The Good Doctor returns for one final season, and spoilers suggest it’ll be more like the way it used to be.
In recent years, the show has morphed into a relationship drama centered around Shaun and Lea’s constant clashes, with some Glassman drama thrown in.
There will still be plenty of that on The Good Doctor Season 7 Episode 1, but those subplots appear to be mixed into a solid medical storyline.
According to spoilers, Morgan’s baby needs a new heart valve — and someone else’s needs the same thing.
This set-up reminds me of years ago on Chicago Hope when Mandy Patinkin’s character wanted to use a brain-dead baby’s heart to save another child, but the mother wasn’t ready to admit her newborn had no chance of survival.
But in this case, one of the mothers is Morgan, and both mothers have a baby who is alive but struggling.
Morgan has never been my favorite character, but she’s the mother Eden needs during this conflict. She’ll fight fiercely for her daughter’s health needs, even if it means someone else faces tragic circumstances.
And she and Park will face this parental nightmare together, a radical departure from the past. Will their relationship grow stronger instead of Morgan pushing Park away when she needs him most?
The spoiler video also suggests Shaun will be at the center of getting Eden’s (and maybe the other baby’s) treatment.
A poignant scene has Dr. Lim asking him if he’s sure he wants to take this on so soon after his son’s birth. It’s a reasonable question, but Shaun probably won’t understand it.
In his mind, this baby has nothing to do with Steve. It’s someone else’s child who needs help, while Steve has no heart conditions and is at home with Lea.
Still, the situation might get to him. Steve was named after Shaun’s brother, who died too young in an accident, so the possibility of loss may not be too far from Shaun’s mind. And even if he can compartmentalize, Lea probably won’t.
Shaun and Lea will clash over how to handle baby Steve’s routines — Shaun thrives on routine and will be disturbed by the idea of Lea deviating from it when he’s not home, while she may think that the baby doesn’t need as much structure.
New parents often face this dilemma, especially when one or both return to work. In Shaun and Lea’s case, of course, it’s exacerbated by Shaun’s autism. He craves routine and assumes his son needs the same.
Shaun and Lea butting heads on approaching their lives is nothing new, but it’s different now that they have a baby. Their decisions will affect their child, as will how they handle disagreements, and the last thing they need is to cause the baby extra anxiety by fighting all the time.
What will happen if baby Steve turns out to be neurodivergent someday?
Even if he’s autistic, he doesn’t have to be exactly like Shaun. But both his parents have to get their stubbornness under control before that happens, or they’ll never be able to parent an autistic or other neurodivergent child successfully.
If it happens, that development won’t occur on-screen since this is the final season, but it’s still something Shaun and Lea should be prepared for.
Unfortunately, Shaun’s feud with Dr. Glassman is far from over.
Most of The Good Doctor Season 6 was taken up with Glassman being angry at Shaun for spurious reasons.
First, Glassman was angry that Shaun saved Lim’s life because he didn’t follow Glassman’s directions. Then he finally got over that, only to be mad that Shaun correctly diagnosed something being off with him cognitively.
Enough already! Glassman should stop sulking, especially since he will give the baby gifts if he doesn’t have to face Shaun and Lea in person.
He’s supposed to be an accomplished doctor near the end of his career, not a sulky teenager. The Good Doctor Season 7 better fix this nonsense ASAP.
According to the spoiler video, Lea confronts him about his silent treatment in the elevator, but will that be enough?
Other spoilers say that Glassman may be able to become president of the hospital board again. I’m not sure how that works when he supposedly has cognitive issues from mini-strokes, but if it gives him something to do besides give Shaun side-eye, I’m all for it.
Asher and Jordan are back, and so are some new residents. The most exciting news is that autistic actress Kayla Cromer will join the series as a third-year medical student who idolizes Shaun.
This is a landmark casting decision. Cromer is the first autistic actress to play a regular role on a prime-time series (Netflix’s Atypical featured an autistic actress in the later seasons, but she played a minor role.)
There’s no question that Freddie Highmore has done excellent work as Shaun, but he’s not autistic.
It’s fitting that a series dedicated to autistic awareness has included an actress on the spectrum in its final season.
Charlie, the new autistic character, will be an exciting addition. I’m especially curious about how Shaun will react to her.
Sharing an autism diagnosis doesn’t mean Shaun and Charlie will get along. In the past, Shaun has been annoyed by other neurodivergent characters.
But will this time be different?
And if Shaun is rude or dismissive, will Charlie’s spirit be crushed since she’s looked up to him since childhood?
Your turn, Good Doctor fanatics. What are you looking forward to now that the series is back for its final season?
Hit the big, blue SHOW COMMENTS button and let us know.
The Good Doctor airs on ABC on Tuesdays at 10/9c.
The final season premiere will air on February 20, 2024.
Jack Ori is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. His debut young adult novel, Reinventing Hannah, is available on Amazon. Follow him on X.