The Resident Review: Peking Duck Day (Season 3 Episode 8)
The Resident Season 3 Episode 8, “Peking Duck Day” celebrates Thanksgiving like most people in the U.S., with a big old side dish of pain.
There are enough delicious family-based moments to balance the episode. And nearly all of the core Chastain members are given a chance to cut into the meat of their life’s conflicts.
It’s sweet.
The heartiest stories belong to Nic and AJ.
Both stories take place outside the confines of the hospital, which is a nice change of scenery. AJ is apprehensive off the bat about meeting his biological brothers.
As much as The Raptor is a risk-taker and a game-changer, he doesn’t like to be on unstable footing. He has been angry for so long that it feels wrong to just let it go and move forward.
Usually, Mina is the one to center him and remind him or who he is.
On “Peking Duck Day,” it is Conrad who provides the wisdom.
The only child tells AJ that the bonds of brotherhood are most profound for the one providing the support. When AJ pushes back, Conrad pushes on, pointing out that AJ’s history with his brothers is starting now.
It’s surprisingly tender.
The characterization of AJ’s brothers is a bit over the top and schtick-ish.
That’s not necessarily inaccurate though. During holiday gatherings, it does seem like people become the most ridiculous version of themselves.
The episode also illuminates another holiday truism; home is where we feel most like ourselves. When Raptor tells Nurse Hundley that he’s thankful for her, it is dripping with meaning and love.
He loves his Chastain family and he trusts that they love him. That gives him the confidence to be vulnerable with his biological family.
The Raptor is a wonderful surprise as a character. There isn’t another character this decade that started off minor and has so completely and powerfully integrated into the core identity of a show.
The Resident would not be The Resident without Dr. AJ Austin.
There is a nice ending to AJ’s Thanksgiving gathering. But, it is still messy. AJ’s biological father gives his other kids a really hard time and seems to idolize the son he gave up for adoption in a strange way.
Yes, the moms seem to be getting along well, but I don’t believe for a second that both of their stomachs aren’t tied up in knots.
Family is hard and messy.
It’s great that The Resident can give us a sugary ending that is still realistic, not fantasy.
For whatever strange reason, bad things tend to happen on holidays. Trauma lives in the pockets of Thanksgiving-themed aprons.
“Peking Duck Day,” leans into this reality and gives Nic a beautiful way to continue to grieve and process her sister’s death.
There are bursts of anger and sorrow. There is some sexiness, some laughter, and some hum-drum too. All in the setting of Nic and Conrad’s kitchen ( I still am in love with that tile), these perfectly normal and perfectly excruciating parts of life feel intimate.
Nic and Conrad are family. They don’t need to be married or even engaged to give the kind of content that solid, committed couples can give.
Maybe it is because the conflict isn’t some pithy jealousy threatening to break them up. It is deeper and more meaningful than that.
CoNic is on the same team and that doesn’t make them a boring ship. It’s quite the opposite.
The strength of their romance, and that we don’t have to wonder if they’ll stay together, let us dig deeper into their internal conflicts, their backstories, and how the conflicts in their professional lives matter.
Basically, the sauce is rich.
Corbin Bernson deserves special mention for searing our hearts two episodes in a row.
On The Resident Season 3 Episode 7, “Woman Down,” Bernson, as Nic’s dad Kyle Nevin, volunteers at the hospital to be close to his daughter.
The tight hug he gives Nic, along with the admission that she’s all he has, is moving.
On “Peking Duck Day,” Nevin’s grief is palpable. It is a huge reminder that people who have made mistakes, even really big ones, hurt just as much as everyone else. Nevin isn’t impervious to the loss of a beloved daughter.
“Peking Duck Day” is truly lovely and it never takes on the sheen of a needlessly overdramatic holiday episode.
The Resident Season 3 is an exceptionally good season of television.
Doctors Notes
- Dr. Bell is so good at playing the game. He is still susceptible to the dark side, and I don’t think we should forget it.
- Feldman is incredibly insightful about Jessica’s recovery. He has really stepped it up this season. Keep it up, Irving!
- AJ being protective of his dad is HOT.
- We better get to see the rematch of CoNic’s sexy couch situation.
- The nurse staffing issue seems to have gone away. I hope that is more explicitly tied up or continued before the end of the season.
- The idea of those brothers having a permanent traumatic association with Thanksgiving just breaks me.
- When Mina and AJ eventually get together it’s going to need to be a bottle episode with just them. K, thanks.
What did you think of this episode of The Resident? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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The Resident airs Tuesdays at 8/7c on Fox.
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Janelle Ureta
Janelle Ureta is equal parts Veronica Mars, Raven Reyes, and Rebecca Bunch, but she aspires to add some Tammy Taylor to the mix. An attorney turned teacher, Janelle believes in the power of a well-told story. She is currently exploring how to tell short stories, 140 characters or less, on twitter. She loves to talk about TV, and right now she can't shut up about Timeless, Dear White People, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, The 100, or Younger.