The 2011 Summer Re-watch: Everwood "The Doctor Is In" Review

When Andy and Julia had their conversation about Everwood, Julia told her husband that he'd need to stop being the big city doctor so he could perform miracles for the small town people because they need miracles too. The insular community of Everwood sometimes is a doctor's best friend or worst enemy, depending on the situation. Andy's gotten to know the town's prejudices and small minded-ness in a short time span because of medical cases he was directly involved in or defending. The town can be utterly unforgiving.

In Manhattan, Andy Brown moved from patient to patient without taking the time to know the person he'd be performing brain surgery on. He couldn't afford to let himself think of the people he'd be affecting if he failed. If he fails to perform successful surgery on a beloved person of Everwood then he'll have to face his failure and the grief and pain he caused people because of his failure. Specifically, with Colin Hart, he'll not only let down his son but also the Abbotts, the Harts and Colin most importantly. Colin's the golden boy of the town so the entire town will look at Andy differently.

"The Doctor Is In" truly begins one of the great arcs in television drama history and, certainly, the best arc in the four seasons of Everwood. The episode ends without a decision regarding surgery but it successfully establishes the stakes for the characters. For Andy, it's about the outcome and he never thought about the outcome in Manhattan because he never thought about the patients in terms of their life with family and friends because brain surgery becomes more daunting. For Amy, it's about the life or death for the only boy she's ever loved. The girl become catatonic when she realized that Colin would never come back to her without surgery. For Harold, it's about what his heart-broken daughter deserves, what he deserves and what every other doctor deserves because Andy's been blessed with a rare surgical gift and it'd be a blatant waste of God-given ability to opt against performing a surgery that he'll succeed with. For the Harts, it's about their son's quality of life or the possibility of death if the risky surgery fails.

Andy declines to perform the surgery though he tells his son that the Harts declined to take the chance with surgery. The truth emerges, and Andy's forced to confront his own neurosis over the surgery. He consults Dr. Trott, Everwood's favorite traveling psychologist, about his fears and doubts. Trott offers little helpful advice, only imparting a weird 'welcome to the human race, Dr. Brown' when Andy admits that being a father and a small town doctor's harder than he expected because each case is much more personal. Of course, advice was secondary in his meeting with Dr. Trott. Andy needed someone to talk to and he couldn't honestly express his feelings to ANYONE in Everwood because people are too invested in Colin Hart or Amy and won't see clearly without bias. Once he discussed his concerns and worries with a neutral party, he could move onto what he was seemingly put on earth to do, which is save Colin Hart.

The arc's truly just beginning so I don't want to write too much about where it goes but I enjoyed the foreshadowing in this episode. Andy's not a stupid man. As high as the highs get are as low as the lows get. I wrote about how masterfully Kevin Williamson and Joss Whedon structure their big arcs in past posts. The same mastery applies to Berlanti and his writers. "The Doctor Is In" deals with the initial stages of the arc--the decision, establishing the stakes for the major characters in the narrative. The seventh episode, "We Hold These Truths," finally introduces the audience to Colin and shows his relationship with Amy and his friendship with Bright.

Season 1 is about to become outstanding.

Some Other Thoughts:

-Dr. Abbott feuds with Dr. Trott throughout the episode. Harold's issues with the psychologist pays off comically in a future episode. Harold's issue with her isn't personal; rather, he dislikes how her Winnebago takes up two spots (one of the spots is his). He has issue with how he perceives she enables the citizens of Everwood. For instance, his nurse Louise stands up to him after she visits with Dr. Trott. Louise explains that she wasn't hired to make coffee nor re-arrange chairs. She is his nurse and would like to be treated as such. Tom Amandes, it should go without saying, is spectacular throughout the scene.

-Speaking of Louise, Jan Broberg deserves credit for her performance as Dr. Abbott's timid nurse. Tim Minear said that actors and actresses like Jan Broberg (he didn't actually use Jan's name) make the difference in an episode because they hold a series together. Now, Louise remained in the series all four seasons and Minear meant actors who are brought in for a scene or two (but two important scenes). Still, Jan's great throughout the series and I may not write much about Louise over the course of season one so I wanted to spotlight her for a moment.

-Delia loses her only friend in the episode. Magilla's shipped to a boy's school in a bizarre C story. Magilla was born with ambiguous genitalia so his parents reared him as a boy but his play dates with Delia brought out his feminine side and his parents flipped. Andy wants to help but the parents don't want help. It's just told oddly with no resolution or "message" that stories like these have in family dramas.

-Bright's consistently disinterested in Colin's case. He barely visits and he won't bother eating dinner with the Harts to help his sister out. One wonders why. We know that Bright was the passenger and that he doesn't remember anything which makes his lack of interest in his best friend's life odd. I write that fully knowing the revelation in episode seven. I figured I'd point out some smaller seeds planted in the episode as well as previous ones.

-Ephram's assumed the role of white knight with Amy--he wants to care for her and protect her. He wrote a song for her because she told him that only Colin brought her flowers when she had recitals. Ephram wanted to bring her something so he brought her music. It's a sweet scene.

-Vanessa Taylor wrote the episode. She hasn't written much television since Everwood. Her name's popped up in the spec market scene though and her movie's in pre-production now. Vanessa was a reliable Everwood scribe until she left after season two. Stephen Gyllenhall directed the episode.

UP NEXT: "We Hold these Truths"--As Andy performs surgery on Colin, flashbacks reveal what happened on that 4th of July day. Meanwhile, Ephram helps Amy during her waiting-room vigil. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002SLQMPG

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