The Good Doctor Season 7 Episode 8 Review: The Overview Effect

The Good Doctor Season 7 Episode 8, “The Overview Effect,” poignantly tackles relationships and how parents deal with past trauma, although it introduces several story arcs the show may not have time to adequately develop.

The episode sees Dr. Sean Murphy and his wife, Lea Dilallo-Murphy, disagree about getting Steve tested for autism while Dr. Aaron Glassman continues attempting to help his patient, Hannah.

As for the episodic patients, Dr. Murphy attempts to help a young boy, Tayo, whose parents can’t stop arguing long enough to make important medical decisions for him, and Dr. Alex Park treats a man whose body has been impacted by space travel.

Since the last episode introduced Hannah and suggested that Steve may be displaying early signs of autism, it is fortunate these stories continue in “The Overview Effect.” 

While it was evident in the previous episode that Hannah reminded Dr. Glassman of his late daughter, seeing how strongly the connection impacts him is still surprising.

One can understand him striving to aid Hannah, but the episode ends with him shockingly agreeing to provide her with pain medication despite the hospital refusing to prescribe it due to her substance abuse struggles.

Dr. Glassman hints that he will be illicitly securing the pills as he tells her that he’ll worry about the consequences instead of her. Oddly, there’s no mention of the mysterious scans referenced in the previous episode.

It’s difficult to tell if his actions are fully trauma-motivated or if perhaps a medical condition or knowledge of a medical malady could explain his reckless behavior.

Regardless of the reason for Dr. Glassman’s behavior, his actions suggest that this whole story arc is going to end badly. However, with two episodes left, it doesn’t seem the show will have enough time to develop this story fully.

It raises concern that the arc may end abruptly, which would be unfortunate as it’s quite an interesting delve into grief and how the loss of a child impacts a parent.

Another story unlikely to get a satisfactory ending is that of Steve. In the episode, Dilallo-Murphy argues with Dr. Murphy that Steve is too young to be tested for autism, but Dr. Murphy’s past experiences with his abusive father punishing him without understanding his condition make him anxious to diagnose Steve.

Given Steve’s young age, though, Dilallo-Murphy is correct that, even if tested, the possibility of a misdiagnosis would render the results largely inaccurate.

It’s disappointing because it’s rare that shows explore what it’s like for parents on the spectrum when it comes to potentially diagnosing a child. Unfortunately, Steve’s age and the impending end of The Good Doctor means this storyline can’t realistically be explored.

So, although Dr. Murphy and Dr. Glassman have powerful stories, it’s difficult not to feel skeptical and concerned about these particular arcs ending appropriately.

The other story arcs are entertaining but lack depth. It’s good that the show is raising awareness for the health effects of space travel, but the story of the patient and his wife feels rushed.

Similarly, Tayo boasts a very unique medical condition, but the story of him and his bickering parents is hardly explored.

Meanwhile, Dr. Reznick and Dr. Park’s story is quite silly, as they disagree about approaching marriage — however, Dr. Reznick’s bizarre proposals are likely to induce secondhand embarrassment rather than laughs.

These various side stories contain a few pretty generic themes, such as the importance of compromise, but nothing that really stands out.

Ultimately, “The Overview Effect” does a good job of continuing the major stories first introduced in the previous episode and raises some interesting points about trauma and parenting.

However, the episode’s decision to lay the foundation for some major stories right before the series finale raises concerns about The Good Doctor ending on a satisfactory note. 

What did you think of this episode of The Good Doctor? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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The Good Doctor airs at 10/9c on ABC.

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