Loveday Writing

Later on they attend to a medical drama, heavily pregnant farmer, Maggie, has cut her leg deeply with a saw at her farm. Tara arrives at the scene first to treat her, then Hugh arrives minutes later. Tara’s PTSD is returning and Hugh realises that Maggie is haemorrhaging so Tara has to perform an emergency c-section to save her life. Despite her reluctance due to her previous experience, she manages to successfully perform the c-section, and Hugh and the paramedics successfully save Maggie’s life. Hugh later reveals that he and Penny had to perform a hysterectomy on Maggie as she developed a blood clotting condition from the incident.

When the day ends, Hugh offers to comfort Tara but she turns him down. At the end of the episode, she spirals out of control by going on another alcohol and drug fuelled bender.

Overall I didn’t enjoy the ongoing cliche of Hugh and Tara going on benders and hooking up, however I felt they redeemed themselves by showing their competence as doctors when treating Maggie. In regards to the medical drama, I felt seeing one play out was long overdue and it was portrayed quite well as it was realistic to the circumstances and kept me on the edge of my seat.

Matt and Charlie—Throughout the episode, Hugh and Charlie are trying to get Matt back in the dating game. Matt runs into Charlie at the beginning of the episode at a petrol station, where he tells her about the break-up and she offers to work at the Brewery to help out. Later, Matt is seen signing up on a dating app and even matching with another woman, however it doesn’t pan out. At the end of the episode, both of them are matched on the dating app by indicating their mutual interest.

Overall I liked this subplot, however I would have liked to have seen more of Matt as a single man. Yes it is highly likely that Matt and Charlie will get back together, but it still would have been good to have Matt as a single man for a while as it would be an opportunity for character development. That being said, if the writers are working towards them getting back together, it looks like it will be a slow burn. Considering how much time has passed in the Doctor Doctor universe and everything that has happened between them and when they have been apart, a slow burn is the best approach to take.

Hayley and Ken—Hayley spends most of the episode job hunting in town and Ken spends most of the episode lamenting how invisible he is to those around him, so it’s only natural that they would eventually stumble upon each other. This is the first episode we’ve seen Hayley and Ken interact and in all honesty it was worth the wait. Ken asks her when was the last time she ever did anything for herself and according to Hayley, she hasn’t since her childhood. Ken then takes her to a pole dancing studio where he reveals that he takes a class every week. Hayley is reluctant to participate due to her religious beliefs, however she changes her mind at the end of the episode as she feels the need to have control over her life and ends up enjoying herself. This also makes Ken happy as someone has finally noticed and listened to him.

Overall I enjoyed the somewhat odd pairing between these two and the fact that they ended up helping each other. I hope we see them in the class together again at some point.

Penny and Jarrod—At the start of the episode, Jarrod tells Penny that his FIFO accommodation got Council approval, which she is happy about, only for that happiness to be quickly squashed when Betty tells her that something is going on at the mine. According to Betty’s online sources, the mine expansion is unsustainable, and Jarrod and his staff are burying environmental statements about the work being done. Penny doesn’t believe her, at least not at first. When Hugh comes into her office while she is reading the online forum that Betty told her about, she tells him about what Betty said and whether it may be true or not.

Betty later tells Penny that the mining company is actually donating a C-Scanner to the Cardiac Wing. Penny thinks it’s generous, until Betty points out something to her. When Penny confronts Jarrod about it, she questions the timing of his donation and accuses him of trying to get a “one-up” on Hugh. Jarrod gets angry and leaves, pointing out to her that she’s pushing him away. Penny calls Hugh to tell him about it.

Overall I found this subplot to be a little rushed and not fully fleshed out, however conflict between Penny and Jarrod regarding Hugh is long overdue. I feel that there should have been more build up to this conflict.

Meryl—The focus on Meryl was relatively minor in this episode but it also spoke volumes. Meryl wants to celebrate becoming Mayor of Whyhope by having a dinner with the family. However as usual, she ends up alienating Hugh, Matt and Ajax by her own selfishness, especially as she doesn’t listen to any of them when she invites them to dinner and makes it all about her, something Matt points out to her. The consequences of this hit her when none of them show up to her dinner.

I enjoyed this minor subplot as on a small level, Meryl finally got what she deserved. It will be interesting to see how this plays out in the remaining episodes, especially as there were subtle hints that Matt’s words to her and the fact that no-one showed up clearly hurt her deeply.

Overall this episode was an improvement on the previous episodes as there was finally a worthwhile medical emergency to watch, minor character development with Hayley and Ken, the possibility of Matt and Charlie getting back together not being shoved in the viewers’ face as much as it usually is, and Meryl finally experiencing some consequences to her selfish actions.

It will be interesting to see where the remaining episodes go from here.

Best one liners and interactions:

• “Penny’s got a nose for bullshit, it’s quite discerning actually.” (Hugh to Tara)
• “I can’t read anything under that dopey smile, I think it’s stuck there.” (Jarrod to Meryl on Rod)
• “The Pretty Titty—my long, cherished dream.” (Rod on his topless bar dream)
• “I can’t believe I’m going to say this, but you’re doing a good job.” (Penny to Hugh)
• “You should rule your life like you ruled that pole.” (Ken to Hayley)