Previously on saving hope
Gavin accidentally took LSD and during his trip came to realise he needs to go away and find himself, something his mum had done. Alex and Dawn performed surgery on a rare condition and this led Alex to realise that she is not the same person she was before she was attacked. Joel spends the day at a church medical clinic helping take a bullet out of a man’s arm and keep him safe from his homeland of Uganda where he would be killed for being gay. Charlie saw a woman who had passed and listened to her romantic story of how she and her husband had spent every night of their 70 years together and she was waiting for him and this made Charlie know he wanted to marry Alex. Charlie tells Alex he is going to marry her, he doesn’t ask he tells her and that’s when she comes out with the fact she doesn’t love him anymore.
Season 3 episode 5 Breaking Away
We open to Alex looking through her closet for clothes and she opens a shoebox with pictures in and she finds one of herself and Charlie. We hear a knock at the door and Maggie walks in with coffee and calls Alex Roomie (how old is Maggie?) Maggie has moved in with Alex for a while and it seems she is also looking after Vallenwe’en, Dawns Guinea pig whilst she is at a conference. (Seriously trusting Maggie with your beloved pet, I wouldn’t).
Charlie is in the coffee queue when Melinda starts to talk to him, she asks if he is ok and it seems he is still not happy about the break up and Melinda mentions it’s not over yet. Alex walks up behind and at that moment Maggie announces she needs to bathe Vallenwe’en before Dawn gets back, Alex tells Charlie that Maggie is a little too perky in the morning and she hates being called Roomie, he then hands her his apartment keys and as their hands touch she gets a flashback, she tells him about the box of his things she found and then they both head of for work.
Zach is looking at a man who has been bitten by a snake and he has it in a box, Zach appears to be afraid of it. Charlie comes over and looks at the bite and measures it so they can see how he reacts to the anti-venom, they call Jackson over to sort out the Anti-venom from the snake and it appears Jackson owns a snake and had no fear unlike Zach who is edging away.
Alex is treating a Downs Syndrome boy, who was in a car accident called Will, he was learning and driving at the time, as she talks to him and makes notes Alex’s hand cramps up. Joel is attending to Katie, Will’s mum both of them have asked how the other is, Katie goes downhill very quickly and her son is so worried Charlie has to hold him back, they have to take her up to the OR and stabilise her, Charlie see’s Katie appear in front of him singing to Will to try to calm him and begins to sing the same tune, Will asks how he knows the tune and if he knows his mum, and Charlie says ‘Sort of’ and then Will hugs him and says ‘Tell her I’m sorry!’.
Joel, Alex and Maggie are scrubbing in, Alex and Maggie are talking about their study group, as they have their board exams coming up, and Alex is not too happy that Lazy Lana is part of their group. Joel asks them to focus on the operation, Maggie then asks Alex what snacks they should have at their first meet which is tonight at Alex’s place, Maggie then turns and goes into the OR calling Alex Roomie. Alex says Roomies not a happy Roomie and Joel says Gloomy Roomie. (Best response ever that really made smile).
Charlie is talking to Will’s mum who is very adamant, she will survive as she has will to look after, she mentions how there isn’t a line of people willing to look after an adult with Downs Syndrome. Will is watching Jackson looking after the snake and Charlie says they need to get rid of it, Jackson says he is on shift, so Charlie mentions the new guy Larouche. Jackson gives the snake to Larouche it’s in its cat cage and Larouche reluctantly takes it will a weird and scared look on his face. Will is afraid and his mum orders Charlie to hug him, he hesitantly does so, to which she then says from now on he has to do what she says straight away.
The snake guy starts to go downhill and Charlie rushes over to see what is happening, he has blood running from his eyes and they are wondering why the anti-venom is not working, Jackson mentions that it could be a different snake that bit him, they have to run more tests and Charlie hands Jackson the guys phone to see if he can get a family member to come in.
Joel’s operation on Katie is not going smoothly, they see that there is too much damage and they also need to take a look at the spine. Alex mentions she is worried how to tell will about the situation, Joel tells her to not worry, he has a cousin with Downs and they will do this together (another thing that makes Joel a down to earth perfect man).
Larouche asks Maggie if he can be in their study group for the boards, she says that the group is full and he will have to ask Alex who is the boss of the group. Reycraft makes fun of their little group and how they have to pray to pass, and they reply with how silly that’s coming from someone who probably did that, as Reycraft leaves he mentions that the door on the cat cage is open, and that the cat is gone, Lazy Lana mentions that she didn’t see a cat in their but she did see a snake. Larouche starts to move quick and low trying to see if the snake is about and he realises that it’s not going to be easy and he is in trouble.
Joel and Alex are discussing Will’s mum, she needs a transplant and they know that they are limited for time and they have to tell Will this. Joel asks Alex what is wrong as he can see she is a little tense, she replies ‘everything’ he steps forward and lowers his voice as he leans in and says to her, It gets better and he says that his word is excellent, to which they both smile.
Larouche tells Zach that the snake is loose, Zach says “Your Telling me, the snake that makes your eyes bleed is loose?” he tells both Maggie and Larouche to find it and call a white code, Maggie isn’t happy she has to sort this now and asks what code to call and Zach says code Brown, to which they mention that’s a hazardous spill code and he says he doesn’t care and they have to deal with it.
Joel and Alex walk in to see Will at his Mum’s bedside with Charlie by him, they start to explain about what needs to be done and that a transplant is needed, Will starts to say that it’s his fault he hit the gas and not the brake and caused the accident. Alex says that the transplant needs to be today , Joel mentions that sometimes family members can be a match and Will immediately wants to be the donor to save his mum, Alex isn’t happy and wanted Joel to talk to her first about this, Joel says that they do not have the time to talk they need to act asap. Wills mum also isn’t happy and wants Charlie to do something about it.
Jackson found the snake bite on the man’s phone, it’s not the one in the hospital and is an exotic and illegal snake, hence why he didn’t come forward straightaway and he knows that they do not have any anti-venom and that they need to speak to Dawn. Dawn in the meantime is unhappy about Will being the Donor, she says due to his Downs he has to go through metal assessment and a tribunal to state that he understands the decision he is making. Joel says he will get the tribunal ball rolling and Alex shows dawn what an excellent match he is with his mum. Dawn turns the corner and sees Maggie and Larouche wandering the corridor, Larouche has a Tennis racket in his hand, Dawn Mentions Vallenwe’en is not on her cage and Maggie says that she is in the call room, Dawn says she hates the call room and that she needs her sweater on it as she will get cold. She then hears the code brown alert and asks why it is on but Maggie and Larouche pretend they cannot hear her as they walk away.
Alex and Will are heading to a meeting with Dr Dey (Dr Annoying as I like to call him) he is Gavin’s replacement, Alex is telling Will that he needs to be himself and that they are only looking into how much of the decision and situation they understand, Dr annoying will not let her in as he wants to see for himself without outside influence. Maggie is putting a little red woollen sweater on Vallenwe’en and Larouche is paged to help in the OR leaving finding the snake all to Maggie. Meanwhile Charlie is talking to Dawn about the Snake guy and are about to see what they can do, even with voice of Katie telling him to make sure Will isn’t the donor at his side.
Joel and Alex are in the Tribunal with a lawyer and Dr Annoying and they are arguing with Dr Annoying about will being capable of making the decision, Joel says he grew up knowing someone with Downs and how does he know what Will is capable of, Dr Annoying compares his time in the prison system and says that he learnt to accept people for what they are and not for what you want them to be (this angers me that he Labelled Will as Downs and not as a person). Alex and Joel ask why Will isn’t there to defend himself and the lawyer agrees. Meanwhile Charlie and dawn are working on the guy with the snake bite, who isn’t doing so well, he starts to plummet and they see that nothing is working, he then dies. Back to the tribunal, Will explaining he knows what is happening, that he understands the decision he is making. Charlie knocks and enters, he wants to say a piece on the situation and then looks at the lawyer, he says “Aren’t you the guy who pulled the plug on me?” Charlie starts to speak but Will stands up and interrupts him, he talks of the job he has, his independence and how he is scared and knows he can die but he is more afraid of losing his mum. They all see he is capable of making the decision himself and along with an objection from Dr Annoying the operation will go ahead.
Charlie and Dawn are talking with the ex-wife of the snake bite guy, they mention they did all they could for him and she mentions they still even though divorced had a connection, when married that happens, Charlie and dawn share a look at that comment, she then says she left him because of his obsession with snakes and that’s what killed him.
Alex is checking on Will as he gets put under for the operation, she then starts to scrub for the operation and Joel walks over asking how will is, he then notices her hand cramping he then says to her “Look at me!” to which she does and then he says “Breathe” (I think that s good advice for a few fans as well) he then walks away giving her a peck on the cheek. As they start the operation Alex’s hand cramps up again, she covers that by asking for another tool, the doctor with her says that he saw her chatting to Joel and to be careful, he says “You got stabbed and got your heart fixed, you should be careful with it!” Charlie and Katie are watching and Katie explains her hatred of doctors in how they never believed in Will and she has had to fight for him all the way and Charlie says that she needs to believe in him now. Joel is not seeing what he should be in the MRI of Katie’s spine and walks away mid conversation. Larouche asks her if he can be in her study group, he tells her of his notes and books and then says he has a Karaoke machine, she agrees and says he had her at note taking.
Dawn walks into her office and notices that Vallenwe’en is not in her cage, she goes off to look for her, she asks Larouche if he has seen Maggie anywhere and what is with the Code brown, he replies it’s for a loose animal and Dawn says “Vallenwe’en how did they know?” Larouche tells her that it is a different animal they are looking for and she runs off. Zach is tending to a new patient who has a fever and thinks he is hallucinating by hearing sounds under his bed, he asks Zach to look, when Zach slowly looks he sees the snake and a little red sweater, he immediately calls for Jackson.
Joel walks in as they finish up with Katie and asks them to wake her, he has a hunch on her condition and it’s the only way to check. Charlie is talking to Katie and she feels odd, she gets a tingling and burning sensation in her hands and then disappears, Charlie has a feeling he knows things will be ok. Katie wakes up to the vision that is Joel, he asks if she has a tingling and burning sensation and that she only has bruising on her spine, with rehab she will be ok.
Zach and Larouche call over dawn and let her know they kind of found Vallenwe’en and hand her the little red sweater remains, they say she was eaten by the snake, Dawn is devastated and is really upset by the news, Reycraft hugs her and asks what’s wrong and when Dawn tells him his reaction isn’t very sympathetic to her, he is laughing and she tells him to go to hell as she runs off. Charlie wheels Will in to see his mum, Alex and Joel tell them that all went well and after therapy they will be better, Will says he will look after his mum. Back down in the ER Zach notices Jackson leaving with a hidden cage, he explains if he doesn’t take the snake they will kill it, Zach then says he will not tell Dawn and Jackson leaves.
Dawn is lying on a bed in the on call room, Charlie goes in to see her, despite her saying she wants to be alone Charlie knows it’s because she is sad and he goes to her, she says she lost a patient and felt nothing, yet she lost Vallenwe’en and is a complete mess. Charlie says he is there for her and comforts her and says he is here for her, he hugs her, then they look into each other’s eyes and then they kiss.
As we close on this episode Will is singing to his mum, the song she sings for him. Joel gives Alex a lift home and when they get there they hear music and as they walk in Reycraft is singing on the Karaoke machine, it seems they are not studying but team building, Lazy Lana is about to sing but she has picked a song Alex likes and she is made to sing, she makes Joel join in and we find that Alex can’t sing very well but Joel can (He really can). We then finish with Charlie and Dawn going a little further than their kiss.
So in this episode Alex and Joel have some chemistry, Zach is afraid of snakes, Jackson keeps one, Dawn lost Vallenwe’en and her relationship with Reycraft is over, Larouche, Maggie, lazy Lana and Alex all have their board exams even if they are all at different levels and experience in the hospital and Charlie and Dawn are a little bit closer. So stayed tuned for another recap soon, I apologise for the gap but life got a little complicated.
