Tonight on NBC their new medical drama “The Good Doctor” airs with an all-new Monday, November 18, 2019, episode and we have your The Good Doctor recap below. On tonight’s The Good Doctor season 3 episode 8 called, “Moonshot” as per the ABC synopsis, “Carly’s attempts at increasing her intimacy with Shaun are becoming more of a frustration than either of them expected.
Meanwhile, Lim and Melendez struggle in their relationship as they work to separate their work from their personal life.”
So make sure to tune in between 10 PM and 11 PM ET for our The Good Doctor recap! While you wait for our recap make sure to check out all our television spoilers, news, recaps, videos & more, right here!
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The Good Doctor begins tonight with Dr. Shaun Murphy (Freddie Highmore) and Dr. Carly Lever (Jasika Nicole) at a carnival, where he rides a rollercoaster for the first time, screaming that it is terrifying but very fun. The two share a kiss and he appears to be more comfortable with her touching him but when the two return to Carly’s house and she lays on the bed; after removing his shirt, she explains everything about the bed, but Shaun freaks out, apologizes and leaves.
At the hospital, Dr. Neil Melendez (Nicholas Gonzalez) closes the door to Dr. Audrey Lim’s (Christina Chang) office inquiring why she didn’t return any of his calls; she explains that she had a moment of clarity about his pain and how he asked her to take her share. She wants him to accept that he is fallible. He suggests running his surgeries by Dr. Aaron Glassman (Richard Schiff), instead of her because they need to have some boundaries in their relationship. She kisses him, saying she is the Chief of the department and he will run all his medical decisions past her; excusing him from her office.
Dr Marcus Andrews (Hill Harper) is delegating everyone’s job in the department for the day, and just as Dr. Morgan Reznick (Fiona Gubelmann) feels she is being “bumped” she is informed she has her first lead surgery. She is excited, saying Andrews knows she rocks but Dr. Alex Park (Will Yun Lee) reminds her that maybe she wasn’t as she was the last intern booked to do a surgery. Alex, Dr. Claire Browne (Antonia Thomas) and Shaun look at the case; all agreeing this is better than all of their surgeries; Morgan excited and feeling like she is better than the rest leaves to prep her patient.
Melendez sits with his patient who is an astronaut and has a tumor on her lung. She tells him she doesn’t like the answer she got from other surgeons because she needs her lung as she is going to the moon; Neil smirks at her confidence.
Andrews is with Shaun and Alex as they check their patient who has been having chest pains. She explains that the nitrate prescribed usually worked for angina but not this time. Shaun reviews everything, realizing she is the same Rosalind Elion who just published a major paper on leukemia. She is having a heart attack while Andrews is doing an ultrasound on her heart and they rush Rosalind off to surgery.
Melendez and Claire have his patient getting scans while he informs Claire that she is going to the moon in 2020. Claire admits she never wanted to be an astronaut as she had enough problems on earth; Neil admits he was a Star Trekker. They see her tumor and Claire feels they need to remove the entire lung to get it out but Melendez disagrees. When informed, she says anything removed will make her unfit for space travel, she thanks them for their time and excuses them.
Morgan is practicing her procedure but her hands become far too shaky and she is unable to do anything. She wipes her tears away and takes a couple of pills without anyone seeing. Meanwhile, Andrews wants to know if Rosalind’s husband is there because her entire left side of her heart is compromised. Alex says they are divorced and she has no contact with him but he tracked down her sister who also hasn’t spoken to her in years. Shaun feels it is a good thing that he hasn’t found any family members because they are the least qualified people to make decisions. Andrews says judging by what he is seeing there is only one choice and she needs a new heart.
Lim comes down and informs Melendez that there is a possibility of saving her lung by using a surgical robot. Ren Braxton came to see Lim for a second opinion and is surprised that Melendez didn’t give her the option as it is the type of surgery that she usually sends his way. She reminds him that she will just keep looking for someone until she finds someone who will hack out the tumor and she will die. Lim feels that Neil can do this, but he is overestimating the risk. They bicker about who is biased and he won’t risk her dying the same way his previous patient did. Lim reminds him people risk things to make their dreams come true and if he won’t help her, she will do it herself.
Rosalind is informed they will place a balloon in her heart until they find a suitable donor as Shaun tells her she is high on the list even though the heart is a very hard organ to procure. She informs them that she wants them to call her lab assistant, as they need to stay with her cultures for the next few days as she doesn’t want 5 years of research to go to waste. Alex asks why she listed her ex-husband as her medical proxy and she said she had to list someone and Leo Adan (Paul McGillion) is the only one she has ever spoken her wishes to.
Shaun is in the lab when Carly comes in. She is hoping he isn’t embarrassed about the previous night but he says he wants to have sex with her. He thinks of it often, even when he should focus on more pressing matters. She feels that is good, telling him she thinks about him even when she shouldn’t. He feels that is bad but she brings up some research she did on how to treat phobias and it works on people with autism too and if he is a game they can try; he agrees.
Morgan tells Andrews she needs another surgery as this one is too complex for a 3rd-year resident. He tells her to sit down, saying he picked to her because it is rare that a resident would have what she has, the aggressiveness, the work ethic, and the talent to be a leader. He is not setting her up to fail but to shine; asking if he is wrong about her. She smiles and says, “No sir!”
Melendez sees Ren working out, telling him that she wants him to do the surgery Lim suggested. She is afraid of the surgery and going to the moon but that is how great things happen, surpassing the fear and because someone took a chance. From what she read about him, she wants him in her corner, someone who she feels would understand. He reminds her they cannot anticipate everything. He says if he is doing the surgery there is a 60% chance she dies on the table.
At home, Carly explains the exposure therapy where they lay down on the bedside by side, fully clothed and not touching for 15 seconds. He then can go to the other room for a 3-minute break and then they do it for 20 seconds; over time they will have longer intervals and eventually closer together. She lays down, encouraging him to do so when he is ready. He lays facing her, she closes her eyes and he begins to look over her body but gets anxious. He rushes down the stairs, saying he doesn’t know why it didn’t work. He shouts that he cannot do this and Carly orders him to get out of there. She is frustrated that he gave up after 8 seconds and he is right that this is not going to work after all the research she has done. She gives him his coat and tells him to go home.
Shaun tells Alex about what happened and lasting 8 seconds, then her kicking him out. Alex mistook it for him lasting 8 seconds with sex but Shaun explains exposure therapy to him. Alex suggests they try something else. Shaun explains all his symptoms when he is close to Carly as Alex asks him if he really wants this and tells him to rely on his strengths and treat this like a surgical problem. Carly came up with a solution but it didn’t work; that doesn’t mean the next one won’t. Andrews walks in, as Alex says Rosalind’s right side is damaged too so he wants them to discuss a DNR with her and to keep her comfortable.
Melendez is stopped by Lim who says his 60% is grossly exaggerated and she just spent the past hour trying to convince her patient that they won’t kill her. She reminds Melendez that she could fire him for contradicting her option. They argue as she reminds him that he is being unprofessional and disrespectful for this as he reminds her if anyone showed a lack of respect it was her, but they are ordered into Glassman’s office when he hears them.
Rosalind informs the doctors that she doesn’t want to be kept alive on life support. Shaun and Alex explain how things will worsen and how they can keep her comfortable. Rosalind says she went through this when she was 10 and her mother was dying of leukemia; Alex suggests she should reach out to Leo and he definitely doesn’t feel it is too late, explaining how things worked out for him and his wife when they almost lost their son and he and Mia reunited. Rosalind tells him that Leo made her choose between him and her research and to call him now would be hypocritical and unfair. Shaun is glad he has treatment options because of her and says she made a good choice.
Aaron comes in, confronting Melendez and Lim about the case. Lim is confident in the surgical plan as Melendez wants his opinion, but Aaron reminds him that Dr. Lim is his Chief of Surgery and he trusts her judgment; before he walks out of the room he informs them that there better not be any more squabbling or he will have to lose one of them at the hospital.
Shaun and Alex talk as Shaun feels Dr. Elion had a successful life without a relationship and so can he, but Alex reminds him that success and happiness are not the same things and he needs to decide what will make him happy. Shaun feels he is better at surgery than being with Carly. Alex thinks Rosalind is afraid, it wasn’t about the lives she could save but she has always been afraid of losing when she lost her mother and then Leo. Shaun is the same after he lost the most important person in his life, his brother. His symptoms are not about his sensory issues, it is about fear; something everyone feels. Shaun doesn’t understand why anyone would want to feel afraid so Alex explains that it is scary to worry that a person would end up alone. Alex realizes that Rosalind won’t call Leo not because it is hypocritical but because she is afraid he won’t come.
Dr. Glassman walks in his office to find Morgan there. She isn’t there for a vaccine, revealing she is in pain and needs a cortisone shot as surgery is in two hours. He learns Morgan wanted him and only him to know that she has rheumatoid arthritis. He feels bad as she explains that her mother had it too and is destroyed her fingers and joints.
Lim suggests that she leave the hospital, feeling her and Melendez cannot have differing opinions. He tells her that he loves her as she wants their relationship to work, but she wants to be Chief too and they cannot work together with her being his boss so something needs to change.
Aaron tells Morgan it looks like she caught it early, no erosion of the joints. Aaron says she needs to postpone to her first surgery for a while until they know how she will react to the shots. She is afraid that she would have to explain to Andrews and Lim; something Aaron says she should since she has a medical condition. She fears it will change the way they see her and expect less for her. She feels since he advocated for Shaun he should do the same for her. Aaron sits and explains how she is going to the surgery and if she misses by a tiny spot the patient will have permanent brain damage or worse; she assures him it is about pain and not function as she would never put a patient’s life at risk and it’s insulting that he thinks that. She needs someone to believe in her like he did with Shaun; he agrees.
Alex goes to see Leo, explaining that Rosalind is dying and wants to see him. He tells Leo that she doesn’t know he is there. Leo explains that she is a saint, saving the world but when his mother died, she wasn’t there. When he won an award, she wasn’t there and everyone understood but him. He wanted his wife to be around. He tells Alex that at least she didn’t send him so at least she isn’t a hypocrite.
The robotic surgery is about, to begin with Dr. Lim as the lead. Melendez walks in, saying his Chief is performing a difficult surgery and he is there to help in any way he can. Lim is impressed.
Morgan announces the time of her surgery and begins as Alex and Shaun rush to Rosalind’s side. Shaun feels they should insert the drain but Alex tells him it isn’t about the fluid, she is scared and he talks to her, saying she is not alone and he will stay by her side as long as she needs him. Leo suddenly appears and Rosalind removes the oxygen mask, tearing up as she sees him. He takes her hand and she is grateful for him to be there; Alex and Shaun quietly leave the room as Leo touches her face gently.
Lim and Melendez work with Claire on Ren’s surgery. Lim is conflicted as she realizes she needs to take the lung and tells the team to prep her for the procedure. Melendez stops them, taking over suggesting a way for Lim to save her lung and she agrees.
Aaron watches as Morgan performs her first lead surgery. She pauses as Andrews asks if there is a problem. She leans in with her medical devices and is able to do it without any damage; Andrews telling her she did “Nice work” as she smiles; but Aaron looks on, very concerned.
Melendez and Lim come to see Ren who has woken up after her surgery, learning they got it all and she will be able to make that flight next year. Lim gives Melendez credit, explaining his remarkable win. He shows her the robotic instrument that is the reason she still has two complete lungs and she wants them both to sign it so she can leave it on the moon.
Leo is on the bed beside Rosalind as they know she is very close to passing; the two stare into each other’s eyes as she slowly slips away. Shaun says he will pronounce her but Alex wants to do it. He bravely walks into the room where Leo is still holding her. Leo stands up and takes his jacket and thanks to Alex for finding him.
Audrey comes to Neil’s house, where he tells her she is right and the surgery would have never happened without her. He holds her, saying they were both right and they worked together so their patient is better off for it. He promises they won’t make the same mistakes the next time. She feels this is just their nature and doesn’t think she can give him the unconditional support from a partner and the objectivity as his Chief. She doesn’t want to give up on her dream, she loves him but it is not enough. She wishes him “good night” and walks out on him.
Aaron chases after Morgan, who thanks him for his support and her pain is 90% better because of the shot. He says she did a remarkable job, but when he touches her hand he checks her joints and congratulates her as she says she is fine. She walks away but he watches her leave as she is rubbing her hand.
Shaun returns to Carly’s saying he did research too and found nothing, feeling she is right that exposure therapy is the best option as she is smart and thorough. She thanks him as he would like to try again and she welcomes him inside.
Morgan places her hands in a bowl of ice water, groaning through the pain as Shaun and Carly were able to go past the timer. It is time to take a break, as Shaun says he knows that this is terrifying and very nice. Carly smiles as they place hands over each other.
THE END!
