‘The Good Doctor’ Season 2, Episode 1 ‘Hello’ Premiere Recap: New Beginnings

The Good Doctor made a name for itself last year after giving us one impressive and emotional season. Tonight’s season 2 premiere, titled “Hello,” puts us right in the heart of what makes this show good—Dr. Shaun Murphy (Freddie Highmore) himself.

Months after the events of the season 1 finale, we are brought back to the San Jose Bonaventure Hospital under the leadership of Dr. Marcus Andrews (Hill Harper), its new president following Dr. Aaron Glassman’s (Richard Schiff) exit. What makes “Hello” even more special is that Highmore wrote the episode, that’s why the emotional investment is doubled. With a great roster of guest stars and a strong narrative that points out to how effective the surgical team of St. Bonaventure is, The Good Doctor’s comeback is even better than when it first premiered.

In this week’s episode, Shaun and Dr. Jared Kalu (Chuku Modu) take on charity duty. This is also Jared’s last day at St. Bonaventure before he moves to Denver Medical. They have good intentions in helping a homeless patient with his condition, but Dr. Andrews has them both by the neck. Meanwhile, after Andrews’ evaluation of Dr. Neil Melendez’s (Nicholas Gonzalez) surgical team, their skills are put to the test through an extremely complicated and risky heart surgery that could put the hospital’s reputation on the line.

Dr. Glassman’s condition, on the other hand, appears to be on the verge of a cure. But when he brings in Dr. Marina Blaize (Lisa Edelstein), Glassman has to overcome his personal bias about his preferred Oncologist.

Operation: Save Harry

“Hello” opens with Andrews conducting his private review of all the surgeons under Melendez’s team, with Shaun going in first. Andrews commends his fantastic work as a surgeon but tells him to work on his communication skills. Later, Jared and Shaun are assigned to work at an outreach program that cares for the homeless’ medical needs. When Jared asks Shaun about his evaluation, he only tells him about Andrews praising his work.

Jeff Weddell/ABC

As Shaun finishes up his examination of another patient, Jared asks him about Dr. Glassman and if Shaun has already seen him for his operation and evaluation. Shaun dismisses it, saying that he can’t Glassman emotionally. Suddenly, another homeless man invades their medical truck to ransack its supplies, but the two catch him. The man, named Harry (Raphael Sbarge), appears to be schizophrenic, and also has a tooth abscess.

They treat him in the truck, but Jared notices that Harry’s neck is stiff and Shaun sees that he’s having a hard time trying to grasp a cup. It appears that the abscess has developed into bacterial meningitis and is infecting parts of Harry’s brain, making him seem like a person with schizophrenia. Jared decides to bring him to St. Bonaventure for a lumbar puncture. Shaun hesitates, but Jared assures him that it’s all on him if Andrews throws a fit.

True enough, Andrew sees Jared and Shaun treating Harry. He confronts them and warns Jared that if his diagnosis is wrong, he will contact Denver Medical to cancel Jared’s employment. It’s clear that Jared wants to prove Andrews wrong, in a final effort to subtly humiliate him before Jared leaves.

They wait for Harry’s test results, which then turns out negative. Jared’s career is now hanging by a thread. Later, Jared insists that Shaun be with Glassman during this complicated time. That’s when Shaun admits to Jared that he’s trying to deflect the situation because he couldn’t find it easy to face the fact that Glassman is still dying.

Jeff Weddell/ABC

Meanwhile, Glassman brings in Dr. Blaize to oversee his brain tumor treatment. He gives her detailed instructions on how to go about it, his pride oozing out of him. Dr. Blaize was fired from St. Bonaventure for her excessive marijuana use, but Glassman reinstated her as his final act before leaving the hospital presidency. After all, she is the best oncologist around. Despite Glassman’s proddings, Blaize puts him in his place by saying that if he’s going to have to spend all day for tests and waiting for results, it’s going to happen on her terms.

Glassman spends the rest of the day in the waiting room, trying to shoot paper balls in the trash bin. That’s when Shaun comes in after feeling guilty about not being there for Glassman. He sits down and reads a book, telling Glassman that he wanted to read a book, but Jared told him to be there for his mentor. Shaun figured that he could do both at the same time. Glassman tries desperately to shoot the paper balls in the trash bin, annoying Shaun. He then rips out a page of his book and aims at the trash can.

Jeff Weddell/ABC

But that’s when Shaun realizes that Harry’s condition isn’t due to bacterial meningitis. Shaun remembers that Harry had a hard time trying to grasp the cup he was giving him, which is the same dilemma that Glassman faces, only his struggle is about shooting the paper balls right. Harry also has a brain tumor.

Shaun runs to find Jared, and they both head back to the homeless people’s tent city. They have a hard time looking for Harry, and Shaun nearly suffers a breakdown when the homeless make too much noise (paired with an angry dog barking at him). Jared tries to calm him down and finally spots Harry’s tent. They try to call him out, but Harry is skeptical. His schizophrenic tendencies try to take over, but Shaun discovers Harry’s social security ID. It turns out that Harry isn’t his real name. He’s actually Edward Austin Thomas, and the brain tumor is causing him to think erratically. Shaun tells “Harry” that he needs surgery so he can be Edward again and reunite with his wife and daughter.

Jeff Weddell/ABC

They bring him back to St. Bonaventure for an MRI scan. Andrew comes in, visibly pissed at what Jared and Shaun are trying to force themselves into doing. Jared defends himself that it’s Shaun’s call this time and that he communicated with Harry well so they can bring him back to cure him. Shaun also tells Andrews that Harry has a brain tumor. Andrew concedes and tells them to contact Dr. Audrey Lim (Christina Chang), and prep Harry for surgery. Later, the tumor is finally removed, and Dr. Lim tells them to wait and see who comes back if it’s Harry or Edward.

Harry wakes up to see his wife and daughter standing at the foot of the bed. He’s back and finally Edward again. Jared then tells Shaun that he meant what he said to Andrews. He might not see what Shaun accomplished, but he did. Jared thanks Shaun, and he does so too.

A tricky surgery

Dr. Claire Browne (Antonia Thomas), Dr. Morgan Reznick (Fiona Gubelmann), and Dr. Alex Park (Will Yun Lee) discuss their evaluations. When asked about Claire’s, she lies and tells them that Andrews commended her genuine connection and care to patients. But in truth, Andrews wanted her to be more assertive. Morgan, on the other hand, had to be more of a team player.

Jeff Weddell/ABC

Melendez comes in and informs them about a heart surgery that they’ll be doing. It’s a surgeon’s dream come true—they’re going to leave the patient’s heart inside, but slide in another to support it. In other words, it’s a piggyback transplant. They inform the patient, Melanie Arnott (Gabrielle Rose) and her son Elliot (Lane Edwards) about the surgery. Elliot is a bit unsure of the operation, but Melanie tells them all that Andrews recommended Melendez publicly, even raving about it all morning to the press.

Melendez confronts Andrews about the press thing. It doesn’t sit well with him, but Andrews thinks it could fuel their funding for the surgery. Melendez thinks that Andrews is only doing this to generate buzz for his new post as the president. However, Andrews envisions this buzz would help them establish a center for surgical excellence. Besides, it could be a nice feather in the cap for whoever replaces Andrews as the head of surgery—*wink wink* to Melendez.

Jeff Weddell/ABC

Later, Claire, Alex, and Morgan scan Melanie’s heart. Morgan also asks Claire about Jared and says that she knows it’s hard to say goodbye to someone who did mean something to them. Alex then notices an anomaly in Melanie’s heart—an aortic aneurysm. The piggyback transplant won’t work. They bring in their findings to Melendez and try to look for a way around it. Alex and Morgan’s suggestion could work, but it doesn’t sit well with Melendez. He leaves to inform Andrews that the surgery won’t push through. Claire, on the other hand, proposes something (although she’s not that sure if it could work)—using a Teflon graft to reduce the risk of an aneurysm.

As Melendez argues with Andrews about the possibilities for Melanie’s heart surgery, that team present their solution to Melendez and Andrews. The latter thinks it’s possible, but Melendez doesn’t want to risk it, knowing there’s a 20% chance of getting it right. Andrews then asks who came up with the idea. Claire hesitates, but Morgan sees it. Morgan tells Andrews that it was Claire’s idea. Andrews then reminds Claire of his evaluation of her. She has to be more aggressive. Later, Andrews tries to mull over his first day as the hospital’s president. Allegra Aoki (Tamlyn Tomita), St. Bonaventure Foundation’s Head, advises him to be like Glassman. He was able to get what he wanted by indirectly “manipulating” the board and the department heads.

Jeff Weddell/ABC

That night, Andrews comes to Melendez’s office to guilt trip Melendez into pushing through with the operation. Andrews succeeds with his power play; because right after that, Melendez goes to Melanie to inform her that they will do another operation. It’s risky, but he can pull it off with confidence.

They proceed with the Teflon graft surgery. There’s tension in the air and an uncertain vibe that could make or break the entire procedure. At the last minute, Melendez decides to alter the plan. Since the graft couldn’t fit properly, he tells them that they are going to build an entirely new aorta out of Teflon. They’re plugging the aorta directly into the graft, which makes things riskier. After the procedure, they take Melanie off bypass and wait for her two hearts to beat. Fortunately, it does, relieving everyone in the operating room, including Andrews.

Jeff Weddell/ABC

When Melendez asks his staff to stitch it up, Morgan tries to volunteer, but Claire asserts herself, saying that it should be her who should do it since it’s Claire’s idea in the first place. Later, Andrews holds a press conference, praising Melendez for a job well done and promising to continue Glassman’s legacy by taking St. Bonaventure at the forefront of medicine. Meanwhile, Claire finally says goodbye to Jared. She wanted him to stay, but Jared knows that they will be happier on their own.

The episode ends with Glassman sitting alone in the hospital cafeteria. Shaun joins him and makes it clear that he wants to be with Glassman in this new journey. He then returns home and sees Lea (Paige Spara) waiting for him. “Aren’t you going to say hello?” Lea asks. “Hello,” Shaun says.

‘The Good Doctor: Hello’ Overall Verdict

“Hello” is an episode that perfectly sets up the season for new challenges and an even bigger narrative. Season 1 focused on Shaun’s adjustment to a life working with people. This season, as it appears to be, will test his emotions and ability to handle relationships. As for the others in the surgical team, it looks like there’s going to be significant changes that they’d all have to adjust to. Nonetheless, “Hello” is a superbly-directed and nicely-written episode of The Good Doctor, and I couldn’t be happier that the show is finally back.

The Good Doctor continues next Monday, October 1st, with “Middle Ground” at 10/9c on ABC.