Kathy Bates directed this episode. Yay!
Irv tells us that family doctors are an icon of the American experience, and that Treat was a great example of the "doctor" part, but was a bit "rough around the edges" in the "family" department. Illustrating Irv's point, Treat serves Delia and Ephram "dinner," the main course of which is an offering that -- well, I hate to use a pedestrian expression like "looks like shit," but I'm going for the literal meaning here, so my choices are limited. Treat tells them that he found their mother's recipe book, and Ephram asks if he cooked it. That would probably be more appetizing than the slop he's serving you, actually. Ephram tries to stall by asking if they can say grace, and Treat promises that they can eat out the night. Ephram: "If we're not still in the hospital." Thanks for saving me the trouble, Ephram. Delia shows Treat the movie she's picked out for the evening, which is Willy Wonka And The Chocolate Factory. Ephram counsels Treat not to let her watch it, because apparently it always scares her, although she claims it doesn't anymore. Don't believe her, Treat -- those Oompa Loompas still scare me. Ephram claims she's like a junkie begging for more smack. Delia: "I'm not a junkie; you're a junkie!" Ah, the elevated discourse of siblings. It won't get any more mature, either, kids, if my sister and I are any indication. The phone rings, interrupting the debate, and it's a nice touch that Ephram is pouring a Dead Sea-level of salt on his food. Treat tells the person on the other end of the phone that they're just finishing dinner, earning a baleful look from the kids, and gets the caller's address and says he'll be right over. He tells the kids that he's got his first house call. Ephram snarkily repeats back that they're "just finishing dinner," but Treat, as is his wont, ignores the undercurrent and cheerfully says that it wouldn't be "country doctorly" of him to make his patient feel guilty about summoning him, and besides, he won't be long. Delia points out that the knapsack Treat's sporting isn't country doctorly, and Treat wonders if an umbrella would help the image. Ephram: "That says 'singing English nanny.'" Hee. Ephram, you're a recapper's dream. Oh, don't say it. Treat leaves, and Ephram conspiratorially tells Delia that he'll order pizza. Delia: "Half cheese, half pepperoni." Aw.
Treat knocks on a door, and greets the "Mrs. Dudley" who answers. We hear lots of coughing from within, and I've got the flu at the moment, so I'm more sympathetic than usual. She offers Treat some coffee, but he declines and asks which one of the at least five kids the patient is. After ascertaining that Treat doesn't charge for his services, she informs him that they're all sick. I involuntarily start singing a Meow Mix commercial. Whether directed at Mrs. Dudley or me, Treat's bemused look beards us into the opening credits.
And here's my first bout with the theme music. I actually like the piano bits at the end, but the beginning...well, it sounds nothing so much to me like Paula Cole's warblings magically converted into a string instrument, and considering those were once likened on this site to "cat being shaved with straight-edged razor," I think you understand that that's not a compliment. I love the sepia stills, though -- I already mentioned my favorite in my last recap, the one of Bright and Ephram with matching black eyes, but I also love the one of Amy, mostly because Ephram is just gaping at her like she's riding a clamshell or something. Hee.
We see Gene Wilder telling Charlie how much they have to do, and then the camera pulls back to reveal Delia asleep on the couch as Treat walks in. He turns off the TV, gathers Delia up in his arms, and takes her up to bed. Aw. She wakes up and tells him that she tried not to watch the movie, but it called out to her. Treat: "I bet." She says she even watched the part where Violet Beauregarde turns into a blueberry, "which you and I both know isn't really possible." He kisses her forehead. Cut to Treat walking into Ephram's doorway and announcing that he's back. Ephram: "Sound the trumpets." Treat couldn't have deflated more visibly there if he were a breast with a bad saline implant. He apologizes for how long he took, but Ephram snarks that he hadn't noticed, and tells Treat to shut the door, which he sadly does. Oh, Ephram. Must you be so unforgiving...ly hot?
Downstairs, Treat tosses out his "meatloaf," and then grabs a slice of cold pizza. He's about to bite in when the front door blows open. He goes through it onto the porch, where the swing is rocking gently. He walks around it, blocking our view for a moment, and when he sits down, Sue Ellen is to him. She tells him they're on vacation, and wonders if he's going to spend all of it cleaning. He says he's just keeping busy, but she asks about Ephram. Treat claims that the argument they had wasn't his fault, and asks if she heard the way Ephram talked to him. Sue Ellen tries to claim that sarcasm is Ephram's way of expressing affection, but Treat isn't buying it, and neither am I. Ephram would have to love Treat more than life itself for the math to add up there, and that would be wrong in a Dawson's Creek kind of way. Sue Ellen points out that Treat only takes one week of family vacation a year, and even then he doesn't spend any time with Ephram. Treat counters that he asked Ephram to go out on the boat with him, but he refused. "I was gonna teach him how to drive it." I'm thinking that was one lesson Ephram would have done well not to skip. Sue Ellen, however, thinks that there are other ways Treat could get to know Ephram. "I swear to God, one day you two are gonna understand each other, if it's the last thing I ever do." Yeah, that might have been a little heavy-handed. Greg, you get more tears with subtlety than with anvils.
Treat laughs, but then a dog barks, which seems to snap him out of his reverie. He sees Nina on her porch, waving to him. Realizing that she heard him talking, he sheepishly tells her that he sometimes remembers conversations with his wife. Rather than point out that this definition of "remember" is found only in the Dictionary Of Terms That Will Get You Into The Loony Bin, Stat, Nina asks about this particular conversation. Treat says it was a talk they had a year ago. He adds that they had a house in the Hamptons (would Nina necessarily know what the Hamptons are?), and Sue Ellen would take the kids for the summer, but he was there a total of three weeks in five years, obviously implying that he failed his family. You know, my parents had a house in the Hamptons as well, so I really shouldn't say "boo hoo, rich kids," but having seen the Browns' place in New York? Boo hoo, rich kids. Changing the subject, Treat notes how warm it is considering they had a snowstorm the week before, which is cute, considering that, according to an online source I checked, the temperature on set in Canada while filming the pilot was well below zero Fahrenheit, but in Utah for this episode was over a hundred. Nina, however, eschews such a pedestrian explanation, instead blaming the "Fall Thaw," which happens every year and even has its own legend behind it. Nina, let's split up and search for clues. She goes on that once a year, they get a heat wave that lasts about a week, and the town has a festival to celebrate. Treat says that's weird. Nina: "You think that's weird? Last week we got a doctor who doesn't charge anybody." Gah. I love this show's special brand of cheese, but that line was a little twee even for me. Nina wishes Treat good night and waddles her way back into the house. So, no explanation of the legend, then? Good.
Shot of Main Street, replete with a banner declaring the Fall Thaw, as Irv tells us that the day, as the temperature climbed, so did the town's excitement. You know, with the Rockies setting, Irv's voice-overs always remind me of the narrator in A River Runs Through It. Which, taken to its logical conclusion, means that Irv must once have had one scorching younger brother. He goes on that "almost" everyone was happy about the change in temperature, and shockingly, we see Patch pulling into his parking spot. Patch calls to the guy hanging the banner, calling him "Sign Boy," and tells him not to chip the paint on his office. "That's Benjamin Moore latex, the Rolls Royce of exterior coatings." Patch, God love every part of you, right down to the hobby horse up your ass. Treat arrives and wishes Patch a happy Thaw. Patch can't believe that an educated man like Treat would buy into the "Thaw" business, as what they're experiencing is a typical Indian summer, and he even gives a meteorological explanation for it. Since the legend is never explained, I don't understand exactly what business it is that people are buying into, but whatever. He bitches that for people like him who suffer from allergies, this isn't a fun week. Treat: "As opposed to all those other weeks where you just like to party down." Patch: "As usual, you make it difficult to have a civil conversation with you, Doctor." Treat: "Thaw well!" Patch: "Bite me." Ha! Between Ephram's and Patch's snarkiness, I'm lucky even to have a job with this show.
Treat walks into his waiting room, which is bustling. Edna informs him he's late, and starts to make a rather salty metaphor about the patients, but Treat cuts her off. They walk into his examining room as he tells her about the house call of the night before. She says that she hopes he got some rest, as they're in for another busy day, and then, for the benefit of the new viewers, asks why he's offering free medicine again. Treat says that the long answer is that he made enough money off the suffering of others, and he wanted to do something to assuage his guilt. "The short answer is, I'm nuts." You've come to the right town, buddy.
School. Amy finds Ephram at his locker and tells him to "give it to [her]." Before he can snap to attention, however, she clarifies that she means his assessment of his classes, as he's now been there a week. Ephram, that's not the first Amy-related disappointment you'll have in this episode, I'm afraid. He tells her that his classes are just as boring as the ones he had in New York. She responds that she wants to give him a nickname as a preemptive strike against the nasty nickname that he will inevitably get as the new kid. He points out that she has a really warped mind. Amy: "Something in the water here." Yeah, that's what I'm saying. Ephram asks Amy her nickname, but the bell rings, so she responds, "Late for class." I guess that makes Ephram's nickname "Hot In The Hallway," then. Cut to the bathroom, where Ephram is fixing his hair when two stall doors fly open to reveal Bright and some crony of his. Bright greets Ephram with a "Howdy, loser!" Ephram: "You guys choreograph the bathroom stall exit and I'm the loser?" Bright, I love you, but Ephram's got a point there. That was just a little too Grease. Bright, who we now see has two goons with him, says that he saw Ephram with Amy, and that he already told him she's spoken for. Ephram: "'Spoken for'? Hey Bright, the fifties called. They want their lingo back." See? I can just put it in neutral every time Ephram opens his mouth. Bright and his goons fake-laugh, since they don't know what else to do, and then Bright tells him that Colin will kick his ass when he finds out about him. Ephram notes that he might have a slight advantage there. Bright, I hope you're wearing smooth soles, because you certainly stepped into that one. Bright calls Ephram "Little Man," and threatens him with violence. Ephram says that statistically, he's not that little, but no matter how you slice it, Bright's a moron. Bright counters that he knows his sister, and she's playing him. "As soon as she gets your daddy fixin' up Colin, she's not even going to look at you anymore." He and his goons leave, and Ephram looks stung. Look, I hate to put down my boyfriend, but Bright, even if your low opinion of Amy is true (and I guess, to a certain degree, it is), why would you sabotage her efforts to get your best friend healed? I'll just sit here quietly while you mull that over -- I've got the few hours free.
Elementary school. Delia's teacher, Miss Violet, is wrapping up telling the kids how Ronald Reagan saved the world from "the Evil Empire." Delia, opening-credits-style, raises her hand and asks if she can move up front. After ascertaining that Delia doesn't have a seeing or hearing problem but simply prefers to sit close, Miss Violet says that in her class, the boys sit up front. Delia processes this, perhaps wondering if NOW takes elementary-school students, and then asks if the boys and girls ever get to switch places. Upon hearing a negative, she asks to sit up front. Miss Violet condescendingly asks if that means she's a boy. Somewhere, Magilla's left eyebrow twitches uncontrollably. Miss Violet, on a roll, tells Delia to remove her cap, as they're in a classroom, not a ballfield. Good one. Delia fails to comply, resulting in shrill cries of "Delia! Delia!" that make me long for the sound of nails on a chalkboard.
Dean Martin's "That's Amore" plays over an exterior shot of Gino Chang's. Inside, we see "the restaurant's proprietor and namesake," according to Irv, bustling about and being a gregarious host. Irv tells us that when Gino moved to Everwood a few years back, the town had neither a Chinese restaurant nor an Italian one, so Gino opened both. I guess Everwood should be glad that Gino's middle name isn't "Pierre" or some such. I'm all for ethnic diversity, but not necessarily on my dinner plate. Treat, however, makes an order comprising both types of food, prompting Ephram to observe that they're in the weirdest restaurant they've ever seen, despite being from New York "where we're regularly served by drag queens named Frank." The drag queens I know use their stage names while working, Ephram, but nice try. Treat asks if anyone wants to go to Thaw Fest the day, and Ephram snarkily says he will if Treat lobotomizes him first. Delia interrupts to ask what the phrase "extreme disciplinary measures" means, covering by saying that she heard the expression on TV. Hee.
Patch and Amy enter the restaurant and are warmly greeted by Signore Chang. The cross-cultural fun ends, however, when Patch discovers that his regular table is currently being occupied by his mortal enemy. He lectures Gino until he's out of breath, but Gino breezes that Patch is such a "smartypants," and besides, they'll get dessert free tonight. When Patch and Amy walk past him, Gino drops the act and rolls his eyes. Hee. Back at The Best Table In Everwood, Treat asks Ephram how things are going with Amy. Ephram gets defensive, but Treat says that Amy is on her way over. Amy greets Ephram and Treat, and then announces to Treat, "My boyfriend Colin is in a Stage Four coma and I was wondering if you would perhaps consider using your unique and gifted talents in neurosurgery to help awaken him from his severe head trauma, so that I can sleep with him." Treat, smiling big: "I'd be glad to." Hee! I love dream sequences that you don't see coming. In the real world, Amy greets the table, and Delia tells her she's pretty. Treat's cell phone rings, affording Ephram the opportunity to get up and talk to Amy alone. Amy explains that Friday is her father-daughter night with Patch; they get something to eat and then go home and watch "something he's taped off of Turner Classics." Patch impatiently calls to her as she goes on that he can be cool, "when no one's looking." She returns to her table, and Delia teases Ephram about Amy being his girlfriend. Treat interrupts to say that it was Mrs. Dudley on the phone, and he has to get right over there, as it's an emergency. The kids are chagrined, but Treat says he doesn't have a choice, and gives Ephram money to pay for dinner and a cab home. He promises that he won't cook dinner for a whole week. Ephram looks like he's going to take that cab all the way back to New York. Get some moo shoo pork and a chicken parm for the trip, Ephram.
And the fun keeps on keepin' on, as Ephram can't get a cab. Patch and Amy exit and observe Ephram's difficulty, and Patch tsk-tsks about Treat leaving his kids alone, which is perhaps a bit ungenerous, considering that a) Patch is a doctor, and b) he doesn't even know the nature of Treat's errand. Amy gives her dad a withering glance, then approaches and offers the Brown kids a ride. Patch agrees, but pulls Amy aside and informs her that Ephram sits up front with him. Heh.
Treat examines one of the Dudley brood, and concludes that what he thought was bronchitis is actually infectious pneumonia, and that all the kids probably have it. There's some back-and-forth about prescriptions for the different kids that's a bit confusing, since I don't know what Treat's original diagnosis for some of the kids was, but the point is that Mrs. Dudley is forced to explain that her truck's been out of commission for "a few months," and she hasn't gotten any medication for her kids, nor can she until her sister returns the week. Treat ponders that for a moment, and then tells her to get her kids ready, as they're going to find the nearest all-night pharmacy. I'll bet you lasagna to lo mein this isn't going to go over very well with a certain manga-loving hottie.
Delia hops out of the car and politely thanks Patch for the ride. Amy gets out with Ephram and asks him if he's going to Thaw Fest. Delia tries to get his attention, but he tells her to hold on. Ephram makes a date to meet Amy at 2 PM. I guess that means that Amy has the same effect on Ephram as a lobotomy would. Well, I know we already knew that, but it's nice to have proof. Patch and Amy drive away, and Delia gets the punchline that they're locked out. The Guitar Of Isn't This The Evening From Hell? strums jauntily.
Patch and Amy enter their house as Patch snarks, "Over my dead and decaying corpse you're going to Thaw Fest with that boy!" Amy says she's only meeting Ephram there, and why does Patch care anyway? They rather tiresomely bicker back and forth until we get our first appearance from Mayor Rose. Amy complains that Patch is being "excruciating," and Patch replies that that word literally means to feel the pain of crucifixion, and that Jesus had it a bit tougher than Amy. He's then surprised when Amy doesn't want to watch the movie with him. Patch, I wouldn't have you give up your hilarious brand of condescension for all the egg rolls in Rome (and I'll stop with this theme when it stops making me laugh), but it may lead to you having the couch to yourself. Which isn't always a bad thing. Patch, taking in Rose's disapproving stare, tells her not to look like she's going to overrule him, but she informs him that he's going to rescind his own ruling, as Amy hasn't had a bit of fun since Colin's accident. "Right now if she wanted to go to the festival with Eminem I'd let her do it." Much as I'm now trying to picture Ephram singing "Stan," I can't quite do it. If he wants to lock Dido in his trunk, though, more power to him. Patch says that Ephram is Treat's son, which leads him to complain that he had another round of cancellations that day. Rose sighs and opines that the real issue isn't Ephram or Treat or free medicine. Patch: "This isn't about my mother." Insert your own joke about a certain Egyptian river. He goes on that "that battle-axe" is just trying to embarrass him by working for Treat. Rose sighs and simply bids Patch good night. I'm guessing that's not the first time that's happened.
Elementary school. Miss Violet, wearing her purple high-necked jacket, asks Delia what she told her about her hat. Delia glumly says, "No hats in class." Miss Violet parrots her, and when the camera returns to her, she's puffed out a bit and her face has turned purple. Ha! If they named this character Miss Violet just to make this joke work...well, I totally respect that. The class takes up the "no hats in class" chant as Miss Violet, continuing to swell, approaches Delia until she's right on top of her, at which point Delia wakes up, yelling. That was a bad dream, but I still say it would have been worse if Oompa-Loompas had been involved somehow. Ephram appears and tries to calm Delia down, but she asks for Treat. Ephram says he'll be home soon. He turns to go, but Delia asks him to stay with her for a bit. After a bit of sulking (which I think was clearly intended for Treat and not Delia), Ephram gets under the covers. Awwww.
A side camera shot shows Treat entering the house, not seeing Ephram, who's in the room in classic "Where have you been, young man?" pose. That brings back some fun memories. Ephram does in fact ask Treat just that, and Treat says he was stuck at the Dudleys. Ephram bites out that Delia had a nightmare, and Treat blames himself for letting her watch the movie. Ephram: "For someone who was once cited by the U.S. News And World Report as one of the greatest minds in America, it amazes me sometimes how clueless you are." Treat snarks that he doesn't need a lecture from his fifteen-year-old son, but Ephram comes right back that he shouldn't talk to him the way he talked to Sue Ellen. "I didn't marry you; I never agreed to pick up your slack!" Step away from the snark, Treat. You're facing a professional here. Treat, taking my advice and switching back to earnest, tries to explain that he was treating a seven-year-old boy who could hardly breathe. Ephram: "You win! Seven-year-old boys who can't breathe trump little girls with nightmares." He calls Treat a crappy father, which sets Treat off until he notices the bandage on Ephram's hand, and asks what happened. Ephram fumes that he cut his hand breaking into their house, which, by the way, happened because Treat abandoned them for the second night that week. Treat tries to look at it, but Ephram, voice breaking, tells him not to touch him, and I loved the way Gregory Smith read that line -- it signified to me that he'd actually allowed himself to get his hopes up that Treat was going to be a better father. And now, Ephram puts away the rapier in favor of the broadsword: "The Great Doctor Brown. That's what Mom and I used to call you. You always thought it was endearing, but it wasn't. It was our own private joke. 'Will The Great Doctor Brown be here for dinner? Will The Great Doctor Brown be joining us this weekend?'" He goes on that Treat is still that guy and always will be, but now, Sue Ellen isn't there to cover for him. "At least I got her. Who does Delia get?" He walks out. I guess when you're as skinny as Ephram, you don't pull any punches. And really, can we make this the last harrowing fight scene for a while? If I wanted stress in my life, I'd recap Tru Calling.
However, I guess this one wasn't quite as bad as the last one, because the family shows up for Thaw Fest together. Ephram asks Delia what they talked about in the car. Delia: "For the three hours, I don't know you." Hee. Ephram disappears as Irv and Edna walk up to Treat and Delia. After they exchange pleasantries, some hayseed appears and asks Treat to examine a cyst on his back. Edna offers to watch Delia, so off goes Treat. Ephram finds Amy, who introduces him to "The Melting Man," which is an ice sculpture of a man, wearing a real cowboy hat. Apparently, everyone in town bets on when the hat is going to hit the ground. Yeah, I'm understanding more why Amy stays home with her dad on Friday nights. Patch may be stiff, but he's certainly more interesting than most of these twits. Amy braces herself and tells Ephram that Patch is allowing her to hang out with him under one condition. Ephram asks what it is, and on cue, Bright appears, munching on cotton candy and calling Ephram "Bone Lick." Bright, I think I've made my thoughts about you plain enough that a pot/kettle joke would be entirely gratuitous, so let's just move on. Ephram tells Amy that Bright is his least favorite thing about her. Bright: "Yeah? Well, you're really my least favorite thing about you." Hee. What an oaf. I just love him. He jauntily wraps his arms around Amy and Ephram and leads them off.
Edna gets in the ice cream line, and hears her son ordering an ice cream in a more high-maintenance way than Sally Albright in When Harry Met Sally. They exchange small snark, and then Edna assures him that his practice is going to be just fine, as there are enough "hoity-toities" in town who don't want to share a waiting room with people from the wrong side of the tracks. Patch says that he's only concerned for her, as she's working for a lunatic and has had a couple of "title bouts" with reality herself. Hee. Edna comes back that Patch's problem is that he's always wanted Everwood to see him the same way they saw his dad: wise, generous, big-hearted. "Trouble is, people can't see what's not there." You know, this whole thaw theme is pretty incongruous, because there's a lot of cold shit being said this episode. Patch looks stung and walks away, and Edna looks like she thinks she might have gone a little too far. Gee, Edna, ya think?
Ferris wheel. Amy and Ephram stop at the top. Ephram can't believe Bright left them alone, but Amy says he wouldn't go near the wheel, as he's afraid of heights. Hee. Not that acrophobia is funny, but Bright can make anything amusing. They need him on The West Wing. Amy tells Ephram that she brought him up there to tell him something important. "Grover." That's her nickname. Apparently Colin and Bright used to hide her Grover doll, and one day Colin refused to give her the doll back unless she kissed him first, so they closed their eyes, leaned in...and she kicked him in the goolies. Ah, young love. When asked what happened, Colin would only say that Grover did it, and in that moment, Amy developed her first crush. Ephram looks sick as he realizes where this is going, and when Amy starts to preface the subject, he closes his eyes in pain and then resignedly says, "You want me to ask my dad to help Colin." Missing the pain in his voice, Amy asks him just to talk to Treat, and Ephram agrees, covering the hurt in his eyes with a small smile. Oh, Ephram. On any other show, stopping at the top of the Ferris wheel would have meant a makeout session, but on this one, you get the girl you love asking you to ask your dad to heal her comatose boyfriend. Let me give you a hug. AB doesn't have to know. What? Oh, er, that was just a test to see if she reads my recaps. Yeah. That's it.
Mrs. Baxworth calls to Treat, asking him if he'll try for a wish. She's got a bunch of shot glasses at the bottom of a fish tank, and if he drops a quarter in one of them, he gets his wish. The money goes to the Everwood Swans, the girls' dance troupe she teaches, and Foreshadowing slaps me in the face to make sure I'm paying attention. Treat drops a quarter into the tank and kneels down to watch it. When he looks through the tank glass, he sees a blurry image that could only be Sue Ellen. Standing up, he smiles broadly, and if that's not enough to break your heart, Van Morrison's "Steal My Heart Away" starts playing. Mrs. Baxworth watches Treat perplexedly. He walks over to Sue Ellen, kisses her, and tells her that though he didn't get the coin in the glass, he still got his wish. Yeah, this is going to be one of those tight-throat paragraphs. Oh, who am I kidding -- it's one of those tight-throat recaps. She asks him why she's there, and he tells her that he wanted to see her, to know that she's more than a memory, and to tell her that he kept his promise. "You didn't keep yours. You promised you'd be here. In Everwood. But you're not." I'd make a joke about Brenda Strong's name not being in the opening credits, but I know I can't get out of the exquisite misery of this scene that easily. Sue Ellen tells him he's going to be fine, and to say goodbye, as she's not really why he came to Everwood. "He was, Andy. You came here so you could know him." Treat doesn't know whom she means, but suddenly, the vision is over, and Treat realizes that the entire town is staring silently at him. To his credit, Patch looks even more dismayed than everyone else. But the heartbreak's not done yet, as we see Treat's kids staring at him. Delia steps forward, takes his hand, and says, "Let's go home, Dad." Ephram starts to follow as we fade to a commercial break. Recapper wipes tears from eyes and wonders what has become of his life.
Treat parks in front of their house, and asks what everyone thought of the festival. Delia immediately cracks up, and Ephram tries to resist, but soon he's giggling too. I appreciate this moment of levity, but I'm not fooled. I'm onto you, Berlanti. Delia takes this opportunity to give Treat a note from school. "I'm in big trouble!" Now Ephram and Treat are in hysterics, and Delia takes the opportunity to make a clean getaway. When they've calmed down, Ephram confesses that he sees Sue Ellen too, although not like Treat does. "I feel her, with us. When we're all having dinner or when there's a song playing on the radio she used to like, I just know she's there." Treat's eyes fill as he tells Ephram that all they have now is each other, and he needs Ephram's help raising Delia. "She gets us." Ephram nods and gets out of the car. See? I told you that bit of laughter was a ruse. Now pardon me while I get more tissues. What? I told you I have the flu.
Patch and Treat do their simul-park, and greet each other affably. Treat thanks Patch for the ride he gave his kids, and Patch graciously says he's welcome, then offers some advice: When he first started working in Everwood, he went out of his way to be available to all people at all times, but that was no good for anyone, least of all his family. "Being a small-town physician is a marathon, Doctor, not a sprint, and if one of us is going to win this race, you are going to have to stay in it." Patch and Treat should really have a spinoff. Of course, so should Ephram and Bright. And Edna and Delia. Come to think of it, Greg, just leave everything the way it is. Except, for the love of chow mein and cannoli, get rid of Madison. Turning toward the line in front of his office, Patch snarks to Treat, "And behold the people, who had every attribute of dogs, except loyalty." Hee. Treat can't help but smile.
Cut to Treat entering his office, where Edna is reading a magazine with her feet up. She notes how quiet it is, but assures Treat that people will come back, "and in the meantime, we have excellent periodicals." She slides over what looks like a fishing magazine, but before Treat can settle in to read it, Mrs. Dudley comes bustling in. She tells him she wanted to thank him again for what he did for her kids. He notes that it's a long way to come just for a thank you, and asks how she got there. Without answering, she says, "I heard about what happened yesterday, and I wanted to tell you that my family, well, like a lot of other families around here, we don't have much, but now we have a doctor. I know it was a tragedy that brought you here, sir; for that I am sorry. But I'm not sorry that you came." Five more minutes of this and then I can breathe again. Treat, eyes glistening, tells her that he's not sorry either. She leaves, and Edna tells him to offer her a ride home. He runs out of the office after her. Heh.
School library. Amy greets Ephram, calling him "Ham," which she says is his new nickname. He thinks she means the luncheon meat, but she clarifies that it's short for Hamlet, and shows him the cover illustration of a paperback edition of the play, which really looks more like Bright. Of course, that would mean that the most famous soliloquy in literature would be: "To be or not to be...whoa, dude!" Amy asks Ephram if he wants to get lunch, but Ephram braces himself and says they have to talk. He tells an expectant Amy that Treat refused the request to help Colin. Oh, dear. To his credit, he tries to lay the blame off on Treat, saying that he's just trying to start a new life. Amy apologizes for asking in the first place. Ephram hopefully asks if she still wants to get lunch, but Amy, with difficulty, tells him that she's just going to hang out and look at some notes. Ephram balefully packs up his stuff and walks away, but drops the attitude when he hears Amy sobbing behind him. Oh, Ephram. Lies make baby Jesus cry. Good thing you've got that face going for you.
Miss Violet, in closeup, tells Treat that Delia has "a mind of her own." Geez, the one-room schoolhouse in Laura Ingalls's day was more gender-progressive than this woman. As she chatters on about Delia's attitude and attire, Treat asks Delia when he gets to talk. Delia: "You have to raise your hand." Hee. Treat asks why the boys sit in the front, and Miss Violet tells him it's because they're "rowdier," so she needs to monitor their behavior more closely. Boy, with the amount of attention she gives girls, I wouldn't be surprised if she'd taught Grace Slick and Courtney Love at one point or another. Anyway, Treat isn't having any of this nonsense, and tells Miss Violet in no uncertain terms that Delia's been through a horrible year and has only come out of it so well because of the way her mother raised her, and while Delia will be polite, she'll continue to ask all the questions and wear all the baseball caps she wants. In addition, if Miss Violet calls him in again without good reason, she'll have "one rowdy father" on her hands. Well, Treat, if I were to make an educated guess, I'd think Miss Violet could use a rowdy father, if you know what I mean. But since you're Treat, you probably don't. Miss Violet stares daggers as she declares the meeting over, but Delia's polite enough to say goodbye to her teacher.
Brown house. Delia and Treat enter. Ephram asks where they were, and Delia excitedly tells him they went horse shopping, although they just looked. Treat notes that Ephram cooked dinner, and Ephram joshes that he thought they should have meatloaf-flavored meatloaf. Treat takes Ephram's bandaged hand, and Ephram totally lets him. Aw. Treat says he'll stay away from complex recipes if Ephram will stay away from the first-aid kit. Ephram agrees and tells Treat to sit down. We see a shot through the window of the Browns happily having dinner as Irv tells us that the thaw passed that night, which took the warm air away, but not the warmth of spirit. "That was in the people of Everwood, and in our hearts; some broken, some mending, and some, for the moment, complete." The camera pans left to reveal Sue Ellen at the table with them. If you look closely, you can see her mouth, "Damn you, Berlanti."