CoNic can never have a moment of relaxation, can they?
As we saw on The Resident Season 4 Episode 12, Nic’s idea of maternity leave includes visiting patients during her off time and still checking in at Chastain.
So much for a spa day.
Nic’s baby bump is surely enough to excite the CoNic ‘shippers eagerly awaiting baby Nevins-Hawkins.
Conrad is already a doting spouse, but he’s more so now that his wife is expecting, and it’s cute.
He was determined to get out of that hospital and whisk Nic away to a spa day that Mina’s replacement helped him to plan.
For the most part, the tension between Conrad and Chick Conrad has cooled, and there is begrudging respect along with their mutual love of Nic.
But then Peter came in hot with his vitamin deficiency, and it’s a reminder of the hell a year of a pandemic had on people.
His refrigerator was a pitiful display of barren nothingness, and despite shutting himself off from the world, he wasn’t taking care of himself.
The series mostly skipped over the pandemic after the one-time focus during The Resident Season 4 Episode 1, but lingering physical and emotional effects from it tend to make for intriguing storylines that are relatable without becoming too overwhelming.
Nic and Conrad saved the curmudgeon, but they sadly missed their spa day. Nevertheless, Conrad was the cutest, setting up a spa service of his own.
He was proud of himself for the fruit and veggie water he made, and it’s always hilarious when a guy who doesn’t typically wear or use nail polish chooses to paint someone’s nails.
Although, Conrad strikes me as someone who went through a black nail polish phase. Painting someone else’s nails is much harder. It was a sweet gesture and provided a good laugh.
The Raptor’s emotional state did not. He’s not in a good place, and my heart aches for him.
Mina is gone; he’s a heartbroken man, and Carol was dying. Life has a twisted way of coming at you fast and hard with multiple blows. I can, at least, appreciate that someone is expressing the grieving process of losing Mina.
AJ’s stress level was through the roof. And the only bright spot he got out of the hour was when he realized his mother was compatible with the target therapy program to treat her cancer.
He can’t lose both the women of his life so close to each other. It would be too cruel.
Bell had his back and offered support, and that’s a dynamic that the series should take advantage of more often.
But after all of the stress of figuring out if his mother had a surviving chance and his parents commending him for how well he was carrying himself under the weight of it all, AJ realized that he needed to make things right with Leela.
Out of the newest additions to Chastain, Leela is the best of them and continues to shine every time she appears.
She has a blend of meekness and assertiveness that I love almost as much as I relate to, and it’s respectable that she is determined to become the best doctor despite her challenges.
Leela is fine putting up with anything if she knows it’s in line with learning how to hone her craft.
It wasn’t the first time she was on the receiving end of the Raptor’s wrath, but she knew enough to stand up for herself and establish some boundaries.
Her moment with Kit was another endearing scene, and Kit is giving off all the feminist, cool auntie vibes with how she chooses to have one-on-one conversations with young female doctors.
Kit fosters an environment where her employees feel comfortable talking to her; this CEO role was hers for the taking.
But back to Leela. She’s a real talent, and with the proper mentoring and guidance, she’ll be one of the best doctors Chastain has ever seen.
She recognized that she was under pressure and unfairly getting held to Mina’s standards, a Supreme senior resident, and she called AJ out on that.
Kudos to her. She and the Raptor will make an excellent team. As long as he separates his grief over Mina from the job at hand, I can’t think of a better mentor for Leela.
The Raptor, despite his gruffness at times, is a fantastic mentor. And fortunately for Leela, she also has Bell in her corner.
Initially, he only took interest because the wifey told him to, but once he saw how skilled Leela was, he was taken by her, too.
In that sense, they’ve given us shades of the professional relationship between Mina and both Bell and AJ.
Leela is getting the best of them both right now.
On a professional front, Leela manages to work within Mina’s spade without feeling like a replacement. And she has a distinctive presence that feels fresh and interesting.
And fortunately, it goes beyond her connection and chemistry with Devon, so she feels like a fully realized character.
Billie still feels all over the place.
But as predicted, she and Cain have an understanding, and they’ll work together.
It’s the other mentorship dynamic at play. It’s an interesting choice to use a new character like Billie to further push the Cain redemption arc.
They’re banking on the audience liking Billie enough to enjoy this dynamic and make Cain likable, too.
Oddly, Billie’s straightforward, no-bullshit approach is the selling point for how she earned Cain’s respect. It’s not like the other characters haven’t regarded him similarly.
But for whatever reason (the reason being plot), Billie is one-half of the two women it takes to tame Cain.
He recognized that she was right about starting with softball surgeries until he’s back on his game.
They’ve formed their redemption team, and I suppose it’s time to accept that this is what it is now with Cain.
Admittedly, his softness around Rose is working in his favor.
How does The Resident make us fall so hard and fast for a character in such a short period?
Rose needs to be OK, and right now, she has so many people rooting for her health.
She and Devon’s bond is sweet, and you could tell that she’s Devon’s Lily. However, even he couldn’t convince her to go on dialysis when she took another bad turn.
And the man was begging her to fight. He damn near got on his knees. Cain was the only one who could convince her.
Everyone can see the bond the two share and where it has the potential to head. They’ve caught feelings for one another.
Cain avoided her to run away from them, and after allowing himself to imagine a second chance at love with his ex who died, he’s trying to protect himself from experiencing that heartbreak again.
But it’s too late. And Rose behaved as if she couldn’t breathe again until he gave her the time of day and stopped avoiding her.
She has no family or close friends. Cain is it for her, and without him around, it’s as if she couldn’t find any reason to keep living in pain.
As much as I hate to admit it, their scene together got to me.
The two of them are making some serious pledges to each other through their actions and behavior, without saying all of the words.
Again, the attempts to soften and humanize Cain are so transparent and desperate even, but if it works, then it works, yes?
What will be a hell of a moment is when the Raptor and Cain have it out or face-off.
It’s a slap in the face to AJ that he lost the love of his life because of Cain, and now Cain is finding love with Rose, the beautiful, spirited woman who can tame the beast.
Everyone needs the trial to work its magic on Rose. She needs it to live. Cain has feelings for her and can’t bear losing another love.
Devon cares about her and can’t bear losing this patient he’s attached to, and Phillip needs it to work to keep Bio South afloat. Otherwise, he’s finished.
And Chastain needs this to work since the board and state are all up Kit’s ass about making million-dollar cuts to stay afloat.
I love Marshall, and at least he wasn’t a condescending jerk to Kit about her business acumen.
It’s unfathomable that someone would have the gall to suggest that a business person is needed to run the hospital.
Healthcare suffered when businesspeople were running things. Who better to understand the fundamentals of a hospital and necessities other than a doctor?
Kit’s track record is impressive. She’s done well-running things.
But now she has to join forces with Bio South. We figured they’d make it, so she didn’t have much choice in the matter.
And to their credit, Phillip seemed less of a cad during this installment. Maybe Phillip and Bio South are in it for the right reasons, after all.
Over to you, The Resident Fanatics. What are your thoughts on the Cain redemption arc?
Do you think Leela is a serviceable replacement for Mina?
Hit the comments below!
On a personal note, it may take me some time to get back into the swing of things, but I love reading your feedback!
You can watch The Resident online here via TV Fanatic.
Jasmine Blu is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow her on Twitter.