What's it about?
Cooper may have to intervene as Violet and Pete prepare for their wedding day. Addison and Sam's relationship takes a surprise turn while Naomi is burdened with taking care of Maya and her newborn granddaughter. Everyone comes together to mourn the loss of Dell.
What we saw
The employees of Oceanside Wellness and Pacific Wellcare return from the grim events of the season 3 finale to start afresh, each with their own new personal and professional demons to overcome.
Review
This episode should have been called 'Starting Over' or 'Second Chances' because that's just what nearly everybody did or had throughout the course of the episode.
Shonda Rhimes has never been afraid to shy away from consequences, through both 'Private Practice' and 'Grey's Anatomy' we have alway seen that the actions of the characters can have serious repercussions on those around them and here we find Dr Addison Montomgery and her colleagues seriously hurting from the events of season 3 finale 'The End of a Beautiful Friendship' which saw the departure of long time character Dell. Not forgetting the events of the 'Grey's' finale 'Death and All His Friends' which saw the near-death of Dr Derek Sheppard the ex husband of Addison and brother to Amelia (who has now been promoted to series regular) and therefore add to the grief on show here.
You could be forgiven that thinking this episode could end up mirroring the typical downbeat nature of a "Grey's' episode but that's not how things work in the world of 'PP' and we have a wedding to look forward to - yes I know there was a wedding in 'Grey's' BUT that born out of an entirely different situation than the wedding here.
After spending a year being apart that culminated in a court battle over their child, Lucas, it was really satisfying to have Pete and Violet together at last and their shock announcement of a wedding is not as out of the blue as expected. This show likes to bring in a happy event or two to outweigh the drama and between the court battles, explosions and deaths of season 3 it was a much needed pick-me-up.
This show got a lot of stick in the beginning for not making use of the caliber of actors that are on its roster but now entering entering their fourth season the 'PP' cast is as tight, if not tighter, than the cast on its sister show and you cannot fault the inter-play between any of the characters in this episode. The writers know what works for this show and what doesn't and they're good at avoiding their weak spots. This is a medical show but this is not the kind of medical show that sacrifices character for procedure and that is what makes this show stand out. Whereas 'Grey's' could be compared to 'ER' in nature I think 'PP' is more akin to a show like 'Bones' where the conventions of the genre are shaken up for encompass the development of it's characters.
I've got a lot of love for leading lady Kate Walsh and here she proves that she can do a lot more than front an ensemble cast as Addison takes somewhat of a backseat as those around her deal with the impending wedding. Instead of being forefront of the action here Addison plays the support friend and confidant to her colleagues and her conflict is more with herself than with her peers.
Her interactions with Amelia and with her patients show the much more sensitive side to her nature and the climax of the episode finally shows the character is reaching the emotional balance that she so deserves in life.
Having said that the ensemble now lacks the young man slot filled by Dell. Amelia ticks the young box but the Naomi loving, sometimes hot headed role of Dell remains to be filled perhaps as a mark of respect to the now department Chris Lowell. The part of Dink may prove to be the closest we get to a new Dell should the writers decide to devote more screen time to him and his new wife and baby.
As I said earlier there is a very definite idea of starting over in this episode: the marriage; Addison and Sam rekindling the romance that had sparked last season, Amelia deciding to visit Derek in Seattle and the kidney transplant patient deciding to spend more time with his brother. To a degree there is also the relationship between Cooper and Charlotte although this was rekindled at the end of the previous season.
It all feels very natural in the context of the show and will serve as a good inroad for new viewers who have yet to experience the world of 'PP'. These characters don't bring as many of the hang-ups as those in 'Grey's' and because of this the show should appear to a wider audience.
This isn't the kind of show which builds a major storyline (outside of the interpersonal relationships) on a week-by-week basis so the medical content of the show will remain a surprise as the weeks pass by. However in terms of those interpersonal relationships at the moment it's the romance between Addison and Sam which could be the elephant in the room in terms of the balance of happiness.
All that is left to be said is: another solid episode by the 'PP' team and it's nice to have you back and have another whole season ahead of us.
Next week...
Violet and Cooper make changes to their friendship to appease their significant others; Pete and Cooper argue over a patient's marijuana use; Addison debates going public with her new romance.
Overall
Story 3.5
Character 4.0
Medicalness 3.5
Overall 3.5
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