Nurses are the backbone of the hospital, and they deserve much better.
Everything imaginable happened on The Resident Season 3 Episode 6, including the return of our beloved Marshall, but one of the most shocking and distressing events was in the final moments.
Please, please let Jessica be alive!
The Chastain group of friends have lost some already. It was hard enough when they killed off Bradley, but we didn’t know him as well.
We’ve had a longer time with Jessica, and she’s had more presence and a larger arc. She’s been part of the series since the beginning.
She and Irving are an absolute delight as a couple, and Irving appreciated her more than ever after watching Jonesey and Wendy.
For Irving, Jessica is the love of his life and “the one,” so the hour ending with the accident is more alarming than ever.
It would be the type of tragedy to expect with all of the foreshadowing comments. Ugh, The Resident sure loves their car accidents, don’t they?
Irving: He gets it, so do I. Stupid to question the love of your life for something that’s just stupid.
Devon: So Jessica is the love of your life?
Irving: Nicely done, man.
But Jessica’s accident will hopefully bring attention to the understaffed and overworked nurses issue the hour explored.
It’s funny how many of the issues plaguing the hour, they found solutions and compromises for; as expected, the nurse issue was unresolved. No one gave it much thought outside of those affected.
They won’t have a choice now, but it shouldn’t have gotten to a point where one of their best nurses hit a tree because of falling asleep at the wheel after pulling triple shifts.
But, you know, thanks for the cookies.
If they really appreciate us, they’d get more nurses, not cookies.
Jessica
Nurses are near the bottom of the medical chain as far as being accommodated and taken care of and treated well, but they’re pretty darn high up in terms of providing care.
They usually spend the most time with the patient. They make sure surgeries run smoothly for doctors before, during, and after a procedure.
They give just as much of themselves, sometimes more, for a mostly thankless field with more hours, less pay, fewer accommodations, and limited power.
It’s infuriating if you think about it for too long. Poor Cindy was falling asleep at the Nurse’s station.
You don’t have to retire the whip, though. Momma has needs.
Wendy
Hundley made do with what she could and tried to make everything run smoothly, but it was hard.
Nic was picking up the slack, and she was forced to do things technically not within her wheelhouse. Some of our beloved doctors care about the nurses, but they don’t always get it.
They unintentionally took the nurses for granted; they didn’t have to think about the effects of burnt-out nurses.
Jessica’s accident is a bit of a wake-up call, or at least it should be. Nearly everyone cares about or is familiar with her.
It would be unfair to herself, but Nic will likely feel guilty for agreeing when Jessica volunteered for another shift. Irving will be upset he didn’t notice how tired she was and stop her.
She’s the sunshine of the series, so it’s going to be a nail-biter until we learn more about what happened to her.
Nic had her hands full being overworked at the hospital and trying to figure out more on hemoplietin.
Neither she nor Conrad broke into the portal to access the patient records, but they looked for other ways around it.
They needed access to get a big picture of just how many people had died from that drug, but big Pharm has everything pertaining to it on lockdown.
Nic: You did that rotation in Oncology. Are there any doctors who might be willing to think outside the box?
Devon: I’m not sure what you mean.
Nic: Conrad and I think there may be a problem with this drug, hemopliatin. We’re trying to find a doctor who will share patient outcomes, but if we can’t —
Devon: You mean access patient records that aren’t yours? That’s an invasion of privacy. Plus, it’s illegal. You can be fired.
Nic: My sister might have died because of the drug, so honestly, I don’t give a damn.
Devon: Rules exist for a reason, Nic. You can’t just go break them because in the moment you think it’s right. You and Conrad, I love you guys, but I thought I made myself clear. I am not going to be that kind of doctor.
Nic approached Devon hoping he could recommend an oncologist who would be willing to bend the rules for them.
Fandom is divided on Devon’s decision to stand on moral high-ground and pave a new way for himself in how he chooses to practice medicine.
Most people are siding with Conrad. But, the show gets credit for having Devon stick to his guns.
In fact, when Nic asked him about reaching out to an oncologist who might bend the rules, it was a bit cringeworthy.
Conrad: How’s the device company?
Marshall: It’s never easy challenging the status quo, but you know that.
Regardless of how you feel about Devon’s choice, he made it, and he wants them to respect it.
Instead of being annoyed that Devon didn’t jump on board and help like in the previous two seasons, it was irritating that Nic bothered to ask at all.
She played the Jessie card, and it was like putting her friend in the position to be an insensitive ass instead of respecting his choice and finding another angle.
Marshall: I missed you.
Conrad: I missed you too. Did I tell you Nic and I got chickens?
She tried, but Conrad pulled the gold-plated card to put others to shame; he called in Marshall.
Marshall was back, and so were the warm, fuzzy, family feels. They were cute exchanging “miss you’s.”
Why can’t we keep Marshall forever?!
Conrad found out his father had also taken that drug, and if it wasn’t personal before, it was once we found out it could affect a character we care more about.
Sorry, Jessie, but it’s true.
Mina: Those two seem OK after their man breakup.
Nic: Breakup is a little harsh.
Jessica: Conscious uncoupling.
Nic: They’re just not working together anymore.
Marshall’s health was in the clear thank heavens, and he was more than willing to do his son a favor.
Bless everyone in that writer’s room for making Conrad wear a suit, and also bless Matt Czuchry’s parents for his face and everything.
Daddy Warbucks flew Conrad to DC to get an “in” and access those medical records, but he could have worn one of his punk shirts with a skull on it and all his punk rebel silver jewelry and fit right in.
Conrad: So this is our big data guy?
Marshall: Welcome to corporate healthcare.
So, that is the state of corporate healthcare? Jim, the CEO of a company riding into an auditorium on a motorcycle to rock music and summoning his pet falcon, like the opening act of a concert is what we’re dealing with here?
It was so absurd and yet so entertaining. He gave them access to his database without blinking an eye, but it came with a price.
Yeah, we’re going to have to see how that pans out.
Somehow Jim the billionaire rock god wasn’t as outlandish as Cain and Bell’s high-stakes poker game that included betting patients.
Bell: You’re betting a patient?
Cain: Insurance?
Doctor: Silver hair. Platinum insurance.
Cain is such a sleaze.
Poor Kit is the only one with any sense half the time. The boys are a mess.
Cain won Horace, and it was not nearly as awesome as Grayson made it out to seem. Can you imagine having so much money that you choose to have all of those surgeries for the heck of it?
Dr. Cain won my patient in a poker game?
Kit
Cain’s eyes lit up over having a patient with sterling insurance, and he was eager to give him a bionic spine.
Horace was Kit’s patient too, so it was going to be another reason for them to butt heads.
The more time we spend with Cain the more evident it is that he’s not a team player. Sure, he understands that it takes a team effort, but when he does his part as quickly as possible he’s on to other things.
He leaves the clean up for residents and others. He thinks colleagues should focus on their part and not collaborate.
He does what he wants and moves on. What kind of doctor doesn’t respond to their phone calls when they have a patient recovering from a rare surgery?
Kit: Cain is not one of the good guys, but if I go to war with him and lose, I won’t be able to fix his mistakes.
Bell: I agree completely. You won’t be able to save the Horace Dudleys of the world.
Kit: So I’m not giving up I promise you I’m not. I’m just going to have to fight in a different way.
As irritating as it was to admit it, Bell was right. Cain will destroy Kit, and he doesn’t want that to happen.
But Bell has to come up with solutions to rein Cain in instead of just accepting it.
Bell isn’t cowardly, so can he stop cowering to Cain? Kit found another angle to work, and it should be good. If you can’t beat them, you join them — tentatively.
By working with Cain and pretending to play nice, she can keep an eye on and save his patients.
AJ: Dr. Broome.
Bonnie: Bonnie. I know you have a mom, Dr. Austin.
Lamar: I call him AJ. Lunch?
Taking care of patients is her priority, but it may also help bolster her position.
It’s going to be satisfying if/when Kit sticks it to Cain. The B-level tension between Kit and Cain is far more palatable than the Devon/Conrad debacle.
But AJ and his family arc have a way of pulling at the heartstrings. AJ has so much heart, and Malcolm-Jamal Warner is such a treasure playing this role with such nuance and depth.
The marriage was fast. The kids were not. They came ten years later. At 22, it wasn’t just Lamar who wasn’t ready. I didn’t think I would be a good mother. I still don’t know if I ever was, but I knew I would be a good doctor. A really good one. And it was at a time when there were almost no doctors who look like me that mattered. I had a goal, a mission, something to prove, and I proved it.
Bonnie
Is it safe to say AJ the first half of the season belongs to AJ? He’s so lovable and vulnerable. It’s been a delight as the series peels back the Raptor’s layers.
Family is complicated and messy. It’s not clean-cut. He’s happy with his parents, but he pulled a thread to that expansive tapestry, and it all unfurled.
His birth parents have found their way to him. They’re in his life now.
Lamar is an acquired taste, and very few of us including AJ acquired it.
Naturally, it made one curious about his birth mom. And sorry, my Fanatic friend, she’s no Bernadette Peters type. Although, his adoptive father sort of fit the bill personality-wise.
Bonnie is a brilliant pediatrician. And when she spoke to him, she wasn’t a callous monster who didn’t care.
She hugged him like he was her lifeline. And AJ was able to get her side of the story.
Bonnie: You don’t think I wanted you enough or loved you enough, but how could I? I didn’t know what your adopted family had named you. The records were sealed back then. So every time a little boy came into my office. If he was the right age, had the right color of skin, I looked for you in his eyes. I never stopped looking.
AJ: Well, now you can.
She was young and not ready to be a mom. She had goals and dreams she needed to achieve first, and they mattered. She was coming up in a time when there were not a lot of doctors who looked like her.
Medicine was her calling, and she knew she was great at it. She didn’t want her dream to be deferred.
And you know what? It’s fair. She made the best decision for herself and AJ.
It’s easy to be protective of AJ and his feelings. However, you can’t demonize a woman for giving up her baby if it’s not in her or the baby’s best interest that she parent it.
She’s not a bad person for that, just like AJ isn’t a terrible person for how it made him feel.
It had to be small comfort when he found out that his siblings weren’t born until a decade later.
It also has to be a comfort knowing she wanted to meet and know him. The records were sealed, so she couldn’t find him and didn’t even know his name.
He also got to see Bonnie in action when she figured out little Lacy had Lyme Disease.
The marriage was fast. The kids were not. They came ten years later. At 22, it wasn’t just Lamar who wasn’t ready. I didn’t think I would be a good mother. I still don’t know if I ever was, but I knew I would be a good doctor. A really good one. And it was at a time when there were almost no doctors who look like me that mattered. I had a goal, a mission, something to prove, and I proved it.
She saved the young girl a lifetime of health issues, and since her mother couldn’t afford to go to the hospital and showed up at the free clinic, it meant even more.
Part of the reason AJ was probably able to accept and understand Bonnie was because of how similar she was to Mina.
He’s in love with an ambitious, excellent doctor who wants to achieve so much.
He was the one who expressed concern about Mina agreeing to possibly take care of Adaku’s child if something happened to her.
Once he heard Bonnie out and saw her in action, how could he hold onto a grudge when he understood her explanation.
Anyway, AJ and Mina are meant to be and Bonnie was another sign.
It does make the Adaku situation all the more glaring, though. It feels like Mina will have to face the choice of taking care of her goddaughter or not, and it’ll be brutal.
Additional Notes:
- Seriously, can we keep Marshall forever an always? How adorable were he and Conrad? Did they ever go on vacation together?
- Conrad was so thrilled to tell his dad that he’s not a grandfather to grandchickens.
- Devon and Irving’s facial expressions when Jonesy’s wife Wendy stood up was priceless. They are on different ends of the height spectrum, but they were so damn cute together.
- Priya is dating a successful sportscaster after Devon dumped her on their wedding day. Go,Priya! Good for you, baby!
- We all now Conrad secretly loves hosting game night every month. I love those moments when the friends are together in their downtime and having fun.
- Kit made her choice, but I’m still ‘shipping her and Bell. He’s so concerned about her.
- Grayson never ceases to be amusing.
- The series is doing a pretty good job of peppering the season-long arcs in each installment while maintaining everything else. It blends everything better.
- DiaCure is going to be another off the charts company, isn’t it?
Over to you, Resident Fanatics! Were you thrilled to see Marshall again? Did Jessica survive the crash?
Are you happy AJ met his birth mom? Will Kit succeed with her plan?
Hit the comments below.
You can watch The Resident online here via TV Fanatic!
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Jasmine Blu is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow her on Twitter.