Kat with a K

Royal Pains 2.12: "Open Up Your Yenta Mouth and Say Ah"

That's a really long episode title. Anyway! Season finale time! Royal Pains will actually be coming back in January, which seems odd, because it's such a summery show. Will it still be set in the summer, or will we get to see the Hamptons in the off-season? But first, season finale thoughts, after the jump . . .

Patient of the Week: AJ has an ankle problem and falls in Hank's lap. Literally. Then she continues to annoy me for the rest of the episode. And then she collapses, so I feel bad for being annoyed. She makes this so hard for me. This storyline did, however, reinforce how great Hank is, so that's something. Ah! She's Boris's spy. That makes sense, then. Still annoying.

Boris: Far-away meeting! Wants Hank to give him something to keep him going! Jill thinks something's wrong! Oh, good, he got Marissa out! Ooh, she's pregnant! He doesn't know! I have lots of exclamation points!

Lawson family: Dad is moving in with Ms. Newberg - but then he starts having panic attacks. He says they're being he's nervous about living with someone, but Evan thinks there's something else going on, involving the creepy man from the parking lot. Aha! He's spying on Boris. I KNEW I never liked the father. At least the boys aren't in trouble.

Evan: He's starting to be remarkably self-perceptive about his relationship with his dad, and he and Paige are really quite cute together.

Divya: Of course Adam gets sick so they can get thrown back together. Lots of vague mystery illnesses going around this week. I do like Adam, but I don't like the way they're handling this storyline. I just don't think Divya would kiss someone like that. She might be tempted, but . . . no. She's just too professional, for one thing. I did like the nice moment of Divya/Jill friendship at the end, though.

Jill: Her ambush of Hank was pretty adorable, but of course she wanted to talk about Boris. I love the chemistry she has with Hank, so I want them to either get back together, or spend a lot of time together as friends and dance around getting back together.

Overall, this was a somewhat slow finale until the end, when it suddenly all made sense AND was way more interesting than I'd expected! Good job, show!

Royal Pains 2.11: "Big Whoop"

Evan's cute when he's upset. Keep reading . . .

Patients of the Week: Stanley of the video games and recurring colds is actually a process server. Huh.

Phillips family: Emily has to come in to consult, of course, and the fact that the doctors don't know what the other is doing certainly doesn't help. And everyone has whooping cough! Whee. I didn't realize that was one of the things that people delayed vaccinating for. Hmph.

Clinic: Shut down! Jill is quite cleverly using Boris's name to bluff, and Evan is proud. And the lawsuit was dropped. But Boris is mad.

Emily: The URL thing is pretty clever, and standard. But Evan's reaction to Hank and Emily being together was completely hilarious. Poor thing feels so betrayed. He and Divya plotting together to get Emily and Hank apart is great.

Lawson dad: There's some sort of intrigue going on, but what the heck is it? Who knows! I think he said "letterhead" and "signature" to the guy at the parks department at the end.

Royal Pains 2.10: "Whole Lotto Love"

I used the words "cute" and "adorable" a lot of times in this description. Ah well. It was a cute episode! Read on . . .

Patients of the Week: The lotto winners from North Dakota were awfully cute, and I like the combination medicine/financial planning package. I'm very glad there was no flesh-eating bacteria. Eww. It was SO appropriate that the guy had gout.

Tally's illness was not necessarily all that interesting in and of itself, and probably just a way to get Divya and Adam together. I'm not sure how I feel about that. Adam is charming enough, I guess, and it makes sense for Divya to have some second thoughts about her arranged marriage, but . . . I don't know. I'm not feeling it.

Lawson family: Oh, the dad is back. Sigh. The surprise party for Evan was cute, though, and it was nice to see a bunch of the old patients back again. Does the dad have ulterior motives? Is he trying to forge Boris's signature? Sigh again.

Evan and Paige: They seem to be a real couple now, and they're completely adorable. And Evan's actually being responsible! And working! And Paige saves the day by tweeting about the party! Aww!

Boris: He's back! Yay! But poor Marissa was arrested, presumably for trying to defect.

Hank and Jill and Emily: The awkwardness with Jill was cute. Did we even see Emily in this episode? Ginnie setting up Hank and Jill was adorable.

Royal Pains 2.9: "Frenemies"

Evan goes hunting, so I'm sure we can guess how THAT will turn out. Read on for more . . .

Patients of the Week: I like how the fisherman reappears periodically, and the poor guy now has an ankle injury. And of course the sick kid is Dr. Blair's son. Poor thing. I liked that there ended up being something really wrong, rather than just allergies or the kid faking it.

The clinic: I'm not entirely clear on what the issue was that the hospital had with the clinic, actually. Blair seems a little more human after this episode, though.

Evan: His "worst morning of my life" about the fish was adorable. Paige the fake girlfriend is back! I sort of like her, and I LOVE Evan with her, and Divya and Hank reacting to how Evan reacts to her. "They grow up so fast!" The whole hunting thing was pretty ridiculous, but I loved that the dogs were named Patton and MacArthur. OF COURSE there was a hunting accident, and I felt so badly for him when the father offered to pay him NOT to see Paige. It was really nice of him to cover for the father shooting him, though. And he got a real date out of the deal! Awww.

Hank and Emily: They're really rather cute together, and I like Emily's intimacy issues. But I still want Hank with Jill. Now that Jill is starting to figure out what's going on, so it should be interesting to see how she reacts. And will Emily actually try to steal all their patients? I guess we'll find out!

Royal Pains 2.8: "The Hankover"

It sounds like the season finale of Royal Pains is this Thursday, so I caught up over the weekend and will post about an episode a day this week, with the finale post going up on Friday. Continue after the jump . . .

Patient of the Week: Apparently Hank waited twenty years to fix the past with this bully from junior high, and Emily speaks for us all when she says "First of all, really?" Of course Karma the exotic dancer is the one to fulfill Hank's need for revenge by kicking the guy. The sword in the sinus was quite disturbing, really.

Jill and the clinic: Test case with the dislocated shoulder. The treatment seemed much more complicated than I remember it being when I dislocated my shoulder.

Divya's engagement: The bridal tea looked fun to me, personally, but I suppose I can see how Jill and Divya were bored. Their night on the town was fun, but of course the whole taxi/diabetes thing was a little far-fetched. What are the odds that they would happen upon Aristotle when he was one doughnut away from a coma? Hmph.

I loved how the perfect sister actually had this awful double life, but it turned out that Raj was basically perfect. Awww. Also, Evan being all concerned about Divya is so cute. I know I say this every week, but I love their friendship.

Hank and Emily: Gah. Emily is somewhat charming, but Hank should be with Jill. Obviously.

Royal Pains 2.7: "Comfort's Overrated"

Will I ever actually catch up on this show? Maybe...

Patient(s) of the week: Weird couples everywhere! These were all fine but not particularly memorable. As I've said before, I do like it when the group is dealing with multiple patients in one week, because it just feels more real.

Evan: The faux beau thing was funny, and very him. Oh, poor Evan.

Divya: Her uncertainties involving her dress and ring were interesting, and I'm curious to see how this will all play out. I wish she could get married but still stay in the Hamptons, because a look at the beginning of that marriage would be great if the show did it correctly.

Hank/Jill: I like the idea of Hank running the clinic. More of them together, please! (Either as a couple or just interacting.)

Royal Pains 2.6: "In Vino Veritas"

I apparently have little to say about this episode, as I watched it a while ago and took all of four notes and couldn't be bothered to write them up. So. Here goes.

Patient of the week: Tucker's back! Yay! I'm always happy to see him, and I wish they'd make him a regular. Other than that . . . eh. It was fine.

Pregnancy test hijinks: This whole storyline was completely predictable, but they made it more interesting than I'd expected, so that's something. The boys were so sweet with Divya when they thought she was pregnant. I was disappointed that it wasn't used to further the Hank/Jill story at all, though - I didn't want Jill to actually be pregnant, but it was something of a cop-out that Hank didn't have to deal with the possibility.

Evan and Divya: Awww. I'm actually still NOT shipping them, which is rare for me, but I really love their friendship and the way the show is letting that develop.

Lawson family: I'm still consistently annoyed by the father, but it still gives the brothers a chance to be cute together, so . . . whatever.

Royal Pains 2.5: "Mano a Mano"

The boys are still in Cuba. I'm bored, but then I'm not, but I'm still not buying the whole thing. More after the jump.

Cuba: At the beginning of the episode, I was annoyed that they were still in Cuba, and the kidnapping bit was a little farfetched. (Because, you know, this show is usually so realistic!) But then the Cuba stuff got more interesting when they got into the political issues, but it still felt wrong - it was a little too heavy for this show. So . . . I don't know. I think my position is still that the Cuba plot was a mistake, overall. I did really like that they didn't subtitle all the Spanish, though.

Boris: Oh, Boris. I'm glad he didn't die, of course, but I'd also rather he be back in the Hamptons with the boys. The split screen thing when Hank was saving him was weird, and didn't feel as urgent as it should have.

Lawson brothers: There was a very cute brotherly moment at the end. I like how they get annoyed with each other frequently, but don't pretend to hate each other or anything. And bonus: no dad stuff in this episode!

Divya and Jill: The concert thing was a little silly, but I love the Divya/Jill friendship and I hope they continue to develop that.

Peck: She's still pretty ridiculously awful. And apparently she's sticking around, to be some sort of competition for Hank. And/or a love interest? But Jill is so much better. Sigh.

Royal Pains 2.4: "Medusa"

Cuba! Huh. That was unexpected, although I supposed it shouldn't have been. More after the jump.

Boris and Cuba: I do feel badly for Boris, but he's being dumb. Ah well. The Cuba stuff was interesting, I guess, but Royal Pains is such a setting-based show that it just feels weird having the brothers out of the Hamptons.

Lawson family: One good thing about the field trip to Cuba was that we got a break from the dad, so yay! I loved Evan's "Are you still trying to prove that we're not related?" line. They're no Salvatores, or Winchesters, but I do love these brothers.

Evan's subplot: Of course he meets a girl and then ends up having a medical emergency. And - trading his phone for cigars? Really? That seems really irresponsible, even for him.

Back in the Hamptons: Poor Divya. Of course the replacement doctor was awful.

Overall: This episode was pretty disappointing, as it took away both the setting and the interaction between the whole group. I like the Lawsons together, but I love their interactions with Divya and with Jill. Get the gang back together, show!

Royal Pains 2.3: "Keeping the Faith"

Finally catching up on this show! Sorry for the delay. This episode seemed awfully slow for some reason, and it wasn't one of my favorites, so I don't have a lot to say, after the jump.

Patient of the Week: There was a little too much focus on him, but the plotline itself was fine. And, of course, the sister also ended up having a medical issue. How coincidental!

Lawson family: I'm sick of the father being around. Sigh. But, as always, I love the brothers' interaction.

Boris: Meh. Secrets as usual. Are we supposed to think Hank is being replaced with the new concierge doctor at the end?

Evan: This is his second girl who couldn't or wouldn't eat for some reason. Interesting.

Hank and Jill: They were cute, and I liked Hank's bit of jealousy. I couldn't remember what their status was supposed to be exactly, but I guess they're completely broken up at this point?

Divya: Where was she?? She was barely in this episode! I missed her!

Royal Pains 2.2 "Lovesick"

My thoughts on this second episode are after the jump.

Patients of the Week: Two of them! I actually like that, because it seems more realistic for them to be treating several patients at a time for reasonably minor things than to constantly have one patient with a big weird ailment. Not that I generally demand realism of this show or anything. That said, these were a bit Messagey - Don't try to change yourself for someone! Trust your partner! Last week was kind of Messagey too, so I hope this isn't a trend for this season. This isn't Grey's Anatomy, people!

The Lawson Family: I continue to be skeptical of the father situation, but if it makes Hank and Evan into more interesting characters, fine. Is Evan more willing to forgive their father because he's younger and doesn't remember as much? Perhaps. How old were the boys when their mother died? Who was their guardian? Were they in foster care or something? I want answers!

HankMed: I like them best when they're all working together, really, so I hope this continues. The bobblehead thing was hilarious and also a brilliant product tie-in, because you can of course now buy the bobbleheads from USA.

Divya's Engagement: You know what? I like Raj. His ongoing "I don't think you know what subliminal means" thing was hilarious, and it's really interesting to watch Divya and Raj navigate these questions that come up when they try to figure out a way to balance their respect for tradition with their modern sensibilities. The only thing I don't like about this storyline is the whole moving-to-London thing. Why can't they just get rid of that, and make Raj part of the cast?

Jill's Job: I continue to be bored by this supposed plot, so I will ignore it until it produces something interesting.

Boris: Was he even mentioned?

Hank and Jill: Well, I got what I wanted here - this storyline was not ignored. The moment with Newberg at the beginning, when they were cutely but awkwardly explaining that they weren't together but it was okay, was adorable, and I was all ready to say that I wanted to see them apart for a while and dealing with staying friends. But then Jill had her yard sale, and then the whole garage thing happened and that totally won me over. So really, I'd be okay with them being together, or trying to be friends but not together, as long as they keep having good scenes together.

Overall: Again, this was . . . fine. Which is really all I demand from this show.

Grade: B

Royal Pains 2.1 "Spasticity"

Spoilers ahead! Here's my take on the season opener of Royal Pains . . .

Patient of the Week: Enh. I figured out it was mercury poisoning before Hank did, which was frustrating. It was fine, I guess, but the faux-parallelism to the situation with Hank's father was a little too Grey's Anatomy for this show. On the other hand, I liked the actual parallelism of Jill risking her job for a patient, mirroring the way Hank lost his job in the city. One other thought about the patients of the week: Have they saved them every time? Is the show ever going to let someone die?

The Lawson Family: I'm not entirely convinced we need this whole father storyline, but if it prompts more good brother interaction, I guess I can get behind it. I hope the father doesn't end up disrupting the dynamic too much. I did love the moment of Hank taking the check and then punching his father, but I'm about ready to be done with the father now. I doubt I'll get my wish. Oh, and Evan selling his car is a good illustration of what we already know - that Hank is what he cares about most - but also shows some nice personal growth and maturity.

Divya's Engagement: Her refusing to talk about her situation with Hank is frustrating, but if we're never going to get to Labor Day anyway, does it matter? I think it's really interesting that she'll talk to Evan but not Hank about this. I love the sort of grudging friendship between Evan and Divya. I can't tell whether the show is thinking about making it romantic at some point, but I think I like them just as friends.

Jill's Job: Meh. I know Jill's nemesis is Oscar Winner Marcia Gay Harden and we're supposed to be excited about that, but I'm not. Harden's character so far seems to just be inexplicably and needlessly evil, so I hope we find out more of her background or some excuse to make her more sympathetic, if she's really sticking around as a regular. What is this fancy surgeon doing at this hospital everyone keeps saying is so awful, anyway?

Hank and Jill: I liked that Jill told Hank about the divorce right up front, rather than dragging it out, but I also like that Hank didn't just immediately try to jump in a relationship. But I do like the two of them together, so I hope that storyline isn't back-burnered too much because of all these new characters and conflicts they're throwing in this year.

Boris: Continuing to be Boris. His decision to trust Hank was probably supposed to be a big sign of personal growth, though, and the football thing was adorable. I wonder if they actually have some plan for his mysterious illness?

Overall: As a season opener, it was fine. They're clearly trying to make the show more complicated with these two new storylines (and characters), but I'm not convinced that's a good idea. This is supposed to be summer fluff. I think between patients of the week, the Evan/Hank sibling dynamic, Divya's family drama, Boris's mystery illness, and Jill and Hank's relationship, they had enough going on already, and I like all those elements more than any of the new stuff, so far. So I really hope they don't move too far away from what I liked about the show last season.

Grade: B