'The Good Doctor': Fans React to Season Finale Cliffhanger on Shaun's Future

The season finale of The Good Doctor ended with a stunning cliffhanger on Dr. Shaun Murphy's [...]

By Daniel S. Levine

The season finale of The Good Doctor ended with a stunning cliffhanger on Dr. Shaun Murphy's future.

It looked like the finale would end on a high note, after Dr. Aaron Glassman (Richard Schiff) learned he might survive brain cancer after chemotherapy and surgery. But Shaun's mistake during surgery earlier in the episode could not be forgotten. In fact, Shaun (Freddie Highmore) himself made sure of it.

Shaun volunteered to tell Dr. Marcus Andrews (Hill Harper) about his mistake, but Jessica (Beau Garrett) told him he did not have to because the patient survived. She reminded him that back in the very first episode of the season, Glassman staked his own job on how well Shaun did. If Shaun made a mistake, Glassman would leave the hospital.

Glassman said he could not tell Shaun to lie, and backed up his decision to tell Andrews. The episode ended with Shaun and Glassman walking into Andrews office. The credits stated before we heard what happened.

Fans were happy that Glassman and Shaun ended the season on good terms.

In the finale, Jared (Chuku Modu) and Dr. Alex Park (Will Yun Lee) ended up dealing with a patient who twisted his ankle and suffered a concussion after eating at least six detergent pods. However, the case was made more complicated when Shaun makes a mistake, since he is distracted by Glassman's cancer.

Later, Jared, Morgan, Alex, Claire and Melendez all debate reporting Shaun. They keep him in the fold though, and Shaun ends up coming up with an idea that Morgan surprisingly endorses. She still does not think he should be working at the hospital though.

Thankfully, the patient survived and Melendez decided to celebrate. After that, Shaun went to Glassman's office to tell him about finding his missing toy scalpel. That's when he discussed his mistake with Glassman and Jessica.

There was also another cliffhanger. We never saw what Jared's decision was about leaving the hospital. During last week's penultimate episode, "Smile," Jared got a letter from Denver Memorial Hospital, offering the resident a position. That gives him a big reason to leave St. Bonaventure Hospital in San Jose.

Of all the residents at St. Bonaventure, Jared has had it the hardest this season. He was once fired after he defended Dr. Claire Brown (Antonia Thomas) after one of their superiors sexually harassed her. But since Jared punched the doctor instead of trying to help Claire through the traditional channels, Jared was punished instead of the doctor.

Jared managed to get a second chance, but it was clear he felt like he was not easily fitting back into the St. Bonaventure fold. After Claire ended their relationship for good, it really looked like things were over for Jared at the hospital. But then Jared appeared to find a reason to stay in "Smile."

In the episode, Celez (Kandyse McClure), a burn victim he treated in the episode "Not Fake," went to the hospital for a check-up. He realized he was falling in love with Celez, but doctors are not allowed to date patients of course. Rather than think instinctively like he had before, he asked Shaun for advice and he told him to take a sick day.

However, Jared did not do that. Instead, he let Shaun take over Celez's case and Jared asked her out. She said yes.

The second season of The Good Doctor will air in fall 2018 on ABC.

Photo credit: ABC

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