Episode 2 of the Good Doctor season 6 starts with Lim getting ready to go to work after 14 weeks of recovery but she is paralyzed and using a wheelchair. The staff at the hospital excitedly welcome her back but Allen thinks things seem awkward between Lim and Shaun.
Allen thinks the paralyzation is because Shaun ignored Glassman’s orders during Lim’s surgery but Asher points out that whatever technique they had used, no one would have known the outcome. These two love to bicker, at least some things have not changed. As it turns out Allen is wrong because Lim thanks Shaun for saving her life.
Meanwhile, Shaun and Park are reporting for their first day as surgical attendings and meeting their first-year residents Dr. Daniel Perez and Dr. Danica Powell. Perez is easy on the eyes, and the nurses are already whipped for him. Park argues that it is better if he takes “handsome Dan” because it would be helpful to have someone the staff likes. Shaun on the other hand is pragmatic and thinks being an attending is not going to be different from being a senior resident so he doesn’t care who he ends up with.
Before Park gets a chance to get Perez, Reznick takes him first leading to an argument. Their relationship turned sour when Park dumped her for choosing a job in New York which she later turned down but now they can’t stand each other.
Lim wants to get back on surgeries but Andrews is unsure if she is going to be a surgeon again. Lim insists on it leaving Andrews no choice but to agree on the condition that he will join her on the hernia repair surgery. During the surgery, she has a hard time and is unable to finish the surgery so Andrews takes over.
After the surgery, Andrews talks with Lim and reminds her that being Chief of Surgery is much more than “cutting.” Lim agrees but says she feels impatient and won’t give up just because she failed on her first try. She runs into Glassman and he advises her to change the O.R to accommodate her so she can do these surgeries without necessarily overwhelming her body.
She takes his advice and the O.R staff helps her with adjusting the O.R to enable her to do surgeries. She does a second surgery and completes it.
Shaun is dealing with a heart transplant patient but complications with the new heart force him to abort the surgery and find a new way to save the patient. Asher suggests a Xeno transplant but Powell refuses to take part in the surgery. She doesn’t believe in killing animals to save human life but Shaun notifies her she has no choice.
Powell says she will take her chance and has no problem being fired. Shaun tries to seek advice from Andrews about his resident but he tells him he should learn to make tough decisions on his own. Shaun is still worried about what to do so he goes to Glassman and Lea. Glassman thinks he should give Powell a chance but Lea says Powell’s defiance will only get worse with time thus he should fire her pronto. In the end, Shaun decides to fire Powell because he trusts Lea more even though Glassman has more leadership experience.
Later, Shaun changes his mind after talking with Lim and decides he will respect Powell’s stance but he will still mentor her. He asks her to watch the surgery from the O.R gallery because she still needs to learn how to do the surgery. Luckily, a human heart arrives just in time before they kill the pig they initially planned to use.
Reznick and Park butt head again when dealing with a patient with a mass on his neck. They want to approach the surgery using different techniques. Perez suggests they use both techniques and they begrudgingly agree. The surgery goes well and Perez impresses Park with his skills and fast thinking in the O.R. After the surgery, Reznick, and Park get called into Andrews’ office and he orders them to sort their stuff out.
In the closing scene, Lim has a hard time getting out of her car when she arrives home and in her frustration, she confesses she blames Shaun for her paralyzation.
Lim is having a hard time adjusting to being in a wheelchair and I am glad she is still willing to get in the O.R and save lives. She went through a life-altering event and, understandably, she will need time to adjust.
I just hope she will be ready to accept help because it doesn’t mean she is weak. Sadly, she blames Shaun for how things turned out. Do you think Shaun is to blame?