmUbHw8g3Dvb5X5sOCauJkQxGlnLW2f8dDGZGkrVH-3akURvM0OpR7i6EDtn9QOutQWOE8w49OHwEISkRb/s4608/IMG_20210528_212858.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDdUIo7z5Gb01r8K_ERfOkhnP0b_08AmjS0Aggen9VC_eSgeOHkoKLdjnnoLAmUbHw8g3Dvb5X5sOCauJkQxGlnLW2f8dDGZGkrVH-3akURvM0OpR7i6EDtn9QOutQWOE8w49OHwEISkRb/w200-h150/IMG_20210528_212858.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Then, just as they get past the noise of the nearby drunks and get to enjoying themselves in the </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">tent</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (and I do mean “just as”; not but one moment of romantic peace to be had on this trip!)... cue the leaky roof in said tent. </span></span><p></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Some of those little details in part one that I enjoyed the most:</span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The urgency in Shaun’s voice when he briefly tried to argue with the Yosemite ranger about why they needed that campsite… his desperation to help Lea (and himself) escape for a few days was plain as day.</span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKQP_b61bgqS3S7rI70h8-NBGl42JEzBuVjEdP2Y5kTPEvy7Nxbus7Qv6I8CelPKH5OX5cBc7C-dxeib22wmNgyz5IVhQgxPVr00r0qJ_CgAjA2ajAQUzwSE3Q2iZ1HMkkI59nYT_uDy55/s4608/IMG_20210528_212317.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKQP_b61bgqS3S7rI70h8-NBGl42JEzBuVjEdP2Y5kTPEvy7Nxbus7Qv6I8CelPKH5OX5cBc7C-dxeib22wmNgyz5IVhQgxPVr00r0qJ_CgAjA2ajAQUzwSE3Q2iZ1HMkkI59nYT_uDy55/w200-h150/IMG_20210528_212317.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The campfire scene was quite possibly the sweetest 30 seconds we’ve seen of them in a while: Shaun taking enormous pride in his fire-building skills, in prepping Lea’s marshmallow for roasting, then sneaking his arm around her like they were on a first date at the movies… even that moment where we saw him put his hand over Lea’s head as if to try and shield her from the rain (surely that was a last-minute improvisation on Freddie Highmore’s part?). Since we haven’t been privy to a lot of Shaun and Lea just straight-up dating, those 30 seconds really hit the spot for me.</span></span><p></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Then came the complement of the tent scene, which was a look-how-far-we’ve come moment with that lovely mention of “the old apartment (building)”... and, as some of you pointed out, the revelation that Lea holds that memory of their first hug just as dear as Shaun surely does. Even the earplugs were a sweet little prop, both in </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvE46ZMm2mcwcAtfUwMziDqGFfdczzZTQZh8XZKjd7RtOFrLALNp-8rqDWGxZSQ2RejUOVwkXYMjWfpce5AiaZd2JI9Gcn-xEyh6mZ0BI-3otWcNBypOfvubD7EsiCJDiiB6DsHoas6h-Y/s4608/IMG_20210528_212844.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvE46ZMm2mcwcAtfUwMziDqGFfdczzZTQZh8XZKjd7RtOFrLALNp-8rqDWGxZSQ2RejUOVwkXYMjWfpce5AiaZd2JI9Gcn-xEyh6mZ0BI-3otWcNBypOfvubD7EsiCJDiiB6DsHoas6h-Y/w200-h150/IMG_20210528_212844.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></span></div><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br />the way Lea was unfazed by the mention that she snores (she’s probably heard that before anyway) and the way Shaun took it upon himself to tuck them into her ears-- uniquely intimate, I can’t help but think, especially as I’ve used those kind of plugs many times and can’t imagine anyone other than me handling them!</span></span><p></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">By the time the rain had stopped and a brighter day was upon them, though, they seemed at an impasse (Lea sleeping alone in her car; Shaun alone in the (still wet?) tent). They’re not-- not really-- for as soon as she sees Shaun sitting forlornly at the picnic table with his ever-present green apple, she seems inspired to try harder and make the trip work for his sake. The decision to “do the hike he has planned” isn’t exactly a no-brainer, with both of them walking on eggshells around the question (“Is that what you want?” “Is that what </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNni1yvjkgEpv-YzGEywUCjP4oDRJNHEIfEkEX_4VBJEoo6jETcfpd03iP-8C3e1vZZIQhtzv8DsOiV-mYhrN3zwv_0icwq-JBMeMYxDHv2oZCJ7h4MhSNc0i8bICMf0cKt9HeP9MtEPuU/s4608/IMG_20210528_213244.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNni1yvjkgEpv-YzGEywUCjP4oDRJNHEIfEkEX_4VBJEoo6jETcfpd03iP-8C3e1vZZIQhtzv8DsOiV-mYhrN3zwv_0icwq-JBMeMYxDHv2oZCJ7h4MhSNc0i8bICMf0cKt9HeP9MtEPuU/w200-h150/IMG_20210528_213244.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">you</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> want?” “I think so”), but by the end of the conversation Lea’s taken the <br />lead on things… and even looks to have a spark of “old Lea” in her eye as she does so. </span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-6f53bdf0-7fff-f44d-698b-df57fc131269"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj75BjBqv9D8bX1txWOcY1B1wBVBHFZ8Qca0LuNt-aQ_bGWMj_mZIF1KWu8E3VhwoXD0OSQa4FnNtlxOqDlcH6yOSX4XW1TcKOMY1_yOM28gXb3X754Ea8jHPcm5FrdgCn01B59hEYlCL1h/s4608/IMG_20210528_213249.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj75BjBqv9D8bX1txWOcY1B1wBVBHFZ8Qca0LuNt-aQ_bGWMj_mZIF1KWu8E3VhwoXD0OSQa4FnNtlxOqDlcH6yOSX4XW1TcKOMY1_yOM28gXb3X754Ea8jHPcm5FrdgCn01B59hEYlCL1h/w200-h150/IMG_20210528_213249.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br />Which is probably why Shaun looks happier in his next shot. </span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The back half of the episode is hardly what one might call by-the-book in the mishaps department, but with a whopping </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">seven </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">scenes (some considerably shorter than others) taking us from Shaun’s fall to Lea’s last chug of the tequila, I’m not inclined to detail every moment of them. But a few favorites:</span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Lea simply noting he’s “really cute” and referring to him as “my hero”. Sure, it was at heart a way to set up the accident, but I don’t think she’s called him “cute” since S1… another throwback to the old apartment, if you will.</span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The bit about Lea not being able to run fast enough because (per her off-screen admission to Shaun) she used to ditch P.E. class out of her hatred of running. Not particularly relevant to the emergency (could anyone other than a highly trained athlete speed TWO HOURS back to cell service?), but a good Lea Fun Fact to have… and fun that Shaun knew all about it.</span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiavx7H8aK7KO94-pjG43c5Ha1tjXqNdqudWcMxMlTG6derZWsOFOwyeMGV0RIMQgiCQ9Lb1MkCQAfUs9fNB8JtGav1DQpl9-TumC9iDzIP0c_Mp3DHu01CIY6yWgvojBIi5ED0UrobYEur/s4608/IMG_20210528_213904.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiavx7H8aK7KO94-pjG43c5Ha1tjXqNdqudWcMxMlTG6derZWsOFOwyeMGV0RIMQgiCQ9Lb1MkCQAfUs9fNB8JtGav1DQpl9-TumC9iDzIP0c_Mp3DHu01CIY6yWgvojBIi5ED0UrobYEur/w200-h150/IMG_20210528_213904.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The tequila in the backpack… I love the idea of Tommy Moran (who apparently is responsible for the original “Tequila, STAT!” line that is now a #Shea classic) sitting around, musing on how he could work their alcohol of choice into yet another context. To him, I say: <i>Well done sir!</i></span></span><p></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_o9T2isfSO_ZiWsDJspk1p8pyqsOaqhm1WrH-8Ataq9hmNYzciCEZpKFdcyYhTktM2XlEptYYTzMSJZCqm6SiIDch1dZVkwXE0b_EsL5SmgWTx7JHuYa8rll-5pHeR28kmlM20vULMVRR/s4608/IMG_20210528_213635.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_o9T2isfSO_ZiWsDJspk1p8pyqsOaqhm1WrH-8Ataq9hmNYzciCEZpKFdcyYhTktM2XlEptYYTzMSJZCqm6SiIDch1dZVkwXE0b_EsL5SmgWTx7JHuYa8rll-5pHeR28kmlM20vULMVRR/w200-h150/IMG_20210528_213635.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Shaun and Lea “prepping” for the surgery, which provided the biggest opportunity to date of seeing them actually bicker… but admittedly there was a hell of a motivation for it, and the result was a pretty good give and take-- a “healthy exchange,” so to speak)</span></span><p></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I don’t know if they were deliberately alternating Lea’s “in surgery” shots with the actual OR sequences at St. B as a means of further connecting Lea to all the other St. B’vites… something we saw to great extent in the three episodes ahead of “Forgive,” and will certainly see in the Guatemala episodes… but it was mighty effective. And if </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjefCSIeVWR-PPzA9D0Ae1gTu7QmQFZrQsZSlGltdUseV5O6h6-51d9cSEVrYbEFPWlBjeUSR5glzPPJUJWbAVzNHU_TfvzxrD_SfWkFlkQPjhfrBWSUIISqAz5_0UT8LJLSzK0feMfa2Fc/s4608/IMG_20210528_214428.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjefCSIeVWR-PPzA9D0Ae1gTu7QmQFZrQsZSlGltdUseV5O6h6-51d9cSEVrYbEFPWlBjeUSR5glzPPJUJWbAVzNHU_TfvzxrD_SfWkFlkQPjhfrBWSUIISqAz5_0UT8LJLSzK0feMfa2Fc/w200-h150/IMG_20210528_214428.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br />viewers were truly more interested in the “real” OR stuff than what they got in between, I might need to go around and check some pulses. LOVED seeing Lea pull out her lip balm as a solution to dealing with the “slippery” blood; when she shot the cap out of her mouth and off to the side of the action I smiled extra big. Also (since we talk about her self-esteem all the time), interesting that rather than saying to herself “OK, Lea, you can do this” straightaway, she said “OK Lea, </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">apparently</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> if you can hem your jeans, you can do this”-- in other words, borrowing Shaun’s example to build herself up.</span></span><p></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzERuB7y4OPdwpEp7STN8W-XkSaqhSF5wne6vbg0o8OMHqMugaLH_Nx-vwjkcfg8PfT8g8ZS4DFCzhg6ivyKlYl1o8LxvaNs0CdZF2tj8tLtParlcpPjsQx6C2BTs_upM4FFHH5Kr3H8e4/s4608/IMG_20210528_214718.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzERuB7y4OPdwpEp7STN8W-XkSaqhSF5wne6vbg0o8OMHqMugaLH_Nx-vwjkcfg8PfT8g8ZS4DFCzhg6ivyKlYl1o8LxvaNs0CdZF2tj8tLtParlcpPjsQx6C2BTs_upM4FFHH5Kr3H8e4/w200-h150/IMG_20210528_214718.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></span></div><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The ambulance shot (where Lea got an honorary MacGyver badge from the EMT, at least in my mind’s eye)...</span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhD-NgfKf0BUHM9FTs365x1Mgtw_OaxhSg2nbtQhhrrDbsEglf-3Vi3FwXys-BUsELqmYsXOqNbY9PduIk2N8GmIti67Hql628qa-QBko2NlTw7ZXAidsjGGRh-wPVjrqJqJFJjUu2RkoU/s4608/IMG_20210528_215239.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhD-NgfKf0BUHM9FTs365x1Mgtw_OaxhSg2nbtQhhrrDbsEglf-3Vi3FwXys-BUsELqmYsXOqNbY9PduIk2N8GmIti67Hql628qa-QBko2NlTw7ZXAidsjGGRh-wPVjrqJqJFJjUu2RkoU/w200-h150/IMG_20210528_215239.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br />And the gratitude conversation that started with Shaun in the ambulance, and continued with Lea at the end… not much to say about those, really; I just enjoyed those layers of icing. SO. MUCH. As I’m <span> </span>guessing you did too.<p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">And since we got a number of little throwbacks in this episode… whether it was the apartment-speak, or the Glassmans’ gun debate, or even if you want to put Morgan and Park’s ongoing issues into this category… it was indeed interesting that they repeated a montage song for the first time: “Sons and Daughters,” which I believe someone said was first used in S1’s “Intangibles”... I found these last lyrics (repeated over Shaun and Lea’s final moments) interesting in the current circumstances:</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I’ll build the fire</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">You fetch the water</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I’ll lay the table</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">In our hearts, we still pray for sons and daughters</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">These quiet hours turning to years </span></span></p><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdp9RzNUobn2FR0ZttkaiVcCt4gom5ZU0ZMBuRPPxFwmDbnfyWF78gLPFmS1nPHnQEDvbfOrMgtMboEYmaLH5DGEJJg3KvLS8fv1aZg3HHVTbJ6-3lNnn_BpSBriM8-5IP2nmyqDwM03q2/s4608/IMG_20210528_215314.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdp9RzNUobn2FR0ZttkaiVcCt4gom5ZU0ZMBuRPPxFwmDbnfyWF78gLPFmS1nPHnQEDvbfOrMgtMboEYmaLH5DGEJJg3KvLS8fv1aZg3HHVTbJ6-3lNnn_BpSBriM8-5IP2nmyqDwM03q2/w200-h150/IMG_20210528_215314.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4S2gVr93iQzwjLbepXX2kYx_jHJid9aerAPcbp9niEzckXU7TgDoJr5xN0QemHgwRTiRTLTM-Ihf-kGiILicV4XnC2bFtKEzY03Ye54kKB_LvakONaNpCcrdiSqDblE9CeyzEp7KkTPBA/s4608/IMG_20210528_215324.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4S2gVr93iQzwjLbepXX2kYx_jHJid9aerAPcbp9niEzckXU7TgDoJr5xN0QemHgwRTiRTLTM-Ihf-kGiILicV4XnC2bFtKEzY03Ye54kKB_LvakONaNpCcrdiSqDblE9CeyzEp7KkTPBA/w200-h150/IMG_20210528_215324.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/89/AF/89AFC244-79B6-39BB-77A8-744B3D2B36DC/159270_9234-900x0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="533" data-original-width="800" height="133" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/89/AF/89AFC244-79B6-39BB-77A8-744B3D2B36DC/159270_9234-900x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div>Kelli Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06009713326652591943noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1583562784288599702.post-73674831028608409062021-05-21T23:19:00.002-07:002021-05-21T23:20:41.708-07:00State of the #SHEA part 36: I'm Not Always Like This ("Letting Go")<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdHISN9oxYYa6mYJH0AnUbaCOXdzlBSDpAjSQ3i3ddzu1FTr2H5Mbw39VPLlAGsuiqLECSaOe8UJcUoSmiayC75vHdB2rwAvABgTZUlu9r41hDEdbiNyfA3wLdZ_AuvYfMFgfFmsyTj0Be/s4608/IMG_20210521_123627.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdHISN9oxYYa6mYJH0AnUbaCOXdzlBSDpAjSQ3i3ddzu1FTr2H5Mbw39VPLlAGsuiqLECSaOe8UJcUoSmiayC75vHdB2rwAvABgTZUlu9r41hDEdbiNyfA3wLdZ_AuvYfMFgfFmsyTj0Be/s320/IMG_20210521_123627.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><br /><br /><p></p><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-df9b1058-7fff-5c3d-200f-f1c802a69993"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">You say you wish you could find some way to help</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">To not to be so hard on myself</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">So why is it easy for everyone else? </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I’m not always like this</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">There’s always tomorrow I guess</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(from “Turn Out The Lights” by Julien Baker)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If we think of <b>“Decrypt”</b> (from earlier this season) as the closest thing we’ve had thus far to a “Lea” episode (on par with the episodes titled <b>“Lim”</b> and “Claire”), I suggest we consider the “Letting Go” episode as “Lea, part 2”. I know it was about how both Lea </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Shaun are dealing with the miscarriage, but an unexpected amount of the hour was devoted to just Lea… which we all know has been extremely rare, at least until this season. And, perhaps thanks to another woman-penned script (thank you Doris Egan, whose last work here was “The Uncertainty Principle”), we got some LONG looks at Lea’s pain.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And that’s important-- not just because she’s the title character’s life partner for the foreseeable future, but because the actual miscarriage happened within </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">her</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. Twenty-two weeks of her body, hormones, and state of mind adjusting gradually to the miracle of life, and suddenly the miracle is gone. If it takes several weeks for everything going on within her body to reverse course and return to “normal" (and it does), imagine how much longer it can take emotionally.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Incidentally, we see Shaun pouring himself into his work as part of his own grieving process… and while it’s easy to attribute some of this to his ASD keeping him at arms’ length from his own emotions, my research indicates the workaholic approach is common for men in general. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(Okay, maybe this comes as little surprise to those of us who have witnessed more than a few men desperately keeping certain feelings at bay.)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Anyway, the episode picks up only a few days after “Dr. Ted” ends, and while Lea isn’t exactly hiding her sorrow from Shaun, she does manage to find enough of the right words to convince Shaun she’s at peace with the time-heals-all-wounds theory. The moment he sets out the door with an assured nod in Lea’s direction, we get that extra 10 seconds watching her face transform ever so slightly… just enough to confirm how difficult a day it’s going to be with nothing to come between Lea, her sadness… and her silence. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Because she can’t quite put her feelings into words yet, you may have noticed:</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWQnsnNJJwXRaXrHBErZBkxlgo__lLbmjLdA9PsRtT5WS8sbgUdQSsPmtQpSKKCMDPpLULPV4b-8od7F_Lrzj9S3C2NxC-1wHrZignIxibrYtlC7KR6hIH1QeemdZAQOxzTHP5usBZB5Vn/s4608/IMG_20210521_122804.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWQnsnNJJwXRaXrHBErZBkxlgo__lLbmjLdA9PsRtT5WS8sbgUdQSsPmtQpSKKCMDPpLULPV4b-8od7F_Lrzj9S3C2NxC-1wHrZignIxibrYtlC7KR6hIH1QeemdZAQOxzTHP5usBZB5Vn/w200-h150/IMG_20210521_122804.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span><p></p><div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><ul style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">She “speaks” in song lyrics… a lot of song lyrics.</span></p></li><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: circle; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">She does the channel surfing, flops back to bed, then plays games mindlessly on her phone until the battery dies (which made me think of the way she and Shaun first met… sigh… such innocent times)-- and in between all this we see her let a call from her mom go to voicemail. As she scrambles to find a power cord that will allow her to continue the games, we hear “The Rush” by JJ Wilde:</span></p></li></ul></ul><p dir="ltr" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">Last night I came out, I was so damn manic</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">I don’t even know where I went wrong… But I went wrong</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">And it’s times like these, I swear to God </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">Oh that my mother can’t see me and if she did</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">I don’t know how I would keep it together</span></p><ul style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; margin-left: 72pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It was then that Lea shut off the music, grabbed an outfit (all-black, I couldn’t help but notice), grabbed her coat and bag, and headed to the office. And more lyrics (the aforementioned “Turn Out The Lights”):</span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">There’s a hole in the drywall still not fixed</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">I just haven’t gotten around to it</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">And besides, I’m starting to get used to the gaps...</span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ul style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; margin-left: 72pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">There’s a third set of lyrics in Lea’s “Letting Go” story, but I’ll get to those in a bit. First, I want to talk about this exceptional sequence in Lea’s little corner of St. B.</span></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisgOoiSJQoyt9OeSYBIZ69zQSX6j4F4mDP2qSbog-RKYls4IKIl_6ns01qnDV6a2ZVkUeeIPkFq3optIqyS8WmbeFa3aG1jfHX1br9frDsmpsrYrCmKPf5hxQiAsavL9bkVDVPv4RwyLRZ/s4608/IMG_20210521_123244.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisgOoiSJQoyt9OeSYBIZ69zQSX6j4F4mDP2qSbog-RKYls4IKIl_6ns01qnDV6a2ZVkUeeIPkFq3optIqyS8WmbeFa3aG1jfHX1br9frDsmpsrYrCmKPf5hxQiAsavL9bkVDVPv4RwyLRZ/w200-h150/IMG_20210521_123244.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-9c9bf8f7-7fff-41a1-f4c8-e6b837314f14"><ul style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">When she speaks to others at work, she’s not really speaking so much as she’s putting on a brave face and listening. </span></p></li></ul><div style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><b><br /></b></div><ul style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It’s the dance I think everyone has to do when recovering from deep personal grief and returning to The Real World simultaneously: Head up, keep breathing, keep it together, seamlessly let well-wisher #1 know you’re OK as you make your way to the elevator…</span></p></li></ul></ul><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii92cVIiTcKCAutUSFu5loF-PsSGV6IaGuJrXArOOXaJ1Tu1DdpwXsFV0kzWuKlSxU7a8i00T2fBklC4AmjeOP7FTpu9HN_llqSbLZR2slUz0CnVvbCgNGKLw3cwh1O6Po0HwId37MT1Sw/s4608/IMG_20210521_123317.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii92cVIiTcKCAutUSFu5loF-PsSGV6IaGuJrXArOOXaJ1Tu1DdpwXsFV0kzWuKlSxU7a8i00T2fBklC4AmjeOP7FTpu9HN_llqSbLZR2slUz0CnVvbCgNGKLw3cwh1O6Po0HwId37MT1Sw/w200-h150/IMG_20210521_123317.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><div style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><br /></div><ul style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Allow yourself to unglue just the slightest bit if you’re blessed with time alone in the elevator (as Lea was). Personally, I’ve found a locked bathroom stall to be a decent place to regroup too…</span></p></li></ul></ul><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN-28t6tuR2R1tJt3vm-YRUixqWQ2AHKXfzplfgUVAm-khP6dYqHRjCwmXesBf1m6wLel8p7BxujamBEk4KgRuRylkhAxA36AJIZQGRAMqx0Qo7iwfYUP8AByREH_lo5A4Y_3TYS6xaaXB/s4608/IMG_20210521_123333.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN-28t6tuR2R1tJt3vm-YRUixqWQ2AHKXfzplfgUVAm-khP6dYqHRjCwmXesBf1m6wLel8p7BxujamBEk4KgRuRylkhAxA36AJIZQGRAMqx0Qo7iwfYUP8AByREH_lo5A4Y_3TYS6xaaXB/w200-h150/IMG_20210521_123333.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><div style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><br /></div><ul style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Do it all again as well-wisher #2 happens upon you shortly after exiting the elevator. With any luck at all, you’re almost to your destination by now…</span></p></li></ul></ul><div style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><br /></div><ul style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But in Lea’s case, she didn’t make it in there in time to miss well-wisher #3 (Nurse Villanueva). You could see it in her shoulders before she turned around to greet the nurse; it was that </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Damn-I-was-inches-from-a-clean-getaway </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">stiffening. A.K.A. one more element to note in Paige Spara’s outstanding contributions to this episode.</span></p></li></ul></ul><div style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><br /></div><ul style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">At first I didn’t know quite what to make of Villanueva’s revelation that she, too, had suffered miscarriage(s). It felt a little like she was minimizing Lea’s experience by sharing her double whammy of sorrow with a “hey, it happens” approach. But now I’m thinking more about the scene as a whole; how she’d asked Lea how she was doing, Lea offered a tepid “I’m good,” and </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">then</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Villenueva mentioned her own miscarriages. Seems more like she may have been saying </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It’s OK, I know “good” is impossible right now. </span></p></li></ul></ul><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-fee9204c-7fff-d848-161b-8a133396b742"><ul style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; margin-left: 72pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I’m a little relieved that the only visual reminder Lea had in this episode was the very pregnant lady passing her by when she first entered the hospital. I was afraid they’d have Lea happen upon something more personal-- a book of baby names she kept in her drawer at work, for instance-- that would send her into tears in a heartbeat. But there was enough going on with her already-- I wouldn’t rule out events in one or more of the remaining S4 episodes “triggering” her to tears. </span></p></li></ul><div style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><br /></div><ul style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; margin-left: 72pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">With Lea only there to “let her phone charge to ten percent” (I think the explanation she gave was legit), The last scene she had at the hospital was the one with Jordan-- and it was surprisingly poignant. Not only did it give a voice to things Lea probably couldn’t yet articulate (“you’re mourning your future”), and MAYBE (fingers crossed) provide foreshadowing in the event Shaun and Lea choose to formally honor their child’s memory… it allowed Jordan to be a part of the connections we witnessed with all the leads as Shaun and Lea left the hospital in “Dr. Ted”. (Incidentally, did anyone notice Wolke was completely absent from this episode?)</span></p></li></ul><div style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><br /></div><ul style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">When Shaun comes home early and says they should talk (as per his direction from Glassman), she’s got nothing to say… other than to kind of curse the guy who said they should talk. </span></p></li></ul><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-089d72d8-7fff-0fb4-3a20-75a86dec9981"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ul style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; margin-left: 72pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun didn’t know what exactly they needed to talk about, and as I think we’ve discussed a time or two, he was probably afraid to start the conversation out of great fear of saying the wrong thing. So they sat, socially distanced, you might say, and neither one said anything for about 15 seconds (which feels a lot longer in TV-time). How truly unusual for Lea, who is well-versed in telling Shaun what’s on her mind. Once it became clear that she wouldn’t/couldn’t talk in the way Shaun was hoping, he had to be somewhat bewildered and uncertain what to do next. No wonder he leaped at the opportunity to take Pam Dilallo’s phone call when it broke the silence. </span></p></li></ul><div style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><br /></div><ul style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; margin-left: 72pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Oh, and in case it wasn’t clear by this point of the episode…</span></p></li></ul><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbT-zxuLGtLvULr8RYTA-Xx_8BszbJMc3lP4hsDuSlnkn_BRGyLjrvkxAUzzVN1HLiWTXQgLXZQOSwhm7AdM2TZDICefimlno70eq5Tvxs4_yEMXiEeH6aCu77cp7W3QBCOC2f3F2TjZgq/s4608/IMG_20210521_123705.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbT-zxuLGtLvULr8RYTA-Xx_8BszbJMc3lP4hsDuSlnkn_BRGyLjrvkxAUzzVN1HLiWTXQgLXZQOSwhm7AdM2TZDICefimlno70eq5Tvxs4_yEMXiEeH6aCu77cp7W3QBCOC2f3F2TjZgq/w200-h150/IMG_20210521_123705.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-97a4e960-7fff-6b4d-97c2-11a8fe212d93"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lea can’t bring herself to talk to her mom, either.</span></p></li></ul><div><b><br /></b></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As many of us had heard ahead of this episode, Julie Werner (the actress who played Pam Dilallo earlier this season) has “Letting Go” listed on her IMDB record of TV appearances. Since her name was not on the official press release of guest stars, I opted not to bring up the possibility in advance-- but, of course, my curiosity was piqued. When all was said and done, Mama D’s VOICE is what made the “appearance”… and what an important part it played. (BTW, Julie Werner’s name </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">did </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">indeed</span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">appear on screen with all the other guest stars, so let’s make a mental note that it’s not always the ABC 30-second promos that are misleading…!)</span></p></li></ul></ul><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; margin-left: 72pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Bless his heart, Shaun gave 50 of that 60 seconds with Pam his best shot. When it became clear Lea hadn’t yet told her about the miscarriage, he went along with Pam’s stroller talk (which contained a subtle dig on Lea’s judgment, did you notice? Is it any WONDER Lea fears what Mom will say about losing the baby altogether? But I digress...) </span></p></li></ul><div><br /></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; margin-left: 72pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun made a considerable effort to be polite through his discomfort-- much better than I expected, to be honest. But when Pam ignored Shaun’s efforts to sign off the call, chirping on instead about baby girls and gender-appropriate onesies… well, bless </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">her</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> heart, she inadvertently gave Shaun a way to tap into his own pain.</span></p></li></ul><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj63J3bR9Uv2BGlVBfsLRb3oZiTSBCr2SYawRW1C9y81X4PP57Ycs1alH4SaGaZs3ShLhlxTmYuAUGcy0Y79BAhJV6Zfmx7pnihhquB-DrC6_z-Ew9eXb5MRv9cxfJV1wvF_JxaOChhE8Ta/s4608/IMG_20210521_123746.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj63J3bR9Uv2BGlVBfsLRb3oZiTSBCr2SYawRW1C9y81X4PP57Ycs1alH4SaGaZs3ShLhlxTmYuAUGcy0Y79BAhJV6Zfmx7pnihhquB-DrC6_z-Ew9eXb5MRv9cxfJV1wvF_JxaOChhE8Ta/w200-h150/IMG_20210521_123746.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1IpjeG86xwXxX989ecmCBzDvp9Addt8yJ9dFUzqW3AsP77T4WRNNDk0G8f1Rv_Xy3KNBTmkOb05BBwIPmBFphtzrVaOv58wSmzfpX0eeVUqloMpdzDHJ9NHu0RYIFpdhpXimwD_0e97q5/s4608/IMG_20210521_123748.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1IpjeG86xwXxX989ecmCBzDvp9Addt8yJ9dFUzqW3AsP77T4WRNNDk0G8f1Rv_Xy3KNBTmkOb05BBwIPmBFphtzrVaOv58wSmzfpX0eeVUqloMpdzDHJ9NHu0RYIFpdhpXimwD_0e97q5/w200-h150/IMG_20210521_123748.jpg" width="200" /></a></div></span><span id="docs-internal-guid-4c46c18a-7fff-4280-679c-66b53d552b37"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“That’s stupid. Why would you have to change it-- a girl would like dinosaurs just as much as a boy! Dinosaurs are fascinating! You need to shut up!”</span></span></p><div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-b25c2abf-7fff-c123-ea4b-fd72770dcab0"><p dir="ltr" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13pt; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">OK, three things:</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><span> 1) </span>I’m sad all over again, simply because we won’t get to see Shaun opening the world of dinosaurs to his child anytime soon.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><span> 2) </span>What a great way for Lea to see she’s not alone in her grieving. Not only did Shaun do what Lea’s surely wished to do many, many times (tell Mama D. to zip it)... but she got to see him “not be himself” (as he said later) without him inadvertently taking out his feelings on <i>her</i>. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><span> 3) </span>The call, from the moment the phone rang to the moment Shaun put it back down on the counter and backed away from it like it had bitten him, was alternately gripping, heartbreaking, and shockingly hilarious. I must admit I shrieked with laughter when the call was over, so loudly, in fact, that my 20-year-old son came in to see what I found so funny. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-left: 72pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">They were already on the next scene, so as I tried in vain to explain (he’s only vaguely familiar with the premise of TGD), I reached for the remote and said “Here, let’s back it up and you can see for yourself...:”</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-left: 72pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“No, don’t do that, you’ll fall behind and you’re trying to live-Tweet--” he semi-protested.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-left: 72pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“TOO LATE!”</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-left: 72pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I don’t think it helped him understand my laughter much better, but hey, I got to watch the scene twice. No regrets.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-left: 72pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-21dc790f-7fff-ddea-af9a-5874622d1a6e"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><ul style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">When the Mama D. incident prompts Lea to open up a little to Shaun, it doesn’t have the desired effect. </span></p></li></ul><div><b><br /></b></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><ul style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Next thing we see is Shaun soothing himself on the patio, toy scalpel in hand. A real conversation takes root this time, but in typical pace for TGD scenes, it only lasts a minute. When Lea took a breath and brought up Claire’s mention of a miscarriage support group at the hospital-- followed in short order by Shaun’s latest medical epiphany, and subsequent exit-- at first I wondered why they brought it up at all. Given what we now know about the remainder of the season-- camping trip for #Shea next week, followed by the two part mission trip/finale--it’s pretty much a given that we aren’t going to see Shaun and Lea sitting in a circle with other formerly expectant parents. I even wondered if they’d given such groups a shout-out as a simple PSA; a follow-up to the slide presented at the end of “Dr. Ted”--</span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhREsLHTFeL598F-dIxTLrxG8zVKFk9Hx-Dp3cII8DSzWJeu8Jdzd91ih3ikkrcrrJJ0x986ReZmkVabrgTdQC9rVF5PqqtW3C0-v6Jsm8XVTv4wZdi1F2sO2RHjUV3iQX8XZHs-jElpg0k/s4608/IMG_20210521_124032.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhREsLHTFeL598F-dIxTLrxG8zVKFk9Hx-Dp3cII8DSzWJeu8Jdzd91ih3ikkrcrrJJ0x986ReZmkVabrgTdQC9rVF5PqqtW3C0-v6Jsm8XVTv4wZdi1F2sO2RHjUV3iQX8XZHs-jElpg0k/w200-h150/IMG_20210521_124032.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">No, no, no. Lea hints at a way to help drill down <br />on their pain, and Shaun instantly bails himself out of the option-- his way, perhaps, of indicating he’s just not ready. It was an interesting reaction on Lea’s part… rather than linger on Shaun’s seeming non-reaction to her suggestion, she looks more bemused than anything else: </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Good for you, Shaun, you’re getting your mojo back. Me, not so much.</span></span><p></p></li></ul><li><span id="docs-internal-guid-1225d3aa-7fff-05af-8594-14f7e1cb1787"><p dir="ltr" style="font-style: italic; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-style: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Speaking of Mojo... </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-style: italic; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-style: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Quite a bit has been said (in social media outlets, if not here on my blog or in the comments) about Shaun’s standout qualities as a doctor and surgeon falling to the wayside this season. Considering his preoccupation with Lea’s pregnancy in recent months, it seemed they were setting up the extremely difficult balance Shaun would face in S5 as both his personal and professional demands intensified. Now that this is a moot point, the timing of Shaun’s extraordinary return to form-- especially piggybacked onto an almost-as-extraordinary misdiagnosis-- is something to watch closely, especially during the mission trip. Yes, the synopsis has Shaun “thriving” in Guatemala, but somewhere along the way he’ll surely encounter his own grief in ways he can’t imagine. I’m quite eager to see how it unfolds.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-style: italic; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-style: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">But back to the final acts from “Letting Go”... </span></p><ul style="font-style: italic; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-style: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun really triggered the gamut of feels with Dr. Andrews as he hasn’t in quite some time-- intense frustration, embarrassment/anger, sympathy, amazement (the look he gave Shaun when he got that second diagnosis correct-!!)... and then, as they headed out of the hospital together, he slipped into the advisory role in a way Glassman hadn’t quite managed earlier in the episode with his answer to why be with the newly-retired surgeon Dr. Nakano: </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“We love the same thing, and he knows no one would understand his loss like I would.” </span></p></li></ul></ul><div><i><br /></i></div><ul style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><ul style="font-style: italic; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-style: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I know it’s nothing new for TGD regulars or patients-of-the-week to somehow say the very words Shaun needs to help resolve his conflict at hand. But for some reason, it was especially nice to hear it from Andrews this time. </span></p></li></ul></ul><div><br /></div><ul style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><ul style="font-style: italic; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-style: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If it had turned out Shaun was straight-up confused when he got home and heard Lea put the garbage disposal status at the top of her “newsworthy” items, who could blame him? He responds best to verbal cues, after all. But after learning all the things he’d learned that day, he was able to move past the face value of what Lea was saying and doing: </span></p></li></ul></ul><div><br /></div><ul style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><ul style="font-style: italic; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="3" dir="ltr" style="font-style: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: square; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Multiple unwashed mugs on the table (something Shaun would have freaked out about in the early days)= she feels like a mess, inside and out</span></p></li><li aria-level="3" dir="ltr" style="font-style: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: square; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Didn’t call the landlord yet for the garbage disposal= feels she can’t get anything done/can’t be counted on/can’t do anything right</span></p></li><li aria-level="3" dir="ltr" style="font-style: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: square; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It’s “her fault” if they get bugs (because of her failure to call the landlord)= It’s her fault things are as they are</span></p></li></ul></ul></ul><ul style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-style: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-style: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left; white-space: pre-wrap;">While interpretations like these are </span></div></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-style: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">incredibly subjective of course, Shaun got the gist of it. Enough to gently put his hands on her shoulders, “steadying” her in a way that was almost as powerful as the embrace that followed. </span></li></ul></ul><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8_Zndlnk8un94nxOOuPZORmMUtbmf1u_ETpMQTEitX8V42zWt6U42QNwFbcspEW6r_qpq5U0mrbmaTvL5MFTuP-CxG84_XzZjssP5itlRRUtKw8_ClxM2G-dzUOvax8Ulzm8nhFHDE1Uk/s4608/IMG_20210521_124218.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8_Zndlnk8un94nxOOuPZORmMUtbmf1u_ETpMQTEitX8V42zWt6U42QNwFbcspEW6r_qpq5U0mrbmaTvL5MFTuP-CxG84_XzZjssP5itlRRUtKw8_ClxM2G-dzUOvax8Ulzm8nhFHDE1Uk/w320-h240/IMG_20210521_124218.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><p dir="ltr" style="font-style: italic; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-style: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Maybe she was detailing the non-events of the day because she was afraid to ask for what she really needed from him. Maybe his non-response to her earlier suggestion of the support group caused her to try and keep all the heartbreak to herself. Maybe she needed to articulate her emotions in a way she thought only SHE would understand…</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-style: italic; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-style: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">What were those last lyrics of the night?</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-style: italic; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">I think if I fail again</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-style: italic; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">That I know you’re still listening</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-style: italic; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">Maybe it’s all gonna turn out all right</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>I have to believe that it is… have to believe</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>When I tell you that it is… Oh it’s not for my benefit</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>Maybe it’s all gonna turn out all right</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>Oh I know that it’s not </i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>But I have to believe that it is</i></span> </p></span></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></li></ul><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-9d117334-7fff-5265-3ae1-f5722959b7f1"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Shaun was listening… and even when her verbal communication failed her, he wordlessly found a way to meet her where she was. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Maybe the true “letting go” is still to come for them, but the journey has definitely begun.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdNjGOu0AtcwIwRp5MKxwv9oWwtngZeDugK0equFdN-m-04zpt413JSciV8gsc3pzUsD-kbMC4uod1UB93K3mialMyDXTDm9oyDk6chqj38D__H94JLkM4zZAtUPF0vBT1e-YCom2BrzNc/s4608/IMG_20210521_124237.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdNjGOu0AtcwIwRp5MKxwv9oWwtngZeDugK0equFdN-m-04zpt413JSciV8gsc3pzUsD-kbMC4uod1UB93K3mialMyDXTDm9oyDk6chqj38D__H94JLkM4zZAtUPF0vBT1e-YCom2BrzNc/w320-h240/IMG_20210521_124237.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span><p></p><div><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></div></span></div></span></span></span></div></span></span></div></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div><br /></div></span></span></div></span></div></span></div></span></div></span></div></div>Kelli Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06009713326652591943noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1583562784288599702.post-12400175123344922482021-05-13T23:05:00.031-07:002021-05-14T04:27:03.332-07:00State of the #SHEA part 35: A Family Way (The "Dr. Ted" episode)<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidopw24DIGefoVG2eh_9NRzKdyo6BYVuSQhVslZvRfhHFHkUmmgcTsAO_nEM0J8ijEh5zaOiLi8pSTVgLfxO2IeBXWL12DGPLywX7WkZYNJlfsiKeRyD3Bdelpj1DV1tABUDWhWKaZhqa9/s4608/IMG_20210513_121144.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidopw24DIGefoVG2eh_9NRzKdyo6BYVuSQhVslZvRfhHFHkUmmgcTsAO_nEM0J8ijEh5zaOiLi8pSTVgLfxO2IeBXWL12DGPLywX7WkZYNJlfsiKeRyD3Bdelpj1DV1tABUDWhWKaZhqa9/w320-h240/IMG_20210513_121144.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br /><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Definition of <i>welp<o:p></o:p></i></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">--used informally like <i>well</i> (as to introduce a
remark expressing resignation or disappointment)<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span></b></p>
<div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>Monday night, 12:24 AM</b> </span><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-style: italic; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-style: italic; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Welp… “Dr. Ted” ended about 90 minutes ago, and if I’m being honest, I don’t really want to watch it a second time. </span></span><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-style: italic; white-space: pre-wrap;">I will, because we need to talk about it, but I don’t want to. At least not at the moment.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-style: italic; white-space: pre-wrap;">I wanted to jot down some things before bed, but the comments are still flying on Twitter, and I had at least 3 DMs in progress a minute ago… ugh. I’ll try again in the morning.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">🍏🏎</span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">It's Wednesday night now, and I’m trying hard to sort out this big jumble of disorganized thought. I have Beth Orton’s “Ooh Child” cover on repeat… mood music. Inspiration.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/bZy4SMhD7zo" width="320" youtube-src-id="bZy4SMhD7zo"></iframe></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><p dir="ltr" style="font-size: xx-large; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></p><span style="font-size: large;">You know what’s funny (in the strange way, not the LOL way)? I wasn’t gung ho about the pregnancy story at first; like Shaun and Lea themselves, it felt too soon. I also felt that way about Lea moving back in with Shaun, as you might recall, yet that happened fairly seamlessly. So who was I to say?! </span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I went ahead and listed some possible outcomes for this pregnancy in my “<a href="https://stateoftheskate.blogspot.com/2021/03/sheababy-no-party-no-disco-little.html" target="_blank">No Party, No Disco, A Little Fooling Around</a>” </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> post, figuring the last thing it was likely to be was a full-term, sitcom-optional delivery (meaning one that might have elicited some chuckles along with happy tears; Shaun’s ability to juggle doctor and dad tested to its highest potential while also trying to let the doula do her thing)... </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">But along the way, they’d convinced me they were going all the way with this. In five episodes (not counting “We’re All Crazy Sometimes,” where we learned of the pregnancy in the final moments), we were fully immersed in this possibility of #Shea parenthood. The decision to have the child in the first place… the disconnection/reconnection… the doula decision… the revelation that it was a girl… the ties to parenthood that solidified a little more with the “Waiting” episode. It all served to endear this budding family all the more to not just Shaun and Lea, but US. We mused about foreshadowing, and how/when Lea would deliver. We eagerly anticipated scenes of them converting the spare bedroom into a nursery. We voted on baby names on Twitter. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">When Lea went down in front of the hospital, I thought that would be the worst of it. I really did.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And then those promos… those </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">damn </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">promos… my goodness. They’ve now gone from Much Ado About Nothing to Not Enough Ado About </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Something</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. Then late last week they crafted a “new” promo, mostly of old clips, hyping the final stretch of new episodes while sneaking in a shot of Lea needing that oxygen mask. Then we got more signs via those quasi-promos they do for social media: Lea in that scan room. Lines about Shaun not being able to protect Lea. Rumors. Big spoilers. Mentions of heartbreak. Emojis of broken hearts. But no! “Heartbreak” was last year, around this point in the season… the episode was literally </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">named </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“Heartbreak,” remember?</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But ‘tis the season for heartbreak where </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">TGD</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> is concerned, for fear of great loss= heartbreak.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Season 1: Dr. Glassman has what is initially believed to be an inoperable brain tumor, leaving Shaun devastated at the possibility of losing him. (In retrospect it’s still amazing how much story they packed into the S1 finale-- if they were doing 20 eps a season back then, surely this brain tumor would have been drawn out over 2 or 3 episodes.)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Season 2: Shaun gets fired courtesy of (the evil) Dr. Han in episode 17 (their third episode of interaction), leaving Shaun in emotional (and soon physical) tatters at the loss of his job. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Season 3: Shaun’s initial confession of love to Lea results in what I saw written in many places as “Lea’s double-rejection,” a term I take issue with considering how complex the matter was. Nonetheless, Shaun is heartbroken by the apparent loss of both his best friend and the love that shoulda coulda been.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And now, in Season 4, the heartbreak and loss comes to both Shaun </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Lea by way of the miscarriage. Of course Baby Girl Shea was taken from them, from </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">us</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. Of course. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">🍏🏎</span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">🍏🏎</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">🍏🏎</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The lines of dialogue flew by quickly, but they DID state that Lea was 22 weeks into the pregnancy in “Dr. Ted.” At that stage the baby is about the size of a spaghetti squash, and hair is starting to grow on its head. It’s also two weeks shy of being considered even remotely viable outside the womb, so a premature delivery wasn’t an option. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-1931a0a2-7fff-8649-c61e-eec9e0b92ffb" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Two little weeks. Two huge weeks.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The way Lea was flanked by the women midway through the episode, sharing their stories, while Shaun heard those of the men in the OR… it was sweet, but more than that, it brought most everyone on the show (with Morgan a notable exception; Glassman less so) closer together in a way they haven’t really been able to do before. Between this, and the “Ooh Child” montage at the end as Shaun and Lea made their way out of the hospital… this loss was profound in the way it touched them ALL. More than ever, it feels like every one of them (yes, Morgan too) wants Shaun to triumph… and with Lea as much a part of him as she is now, to want it for Shaun is to want it for both of them. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But all my fears about the rumors being true were aligning when Lea’s initial surgery was completed so early in the show (and she hadn’t had that oxygen mask scene yet). And when the story about Jordan’s “runaway tortoise” was the closing note of Act 3(?)... when they went to commercial with the women laughing, rather than a moment of dramatic tension… that’s when all my mental alarms were going off, noting the fixture of gut-wrenching drama. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We just witnessed a rare moment of shared levity; the calm before the storm. This is the pace for tragedy.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I was scrambling to think of options other than them losing the baby: Lea makes it through surgery/surgeries fine, but is deemed “high risk” for the remainder of the pregnancy. Lea has a close call during surgery, but Shaun scrubs in and saves the day. The baby has a close call during surgery but Shaun scrubs in and saves the day. Something. Anything.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">🍏🏎</span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">🍏🏎</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">🍏🏎</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Before more talk about the WHY, a few other noteworthy things within the episode:</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-7392c300-7fff-9483-e36f-24e4bf992819" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/28/86/28869CFE-F05B-C813-90E3-E1FE5A1B4FA2/158951_6790-0x300.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="240" height="200" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/28/86/28869CFE-F05B-C813-90E3-E1FE5A1B4FA2/158951_6790-0x300.jpg" width="160" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun grew quieter and quieter as “Dr. Ted” progressed. At the start he’s pacing, he’s talking relatively fast, he’s compiled </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">lists</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, for heaven’s sake. Same for when he’s arguing for a spot on Lea’s surgical team; same for when he takes his argument to Glassy. Midway through, he’s more hesitant-- still delivering info (his specialty) to Lea, but listening more as his worries intensify. By the last two acts he’s all but overtaken by a methodical silence… and sorrow. </span></span><p></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Several took note of the fact that Glassy </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">could</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> have delivered Dr. Ted to Lea directly, but chose to bring him to Shaun at the apartment instead. And while he was there for Shaun as the D & C began (D & C, by the way, is short for “dilation and curettage” or the process of clearing a uterus after a miscarriage), we still didn’t see him anywhere near Lea in this episode. Could he have been actively avoiding her, some wonder? I’m not certain; could have been a simple time shortage on the scriptwriters’ part (or a need to prioritize Glassman’s angry scene with Wolke)... we’ll have to see what they give us in 17 and 18. I’m trying hard not to expect more than we’ll likely get.</span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-0286c6f6-7fff-1e48-7dff-76b47669d641"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“What kind of mother loses her baby’s first teddy bear?”</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Lea wailed when she misplaced Dr. Ted in the company of Lim/Claire/Jordan, and in the wake of the rest of the episode, I couldn’t help but hear the parallel to “Hubert” that you might have noted too... </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“How am I supposed to (get my life back on track) when I can’t keep a damn fish alive?”</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> It does indeed make me wonder how much she’ll blame herself for this miscarriage. And whether she tries to single out certain activities she did while pregnant, or the fact that she initially didn’t want to stay pregnant at all-- or even worse, sees herself as defective (to borrow Shaun’s description of the late great Hubert)-- the challenge Shaun faces in helping lift her up from that way of thinking is substantial.</span></span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The way the show orchestrated the news of the baby’s final fate was so impressive, I give them a pass for it initially feeling a little contrived…</span></span></p></li><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: circle; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Shaun was essentially “hiding out” in the diagnostic lab area when Wolke happened upon him; we’d seen him do this before, but this time it was because he already knew Baby Girl Shea couldn’t survive… and he couldn’t bring himself to tell Lea.</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: circle; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun engaged in a brief conversation with Wolke about his concerns for patient Maxine, and this is where it felt contrived to me-- I think Shaun could’ve cared less about Wolke’s concerns, especially in that moment, and he’s not much for small talk, as we know. But the conversation is where Shaun plucked out Wolke’s words </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Time is hope</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and crafted a reason for avoiding Lea. It was a reason quickly debunked by Claire, but by then the scene had what it needed-- a means by which Claire could explain what had happened without having to be the one to tell Lea.</span></span></p></li></ul></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The one to “tell” Lea, of course, didn’t have to say anything at all. And watching Lea’s face dim with despair, her whole body sinking almost imperceptibly as Shaun came to sit alongside her… it was almost as agonizing as her sobs became a few moments later. </span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4HdZc0eqUGnzrhvhOVeNo_dpLtqQCcuiy3mzGTV8nfmdXtUzZkRzpjTLFy7NUh34sfUv9iBiX0vNcEMTD8-XUD7hIWSqEj_MTAtSatYjurVFXbLtx5XDjfpOYKg4Kb3ytr2V9qPDysio6/s4608/IMG_20210513_120702.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4HdZc0eqUGnzrhvhOVeNo_dpLtqQCcuiy3mzGTV8nfmdXtUzZkRzpjTLFy7NUh34sfUv9iBiX0vNcEMTD8-XUD7hIWSqEj_MTAtSatYjurVFXbLtx5XDjfpOYKg4Kb3ytr2V9qPDysio6/w200-h150/IMG_20210513_120702.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"></span></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvCncFXzNYNl5CSfBSTgibskT7o5GiFnTWlwZTvA7uvfHXT7eq9S94lhgFu71DVOyWffJIPkGbGzZ1TpSt6AGxkKNFIc95GtPQ-5t6zgRfzUQ63qdSG548gEcQ-P6367-ap6lrCmMTmcuO/s4608/IMG_20210513_120704.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvCncFXzNYNl5CSfBSTgibskT7o5GiFnTWlwZTvA7uvfHXT7eq9S94lhgFu71DVOyWffJIPkGbGzZ1TpSt6AGxkKNFIc95GtPQ-5t6zgRfzUQ63qdSG548gEcQ-P6367-ap6lrCmMTmcuO/w200-h150/IMG_20210513_120704.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></span></span></div><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"></span></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqjbSpr8NGT0xCJOVicV1J-pGNFA_S0xTrqGgArvJ0WoS1Ek0R8t6oKdvgzoSvOCFWN8jNOEfou_SmL0sK5Hp9ytugES9EJVbAxWpB1iQxcWQsarK-HR2dzVxVrH_R7Jzm8sbvuiDdYDOD/s4608/IMG_20210513_120710.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqjbSpr8NGT0xCJOVicV1J-pGNFA_S0xTrqGgArvJ0WoS1Ek0R8t6oKdvgzoSvOCFWN8jNOEfou_SmL0sK5Hp9ytugES9EJVbAxWpB1iQxcWQsarK-HR2dzVxVrH_R7Jzm8sbvuiDdYDOD/w200-h150/IMG_20210513_120710.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></span></span></div><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">🍏🏎</span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">🍏🏎</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">🍏🏎</span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">So why do this?</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Many a viewer has asked… </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-ef1ff004-7fff-fab5-ae54-026a912077ed" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Some Tweets I caught over the past few days included the following words of angst towards TGD writers and/or showrunners:</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><b>“How could you?”</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><b>“I don’t forgive the writers for this one.”</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><b>“So heartbreaking, upsetting and disappointing.”</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><b>“Why would ‘TGD’ do this to me?”</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Some viewers who happen to also be readers of this blog came and vented via the comments section of my last post: Tony, for instance, was livid over the crass comments being made by other parts of TGD “fandom” actually expressing joy for the miscarriage. Mo (aka Hippy Dippy Scot), on the other hand… well, let’s just say she says she’s not going to watch TGD anymore. (If you’re still reading, Mo, we wish you the best!)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Reader Melanie Meirr shared the sentiments of many viewers with these words: </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>“I have a friend who was pregnant and was so excited about the pregnancy, like Lea… she lost her baby. I was so sad for her. What happened to Lea hurt me.”</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMARmuOsbQ-mOsxAF10Bf6Exl_A8rFMvd0_xjGrT5GnlBq31U5v04HyBo9s6K1weaMIWtFBqL-3Wco-Uc7tnVqCJ_DYGaIsekaDa0iAscwuCojt4vMXkCNchz7JYGpy5DrPRGK3KhhGAs4/s4608/IMG_20210513_121131.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMARmuOsbQ-mOsxAF10Bf6Exl_A8rFMvd0_xjGrT5GnlBq31U5v04HyBo9s6K1weaMIWtFBqL-3Wco-Uc7tnVqCJ_DYGaIsekaDa0iAscwuCojt4vMXkCNchz7JYGpy5DrPRGK3KhhGAs4/w200-h150/IMG_20210513_121131.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br />There are so many stories out there of premature loss; miscarriages and stillbirths and late-term abortions and even worse, it was practically taboo to speak of them not that long ago. My mother-in-law gave birth to four children in the 1970s, my husband being the eldest of them… but even before he was born, his mom had suffered a loss through stillbirth. Then, somewhere between the third and fourth child-- a miscarriage. In the case of the stillborn child, half of a burial plot was purchased so they could give the child a proper burial. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Half</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> a plot. Can you imagine dealing with pain like this, sometimes several times over… or even worse, having to push that pain deep down and NOT deal with it because so many need you for so much, day in and day out? For years?</span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">If you’ve lived it yourself, or been close to someone who has, I hope “Dr. Ted” and whatever follows on TGD is able to bring some degree of solace and comfort, as shared experiences (even fictional ones) often do. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Andreas, a frequent commenter here who writes much, much faster than I do (dammit), <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/thegooddoctor/comments/naofl9/the_day_after/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3 " target="_blank">noted on his latest Reddit post </a>“The Day After” that one in </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">six</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> pregnancies end in miscarriage. That’s a lot of sadness, and grief, and (eventual) recovery. Maybe one of the reasons to put Shaun and Lea through this is as time-honored as any-- to mirror real life, and in doing so create a path to healing that perhaps wasn’t there before.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Something else that Andreas covers in great detail in “The Day After” is the matter of autistic parenthood-- which, as you might guess, is portrayed in the arts even less frequently than autism in general. Andreas points out that if TGD had gone the distance with this pregnancy, it would have saddled Shaun and Lea with infant-to-toddler issues for the duration of the show’s run while never really getting to deal with the “meatier” (my word, not Andreas’) challenges that might crop up later with an ASD diagnosis. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I’ll add in here that there was also the lingering question </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">How would Shaun handle being a 5th-year surgical resident while also navigating newfound parenthood?... </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">maybe a decision was made that Shaun wouldn’t realistically handle it well enough, which could lead to darker developments than the show wants to explore…? I’m spitballing here of course, but if that happened to be a reason, kudos to the show for acknowledging its limits.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As for how dark TGD </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">does</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> want to go with the miscarriage-- obviously that remains to be seen. But a huge part of why the show is “doing this to us” is the straight-up drama of it all…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Did we want to see a shattered-looking Shaun break his toy scalpel in the aftermath of his dismissal by Dr. Han? No. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Did we appreciate hearing Lea blurt out to Shaun last year that he couldn’t “fix” his autism? Hell no!</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Is the memory of Shaun standing alongside the Striped Tomato-- angry, alcohol-fueled, and despondent-- something we cherish? OH HELL TO THE NO.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But in each and every season thus far, we’ve wondered </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">How will he ever… </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and then, one way or another, he </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">does.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In short, I believe we’ve gotta keep </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">trusting the writers</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. I said it last year too, and I didn't regret it (obviously). We viewers tend to be pretty weak on predicting the details of any given journey, but at least where #Shea is concerned, I believe we all see the same destination. I really do.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-9bb27543-7fff-d182-aa44-ff0ecef75209" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Which leads me to a relatively brief take on </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Where does #Shea Go From Here</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">?</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The most important thing the miscarriage does, in my mind, is add significant layers to the Shaun and Lea chronicles we’re already familiar with. We know Shaun struggles with communication and emotions, and we know Lea struggles with his struggles. With these things they’re getting better all the time… but the miscarriage will require SERIOUS “leveling up.” </span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">One form the additional layers take is the likely situation of Lea shoving her darkest thoughts aside in an effort to protect Shaun from her pain. Lord knows that won’t work for long.</span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun, meanwhile, will surely struggle to both “access his feelings” (as Glassman so aptly put it last week) </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> be what Lea needs at any given moment. </span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The pace at which all this happens-- hopefully with a clear path to recovery in sight by the end of the season finale-- will require a LOT of development and progression over the span of four episodes. So, as always, I’ll be on the lookout for key lines that can make or break a conversation… and of course, storyline “catapults” I’ve brought up from time to time are as likely to crop up as ever. (The upcoming mission trip of the 2-part season finale sounds like a huge catapult candidate all by itself!)</span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I think both Shaun and Lea will need some significant moments of real catharsis in order to move forward-- both together, and as individuals. Whether it happens separately, or as a unit (I love the idea of Shaun and Lea throwing rocks together into some Guatemalan waterway, yelling </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It’s not fair! </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">At the top of their lungs until they collapse in each other’s arms), I have hope that the mission trip can somehow bring them home to each other in a beautiful way.</span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">One last thing…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I play this little game that I call The Gospel According to iPod. Simply stated, I hit “shuffle” on a given iTunes playlist (yes, I still use iTunes and even have an iPod that kind of works) when I’m having a particularly challenging day or week, and the first three songs that crop up I then try to weave into a meaningful context. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Here are the three songs that cropped up when I played The Gospel According to iPod Tuesday morning, as I kept #Shea and their forever #Sheababy in mind…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>“What is This Thing Called Love” (Lena Horne)</b></span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>“Run to Me” (Bee Gees)</b></span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>“Angels” (Robbie Williams)</b></span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">These three songs really clicked for me. Do they click for you?</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Till next week--</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(Be sure to share your thoughts and feelings about “Dr. Ted” in the comments if you’re so inclined!)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihiiiQmQuD0M2olpZLn73cztUhknKYiK1MfiOt9Pyn9si9Ai00VZDQIlcsawfTXsRFBlL9CdeFgrINOldcJJxOj-ZC_WxTMUuw-ItUaeLBZNjhJv9XrbdA3N2qC68RNk4eugpqawnrTUxF/s4608/IMG_20210513_120739.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihiiiQmQuD0M2olpZLn73cztUhknKYiK1MfiOt9Pyn9si9Ai00VZDQIlcsawfTXsRFBlL9CdeFgrINOldcJJxOj-ZC_WxTMUuw-ItUaeLBZNjhJv9XrbdA3N2qC68RNk4eugpqawnrTUxF/w320-h240/IMG_20210513_120739.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p></div></div>Kelli Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06009713326652591943noreply@blogger.com56tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1583562784288599702.post-74798101438457898492021-05-08T13:23:00.097-07:002021-05-08T22:52:11.071-07:00Hansel and Gretelling Our Way to June 7<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/F0/C7/F0C717A7-6AE3-61FD-E0DB-02B438586A04/159085_7446-900x0.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="641" data-original-width="800" height="256" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/F0/C7/F0C717A7-6AE3-61FD-E0DB-02B438586A04/159085_7446-900x0.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-c2fcc349-7fff-21ad-f97f-cbed62456c89"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Since it was yet another week during TGD season 4 without a new TGD episode to analyze to pieces, it’s been another week of waiting in vain for certain breadcrumbs (to borrow this time from Park’s </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Hansel & Gretel </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">reference in “Waiting”) while being pleasantly surprised by other ones.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Perhaps the best surprises weren’t total surprises after all:</span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">On Monday,<i> The Good Doctor</i></span><span style="font-style: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> got renewed for Season 5-- an announcement made ahead of all other scripted series renewals for ABC, which is extra nice even though the rest will be announced in a matter of days/weeks... </span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The remainder of the S4 schedule confirms that there are NO MORE PLANNED PRE-EMPTIONS… episode 16 will air Monday, 17 will air 5/17, 18 will air 5/24, 19 will air 5/31, and 20 (the season finale) is set to air June 7. </span></p></li></ul><div><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">ARE YOU READY?</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">ARE YOU EXCITED?</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">ARE YOU A LITTLE BIT SCARED? If only because, well, you know how these things go, especially with </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Good Doctor</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">? </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If you’re any or all of the above, you’re in the right place.</span></p><br /><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Let's knock through the remaining episodes now in an extended game of </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Hey, what do WE know?...</span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎🤰</span></span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎🤰</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎🤰</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-d7e2e621-7fff-f97a-94ba-f4b9574a00de"><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">What do we know about 4.16 “Dr. Ted” (airing Monday 5/10)?</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In the ABC promo that aired just after “Waiting” we learn that Lea will need surgery… that Shaun wants to be a part of the surgical team (at bare minimum) but Lim denies him, and Glassman supports the decision… that Shaun is understandably distressed… and that he appears to be relinquishing his beloved toy scalpel to Lea for the duration of the procedure (I presume). Something that Shea Endgame pointed out here is that,while it </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">sounds</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> like Claire says the sentence “We found something about the pregnancy; you’re going to need surgery,” there are edits made between “We found something” and “about the pregnancy” </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> “you’re going to need surgery.” Which indicates that, while the ABC promotion wizards/demons are making it </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">seem</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> as if there’s a problem with the baby, chances are strong that the surgery to come is more for Lea than Sheababy. (Perhaps if it was an unedited sentence, Claire would be saying </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We found something happening with your ______ that is being exacerbated by the pregnancy, and as a result you’re going to need surgery.</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">)</span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/I7uehq_fQQA" width="320" youtube-src-id="I7uehq_fQQA"></iframe></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span><p></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The CTV promo has been released as well and, for once, it travels a very similar path to ABC’s promo. One notable difference is that while we only hear the “We found something…” part of Claire’s lines, we </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">do </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">hear Shaun say “You could lose the baby.” But, as SheaEndgame </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">also</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> pointed out, just about any surgical procedure on a pregnant woman carries the risk of harm to the unborn child. </span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ASxdQqsEhGM" width="320" youtube-src-id="ASxdQqsEhGM"></iframe></div><br /><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: large;">If there are scenes that immediately follow what we saw at the end of “Waiting”, they aren’t in the promo materials because Shaun and Lea are wearing something completely different, even when Claire is doing the scan (which presumably happens just before they get Lea formally admitted/hospital gown on). </span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And in fact, the day after I made the above note, </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://tvline.com/2021/05/07/the-good-doctor-season-4-spoilers-shaun-lea-baby-episode-16-video/" target="_blank">TVLine</a></span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://tvline.com/2021/05/07/the-good-doctor-season-4-spoilers-shaun-lea-baby-episode-16-video/" target="_blank"> offered a "sneak peek" </a>indicating Claire is checking Lea out 24 hours AFTER her collapse</span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">,with the comment that Lea’s OB has attributed the collapse to a common occurrence known as round ligament pain. I’d never heard of that, even through two pregnancies of my own, <a href="https://www.healthline.com/health/pregnancy/round-ligament-pain#symptoms" target="_blank">so I looked it up.. </a></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://www.healthline.com/health/pregnancy/round-ligament-pain#symptoms" target="_blank"> </a></span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><i>The most recognizable symptom of round ligament pain is an intense, sudden spasm in your abdomen or hip area. The pain usually occurs on the right side. Some pregnant women experience round ligament pain on both sides (</i>as Lea describes to Claire in the clip that accompanies the TVLine article<i>). </i></span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If they really do skip from the end of "Waiting" to this particular scene, I kind of feel like they'll have taken</span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> much ado about nothing </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">to a whole different level. Not because what's ultimately going to happen with Lea isn't serious, but because what they showed us at the end of “Waiting” looked a whole <i>hellaserious</i> more than a common pain. Maybe that’s the point; maybe we’re supposed to remember that moment (as Shaun surely does) and say </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Um, that looked a lot worse than “a normal occurrence”</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">...? But it’s still hard to picture Lea getting assisted to the St. B ER (on a gurnee, I hope? Or at least a wheelchair?), only to say five minutes later “Guys, this is really embarrassing, but I feel just fine now” and head back out the door. Especially with Shaun’s blessing. You know? </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Something else I thought of was that BTS (behind the scenes) shot of Bria Henderson, aka Jordan, posing with The Striped Tomato (via IG) the same week that Paige Spara posted her Lea-in-a-hospital-gown pics (via IG). So maybe we’ll see Lea and Shaun parking and walking through the lot en route to the hospital first? With some dialogue to help connect the “collapse” (sounds so dramatic but I just don’t have a better word for it) to the examination by Claire to follow… most likely guided by Shaun’s doubts overriding the OB’s (off-screen) assurances. Just a thought. </span></span></p></li></ul><div><br /></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">What does "Dr. Ted" refer to? WE HAVE THEORIES…</span></span></p></li><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://pbs.twimg.com/media/E0sxhXPXIAQvt4g?format=jpg&name=small" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="314" data-original-width="680" height="92" src="https://pbs.twimg.com/media/E0sxhXPXIAQvt4g?format=jpg&name=small" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Many people figured that "Dr. Ted" is a teddy bear, and the fact that someone caught a little glimpse of Lea holding a teddy bear at the hospital in one of the promo shots helped reinforce this theory.</span></span><p></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">It could be a teddy bear that Park's new quasi-girlfriend brought over from pediatrics... </span></span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Or a teddy bear Lea has had since childhood that perhaps she got when she was in the hospital as a kid… </span></span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">But the theory so many of us liked was that of the bear originally belonging to Glassy's daughter, and him bringing it to her for good luck. Of course now that we've got such an image in our heads, we're going to be bummed if Glassy doesn't even share a scene with Lea in "Dr. Ted," much less give her the titular stuffed bear.</span></span></p></li></ul></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.andreabeaty.com/uploads/1/5/2/4/15240358/9258168_orig.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="337" data-original-width="319" height="200" src="https://www.andreabeaty.com/uploads/1/5/2/4/15240358/9258168_orig.jpg" width="189" /></a></div><br /><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And for a completely different option, we have this actual children’s book from Andrea Beaty called </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Doctor Ted</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> bearing this storyline: </span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-59381adb-7fff-80d8-813a-65f613297de0"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="3" dir="ltr" style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: square; margin-left: 72pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">One morning, Ted wakes up and bumps his knee. He needs a doctor!</span></p></li></ul><br /><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="3" dir="ltr" style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: square; margin-left: 72pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Since doctors are scarce in Ted’s room, he becomes one. Doctor Ted diagnoses his mother’s freckles as measles and prescribes an operation. He diagnoses the principal’s bad breath and prescribes a shot.</span></p></li></ul><br /><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="3" dir="ltr" style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: square; margin-left: 72pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">No one appreciates Ted’s medical talents until an accident strikes and Doctor Ted saves the day!</span></p></li></ul><div><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-048b5027-7fff-aec6-9338-69fe649da025"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Will Shaun, who is in fact wearing his medical scrubs in one of the promo shots, pull a “Doctor Ted” and save the day where Lea is concerned? We shall see! (Though I’d argue if he insisted on tests that detected the need for surgery in the first place, he’s already done a bit of day-saving!)</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; white-space: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎🤰</span></span></span>🍏🏎🤰🍏🏎🤰</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What do we know about 4.17 “Letting Go” (airing Monday 5/17)?</span></p><div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-2688b8b9-7fff-b917-0228-ec031c95c7f1"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><ul style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The synopsis, which is: </span><span style="background-color: #f2f2f2; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Dr. Claire Brown and the team must face hard truths about what lines they are willing to cross when one of Claire’s idols becomes her patient.</span></p></li></ul><br /><ul style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The promo photos have not yet been released… which based on experience, I take to mean they would be too revealing of certain ongoing plot points (such as the progress of Lea’s pregnancy). Is that a sign she’ll lose the baby in “Dr. Ted”? While this certainly doesn’t count as something we know for sure… I think mama-and-daughter-to-be will be fine heading into “Letting Go.” Among other reasons: the layout of the promo, the sneak previews we’ve been privy to, and the fact that they already gave our nerves a pretty good test run at the end of “Parenting.” (That doesn’t mean it’ll be drama-free from here on out, of course. I’m just thinking of the PACING of said drama.)</span></p></li></ul><br /><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">One big thing to note about ALL the remaining episodes is that the previews of plot summaries are likely to get increasingly vague. The above synopsis, for instance, makes no reference to Shaun or Lea specifically. But can you imagine the #Sheababy storyline absent from an episode at this point? </span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p></li><ul style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As a reminder, the summary for 3.18 “Heartbreak” (where Shaun and Lea had their miserable moments with the baseball bat) was... </span><span style="background-color: #f5f2f0; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Claire and Shaun treat a patient with a rare form of dwarfism. Reznick, Lim and Park treat a young man who had both arms torn off in a previous farming accident.</span><span style="background-color: #f5f2f0; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Shaun reacts to an emotional situation.</span></p></li></ul></ul><div><b><i><br /></i></b></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><ul style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And 3.19 “Hurt” (earthquake pt.1)? </span><span style="background-color: #f5f2f0; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The city of San Jose is rocked by a massive earthquake</span><span style="background-color: #f5f2f0; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> that puts the staff of St. Bonaventure Hospital on high alert as they race to assess the damage and account for the safety of their colleagues and friends.</span><span style="background-color: #f5f2f0; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Meanwhile, Dr. Neil Melendez and Dr. Aaron Glassman are attending a charity event when their lives are threatened by the earthquake. </span><span style="background-color: #f5f2f0; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(No mention of Lea here; guess she was a generic “friend”)</span></p></li></ul></ul></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; white-space: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎🤰</span></span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-weight: 400;">🍏🏎🤰</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-weight: 400;">🍏🏎🤰</span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-weight: 400;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-weight: 400;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-a7b0f59b-7fff-700c-59b6-3c4c50a75722" style="font-weight: normal;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">What do we know about 4.18 “Forgive or Forget” (airing Monday 5/24)?</span></p><br /><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">That Sheila Kelley (aka Debbie) posted a picture of her with this particular script several weeks ago, indicating that Debbie will make an appearance in this episode. And if that’s the case, one assumes Glassman (Debbie’s husband) will play a bigger role than he has in the past several… which have largely consisted of two-minutes-and-under counsel for Shaun, as we’ve noted (and lamented).</span></p></li></ul><div><br /></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">That multiple scenes from 4.18, including some involving Shaun and Lea, were shot on location in Vancouver’s 220-acre Central Park, as <a href="https://stateoftheskate.blogspot.com/2021/04/watching-detectives-shea-style.html " target="_blank">we discussed at length in this post from April 17.</a> </span></p></li></ul><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; white-space: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎🤰</span></span></span>🍏🏎🤰🍏🏎🤰</div><div><br /></div><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-c09b3954-7fff-8c18-976f-b3bf0621228a"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What do we know about 4.19 “VENGA” (airing Monday 5/31)?</span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">That title, which was announced this past week… and translates to “Hurry up” or “Come on” in Spanish, according to Google. (Our Spanish-speaking TGD contingency had a lot to say about this on Twitter, as you might imagine! Which I encourage to continue in the comments on this post!)</span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-6aed81fd-7fff-d91e-9360-814d1bf04e24" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: medium; white-space: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎🤰</span></span></span>🍏🏎🤰🍏🏎🤰</p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What do we know about </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Good Doctor</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> season finale with title TBA, 4.20 (airing Monday 6/7)?</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Specifically? Not a damn thing, other than that airdate. (And that ABC’s lead-in for the TGD season finale is the season </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline;">premiere</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> of </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">The Bachelorette</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">… do with that what you will)</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">BUT--!! What do we know about the remainder of the season in general??? </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Several things, actually… it’s just difficult to string much of it together into something cohesive yet. But…</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-bc0362f0-7fff-9018-c55d-3e7ba1e769d0" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The “new” promo I mentioned earlier indicated that the season finale will be another two-parter.</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Both remaining “newbies” (Wolke and Jordan) have their final episode-- for the season, at least-- with episode 18. Since Richard Schiff (Glassman) has posted pictures from California in recent weeks, speculation is strong that both Glassman and Debbie conclude for the season with episode 18 as well.</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The “driver’s blog” that gets mentioned in the comments from time to time has posted a number of interesting photos, including one of an airport terminal for "international departures" including Argentina and Chile...</span></p></li></ul><div><br /></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And photos of the cast, some which look to be in a bar (in character, or behind-the-scenes?) that indicate there is a whole lot of ON-LOCATION SHOOTING happening. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A number of additional behind-the-scenes photos posted </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://pbs.twimg.com/media/E0uJ7kvX0AQQgjk?format=jpg&name=medium" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="552" height="200" src="https://pbs.twimg.com/media/E0uJ7kvX0AQQgjk?format=jpg&name=medium" width="138" /></a></div>this week to various IG accounts…</li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-06889c47-7fff-0e25-383f-efc624921f7f"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">All of which indicate every other member of the cast, aside from the ones I mentioned above, are involved in the shooting of the 2 part finale.</span></span></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-8208383c-7fff-b6a6-f165-ba45049fd9e2"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">In one or more remote locations.</span></span></span></span></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://pbs.twimg.com/media/E0uRF4xX0AYxseI?format=jpg&name=small" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="591" data-original-width="591" height="200" src="https://pbs.twimg.com/media/E0uRF4xX0AYxseI?format=jpg&name=small" width="200" /></a></div></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-f7080aad-7fff-568b-e16c-67f0ed7473fa"></span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Which may (going back to that driver’s blog photo) include South America-- not actually shooting there of course, but somehow “set” there.</span></p></li></ul></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Oh, and lest we forget… part one of this 2-part finale is titled with the Spanish word </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>venga</i>. </span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://pbs.twimg.com/media/E04rkhlXIAcDX9m?format=jpg&name=large" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="640" height="200" src="https://pbs.twimg.com/media/E04rkhlXIAcDX9m?format=jpg&name=large" width="160" /></a></div><br /><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">HAVING FUN WITH THIS YET???</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I know the theories fly with every one of these breadcrumbs, but especially with the pregnancy storyline in full swing, I’m pretty much stumped. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">There have been thoughts of the core characters spending time away from the hospital for reasons more personal than professional, but in several of the IG posts the cast is wearing the same St. B windbreakers they’ve worn away from the hospital when helping in a disaster (“Hurt”/”I Love You”), transporting an organ from one hospital to another (“Oliver”), and other remote calls... </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Does any of the story circle back to Claire’s desire to go overseas (as seen at the end of “Teeny Blue Eyes”)? But how could it if so many are involved?</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Is the St. B staff on a medical mission trip of some sort? If so, how is Lea’s presence explained? (Though I’m certain the writers could create a need for an IT person on-site if need be)</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If they ARE on a trip, and Lea DOES go into labor on said trip… will they have advanced the pregnancy enough so that Sheababy isn’t born premature? (But if they do,what’s the reasonable explanation for Lea travelling so late in her pregnancy? And if they </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">don’t</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, how can a preemie survive in such a situation?</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Is anyone willing to consider the possibility that Lea and Shaun have lost the baby by the time of episodes 19 and 20? (I know; I’m not willing to either. But to truly brainstorm the options means putting all the possibilities out there, doesn’t it?)</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Is there any way that what happens in the finale makes not only a place-hop, but a time-hop? </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Does one of the characters get hit with a rock and then have “the strangest and/or longest dream?”</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If I sound like I’m out of ideas… it’s because I AM. Time to keep the guesses coming via the comments! </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/54/EE/54EE3CCF-B769-DB63-0B2C-DACFC2DE02EE/158951_8735-0x300.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="200" height="200" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/54/EE/54EE3CCF-B769-DB63-0B2C-DACFC2DE02EE/158951_8735-0x300.jpg" width="133" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And if you’re stumped too, just keep reading, and take heart… we’ll know what they’re up to soon enough. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/53/54/535431B4-9718-4CA1-A8D2-F19A726E280C/159085_9840-0x300.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="200" height="200" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/53/54/535431B4-9718-4CA1-A8D2-F19A726E280C/159085_9840-0x300.jpg" width="133" /></a></div><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><p></p><br /><div><span face="Roboto, sans-serif" style="background-color: #f5f2f0; font-size: 12.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></div></span></div></span></span></div></span></div></span></span></div>Kelli Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06009713326652591943noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1583562784288599702.post-51446796568729895172021-05-01T19:33:00.021-07:002021-09-21T09:01:48.780-07:00State of the #SHEA part 34: The Hardest Part ("Waiting")<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwdIpO7_HjnWLsvHi-KSFC-JD_ecsgeZVGx3zdxLiOH82wSgbfRcj3y_nYFaMiCUfwb3_DBukDwuc6lJ_4usDsa5B7BwtenKGyWM4pzEblm95nzCO8HzTrXyDlvKejcH2gmps-2hqPDvqD/s4608/IMG_20210430_233333.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwdIpO7_HjnWLsvHi-KSFC-JD_ecsgeZVGx3zdxLiOH82wSgbfRcj3y_nYFaMiCUfwb3_DBukDwuc6lJ_4usDsa5B7BwtenKGyWM4pzEblm95nzCO8HzTrXyDlvKejcH2gmps-2hqPDvqD/s320/IMG_20210430_233333.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span><p></p><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-0f5b67cd-7fff-8597-fb0e-596eafdf1719"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">They’re onto us, #Shea fans.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">There we were, taking in that final minute of 4.15 “Waiting” and enjoying a little walk-and-talk between Shaun and Lea-- the only real time they got to spend together in the episode, though both had their hands full in very different ways. And as we watched for the part where they would stand facing each other, holding hands as they were in the promo pics, some fans likely had their thumb on the “mute” button (or even the OFF switch) because they were determined to beat the ABC promo system and not be freaked out by the promo to immediately follow. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And what happened? We were freaked out in the final 15 seconds of the episode instead! (The promo, for a change, merely underscored what we already knew of the next episode via press releases.) </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">So… our quest to be as strong and smart as the characters we adore continues to be a work in progress. Eat your Wheaties and keep building up that stamina, gang-- five more sure-to-be-challenging, hopefully-in-the-best-way episodes remain this season!</span></p><br /><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As for “Waiting,” what I’ve done is highlight </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">what’s new</span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">what’s familiar </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(sometimes, a little of both) as the episode progresses. For the most part this is going to be about Shaun and Lea’s roles in the story, but if you want to talk about anything else-- from the way the politics were handled in the waiting room, to the way they were handled in the OR, to the status of Park and Morgan’s relationship-- please feel free to hit up the comments. Even if they have nothing to do with #Shea. Even if you’ve never commented before! It seems to be a good, “safe” place to readers to express opinions. (And trade theories. And speculate freely. And a few other things.)</span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHNppLWLatqLOD5aIVywWaA32374hK6TBMTWLU1sXKPnNYVHskq8crN2K-UuRHk8Ij91ePX9Dm25Ah9GYhueBThXVRCYA0Io8fg289Oi62qRbuqCTuESMzKnfC1mMcOgWV1ho4EK55Y7o5/s4608/IMG_20210430_225544.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHNppLWLatqLOD5aIVywWaA32374hK6TBMTWLU1sXKPnNYVHskq8crN2K-UuRHk8Ij91ePX9Dm25Ah9GYhueBThXVRCYA0Io8fg289Oi62qRbuqCTuESMzKnfC1mMcOgWV1ho4EK55Y7o5/w200-h150/IMG_20210430_225544.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /></span></span><span id="docs-internal-guid-12d3df20-7fff-b606-3a69-2e6858c2ff52"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">ACT 1: </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Taryn/Ethan and Carina/Mason drive to rally</span></span></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What’s new (sort of): </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">An open with NO series regulars until scene 3. TGD has done this before, as recently as the S4 premiere, in fact. (“Frontline part 1” showed a woman ordering from a coffee shop-- and spreading what we later learned was COVID-- through a very commonplace exchange of cash, goods, etc. before we ever got to see Shaun and Lea.) But I think of this as more old-school; how crime and medical dramas of the 70s and 80s set up an episode… back when said dramas were more case/action-focused than character-driven.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Shaun checks in with Lea, who is awaiting the results of her gestational diabetes test; they see breaking news of the rally gone wrong; Shaun gets paged to the ER</span></span></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What’s new: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">a gestational diabetes test happening so early in the pregnancy! </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Let’s just say TGD took some creative liberties here. They needed a reason for Lea to be hanging around the waiting room, and they needed that reason to be on a level completely incompatible with the intensity of the moms (Taryn and Carina). Gestational diabetes fits the bill nicely-- for those who don’t know, the expectant mom drinks a bottle of sickly-sweet liquid that was orange-flavored (in my case), then waits around for an hour or so, then gets a blood draw, then waits for the results. I don’t know that you HAVE to sit around waiting on the results as Lea did, but given she was already at work, I guess it made sense. Lea was right to call the liquid “gloop”, by the way… it’s unpleasant. To say the least. </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Anyway, here’s the catch: it typically happens between the 24th and 28th weeks of pregnancy unless the patient is pre-diabetic (not Lea), or there is a family history of diabetes. While the latter </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">could</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> be true, it wasn’t mentioned as a reason she was doing it early. It’s unclear how far along Lea is in “Waiting” but since I was guessing 11 weeks for “Gender Reveal,” we seem to be imaging anything from 12 to 20 weeks. In any case, we’ll have to suspend reality a little for this.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Both boys are wheeled in, evaluated, and carted off as the moms are left behind, shell-shocked...</span></span></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">OPENING CREDITS</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_GqNV6WsZlBhz1UcxzeluLvzZrdOfkf6dhGBvrg_bwgxhZNIUcP7tI1jqG4n13vufAs71WZjXeTiWnBBzikuEdd5GS_cLPAB-HLEt2HZNEwINBopMeXXCVEgxxlw-EXFFce2nySUwe8FY/s4608/IMG_20210430_225932.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_GqNV6WsZlBhz1UcxzeluLvzZrdOfkf6dhGBvrg_bwgxhZNIUcP7tI1jqG4n13vufAs71WZjXeTiWnBBzikuEdd5GS_cLPAB-HLEt2HZNEwINBopMeXXCVEgxxlw-EXFFce2nySUwe8FY/w200-h150/IMG_20210430_225932.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">ACT 1A (post-opening credits)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-35263f52-7fff-f51e-7292-3b1b93c9ea0f" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Taryn and Carina both go to the same waiting room where Lea is; she turns off the TV once she realizes these are THE moms whose kids’ stories are being told. She helps both moms with the paperwork that is presented to them. </span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What’s new: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The pacing of the episode. While I didn’t count an overwhelmingly high number of scenes compared to other recent TGD outings, it </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">was</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> in the high 30s rather than the mid or low 30s-- and making room for even three or four additional scenes surely requires all-around tighter writing/directing. Where the pace quickened the most, for me, was the back-and-forth between the respective ORs and that waiting room. Even in the relatively short space between opening credits and the first commercial break, they jammed in SIX scenes alternating from the waiting room to one OR, then back to waiting, then the other OR… increased pace surely equaled increased tension in this case. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Carina introduces herself to Taryn, they start to bond until Taryn recognizes Carina’s wristband as making her “one of THEM” and immediately withdraws.</span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What’s familiar: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A struggle to “do politics” without turning off viewers. Some of the pieces written about this episode claimed TGD was going off-brand by discussing politics in the OR, making it a centerpiece of the storytelling throughout, etc. I’d argue that David Shore and company tackle thornier subjects all the time on TGD but do it in a less confrontational manner, with one very notable exception being the recent “Irresponsible Salad Bar Practices.” </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">What was interesting (and commendable) in my eyes, though apparently just confusing to other viewers: the proposition that spurned the rally in this episode was a fictitious one that may or may not have had anything to do with gun control. Likewise, we were never told which “side” Taryn/Ethan and Carina/Mason were on, respectively. We just know they were on opposite sides, and that it was Taryn and Mason that were most interested in the topic at hand (whatever it was). Doing it this way allowed the focus to come off a potential hot-button topic and focus instead on how those matters can impact the way we interact with others.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzOtBtUZ3XHKfJeL6mhkGuUSmgQ3u_eyOM04cC7-Y6e51Ym49ib7q-HgrN5W_hFXwh4SIYKYJHIz3zBE7CZn9rAldqGa-4vd8_TvPxAXZqCuIAW7_tAH5AIGtSX8w-yrDua6TKM9hF5fAT/s4608/IMG_20210430_230300.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzOtBtUZ3XHKfJeL6mhkGuUSmgQ3u_eyOM04cC7-Y6e51Ym49ib7q-HgrN5W_hFXwh4SIYKYJHIz3zBE7CZn9rAldqGa-4vd8_TvPxAXZqCuIAW7_tAH5AIGtSX8w-yrDua6TKM9hF5fAT/w200-h150/IMG_20210430_230300.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></p>ACT 2: </span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-682d111e-7fff-5778-0b0a-c62d8d1550a4" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Wolke/Claire update Carina with decisions that need to be made; Lea pats Carina’s back sympathetically and attempts to advocate on her behalf (“Why put (those decisions) on her?” she asked the doctors) before Carina makes a decision that gets her in to see Mason ASAP.</span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What’s familiar</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">: For anyone saying “wow, this episode showed a whole new side of Lea”... especially if they did so to imply that Lea’s never been so compassionate and caring before… I suspect a lot of you were thinking of the same episode from season 2 that I was…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm8aMu4qfo6fLu6srb_7mq_zl3b8nmCrFejR7xfL4BYLRfv5VOqjfD-UVP-01aT_LIKb5_UmY-y5E7DtSrQOpQJqTyYqS6q-uqXGpJUIgCnRFl3rcrP7Wisb-wyPYzUcU-32Rl81LIRIZG/s4608/IMG_20210429_121937.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm8aMu4qfo6fLu6srb_7mq_zl3b8nmCrFejR7xfL4BYLRfv5VOqjfD-UVP-01aT_LIKb5_UmY-y5E7DtSrQOpQJqTyYqS6q-uqXGpJUIgCnRFl3rcrP7Wisb-wyPYzUcU-32Rl81LIRIZG/w200-h150/IMG_20210429_121937.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></span></div><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></span></div></div><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">...for it was in “Quarantine part 2” that Lea was not only sticking by Glassman’s side when she didn’t really want to-- he spent half the episode thinking his cancer had returned, after all, and was sniping more than usual about Lea treating Shaun like a “pet hamster”-- but we also got this.</span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiuWhHG2Z87KoP49aFr_zZKATg_TMpp15WvYCNylcrspNQryZM0qwALYFXcoK8gAvTaXKVfQJNGnxaOftDAy5XWROMnkWkSe7702Wam_yWEJ1wS05JwXMJHuO5-4hHG4NES7lxnroEmcCZ/s4608/IMG_20210429_122008.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiuWhHG2Z87KoP49aFr_zZKATg_TMpp15WvYCNylcrspNQryZM0qwALYFXcoK8gAvTaXKVfQJNGnxaOftDAy5XWROMnkWkSe7702Wam_yWEJ1wS05JwXMJHuO5-4hHG4NES7lxnroEmcCZ/w200-h150/IMG_20210429_122008.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br />She found herself offering support to a man wondering about the delivery of his first child; a delivery he couldn’t attend in person due to the quarantine situation. But when Glassman shushes the entire waiting room because he can hear the familiar cry of a newborn down the hall, she leaps up to celebrate with him.</span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBbm4AgekvWrdxlCFAZ643xxKBmeISy8lPMVtDqRNQtzz36vIuG70QSVwGs1ogOBZM1Tziq2c4uHdPynHznsnXnlgGH9SeH_bdj-o6AMpvVV7BHPl369YmR5nZRCcqFeN0LeVfVCTJ_moX/s4608/IMG_20210429_122012.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBbm4AgekvWrdxlCFAZ643xxKBmeISy8lPMVtDqRNQtzz36vIuG70QSVwGs1ogOBZM1Tziq2c4uHdPynHznsnXnlgGH9SeH_bdj-o6AMpvVV7BHPl369YmR5nZRCcqFeN0LeVfVCTJ_moX/w200-h150/IMG_20210429_122012.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></span></div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><br />And meanwhile, Lea’s future BabyDaddy was holding said newborn-- his first-ever delivery.</span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOlxDjpOvRsm0c0nxl0VdlQ4k4Z7EAj6b8WCDMjQLigwc7wXD0OpjvmEEJKViZiZiyzEWkOWhEAIbATtEx6NvWsb7VRU1WJlsWd16ZBAchreZQtsLQKPqRRn4-GoSjEbfH_cfQ_q8gtVEs/s4608/IMG_20210429_122057.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOlxDjpOvRsm0c0nxl0VdlQ4k4Z7EAj6b8WCDMjQLigwc7wXD0OpjvmEEJKViZiZiyzEWkOWhEAIbATtEx6NvWsb7VRU1WJlsWd16ZBAchreZQtsLQKPqRRn4-GoSjEbfH_cfQ_q8gtVEs/w200-h150/IMG_20210429_122057.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">So, compassionate? Caring? Yeah, Lea already had that in spades. But with the episode designed to underscore both Shaun and Lea’s deeper awareness of “the price of parenthood”... in theory, this aspect could be filed under </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">what’s new. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> To do that, though, seems like it would be saying that both Shaun and Lea opened up in unprecedented ways, a la Morgan and Nurse Petringa in the Frontline episodes, or Morgan and the EMT guy/potential love interest who died in the aforementioned Quarantine episodes. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We know better. It stays in my </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">familiar</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">column. 😉</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">When Taryn wonders why she hasn’t heard anything yet, Lea seeks out Shaun’s OR and asks them (from the gallery) to update Taryn. </span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1fSS_bOqgfoJ4tSC0gaepEuO4YtvzhF11tR1jbdqGOjRhx9KysEStmoERLPbRDQIe1FrRWoVl2fwAml9NrgBClLlBmFdJGMt2L_kLjegd7NUHNi4ajqzNMxTVIvfNNA4_uBiP3ELNPSQR/s4608/IMG_20210430_230405.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1fSS_bOqgfoJ4tSC0gaepEuO4YtvzhF11tR1jbdqGOjRhx9KysEStmoERLPbRDQIe1FrRWoVl2fwAml9NrgBClLlBmFdJGMt2L_kLjegd7NUHNi4ajqzNMxTVIvfNNA4_uBiP3ELNPSQR/w200-h150/IMG_20210430_230405.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What’s new:</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Lea in the gallery. I’d say </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">how did she even know where to go?, </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">but hey, if the woman could save the entire cybersecurity system from hackers...</span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Shaun and Park update Taryn shortly thereafter. </span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">What’s new:</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> Someone on Twitter mentioned that it was new for Shaun to take the lead on this conversation, given his difficulties with communication. I’d have to go back and watch similar scenarios from other episodes to be sure, though. What do you think?</span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV3JHgOt3W300Ca7c1PuHc5RggxzABbVs_yz18Nez5F3qSAMRi7F-CGMF2sfgV4QATBntNwLOC_7CL4Z47KxLQNFHt0NTby4xfoInYaGU5flwPOAOBr6Iqz-f_tApBdJ7vMdPOQfq0Kgwo/s4608/IMG_20210430_230637.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV3JHgOt3W300Ca7c1PuHc5RggxzABbVs_yz18Nez5F3qSAMRi7F-CGMF2sfgV4QATBntNwLOC_7CL4Z47KxLQNFHt0NTby4xfoInYaGU5flwPOAOBr6Iqz-f_tApBdJ7vMdPOQfq0Kgwo/w200-h150/IMG_20210430_230637.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></span></div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-weight: 700;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-weight: 700;"><br /></span></span></span></p>ACT 3:</span></span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-37d1d4cb-7fff-8b36-f298-179b904c4c97" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Lea small-talks w/Taryn; when the latter laments constantly being at odds with her young son, Lea tries to be supportive by encouraging the need for limits and “structure” in kids’ lives (which can lead to being at odds). “You don’t have kids, do you?” Taryn replies warily. Lea falls quiet, opting not to reveal her mom-to-be status.</span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What’s new</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">: A peek into Lea’s parenting style-- which (whew) is likely a close match to Shaun’s. Anyone thinking she’s a “free spirit” who will play video games while allowing #Babyshea to toddle amok might have another thing coming. Gotta wonder, too-- does her “kids need structure” line allude to something she thinks her own parents didn’t do well? (Yes, I’m already eagerly awaiting future installments of Mike and Pam Dilallo visits)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">On the next update for young Ethan (which continued the harrowing news about bullet fragments lodged deep in his brain), Lea assures Taryn that Shaun/Park are “the best doctors I’ve ever known.” Taryn trusts them to continue their course of monitoring/treatment. </span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHa6Q4J-Mpc-WsyuHBmOCerVliSULNtdoimbMjEwzLtM3nhHpCJ1fruDyVmY8pQhJqH2fcI1hTBG2iwKWGuk4V1PDtFk2XSZHVYKorFSwkKcAj-3zcIUrBsMtkb-I8EHljeqF9IYLuSDDw/s4608/IMG_20210430_231149.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHa6Q4J-Mpc-WsyuHBmOCerVliSULNtdoimbMjEwzLtM3nhHpCJ1fruDyVmY8pQhJqH2fcI1hTBG2iwKWGuk4V1PDtFk2XSZHVYKorFSwkKcAj-3zcIUrBsMtkb-I8EHljeqF9IYLuSDDw/w200-h150/IMG_20210430_231149.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Lea small-talks Carina upon her return; when it’s revealed that both are single moms, Lea squirms in silence under the divorced mom vs. widow vs. “knowing my pain” matter.</span></span><p></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5RxKup2HClgRLAQOfmGTJsdvEZQdPyLFnAre5eBI2U27RlaS_yYRimadQcosRGO78Hv4_puBc93eoQ9wMlLvGZ3jTC_ndaX20lbdkqujC6W5MPjOm4lkFeO9tln4iHiFclJHsd3NV1VQ4/s4608/IMG_20210430_231510.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5RxKup2HClgRLAQOfmGTJsdvEZQdPyLFnAre5eBI2U27RlaS_yYRimadQcosRGO78Hv4_puBc93eoQ9wMlLvGZ3jTC_ndaX20lbdkqujC6W5MPjOm4lkFeO9tln4iHiFclJHsd3NV1VQ4/w200-h150/IMG_20210430_231510.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /></span></span></div></div><div><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-fd49987a-7fff-086c-e310-a7ad3700816f"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">ACT 4: </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><ul style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Ethan has a seizure while Taryn visits, which prompts her to return to the waiting room saying (paraphrased) “Exactly what they said wouldn’t happen is happening” in frustration.</span></span></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><br /><br /></span><ul style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lea gets her test results (and </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Dilallo</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> gets said out loud for the SECOND time this season!). When they show all is well with #BabyShea, she reveals her pregnancy to both moms… who promptly (and kindly) share their individual childbirth stories. Carina had Mason on Christmas Eve which she described as “magical;” Taryn, on the other hand, was 300 miles from her OB when a premature Ethan decided it was time to be born. “We left a </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">really </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">good tip for Housekeeping,” she quipped…</span></span></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">What’s familiar: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">As much of the #Shea following noted on Twitter Monday night (!!)-- a possible foreshadowing alert with regards to a possible preemie arrival for Shaun and Lea.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><ul style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">As they find out things are getting worse with Ethan, Shaun goes to Glassman. And hears what he doesn’t want to hear.</span></span></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">What’s familiar: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Shaun going to Glassy is absolutely nothing new-- in fact, several of us on Twitter this week were lamenting the lack of Glassy/Lea scenes since the pregnancy was revealed and when we’d see something </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">besides</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> Shaun seeking counsel from him again. As an aside, though, I’d like to mention that we’ve seen a lot more of Shaun in boyfriend/colleague mode than in straight-up Good Doctor mode lately… until this episode. His ASD shows itself differently when he’s fully-focused on medicine, and while there were the usual notables to our eyes (telling Taryn “Of course you can’t see (Ethan), he’s still in surgery”... verbalizing too many of his concerns in front of her while she was seeing Ethan post-surgery...thinking Park was literally reading </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Hansel and Gretel</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> when he mentioned the book symbolically), it was arguably most visible in Glassman’s office. The mile-a-minute dump of patient information as soon as he walked in, the clear agitation with being “irrational,” the tears in his eyes… for moderating extreme emotions, especially when a patient is involved, is unfamiliar territory to him. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“The price of parenthood,” Glassman might say (and did say). Speaking of Glassy… (hold on, they gave us a commercial break mid-scene)</span></span></p><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: normal;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/D1/5B/D15B46F1-CF7E-C91C-3E63-69C5D17BE636/158809_6075-450x0.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="450" height="133" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/D1/5B/D15B46F1-CF7E-C91C-3E63-69C5D17BE636/158809_6075-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">ACT 5:</span></p><br /><ul style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">After Shaun’s dump of patient info, the conversation went like this:</span></p></li></ul><br /><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">SHAUN: You are a neurosurgeon, okay? You will know what I have missed. (Hands GLASSMAN the images of Ethan)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">GLASSMAN: (looking passively at images) You don’t think you missed anything? </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">SHAUN: No.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">GLASSMAN: Then you didn’t. (Hands images back)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">SHAUN: (long pause) Okay, then… Ethan is probably going to die. (sits, breathing shakily)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">GLASSMAN: This one’s different, huh? </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">SHAUN: Because he’s a child?</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">GLASSMAN: Yeah, yeah… because he’s a child. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">SHAUN: (Putting his hand up in denial) No...I’ve lost children before. (Nods as if to convince himself of what he’s saying)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">And that’s when Glassy went into the longer version of “We have one job as parents” speech that he originally gave to Lea back in 3.10 “Friends and Family,” tying Shaun’s overt emotions to his new status as parent-to-be. Then came the </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">price of parenthood</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> thing-- Glassman said it’s worth it, Shaun said it didn’t seem that way, Glassman doubted he meant it… </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">So here’s </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">what’s new</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> about all that in my opinion: Did Glassman basically tell Shaun to give up (on trying to save Ethan)? Not in so many words, of course, but in an utter absence of medical advice? Would he have barely looked at the brain images if Shaun’s patient was an adult? Is it part of an inability on Glassman’s part to think clearly when kids are involved (because of Maddie)?</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">On the other hand, here’s </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">what was familiar</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> about Glassman’s counsel: The shrug. The wistful smile here and there. The weariness in his voice, even when speaking positively about parenthood. Maybe Shaun isn’t able to pick up all those cues, but we can-- and frankly, I’m hoping Shaun widens his pool of advisers unless and until Glassy gets his personal baggage sorted out. He’s trying, but I just don’t see Glassman in the best headspace for this right now.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But I digress… back to ACT 5:</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-39a79a8f-7fff-a818-0974-9469d7a4173e"><br /></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun delivers the even worse news about the fragments in Ethan’s brain; causing Taryn to lash out in anger (literally), pushing Lea backward in the process. Shaun rushes to Lea’s side as she briefly loses her balance, and Taryn is further outraged to realize Lea advised her to trust “her boyfriend.”</span></p></li></ul><ul style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGU3VzieoZd27ZhloYvcCF0sWQk3_92JJtYXwqLoWP11qYNS8qUkKR8epmFCKHyy7owIbNvvbPhYXXUWSj8BpSIemHR_lii4coLRmVAoHvVW64kffrW0qN6VQW07fZWPPNsSzeHsnTrlCg/s4608/IMG_20210430_232104.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGU3VzieoZd27ZhloYvcCF0sWQk3_92JJtYXwqLoWP11qYNS8qUkKR8epmFCKHyy7owIbNvvbPhYXXUWSj8BpSIemHR_lii4coLRmVAoHvVW64kffrW0qN6VQW07fZWPPNsSzeHsnTrlCg/w200-h150/IMG_20210430_232104.jpg" width="200" /></a></div></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">What’s new: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Shaun accepting being called “incompetent” (by Taryn), though it goes hand-in-hand with his “brutally honest” nature (because </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">he </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">felt incompetent at that point).</span></p><br /><ul style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lea stays in the waiting room overnight with the moms, while Shaun continues his shift… with Claire and Wolke, the need for blood for Mason arises when all the local supplies are depleted. Taryn shocks everyone by stepping up.</span></p></li></ul><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-eaa8c6b6-7fff-8590-1bc2-3120e65c4e07"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">ACT 6: </span></p><br /><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Park comes up with something that could work for Ethan; he gets Shaun on board and they get Lim’s approval.</span></p></li></ul><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">What’s new: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Park, not Shaun, with the breakthrough. Did Glassman’s lack of guidance prompt Shaun to give up? Is he now seeing parenthood looming as something that will require him to relinquish some of his “superpower”? In any case, Park was due for some redemption-- both from Glassman rejecting his efforts (in “We’re All Crazy Sometimes”) and the limitations he was putting on himself until Morgan came and lit up the room with her craptastic “pep talk.”</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">What’s familiar:</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> Regarding my above question </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Is he now seeing parenthood looming as something that will require him to relinquish some of his “superpower”--</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> More foreshadowing, anyone? This time for season 5??</span></p><br /><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Taryn offers an (apologetic) cup of decaf to Lea, and the two engage briefly about motherhood. Lea admits fear about not being able to handle something like this; Taryn points out “this” is abnormal and Lea can’t compare herself to the way the two moms are (and aren’t) handling themselves. </span></p></li></ul></span></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCeLVXIGmDhK_UoJ6xAyrWMdxuZjF1VYyquXABC3EE3Wu0VUYZF5cWohKxTIcQvvGqXie8G1NK02aKIavEmFbh9JfZc5T0MQZHJBYG9OG_vVk0t5BLgo_LaOcASpusr6Q5Ms8oWnGfDY1N/s4608/IMG_20210430_233022.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCeLVXIGmDhK_UoJ6xAyrWMdxuZjF1VYyquXABC3EE3Wu0VUYZF5cWohKxTIcQvvGqXie8G1NK02aKIavEmFbh9JfZc5T0MQZHJBYG9OG_vVk0t5BLgo_LaOcASpusr6Q5Ms8oWnGfDY1N/w200-h150/IMG_20210430_233022.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUiZrQfsmBnbMJkCS9pPqZZ1GP02jvuHTOEppDrnN2gv_FN5TJeYsVoHBRkORTEEGwnzdHz1pUbws8VIwwV8lFa1B2hnGGC8p8zKvRoinPuflClzyxqVt06_4DyN9uDWOJV24yrKUqU1E_/s4608/IMG_20210430_233024.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUiZrQfsmBnbMJkCS9pPqZZ1GP02jvuHTOEppDrnN2gv_FN5TJeYsVoHBRkORTEEGwnzdHz1pUbws8VIwwV8lFa1B2hnGGC8p8zKvRoinPuflClzyxqVt06_4DyN9uDWOJV24yrKUqU1E_/w200-h150/IMG_20210430_233024.jpg" width="200" /></a><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYhaXNPOvjyXYoxhgTmK_JHfC0qUOTjmkFkwvpANcPFajQCUTK5oWCH77pKpUzGznjPmqKoe31aUqmNLgnLk75HniqA3sF1LHo26iPDSTPd462FPebsC2VObPEIJgEVx3cqsLzoFRxuajU/s4608/IMG_20210430_233141.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYhaXNPOvjyXYoxhgTmK_JHfC0qUOTjmkFkwvpANcPFajQCUTK5oWCH77pKpUzGznjPmqKoe31aUqmNLgnLk75HniqA3sF1LHo26iPDSTPd462FPebsC2VObPEIJgEVx3cqsLzoFRxuajU/w200-h150/IMG_20210430_233141.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /></div><br /><b><br /></b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-b6f00961-7fff-52ec-34e7-92d67cf866cd"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">What’s new: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">It’s noteworthy to me how that word </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">STRONG</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> cropped up two episodes in a row for Lea. In “Gender Reveal,” we were all warm and fuzzy (as was she) hearing Shaun’s “(Strong) like you” in the final moments of the show. But here, in the cold light of a waiting room she’s sat in for far too long, Lea’s had a hard look at a parent’s worst-case scenario-- and she doesn’t feel strong at all. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Fortunately for her, she’d earned the validation that came in Taryn’s words </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Strength doesn’t matter. It’s compassion. And, the way you’ve treated us… you’re gonna be a great mother.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">But all the validation in the world is pretty useless unless the one being validated believes it herself. How often do you suspect Lea’s strength AND compassion will be tested throughout the remainder of this season alone? Also-- how soon until she admits to her own unique brand of badassery? (A real word, by the way. “Badassery.” Look it up!)</span></p><br /><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The good news, finally: both Mason and Ethan are out of the woods and appear on the path to recovery. The once-sparring moms embrace, then head to the ICU. Cue this episode’s music montage...</span></p></li></ul><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">What’s new: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">“Small Leaf” by Hayden Calnin… the below lyrics were what was heard in the final moments of the episode</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #f9f9f9; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Grace the days, the night, the now</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #f9f9f9; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">You surely get it by now</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #f9f9f9; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">That seeds don't grow without a cloud</span></p><br /><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun and Lea and the walk outside the hospital</span></p></li></ul><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">If they’d had more time at the end, Shaun and Lea’s talk about feeling lucky (or tired and lucky in Shaun’s case; I doubt he’d have said “lucky” before Lea suggested it anyway) could have had to do with many things… no gestational diabetes, nothing going sideways with BabyShea (yet), Shaun was able to help save a child’s life, Lea was able to be there for two moms who desperately needed it, they plan on raising the baby together (no single mom situation for Lea)... </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Many things, and just one thing: they have each other.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">But then “lucky” became about maybe one alarmingly different thing: That they were still within shouting distance of the hospital when Lea found herself doubled over with pain… and, of course, intense fear.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8MR5tVrnEJT319quDE45a3ox_rF4V5XjDlRU_RsXBdleT89Eou7xerdUXGsvVAUieXQ17d-mRrfUF2XGUPCWZnZeMBve2ZC3nYa8QwbZtMmIdZVnQEV-IkS1pe64nG6PJhKHuQZocdMxE/s4608/IMG_20210430_233355.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8MR5tVrnEJT319quDE45a3ox_rF4V5XjDlRU_RsXBdleT89Eou7xerdUXGsvVAUieXQ17d-mRrfUF2XGUPCWZnZeMBve2ZC3nYa8QwbZtMmIdZVnQEV-IkS1pe64nG6PJhKHuQZocdMxE/w200-h150/IMG_20210430_233355.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">What was familiar about this: </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">The tender way he took each of her hands to hold. Holding hands and standing face-to-face has become a hallmark of the more affectionate #Shea moments this season-- we’ve often noted that. And yet… more than a few people have also noted that Shaun looked to be doing it </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">this</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> time with a certain sort of intention just before Lea collapsed. Hmmmm…. Guess only the showrunners know, for now.</span><p></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">What’s new: </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Over 50 viewers “liked” something I tweeted Monday night, so I’ll say it here again: Shaun yelling “HELP!” in front of his own hospital of employment really hit me hard. Even when Shaun himself was ailing (in 2.18 “Trampoline), he didn’t call attention to his own needs. But Lea and his unborn daughter are another story altogether. The overhead shot of them on the plaza at the end-- looking very small, vulnerable, and alone-- aaaugh! Just brutal. Brilliant-- thank you, director Gary Hawes-- but brutal.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAaXlIUxoAuas52EwovJNmP0zWrmcVSmIqufQ3ueRoHIGpezSOltUe5QRTpahKSOqAckj8XUQFu17O_mPTyciKrec3RjjmQ6hvj0T31mqg1vOO6up8HyO6hr5WplWuuF-jP2mW7oeJjGUz/s4608/IMG_20210430_233415.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAaXlIUxoAuas52EwovJNmP0zWrmcVSmIqufQ3ueRoHIGpezSOltUe5QRTpahKSOqAckj8XUQFu17O_mPTyciKrec3RjjmQ6hvj0T31mqg1vOO6up8HyO6hr5WplWuuF-jP2mW7oeJjGUz/w320-h240/IMG_20210430_233415.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">ONE MORE QUICK THING TO NOTE BEFORE YOU GO COMMENT (because of course that's what you were gonna do next, right?).........</p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">Reader Melii has put together a poll to get #Shea fans' opinions on the best scenes from season 4 thus far. She calls it a way to pass the time until our next new episode May 10... why not go check it out and add your voice? <a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdU91mSXIPyAoaRZvKNO1pDte1O-EN30qFQ94w5feLwc2lygA/viewform" target="_blank">Follow this link and enjoy</a> (it's done on a Google doc)!</p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">See you in a week (or hopefully less) for a "Dr. Ted" preview...</p><br /></span></div></span></span></div></span></span></div>Kelli Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06009713326652591943noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1583562784288599702.post-39757788784680444772021-04-24T15:54:00.002-07:002021-09-20T09:51:23.696-07:00State of the #SHEA Part 33: Seven Revelations For Seven Kisses ("Gender Reveal")<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqMZ9tFndnrZhwD4y1ZH0Gn3ZwrU0gPVBUCrtKcU6M7ms7ZiJX61wrpKEeyp93WxEmwBwh0h01Ck92CbA4xR3TYVC8PjJehyOMu9SoFw5O9SoFsaZZSliYo2Q72faVtG5fnCpSd1WpM1K3/s4608/IMG_20210424_112953.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqMZ9tFndnrZhwD4y1ZH0Gn3ZwrU0gPVBUCrtKcU6M7ms7ZiJX61wrpKEeyp93WxEmwBwh0h01Ck92CbA4xR3TYVC8PjJehyOMu9SoFw5O9SoFsaZZSliYo2Q72faVtG5fnCpSd1WpM1K3/w320-h240/IMG_20210424_112953.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I tend to think of episode titles like songs on an album… and the more intriguing, the better. (At least usually… but let’s leave “Irresponsible Salad Bar Practices” out of the conversation for now.) </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">TGD</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> tends to keep those titles short-- you can count the number of over-three-word titles on one hand-- and more often than not, a title ties in somehow to where Shaun is in his journey. </span><br /><span id="docs-internal-guid-2c06f59c-7fff-2c6d-e61a-313b6888de6d"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The best ones, in my opinion, carry dual or even multiple meanings-- one of my favorite examples being 3.15 “Unsaid.” More recently, I guess 4.5 “Fault” or 4.7 “The Uncertainty Principle” brought respectable amounts of piqued curiosity too. But “Gender Reveal”? The only thing that served to “intrigue” me was wondering if the focus of 4.14 would be as literal as the title suggested. </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In the best way possible, my answer after watching it was </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">yes and no. </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Obviously, we learned within the first few minutes that Shaun and Lea’s baby is a girl… but we didn’t realize how much impact that fact would have on the rest of the episode until it unfolded, piece by remarkable piece. </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">My first thoughts for cases-of-the-week in the “Gender” episode were something of the transgender variety-- but since TGD has previously covered this territory at least twice before (in S1’s “She” and very recently with S4’s “Irresponsible Salad Bar Practices”), the motivation was a little muddy to me. Of course I was (delightfully) way off the mark, for what we got instead was a sort of 21st century “Battle of the Sexes” within both medical cases…</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">On one end of the hospital floor: an MMA fighter (and apparent crush of Dr. Wolke’s?) revealed to have breast cancer, who needs a verbal beat-down from Park in order to man up and tackle the stigma of having a “woman’s” disease.</span></span></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">On the other end, Jean the Superwoman Fighter Pilot came in for hp replacement surgery and left with… gulp… a Parkinson’s diagnosis, thanks in no small part to years of warning signs ignored or dismissed by her own internist.</span></span></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">While both cases were compelling, I’ll just be referencing Jean’s case from here on out. For it was through that, plus Shaun and Lea’s clash over the use of a doula, that we got </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">SEVEN REVELATIONS… one for each precious #Shea kiss that we were graced with in this episode!</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(Or, suffice to say I’ve grouped the revelations so they coincide with the number of kisses. What can I say? I like symmetry.)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipzwTIfZOsyuOjaVoY_Ghs_YuMpUFc2Bn_PjXGtlyZaPRd6Oom_mtVy7JCkZXbEEsIgpN8zutTJlERmWI1_S4TkuRid1qSO8RXfqTNkihbIof1mWYUe-t6gnKeRLlFslrnGdxhc0gMLQmk/s4608/IMG_20210423_115524.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipzwTIfZOsyuOjaVoY_Ghs_YuMpUFc2Bn_PjXGtlyZaPRd6Oom_mtVy7JCkZXbEEsIgpN8zutTJlERmWI1_S4TkuRid1qSO8RXfqTNkihbIof1mWYUe-t6gnKeRLlFslrnGdxhc0gMLQmk/w200-h150/IMG_20210423_115524.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span><p></p><div><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-15acfbe5-7fff-d0ce-a225-d747b12e65c9"><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">REVELATION #1: For Shaun, </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">our daughter</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;"> is to </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">our baby</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;"> as </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">our baby</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;"> was to </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">the fetus.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Apparently as many as </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">80 percent</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> of today’s expectant parents find out the sex their child will be born with in advance of the birth! I guess I should have figured on that, given the number of couples we hear of nowadays announcing BOY or GIRL status amidst a whole lotta fanfare. Twenty years ago, my husband and I decided to go with the delivery room element of surprise… and it turned out to be a boy. Two and a half years later, </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">I</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> found out via ultrasound but my husband chose to wait and be surprised again. How I got through the next four or five months without referring to our unborn as a </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">she</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> in front of him…? Actually, I think I slipped a couple of times when it was late in the day and I was </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">really</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> tired…</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">In any case, those days of “let’s be surprised” are falling victim to technology such as the fetal DNA test-- a non-invasive, diagnostic blood test that has become popular over the past decade, as far as I can tell. It’s apparently what Lea used… </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">and for those who were trying to determine how far along she was in the “Gender” episode, I read that fetal DNA can be detected RELIABLY 10 weeks into the pregnancy, with results being delivered three to 15 days later. So... maybe say it was week 11?</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">All of this begs a new question-- if not for certain Gen-Xers (and older), then at least for atypical Millennials like Shaun: </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Why is it so exciting to know in advance? </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Shaun “mirrored” Lea’s joy as best he could (I mean, he WAS getting kisses out of the deal), but looked uncomfortable doing it because he couldn’t understand what all the fuss was about. Likewise, when Claire said “That’s wonderful!” in reaction to the news, he could only respond with a puzzled “Why?” </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">To be clear-- while the “Gender Reveal” episode cast a bright light onto women and women’s issues, I never felt scriptwriter Debbie Ezer was implying a girl was better to bring into the world than a boy. Rather, it was about how that additional bit of information brought the whole parenting thing into sharper focus; the “it” or “they” becoming </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">he</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> or </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">she.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">As you might expect, Shaun needed to process this additional bit of information in his own unique way. I’ll be breaking that down as we go, but suffice to say there were multiple steps between him thinking of the gender reveal as useful home decor information (“Do you want to paint the nursery pink?”) and taking a thoughtless (male) doctor’s approach to women’s health very, </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">very </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">personally (“My daughter is never coming to see you,” which no doubt had fans cheering no matter how many HIPPA laws were broken in that reality-suspended scene...)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUFdvD6sz5v1QA60Fd4uwXFBlaKlVOMWUeV7bYuwD3yIG5VGf2YrfmERiGNv4U0g-GxlpTJuA4gySdmOo1XzgnjtpMNM__g5f5SGueRdc5kl96vy4dAOI2gvQcXQNM-HU7_j4EyqKGfPzx/s4608/IMG_20210423_115533.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUFdvD6sz5v1QA60Fd4uwXFBlaKlVOMWUeV7bYuwD3yIG5VGf2YrfmERiGNv4U0g-GxlpTJuA4gySdmOo1XzgnjtpMNM__g5f5SGueRdc5kl96vy4dAOI2gvQcXQNM-HU7_j4EyqKGfPzx/w200-h150/IMG_20210423_115533.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">REVELATION #2: Not that we’re surprised, but #Shea communication is improving (again).</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-a803dfb5-7fff-4d8c-58c5-e380d89e21a0" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Neither Shaun nor Lea has changed all that much, but the further they go with this ultimate adventure of pregnancy/childbirth/parenthood, the more every action/reaction gets magnified. These two faced their disconnection challenges in “Spilled Milk” and-- presumably without any help from </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">that cowbell-- </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">adjusted course. So in “Gender,” when Shaun implied his participation in a birthing class was unnecessary, a pointed look from Lea was enough to get him to say The Right Things, even if they both knew he didn’t fully believe what he was saying. And that was quickly followed up with Lea clearly articulating her needs about the results of the fetal DNA test (“I’m excited to find this out… please come here so we can look together”), rather than get upset about Shaun’s inability to thrill over the same information.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Of course, it was the Doula Debate that garnished the most attention for #Shea in this episode… and while I’ll backtrack to Shaun’s side of the discussion in a minute, I want to give another shoutout (as I did when live-Tweeting the episode) to the conclusion of their in-hospital discussion. Lea had made up her mind to have one, and while Shaun is of course not the kind of guy who would impose his will on her decision… it meant the world to her when he signified at the end of the episode that he not only accepted her decision, but supported it entirely. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">He wasn’t anywhere near that acceptance during their time at the hospital though, as the express-delivered shoulder massager indicated. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(available for less than $50 at Amazon, in case anyone’s interested!)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">But-- perhaps buoyed by the awareness that Shaun simply (HA!) wants to be her everything-- she took a breath and stated “the facts” from her side of the table, all the way to the double reassurance of “I love you” and “I’ll see you at home.” No stomping off, no raised voices. They can disagree about something pretty significant and still go home, in love, at the end of the day. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">It’s really not a bad reminder for anyone in a long-term relationship, is it?</span></span></p><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-weight: normal;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijBBsj9K6aBhB3MwEGcWNLrtoDQT6wuL3sVZ6jXW5uCc-dBTwTxVFo6iokhYm09g4TT8Su1oT0LGSxLp0cbECyQRXE2CUBj1_-yeFO2x6Zsg1Qwts_b6EfVdBnSEYMPpQMMLOSqGvuMVAm/s4608/IMG_20210423_115534.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijBBsj9K6aBhB3MwEGcWNLrtoDQT6wuL3sVZ6jXW5uCc-dBTwTxVFo6iokhYm09g4TT8Su1oT0LGSxLp0cbECyQRXE2CUBj1_-yeFO2x6Zsg1Qwts_b6EfVdBnSEYMPpQMMLOSqGvuMVAm/w200-h150/IMG_20210423_115534.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-3fc9516f-7fff-970a-5a40-23ed59392075"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">REVELATION #3: The power of Shaun’s ability to take things literally must never be underestimated.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">We saw it coming three weeks ahead of the episode, that initial “uh oh” during the birthing class scene where poor Shaun (who admittedly hates receiving massages himself) is trying to rub </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNSul2KzQwBj5vnfukmdht5IoTaITOZ-4mL2kTzWuhMuMzRSkk8N6ArVZMStokXgDCyIyM6sKfvsgugOsT8Acxp1IdBfg-nBLDnN5FLNj8P1fzNT2snkmE2w6e3He7Ckc1VLBXUwdi-KDS/s4608/IMG_20210423_115631.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNSul2KzQwBj5vnfukmdht5IoTaITOZ-4mL2kTzWuhMuMzRSkk8N6ArVZMStokXgDCyIyM6sKfvsgugOsT8Acxp1IdBfg-nBLDnN5FLNj8P1fzNT2snkmE2w6e3He7Ckc1VLBXUwdi-KDS/w200-h150/IMG_20210423_115631.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br />poor(er) Lea the right way… and it looks more like he’s kneading the hell out of a ball of ciabatta dough. So, strike one.</span><p></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Then, Shaun gets his outspoken doctor self into overdrive… gets a death stare from the class leader </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiows_3CsGAdFhOUwT9LGiKLUj79dgB9y4gEjXqyofLQI23gXq8GfiQSLyO-8oT6Uub8OMzMQdz6WeTx7Wxicv8XOl2qwhTjbNqpU4DPZC2qPtiA2X80Goqh5ixlwxO_aSZOPbJFcXhl-zl/s4608/IMG_20210423_115758.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiows_3CsGAdFhOUwT9LGiKLUj79dgB9y4gEjXqyofLQI23gXq8GfiQSLyO-8oT6Uub8OMzMQdz6WeTx7Wxicv8XOl2qwhTjbNqpU4DPZC2qPtiA2X80Goqh5ixlwxO_aSZOPbJFcXhl-zl/w200-h150/IMG_20210423_115758.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>that put any of Lea’s withering glares to shame… and next we know, #Shea have been expelled. Whoopsie. Strike two.<p></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">But when Lea cautions against further “strikes” by bringing Theresa the Doula into the picture, Shaun takes offense. Why? Was it that need to be the ultimate “everything” partner I mentioned earlier, especially with his ever-increasing awareness that being the dad is more important here than being the doctor? OR… was it out of frustration over his ASD-related limitations, and a huge need to try and overcome some of them for Lea’s sake?</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">(By the way, since Shaun’s aversion to washcloths was new information, I asked around a little on Twitter and found three viewers with ASD who also dislike washcloths… in the case of @Guiand97 and “Erin” @tncoffeerunner, they especially dislike microfiber. And “Remy Lebeau” @RemyLeb78309281 says “I do not like the feeling of terry cloth at all. I also do not like anything moist, especially warm. So moist washcloths would be very hard to deal with.”)</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Shaun feels similarly, it would seem. And for those who were curious like me, I went back and checked that opening shower </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilIMkVnDoRT_-8hrkGbbQctl9aYyFSUtxCxXfzs6VzU5ju0wtmhk91WtSvzxQQkmH7R9DpYiN-amQXFMx3Ih1JMFAwKXvdxzSxrrpxmAik5bduCboqDv6WiqT8gtWdCSYuw7mxGb_Teia7/s4608/IMG_20210120_225050.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilIMkVnDoRT_-8hrkGbbQctl9aYyFSUtxCxXfzs6VzU5ju0wtmhk91WtSvzxQQkmH7R9DpYiN-amQXFMx3Ih1JMFAwKXvdxzSxrrpxmAik5bduCboqDv6WiqT8gtWdCSYuw7mxGb_Teia7/w200-h150/IMG_20210120_225050.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>scene from 4.7 “The Uncertainty Principle”... nope, no washcloth use that I could see.<p></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Anyway, Shaun eventually found himself in Glassman’s office trying to explain himself… but with Shaun himself stating the proven benefits of a doula, it was hard for Glassman to see the problem at hand. (At least, not for the amount of time in that scene. But if he’d had the opportunity to press a little more-- </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">What’s the real problem here, Shaun?-- </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">then the #Shea scene I discussed in revelation #2 wouldn’t have been necessary.)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">I suppose it seemed to Glassman that what Shaun needed was permission to support Lea’s doula wishes, perhaps thinking it was more a simple case of Shaun’s doctor brain challenging the doula concept? In any case, he gave Shaun simple advice-- “just give her what she needs”-- and Shaun went on his way, thinking</span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If she needs massages and I can’t give them, I’ll find a device that does.</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If she needs my hand to squeeze hard and I can’t handle that, I’ll find something that lets me handle that a little easier.</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If she needs cool/warm cloths and I can’t stand to touch them, I’ll just have to get better at it.</span></p></li></ul><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></span></span></div>But employ another </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">human</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> for those things and more? Even though countless neurotypical men apparently surrender duties to doulas, Shaun the Overachiever remained resistant. UNTIL… </span></span></div><div style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-weight: normal;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4_No0Zd28ViSFTy4zppyNLKg2gxjQNJiGriHSE4oRHw_g9nDB5eyNYqsg1xf7Tnvmyj-8CXI613GcgQugYOR1XCz_kmaVlC5bR2osDxpW9cQGglrTGTyPMxuMkaW52sbmrQSPKJXXniru/s4608/IMG_20210423_115538.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4_No0Zd28ViSFTy4zppyNLKg2gxjQNJiGriHSE4oRHw_g9nDB5eyNYqsg1xf7Tnvmyj-8CXI613GcgQugYOR1XCz_kmaVlC5bR2osDxpW9cQGglrTGTyPMxuMkaW52sbmrQSPKJXXniru/w200-h150/IMG_20210423_115538.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">REVELATION #4 (for Shaun, if not for the viewers): “The world is harder for women.”</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">This multi-layered one actually encompasses revelations 4,5, and 6… and for those who might be asking </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Didn’t Shaun just get a lesson in it’s-harder-for-women with Lea’s “Decrypt” episode</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">? I say</span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> Not exactly…</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> he might have come away with a better appreciation for women in STEM careers and/or Lea in general. But as far as connecting career hardships with those that could affect women’s health, or livelihood, or actual lifespan… not until now. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">One lesson for him that’s likely to become more personal once Lea’s dealing with it head-on: the family vs. career thing continues to influence women’s choices in a way it doesn’t for men. It was clever the way they bridged into that discussion, having Shaun be the only man on an OR team and assess that things are getting better for women as a result. Needless to say, it took just was one mention of a certain key difference between men and women (the uterus) for Shaun to pipe down. Well, that and a patient whose blood pressure was tanking inexplicably and unexpectedly… </span>which brings us to the next harder-for-women sub-lesson:</p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-weight: normal; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPO6Z2nOLolbl4STHtt5vLH3zhbD3h0MlSv5aeocNJPqDl2RHTRpo6MIKragFx3rrvahskeevTUemB-qI-0fz4xL_0DbywrINERutCVwoBJxVxbdJ2_dTga67vrhtLZdXZ4ZqsayQdx53e/s4608/IMG_20210424_113932.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPO6Z2nOLolbl4STHtt5vLH3zhbD3h0MlSv5aeocNJPqDl2RHTRpo6MIKragFx3rrvahskeevTUemB-qI-0fz4xL_0DbywrINERutCVwoBJxVxbdJ2_dTga67vrhtLZdXZ4ZqsayQdx53e/w200-h150/IMG_20210424_113932.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-weight: 700;">REVELATION #5: The cost of “breaking through” may be too high.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-996cbd66-7fff-59d6-c9e4-0b689f0507d4" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“Your mother’s an inspiration,” Shaun declared to pilot fighter Jean’s daughter, Tory, as she sat there in the hospital room, watching her mother push herself as hard as she could (surely not the first or even 101st time) shortly after her hip surgery. But as was the case many times during the episode, Tory looked adrift and bewildered, yearning to connect with Mom on the importance of maternity leave, of not “pushing through” difficulties and pain, of laying off that constant need to compete and improve. It wasn’t until Shaun started asking questions of Jean’s BP/fainting backstory that mother and daughter could almost agree on a few things that had taken place-- enough to help spur the team to an eventual, heartbreaking Parkinson’s diagnosis.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We saw the camera circle, very deliberately, back to Shaun as he watched Tory climb up on Jean’s hospital bed and comfort her mother as she </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">finally </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">broke down in her arms. Next time we saw Shaun, it was when he brought Lea home and surprised her with Theresa setting up the loft for her newest client. Do you think it was something in that momentary observation of Jean and Tory that prompted Shaun’s decision to embrace (at least figuratively) Lea’s decision?</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What he said just before opening the door to the apartment was (paraphrased) “I want you and our daughter to have the chance to have everything you want… but I can’t do it all by myself.” So on the surface at least, it’s about him owning up to his so-called “weaknesses” and putting Lea’s need for peace of mind ahead of his own need to triumph over this particular adversity. But what do you think he took away from Jean’s case that may have tipped him towards that realization? </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">While you’re thinking it over, here’s one more “reveal” that hopefully rang a bell not just for Shaun, but for a whole lotta viewers:</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieAEK0FK7R5F_ImKrzih3WtP0tKysXvlicaraxIG4YYB6XgzM7he6vVa3UOQYpov8zt3G0CPbFqwTIWSu3Og6SPcspd1eIRTlM9w7Ai-UB0AvvGMAJuBG09TkycXmyY8iN_PxeCEL1sxWW/s4608/IMG_20210424_114013.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieAEK0FK7R5F_ImKrzih3WtP0tKysXvlicaraxIG4YYB6XgzM7he6vVa3UOQYpov8zt3G0CPbFqwTIWSu3Og6SPcspd1eIRTlM9w7Ai-UB0AvvGMAJuBG09TkycXmyY8iN_PxeCEL1sxWW/w200-h150/IMG_20210424_114013.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">REVELATION #6: When history doesn’t help, think outside the box. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-43e4b41f-7fff-7e40-4aea-02fc4af8de9d" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">My mother suffered from a very rare form of anemia that chased her in and out of hospitals for most of her 66 years of life, often with ailments that were very difficult to diagnose. To have legitimate, persistent health issues ignored by healthcare professionals-- or worse yet, disregarded and written off with a catch-all term such as “anxiety”-- should be outright unacceptable. Yet it still happens.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Maybe not as much, though. Though I shudder at the thought of how much time my own mom might spend on women’s health-related Reddit, blogs, and social media threads if she were alive today, I also marvel at how many of these non-traditional outlets may have been the very thing to point a reader into a life-saving direction.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And I’ve got to applaud the way those scenes between Shaun, Jordan, and Claire were handled: 1) Jordan-- the youngest on the team-- is the one to first bring up a Reddit discovery. 2) At first, Shaun is turned off by the very mention of “non-conventional” methods, and then even Claire gives an initial eye roll to the mention of Reddit. 3) But it only takes an additional second or two for Claire to shake off her med-school beliefs and start asking Jordan for more details. 4) When Shaun shoots down the idea yet again, it only takes </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">him</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> a few more seconds to realize he has nothing better to offer… and then delegates their non-traditional searches</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I think Lim would have applauded all this, had she been involved at this point. (I’m kind of glad she wasn’t, though. I liked them solving it on their own.) Would Andrews have been as receptive...?</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://tse3.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.7Z9BN5Oe9lbTuXud1AQo_AHaKL&pid=Api" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="651" data-original-width="474" height="200" src="https://tse3.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.7Z9BN5Oe9lbTuXud1AQo_AHaKL&pid=Api" width="146" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-609ebd57-7fff-a486-5850-5233b1cab142"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“<b>In case of</b> (A Dr. Murphy)<b> emergency, break</b> (it to) <b>Glass</b>(man)”</span></span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">REVELATION #7: There may just be an unwritten rule at St. Bonaventure… </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Given Shaun’s brief “research” scene in the St. B maternity ward, I’m left to wonder now: Is there an unwritten rule that if Shaun makes an unsolicited visit or offers unsolicited advice to a fellow doctor, they page Dr. Glassman? </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I'm just asking.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-weight: 700;">WAIT, I JUST THOUGHT OF A BONUS REVELATION...</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-weight: 700;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYXtQ5tmOIrmx4GKj7g7bWmXRHEvd6iXtlPjPk01BKo0S1vzqpDkF7-Z2kU0IZ03Ia0fbI433nIIZ9P-thbG7ah6KclB50uJ7fhYzKek7pQPRkn1OrYK0vCQmnm92yQ6LGfRbPMPYgismv/s4608/IMG_20210423_115754.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYXtQ5tmOIrmx4GKj7g7bWmXRHEvd6iXtlPjPk01BKo0S1vzqpDkF7-Z2kU0IZ03Ia0fbI433nIIZ9P-thbG7ah6KclB50uJ7fhYzKek7pQPRkn1OrYK0vCQmnm92yQ6LGfRbPMPYgismv/w200-h150/IMG_20210423_115754.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /></span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Since doulas have become more prominent in the years past my childbearing prime, I didn't really think about the fact that in most cases, doulas aren't brought into the picture into the later stages of a woman's pregnancy. Sometimes they are in such demand that they need to be booked well in advance... but by and large, their services aren't needed quite as soon as, say, week 11 😉 All of which leads me to speculate again about Lea going into premature labor and/or delivering by season's end. We know Lea is going to experience "complications" when episode 16 hits on May 10 (yes, there will be at least one more TGD rerun hitting on 5/3)... beyond that--?? </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I wonder how many episodes Theresa is scheduled for...</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i><b>OK readers-- it's your turn! What were your thoughts on "Gender Reveal" and how do you think it impacts the rest of the season? The comments section awaits... !</b></i></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i><b><br /></b></i></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i></i></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><i><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXRmEuGqlyGA4mWsbxgDY027ohBTeokNfHPkw7-7yGZxRuyv0zrV-PLSxFr0nE8lqPfphAMB1dWEqQ6wIO5_KenajLc-3p76Pm8waiSflYzhiLxCo3kxAbdm7iht3sFTXxBIrzqj4IODOE/s4608/IMG_20210424_114031.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXRmEuGqlyGA4mWsbxgDY027ohBTeokNfHPkw7-7yGZxRuyv0zrV-PLSxFr0nE8lqPfphAMB1dWEqQ6wIO5_KenajLc-3p76Pm8waiSflYzhiLxCo3kxAbdm7iht3sFTXxBIrzqj4IODOE/s320/IMG_20210424_114031.jpg" width="320" /></a></i></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><i><br /><b><br /></b></i><p></p></span></div></span></span></div><p></p>Kelli Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06009713326652591943noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1583562784288599702.post-706478287261289952021-04-17T13:59:00.050-07:002021-04-17T21:40:47.853-07:00Watching the Detectives, #SHEA Style<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/59/C3/59C37019-6336-355C-0719-6DCA6F41D430/158668_7396-900x0.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="534" data-original-width="800" height="214" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/59/C3/59C37019-6336-355C-0719-6DCA6F41D430/158668_7396-900x0.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /> <span id="docs-internal-guid-6ac00672-7fff-2e15-0c86-cbc4895037cd"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The three-week wait for “Gender Reveal” is almost over, #Shea fans! </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">What have you done this month in the meantime? Anything fun, anything noteworthy? Go include it when you leave a comment, if you’re so inclined. Noteworthy or not, here are my contributions:</span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Accompanied my daughter on two college campus tours</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Got immunized part 1! (Pfizer, minimal side effects, 2nd shot next month)</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Picked up my son (already a Purdue student) for a brief stay at home since they are not getting a regular spring break this year (Thanks, COVID)</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Baked an apple pie from scratch for said son, since his birthday was this past Monday and he prefers pie to cake</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Went skating again, though I didn’t get as much accomplished as I hoped. (I only posted it to Facebook this time; look me up @ Kelli Lawrence-Bordenkecher)</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Signed up to audition this weekend for a play at a very small theater in my area; first time doing that since the pandemic hit. Unless I get into the show, this “noteworthy” event never happened, okay?😉</span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">🤰🏎</span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">🤰🏎</span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">🤰🏎</span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏</span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-35a05c89-7fff-aea7-8718-dba847e92a67"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/1D/79/1D795517-4CB7-BE39-2F3D-ABA7D7EFC6C9/158668_7357-0x300.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="240" height="200" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/1D/79/1D795517-4CB7-BE39-2F3D-ABA7D7EFC6C9/158668_7357-0x300.jpg" width="160" /></a></div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">So we’re excited about Gender Reveal… we find out boy or girl, we get pregnancy progress, we get a #Shea kiss (!!) in what appears to be a more lighthearted episode than we’ve seen in a while (whew).</span></span><p></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Coincidentally or not, 4.15 is called “Waiting”... which describes #Shea fans’ most common activity as this last arc reveals itself oh-so-slowly. </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/life/entertainment/a36095291/is-the-good-doctor-season-4-on-tonight/?fbclid=IwAR3OVTKOd1JM6DvKXnlXfLwJ_Ev7XdcUMU9i_WzC-L-ir9FUFwK163T2gMs " target="_blank">Good Housekeeping </a></span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/life/entertainment/a36095291/is-the-good-doctor-season-4-on-tonight/?fbclid=IwAR3OVTKOd1JM6DvKXnlXfLwJ_Ev7XdcUMU9i_WzC-L-ir9FUFwK163T2gMs " target="_blank">even did a little article devoted to the TGD wait</a>, but it was just filler-- all Tweets from fans (were you among them?), and nothing from any TGD showrunners. </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Certain thoughts linger in the back of our minds during the waiting…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">What will trigger the Shaun “meltdown” that we feel is certain to come yet this season? Season four has only brought relatively minor ones, such as his rant in Glassman’s front yard during “Frontline Pt.2,” and his crisis of confidence during “Teeny Blue Eyes” (after his patient/fellow autistic doctor chewed him out and prompted him to question his ability to parent a child). I think we’re all a little afraid his inevitable upset will be triggered in some way by Lea’s pregnancy, meaning something heartbreaking may be on the horizon.</span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">On the other hand, will we be treated to any more “light moments” after 4.14? A hormonally horny Lea? Shaun recoiling in disgust from her sudden pickle cravings? (hopefully not in the same episode, though that would be our luck, huh?) Will we see them shopping for cribs… or at least putting one together in Lea’s old bedroom? Will we be privy this season to whatever decor/theme is decided for the nursery?</span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Will there still be a Road Trip this season?</span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Will there be a place for the “traditional” karaoke scene this season?</span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">How far will the storyline advance in the final arc-- will Lea deliver BabyShea by season’s end?</span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">And hey, what about that “hospital fundraiser” that had Lim scouting locales back in early January? Are we supposed to have forgotten it by now, or is it still to happen? (Sadly, I suspect the former… and that Shaun and Lea’s attempt at dancing in the apartment during “Spilled Milk” is as close as we’ll get this season.)</span></span></p></li></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><div><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Whatever comes at us in the remaining weeks/months, we all know that the final arc usually carries the highest-caliber drama where Freddie Highmore/Shaun is concerned. Since the “we” I speak of covers a lot more readers than I had at this time last year (thank you very much!!), I feel the need to display here what the fabulous women behind SheaEndgame created and have pinned to the top of their Twitter account:</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>"As a fan page we will respect the hard work the writers, actors and crew are making to create a great finale so we won't be posting anything that can be considered a spoiler. We don't care about the "likes" or have the first-hand information... we want to respect the production and also the fans that don't like spoilers. We are saying this because we are sure that information will be leaked... so please let's create a great environment to enjoy what is coming, but also have something to be thrilled about when the episodes air. It's up to us."</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">My adaptation of this for State of the #SHEA: Please continue to speculate to your heart’s content in the comments, but-- just as I’m editing my own content to steer clear of any spoilers I pick up along the way-- I ask that you do the same. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-ae74dd94-7fff-dddf-4f37-3173527dc56c" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">What AM I considering spoilers? Definitive plot developments: the fate of the baby, a major change in #Shea such as a proposal or a breakup, news that an actor is leaving the show (unless it’s already been announced by a reputable publication). Also there’s at least one blog out there that has been known to post things like scene rundowns from future shows… while not all that stuff is outright spoiler-iffic, I may delete a comment that comes too close to the line. Fair enough? </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And while the sex of the baby doesn’t </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">quite</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> rank as a plot development per se, let’s try to keep that news under wraps too until after Monday’s episode. How might you find that out in advance? More on that later...</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">What ARE NOT spoilers in my book? Episode titles, synopses, published guest star lists. Even if an episode title is unofficial (hasn’t yet been released by ABC), it’s OK with me, especially with hints often coming from the scripts/social media accounts of the actors/writers themselves. And general hints about upcoming scenes/episodes-- like the ones I’ll be discussing shortly-- are OK too. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Again, speculation about upcoming possibilities is great! Dropping information ahead of its time-- not so much. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; white-space: normal;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">🤰🏎</span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">🍏</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; white-space: normal;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">🤰🏎</span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">🍏</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; white-space: normal;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">🤰🏎</span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">🍏</span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Speaking of speculation and information...</span></span></span></p><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><b>WHAT <i>DO </i>WE KNOW AT THIS POINT?</b></span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">4.14 “Gender Reveal” comes at us Monday; directed by Tim Southam & written by Debbie Ezer (who co-wrote “Fixation” last year).</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">4.15 “Waiting” is slated for 4/26 and is directed by Gary Hawes (last sat in the director’s chair for “The Uncertainty Principle”) and has a script attributed to David Hoselton and David Shore (teleplay) and Oren Gottfried (story). The official synopsis references no characters from the show; it simply states “</span><span style="background-color: #f2f2f2; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">After a political protest turns violent, the team races to save two young gunshot victims.” I presume, then that “Waiting” involves the on-location protest scenes that we discussed here previously (in the comments I think).</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/DB/2D/DB2DCFA8-EBCF-9A9D-AB2D-7F41DF4013BD/158808_5730-450x0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="450" height="133" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/DB/2D/DB2DCFA8-EBCF-9A9D-AB2D-7F41DF4013BD/158808_5730-450x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br />It would appear, based on several “Waiting” photos showing Lea in a large holding area alongside very distressed-looking co-stars of the week, that the episode title is mostly about the agonizing time during which loved ones await the fate of those receiving emergency care (gunshot victims, in this case). Why is Lea there with them when her “loved one” is busy trying to save lives? Don’t know yet. But since everything is done with a purpose on TGD, I know I want to pay close attention to whatever gets said (or remains unsaid) during those scenes. Especially since both the co-stars of the week I mentioned are women.</span><p></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Promo pics have been released for both episodes but as I write this, no sneak previews are out yet for “Gender”... those tend to drop Sunday and/or Monday depending on how generous ABC is feeling (maybe more generous this week due to the longer wait?)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">As for the CTV promo for “Gender Reveal”... I haven’t seen it yet. Apparently some have, AND THEY ARE SAYING THE GENDER OF THE #SHEABABY IS STATED WITHIN THE CTV PROMO… so if you want to try and wait until Monday to watch and find out when Shaun and Lea do, BEWARE!</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">*** And if you DO watch the CTV promo, again, PLEASE avoid discussing spoilers in the comments.***</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">The airdates for the five episodes beyond “Waiting” haven’t been announced yet. Episode titles I’ve heard (unofficially) include “Letting Go” and “Forgive or Forget”. The latter was seen on a script held by Sheila Kelly in her IG post; it looks like it was for 4.18. It also looks like Thomas L. Moran, who I tend to think of as one of the #Shea specialists, co-wrote that one with one of the Davids (I’m guessing Renaud since Hoselton is involved with the “Waiting” script).</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">We also know that somewhere along the way, Lea is going to be hospitalized (temporarily, we assume) because Paige Spara posted shots of "Lea" in a hospital gown--posing with some of the other great women of TGD-- on her IG page a few weeks ago. I say "temporarily, we assume" because it seems very unlikely that she would share a major spoiler of her own (e.g. Lea and/or the baby are in jeopardy). Maybe it's for 4.16? 4.17? </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">And finally, we’ve been blessed with the awareness (via the “What’s Filming” account on Twitter) that TGD spent a LOT of time this past week shooting scenes in the 220-acre Central Park, located on the Vancouver-Burnaby border. And since we are </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">further</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> blessed with reader Pamela-- a Vancouver-based #Shea fan who has “stalked” on-location TGD shoots before-- we get to know a little bit more about this week’s efforts… </span></p><br /><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbee87el8s6giL1QFkb5_LGPEdDmmL5R2pTfgUjSvDsHVbultRXdCFqgjSppPxtOu9BhyvQx-R6tsE55dmMpRkSlbKcQG2lptBC0EL1yrP8obgJHIs86hXlxb1ZJu1que18x4IOks8km0q/s2048/GT+4+16+21+Central+Park.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbee87el8s6giL1QFkb5_LGPEdDmmL5R2pTfgUjSvDsHVbultRXdCFqgjSppPxtOu9BhyvQx-R6tsE55dmMpRkSlbKcQG2lptBC0EL1yrP8obgJHIs86hXlxb1ZJu1que18x4IOks8km0q/w150-h200/GT+4+16+21+Central+Park.jpg" width="150" /></a></div>The Striped Tomato was in attendance (meaning at least<br /> <span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">some </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">of what they shot there was #Shea-related). And a photo that circulated on Twitter earlier this week seemed to indicate one of the locations was made to look like a campsite. <a href="https://stateoftheskate.blogspot.com/2020/12/blog-post.html " target="_blank">Given that one of Lea’s “likes” (according to the “Fault” episode)</a> was </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">camping</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, perhaps this will turn out to be that Road Trip 4.0 I mentioned earlier? At least, sort of? (Though having done a lot of camping myself, I shudder at the thought of trying to sleep comfortably in a tent during the second or third trimester of pregnancy!) </span><p></p></li></ul><div><br /></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">When Pamela got there on day 2 of the shoot, it was just in time to see Freddie and Paige arrive for shooting: “</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I saw Paige first in Lea's camp clothes as she waited for Freddie to join her before they walked together through the trail to the forest set. Very nonchalantly just the 2 of them amongst regular people also walking through the trails… They were talking to each other the whole walk to set. Easy to see that they get along so well.”</span></p></li></ul><div><span style="color: #222222;"><br /></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="color: #222222; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Pamela continues: “About 15 minutes later Paige came back with a crew member and she retrieved a drink from one of the food trucks. A bit surprised by this as she could have easily just asked a crew person to get the drink and bring it back to the set for her. Obviously not a diva which is awesome to see!!! I'm glad she did get her own drink because this time I could clearly see a baby bump. Definitely nowhere near full-term size, but maybe 5-7 months… “</span></p></li></ul><div><span style="color: #222222;"><br /></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="color: #222222; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“I am truly amazed at the hugeness of this TV show. From taking over 2 different parking lots (the other lot contained all the cars from crew members and mobile trailers for cast/makeup/hair), the vast amount of equipment all over the park especially at the big campsite set to the dozens upon dozens of people prepping and manning the sets, the circus area and filming itself. They clearly have the $ to fund such an enormous location shoot.” </span></p></li></ul><div><span style="color: #222222;"><br /></span></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">So as you might guess, “which episode?” was another big question surrounding the Central Park shoot. Pamela received an indication that at least ONE scene was for episode 18… the “Forgive or Forget” one. But there were multiple shoots taking place for TGD over the course of three or four days, not all of which involved Shaun and Lea. Pamela thinks the showrunners were taking advantage of a long stretch of great Vancouver weather, which leads me to speculate that they may have been shooting out of sequence (meaning, shooting for earlier or later episodes than the one on which they were primarily focused).</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: black; font-family: georgia; font-size: large; white-space: normal;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">🤰🏎</span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">🍏</span><span style="color: black; font-family: georgia; font-size: large; white-space: normal;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">🤰🏎</span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">🍏</span><span style="color: black; font-family: georgia; font-size: large; white-space: normal;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">🤰🏎</span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">🍏</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: black; font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Finally… while I had room for it, I wanted to include some of the ever-interesting comments and observations that </span><span style="background-color: white; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">you guys </span><span style="background-color: white; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">have made over the course of the past few pregnancy-themed episodes! </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-0d5e48d7-7fff-5345-9c24-4621a4e7e0a2" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">From Syl, regarding “Teeny Blue Eyes”: </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>How the hell was Shaun able to not say anything about the pregnancy to others?! (I'm partly joking but it's also a real question!) It was on his mind all day, but he managed to keep it to himself, even hiding his notebook. He also stopped himself from blurting it out to Claire. Even though he has learnt to restrain himself, it's surprising to me. I thought that he would at least ask questions to a few people apart from Glassman.</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I wondered about this too, especially since it happened at least once before. Obviously during “Teeny” we were still able to see the wheels turning via Shaun’s notebook and his visualized list of “reasons to have a baby.” But the only person he shared the pregnancy news with directly was Glassman. All of this reminded me of when Carly broke up with him last season… early in the “Autopsy episode, when Shaun revealed in front of Park and (I think) Melendez that he and Carly had broken up, I think Park’s the one who replied with “I thought things were going well with you two,” to which Shaun said “They were… until they weren’t.” Which was accurate enough, but kept him from divulging the whole “She says I have to tell Lea I love her” thing. Even in the scene that had Park trying desperately to pull Shaun away from the man’s car, thinking Shaun’s actions were driven by anger towards Carly… Shaun still only snapped back “It’s not about Carly!” rather than blurt out anything about Lea. In both cases, he wasn’t suddenly being dishonest but was instead keeping some sort of filter on his thoughts… seemingly uncharacteristically. Was TGD staying true to Shaun’s ASD tendencies in these cases? I asked Andeas. Here, in part, was his response: </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #3d5466; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>While autistic individuals like to stick to the truth, they don’t necessarily blurt out every though at once either, at least in the high-functioning section of the spectrum.</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><i><br /></i></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #3d5466; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>The key to the writers’ decision to have Shaun be more secretive about Lea’s pregnancy might very well be that other incident (in which) he acted uncharacteristically (breakup with Carly), and I might add his father’s death, which he did not discuss much with his peers as well. These are obviously issues that even Shaun regards as something to deal with more privately...</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><i><br /></i></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #3d5466; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>So, it is probably safe to say that the writers discern between minor and major events in Shaun’s life, for which they decided that the latter are something he deals with his trusted inner circle, namely Glassman, Lea and Claire.</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">--</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">From Daniela regarding “Teeny Blue Eyes”:</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> I have to confess that I didn’t understand the reference to </span><span style="background-color: #112233; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Shaun’s family of origin as a problem to consider. Is he supposed to think twice before having a child because he had a bad family the first time? I hope it’s not some sort of foreshadowing from the writers, maybe about the possible return of Shaun’s mother, as some fans have anticipated. As far as I’m concerned, she definitely lost her mom’s card the moment she decided to give up on her children and it wouldn’t be enjoyable (at least for me) to see her paying a visit and maybe reclaiming her grandparenting rights. DNA is a small detail in the grand scheme of things. It would be drama for sure, but not the kind I like.</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">From Andreas, regarding the likelihood of Shaun’s mom trying to re-enter his life:</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>In the matter of Shaun’s mom, I would like submit that the show out of nowhere introduced Claire’s father just in the moment she had finally gotten closure on her mother.</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><i><br /></i></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Since Claire and Shaun’s story arcs mirror each other I see the return of Shaun’s mother as a real possibility in the remaining episodes. Of course, we’ll have to wait and see how Claire and her father proceed and if the ill fate of biological parents in this Shore-verse continues… 😬</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Something I wanted to add here: since presumably, the only way Shaun’s mom would get word of the baby is if Glassman told her… does anyone think he may feel compelled to do exactly that, perhaps due to his ongoing battle with the parenting demons? Or did he learn his lesson after Shaun’s ill-advised final minutes with his dad (ill-advised by Glassman himself)?</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">From Syl, regarding Shaun and Lea’s “connection” discussion in “Spilled Milk”: </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Something that bothers me: Lea keeps saying she's scared, but I wish we would see her expand on that and particularly say clearly to Shaun the things that make her scared the most. Shaun didn't seem to remember that Lea said she was scared in "Teeny..." as she had to repeat in this episode "I'm scared too", and Shaun's "what are you scared of?" makes it seem like they barely talked about their feelings regarding the pregnancy, which is odd given that they both are normally honest with each other.--Syl</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For me, the mentions of being scared were in two different contexts in two different episodes. Back in “Teeny,” Lea’s fears pertained to having the baby at all. By the time fears were getting discussed in “Spilled,” they’d moved on to the reality of an ASD father-to-be struggling to connect with both his partner </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> the child she’s carrying. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Still, perhaps it would have been better if both sets of scriptwriters from the two episodes had sat down together and worked on ways to keep conversations from even hinting at being a retread from another part of the pregnancy timeline…</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">From Mo, regarding “Spilled Milk”:</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Lea was being so patient and tried so hard despite feeling like crap to give Shaun a connection with their baby which Shaun called a fetus despite Lea asking Shaun not to and Lea finally snapped, At that point, I threw my slipper at my TV hitting Shaun between the eyes as believe me I am a good shot</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This just made me laugh and laugh… so thanks, Mo! </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Finally… from Tony, responding to the larger part of Mo’s post about “Spilled Milk”:</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Thanks, Mo, for reinforcing the question of "do the fans give Shaun too much slack?" that was highlighted on this blog not too long ago. I asked myself: if the exact dialogue of the two Shea conflict scenes in this episode were between Morgan and Park, or Claire and anyone, would people be calling out the woman? I think not!</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">OK. Thanks for giving me so much to work with, y’all! </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I’ll be back as soon as I can after “Gender Reveal” airs!</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/2E/06/2E062003-F172-50C0-424D-A733BE88E749/158668_4971-900x0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="800" height="256" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/2E/06/2E062003-F172-50C0-424D-A733BE88E749/158668_4971-900x0.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><p></p></span></div></span></div></span><p></p>Kelli Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06009713326652591943noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1583562784288599702.post-4456356975417368952021-04-11T22:06:00.007-07:002021-04-12T19:41:28.180-07:0013 Down, 7 to go: TGD Season 4 Progress Report<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/34/73/34734DEB-56D1-D4F8-26FF-EFEE309697EF/158272_0316-900x0.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="534" data-original-width="800" height="214" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/34/73/34734DEB-56D1-D4F8-26FF-EFEE309697EF/158272_0316-900x0.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span id="docs-internal-guid-7dadb1ea-7fff-041c-6e73-ec966c14219d"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The upside to this pandemic-impacted Season 4 of TGD seems obvious, as one look at the calendar reminds us that Season 3 was already complete at this time a year ago. The downside is just as obvious, though: only 8 episodes have aired in the 14 weeks since returning from the obligatory winter hiatus. </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">It’s difficult to build momentum at that pace, harder still for specific story arcs to get any traction from episode to episode. And to do all while trying to hang on to viewers, much less attract new ones? Let’s just say I’m not sure a less-established show could survive.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Maybe Lea’s pregnancy storyline shouldn’t have come as such a surprise after all; it’s arguably the easiest idea to cultivate in this season of stops and starts. In fact, TGD may be parlaying all the breaks into effortless time hops forward. We’ll have a better sense of that when “Gender Reveal” airs on 4/19, but from what I’ve read, the show might need to jump from “week 7” to “week 18” for the sex of #SheaBaby to be known… and might spring farther ahead than that in weeks to come.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">On the other hand, it seems unlikely we’ll have many more breaks between these last seven episodes. Summer programming takes over near the start of, well, </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">summer</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, and even if TGD takes only ONE week off between 4/19 and the season finale, new episodes will bleed into June</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">What a weird thought to have the entire back third of the season come at us so “rapidly!”</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">And so welcome, too. For while anticipating all things #Shea is one matter, charting the respective courses of the eight other TGD regulars (including the two remaining Newbies) hasn’t exactly been easy. </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Part of that is surely by design, considering that Season 3’s earthquake (and respective aftermath) was intended by David Shore to send ALL the St. B’vites into new directions. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">But two-thirds in, it’s been a season heavy all-around on personal development and light on professional progress. (Which, again, is tougher to track when it’s so spread out.)</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9QLLY-N7UPqI2_CBoGMihZ1kq7rjgde_yn_-rEgwfDMVcnY29aSKqyj2HiOWp1uoVWknFIJeD91-plQthMrP37nIA3AubjxcBKABCpk3qNaeHGjrhUekbjLn7sQA15qyQpKpp3ZDzyIGg/s4608/IMG_20210411_221932.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9QLLY-N7UPqI2_CBoGMihZ1kq7rjgde_yn_-rEgwfDMVcnY29aSKqyj2HiOWp1uoVWknFIJeD91-plQthMrP37nIA3AubjxcBKABCpk3qNaeHGjrhUekbjLn7sQA15qyQpKpp3ZDzyIGg/w200-h150/IMG_20210411_221932.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Highly technical tabulating <br />right here</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">So this week, I got curious and tracked the appearances and/or significant developments of everyone on TGD over the 13 episodes we’ve seen thus far. Shaun’s been in every episode and Lea’s been in almost every one (I’m not counting “Lim” with her birthday party cameo), but for what I hope are obvious reasons I’m bypassing the lead couple to talk about the others… in order of prominence (as per my silly notebook chart):</span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/9F/D0/9FD0313B-5230-D6B4-7A37-BF60EE924DE4/158462_3850-400x0.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="400" height="200" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/9F/D0/9FD0313B-5230-D6B4-7A37-BF60EE924DE4/158462_3850-400x0.jpg" width="133" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">CLAIRE:</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Why can’t she ever catch a break?</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">wailed so many TGD fans when her estranged father returned in the last episode. But never mind the fact that the writers surely have more behind their motives than cruel torture-- what if Claire simply HAS to get in the trenches to deal with the crappy cards life has dealt her? What if someone was to look at the things that have challenged her this season (Melendez ghost, a challenging friendship with Lim, lingering pain from her relationship with Breeze, and now the return of her dad) as a series of GOOD breaks? What if it all serves to buoy her to greater heights once the professional challenges ARE in the spotlight again? </span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">PROGNOSIS: While whatever might have happened between Claire and Enrique “Boardshorts” Guerin evaporated quickly, he </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">did</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> leave her with the interesting parting request to “do something for herself”... which prompted her to check out opportunities in France. The arrival of her father quickly eclipsed those moments in her room, with the record player spinning, in the final act of “Teeny Blue Eyes,” but we often talk here about how seldom things happen on TGD for no reason at all...</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/BC/AA/BCAAAFFC-F34B-9987-5258-1818C2425798/158420_2996-400x0.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="601" data-original-width="400" height="200" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/BC/AA/BCAAAFFC-F34B-9987-5258-1818C2425798/158420_2996-400x0.jpg" width="133" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">MORGAN</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">: Her resistance to her new non-surgical status seemed to be worked out only five episodes into the season… which left it feeling a little too easy from my perspective, but perhaps it’s a testament to Morgan’s resilience (a “get the sulking out of the way, then get on with it” kind of attitude) that the focus then shifted to her frenemy-turned-roomie-turned-frenemy w/benefits, a.k.a. budding relationship with Park. In fact things are looking up more than usual for Morgan at work-- instead of getting kicked out of the OR (as she was back in “Newbies”), she was recently invited to scrub </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>in</i></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> to advise with a procedure (“Spilled Milk”).</span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-25441c4e-7fff-d468-8432-f522f7fabdad" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">PROGNOSIS: All eyes seem to be on #Paresnik, or whatever this coupling calls itself, and musings on how serious it’ll get and/or how long it’ll last. I’m intrigued too, and while theirs feels like an entirely different species of romance than that cultivated by #Shea, I wonder if it might endure in some fashion much longer than anyone expects right now.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">PARK: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">With the “Frontline” 2-parter effectively squaring </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/A9/68/A968193E-ECC2-9B1C-F5C1-085F2F5AF957/158272_1779-400x0.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="400" height="200" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/A9/68/A968193E-ECC2-9B1C-F5C1-085F2F5AF957/158272_1779-400x0.jpg" width="160" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">away his reason to stay in San Jose after all, the wheels were in motion soon after for him and Morgan… when he was taking time away from work to finalize divorce and she “caught” him… remember? Anyway, it’s a mighty good thing he’s making </span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">some </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">sort of progress in that arena; career-wise, he’s in even more of a holding pattern than the others. </span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">PROGNOSIS: If the stakes go higher for the St. B’vites in year 5 of their residency, will Park benefit from Morgan’s form of “support” (whatever that may be)... or will it backfire? Will Park even be as interested in reaching the top of the heap with his favorite rival out of the running? More importantly, will Kellan return to San Jose (temporarily or otherwise), perhaps seeking shelter from a bad first year of college? The possibilities with that relationship still feel open-ended… </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">LIM:</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> What would’ve happened with Dr. Audrey Lim this </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/91/33/9133D348-83D1-CE95-4E1A-5F5397CDDDA3/156563_8725-400x0.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="400" height="200" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/91/33/9133D348-83D1-CE95-4E1A-5F5397CDDDA3/156563_8725-400x0.jpg" width="160" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">season if there’d been no pandemic to write into the show? Without love in her life anymore, and without family to haunt her (yet), her personal story’s been limited to 1) developing PTSD, and 2) dealing with her PTSD. And while TGD gets huge props for taking on the PTSD story in the first place (including an outstanding Lim-centered episode), it currently feels as if Lim’s issues completely resolved themselves once she allowed herself to manage it with medication. It’s frustrating, but perhaps that’s the only way a show with this many balls in the air at one time can deal with such a complex issue at all. </span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">PROGNOSIS: A thought more than an expectation here… what if someone in Lim’s family paid her a visit (finally!), and she was able to learn something about a family history of well-hidden mental health issues that helped her understand her situation even better? </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">GLASSMAN:</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> It’s a little difficult to know if this is the </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/56/BA/56BACD8B-E253-374D-0DE5-360315E37350/158274_2712-400x0.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="601" data-original-width="400" height="200" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/56/BA/56BACD8B-E253-374D-0DE5-360315E37350/158274_2712-400x0.jpg" width="133" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">placement Glassman would be in had his portrayer not suffered from a real-life COVID hospitalization that took him out of two episodes completely (and found him with only one brief scene in a third). Was he scheduled to be in more episodes? Would he have served more than a minor supporting role in any of them? So… he’s kind of been all over the place. Working through challenges with Debbie during the pandemic episodes. Advising Shaun personally and professionally in almost every episode. Advising Morgan professionally when she was still new to her new gig. Taking Claire’s concerns about Lim to the next level. Sparring with Andrews over “impossible” cases and the motivation for taking them on. And most importantly, forging a relationship with Lea (finally!) that is started with mutual admiration for Shaun and has blossomed into mutual respect and appreciation for each other.</span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">PROGNOSIS: Aside from whatever support he continues to bring to #Shea, Glassman’s role for the duration of the season feels a little up-for-grabs. If Debbie puts in another appearance this season (and given that Sheila Kelley has been seen on social media with an upcoming script in hand, it feels like a given), Glassman’s role pivots one way; if he finds himself in the OR again this season, it pivots differently. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">ANDREWS:</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> I’ll go ahead and say it again if I’ve said it before: </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/D3/18/D318C146-DEAA-528F-5D8D-62EB1EFACF91/158272_1991-400x0.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="400" height="200" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/D3/18/D318C146-DEAA-528F-5D8D-62EB1EFACF91/158272_1991-400x0.jpg" width="133" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">when TGD hinted at the death of a character due to the earthquake last season, I thought it was Andrews that was going down. The reason? It seems that they just don’t know what to do with this character. He’s a superior, but so is Lim (and in fact Lim now has the job Andrews assigned to himself once Dr. Han was sent packing at the end of S2). He <span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">had</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> a personal-life story early on, as he and his wife suffered through infertility issues in S1, but that fell to the wayside quickly and we haven’t seen his better half now in years. There were interesting new dynamics when one of the newbies turned out to be his own niece, but then she was gone by the midway point of the season. </span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">PROGNOSIS: Do the writers have him laying low in a </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Lea in the first half of Season 3</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> kind of way… biding his time until the original residents hit year 5? Hill Harper himself seems to be one of the most vocal advocates of the show, recently stating in an interview that he </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://news.yahoo.com/good-doctors-hill-harper-opens-205200815.html " target="_blank">saw no reason TGD couldn’t have the same longevity as Grey’s Anatomy</a></span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">… he’s also the one who recently confirmed via Twitter that TGD still has 20 episodes planned for S4, sounding excited for what was still to come this year. Hopefully, the writers have plans for Andrews on par with Hill’s enthusiasm.</span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">AND… THE NEWBIES</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Both Dr. Asher Wolke and Dr. Jordan Allen had to wait until 4.3 “Newbies” to make their respective debuts on TGD, but of the 6 potential first-year residents (and the 4 that moved forward at St. B), Wolke and Jordan are all that remain. As a whole, I think most of us have mixed emotions when it comes to “the Newbies”-- intrigue for the new life and story potential they’ve brought to TGD, surprise at where the professional evolution of the fourth-year residents has (and hasn’t) gone as they’ve become teachers/leaders, and frustration as it all leaves even more characters fighting for airtime.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-22d3e5a0-7fff-a2ea-76fb-f4c265fa4a09" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And while the firing and departure of Dr. Olivia Jackson in “Decrypt” was well-done in my opinion, I can’t say the same for Dr. Enrique Guerin’s exit in “Teeny Blue Eyes”. Yeah, we got clues that he was re-thinking some things as the episode progressed, but to seemingly just have him decide </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This isn’t for me after all</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and next thing we know, he’s emptying his locker and saying goodbye to just one character (Claire)? With no notice given to Lim or Andrews? No thoughtful parting words to Shaun, who Guerin had helped so effortlessly with matters of the heart early in the season (and who had worked alongside Guerin throughout the episode? Maybe his non-traditional spirit and the tricked-out RV in which he dwells was supposed to tip us off that he could fly the coop at any time, but it still felt like an afterthought of a departure.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>DR. ASHER WOLKE:</b> From his first moments on TGD-- </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/E4/13/E413E064-C2DA-7A63-77FD-E9EDF4D55C4D/158272_1871-400x0.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="400" height="200" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/E4/13/E413E064-C2DA-7A63-77FD-E9EDF4D55C4D/158272_1871-400x0.jpg" width="160" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">that unusually tight close-up on his face; that intriguing backstory he shared with the senior residents-- Wolke made an indelible impression at St. B. He’s eager, personable, and has the dubious honor of being the first of the new crop to lose a patient (only a few episodes into his tenure, no less). But more recently, he scored a significant win by earning a spot on Glassman’s “team” with the human pretzel patient in 4.11 “We’re All Crazy Sometimes”-- the only Newbie to do so.</span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">PROGNOSIS: With both Shaun and (especially?) Claire, I feel some kid brother potential for Wolke in terms of camaraderie. And with Shaun losing his sibling long ago and Claire never having one to begin with (As far as I know), it could be a nice quasi-role for Wolke to occupy.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>DR. JORDAN ALLEN: </b>She’s strong, outspoken, and quite </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/3D/35/3D35E337-3015-B9EC-B2B4-BEB888223F84/156290_2335-400x0.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="599" data-original-width="400" height="200" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/3D/35/3D35E337-3015-B9EC-B2B4-BEB888223F84/156290_2335-400x0.jpg" width="134" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">business-savvy for her age-- all adding up to the “wow” factor that even Morgan took note of early on. She even showed great bedside manner shortly after arrival; remember the lady pregnant with twins in 4.4 “Not the Same”? But her need to speak out also got her in hot water with Lim (4.6 “Lim”), and while she outshone Olivia during her time at St. B., Glassman’s challenge in “Crazy” showed her to be as fallible as any other doctor. </span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">PROGNOSIS: With her entrepreneurial spirit and skill, it’s easy to picture Jordan scoring another patent and/or distribution deal that could send her to greener pastures at any time. But otherwise, Jordan is a smart cookie who still has plenty to learn… and after her ‘forgiveness” conversation with Claire last episode (4.13 “Spilled Milk”), I can also picture her in ally mode next season when Lim might not be in such a position. BUT-- especially if she spends any time bumping horns with Morgan in the future-- I wonder if a thornier, protect-thyself-at-all-costs version of Jordan will emerge?</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Okay, dear readers... the floor is yours now. Who do you care most about on TGD outside of #Shea? Who wouldn't you miss if they were kidnapped by aliens during this latest mini-hiatus? Let me know your thoughts in the comments!</span></span></p><div><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div><p></p>Kelli Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06009713326652591943noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1583562784288599702.post-27376381379656909672021-04-03T10:50:00.002-07:002021-09-19T17:46:34.592-07:00State of the #SHEA part 32: I'm The Dad ("Spilled Milk")<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsZycgHwPigxxcZr_NtuOjGGtQobTI3beYItN2Akea9YJnIjfTxGpJKHfS_noam0J3lxnGZ6hg7-qP-EdxVz46-6k4L11Tjc_KKPPpOHTgs1Y54cMXZpfmajzrvvMOTcdOOJNaOoWFktPu/s4608/IMG_20210402_212937.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsZycgHwPigxxcZr_NtuOjGGtQobTI3beYItN2Akea9YJnIjfTxGpJKHfS_noam0J3lxnGZ6hg7-qP-EdxVz46-6k4L11Tjc_KKPPpOHTgs1Y54cMXZpfmajzrvvMOTcdOOJNaOoWFktPu/s320/IMG_20210402_212937.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-761d370b-7fff-fdea-a971-df8018252379"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">After being involved in theater most of my young life, I took it as an elective my first semester at college (my major was over in the Journalism/Mass Communication building). I thought there’d be plenty of non-theater majors like me in there, but it turned out to be me, a business major who dropped out quickly, and an East Indian student who said he was there because he was “searching for his nirvana.” The rest were young, enthusiastic THEATER MAJORS (put in all caps for a reason). One of them you might even have heard of-- Jeremy Piven, best known for his work on the TV series </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Entourage</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">-- but he fled the Midwest university life after a couple years to study in New York. Seems to have worked for him.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Why is she telling me all this…?? </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> OK, I’ll get to that now.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I stuck with the class, and kinda sort of earned some respect from my hard-core classmates because I could hold my own with them in a scene… but my weak spot was improvisation. I’d become too inhibited over time; it was no longer fun. And one improv exercise I remember well was when two students took the floor and were given a single line of dialogue, with the goal of creating an entire small scene by finding different ways to communicate the same line of dialogue. “I could hurt you,” was the first line that was given. And in the space of about 90 seconds, the pair went from keeping it light (“</span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> could hurt </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">you</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">?” asked sarcastically) to a gut-wrenching realization (“I… could </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">hurt </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">you!!” followed by a prolonged embrace) that left me thinking two things 1) </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Wow that got dark in a hurry, </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and 2) </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Please please don’t call on me for this exercise</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">…</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In case it’s still unclear, this memory popped to mind after the repetition of </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We are having a baby</span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">…</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> a line that made its debut at the end of "</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Teeny Blue Eyes</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">," then was repeated four times in "</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Spilled Milk</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">." How many more times we’ll hear those exact words this season remains to be seen, but they’ve already made quite the journey of expression for one Dr. Murphy.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">It wasn’t an easy episode to watch, was it? It might have even taken you back to last season’s “Fixation” episode (where Shaun’s efforts to show Lea he was capable of enough ASD-related change to sustain a relationship ended in a painful exchange on the St. B bridge), and-- fun fact-- Jessica Grasl had a hand in writing both “Fixation” AND “Spilled Milk.” Different writers are tapped for different gifts, I presume.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Don’t worry, the touching final scene of “Spilled Milk” is anything but forgotten here. But it might ultimately prove to be a momentary oasis of joy on a road to parenthood paved with gaping potholes, both ASD/NT related and otherwise. That’s what we #Shea fans signed up for, after all. We trust these two will be written to transcend their difficulties, coming back with a stronger bond each time… that doesn’t always make watching the tough times any easier, though.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiefd-tgCu1485T5n6myH_RMraRXhzWHsBFRxMyo_RFccjqlT9SD9vzeR1pKsu0fnjqYeX19X3hV_j1rPBmAGb4OWxgJjBYsVvwpdbMExb2ADfXToSucwde05pkWetLoUUUvVbA-L0RFc5u/s4608/IMG_20210402_211542.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiefd-tgCu1485T5n6myH_RMraRXhzWHsBFRxMyo_RFccjqlT9SD9vzeR1pKsu0fnjqYeX19X3hV_j1rPBmAGb4OWxgJjBYsVvwpdbMExb2ADfXToSucwde05pkWetLoUUUvVbA-L0RFc5u/w200-h150/IMG_20210402_211542.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">It seemed like no matter how many days/weeks had passed since that scene at the end of "Teeny," Shaun was saying the same thing the same way: WE ARE HAVING A BABY. It was filled with all the wonder and amazement you might expect of a new parent-to-be, but in those early morning moments, Lea was well past that. First-trimester nausea has a way of overriding a LOT. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun got his first dose of disconnection in this scene, too, when Lea declined sex, citing his minty breath as the reason why (nausea wins again). Funny that several of us on Twitter got to seeking a mint-free alternative toothpaste for Shaun, thinking this might be the kind of episode where an easy switch like that could help resolve their issues. Yeah, not so much…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: large;">She still had her lovely imaginative wits about her, though, and “picturing Shaun’s face on a little baby blueberry” was as easy for Lea to see as it was impossible for Shaun-- that becomes clearer in their next, brief scene together in Lea’s office. “The fetus” vs. “our baby;” “the doctor” vs. “the dad.” </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Mya and Leo-- the dancers featured in “Spilled Milk”-- made quite the impression on Shaun. When he thought they were a romantic couple early in the episode, and noted Leo positioning a pillow behind Mya in her hospital bed, Shaun departed abruptly… showing up next in Lea’s office, support pillow in hand. And even after Wolke made him aware of Leo’s homosexuality, the sight of Mya and Leo dancing together still inspired him enough to try and take Lea for a spin on their own makeshift dance floor. Maybe the fear of more “sorry Shaun, I’m not in the mood” prompted to find ways to connect that even a non-sexual relationship could manage? </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-b15c6f64-7fff-fee9-32de-ce2eef16e592"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSp7cuumCxvHnFUTFZiiwZrM2fsobTuo7x4NhioZjwdyfUkS7plms2e6GCJpRVq9lpjw7Q3A1CIR87QCXdHz6oyAv8-ZJ-kGppOruM7PjkXBB65CeWyq7wz83B5NDeaouXQChp8LTf0suL/s4608/IMG_20210402_212423.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSp7cuumCxvHnFUTFZiiwZrM2fsobTuo7x4NhioZjwdyfUkS7plms2e6GCJpRVq9lpjw7Q3A1CIR87QCXdHz6oyAv8-ZJ-kGppOruM7PjkXBB65CeWyq7wz83B5NDeaouXQChp8LTf0suL/w200-h150/IMG_20210402_212423.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Unfortunately, it was a rough time to start dance lessons with Lea (<i>Please get back to this someday! </i>My little #Shea heart cried out in this scene). She's going through changes right now both voluntarily-- she had a choice; she chose to keep the pregnancy going-- and involuntarily (her body’s going to change whether she’s ready for it or not). Shaun’s changes, like any prospective father, are entirely voluntary. And, for most of “Spilled Milk,” entirely resisted by Shaun. </span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I didn’t expect as much #Shea as the 9-10 minutes we ultimately got in this episode-- about twice as long as usual-- but when I realized around two-thirds of that time was devoted to Shaun and Lea’s “disconnection” scenes, it made more sense. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFP-rnlFscqiPMJJZ3PUD16_B6ZG0wTfBgsYx0NS3Rx5CJk1XtZUiQEPkVt1JYAkQVctKCcuKAqUr-oLA2VO22Fsb6RSh0YrAeoDhPM4G3fGbZsGMkntu_QA__JSlRkV4LPRZxvdqTdOhS/s4608/IMG_20210402_212838.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFP-rnlFscqiPMJJZ3PUD16_B6ZG0wTfBgsYx0NS3Rx5CJk1XtZUiQEPkVt1JYAkQVctKCcuKAqUr-oLA2VO22Fsb6RSh0YrAeoDhPM4G3fGbZsGMkntu_QA__JSlRkV4LPRZxvdqTdOhS/w200-h150/IMG_20210402_212838.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Part of what hurt in those two scenes was seeing such lovely efforts at connectivity go up in smoke. The dancing that was Shaun’s idea? Cut short due to Lea’s ongoing nausea. The “tummy talk” instigated by Lea? Nicely executed (once they got past Shaun’s bewildered “Talk about… what?”, but Shaun’s inability to humor Lea and pretend their in-utero child could hear quickly deflated the moment. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And while the feelings and body language in both scenes comprised the rest of the pain we witnessed, it’s easy to overlook the fact that they both handled themselves relatively well. Shaun’s feelings were far from what Lea needed to hear, but he presented them calmly and clearly. (You could see Lea’s this-might-take-awhile sigh just after Shaun started to speak, but she still summoned enough patience to give Shaun the floor, without interruption, as long as he needed it.)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYWPM1BtHgekwx9uLasGDDGOshx3DL9Bi8g6psFC1x6v6UHxzmBBHNnvBbzAZYKuoqDLr_FhT0gIpDmxhUNWzgxZubtgMXK7Ae7yRa4pD-iRm0xR1PZYQklWJ9dF8wh0VCkjzdip9yyfM0/s4608/IMG_20210402_212559.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYWPM1BtHgekwx9uLasGDDGOshx3DL9Bi8g6psFC1x6v6UHxzmBBHNnvBbzAZYKuoqDLr_FhT0gIpDmxhUNWzgxZubtgMXK7Ae7yRa4pD-iRm0xR1PZYQklWJ9dF8wh0VCkjzdip9yyfM0/w200-h150/IMG_20210402_212559.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Predictably, Lea upset that portion of TGD viewers who bristle anytime she has the audacity to be anything other than a saint of a girlfriend. <i>Why did she have to be mean? She wouldn’t dance! She called Shaun “selfish” when she’s the one who wrote the book on selfish behavior! She probably went to bed without saying “good night”! She might’ve even woken up without saying “good morning”! Why wouldn’t she, of all people, cut Shaun some slack? </i></span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Because the relationship doesn’t work that way. It CAN’T work that way. It’s not about carrying on as a fully neurotypical couple until the partner with ASD hits a wall, then instantly giving said partner the right of way. It’s about constantly riding the nuances; knowing the difference between the controllable, the uncontrollable, and the can-be-controllable-but-it-takes-more-time-and-effort. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-77480e0e-7fff-3e3c-7a19-c178ace6dab7" style="font-weight: normal;"></b></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-77480e0e-7fff-3e3c-7a19-c178ace6dab7" style="font-weight: normal;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAaUtzml06h4ifMAy2-uSdP4B7ZngFvP9dJokDrnucVBWPAjXI3I5WgsaBToZcsipkjdZ2kqMEIHIuVzE1yiiGYhqN9k7L260qLePjvM55cmTIgHDtSsI5xj4d3xMgh00aTscUICs3ajHH/s4608/IMG_20210402_211833.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAaUtzml06h4ifMAy2-uSdP4B7ZngFvP9dJokDrnucVBWPAjXI3I5WgsaBToZcsipkjdZ2kqMEIHIuVzE1yiiGYhqN9k7L260qLePjvM55cmTIgHDtSsI5xj4d3xMgh00aTscUICs3ajHH/w200-h150/IMG_20210402_211833.jpg" width="200" /></a></b></div><b id="docs-internal-guid-77480e0e-7fff-3e3c-7a19-c178ace6dab7" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Back in the office scene, Lea thought they were dealing with a relatively mild dilemma of Shaun wanting to do Doctor Things and use Doctor Terms above all else (the pillow for comfort, the non-gummy prenatal vitamins for “the fetus”). But when she told him in that scene “Be the dad, not the doctor,” I’m not sure she caught the little wave of terror that passed through his face. First he wasn’t able to connect with her physically, now he was supposed to start doing this “dad” thing months ahead of what he had mentally scheduled? </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">No wonder he turned to Wolke and Glassman next. (Sure it was Wolke this time because they were working on Mya’s case together, but I’m really liking the dynamic between these two… Wolke feels Shaun’s little buddy, both literally and figuratively.) In classic Shaun style, he worked out his professional dilemma and his personal dilemma side-by-side… </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiycdF4Gld6Z021YmHeqhBUwZO39NAy7tzU5b326d8Oc9RWv3s-n1Z2tJOeA3R6FzqvXufbIEVG2f3pMatBjts1U2ZqH_TyDo1i0-0KwEHJ6wSKspvPnm2Lq9oprn7tUwxIfKjDtlDYn7k7/s4608/IMG_20210402_212132.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiycdF4Gld6Z021YmHeqhBUwZO39NAy7tzU5b326d8Oc9RWv3s-n1Z2tJOeA3R6FzqvXufbIEVG2f3pMatBjts1U2ZqH_TyDo1i0-0KwEHJ6wSKspvPnm2Lq9oprn7tUwxIfKjDtlDYn7k7/w200-h150/IMG_20210402_212132.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br />with one huge caveat: he didn’t work out the personal one. He acknowledged it-- saying “I don’t like adjusting” to Wolke and Glassman’s advice that he <span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">needs</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> to adjust-- but in getting up and walking away right afterward, his commitment to even</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> trying</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> to adjust wasn’t there yet. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: large;">Lea, meanwhile, has no one to turn to. We’ve brought this up again and again, but in an episode where she’s getting dumped on especially hard, it feels important to be reminded of this fact. Maybe <i>TGD</i> does this with the intent of illustrating how isolated the NT side of an ASD/NT relationship can be-- if so, I tend to think that’s a convenient excuse for not having to make additional room in the scripts. But with rare exceptions (like the “Teeny” scene with Claire), Lea continues to be left to her own devices when it comes to difficult navigation with Shaun.</span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGdT9wqslzFW6XZCTc1EmD3T13IAWipCN6Eg1wcvPVXJDGXcgbQrWbJo9zbb6HUP9IFg_PVU1-E_szgbVYB0PGlbsBAXqSTM6YzyGKxzJUOLXfvvqXaeBClY1y5gmpwpDtWEXqf1AkHrrP/s4608/IMG_20210402_212554.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGdT9wqslzFW6XZCTc1EmD3T13IAWipCN6Eg1wcvPVXJDGXcgbQrWbJo9zbb6HUP9IFg_PVU1-E_szgbVYB0PGlbsBAXqSTM6YzyGKxzJUOLXfvvqXaeBClY1y5gmpwpDtWEXqf1AkHrrP/w200-h150/IMG_20210402_212554.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br />And the problem here is that she KNOWS the “adjusting” thing falls into the controllable-with-more-time-and-effort category with Shaun, but sitting there, queasy as hell on the couch, summoning all her patience and energy to let Shaun explain himself… she doesn’t see any effort. All she hears is him complaining that SHE isn’t making enough effort to help HIM! (Never mind that’s not quite what he was saying; perception is everything.) But rather than let her anger get anywhere close to out of control, she capped it and left the room. Yes, that left Shaun feeling more disconnected than ever, but the alternative would have been much worse. </span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Instead, we picked it up the next morning. By that point Lea had time to cool off… maybe she was having a better time with the nausea (or it hadn’t kicked in yet)... and she’s even come up with a way to help Shaun connect. But not until she gave a voice to some crucial realizations.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">LEA: I… feel scared too.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">SHAUN: What are you scared of?</span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtocHbl7kvrpOfzm2P4Q7DC8aSLW2iP0bfEkgwZ1aLy4Pts-DNBQSJBQKSU-g_c2X7zuc2Oc7DiNdj7tjW9_JSdWCScayYeV8vXr15clBXoUmIug6SgWt1veHElvlNQkUnUDo5IekeWux5/s4608/IMG_20210402_212842.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtocHbl7kvrpOfzm2P4Q7DC8aSLW2iP0bfEkgwZ1aLy4Pts-DNBQSJBQKSU-g_c2X7zuc2Oc7DiNdj7tjW9_JSdWCScayYeV8vXr15clBXoUmIug6SgWt1veHElvlNQkUnUDo5IekeWux5/w200-h150/IMG_20210402_212842.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">LEA: Everything. And I don’t want to go through this alone. I don’t want to go through nine months knowing you view this baby as a medical condition you don’t feel anything for. I’ll resent you. And that scares me more than anything. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Whoa, RESENT. That was the toughest word for me to hear in this entire episode. “Resent” means feeling bitterness; it turns occasional anger and frustration into something unrelenting, much more difficult to shake. It was the first time this season that my <a href="https://stateoftheskate.blogspot.com/2020/09/now-that-theyve-found-love-part-3.html " target="_blank">post about real-world struggles for ASD/NT couples</a> truly leaped to mind. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">It was wise of Lea to begin this morning-after talk with “I feel scared too.” Even though Shaun never directly spoke to fear the night before, feeling “disconnected” and “alone” adds up to Shaun and Lea not functioning as a team… and that’s what the whole season has been about.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Shaun was finishing up getting dressed for work when this scene began, and I really appreciated the role his everyday plaid shirt played here:</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span> </span><span> * </span>As it started, Shaun faced the closet, not turning around until Lea started sharing her own fears. It seemed a protective measure on Shaun’s part; for all we know, these were the first words Lea said to him since their argument.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span> </span><span> * </span>When Lea spoke of connectivity while climbing up on the bed, Shaun immediately began to unbutton that shirt, ready and willing to connect with Lea in the most effortless way possible. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(Sorry, #Shea fandom, but the allusions to sex were as frequent in this episode as they were unproductive.) </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCQQY8cg10sE7nzJp23L4gpRm7cd-4D7j_8aSH-dyFawiP7vLfjbBo8FLofcNXpb0crjT_E4LMweqq5o1_MEp_Hk2EDorTpwtWwjdNDGahjGJKAd9IjHqXGol8DW8EODs-pMm2w5ajLWu9/s4608/IMG_20210402_212951.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCQQY8cg10sE7nzJp23L4gpRm7cd-4D7j_8aSH-dyFawiP7vLfjbBo8FLofcNXpb0crjT_E4LMweqq5o1_MEp_Hk2EDorTpwtWwjdNDGahjGJKAd9IjHqXGol8DW8EODs-pMm2w5ajLWu9/w200-h150/IMG_20210402_212951.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span> </span><span> * </span>I found it interesting, though, that Shaun left the tails of his shirt untucked as he laid across the bed as casually as we’ve ever seen him do, attempting to “talk” to the #SheaBerry. </span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: large;">Unfortunately, humoring Lea when his knowledge overrides it-- yeah, that’s not gonna happen, especially when asked about his feelings outright. </span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">LEA: (hopeful) Does that make you feel better? To talk to him?</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">SHAUN: No. The fetus can’t hear any sounds until 18 weeks, and we don’t know if it’s a “him” yet because it doesn’t have fully formed genitals. I will see you at your appointment later. (He gets off bed. Lea looks crushed.)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">LEA: I don’t think you should come.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(Shaun was tucking in shirt as he was leaving room, he pauses, looks back at her)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">LEA: There’s a chance it’s too early to hear a heartbeat, which will make me sad and scared… and if I can hear it, I will feel happy. And either way, you will probably feel… nothing. And that will make me feel more alone than I already do, so you should just… not come.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">SHAUN: (4-second pause) Okay.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiZ8j4qQ0gEisRk5IGnbrchmHJSRMlyc_hVQRGWwiBwo4hSS-yzFUpFR0KBVZza6j0fFQF35l-m4kplI09uOhPC5W_wveD5hSTnOWQ3VFjvv0h8Pbj0o-Sa7LaP1GdWpDjoQN6AKvwnqS3/s4608/IMG_20210402_213059.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiZ8j4qQ0gEisRk5IGnbrchmHJSRMlyc_hVQRGWwiBwo4hSS-yzFUpFR0KBVZza6j0fFQF35l-m4kplI09uOhPC5W_wveD5hSTnOWQ3VFjvv0h8Pbj0o-Sa7LaP1GdWpDjoQN6AKvwnqS3/w200-h150/IMG_20210402_213059.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br />Again, I think it’s worth noting that Lea kept her cool here. She could have said these words with voice raised, pacing back and forth, anger even easier for Shaun to detect than the night before-- but she didn’t. Instead, she delivered her request for him NOT to come to the appointment with sad resignation. <span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">He’s not getting this, </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">her subtext stated. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We’ll try again in the future, but it’s not going to be today.</span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Subtext isn’t something Shaun picks up often, so he took her “don’t come” at face value… I think. (I thought he exited the bedroom slower than usual, as if trying hard to process Lea’s words and coming up undecided.) The fact that Glassman found Shaun “hiding at the hospital” when he should have been leaving to catch Lea’s appointment (apparently at a different hospital or medical building? Maybe one closer to the loft?) indicates again that Shaun DID realize he should be behaving in a certain way-- in this case, showing up for the appointment regardless of what Lea said-- but fearing how it would go, he tried the classic “I’m needed more here” fallback. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Do you think he resorted to taking up cases in Glassman’s clinic so that he’d be found out (and sent in the right direction) easier? If he’d simply lingered in the doctor’s lounge doing research, only a chance run-in with Wolke might have nudged him towards Lea’s appointment. Instead, we got another little dose of don’t-do-as-I-did wisdom, courtesy of surrogate Dad. Which surely carried more weight than what anyone else might’ve said, anyway. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The surprise and relief on Lea’s face when Shaun joined the appointment surely told him he’d make the right decision… and he’d be wise to file that memory for future incidents. Because there are quite likely going to be variations on the tensions we saw this week. If Lea delivers their child, premature or otherwise, the challenges of this relationship will be magnified. If something happens to “Berry” before all that… the challenges of this relationship will be magnified. I’m sure that’s a huge part of why TGD decided to go with this storyline. Less supportive viewers are likely to keep calling Shaun and Lea’s relationship “awkward” as a result, unwilling and/or unable to appreciate the process that leads to payoffs such as we got in “Spilled Milk.”</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For not only did we get a whole new interpretation of that line </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We’re having a baby</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">… both from a rejuvenated Lea AND a newly awakened Shaun… but we got Shaun trying out an even newer sentence on for size:</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWIBJZ9NR7BdhAML1mqaGYtdd83YDeQ4iZL0Et7GrqWnwXNt_ifkAkXMZqZ2g_yFoJpiIEnfPNQWRBhlbry8E2kRB7dInRsi3bIVv50V6Mg1lJJSmXu7NVvc4Dwm7Ua_SY5I9Wph0MADlg/s4608/IMG_20210402_213754.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWIBJZ9NR7BdhAML1mqaGYtdd83YDeQ4iZL0Et7GrqWnwXNt_ifkAkXMZqZ2g_yFoJpiIEnfPNQWRBhlbry8E2kRB7dInRsi3bIVv50V6Mg1lJJSmXu7NVvc4Dwm7Ua_SY5I9Wph0MADlg/w200-h150/IMG_20210402_213754.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“I’m the dad.” </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">No matter how many different ways we interpret it, those three words ring the same at their core: Informal. Intensely personal. And as intertwined with “the mom” as the hands he rushed to hold once it all hit home for him.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHEaM7QLi14Fh60ngbC5gBhqKejPT1cF4jaNT6yf2GyyvqGbzRvtDmoZO-y9sBcwAr6Brh1ATvOMGL0dUPl-MwpOEa9iZPvp-vJwmvfWMt8D-FX0VTRZ7ujrZxxWeqxUjYnSLu8CR-NAjN/s4608/IMG_20210402_213842.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHEaM7QLi14Fh60ngbC5gBhqKejPT1cF4jaNT6yf2GyyvqGbzRvtDmoZO-y9sBcwAr6Brh1ATvOMGL0dUPl-MwpOEa9iZPvp-vJwmvfWMt8D-FX0VTRZ7ujrZxxWeqxUjYnSLu8CR-NAjN/w200-h150/IMG_20210402_213842.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2GXcRP47ChOmTl1HQj-EJPdE2XHIB4VDsM8cecYaOXZcJN12o5mrKMLiToxwaFkeWnVR0N6s37e1BpUv83bhIrhhVKRLWB3OEgR0d-b6MYT_z_cEnZgG8ZHFFnKHheI52iFgyItte0jPP/s4608/IMG_20210402_213850.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2GXcRP47ChOmTl1HQj-EJPdE2XHIB4VDsM8cecYaOXZcJN12o5mrKMLiToxwaFkeWnVR0N6s37e1BpUv83bhIrhhVKRLWB3OEgR0d-b6MYT_z_cEnZgG8ZHFFnKHheI52iFgyItte0jPP/w200-h150/IMG_20210402_213850.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(What did YOU take away from "Spilled Milk"? Hit up the comments to join the conversation!)</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5vv7VIxv9ZwP8s8AJFLPw8nVvcX2UbuR_UodH19OSQQ2vTtLryvWvwofxn52RzhrTnhid7y5mgEd4JxJikttms2gs9lNCc05F0vsw6A4UDq5CJELRYWmDU0Ip7AvXtPzZs9kgcQaXkzvu/s4608/IMG_20210402_213852.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5vv7VIxv9ZwP8s8AJFLPw8nVvcX2UbuR_UodH19OSQQ2vTtLryvWvwofxn52RzhrTnhid7y5mgEd4JxJikttms2gs9lNCc05F0vsw6A4UDq5CJELRYWmDU0Ip7AvXtPzZs9kgcQaXkzvu/w200-h150/IMG_20210402_213852.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /></div>Kelli Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06009713326652591943noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1583562784288599702.post-36954573985455353082021-03-27T22:37:00.001-07:002021-03-27T22:37:50.029-07:00State of the #SHEA Part 31: A Bigger Look at a "Teeny" Episode<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxgiS-uVEkGssXDPqWVe8bJrJQYU9ZZc84_6Ta2vGrcg_gWxT6ifQHgxdVXXV7_LB_z7rAPYRZ-w83lBA1Y9byLMz2TqZELf4aHtFBeUiQTfCx1n8iUemsHF9f8Xk8v0XtHzQM9IafjjpZ/s4608/IMG_20210327_011747.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxgiS-uVEkGssXDPqWVe8bJrJQYU9ZZc84_6Ta2vGrcg_gWxT6ifQHgxdVXXV7_LB_z7rAPYRZ-w83lBA1Y9byLMz2TqZELf4aHtFBeUiQTfCx1n8iUemsHF9f8Xk8v0XtHzQM9IafjjpZ/w320-h240/IMG_20210327_011747.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-a3461238-7fff-3fdc-69a7-1d6c4853eb2a"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I’m not the first viewer to make this observation, but the #Sheababy situation is reminding me of a pivotal sequence of scenes from not that long ago… though it feels much longer. </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In the early moments of the club/karaoke sequence in 3.15 “Unsaid,” when Shaun and Carly are quietly celebrating Shaun’s latest medical victory… and Lea is across the room, dancing and making out shamelessly with Nameless Guy (as we’ve christened him)... Carly points to them (unaware yet that it’s Lea) and declares to Shaun “They are getting </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">pregnant</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> tonight!”</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Then, as soon as the </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">she</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> in “they” is identified, Shaun contradicts Carly’s declaration with a firm testimony to Lea’s commitment to birth control.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">And a little more than a year later, here we are. I just have to wonder-- did Shore and Company know they were going to go this direction back then? Not the #Shea direction; we know that was the plan for S3 in general. But just how long have they envisioned Shaun and Lea wrestling with baby pros and cons by the third quarter of S4? </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Because otherwise, that “pregnancy” exchange between Shaun and Carly was a helluva coincidence. And to think it struck me as a little odd at the time… </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">why didn’t Carly just say something like “They need to get a room already!” -- which comes off a little less crude than what she </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">did</span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> say.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Water under the bridge, I know, but we DO love to discuss foreshadowing here…!!!</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">🍏</span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">With two new episodes of TGD airing back-to-back for the first time in a while, it’s harder for slowpoke me to keep pace. Throw in a week of World Figure Skating Championships (my sport of choice you’ve learned if you recently started following me on Twitter), and my TGD blogging efforts threaten to dry up altogether. But what fun is that? </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-ef4553f6-7fff-4cc1-2565-41a21bd173a3" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">So here’s my compromise: a less fleshed out, more list-like look at “Teeny Blue Eyes” that I’ll follow with something longer and in-depth next week… depending on what we get from 4.13 “Spilled Milk.” (With Claire’s family dynamic back in the spotlight this coming week, the next #Shea chapter might end up a thin subplot in comparison. And there’s also got to be some #Paresnick (is that the hashtag) aftermath to deal with, right? But I’m not willing to let the ABC promotion terrorists win just yet, so… reserving judgment for now.)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">A Listicle follows… and yes “listicles” are a thing, just not a thing I do much for public consumption! I’m just going to hit certain scenes from the episode in chronological order:</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5RWySJiOqWf1o84NNisNVgTJaIo08nttIk3UN5j20ro8RcqDEGcOUaRtpCIJ1OC2ms6W_mXax_WPooyu0hWqho4i-KwHfQWShaqvQ7y9WoUDN4XRS2bL04vkIt5Uugc9VDVqCwQTK__3R/s4608/IMG_20210327_005717.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5RWySJiOqWf1o84NNisNVgTJaIo08nttIk3UN5j20ro8RcqDEGcOUaRtpCIJ1OC2ms6W_mXax_WPooyu0hWqho4i-KwHfQWShaqvQ7y9WoUDN4XRS2bL04vkIt5Uugc9VDVqCwQTK__3R/w200-h150/IMG_20210327_005717.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">If Shaun taking Lea’s blood pressure at home becomes a regular occurrence during this pregnancy, I wonder if there will be a spike in her BP at some point that will prove to be the first sign of a medical issue with Lea and/or the baby.</span></span><p></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Lea’s initial list of (verbal) worries-- career, age, level of relationship commitment, etc.-- I’m sure there are those who will quibble with her doubts being “selfish” ones, but just as I take issue with couples who exclaim “WE’RE pregnant!”-- No. SHE is pregnant. And her worries were far from superficial. Every woman, married to her partner or otherwise, is bound to have them.</span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjK0LCWCerK9SA6ykZ_O5AtO34vZPnG7XwF9eEYCqMGmG6OcGSfcMRoNFzyizVaWUqH9VwPiG9djL-IQoNvqwQvl1qo4h0TLxZRROStdil57nOOsmrjbzTW5SFVPrQaYoJdNOT5rX0u-JF/s4608/IMG_20210327_005858.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjK0LCWCerK9SA6ykZ_O5AtO34vZPnG7XwF9eEYCqMGmG6OcGSfcMRoNFzyizVaWUqH9VwPiG9djL-IQoNvqwQvl1qo4h0TLxZRROStdil57nOOsmrjbzTW5SFVPrQaYoJdNOT5rX0u-JF/w200-h150/IMG_20210327_005858.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun did come up with </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">one</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> concern by the time he reached Glassman’s office to deliver the news (“sleep deprivation”), which was an easy tipoff that he hadn’t processed much yet. For his part, Glassman didn’t freak out as I thought he might (arguably, not enough time for that in their brief scene)-- even with this confirmation that Shaun still had much to think about. What interested me here was that in making the argument that this was a big deal “especially for you,” Shaun’s ASD claimed the top spot but “his family (of origin)” was mentioned before his career. But the way Glassy said it was more like </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">well there’s this matter, and this matter, and BY THE WAY HAVE YOU CONSIDERED THIS? </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (meaning work), delivering it as punctuation rather than a lesser concern. All in all, I saw more wonder and excitement in Glassman than frustration or judgment. Can’t help but wonder if his evolving appreciation of Lea helped with that. </span></span><p></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Next came Shaun’s notebook, which went from a last-second appearance in Glassy’s office to our next window into Shaun’s mind during TGD opening credits. Among the “Pros” he’d listed at this point:</span></span></p></li><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: circle; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Help with personal discipline</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: circle; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Second chance at better family life</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: circle; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Enjoy talking to kids</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: circle; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Pregnancy before age 30= lower chance of breast cancer </span></span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: circle; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Childhood disorders correlated with age of father</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: circle; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Give a child a chance for a good life</span></span></p></li></ul></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lea is unsure</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">-- that was the sole “con” he’d written at that point. But I found his “pro” list intriguing, and not just because I was at a loss on a couple of them (“Childhood disorders…” Can someone explain that? Does it have to do with Shaun’s ASD?) It also, along with Lea’s earlier “Am I too young?” comment, clarified that the two of them are supposed to be around the same age (Paige Spara is 2 ½ years older than Freddie Highmore in real life). By the way, I took Lea’s question to be more about her place in life than chronological age.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-464863e0-7fff-711e-e6b7-d24805159ff2"></span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Next came Claire’s happenstance discovery of the pregnancy. Was she encouraging Lea to consider abortion during their chat? To me, not any more than Lea was already considering it herself. And the “little Shaun” scenario Claire suggested was mighty endearing. But putting the “tough decisions” thing with her thorny relationship with Mama Breeze as a frame of reference, Claire didn’t exactly part the clouds and let the sun shine in with her words. I guess I see her as relatively neutral here-- I’m just glad they gave Lea someone “new” to talk to! </span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBVC_8slqOgtZlcBiHnUi_jTgqUj8gr3vqg3tW0NvYCk44I3YKeFuti53PD41z6vQOg8YWY9Kt5LK3RHXrzjFTfh0JiFvtwrPGnprFCtL3AHdYS6La6qoC3wsKqtj1p46nkwMjCjSEK2MT/s4608/IMG_20210327_010444.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBVC_8slqOgtZlcBiHnUi_jTgqUj8gr3vqg3tW0NvYCk44I3YKeFuti53PD41z6vQOg8YWY9Kt5LK3RHXrzjFTfh0JiFvtwrPGnprFCtL3AHdYS6La6qoC3wsKqtj1p46nkwMjCjSEK2MT/w200-h150/IMG_20210327_010444.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">ANIMATED BABY?!?</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun was still pretty cheerful about the baby when he lent his ShaunVision® to the perks of parenthood… which include </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Order off kids menu without having to answer questions… Excuse to buy scient museum season tickets… </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">excuse to avoid social obligations</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://tse2.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.3vo6lL8HKkDgkQEI1E4VYAAAAA&pid=Api" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="607" data-original-width="405" height="200" src="https://tse2.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.3vo6lL8HKkDgkQEI1E4VYAAAAA&pid=Api" width="134" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">AAAUGH!!!!</td></tr></tbody></table>. Though I admit I had to back and check the specifics of that later, for which I’m going to blame whoever decided to put that ANIMATED BABY in the ShaunVision® (!!!) because it gave me horrible flashbacks<br /> to the Dancing Baby popularized in </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ally McBeal </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">a quarter-century ago.</span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But then came Shaun’s deeper dust-ups with Silas, AKA Dr. Denial. When he started turning his own self-loathing on Shaun with verbal grenades like “You can’t understand what anyone means… you can’t express yourself like an adult… you’re a child playing dress-up,” Shaun was thrown right back to earlier days in his life-- by way of his brutal father, of classmates, of anyone who relentlessly made him feel like less of a human being. No wonder that, by the time Silas’ yellow mug broke and he bellowed “You idiot!”, we didn’t see Shaun again until he was out on the St. B overpass/bridge, struggling to come to grips with everything. Asking questions like “What if my child has no friends? How can I know what they’re feeling, how to comfort them? </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">How can I be a good father?”</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Suddenly, Shaun was covering both the ASD-as-parent and possible-ASD-as-child worries in consecutive breaths… and feeling like he couldn’t win with either. Pretty heartbreaking right there… and the episode still had a ways to go.</span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY-RHM01woy-FiXbmLixFOXYTwBSIt-TMpxQLKS_3KzFFrlVLgYJlV05xXodAS40zBAaW5QRKjL4tEAwDOJ7ZlW0s3cuGWrpbPn1U63vfw5EYYc5hZArZu_x7g3rCgJNgmxxt1qIE4PIgj/s4608/IMG_20210327_010814.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY-RHM01woy-FiXbmLixFOXYTwBSIt-TMpxQLKS_3KzFFrlVLgYJlV05xXodAS40zBAaW5QRKjL4tEAwDOJ7ZlW0s3cuGWrpbPn1U63vfw5EYYc5hZArZu_x7g3rCgJNgmxxt1qIE4PIgj/w200-h150/IMG_20210327_010814.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Once again, Claire to the rescue-- except her input about the baby was secondary to her input about Shaun’s evolution since the first time they’d met, “right over there” (and as she said that I was thinking it). He needed to know he could take on the role of fatherhood whenever he wanted to, and since Lea was a less-than-partial judge in that matter, it was especially good Shaun could hear it from a colleague/friend his own age (meaning NOT Glassman).</span></span><p></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I thought the way Shaun subsequently handled Silas/Dr.Denial was another testament to his adaptability and growth. I don’t know that this is a fair comparison, but I thought of Shaun’s dad, and every raw emotion procured from their final meetings. Not that I expected Shaun to forego professional protocol in an effort to defend himself from the older doctor on the spectrum, but he could have kept his time with him to an absolute minimum, avoiding further engagement. Instead came the most poignant scene of the episode (outside of Shaun and Lea’s final two scenes of course). Shaun not only understood Silas’ seemingly cruel behavior for what it was, but knew he was in a better place-- with work, friends, and yes, possibly a family of his own-- and needed to try once more to reach Silas with the best show of empathy he could muster. Enter the repaired yellow mug, and a floodgate opened wide…</span></span></p></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-4f2389e7-7fff-5fc4-dfc0-205ce5f6ffb0"><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(Oh, and one more thing. The Melendez name drop during this scene was quite a stunner. It's the only time Shaun has mentioned him this season.)</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This brings us to Shaun and Lea’s pros-and-cons talk, and like the waiting-room scene that followed it, plenty has already been said via social media and elsewhere (like <a href="https://www.msn.com/en-us/entertainment/news/good-doctors-paige-spara-discusses-lea-and-shauns-pregnancy-decision-%E2%80%94-plus-who-hooked-up-and-who-quit/ar-BB1eR854 " target="_blank">this article featuring Paige Spara herself</a>… so let’s see if I can add anything of interest:</span></p></li><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrmHWzXiS1GCXjyZUoofli_JeUBiZ3zsCP1rTcwndQVulCvKGEgh-tbo0Ia4TpMmpfB8M0-csDM43PwAQGbc6z101t_hoXv60BuHrViblDrn4eet1HMTot63okO2kLtUTA0lEk_qNN1ji8/s4608/IMG_20210327_011126.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrmHWzXiS1GCXjyZUoofli_JeUBiZ3zsCP1rTcwndQVulCvKGEgh-tbo0Ia4TpMmpfB8M0-csDM43PwAQGbc6z101t_hoXv60BuHrViblDrn4eet1HMTot63okO2kLtUTA0lEk_qNN1ji8/w200-h150/IMG_20210327_011126.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I don’t know a lot about cinematography, but when I <br />look at that gloriously emotional three-minute close from “Autopsy” last year and compare it to countless other #Shea scenes in that same loft apartment setting at night, the “Autopsy” scene has a different look… darker, with more sienna tones I think. I got a similar visual vibe from the Pros/Cons scene, and I doubt that was by accident. </span><p></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The “Autopsy” scene was joyous on the surface-- candles lit, Shaun there with all his courage gathered, at last, to put his feelings for Lea on the line-- but we all knew something was not going to go well. Even those of us certain that Lea loved Shaun back watched that scene waiting for that other shoe to drop. With “Pros/Cons”, the surface joy was the pregnancy itself… but we saw how Lea looked and sounded when Shaun came through the door. We knew Shaun had been through his own kind of emotional wringer that day, the kind that could lead a guy to say, only thirty seconds into comparing notes, that “You’re right… it IS very complicated,” and set his notebook down. They weren’t discussing whether or not it was a good idea to buy a new car-- they were discussing </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">their future, </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and for all the difficulties that came and went on their way to finally getting together, this was uncharted territory.</span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLAPnm7nen0U7K2jgSXnY-DF8Gs7etAzBGTClUF8FUXtmwqsHh0gNtGXAWc77fECH_Udwzves4wYjL6zM8E-vQWFOJgRPIIGj_XfPxDI88wNtL5RvgqUnMlJGFbJ-Njre_UuEowsap7FoR/s4608/IMG_20210327_011236.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLAPnm7nen0U7K2jgSXnY-DF8Gs7etAzBGTClUF8FUXtmwqsHh0gNtGXAWc77fECH_Udwzves4wYjL6zM8E-vQWFOJgRPIIGj_XfPxDI88wNtL5RvgqUnMlJGFbJ-Njre_UuEowsap7FoR/w200-h150/IMG_20210327_011236.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Still, Shaun kept it simple: Lea’s happiness above all else. He could have come in and launched into how Dr. Denial had helped him realize he needed to embrace this fatherhood thing, but it didn’t change the fact that Lea was brimming with doubt.</span><p></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We’ve wondered about how the ASD question would factor into their decision-making, and I’d describe the approach “downplayed” in a rather intriguing way. ASD itself was discussed much more broadly in the episode via Dr. Denial, with the undercurrents of those exchanges affecting Shaun in profound ways. Meanwhile, Lea only brought it up when talking to Claire, and since there’s a lot of question marks where answers would normally be (as discussed last time), the conversation could only go so far. When Shaun and Lea compared notes, it was only Shaun’s potential for fatherhood greatness that was discussed… and while that seemed to cover the bases regarding perceived limitations on Shaun’s part, the child-with-ASD question was never actually addressed. Did the writers take the easy way out there? Or was the ASD issue implied enough that it didn’t need to be discussed in that moment? I say maybe a little of both. How about you?</span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">FINALLY… I’m not honoring my days of doing production continuity if I don’t point this out-- In THIS shot, Lea’s reaching for Shaun’s hand and his notebook is already set down on the breakfast bar. </span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2YdXDxMs03O5ugT5XljmuX204131kVWdJsNHkff5e3CsVTiQwKFzxeNyPDtq6-Yn6mOOAVIxBzYJinaifIZBPBXFUxGhhcR_gYapkEO8ZvSi77in0RmzmHEpoheStRW3LQsSlDwk9YNxe/s4608/IMG_20210327_011253.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2YdXDxMs03O5ugT5XljmuX204131kVWdJsNHkff5e3CsVTiQwKFzxeNyPDtq6-Yn6mOOAVIxBzYJinaifIZBPBXFUxGhhcR_gYapkEO8ZvSi77in0RmzmHEpoheStRW3LQsSlDwk9YNxe/s320/IMG_20210327_011253.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><p></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And in THIS shot (the close-up), Shaun sets down the notebook with one hand while taking Lea’s outstretched hand with the other. </span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1sswxHjfuL4cjDj2TmwYEGXMtHNwG-x4uQNIbLucf7RATJe1R2spH0aJmvhwOiBZeqj2kn9IEggdMfJ0xWq4lh9BL29Y1ZmWNyEtmQdOCdG_uuuBh6nhyphenhyphenRcVgAqVZaUOnSTSfk8KYExgD/s4608/IMG_20210327_011255.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1sswxHjfuL4cjDj2TmwYEGXMtHNwG-x4uQNIbLucf7RATJe1R2spH0aJmvhwOiBZeqj2kn9IEggdMfJ0xWq4lh9BL29Y1ZmWNyEtmQdOCdG_uuuBh6nhyphenhyphenRcVgAqVZaUOnSTSfk8KYExgD/s320/IMG_20210327_011255.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><p></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Really surprising error to me, given that Shaun had already set down the notebook long before the hand-holding began… it wasn’t even close. Guess it shows us how badly they wanted to include that close-up of Shaun’s two hands clutching tight to Lea’s!</span></p></li></ul></span></ul></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><span id="docs-internal-guid-4a6b2e7f-7fff-42c1-ef78-05d32171ca4d"><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Fortunately, we didn’t have to wait long for the emotional pendulum to swing the other direction. TGD did NOT leave us hanging, but they DID manage to push the abortion consideration all the way to the final two minutes of the episode. By doing so…</span></span></p></li><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">finally</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> got to hear Lea’s last name spoken out loud! </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(An interesting time for it to happen… as they make this move toward parenthood, one wonders just how much longer she’ll be “just” Lea Dilallo…) </span></span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We knew the lengths Shaun was willing to go to give Lea what he thought she wanted.</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> While we were aware Shaun was getting pushed to the edge emotionally-- if the tears in his eyes at the end of the Pro/Con scene didn’t say it, his subsequent time spent with his toy scalpel certainly did-- he’d pulled it together through the course of the day and was there at the clinic by day’s end, by Lea’s side.</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHO0ObZYErtHCPBiAgy9eMpXIoVBvyi8Y48hwsMFhiJ5KS_ZRVQpSUdjAd_PRG0TzRW_cdGpq3PdApSOlhHpCKIBjt_NB9bjCj1hhoEaqxTONoJTe7tk4kQZAcIk9PfL4d6-9DOjIZPsPH/s4608/IMG_20210327_011638.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHO0ObZYErtHCPBiAgy9eMpXIoVBvyi8Y48hwsMFhiJ5KS_ZRVQpSUdjAd_PRG0TzRW_cdGpq3PdApSOlhHpCKIBjt_NB9bjCj1hhoEaqxTONoJTe7tk4kQZAcIk9PfL4d6-9DOjIZPsPH/w200-h150/IMG_20210327_011638.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We got a balanced look at the question. </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The night before was wrapped in those shades of sienna because of </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">doubt</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, hovering over the two of them, refusing to lift. But once the decision to abort was set <br />in motion, Lea expected a sense of relief to come… and it didn’t. Instead came a seemingly unbearable sadness, and a hint at a new decision that gleamed a lot brighter once Shaun confirmed he was on board. How many women have sat in a waiting room like that-- with their partner alongside them or without-- feeling the same way? How many went in when their name was called anyway? </span></span><p></p></li><li aria-level="2" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: circle; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwZcm86bj5Ow4sA94g_AXZXVzF0nUfYrY-NupfbIQCyeKmE99t3K6oeOsukxMwnvYK0pmCkKVT2m4Lp8iM14AY8yknlIrWYQRbu6T1sRbcJG4ECHEzIsdoMIpjMZ2tEJvTaobo44ekI9r2/s4608/IMG_20210327_011709.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwZcm86bj5Ow4sA94g_AXZXVzF0nUfYrY-NupfbIQCyeKmE99t3K6oeOsukxMwnvYK0pmCkKVT2m4Lp8iM14AY8yknlIrWYQRbu6T1sRbcJG4ECHEzIsdoMIpjMZ2tEJvTaobo44ekI9r2/w200-h150/IMG_20210327_011709.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">AND… </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">we got to watch Shaun and Lea rise to a new level of their relationship in a way we haven’t seen before. </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">When they became roommates, they jumped up and down (literally). When they knew they loved each other above all else, they kissed (and kissed and kissed). When they decided to live together again (now as a couple), they acted similarly to what we saw at the <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSB9k_qR7km5huf7eF7DRtgpFJ2qHLF8vyMHwtKxyq6WfQDbps04L8MJE0stRS_HU34eYincvK-dgYLx44JJ2TOsrES9IuszISvo6iHpHmLCg-zwZvrMdtNm56HObLCmQ3fuPuY0toRk9O/s4608/IMG_20210327_011727.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSB9k_qR7km5huf7eF7DRtgpFJ2qHLF8vyMHwtKxyq6WfQDbps04L8MJE0stRS_HU34eYincvK-dgYLx44JJ2TOsrES9IuszISvo6iHpHmLCg-zwZvrMdtNm56HObLCmQ3fuPuY0toRk9O/w200-h150/IMG_20210327_011727.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br />end of “Teeny,” punctuated later in the episode with kisses in “their” home. But this! The firm decision to embrace parenthood, and the lifetime connection it will bring-- It’s “huge,” as David Shore says. It’s another dimension. How do you convey everything that goes with that? Maybe that’s why they didn’t kiss <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgebTUUGlaau5ZrWUlfmoujoOXrFFT1xnp_nmcJ7U21O_sqFI8RKUOe8LGd0cXGyQfTkP1gQp35YoWQS7ENn4egi4RUT-SohIxF195QeSC3850YhhjnvpgEv9anKxlpqHhhEzboH1CzNOo/s4608/IMG_20210327_011732.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgebTUUGlaau5ZrWUlfmoujoOXrFFT1xnp_nmcJ7U21O_sqFI8RKUOe8LGd0cXGyQfTkP1gQp35YoWQS7ENn4egi4RUT-SohIxF195QeSC3850YhhjnvpgEv9anKxlpqHhhEzboH1CzNOo/w200-h150/IMG_20210327_011732.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br />in this scene, but instead ran the gamut of emotions via face and body language, with Shaun holding Lea tight as their timid smiles became more real. How much better can it get than that?</span></span><p></p></li></ul></ul><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>(“They STILL could’ve allowed a little kiss, though”... yes, I feel this.) </b></span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Oh, and if you’re thinking about the editing error in the Pro/Con scene and wondering if I noticed a possible mistake in this scene too… where Shaun seems to continue holding Lea’s hand as he stands up, but in another shot he’s standing with his hands folded… yes, I did! But it’s a lot less clear than the other edit thing I mentioned. So I’m giving them the benefit of the doubt on that one.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">So! There’s my “listicle”, which reads… mighty similar to any other post, doesn’t it? Oh well. Please consider hitting up the comments with your own thoughts on “Teeny Blue Eyes”!</span></span></p><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLEKsgMAL-15zYPHtcZABCfsREe74sMURdPhYV-aQt22o11hLzskw343_Mb-i4hszViYsECRn83DN4XOmxFpTE0-5OH0D-hCUAv43zwA67yqz3wzJfbjWqy566TkU1cQaNgWXpgCaqkKLn/s4608/IMG_20210327_011742.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLEKsgMAL-15zYPHtcZABCfsREe74sMURdPhYV-aQt22o11hLzskw343_Mb-i4hszViYsECRn83DN4XOmxFpTE0-5OH0D-hCUAv43zwA67yqz3wzJfbjWqy566TkU1cQaNgWXpgCaqkKLn/s320/IMG_20210327_011742.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div></span><p></p>Kelli Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06009713326652591943noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1583562784288599702.post-6915601888292533682021-03-23T22:27:00.058-07:002021-03-25T21:34:18.815-07:002021 World Figure Skating Championships PREVIEW<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://stockholm2021.se/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/WFS_2021_graphic_element_head-1030x743.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="577" data-original-width="800" height="231" src="https://stockholm2021.se/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/WFS_2021_graphic_element_head-1030x743.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-c7e561a7-7fff-49f9-4bbf-55d742e8466c"><span style="font-size: large;"><p dir="ltr" style="font-family: trebuchet; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I’m trying to find a fitting analogy as I write about the 2021 World Figure Skating Championships, then watch, then write about them some more. How’s this: I feel a little like I’m returning to the scene of a HUGE high school talent show that used to happen in some form at least six times a year... where some of the kids have moved away, some have transferred in, some I vaguely recall from junior high talent shows, and some have had incredible “glow-ups,” talent-wise, in the time since I last saw them. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="font-family: trebuchet; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But in using that analogy, I can’t help but think of how frowned-upon a HUGE high school talent show would still be right now in the midst of the ongoing pandemic.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="font-family: trebuchet; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">2021 Worlds is in Stockholm this week, “in a bubble” as the ISU calls it; I’ve read numerous accounts disputing the validity of that claim, calling out the frequency of testing, the modes of transport from all corners of the globe, and the flagrant disregard for COVID protocol by the Russian Worlds squad (and perhaps others; Russia is the one I hear about and/or have seen repeatedly this season). There’s plenty of frustration and fear to go around for the athletes involved, all trying to keep health and safety concerns in check while “doing their job” of representing in a way that nets the most spots possible for the 2022 Winter Olympics. The very best will win medals, of course; perhaps medals that were denied them when Worlds was canceled last year. But the overwhelming majority are just standing as tall as they can for his/her respective country… and hoping the only thing they bring back from the event are great memories, and continued good health. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="font-family: trebuchet; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I know some skating fans are boycotting Worlds 2021 on principle, and if you’re one of them, I don’t blame you at all. But with NBC SN at my disposal (as usual), and with my IndyCar-loving husband now subscribed to Peacock as racing season gets underway, I’ll be watching… and trying to keep up with the Tweets… and praying for all of them.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="font-family: trebuchet; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As for who’s there, who isn’t, and who’s favored… first, allow me to mention a few other sites and/or articles that you might enjoy, if you haven’t seen them already:</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="font-family: trebuchet; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://www.rockerskating.com/ " target="_blank">Jackie Wong/Rocker Skating’s World previews</a> (listed by discipline on his home page)</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-family: trebuchet; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="font-family: trebuchet; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://www.teamusa.org/News/2021/March/19/Five-Team-USA-Storylines-To-Watch-At-World-Figure-Skating-Championships#.YFdxC0jeSq0.twitter" target="_blank">Lynn Rutherford’s Team USA Storylines-to-Watch preview </a></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-family: trebuchet; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">(Lynn was a frequent contributor to IceNetwork; you might recognize her name from those days)</p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="font-family: trebuchet; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And <a href="https://anythinggoe.com/worlds2021preview/ " target="_blank">the Anything GOES website</a> has comprehensive tables assembled for all the disciplines including each skater’s program music, recent notable finishes, and jump content highlights:</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-family: trebuchet; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="font-family: trebuchet; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As for me, well, I’m going to try and make the best of this opportunity by paying more attention to skaters who are NOT from the USA… or Japan...or Russia. Or Canada, China, or South Korea, for that matter. I want to see which ones make the best impressions on the way to next February. I’ll let you know how I do with that once Worlds is over.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="font-family: trebuchet; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But there’s a thing or two to be said about the bigger names as well:</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-family: trebuchet; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">LADIES </span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-742aef81-7fff-ad72-cdeb-e40a216a041b"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>WHO’S THERE?</b></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Better to start with who </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">isn’t</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> there-- all three medalists from 2019 (</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>Zagitova, Turnsynbaeva, Medvedeva</b></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">). Repping for Russia this time around are two “newcomers” (would’ve been there last year though) and a veteran:</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br /></span></b></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><b>Anna Shcherbakova</b> (5’2”, 16 years old, coached by Eteri Tutberidze), who you might remember as the skater with the red-to-blue reversible costume from last season </span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>Alexandra Trusova </b></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(5’2”, 16 years old, coached by Evegeni Plushenko), who skated to </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Game of Thrones</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> music last season</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><b>Elizaveta Tuktumysheva </b>(5’2”, 24 years old, coached by Alexei Mishin), making her first trip back to Worlds since she won it in 2015.</span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">I only mention the coaches in this case because of the negative press Tutberidze continues to earn for herself (she used to coach Trusova as well). </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">On the other hand, Japan has the same formidable three young women they sent in ‘19 (finishing 4-5-6, respectively):</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br /></span></b></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Rika Kihira (5’1”, 18 years old)</span></b></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Kaori Sakamoto (5’2 ½”, 20 years old)</span></b></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Satoko Miyahara (5’0”, 22 years old)</span></b></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">And with the U.S. only securing two spots with a 7th and 9th place (<b>Bradie Tennell</b> and <b>Mariah Bell,</b> respectively) at 2019 Worlds, Tennell and <b>Karen Chen</b> are the chosen ones this time around. They’ll need to get placement ordinals adding up to 13 or lower (6th and 7th place, for example, or 5th and 8th) in order to win back a third Olympics spot.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">While I’m not making official predictions on </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">any</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> results this season, I find it nearly impossible -- with their tremendous arsenals of quad jumps-- to expect anyone other than Scherbakova and Trusova as World Champion (with the other close behind). Who would I rather see up there? Kihira, no contest. Hopefully she won’t have to settle for 4th this time. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">PAIRS </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-34cb7e62-7fff-dcdc-71a9-3b23594199b2" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">WHO’S THERE? 24 teams representing 17 different countries; those countries with multiples there are Russia (3), China (2; a third team has WD), USA (2), Canada (2), Italy (2), France (2). Only the top 20 SP finishers will make it to finals.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Sui/Han and Peng/Jin are here for China as they were two years ago (finishing 1st and 4th there, respectively)... Boikova/Kozlovskii and Tarasova/Morozov are back for Russia (6th and 2nd in 2019), along with Mishina/Galliamov (2nd at Rostelecom Cup last Fall). </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Representing the U.S. this time are current National champs Knierim/Frazier, who will be skating in the first group of the SP due to their relative new status on the international stage (as partners). Cain-Gribble/LeDuc are also there, taking the place of Calalang/Johnson who withdrew for personal reasons. Like the U.S. ladies, the pairs teams are trying to get a “13” or lower in placement ordinals to earn 3 spots for next year’s Olympics. (Not to cast any doubt on this possibility, but if any reader can easily recall the last time the U.S. qualified 3 pairs teams please post it in the comments… I don’t have time to research it right now! Probably dates back to at least the 90s.)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">While I can’t say I’ve followed the international pairs scene steadily this season, I don’t think there’s a lot of change as to the favorites-- a Russian and Chinese mix on the podium; Sui/Han remain the gold standard as far as I’m concerned.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><b>MEN </b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-1e43801c-7fff-d578-f354-57225bdb942d"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><b>WHO’S THERE?</b> Unlike the ladies, all three of the 2019 World medalists are present and accounted for (<b>Nathan Chen, Yuzuru Hanyu, Vincent Zhou</b>), as are six of the other seven that comprised the Top 10 two years ago. As for whether or not the 2021 Top 10 will look surprisingly similar-- that’s the kind of thing that’s pretty hard to say, given how little we’ve seen of them.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Chen and Hanyu still appear to be at the top of their respective games, so to see both men compete without one of them winning would still be a shocker. As for Zhou, I don’t think he’s lost a step either… but have a few others gained on him? I’m thinking of <b>Shoma Uno</b> (who seems to have regained his footing after a tough 2019-20 season), of Japanese “newcomer” <b>Yuma Kagiyama</b> (new to Worlds, anyway), and a MUCH improved <b>Mikhail Kolyada.</b> </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">So not only am I looking forward to an update on the Chen/Hanyu throwdown, but also how tight it gets for bronze. And how almost-forgotten, one-time favorites are doing nowadays (paging FRA’s </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>Kevin Aymoz</b></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">). And how 30-somethings like </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>Alexei Bychenko</b></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>Michal Brezina</b></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (yes, both are </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">still </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">competing) are holding up. And if there’s any way the sublime of sublime </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>Jason Brown</b></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> can shake things up, even if his quad salchow attempt doesn’t go as planned. (Please be on the lookout for his “Sinnerman” SP above all else! He goes first in the final group.)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">33 men are scheduled to skate their SP; the top 24 will move on to the FS.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">DANCE</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-f64c1dd2-7fff-fe4e-f955-79cb25a502c2" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The last time a World Championship took place without <b>Papadakis/Cizeron </b>was all the way back in 2013, when the Davis/White and Virtue/Moir were the marquis names and Papa/Ciz were winning silver at Junior Worlds. Since then they’ve stood atop the podium four out of six times… which surely factored into their decision to sit out these particular championships, choosing instead to put all their focus on the final months of this Olympic cycle. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">So who wins when the reigning champs are away? Russia’s Sinitsina/Katsalapov? USA’s <b>Hubbell/Donohue</b>? Russia’s <b>Stepanova/Bukin</b>? Those are the teams that went 2-3-4 in 2019, and they’re all back…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br /></span></b></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Sin/Kat won Rostelecom Cut last fall, but both later contracted COVID (Sinitsina with a reportedly “severe” case, affecting her lungs), and didn’t compete at Russian Nationals as a result.</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Hubbell/Donohue lost their national title last year, but regained it in January. (Neither one has contracted COVID, as far as I know).</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Step/Buk withdrew from Rostelecom Cup due to a COVID outbreak in their training location, then both contracted COVID themselves. They returned to training just before Russian Nationals, winning that event.</span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">So have all three continued to improve, or have the lingering effects of COVID barely allowed them to keep pace? At least 10 other previous competitors have returned looking to make a move in this pre-Olympic season, along with another 20 or so just looking to make the cut for finals (of 33 teams, only the top 20 move on beyond the rhythm dance). </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br /><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Speaking of the rhythm dance, most everyone planning to be at 2020 Worlds kept their RD once the ISU announced it would keep the requirements the same as last year (music from musicals and/or operettas). Some have kept their FD too, but not everyone: Step/Buk kept theirs, for instance, while Sin/Kat did not… Hub/Don left </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A Star is Born</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> behind for “Hallelujah,” while teammates Chock/Bates kept their</span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Egyptian Snake Dance</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> from 2019.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I'll try to keep track of who has made changes, and who hasn't... </span></span></p><div style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p></p>Kelli Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06009713326652591943noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1583562784288599702.post-57325702877128150262021-03-16T21:19:00.201-07:002021-03-20T08:22:16.009-07:00#SheaBaby: No Party, No Disco, A Little Fooling Around<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/2D/23/2D23382A-AC63-C094-83C3-5BEF9D6861C2/158538_2644-450x0.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="450" height="213" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/2D/23/2D23382A-AC63-C094-83C3-5BEF9D6861C2/158538_2644-450x0.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><br /><p></p><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-c46831ca-7fff-34c0-e728-84032b4673de"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I want a house with a crowded table</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And a place by the fire for everyone</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Let us take on the world while we're young and able</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And bring us back together when the day is done</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-d1577956-7fff-691f-41b9-a968b04d71ed" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 8.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Yes, finally we managed to decipher something serious!-- Shea Endgame</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Just when #Shea fans were wondering if they’d call </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">anything</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> correctly-- no thanks to ABC’s promotions department, which has deliberately exaggerated nearly every Shaun and Lea development from the “Lim” episode onward-- we finally got to be anything but shocked while the rest of TGD’s viewers felt their collective chins hit the floor at the end of “We’re All Crazy Sometimes.’ </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Yep, Lea Dilallo is pregnant!</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And we … and </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">they...</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">have so… many… QUESTIONS. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I’ve enlisted the help of YOU (by way of comments from readers on recent blog posts) to help me ask them, and speculate on answers. Let’s jump in--</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><br /></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">You can hold my hand</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">When you need to let go</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I can be your mountain</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">When you're feeling valley-low</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I can be your streetlight</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Showing you the way home</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If you can hold my hand</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">When you need to let go</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">How did this happen?</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj79UKTk4jy34IFoB-w928e29XmHLn4GqidEBZghxhPQQfRobNEWwdLLSjyoduu4050R8QZIstNVrfwEX26gWS-Yob_gLyCZk6XE5RIpLQJMbC2C7gt3vTXZ42juwEbMJSBN9oCZWmUs7Ue/s4608/IMG_20201202_131528.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj79UKTk4jy34IFoB-w928e29XmHLn4GqidEBZghxhPQQfRobNEWwdLLSjyoduu4050R8QZIstNVrfwEX26gWS-Yob_gLyCZk6XE5RIpLQJMbC2C7gt3vTXZ42juwEbMJSBN9oCZWmUs7Ue/w200-h150/IMG_20201202_131528.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">… and while I do NOT mean “how” in the literal sense, I should mention that someone on Twitter offered that the #Sheababy must’ve been conceived through excessive handholding<br /></span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">...because that’s the only sign of physical affection we’ve been privy to this season with any regularity…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">While Lord knows that’s accurate, and I’m amused at the thought of a very clueless young couple watching TGD and thinking </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">we’d better wear gloves when we hold hands from now on, </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">the real speculation on “how”... or “where... comes from filling in the blanks from recent episodes. Was it the (eventual) shower sex? The offscreen celebration of Lea’s birthday? The “ways to manage discomfort” that were referenced at the end of the “Irresponsible…” episode? (In which case maybe there’s a new reason to love/hate Dr D’Souza, depending on how you feel about this pregnancy…?)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But the real question I had on the list was </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">How did this happen when Shaun and Lea surely use a mode of contraception regularly? </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It’s not a total mystery of course; there’s a thing called <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pearl_Index " target="_blank">the Pearl Index</a> which delineates the failure rates of different forms of contraception </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">… if Lea was on the Pill, for instance, there’s a 9% failure rate to keep in mind. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Will any of this get a mention on the show? Maybe a line or two early on, but knowing our show, we may have to simply presume this was the first thing Shaun and Lea talked about once the shock of Lea’s announcement started to wear off. In any case, if it’s revealed that Lea forgot to take a pill or two at some point… I hope she doesn’t beat herself up for it, and I hope Shaun doesn’t get hung up on it for long. It appears they’ll have no time to dwell on that anyway.</span></span></p><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-7a2c6a5f-7fff-8ffb-6ab3-c19416cb915d" style="font-weight: normal;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">How are Shaun/Lea/Glassman going to take the news?</span></span></p><span style="font-size: 12pt; text-decoration-line: underline;"><div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; text-decoration-line: underline;"><br /></span></span></span></div><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-decoration-line: underline;"><span style="background-color: #112233; color: #aabbcc; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 8.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Having a child is a very big step even when it's wanted and planned. I can only immagine how scary it can be when you are forced to make such an important decision in a setting that's far from ideal.-- Daniela</span></p><span style="font-size: 12pt; text-decoration-line: underline;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/2B/E5/2BE5F00F-AF4D-8A18-BD57-375524A14C5B/158538_4867-0x300.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="240" height="200" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/2B/E5/2BE5F00F-AF4D-8A18-BD57-375524A14C5B/158538_4867-0x300.jpg" width="160" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br />I think we’ve got a pretty good idea of Lea’s take on things already-- once past the shock, and probably the denial (see her “two crazy days” from the last episode), she’s scared out of her wits. </span></span><p style="font-weight: 700;"></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; font-weight: 700;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">What about Glassman? As the de facto parental figure on the scene, we presume-- both from the snippets we’ve seen, and what we know of the man-- that he’s upset at first. (If </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Glassman</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> wails “How did this happen?” and Shaun launches into a literal explanation of the when-and-where, I may hit the floor laughing.) We know he’s going to give Shaun an earful of the it-changes-everything lecture, but after that--? I can’t imagine Glassy going any other way than to lean into the blessed event… and not just for Shaun and Lea’s sake.</span></span></p><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: underline;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-decoration-line: underline;"><span style="background-color: #112233; color: #aabbcc; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 8.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Andrews' words to Glassman (in the “Crazy” episode:</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-decoration-line: underline;"><span style="background-color: #112233; color: #aabbcc; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 8.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">"If you can talk this kid into risking his life, then I'm thinking you can talk anyone out of any fear."</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-decoration-line: underline;"><span style="background-color: #112233; color: #aabbcc; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 8.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">When I heard this, I automatically thought of Glassy reassuring Shaun and especially Lea about having a baby. He would probably say first that it's too soon, that Shaun hasn't finished his residency, etc. but he could end up somehow encouraging them.-- Syl</span></p><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: underline;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Andrews was also the one who (surprisingly?) brought up Glassman’s potential need for new purpose in his life during “Crazy”... many of you saw that as a lead-in to his eventual embracing of the Grandpa Glassy role, and I can’t help but agree. While it’s not clear yet when he and Lea will next share a scene together, I’d love it if we were witness to the first time he sees her after getting the news… and she crumpled into a ball of tears, dreading his judgment (no matter what inroads they’ve made this year)... and he found himself offering a reassuring hug, in spite of himself.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">We probably won’t get anything like that, but a girl can still dream.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/72/39/7239173F-9FF3-A032-B5F6-06BDB9B3C3CA/158538_2234-400x0.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="601" data-original-width="400" height="200" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/72/39/7239173F-9FF3-A032-B5F6-06BDB9B3C3CA/158538_2234-400x0.jpg" width="133" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">On to Shaun’s thoughts, fears, hopes, joys… just </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">what</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> is going through that guy’s mind in the last episode’s closing moments? His ASD makes it harder to tell, of course, but some of you still thought there was a glimmer of pride showing in his eyes. But as with nearly everything else that’s not medicine-related, he surely comes at this with considerable naivete. We know there was a line in season 2’s “Trampoline” that found him telling Claire </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">I think I could be a good father</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">… and we, as viewers, certainly don’t dispute that… but there’s a whirlwind of factors he must now take into consideration: careers, time, money, medical complications, his ASD, possibly the baby’s ASD (we’ll get back to that)... to say nothing of the full, legal commitment to each other that #Shea have not yet made).</span></span><p></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-da3993b9-7fff-af68-0b37-1809dacc370e"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Thinking of the shots we’ve seen of Shaun sitting in the living room in his pajamas, holding his toy scalpel (the go-to for calming his anxiety), it seems he’ll start to </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">get it</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> on some level with the next episode. Does that happen before or </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">after</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> Glassman’s reality check, I wonder? (Never mind… I think I know.)</span></span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">Will they decide to terminate the pregnancy?</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; font-size: 8.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">I doubt that they will choose not to have the baby, 1) Because the show primary flag is optimism, specially with its main character. Yes, he will face many obstacles but he will conquer in the end.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; font-size: 8.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">2)Because the conservative audience won't forgive the main couple aborting their own child without a strong reason behind it. (which still leads me to think that the pregnancy will come with difficulties)</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; font-size: 8.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">3)It will kill the show. Plain and simple.-- Shea Endgame</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">I agree with everything the wonderful women at Shea Endgame just said. And if you’ve heard the episode title for 4.14 is (unofficially as of this writing) “Gender Reveal,” you too might be at a point of concluding that this will be anything but a two or three-episode arc for Shaun and Lea. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">That doesn’t mean, though, that abortion will be crossed off Lea’s mental list of options straightaway. In the promos we’ve seen her talk about “making the right decision” alongside Claire, and write up a list with the following words on it (these are mostly fragments but it’s the best I could decipher): </span></p><br /><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">...Have a baby?</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">The world…</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">People</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">… of passing ASD, am I ok with that?</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Having children is good way for…</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">… natural with more established people</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Without launching into a tangent on an extremely sensitive subject (particularly in the U.S.), there are plenty of reasons Lea might initially think having an elective abortion. Without even getting into the ASD factor, there are matters of timing, of her physical health, of her mental health, of her career…</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">THEN comes the fact her partner is on the spectrum, which means their child could be as well. Without knowing another thing, that sentence alone could convince a neurotypical woman like Lea that she was incapable of handling the twosome as a threesome.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; font-size: 8.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">It's clear that Lea and Shaun will consider abortion for several reasons, but one of them possibly having a baby with ASD should be viewed as acceptable because someone thinking about their capabilities as a parent and their capacity to answer to a child's need is being responsible. I've read posts of people already blaming Lea, such as she wouldn't consider an abortion if Shaun hadn't ASD, or they vilify her for not wanting the baby because of the potential passing of ASD...It's so hypocritical. Some people don't realize how nerve-wracking it can be for some people to just imagine being responsible of a baby, even if they are in a good situation in their life.--Syl</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; font-size: 8.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Given my own experiences being on the spectrum, I was always in doubt if I would want to put children of my own through the same – or even worse, may have the offspring ASD or not. I know a mother with ASD whose 12-year old son was diagnosed with a personality disorder. The mother blames it on her condition for not being able to provide the emotional support her son needed. I know other examples of ASD causing problems in parenting from biographies.-- Andreas</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">I’m similar to few others who commented: a mom who had two relatively uneventful, full-term pregnancies that resulted in healthy kids with no known physical/mental issues. Therefore, while I don’t feel like I could’ve chosen an abortion… I also don’t feel I can judge other situations. I’ve closest I’ve witnessed in such a place was a lifelong friend of mine-- a doctor, though not one with ASD-- whose wife was several months along in her pregnancy when they learned the child would be born with severe birth defects. I don’t know what they were, but my doctor friend was painfully aware. He and his wife made the heartbreaking choice to abort… and a few years later, adopted a pair of fraternal twins from Ukraine. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Life definitely takes us places at times that we never thought we’d go. But what about Shaun and Lea-- what will they choose? And if that’s a bygone conclusion, how will they choose it? We all saw a shot in the promo of the two of them in some kind of waiting room, holding hands (again), Lea’s face tight and anxious. Many of us have tried to zoom in on those pamphlets alongside them, scanning for clues much as we did on Lea’s pro/con list. </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Abortion clinic? </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">We wonder. </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Or regular OB-GYN office</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">? </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Whether or not you’re still wringing your hands about that possibility, let me throw one more log on that fire and ask: </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">What if it’s a regular OB-GYN office, but the show itself doesn’t indicate that clearly until the last minute?</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">I’m trying to prepare for that possibility, although it feels like an unnecessary extra twist of manipulation at this point. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>If we want a garden</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>We're gonna have to sow the seed</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>Plant a little happiness</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>Let the roots run deep</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>If it's love that we give</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>Then it's love that we reap</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>If we want a garden</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>We're gonna have to sow the seed</i></span></p><i><br /></i><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>Yeah I want a house with a crowded table...</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><i><br /></i></span></p></span></span></span></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></span></span></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">What is the role that ASD plays in all of this? </span></p><div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></span></span></span></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; color: #aabbcc; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 8.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">if passing the ASD to the child is on Lea’s list, it is likely that the possibility will be discussed, which might mean that the episode could re-visit Lea’s initial hesitation in 3.16/3.17. Is she willing the risk that the child might more heavily affected by ASD than Shaun? Of all children diagnosed with ASD, 10-15% remain nonverbal for their whole life, ca. 40% have an intellectual disability (ID).</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; color: #aabbcc; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 8.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Individuals with ASD and ID may never be able to live independently from their parents or will have to be referred to group home.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; color: #aabbcc; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 8.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">These are real concerns and while I don’t expect the show to discuss it in depth, some of it should be mentioned.- Andreas </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Call it the baby elephant in the room wherever this pregnancy gets discussed in the “Teeny Blue Eyes” episode... something that would likely have been discussed in depth already, if Shaun and Lea were married (or at least another year or so into the relationship). But here they are, tossed into the deep end with little to hang onto but each other as they figure out what they want, and what they want to be capable of.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/C9/F0/C9F05AD3-41E3-FF04-C6A7-9C7E4DCDAD4F/158538_2158-900x0.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="534" data-original-width="800" height="134" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/C9/F0/C9F05AD3-41E3-FF04-C6A7-9C7E4DCDAD4F/158538_2158-900x0.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">The biggest catch with the question at hand-- </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">What are the chances their child could have ASD?-- </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">is that it’s difficult to answer. The number of people with ASD who marry at all, let alone have any children, is generally unknown… with many not even knowing they’re “on the spectrum” until getting diagnosed in their 20s or 30s (perhaps after having a child with ASD). So to try and narrow the selection pool even further, to determine the odds with an ASD/NT couple, seems an exercise in futility. </span><p></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Still, with genetics being a known factor in ASD, there’s a larger chance than the 1-in-54 possibility amongst the general population (according to the CDC). And boys are 2-3 times more likely to have it than girls, though Andreas tells me girls have a higher risk of ASD going undiagnosed. (This is why I predict that if it goes to term, Shaun and Lea will have a boy. And if it’s named anything other than "Steve" I think we’ll all be shocked.)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Anyway, I presume some of this info will turn up in “Teeny Blue Eyes” through Lea’s conversation with Claire, or Shaun’s conversation with Glassy, or while Shaun and Lea are sitting together with their notes. Will they bring up the tough facts about autism as Andreas did above-- the nonverbal possibilities, the percentage of intellectual disabilities, the lifelong dependence on family that many face? It might be enough to remind the audience, and Lea, that it’s called a “spectrum” for a reason and Shaun-- with his savant syndrome-- represents a scant 10 percent of those with autism.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://tse2.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.kGYg4N42qz_2b1jbyNrGwgAAAA&pid=Api" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="233" data-original-width="415" height="112" src="https://tse2.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.kGYg4N42qz_2b1jbyNrGwgAAAA&pid=Api" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br />A very interesting anomaly of a story within the whole ASD/NT + kids issue comes via comedian Amy Schumer. She is married to a professional chef named Chris Fischer, who has ASD. (For what it's worth, I watched them interact together last year when they brought </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Amy Schumer Learns to Cook </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">to the Food Network; Chris is decidedly more subdued than Schumer, but is a great fit for her and I would not have recognized him to have ASD if I hadn’t read about it in advance.) They have already had a child together-- a boy, named Gene-- and when asked about “how she copes” with the possibility of him having ASD, she gave a very thoughtful, loving, interesting reply. (<a href="https://people.com/parents/amy-schumer-son-gene-autism-comment-husband-chris-fischer/ " target="_blank">Check it out here</a>.)</span><p></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; color: #aabbcc; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 8.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">I'm very hopeful that Teeny Blue Eyes will be a great episode. I adore Mark Rozeman's writing, he can be really poetic and, having ASD himself, he surely knows what he's talking about.-- Daniela</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">However TGD chooses to present it, the ASD question is A LOT to process. And if you’re Lea, filled with self-doubt in general, gobsmacked with the thought of having ANY baby-- let alone one with these kinds of challenges-- </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">overwhelmed</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> doesn’t even seem to scratch the surface of what she must feel initially. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">I doubt that will be enough to make Lea-loathers understand how she could even </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">consider</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"> abortion, but it’s raw and real and valid to me.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">(I still don’t think it’ll be discussed beyond the coming episode, though… not unless they come to a point in the pregnancy when something drastic has to be done. More on that in a bit. BUT FIRST…)</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></p></span></span></span></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></span></span></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline;">Assuming they decide to go through with it… why is Shaun feeling disconnected already in the next episode?</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; color: #aabbcc; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 8.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">From what I can see, the description of a future episode of The Good Doctor entitled "Spilled Milk" has created quite a buzz amongst lovers of the show. I, for one, would be surprised if Shaun did not feel disconnected from Lea at this point, though I do not automatically assume that it is because of a traumatic event surrounding Lea's pregnancy. David Shore promises us an honest exploration of all aspects of Shaun's story, and at least as far as I am concerned, he has not disappointed yet.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; color: #aabbcc; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 8.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; color: #aabbcc; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 8.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">We have seen in past episodes Shaun's despondent reactions to feelings of disconnection. A good example would be Shaun's visit to Dr. Glassman's office in the "Fractured" episode, after he told Carly of his interaction with Lea in Wyoming. Carly's request for some time alone to process what he had told her sent Shaun into a tailspin, and his fears came tumbling out.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; color: #aabbcc; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 8.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">...surely he would view Lea's need to process her feelings, probably in some time alone, as much more threatening, considering his deeply felt love for her.-- Barbara</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Something I wonder if even Lea is thinking of yet is the question of how Shaun’s ASD will affect him as a parent. Not that any of us doubt that he’ll do everything in his power to be the best dad he can be… BUT…</span></p><br /><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">How will his extreme sensitivities to sound (read: LOUD, CRYING BABY) impact his ability to help out in the early days?</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">How will his difficulties with communication affect his ability to bond with his child? </span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">How will he find a way to impart his knowledge (about child development, medical issues, etc.) in a way that doesn’t make an already hypersensitive Lea feel even worse about her abilities as a mother?</span></p></li></ul><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Those are just a few “what if”s off the top of my head. And I’m not even counting the fact that Shaun’s demanding work hours will compound matters considerably. (Cue Glassy and Debbie to create a strong support system STAT!)</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Before Lea can think of all this… before any of us should… there’s a gestation period to get through. And it appears the “getting through” part will get more difficult right on time, with episode 4.13 “Spilled Milk.” </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Why “right on time”? Because even the easiest pregnancies are anything but smooth sailing. Here’s what springs to my own memory:</span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Constant nausea for 4-6 weeks, depending on the child</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Fatigue</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Body changes (some more obvious/expected than others)</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Mood swings</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Dizzy spells</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Back pain</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Swollen feet</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A WIDE variety of cravings (once the nausea went away)</span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Heartburn and other digestive issues</span></p></li></ul><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Sounds like a party, right? </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">So if you assume Lea to be experiencing even two or three of these things by the time of the “Spilled Milk” episode-- and we know nausea is already on the list, and suspect a certain amount of moodiness-- Shaun’s likely to feel a disconnect simply because these are things he can neither go through with her, nor do much to alleviate. Though I imagine he’ll try-- I picture him coming through the door with nausea lollipops and heating pads as soon as she even mentions pain or discomfort-- bridging that gap won’t be easy. </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">But remember-- it’s a gap, not a chasm. </span></p><i><br /></i><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>The door is always open</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Your picture's on my wall</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Everyone's a little broken</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>But everyone belongs</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><i><span id="docs-internal-guid-0a878cf8-7fff-5a9e-ca22-cb0260d0faf2"></span></i></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>Yeah everyone belongs</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Where will things go from here? </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/4D/BF/4DBF1E8C-8181-18F0-1144-D81960D8A1E0/158538_2388-450x0.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="450" height="213" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/4D/BF/4DBF1E8C-8181-18F0-1144-D81960D8A1E0/158538_2388-450x0.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-17648156-7fff-9834-56ba-6ea9d6754a83" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-color: #112233; color: #aabbcc; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 8.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Whatever comes--and there's actually a lot they could do with a pregnancy, and not because they can't think of anything else. From a storytelling standpoint, from a dramatic standpoint, there are several beats they can play.-- Amy D.</span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-color: #112233; color: #aabbcc; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 8.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-449945f5-7fff-2848-265b-ecc581a2243a" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-color: #112233; color: #aabbcc; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 8.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">The question now is how the story will develop past the scares and the possibility of termination in “Teeny Blue Eyes”. There are a lot of factors to consider: Glassman’s level of support, Lea’s skeptical parents. Even Shaun’s mother might re-enter the picture as some fellow shipper reminded me on Reddit.-- Andreas</span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We’ve been waiting to see where things shake out with the original residents as they head into the final year; to that end: pay attention to the case of the week (the only one, it appears) in "Teeny Blue Eyes": </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: #f2f2f2; color: black; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">When a renowned surgeon comes to St. Bonaventure for treatment, the team’s enthusiasm is quickly overshadowed by the doctor’s behavior. After studying his case, Dr. Shaun Murphy sees a pattern he recognizes. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">To me, it sounds like the “renowned surgeon” has some form of ASD himself… either undiagnosed, or simply “hidden” throughout the surgeon’s career under the guise of being odd, rude, eccentric, etc. If I’m right about that, maybe Shaun’s encounters with him will cause Shaun to think harder about his own future as a surgeon alongside the news of impending fatherhood. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">maybe</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> that will lead to impacting Shaun’s place in that all-important 5th year of residency looming on the horizon.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(But don’t quote me; I’m as unsure where they’re going with that as you are.)</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-aa95ecfb-7fff-1255-99ba-5de3076e8c3d"><span style="background-color: #112233; color: #aabbcc; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 8.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">To have a child is an adventure and a challenge (more over if it is unexpected) for a neurological couple so I can't begin to understand what would be in this case… You might see the baby as an enemy coming to debunk your life and at the same time you feel like you can't do it. Because you barely can co exist with yourself sometimes. Yes, I know exactly how all of these feels and I'm waiting for the show to express it honestly. -- Shea Endgame</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/54/AE/54AE583A-C423-D903-8315-2436B0EA70E4/158538_4681-0x300.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="200" height="200" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/54/AE/54AE583A-C423-D903-8315-2436B0EA70E4/158538_4681-0x300.jpg" width="133" /></a></div><br />As for Lea, the recently-proven Superwoman of St. B’s IT department… Will that feat be the pinnacle of her career now that she’s coding for two? I certainly hope not, if only because TV NEEDS women thriving in male-dominated fields such as tech. It will require Lea to change and adapt of course, and if #Sheababy does indeed have ASD, I suppose there will be re-evaluations across the board (perhaps with both their careers). <p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">All the adaptation conversation, though, is contingent on Lea carrying the baby to term… and let’s face it, there’s a lot that can happen (and probably WILL happen-- it’s a </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">medical drama, </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">after all</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">)</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> along the way...</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-cfcb0081-7fff-6716-4ba9-6c20c838f8f6"><span style="background-color: #112233; color: #aabbcc; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 8.5pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">As we've said in various past posts, the writers have been visibly building up this pregnancy for some time, notably with all the pregnant patients they have had in 10 episodes, and with all the scenes/moments/talks dedicated to parenthood and family, it would be surprising that there is not a baby in the end. But we never know with Shore, I doubt he would pull the miscarriage card, but he could have the baby have a medical issue; I would be ok with that only if it doesn't force Lea to terminate the pregnancy. It would be especially awful to imagine that Lea and Shaun would lose the baby after having embraced the idea of having a baby and started to love it.-- Syl</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Much depends on how they accelerate the pregnancy (if at all). In real-time, Lea would be due in the fall. But as we know from previous discussions of TGD’s space/time continuum, that due date of Lea’s doesn’t mean all that much. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">On my list of “maybes”... </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Miscarriage,</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> which would be something to happen relatively early… maybe by episode 16 or 17 of S4? (With Shaun and Lea recovering from it, and re-connecting, in the remainder of the season)</span></p></li></ul><div><br /></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">high-risk pregnancy</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> for Lea, and/or...</span></p></li></ul><div><br /></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">situation putting Lea’s life in jeopardy</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, requiring an abortion after all</span></p></li></ul><div><br /></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">medical issue involving the baby </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">while still in utero</span></p></li></ul><div><br /></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">stillborn delivery</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (meaning the child is born without any signs of life) could happen anytime from 20 weeks onward… and could bring more intense emotions/grief than a miscarriage because they’d have had more time to love the baby, as Syl mentioned above, as well as more time to acclimate to the idea of being parents</span></p></li></ul><div><br /></div><ul style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">On the other hand, a </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">premature delivery</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> could conceivably happen at the end of S4 and would bode well for the baby IF Lea was at least 28 weeks along. (28 weeks, as I understand it, is the point at which the survival rate/complications rate tips in baby’s favor). As complications go, this one’s probably my favorite… and not just because the baby gets to LIVE! Imagine Shaun needing to reach into an incubator and simply touch his preemie child as a way to help bond with it… that would be an incredibly powerful moment, given his own lifelong aversion to touch.</span></p></li></ul><div><br /></div><div>Can Shaun and Lea weather whatever's to come?</div><div><br /></div><div>I think the bigger question is... can WE?</div><div><i style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: 700;"><br /></i></div><div><i style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: 700;"><br /></i></div><div><i style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: 700;">I want a house with a crowded table</i></div><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-c8394261-7fff-9917-a79c-df722d713ee2"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>And a place by the fire for everyone</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>Let us take on the world while we're young and able</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>And bring us back together when the day is done</i></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>And bring us back together when the day is done</i></span></p><div><br /></div><div>(Friendly reminder that the comments section is now open for your hopes, fears, best guesses, and of course... pregnancy stories.)</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/08/0A/080AF502-4FF3-7B87-0413-CCE50D273BFA/158538_2694-450x0.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="450" height="213" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/08/0A/080AF502-4FF3-7B87-0413-CCE50D273BFA/158538_2694-450x0.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div></span></div></span></span></span></span></div></span></div>Kelli Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06009713326652591943noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1583562784288599702.post-26491209723901756042021-03-13T11:32:00.003-08:002021-09-17T16:54:27.057-07:00State of the #SHEA Part 30: ...And One More (Striped Tomato Joyride) For the Road ("We're All Crazy Sometimes")<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZwGHKsPG-cVEE7uc-S2T5hmy41eGR2QKgF0vmX4u2kuUXct7fZ_KEi4cNzFg5wu7RPiKg1W3WHSi7nZ3k4Czvzn8pGCEgpMvEcxzidJZeEqbbZieNHjME9kmT7dj46ha7F0Go0pSCAFQ9/s4608/IMG_20210310_222556.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZwGHKsPG-cVEE7uc-S2T5hmy41eGR2QKgF0vmX4u2kuUXct7fZ_KEi4cNzFg5wu7RPiKg1W3WHSi7nZ3k4Czvzn8pGCEgpMvEcxzidJZeEqbbZieNHjME9kmT7dj46ha7F0Go0pSCAFQ9/w200-h150/IMG_20210310_222556.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div><br /> <span id="docs-internal-guid-f5fa3971-7fff-f0f6-8e5e-42e7ac08d352"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">A quick story for you.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">When I was a little kiddo in the 70s, I often tried to hang out with my dad in the evenings as he watched TV. I say “try” because my dad was a big guy with an unusually deep voice who didn’t communicate particularly well, so whenever he </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">did</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> speak it often sounded like you had unwittingly angered him somehow… making “hanging out” a challenge, to say the least. Intimidating? Most definitely. But he was also very smart, and had a bone-dry sense of humor that intrigued me even at an early age. </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">So I’d sit in our TV room with him, with </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Police Story </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">or </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Cannon</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> or </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Rockford Files </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">on the screen, and try-- usually in vain-- to follow the details of a detective/crime show that was way, WAY over my elementary school head. If I needed something explained to me-- something that had already happened in the episode, that is-- Dad would usually give it a shot (probably knowing I’d keep asking variations of the question until he did so). But other times, I’d get anxious about a storyline’s outcome and look to Dad for some straight-up fortune telling. “What’s gonna happen to that guy, Dad?” I’d beg to know.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“Who’s the lady in the fur coat?”</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“Why did that building blow up?”</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And without fail (also without any indication that he was kidding), Dad’s response was “I don’t know, Kel. I didn’t write </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">this </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">one.”</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">To be clear, Dad didn’t write ANY of them-- he worked at Sears Tower in downtown Chicago (you may know it now as Willis Tower; it will forever by “Sears Tower” to me), he took the “L” to work Monday through Friday, and while he was an excellent writer, I don’t think he got to use that particular gift very much down there. </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">But over time, I think I’d ask him the unanswerable plot question just to hear him drop that one-liner. Whether he secretly liked to imagine himself a screenwriter, or not-so-secretly liked to monkey with my gullible head-- or maybe both-- it felt like our “thing,” one of our few weird little connections in the world. </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I tell you this now for two reasons: </span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ol style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">While every #Shea fan who got on the baby bandwagon ahead of last week’s “Crazy” episode has been giving mental high-fives and simultaneous sighs of relief that they FINALLY made an accurate prediction… and they’re actually very excited about this particular development for a change!... many are now sweating out the details via the promotional material we have thus far. My advice-- which is essentially </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">please don’t sweat anything out yet; we just got here! Let’s enjoy the moment and all the wonder that goes with it!-- </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">is going to fall on a lot of deaf ears. I know this. </span></span></p></li></ol><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">So if you ask me on Twitter (or the blog comments, or the FB page) about Shaun and Lea’s decision in the </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Teeny Blue Eyes</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> episode... and I answer </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sorry… I didn’t write </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">that</span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> one… </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">please know it’s more about the lack of information that we ALL have right now, and less about me being a wiseass. OK, maybe only a little less.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(It may also be because I’m trying to give you new things to read and think about in the next blog post. But you knew that, right?)</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><ol start="2" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: decimal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I also shared that story about my dad in an effort to segue between his 70s cop shows of choice, and a certain cop show from the same era that resonates with Shaun and Lea.</span></span></p></li></ol><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I will say just this one thing about #BabyShea’s future for now: I sincerely hope that the Striped Tomato continues to play a role in Shaun and Lea’s world, no matter what kind of ultra-safe family vehicle they end up purchasing.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: large;">🍏🏎<span style="font-family: Arial; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎</span>🍏🏎🍏🏎🍏🏎🍏🏎</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://static3.cbrimages.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/starsky-and-hutch-header.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="800" height="160" src="https://static3.cbrimages.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/starsky-and-hutch-header.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">IN AN EARLIER LIFE… </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Striped Tomato was the nickname given to the 2-door 1976 Ford Gran Torino frequently driven by detectives Starsky and Hutch in the ABC action drama of the same name; the TV series debuted in late April 1975 and stayed on the air until 1979. (Fun fact: from what I’m reading, the nickname came not from a line in the show itself, but from a comment made by Paul Michael Glaser (Starsky) on the DVD commentary many years later.)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-59ac9a78-7fff-f7c1-8c8d-ee96c0645da0"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://tse2.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.0Bdnr47X3rV4jIV_2uITpAAAAA&pid=Api" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="197" data-original-width="350" src="https://tse2.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.0Bdnr47X3rV4jIV_2uITpAAAAA&pid=Api" /></span></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">ON </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">THE GOOD DOCTOR</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">… </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lea’s version of TST debuted during the “Islands, Part 1” episode in S1… in other words, shortly before Lea headed back to Hershey, PA, and off the show for the remainder of the season. We actually saw Lea behind the wheel of a completely different (and much more contemporary) car during her second appearance on TGD (1.4 “Pipes”); while she explained to Shaun during “Islands” that this second car of hers was actually a gift from her late, beloved Grandpa Rod, nothing more was seen or heard about car #1 once TST joined the show. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">What does The Striped Tomato symbolize for Shaun and Lea?</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-28ec2058-7fff-6339-0f1d-3ee6be75c8f1" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Escapism--</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> when Lea unveiled it with a flourish in “Islands” (she had the vehicle under wraps in their parking garage), TST (and its owner) served as the vessel to take Shaun away from the pressure-cooker of a relationship he had at the time with Dr. Glassman.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A shared interest-- </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun was familiar enough with </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Starsky and Hutch</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> to recognize the car and call it by its nickname; this simple fact endeared him just a little more to Lea at the time. “Grandpa Rod would have loved you,” she marveled.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Fate-- </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sure, Shaun and Lea were probably destined to fall in love… but if Shaun hadn’t lost control of TST while learning to burn rubber, it never would have hit that rock/needed repair/derailed their road trip. And maybe, just maybe, that first tequila-and-karaoke fueled kiss wouldn’t have happened! Perish the thought!</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://tse4.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.EuSHj-6OwIjUBD1Rwqfm8gHaEL&pid=Api" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="267" data-original-width="474" height="113" src="https://tse4.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.EuSHj-6OwIjUBD1Rwqfm8gHaEL&pid=Api" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Independence-- </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">When Lea first handed her TST keys to Shaun and let him get behind the wheel (during “Islands”), she allowed him to realize a dream that Dr. Glassman had kept at bay, and furthermore she did it when his relationship with Glassman was at a very vulnerable point. She didn’t know all the details of that at the time, of course. But come season two, after she’d left and come back and struggled to mend her friendship with Shaun, then struggled with the decision to become roommates, then struggled with actually being roommates… </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">then</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> they got back to the business of Shaun learning to drive. And ironically, this new skillset of Shaun’s proved especially useful when Dr. Glassman lost some of his own independence (forfeting his license when his battle with cancer kept him from driving). </span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Incidentally, we didn’t hear much about Shaun actually getting his license (or driving) after all that. I’ve often wondered if the show was hesitant to fully endorse a character like Shaun as a licensed driver… but maybe a better argument can be made for the fact that Shaun’s either at the hospital or at home 98% of the time. They don’t need to show him driving, so they don’t.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A way to help Glassman at his lowest-- </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The last time we </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">did</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> see him drive, aside from the little race at Lea’s former workplace in 2.12 “Aftermath”, was when Shaun and Lea took an extremely reluctant (but eventually grateful) Glassman to a chemo appointment. Much of S2 dealt with Glassman’s cancer diagnosis, and when Shaun convinced (??) Glassy to give up his driver’s license because of memory deficiencies that were beginning to creep in… that’s when the Striped Tomato leaped into action again. Not just in the scene I mentioned above, but when Lea found herself driving Glassman around during the “Quarantine” 2-parter (Shaun was, for obvious reasons, stuck at the hospital). Consequentially, she was the one there with him when he initially thought his tumor had returned.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3GiJTK42xKC3SnQw5sQ11-p9eavQpRuUoAvoO6g0GTtUh5DpvDlR9Y_tzu-BkbhqQFenCB1CLPzM1nrLu26V6SwMJcj6T57osn22uuWwiugvduJH628f_CwQBrZLjKIXAGL4KfNzhzS1L/s3264/20200310_225449%25280%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2448" data-original-width="3264" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3GiJTK42xKC3SnQw5sQ11-p9eavQpRuUoAvoO6g0GTtUh5DpvDlR9Y_tzu-BkbhqQFenCB1CLPzM1nrLu26V6SwMJcj6T57osn22uuWwiugvduJH628f_CwQBrZLjKIXAGL4KfNzhzS1L/w200-h150/20200310_225449%25280%2529.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div><br /><b><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Their own relationship at its lowest (to date, and we hope never again)-- </span></b><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It wasn’t by happenstance that the writers chose to have an alcohol-impaired Shaun standing alongside TST around one year ago, baseball bat in hand, poised to destroy it as a horrified Lea looked on. For all the reasons I just listed (plus the understanding of how much Lea </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">cherishes</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> this car), it was the only scenario that could truly illustrate how badly things had deteriorated between them. As we said at the time-- if he’d gone through with it, I doubt that even the circumstances of the earthquake to come would have healed them. But the bat crashed down onto the pavement instead, Shaun blurted “I can’t,” and the rest is history.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: large;">🍏🏎<span style="font-family: Arial; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎</span>🍏🏎🍏🏎🍏🏎🍏🏎</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">There was of course a more practical, real-life reason to keep TST in one piece… TGD saw a future for it! I’ve previously shared pictures here that blog reader Pamela (a Vancouver native) took while paying a visit to the park where Shaun and Lea’s “date night” happened last fall… here are some photos she shared from outside the Connaught apartments, where they likely shot both Lea’s flat tire scene from “Decrypt” and the opening tow-truck scene from “We’re All Crazy Sometimes” on the same day.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-99a8d08e-7fff-8a15-9496-9a032f07c008" style="font-weight: normal;"></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-99a8d08e-7fff-8a15-9496-9a032f07c008" style="font-weight: normal;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4FRDkJ4lVtFTMSkLGW8CzkYPYsBprXfWnLb9rZpbsBIUPDzn9iBcypDVCdfwYbxW6p6vOvVFsy6NUhaLXQiazwZJykIx1DFOWrXMIYo1FA0wp6wVV0PQlSOVV-S4oDNTxlx-k8t92lMOa/s2048/GT+1+3+13+21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4FRDkJ4lVtFTMSkLGW8CzkYPYsBprXfWnLb9rZpbsBIUPDzn9iBcypDVCdfwYbxW6p6vOvVFsy6NUhaLXQiazwZJykIx1DFOWrXMIYo1FA0wp6wVV0PQlSOVV-S4oDNTxlx-k8t92lMOa/w150-h200/GT+1+3+13+21.jpg" width="150" /></a></b></div><b id="docs-internal-guid-99a8d08e-7fff-8a15-9496-9a032f07c008" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCcGHeyMp3dxVTvXMNyJ_05EP-daZ5M9JthNBxnOhnMs8Rmn2WeE8BI3Sv9FvgY2nRE_yMKehzfBy5Gv1ELZneM27DD2m1d_83WgHJe1K9QbWY_UZk0EfJT-W2499llyaDn-ECB7UvpFXU/s2048/GT+2+3+13+21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCcGHeyMp3dxVTvXMNyJ_05EP-daZ5M9JthNBxnOhnMs8Rmn2WeE8BI3Sv9FvgY2nRE_yMKehzfBy5Gv1ELZneM27DD2m1d_83WgHJe1K9QbWY_UZk0EfJT-W2499llyaDn-ECB7UvpFXU/w150-h200/GT+2+3+13+21.jpg" width="150" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7el_AXW2WQy8xKglaespWhFuSF4OVZfgY8SOOPwCfRbe8khrMYXd-hxAwpeM11kUbJ6C36f0PkHX4mLTcb3LRXpRB8DCE08hRW4xDh-2N1l23D_uPQiuwr9Es4xPj3pKCqP4PdVvhnH7S/s2048/GT+3+3+13+21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7el_AXW2WQy8xKglaespWhFuSF4OVZfgY8SOOPwCfRbe8khrMYXd-hxAwpeM11kUbJ6C36f0PkHX4mLTcb3LRXpRB8DCE08hRW4xDh-2N1l23D_uPQiuwr9Es4xPj3pKCqP4PdVvhnH7S/w150-h200/GT+3+3+13+21.jpg" width="150" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpsK8UR3j104IW7-YvBi9TrPX-rpeib1BhTwloN0dDHFXIWN28qcX30LZS_FeRb7PDwv983i_s82H2AMjDhWr2Isfjo-Yeddhz-m2cWLq4uy2oEV8AA2weosXspQykfrWTMtP4YVmXi_cy/s2048/GT+4+3+13+21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpsK8UR3j104IW7-YvBi9TrPX-rpeib1BhTwloN0dDHFXIWN28qcX30LZS_FeRb7PDwv983i_s82H2AMjDhWr2Isfjo-Yeddhz-m2cWLq4uy2oEV8AA2weosXspQykfrWTMtP4YVmXi_cy/w200-h150/GT+4+3+13+21.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></p></b><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“I only got to the set after the shooting was done but still
got to see the crew packing up, including the car and tow truck being loaded
onto the big transport truck,” Pamela explains. “I did see the other Gran
Torino that had California plates… <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><o:p> </o:p>“One of the crew told us bystanders that one of the versions
of the GT was the original <i>Starsky and Hutch</i> one (see the photo of car
with door open and autograph in the door).”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">It’s no wonder that they handle this classic/these classics
with such care… check out <a href="https://classics.autotrader.com/classic-cars/1976/ford/gran_torino/101128155 " target="_blank">this Autotrader.com link </a>to see more about TST’s
value!</span><o:p></o:p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: large;">🍏🏎<span style="font-family: Arial; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎</span>🍏🏎🍏🏎🍏🏎🍏🏎</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>And now… BACK TO THE “CRAZY” EPISODE</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-323e84aa-7fff-101a-3030-1f1da8b84e3d" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Will Shaun and Lea’s recovery of TST prove to be their last great adventure as a relatively carefree twosome? </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">It certainly felt like the culmination of all the Shaun-and-Lea-functioning-as-a-unit situations we’ve witnessed thus far in S4:</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Having to be physically distant for months (due to TGD’s version of COVID)</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">ASD/NT communications 101 (Shaun overshares with “total honesty”-- in front of the Newbies-- to a point that’s hurtful and embarrassing to Lea)</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The decision for Lea to move back into the loft (arguably Lea did much of the heavy lifting on this decision, and without outside input…)</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The perfect “date night” that had to be scrapped due to Shaun’s work needs</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Shaun losing a patient</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Lea revealing that she’d been married, which prompted Shaun’s worries about their relationship drifting off course and ending “in disaster” (and prompted the addition of a cowbell to their home)</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Lea’s judgmental and short-sighted parents, who triggered significant anxiety in Lea when they came to visit</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Glassman’s lingering issues with both Lea, and Shaun/Lea as a couple</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Shaun’s fears of being attracted to another woman</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Lea’s need to feel respected by Shaun in terms of her career/line of work</span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Which brings us to “We’re All Crazy Sometimes,” which I’m just going to look at scene by scene.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">ACT I</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">With Shaun and Lea discussing Lea’s heroic efforts of “Decrypt” as they left the apartment together, it would stand to reason that very little time has passed since then (or at least since the poker game we saw at the very end… maybe a week, assuming the poker game was the following weekend). So for those trying to make a baby timeline (!!!), take note of this… and also that this episode was originally slated to air on March 1st in the U.S.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUA8FaqBp6XSsUpe6iY0HtMT-uIUPchemTk1RD_qb3NFjP-dYO2AJImjf3P0cOjnjS9vjI3OcnfpwzinrjIpZra5SADXGtWNBFB6fNlLlTGyyOQhmVSCPELwItRn3ARLinhUea_S_0KMMK/s4608/IMG_20210310_221024.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUA8FaqBp6XSsUpe6iY0HtMT-uIUPchemTk1RD_qb3NFjP-dYO2AJImjf3P0cOjnjS9vjI3OcnfpwzinrjIpZra5SADXGtWNBFB6fNlLlTGyyOQhmVSCPELwItRn3ARLinhUea_S_0KMMK/w200-h150/IMG_20210310_221024.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Anyway, I took note of this too: when Shaun told Lea he’d talk<br /> to Glassman about getting her a raise (for said heroic effort), she was in the middle of shutting that down with an I-can-handle-my-own-business-thank-you-very-<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinBOfIxu8dXFExgZ-3yx7jR04uqtxxP1s3OCmCW9WeUv80s2JSd0LtE072ILld0e9lsFGDuhV5NKO6RgcxdwhTKddbnCIAl-BZfSep1ZIMLIK_hun-sajMU2doXLADhctvHpnlRa4XNmFh/s4608/IMG_20210310_221046.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinBOfIxu8dXFExgZ-3yx7jR04uqtxxP1s3OCmCW9WeUv80s2JSd0LtE072ILld0e9lsFGDuhV5NKO6RgcxdwhTKddbnCIAl-BZfSep1ZIMLIK_hun-sajMU2doXLADhctvHpnlRa4XNmFh/w200-h150/IMG_20210310_221046.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br />much when Tricky McMullet snagged her attention with his big mean tow truck hooked into the beloved Striped Tomato. Foreshadowing for the “my body, my choice” discussion to come? Eh, maybe. But I don’t think Shaun would have offered to try and help her<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_d48a6DeAUtYP7697MBmFP4t4EPOfWe5sQzMQZduMVLWqRi_Fj5wnbilywtiuIwIs5ynJbDY7ohRus-m9YTjg97ninxRUNqzmXOz2tM8zjtAxI7hvQ_9rjXgq5Cyp1MtB3t0YlhQpFsyo/s4608/IMG_20210310_221119.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_d48a6DeAUtYP7697MBmFP4t4EPOfWe5sQzMQZduMVLWqRi_Fj5wnbilywtiuIwIs5ynJbDY7ohRus-m9YTjg97ninxRUNqzmXOz2tM8zjtAxI7hvQ_9rjXgq5Cyp1MtB3t0YlhQpFsyo/w200-h150/IMG_20210310_221119.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /> with the raise if not for his relationship with Glassman… in other words, he had a comfort level there. I don’t anticipate him trying to overtake the decision about Baby Shea. (Stating his wishes, yes. Overtake, no. There’s a difference.)</span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(And BTW… yes, I’m totally making up Tricky’s last name. As if his first name was legit! Heh.)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-3e141e88-7fff-d935-738c-f360f94ddac6"></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">A bit of by-the-book Shaun and Lea conflict ensued once they got to the car; Lea with her white lie about the parking spot, Shaun outing her practically before the sentence even landed. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">ACT II</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In a scene that was a little reminiscent of the time we were first introduced to Lea’s office (“Newbies”), Shaun came in annoyed by Lea’s seeming lack of punctuality. But the looks Lea shot his way-- and more importantly, didn’t shoot at all-- sent him into a remedial course in </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">the importance of supporting your loved one, even if you’re not sure they are in the right.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_QfDCw0bKq9iSRbd7vTBv7tAdxmHrIf4uUXAvPZncEibHCznCCSnzsSJVQkXGr2CS4-6GtapP0ugXGAqf775X_RJuaE09S8j1V-sUtnVnUSSmGR4kVJiCItA18_i8vqWsWWs_Wph4Rj54/s4608/IMG_20210310_221557.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_QfDCw0bKq9iSRbd7vTBv7tAdxmHrIf4uUXAvPZncEibHCznCCSnzsSJVQkXGr2CS4-6GtapP0ugXGAqf775X_RJuaE09S8j1V-sUtnVnUSSmGR4kVJiCItA18_i8vqWsWWs_Wph4Rj54/w200-h150/IMG_20210310_221557.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br />Lea was apparently using her lunch break to do her research on Tricky’s complaints, and while that in itself <span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">might</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> indicate she was spending a little more time on the problem than necessary (I don’t happen to think so; seemed like a very Lea thing <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUxxZ1cYx86iAn4StU8oUiQR1hVGIs4sB3R0hdouEcgRMCtdNcWfAs_zE42TO3lt4hW76NUNXmu33pptt-hjtmnaXMJ8yzGRrEf_329O9ps9ClxTbiIUMiazvwIX6AgVDFdennuCXQs3cK/s4608/IMG_20210310_221607.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUxxZ1cYx86iAn4StU8oUiQR1hVGIs4sB3R0hdouEcgRMCtdNcWfAs_zE42TO3lt4hW76NUNXmu33pptt-hjtmnaXMJ8yzGRrEf_329O9ps9ClxTbiIUMiazvwIX6AgVDFdennuCXQs3cK/w200-h150/IMG_20210310_221607.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br />to do)... and “ghosting” Shaun for lunch effectively drew him to her office, allowing her to </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: line-through; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">chew him out</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> express her disappointment… it also kept her isolated and focused on something that wasn’t the fact that she was pregnant (which she’d <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFhCYkdXyT2wRbKjjrVZOoUihoukX8gC8psfObV7-3NN3253sWbqcBhZYwY8tov4h1SQ6yfFcMBIImEtjDJorZ6Ncyv3A5Kjlw1OnedRCkDY8lA_YZCnQBhWUinN0Pf8RjXOmf9R0WYcY2/s4608/IMG_20210310_221618.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFhCYkdXyT2wRbKjjrVZOoUihoukX8gC8psfObV7-3NN3253sWbqcBhZYwY8tov4h1SQ6yfFcMBIImEtjDJorZ6Ncyv3A5Kjlw1OnedRCkDY8lA_YZCnQBhWUinN0Pf8RjXOmf9R0WYcY2/w200-h150/IMG_20210310_221618.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br />seemingly discovered that morning). For someone as unprepared for that news as Lea is, she may well have been too anxious to eat anyway. Or she might have already been unable to hold food down-- I thought of that too-- but in my own pregnancy experience, nausea doesn’t develop </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">quite </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">that quickly. And it’s already been made clear via the promo that Lea’s morning sickness hits in the next episode…</span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Big shoutout here to blog reader Syl, for making the following observation in the comments for my “Oh Baby!” post:</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: #112233; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"It's also great that she explained to Shaun that she needed her boyfriend to have her back, because they are "a team working together for a common goal". It's cute that she used the word "team". I wonder why she paused when she said "and right now our goal......is to get my car back"...but I'm probably overanalysing again!"</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-dd328863-7fff-3f26-cc25-1b15089384fb"></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I thought she might be overanalyzing too, to be honest. But NO… knowing what she knew, that was definitely a “pregnant” pause! </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">ACT 3</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">By the time Shaun encounters Lea again that day and declares his intention of supporting her, she’s still pouring all her spare minutes into her mission to take Tricky down (at least it’s safe to say she earned the right to some spare minutes via the “Decrypt” all-nighter crisis). Now she needs Shaun’s phone <br />for “more IP addresses,” and she isn’t kidding. He reluctantly hands it over (and you KNOW how very reluctant that had to be for Shaun), and she keeps on keeping on without skipping a beat-- no “How’s your day going,” no “what are we doing for dinner tonight,” just GET TRICKY GET TRICKY GET TRICKY. Which prompted the OR conversation in the next scene (the one where Dannie Coma Woman woke up midway through!) which gave the episode its name. </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkaf6GqeP_KlBt5GiivOnfEBXtjLF1w2wqC0ojpKTuPKOA98D3JSprWpWKjvtvBTBQ0A403o0Zg55NTV5EMwkTwNJVQ4ywx7TQRTCq9R8BTMhVgdwKpxIcZg2nDxv-svb7HMQFSPNRt0yV/s4608/IMG_20210310_222005.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkaf6GqeP_KlBt5GiivOnfEBXtjLF1w2wqC0ojpKTuPKOA98D3JSprWpWKjvtvBTBQ0A403o0Zg55NTV5EMwkTwNJVQ4ywx7TQRTCq9R8BTMhVgdwKpxIcZg2nDxv-svb7HMQFSPNRt0yV/w200-h150/IMG_20210310_222005.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">BUT, that’s the last reference to Operation Save Striped Tomato until the final segment of the episode when they show up at Tricky’s door. They talk later on about Lea acting crazy “the past 2 days”... a pretty specific number, and yes, the car-napping had</span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUcplCvjiC8r3-diU0-KH7UNVwC_4nc5_z860uAKitLM5ADWGU9NnSPejAAAXjDQCRaqNO43pqikQJGOmWuK3sBO6RGRjavEusZUIW6pWtZjB8ylIfDbC7TTj3YTQ92bJHnc2B3LTM5IRw/s4608/IMG_20210310_222038.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUcplCvjiC8r3-diU0-KH7UNVwC_4nc5_z860uAKitLM5ADWGU9NnSPejAAAXjDQCRaqNO43pqikQJGOmWuK3sBO6RGRjavEusZUIW6pWtZjB8ylIfDbC7TTj3YTQ92bJHnc2B3LTM5IRw/w200-h150/IMG_20210310_222038.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /> indeed happened two mornings ago at this point, but we weren’t privy to any of Lea’s day two “crazy” until that evening. And arguably, <span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> was the one going out on a limb more than Lea at that point… at least, for him. </span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJacK_0iopL-YksOG0Xhd1lQJ4RY2kTaVLzblh9Ff-P5j7t4ngls0b0V9WcWG0o2Nng-hoa8gmbMpI39Qc5_9nmXGqv6nvD1jxCykFEnnOnfrT4TbwospZw8WcQADAtEPengpIG6qaJEv8/s4608/IMG_20210310_222044.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJacK_0iopL-YksOG0Xhd1lQJ4RY2kTaVLzblh9Ff-P5j7t4ngls0b0V9WcWG0o2Nng-hoa8gmbMpI39Qc5_9nmXGqv6nvD1jxCykFEnnOnfrT4TbwospZw8WcQADAtEPengpIG6qaJEv8/w200-h150/IMG_20210310_222044.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">SO, once again, I’m left wondering if perhaps there was a Lea scene (a brief one, maybe less than 30 seconds) illustrating more of her hyperfocus on the car that simply didn’t make it into the episode. Maybe not--all in all we got over six minutes with them as it was, nothing to sneeze at-- but my one small gripe with the Lea’s-gone-off-her-rocker thing is that it just didn’t seem all that “crazy” to me, given what we know both of Lea and of her car. </span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Again, if it was </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> doing all this over something precious to him that had been taken away, it might be alarming in a “Fixation” (3.17) kind of way (!!). But even though she didn’t say it outright in the episode, the Striped Tomato </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">has been</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Lea’s “baby” up to now. An adopted baby, yes, but her most prized possession to be sure. So I tend to think she’d have fought like the dickens to get it back in any situation. And once Tricky started slapping on additional extra fees (I think the grand total was $600?), any chance of being treated respectfully by Lea went out the window because that’s who she is-- taking matters into her own hands, especially when she smells a rat, and certainly when it appears she can’t count on anyone else for assistance (ahem SHAUN ahem).</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-821b4f2a-7fff-d440-0afa-55968e71e434"></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">But then came that epic recovery scene, so let’s get to that.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>ACT 6</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxHADnrjHU72NAA5WeFllSr2zF5NFQGnEliivXYbK13lABC_w9tFyjp8uTFaAG23wByfSr6ol9NbubP4IF8tBheQHhRSH6t_EDZDs2a784urTHA-T5aNK9yJPXplF06PfcbjsHlKcfEY1-/s4608/IMG_20210310_222450.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxHADnrjHU72NAA5WeFllSr2zF5NFQGnEliivXYbK13lABC_w9tFyjp8uTFaAG23wByfSr6ol9NbubP4IF8tBheQHhRSH6t_EDZDs2a784urTHA-T5aNK9yJPXplF06PfcbjsHlKcfEY1-/w200-h150/IMG_20210310_222450.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lea wasn’t flinching as she stood there “after hours,” ready to <br />put Tricky McMullet out of business by way of her own unscrupulous measures. But neither was Tricky (even calling Lea </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">cupcake</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> as he tried to call her bluff, ugh). That’s when Shaun made the unilateral decision to </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">appear</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> to give in while actually setting the stage for Lea’s very own “Starsky” moment.</span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">And then, with Shaun dashing off, hurting his knee and everything as he got his “Hutch” moment riding shotgun… wow! What a perfect mini-homage to TST’s original TV home.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The best individual element of the scene itself (which I hope was as flat-out fun to shoot as it looked!)... was the music they chose. Including that siren-ish sound effect that went off when Lea realized Shaun had left her the keys on top of his backpack. Compare Shaun and Lea’s scene to the music used in the opening of the original </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Starsky and Hutch </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(where you can see TST in all its car-chasing glory too)...</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Shaun and Lea getting the car back (jump 1:00 into the scene if you’re in a hurry)</span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/rMX1tnmyj8o" width="320" youtube-src-id="rMX1tnmyj8o"></iframe></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Starsky and Hutch</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> opening</span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/CFgXlny1Q5M" width="320" youtube-src-id="CFgXlny1Q5M"></iframe></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><i>“Okay, drive fast…”</i></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><i>“Oh my God, Shaun!”</i></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">They’re at the top of this mountain; all smiles for a minute, optimum “functioning as a unit” achieved. And in a show with as much to accomplish as TGD, the victory lap really did last only about a minute, for it was soon clear that #Shea now have bigger fish to fry. Much, much bigger.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: x-large; white-space: normal;">🍏🏎</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-large;">🍏🏎</span><span style="font-size: x-large; white-space: normal;">🍏🏎🍏🏎🍏🏎🍏🏎</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-edde8bdc-7fff-9743-245d-ac4a91ad1aea"></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“We’re all crazy sometimes. Just takes the right motivation.” </span></span></p><div><br /></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-top: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: large;">The only thing I want to add at this point is that “Crazy” writers David Hosleton and David Renaud faced an interesting challenge at the end of all this: how to bring all that “crazy” down to earth in the final 90 seconds of the episode?</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-0190b3b7-7fff-fa8b-ec0a-3d485826a6de" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The key was the fact that Shaun </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">didn’t </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">stiff Tricky entirely; he left him the original $250 requested for a legit error on Lea’s part. He was acting a little crazy himself, yes, but not so crazy as to contribute to additional trouble. Very smart, very rational, very Shaun. And Lea knew it, deep down, so how could she really argue?</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">“I needed to help you see what was right,” Shaun added, harkening back to Lim’s advice from the OR “crazy” discussion. Which was Lea’s cue to explain herself.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">All happening above a sublime performance by Claire (Antonia Thomas), addressing her own crazy mom-related fears across town (</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">nice parallel, TGD!) </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> as she performed The Highwomen’s “Crowded Table”. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">And since we all know no song on TGD is chosen by accident, I’ll get into those lyrics-- and the whole new world that is opening to #Shea-- next time!</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(But don’t feel limited to discussing “Crazy” in the comments; we’ve got days of pre-”Teeny” discussion to go…)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/BF/82/BF828B87-864A-59D9-0CAE-871736DC4883/158273_0909-900x0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="534" data-original-width="800" height="214" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/BF/82/BF828B87-864A-59D9-0CAE-871736DC4883/158273_0909-900x0.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p></span><p></p>Kelli Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06009713326652591943noreply@blogger.com23tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1583562784288599702.post-58137984717886817842021-03-06T11:58:00.000-08:002021-03-06T11:58:51.410-08:00Oh Baby?! The Makings of a "Crazy" #Shea Meatloaf<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/BF/82/BF828B87-864A-59D9-0CAE-871736DC4883/158273_0909-450x0.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="450" height="213" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/BF/82/BF828B87-864A-59D9-0CAE-871736DC4883/158273_0909-450x0.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /> <span id="docs-internal-guid-d8fdd26e-7fff-2263-9e03-f12739d592fb"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">There they are, standing in their living room with hands clasped and a serious look on their faces, just as they’ve been standing for the past few weeks.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">During that time, well, we’ve kept ourselves busy. As has been necessary, as has become the usual this year, when COVID-related production delays result in a trickle of new episodes instead of a steady stream. We’ve studied the ABC-released photos, examined the promo (sometimes frame by frame), run Twitter polls, waited for confirmation on new episode titles, waited for new synopses, waited for anything </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">more</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> than the little we sofar have to work with this month.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Crumbs. We’re working with breadcrumbs, folks. Nothing really new about that, except that the last two times it was what we </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">thought</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> we knew about upcoming certain episodes that drove us bonkers. This time, for many, it’s what we </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">don’t</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> know about Monday’s episode that’s doing the trick.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We think we know. A lot of us are looking at factors outside the “ending that will leave… you… STUNNED” and are saying </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">screw ABC’s manipulation; this time when Shaun and Lea stand there like they’re posed at the altar it’s the start of </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">major</span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">dramatic development in this relationship.</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Consequently, it’s once again the talk of this blog’s never-dull comment gallery. Theories fly, references criss-cross, and sometimes the glances into TGD’s crystal ball grow so complex the #Shea shipper ends up writing a guest post (Thanks again, Andreas!)</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">But hey, there’s a production lull. What else is there to do?</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Me, I’ve decided to head to the kitchen and get to cooking…because if Lea can use bad medical analogies to explain things to Shaun, I can use mediocre food analogies to carry us to the next TGD episode. Grab a seat while I get to work on…</span></span></p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>A RECIPE FOR A #SHEA MEATLOAF</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><div><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">🍏🏎</b></span><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎</b><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎</b><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🍏🏎</b></div><div><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></b></div><div><span id="docs-internal-guid-3ce0fff7-7fff-112d-914b-d4e63f70dd76"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Whether you hear “meatloaf” and think fond thoughts (comfort food, and/or memories of home) or not-so-fond ones (tasteless slabs of questionable edibility, and/or memories of home), or even if you know it by a different name (shout-out to my international readers), it’s got the same basic elements as far as ingredients go:</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span></span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Meat-- either all one kind of ground meat or a combination (I presume there are plant-based proteins that fit the bill here too)</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Breadcrumbs or cracker crumbs, often soaked in milk first, which serve to both “bind” the meat together into loaf form and ‘extend” the meat you have into something more (which is why meatloaf is especially popular in the U.S. during depressions/recessions when $$ is even tighter). An egg facilitates things too. </span></span><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">But don’t read too much into that, #Shea theorists… 😉</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Vegetables, chopped fine, to help give the “loaf” more texture, flavor, and substance</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Seasonings-- salt, pepper, etc.</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; list-style-type: disc; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">A “topping” for more flavor/eye appeal, such as a ketchup glaze and/or strips of bacon (I personally can’t stand ketchup, so I prefer the latter)</span></span></p></li></ul><div><br /></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://tse3.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.i_dqKxuYUPm7h0_hwZj3iQHaE8&pid=Api" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="316" data-original-width="474" height="133" src="https://tse3.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.i_dqKxuYUPm7h0_hwZj3iQHaE8&pid=Api" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">For anyone who wants to share their own meatloaf experiences and/or recipes, head to the comments and go for it :) But right now I’ve gotta continue with the analogy…</span></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">THE MEAT of the Meatloaf</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-d5578160-7fff-6355-cde3-438c33c45683" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I’ll cut to the question that seems to be on everyone’s mind: Is Lea pregnant? </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Is that the “stunning” revelation at the end of the “Crazy” episode?</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It’s a theory that has grown legs and run amok these past few weeks, fueled especially by THESE BREADCRUMBS… </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span>🥖</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#Shea fans racking their brains as to what could be more “stunning” than a totally unplanned pregnancy… assuming that the “stunned” part involves #Shea at all, that is</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span>🥖</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">Revelations, via Paige Spara’s IG, that she’s altered her hairdo a little and now has a little fringe of bangs… which has led some to suspect a time-hop is on the way (which would allow the show to pick up the story a few months into the pregnancy) </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span>🥖</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Forthcoming episode 4.12 now confirmed to have the title “Teeny Blue Eyes” </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span> </span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;">🥖</span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A synopsis for forthcoming episode 4.12 “Teeny Blue Eyes”... which I think many of us only discovered THIS MORNING (Saturday)... contains the following: </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Shaun and Lea are forced to make a life-changing decision that will alter the course of their relationship.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"></b></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/FD/A9/FDA96053-BABB-1B5C-DD0D-1A828231AF9E/158273_2321-900x0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="534" data-original-width="800" height="214" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/FD/A9/FDA96053-BABB-1B5C-DD0D-1A828231AF9E/158273_2321-900x0.jpg" width="320" /></a></b></div><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Well, now, hmmmm… what could all this possibly be about??? <i>(she types sarcastically… if that’s a thing. Pretend it’s a thing, won't you? Thanks.)</i></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">When viewers started tweeting at me in the week following the “Decrypt” episode, asking if I thought a #Shea baby was on the way, I quickly tweeted back some variation of </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">No! Not yet! I hope not… </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">without realizing that yes, of course… that’s why it could be happening now.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I initially didn’t want to see a pregnancy (or even a pregnancy scare) this early for reasons similar to why I didn’t want Lea to move back in right away…there was a part of me that yearned for this non-traditional union to have some “tradition” to it (for lack of a better word). Marriage, </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">then</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> live together again, </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">then </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">babies a short while into marriage (realizing a baby would have to follow sooner than I’d prefer). As for the necessary dramatics, I expected something to go wrong with Lea’s first pregnancy-- a miscarriage, or an excruciating decision leading to an abortion, or even a stillbirth. But the recovery from all that-- coupled with a second, successful pregnancy-- was (in my mind) how Shaun and Lea could experience the highs and lows without a more obvious contrived breakup/makeup experience (e.g. Lea’s ex re-enters the picture). </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">In other words, I figured there’d be enough baby drama down the road for them IF they stayed together… IF TGD continues beyond season 4. (And for the record, while season 5 seems very likely at this point, there’s plenty of speculation as to whether the show would continue beyond that. Not so much because of ratings as the fact that Freddie Highmore may not want to continue-- and when he’s done, the show is done.)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But my “figuring,” like </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">your</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> “figuring,” only goes so far when we’re not David Shore & Company.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">And a baby-- or at least, a pregnancy-- would complicate the back half of the season in a consistent way… no more wondering what potential complicator was coming in the next episode/series of episodes (<i>COVID keeps them separated?! Lea was married??? Shaun’s attracted to another woman???</i>)...</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Or how we’ll get to know Lea better (<i>What will her parents be like??? How will she handle a tremendous IT crisis??? Will she and Glassman EVER get along???</i>)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">So here’s the thing: regardless of whether TGD Season 4 runs 20 episodes (like S3 did), or reverts back to 18 (Seasons 1 and 2), S4 is </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">currently</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> at the same point as S3 was when the “Fractured” episode was about to air after TGD’s 6-week winter hiatus. Weird, considering they were on the “Heartbreak” episode at this time last year. But true.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I think it’s safe to say that we’d ALL like to see more bits and pieces of Shaun and Lea’s Beautiful Love Adventure, so long as the potential outcomes didn’t worry us into oblivion. We hoped to see more “adjustments” as they settled into the loft apartment on new terms; as it happens, we didn’t even get to witness Shaun adjusting to sharing a legit mattress-off-the-floor bed with Lea. (Perhaps in the crush of ideas, it was decided that their dilemmas in the “Two-Ply or not Two-Ply” episode from S2 covered enough of that. I disagree, but again, I’m not the showrunner.)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I think it’s also safe to say that they haven’t come close to mining all the possibilities for basic relationship conflict, especially in an ASD/NT (Neurotypical) situation. I know Andreas, in particular, has voiced a lot of concern about Shaun’s ASD even being played primarily for laughs in this first half of S4; knowing Andreas himself is autistic, it troubles me that he (and, I presume, others on the spectrum) are left feeling this way about a show they are so invested in for obvious reasons.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">So let’s assume Shore & Co. are headed in a better direction, and look at #Shea 2.0 this way…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Keep them together; in the first half of the season, show them in a variety of situations that they resolve together and grow closer as a result. (</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">with varying levels of success as far as viewer reception goes; with any luck, we’ll win over a few Lea-haters along the way)</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">By the second half of the season, we’ll need to raise the stakes if we’re to get them to a place where marriage feels like an organic progression of the relationship. </span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">How about a serious illness?</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Shaun’s handled that (with Glassman’s cancer)... </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Work interference?</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> At this point, it appears that Lea is perfectly tolerant of Shaun’s long hours (and vice versa? On a smaller scale?)... </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Questions of love/trust/commitment? </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Arguably much of this was resolved the moment Lea ran to Shaun and planted that kiss at the end of S3… but in more practical terms, each #Shea scenario since then has been crafted to fortify what they have. </span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And just as I make the 😬 face a little more and say </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But if Lea is pregnant, will TGD be accused of becoming even “soapier” than it already is in terms of non-medical subplots? </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I find myself reminded of this one critical thing: </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>EVERYTHING lands differently with an ASD/NT relationship. </b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/1E/BA/1EBA957D-CCB4-D058-9029-67CFC622BF1E/158273_2329-450x0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="450" height="256" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/1E/BA/1EBA957D-CCB4-D058-9029-67CFC622BF1E/158273_2329-450x0.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Offhand remarks (“Newbies”), an invitation to move in with a lover (“Not the Same”), meeting the parents (“Parenting”)... the lens is different with Shaun’s involvement, and always will be. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Does that go for a #Shea wedding too? Most definitely. But they’re not to that point yet.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Does that go for a potential #Shea baby? Absolutely-- and, in theory, Shaun and Lea don’t have to be “to that point” yet because (ahem) accidents happen. That’s one thing about #Shea that puts them in the same boat as any other sexually active couple.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">So for those who’d take all these things into account and STILL regard a #Shea pregnancy at this time as a dearth of ideas on the part of the writers? I guess I’d tell them to… I don’t know… go watch the show from the beginning???</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(I might also tell them to go f--- themselves, at least in my head. But sometimes I frustrate easily.) </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>THE CRUMBS of the meatloaf</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-c96c3562-7fff-d2fa-d68c-ac6727e364df" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I’ve already alluded to as many of the said “crumbs” as have been made available to date, so I’m just going to add a couple of things…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span> 1. </span>This trail of S4 pregnancy foreshadowing, as brought to us by Andreas via the comments:</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Frontline Part 1: expectant single mother without support system.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-weight: 700; text-indent: 36pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-weight: 700; text-indent: 36pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Frontline Part 2: single mother gives birth; Park delivers and nurses the baby.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-weight: 700; text-indent: 36pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-weight: 700; text-indent: 36pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Not the same: expectant single mother, pregnant with twins while her own body tries to kill one fetus, her boyfriend left her after suggesting an abortion; woman had already an abortion with 15; the doctors discuss to abort one fetus to save the other; Shaun finally delivers one baby early. Jordan reveals that she chose career over marriage.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-weight: 700; text-indent: 36pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-weight: 700; text-indent: 36pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lim: woman surprised by unplanned pregnancy, chooses elective abortion; Jordan reveals that she had an abortion herself.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-weight: 700; text-indent: 36pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-weight: 700; text-indent: 36pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Parenting: a father has stepped down from parenthood and plays “coach” instead; Glassman claims that Shaun and Lea’s relationship is moving too fast.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-weight: 700; text-indent: 36pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-weight: 700; text-indent: 36pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Irresponsible…: a couple is surprised by an unplanned pregnancy.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-weight: 700; text-indent: 36pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-weight: 700; text-indent: 36pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">That almost reads like a blueprint for a plot...</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; font-weight: 700; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large; white-space: pre-wrap;"> 2. This little prediction from ME about the 4.12 title: </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><i>Keeping in mind that episode titles have been pulled from #Shea conversations a number of times-- most recently with “Irresponsible Salad Bar Practices”-- “Teeny Blue Eyes” sounds like something Lea would say while discussing a possible baby with Shaun-- which I think would prompt Shaun to point out immediately that a child of theirs would actually only have a 50-50 chance of blue eyes vs. brown eyes because of the way dominant and recessive genes work.</i></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">(Although </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">I </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">think Paige Spara’s eyes look more hazel than brown, which complicates the whole eye color thing considerably… but IF the writers go the genetics route, I doubt they’ll go all the way to this!)</span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><br /></b></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>THE VEGETABLES of the meatloaf</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-1be4d3fe-7fff-ce25-7b52-7779560e108a" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">("adding texture, flavor, and substance")</span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Practically lost amongst all this “stunning” pregnancy talk is that there appears to be one more chapter in the Love Adventure before seriousness settles in: Operation Save Striped Tomato. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-70e09c1b-7fff-ab49-1bf9-cd5d1bd7cee0" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Andreas referenced it in his guest post, also noting that Lea’s parking ticket at the top of the “Decrypt” episode was another touch of foreshadowing, Grand Torino style. … and countless other readers have taken stabs at what’s to happen based on what we’ve seen so far. It goes something like this:</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Shaun and Lea witness Lea’s beloved car being towed away (maybe she hasn’t paid the parking ticket(s), or was forced to park in a tow-away zone longer than planned)</span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun and Lea ultimately attempt to </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">recover</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> said beloved car, in a way that does not appear to go through all the proper legal channels, shall we say. Ex-cop Park may or not be involved in this part of the adventure. </span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">What are the repercussions of such actions? TBD, of course…</span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">However the elements of “We’re All Crazy Sometimes” unfold-- both the Striped Tomato subplot-- and the Shaun-Morgan case of the week, apparently dealing with a man whose wife is on life support-- we’d be well-advised to look and listen for clues to #Shea’s future. Are there any allusions to Lea forgetting to take her daily (contraceptive) pill? Some have suggested that could have happened while pulling her all-nighter in the “Decrypt” episode... Does she ever refer to the Striped Tomato as “her baby”? ...Will there be a more traditional hint, such as Lea being unable to hold down food, or fainting unexpectedly-- maybe in the heat of excitement as they get her car back?</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Over at St. B., meanwhile, I can easily see Morgan and Shaun debating the life-support issue, with Morgan asking “What would you do if that was Lea?” and Shaun responding in some way to infer it’s different because she’s not his wife… which would be Morgan’s cue to say something flippant like “Yeah, not now, but give it another year”... </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">(Perhaps wishful thinking where the lines about marriage are concerned… I still want them to get married, after all… but the long-termness of the relationship is bound to be mentioned in such a debate nonetheless.)</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><b>THE SEASONINGS of the meatloaf</b></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-823ddb99-7fff-1bef-6e5e-4ac1a72b1720" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-3e74bd87-7fff-fa51-4e51-b1a0f8c9ef36"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">In seeing these five promotional photos over and over again, I’m reminded of a certain set of promo pics we got as we headed into “Autopsy”, and the epic conversation that finally got all this started (and nearly ended it right then and there, too)...</span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/A1h12tS7YCkbIX0yDZPJcQ--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTY0MA--/https://s.yimg.com/uu/api/res/1.2/9ZX9PWTCBptb2rqeYxba4w--~B/aD05NjA7dz0xNDQwO3NtPTE7YXBwaWQ9eXRhY2h5b24-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/good_housekeeping_561/dc597fd9acf6eff8cdc63ff83939c8c9" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="533" data-original-width="800" height="213" src="https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/A1h12tS7YCkbIX0yDZPJcQ--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTY0MA--/https://s.yimg.com/uu/api/res/1.2/9ZX9PWTCBptb2rqeYxba4w--~B/aD05NjA7dz0xNDQwO3NtPTE7YXBwaWQ9eXRhY2h5b24-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/good_housekeeping_561/dc597fd9acf6eff8cdc63ff83939c8c9" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">What they showed us in advance...</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0j4ooAQr7X2vJvlZ9W_VjFgElhFlbfP-Lnd2ZC4BSUa9StRTgnXwPdzHzAEHZZxPkpQXy3VUh9geQLBx7-vNLVhofrMxPYp8yJA2KnlAgNawdRPTbpV9bGMSCaxcnCHJU0DmuEi8cYz33/s2048/Ah+Lea+here+we+go+again+Autopsy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0j4ooAQr7X2vJvlZ9W_VjFgElhFlbfP-Lnd2ZC4BSUa9StRTgnXwPdzHzAEHZZxPkpQXy3VUh9geQLBx7-vNLVhofrMxPYp8yJA2KnlAgNawdRPTbpV9bGMSCaxcnCHJU0DmuEi8cYz33/w200-h150/Ah+Lea+here+we+go+again+Autopsy.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">...and what actually went down</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju1ANsAAMShk4aaF7Tqo-HLwZx5j0gBi8a5BAYP-qbd8_jGBZTAaIEV9HGWbmSqPCgahrxY6PMlnmiHElvKbOidT35KNUiCtgAS7fEU2kzhaGgWq_jqW4v2pqJ13ojaeRXG52aStXfcVhM/s2048/Lea+autopsy+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju1ANsAAMShk4aaF7Tqo-HLwZx5j0gBi8a5BAYP-qbd8_jGBZTAaIEV9HGWbmSqPCgahrxY6PMlnmiHElvKbOidT35KNUiCtgAS7fEU2kzhaGgWq_jqW4v2pqJ13ojaeRXG52aStXfcVhM/w200-h150/Lea+autopsy+2.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">when the cameras rolled</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span><b id="docs-internal-guid-b6d9bd8f-7fff-735e-ba29-99c079a6c1c7" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">While I’m with the rest of you on thinking there won’t be a lot of post-revelation conversation in the “Crazy” episode-- certainly nothing as long, or deep, as the three minutes Shaun and Lea had at the end of “Autopsy”-- I’m posting these shots as a friendly reminder that what we see in the promotional materials isn’t always what we get. Even when it comes to a simple, two-person dialogue exchange. So get ready.... We don’t know what we don’t know!</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">OTHER THINGS WE NEED TO KEEP REMINDING OURSELVES… for this episode and beyond… </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun and Lea are </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">never</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> going to get the amount of airtime we want them to have. (Or the time the ones who develop their stories wish them to have, for that matter.) TGD simply isn’t structured that way. </span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">When their relationship was largely undefined beyond roommates/best friends-- and especially when the lion’s share of Shaun’s personal time went to scenes with Carly-- it was tough for a casual viewer to see signs of Lea’s love for Shaun, and vice versa. That’s when the catapult moments (as I’ve been known to describe them) became so crucial in S3-- the epic embrace at the end of “Friends and Family,” the karaoke night in “Unsaid” that led to Carly breaking things off, the earthquake putting Lea’s life in danger, then Shaun’s… </span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Now that they’re finally together… well, historically speaking, this is where it gets rough for storytellers. How do they keep weaving the tale in an interesting way? And more to the point with TGD, how do they keep it interesting with only 3 to 5 minutes of airtime an episode? (Catapults can still work, but sparingly, as their main purpose is to quickly get characters to a new point in a story arc… not just fling the characters back and forth for the sake of entertainment)</span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">THINGS WE HAVE TO KEEP REMINDING OURSELVES…</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-inline-start: 48px;"><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Shaun and Lea are </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">never</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> going to get the amount of airtime we want them to have. (Or the time the ones who develop their stories wish them to have, for that matter.) TGD simply isn’t structured that way. </span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">When their relationship was largely undefined beyond roommates/best friends-- and especially when the lion’s share of Shaun’s personal time went to scenes with Carly-- it was tough for a casual viewer to see signs of Lea’s love for Shaun, and vice versa. That’s when the catapult moments (as I’ve been known to describe them) became so crucial in S3-- the epic embrace at the end of “Friends and Family,” the karaoke night in “Unsaid” that led to Carly breaking things off, the earthquake putting Lea’s life in danger, then Shaun’s… </span></span></p></li><li aria-level="1" dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><p dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Now that they’re finally together… well, historically speaking, this is where it gets rough for storytellers. How do they keep weaving the tale in an interesting way? And more to the point with TGD, how do they keep it interesting with only 3 to 5 minutes of airtime an episode? (Catapults can still work, but sparingly, as their main purpose is to quickly get characters to a new point in a story arc… not just fling the characters back and forth for the sake of entertainment)</span></span></p></li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></p><div><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><b>Finally, THE TOPPING of the meatloaf!</b></span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">David Hoselton and David Renaud are the writers of “Crazy”, which might lead you to wonder what parts of the #Shea journey have they been involved in previously? Here, I'll help:</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Hoselton: wrote "Not the Same" in S4, "I Love You" in S3, "Faces" in S2 (mentioned because of the literal journey Shaun & Glassman took, as I wonder what awaits for the Striped Tomato), and "Tough Titmouse" in S2 (written solo).</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Renaud: wrote "Newbies" (S4), "Heartbreak" and "Autopsy" (the latter written solo) in S3, "Hubert" (written solo) in S2, and "Apple" (written solo) in S1... the episode ending in Shaun's first semi-hug with Lea.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;">Also, director Mike Listo was responsible for both parts of the “Frontline” season premiere as well as the “Lim” episode this season. Last season he directed “Hurt”, “Unsaid”, and “Friends and Family." He's <i>also </i>behind </span>“Breakdown” (dealing w/Shaun and Han’s final exchanges in S2) and both “Quarantine” episodes from S2...</p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">So I think it's safe to say high drama and/or high action is among his specialties!</p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-indent: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-indent: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-indent: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;">🍏🏎</b></span><b style="text-indent: 0px;">🍏🏎</b><b style="text-indent: 0px;">🍏🏎</b><b style="text-indent: 0px;">🍏🏎</b></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-indent: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-indent: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline;">Wow, this is a mighty big dish I've assembled. I'd say it's time to get it in the oven, but considering I'm about to "put a fork in it"... maybe it's already time to eat? 😃</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-indent: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-indent: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline;">OK, one more thing... </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-indent: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-indent: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline;">Try to remember, as we make our way through the back half of S4, how Shaun’s journey hit rocky territory both in the back half of S2 <i>and</i> S3, to the point where we were left to wonder </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-indent: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline;">How will he find his way back to being a surgeon? (S2) / </span><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-indent: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline;">and </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-indent: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline;">How will he and Lea possibly be able to make this work NOW? (S3) </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; text-indent: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-indent: 48px;">Remember that HE did, and THEY did.</p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-indent: 48px;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-indent: 48px;">🍴🍴🍴🍴🍴🍴</p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-indent: 48px;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/AC/68/AC684BE5-FC44-50D6-1D15-BAE9362CF353/158273_2356-0x300.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: black;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="200" src="https://www.dgepress.com/storage/uploads/AC/68/AC684BE5-FC44-50D6-1D15-BAE9362CF353/158273_2356-0x300.jpg" /></span></a></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-indent: 48px;"><br /></p></span></span></div></div></span><p></p>Kelli Lawrencehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06009713326652591943noreply@blogger.com41