Man Plans – As the eighth episode of Doc begins, a woman goes to the store to pick up supplies. Francine (Kellee Stewart) goes up to a man and immediately begins flirting with him despite not knowing him. The woman causes a scene. She runs outside with items she didn’t pay for before falling and hitting her face. Amy Larsen (Molly Parker) looks through her draft messages. Jake Heller (Jon-Michael Ecker) comes out and learns that the board results still aren’t back. Amy asks Dixon since she’s seen that name in her messages. Jake doesn’t know much about that. Michael Hamda (Omar Metwally) drives by and sees them together. He sees them kiss. At the hospital, Amy asks Julie (Claire Armstrong) if she knows anything about Dixon. Julie doesn’t know anything about it either. Amy asks her to look into it. Julie agrees to check it out when she gets a moment. Dr. Richard Miller (Scott Wolf) wants to see Amy.
Richard speaks to his son on the phone before Amy arrives. He tells Amy that they’re spread thin because TJ has the flu and Sonya is taking some personal time. Amy is going to work with Richard today. His assessment of her skills and judgment will be part of her presentation to the Board for reinstatement. They speak to the woman from the store. Amy says they want to keep Francine in for observation since she has a small bleed although it should resolve itself. Richard suggests she just needs a night to dry out. The woman says her mom died of cancer when she was young and her dad committed suicide. Jake deals with a patient who had an episode of vertigo and collapsed in the mall. He wants out of the hospital by Saturday for his 10-year high school reunion. The love of his life is going to be there and she’s the one who got away. It is Olivia Hoffman’s first time coming back since moving to London for law school. Wes (Nicholas Podany) tells Nurse Liz (Conni Miu) that Olivia got married to the wrong guy and they’re getting divorced.
Olivia messaged Wes saying how excited she was to see him. Wes believes this could be the one chance to right the one big wrong of his life. Liz tells Julie about the love story. Francine walks around the hospital and complains about only being given a Tylenol. She tries to get into the medicine cabinet. Members of security try to contain her. Richard and Amy watch her being taken away. In a flashback, Amy checks on Richard in his office. Richard reminds her that she can’t keep skipping breakfast. Amy is doing intermittent fasting. She’s waiting to hear from Michael about the field trip to the Natural History Museum. Moments later, Michael contacts her to give her the bad news. In the present, Francine insists she’s not a drug addict or violent. Dr. Gina Walker (Amirah Vann) talks to her about the incident at the convenience store. Francine admits she doesn’t recognize herself lately. Amy insists they’ll figure out what is wrong with her.
Richard asks if there is anyone they can contact. Francine says they could contact her sister but she won’t care. In the hallway, Richard recommends calling the sister to see if she has any insight and not frontloading the worst-case scenarios. In private, Gina reminds Amy to be herself. Jake tells Wes they’re almost finished with the final part of his V&G. Nurse Liz asks Wes about the message from Olivia. He tells her what the message said. Julie arrives seconds later. Liz believes Olivia is into Wes. Mandy surprises Wes when she enters his room. She says her best friend is in the hospital. Wes nearly falls when he gets up and his chest feels tight. Jake realizes this is not an inner ear issue. Michael asks to see Jake in his office. Amy gets in touch with Connie Brady (Patrice Goodman) to ask about her sister, Francine. Connie doesn’t want to be there for her because Francine was never there for her. She begins telling Amy about their dad. Amy tells Richard that the dad used alcohol and drugs before he became a hermit. Then, he killed himself. Amy suspects FTD.
Michael speaks to Jake about his relationship with Amy and how it could impact her chances with the Board. Jake says it’s not that simple. Michael argues that nothing is simple with Amy right now. In a flashback, Richard checks on Amy since they didn’t get a chance to speak at the funeral. He says he’s there for her. Amy doesn’t need more time at home and she’d like him to stop talking. In the present, Amy and Richard see asymmetrical atrophy in the frontal and temporal lobes. Richard points out the hypometabolism in the prefrontal cortex. He says they need genetic testing. Amy tells Francine that she has a condition called frontotemporal dementia. There is no cure. Most people live six to ten years after the onset of symptoms. Amy suspects her father had the condition as well. Gina points out that some patients self-medicate and self-harm. They’re here to help her navigate what is to come. Connie arrives with her children. Jake messages Amy to say they need to talk later.
Liv talks to Julie about Mandy being the plot twist in the story. Jake goes into the room to check on Wes. Mandy gives Wes advice for dealing with Olivia when he sees her. Wes decides to let Olivia write his response. Mandy isn’t so sure they’re soul mates. Wes begins complaining about his chest hurting. Jake believes they’re getting closer to finding out what is happening to Wes. In a flashback, Richard asks Amy if they can talk. She says she overstepped him because he had it wrong today. Amy says Numeroff is about to announce his retirement and she wants to take his spot as Chief even though she didn’t want it before. Amy insists she’s the most qualified person for the job. She won’t keep her mouth shut just because they’re presents. In the present, Connie talks to Amy about pushing her sister out of her life for something she couldn’t control. Amy says she can only control what happens going forward. She admits there’s a 50% chance that Connie carries the gene.
If Connie is negative, her kids will be as well. Gina tells Francine she still has time and can spend it with her sister. Francine doesn’t want to put her sister through this again. Jake tells Wes he has an atrial septal defect or a hole in his heart. Jake explains it’s good news because the condition is treatable. They can use a plug to close the hole. The bad news is that he’s not going to make the reunion. Wes suggests that’s a small price to pay. Mandy tries to cheer him up. When Jake meets Amy, he tells her that Michael saw them together. Michael made it clear he believes what they’re doing is inappropriate. Jake didn’t tell him they were together before the accident. He admits Michael isn’t wrong. Jake argues he’s listening to Michael to protect Amy’s reputation. Amy reminds him she’s a grown woman and their relationship is consensual. Jake tells Amy he loves her and has for a long time. He’s okay waiting for a while or transferring to another hospital. Amy confronts Michael and complains about what he did. Michael reminds her that he has to defend everything she does.
Amy tells him they were together for five months before the accident. Michael says this will complicate the situation with the Board if it gets out. He tells her to do whatever she wants. In a flashback, Chief Numeroff (Neil Crone) tells Richard that they’re going to give the Chief position to Amy. Richard warns him that Amy’s bedside manner is problematic and that’s not to mention her treatment of the staff. Numeroff suggests he can teach her to be kinder. Richard isn’t sure about that. In the present, Amy asks Richard about Francine. He says Francine and Connie seem to be mending fences. Connie doesn’t want to take the test. Amy asks if there’s something going on with him that she doesn’t remember. Richard says she doesn’t know because he never told her. He tells her about Lucas being diagnosed with bipolar and schizotypal disorders. They had to put him into a facility. Richard worries that Lucas will end up like Francine. Amy tries to tell him it’s not like that. Still, Richard understands why Connie wants to keep her head in the sand.
Amy suggests she doesn’t have to because they can help her without her knowing. Amy checks on Connie and Francine. She asks Connie if she knows her blood type. Amy asks for a blood draw just in case Francine ever needs a transfusion. Connie agrees to give blood. Jake tells Wes that his procedure will be endovascular but he’ll be sedated. Olivia Hoffman (Genevieve DeGraves) visits him. Jake and Liz can come back. Mandy comes in with a bear and agrees to let them catch up. A bit later, Jake lets Mandy know that Wes is having the procedure. She isn’t thrilled about Olivia. Jake offers her his advice. If he doesn’t see what’s right in front of him, he doesn’t deserve Mandy. Mandy thinks it’s complicated when they’re friends first. Jake believes that should make it easier. In a flashback, Amy complains about Richard being two hours late. She wants to give him another chance to answer his question about Bill Dixon. Richard says he did multiple rounds of CPR, defibrillation, and EPI after Bill coded.
He also gave him Amiodarone. Amy asks him about the unsealed vial of Metoprolol she saw on the crash cart. She suggests he might have mixed them up. Richard says this is low. Amy says she ordered an autopsy. If Richard is lying, he’s finished here. In the present, Richard and Amy talk about the test they’re going to run on Connie’s blood. They open the test results together. Wes wakes up and learns the procedure went well. He tells Olivia he never forgot the story she wrote about him. Olivia says she didn’t write that story. When she says it was some girl who did her homework that year, Liz realizes she’s talking about Mandy. Wes finds out the truth before Olivia decides she should leave. Richard and Amy speak to Francine who is ready to be discharged. Amy tells Connie that her test was negative. Francine is going home with Connie. Julie and Liz talk about whether Wes is going to choose Mandy. They watch as Wes embraces her and they leave holding hands.
Richard and Amy agree that they did a good thing today. Richard believes Amy would’ve berated Connie for being selfish six months ago. Amy admits she still doesn’t remember anything. Richard tells her she’s still a good doctor. He’ll recommend she be reinstated. Amy tells him she’s been in a relationship with Jake. She thinks he should know since it’s his department. Amy says she’s lost so much that she doesn’t want to give this up. Richard tells her to talk it over with Jake. When they’re ready, they can make everything transparent with HR. Amy finds Jake and discusses it with him. Michael gets Richard’s email saying he’s going to recommend Amy be reinstated. Richard speaks to Lucas on the phone. Julie tries to find out about Dixon. She learns about Bill Dixon and checks his autopsy results. At home, Amy tells Gina she hasn’t told Katie about Jake. When Katie (Charlotte Fountain-Jardim) joins them, Amy says she’s received her test results. Katie confirms she’s a doctor again.
Michael arrives at the door because he wanted to say a few things to Amy. He says he read Richard’s recommendation and understands she was honest with him about Jake. Michael admits he doesn’t want this. He believes he just missed her. Amy tells him about passing the boards. Michael leaves.
Doc Review
This episode of Doc was fun at times thanks to Liz and Wes’s love story. It was obviously predictable, but it added something new to the mix. Throughout the episodes, the patient cases have not always been great. It’s possible that having two patients for each episode makes it more difficult to sympathize with both of them.
When Amy and Richard got Connie’s test results, there should’ve been a sense of concern for Connie. Although there was general curiosity, it didn’t feel like the outcome for Connie really mattered. That’s one area where the show does not excel. The limited time is already divided among two patients so there’s not enough time to develop feelings for any of them.
The series is also becoming formulaic with Amy doing something unethical or wrong in pretty much every episode. As mentioned previously, she always turns out to be right and she never faces any repercussions. In that sense, viewers will have to accept these unbelievable scenes to really enjoy the series.
The Bill Dixon thing has been a mistake from the beginning. At this point, the only suitable way for that to end is for Amy to find out the truth and work with Richard to make it right. After all, she’s done just as many bad things in the last few episodes alone. A bigger issue is the overall longevity of the series.
The story moved a bit too quickly after Amy’s injury and there will be a 22-episode second series. The memory angle has pretty much already run its course so the series is going to turn into a conventional medical drama at some point. Based on the quality of the patient storylines at this point, it may not have what it takes to maintain viewer interest for that long.
This episode scores a 6 out of 10. Recaps of Doc can be found here. Find out how to support our independent site at this link. Learn more about advertising with us here. Join the discussion here.
Jay Skelton is a fan of all television shows and movies. He tries his best to keep up with the latest foreign television shows and movies. Jay loves skinny dipping in the dark too.