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RSS'Private Practice' reveals more emotionally gooey centers
Is tonight's episode of Private Practice a trick or a treat? Is it a full-sized chocolate bar in your loot bag, or a rock? Or is it something in between?
Spoilers ahead... spooky emotional details! Oooooooo!
Addison faces her baby envy with a patient, Angie, who is lying to her husband about wanting a child. She asks Naomi and Addison to lie, and "blame" their inability to conceive on him... and not on her using birth control. This woman has everything Addison wants -- an adoring husband who wants children -- and she's seemingly throwing it all away. However, she reveals that the reason she doesn't want children is because she fears she is carrying the gene for Huntington's Disease, and with Addison's help, she finds out that she is indeed a carrier. She ends up leaving her husband, to save him from the pain of losing a wife and not having the child he so desperately wants. In the end, Addison talks her back, explaining that she needs to tell her husband the truth, and that "a person should get to have a whole life." Addison isn't feeling whole herself then, we gleam.
Cooper has a young patient, Tess, who says her multiple injuries are just from being clumsy, but the signs point to abuse. Her mother, Marilyn, who suffers from MS, is much loved by Sam, her doctor. Following his gut, Cooper calls Child Protective Services on the basis of her records, including a repeated accident to her arm which looks like someone twisted it, hard. Sam is angry, and defends Marilyn, causing friction between the two doctors. When questioned about it, both Tess and Marilyn insist it's because Tess is only trying to help her mom keep from falling, and sometimes her arm gets bruised in the process. Even before the hearing, Cooper is second guessing his actions. But in a very revealing moment, Dell actually explains the signs of abuse, because he went through it himself. Just before seeing the judge, Tessa reveals that her mother does indeed hit her, but she's willing to let her. While on the stand, Cooper explains that no one child should allow themselves to be abused, because it denies them the chance of being a child. Sam realizes he was wrong, and admits his fault to Cooper.
Charlotte is suffering from insomnia, and nothing seems to be working. Sam turns her over to Pete, who does everything he can think of to get her to relax and sleep. Nothing seems to work, until in a brief session with Violet, when we learn Charlotte has intimacy issues -- she's letting no one in. She has a moment of confidential release with Pete, and is able to sleep afterwards -- but is back to being the Tiger Lady the moment she wakes up.
All of these storylines, and their emotionally bitter yet revealing centers aren't rocks or full sized bars, but good satisfying nuggets of character building. Like four or five dark chocolate mini-sized bars.
Other Random Thoughts:
- I liked the episode opener... and the closer... they were both powerful moments for Addison to get the upper hand, and let Pete look like the needy flirt of the pair. It was a good way to empower her, if only a little, and set the balance back to almost even between them. Pete always seems so self-assured, so quietly confident, and he was thrown off a bit in this episode, between Addison's challenges and Charlotte's calling him out as taking the easy way out with holistic medicine.
- Prediction: Charlotte, the old version of Addison, is going to be the other part of a triangle with Pete. I love this woman! And Charlotte had a pill problem? Nice that she has a fault besides just being a hard ass in a sea of feel good doctors.
- Pete is The Fun Guy, and not the Deep Family Guy? Not the marrying type? I've never pegged him as the Fun Guy. His dead wife and bad marriage didn't sour him entirely. I think that's a lot of hot air. And no matter what may happen with Addison, I still think he's going to be pulled toward nurturing Charlotte instead of Addison.
- Naomi should hit that, and you know what I mean. That's just what she needs.
- Violet doesn't want kids and I think that's a good idea.
What did you think? Did you enjoy this episode as much as I did, or is it just the sugar high talking from raiding my kids' candy?
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Zap2it Twitter Talk 
Is it wrong that Pete/TD is as old as my dad, yet I'd still hit it in a millisecond?
I thought the Pete/Addison scenes were good. Nice chemistry from the pair in the past few episodes. It's interesting that they might make Charlotte a point in the triangle. I had her pegged for Sam.
Cooper is still great. I...just love him. And he gets so many great lines.
I'm not agreeing with the Charlotte being pulled into a love triangle angle. I think Charlotte and Sam are being positioned to be a couple. After all it is Sam who ends up at the hospital everytime they need to send someone over.
I'm a little worried about Dell/Naomi actually happening. The reason is that there is a power inbalance; whereas, with eg. Pete and Addison they are at the same level but Dell (or is it Del?) is a subordinate.
Tonight's episode sealed these characters for me. Before tonight I was a little on the fence about everyone but Addison. I also liked Charlotte, I always knew there was a softer side to her, not soft but softer and last night we got to see it.
I agree that Dell and Naomi would just be weird to watch. I agreed with her when she was talking to Sam that he is a child. He is very young looking and I don't really get the chemistry there.
I also thought that the Addison/Pete thing would take longer. It's only November and they are already kissing randomly. From what I got from the last scene was that Addison wasn't willing to settle for Pete when he wasn't ready to commit. Yet the preview for next week showed them making out again. Either be together or don't the in-between thing drives me crazy.
Is it too much to ask for an episode where Cooper is wrong and the parent is not evil? Having a child when there's a 50% chance of it developing Huntington's is a very selfish thing to do. Dell and Naomi is going to happen, and it's her fault for not shutting him down... he pretty much confessed to loving her last night. Addison is an idiot for trying to change Pete to what she wants him to be (marriage material) from what he actually is (emotionally damaged)... men are not fixer-uppers.
AUTHOR: Dillon
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IP: 65.188.134.224
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DATE: 11/01/2007 07:57:58 AM
This show is getting werider and werider with there medical cases I didn't even know that hungington's disease is a really sound werid disease, and trying to put that blonde with pete i think is perfect they are both *******s anyways!
Dillon-- Huntington's is a REAL disease. It's not "weird" to bring attention to a real and fatal disease that thousands of Americans deal with on a daily basis.
And AC, who are you to decide what makes a life have value? The majority of HD patients don't even begin to show symptoms until age 40 or 50, and after that, death doesn't occur for ten or fifteen years. Who are you to say that because a child could have a risk of HD, they should never be born? How is it selfish? What if the child is born WITHOUT the HD gene and then is hit by a car and killed at age ten? Does that negate the value of his or her life prior to his death, and mean that the child shoudl never have existed? What a totally brain-dead view of the world.
I don't have a problem with Naomi and Del's age difference, but I do have a problem with a boss dating a subordinate. Unless they make him a full partner now that he is a nurse(is he a nurse or a nurse practioner?), I would not like to see Naomi & Del together.
A one time deal would do wonders for Naomi's ego, but it would hurt Del a lot. He is in love with Naomi and wants a whole relationship with her.
Age is relative. I have a good friend who got married this summer whose husband is 18 years younger. It all depends on the attitudes of the couple.
great episode.
and i love to see pete/charolette over pete/addison. but that's just me..
This was the first PP episode I've ever seen. And Addison isn't as spunky as she used to be...sad. She had more chemistry with the Grey's guys than anyone on this show.
That Charlotte is one tough prick. But I do see chemistry between her and both guys: Pete and Sam (names?).
Overrall: If the show stops stuffing Addison-Pete down my throat, I may continue watching. Oh, and if it stops being so damn BORING too.