TV Review: ER Episode 12.09

Friday, December 02, 2005

FROM NBC: Back from Iraq, Gallant (Sharif Atkins) surprises Neela (Parminder Nagra) by telling her he wants to take their relationship to the next level. Kovac (Goran Visnjic) and Clemente (John Leguizamo) vie for the same job making the tension between them even thicker. Meanwhile, Sam (Linda Cardellini) convinces a patient's mother to get the medical attention that her son desperately needs. Morris (Scott Grimes) shocks everyone when he stands up to Weaver (Laura Innes) during a medical procedure. Shane West, Mekhi Phifer, and Maura Tierney also star. TV-14

My Rating: 4 out of 4

The focus on tonight's episode of ER wasn't on the cases and patients of those that come into the ER. Even with two compelling cases this week, the focus was on the romantic lives of two of our favorite ER couples. On the last episode of ER we saw the return of Gallant. Neela was happy because she had been anxiously awaiting his return. This week's episode shows them reunited, and we see them getting along famously. As the episode opens, it appears Gallant has popped a very important question during sex. Well they were in bed, under covers, so that is the obvious assumption. Neela is not ready to jump into such a big thing so quickly, but Gallant keeps on her until she relents.

Even after she says yes, she does have some doubts, and those linger on throughout the entire episode. However after an impassioned plea by Gallant while she is in the O.R. operating, she finally relents again. This time with no doubts. After an episode of planning a quickie wedding and reception we see Gallant and Neela happily married with all of the ER staff that can be free from the hospital in attendance.

Two of those in attendance also have their own romantic lives become a focus, but this isn't until nearly the end of the episode. Luka and Abby have had their romance developing over the course of the month. They had last agreed to remain just friends, but that is out the window once he drives her home from the reception. After a few awkward moments, we see them engage in a kiss that heats up the screen. The kiss takes him to her apartment, and we see these two in bed. Abby had a moment of doubt, but Luka quickly removes it from her mind with a kiss.

The romance wasn't all we had happening though. Two cases were the focus of tonight's episode, and since everyone was busy with wedding matters, we were able to see some doctors in action we don't usually get to see anymore. The one mostly seen in this episode was Weaver. She's been mostly in the administration side of things, but tonight she joined in on a trauma, and she learned a thing or two in the process from a very unlikely source - Morris. Never expected that. At first I thought Kerry might not like being undermined by someone below her, but she took the ideas offered by her associate well, and even told him so in a drunken speech at the reception. He was so out of it by that point in the festivities, he never even heard her.

The case these two worked on with Sam's and Ray's assistance involved a man that fell into a frozen lake while playing hockey. This man is older, and although his friend did pull him out, he still suffered from hypothermia. His heart does stop beating, but since he is still frozen, they need to find a way to raise his temperature before they can try to shock him. After a few long stressful moments, the team is able to bring him back successfully.

The other case was all on Abby. A young boy comes in with what appears to be a simple of pneumonia. Abby wants to run some tests, including x-rays, but the mother won't allow it. Abby admits the boy, and keeps an eye on him until she leaves for the wedding to take her spot as Neela's maid of honor. After she leaves, the young boy's condition takes a turn for the worse and Luka and Clemente need to work together. This poses a problem because as we all know the two have been at odds since Clemente started working at the hospital. The two butt heads consistently, and everyone knows this. The two men were even both up for position of Chief in regards to the ER. Luka wins the job, and we later learn that Clemente had pulled himself from the running.

They do work together on the boy, and when they finally run tests and x-rays, it turns out the boy appears to have HIV and possibly AIDS. They tell the mother this, and she is angry they ran tests without her consent. We soon learn she is HIV positive, but she doesn't believe it is a true disease. She's had it for fourteen years untreated, and it looks like she transmitted the disease to the very least her son and possibly her daughter. She won't allow more tests to be run and no meds to be administered to her son in regards to her son's possible HIV status.  When Clemente hears this, he loses it, and he goes off on a tirade. Luka finally takes over the case, but he isn't happy either. Neither is Sam, who is also assisting here.

A subplot for Pratt focused on the boy he helped find a position for working at the hospital. Dubenko accuses the teenager of stealing, after the hospital security guard tells him the boy was caught on tape. After the boy's father comes in and we go back and forth throughout the episode, we learn the boy is innocent.

This was a good episode for ER. I was happy to see Neela and Gallant marry. Not sure what this means for the future for these two. Gallant's tour in IRAQ is over, but he isn't out of military service yet. As for Abby and Luke, these two are hot together, and their final scene tonight was definitely hot enough to heat up the television screen. The previews for next week look interesting. They mention a gift from Luka to Abby that changes things again. Is it possible he proposes? It does appear to be a ring box in the previews! We'll have to wait until next week's Christmas episode to find out!