I just saw the rerun of "Be Patient". It's amazing what you realize the second time around. I cried when Lucy's mom was there. I kept yelling to Dave to hug her or something. Of all the people they have they had to have Dave be the one to do the locker scene. Why? Boy did Carol bounce back or what? Maybe Lucy's death did have an affect on her after all. I mean she kept after Andrea and then when Andrea came in overdosed she still stayed with her. I know I have said before that Carol was depressing this season but that wasn't the case tonight. Poor Carter. I looked at his facial expression very closely tonight and I came to this conclusion. He may not have loved Lucy like as a girlfriend but I think he did love her as a friend. When he talked to Deb you can tell how sad he was. I just wanted to give him a big hug. I also wanted to give Lucy's mom a hug as well since Dave didn't.

-- Cammie (rmaelhorn@home.com), July 13, 2000

Answers

I forgot to put down Lucy's mom in that one sentence. It should say when he talked to Deb and Lucy's mom you can tell how sad he was.

-- Cammie (rmaelhorn@home.com), July 13, 2000.

I think Noah Wyle is an absolutely incredible actor. You could see everything going on in his eyes, the fear and the pain he felt that he wouldnt let anyone see. Wow. I mean I knew he was good but after seeing it tonight, you could just see how great he really is. I think someone should have given him a big hug and held him for awhile and let him cry, something he doesnt do until May Day. Poor dear. He really is so superb.

-- Christina (cternovich@intac.com), July 13, 2000.

Cammie, I think Dave being there was deliberate. Look at how uncomfortable he was. He wanted to help, but he had no idea how. Remember, he's not that good with his patients, either. Anyone else would have said something kind, maybe put a hand on her arm or shoulder. But I think the point was that we were supposed to feel her pain, that we were supposed to be as uncomfortable as Dave. He was kind, but he was clueless. I know I feel that way when faced with death, or faced with something going through the death of a loved one. That's my favorite scene of this episode because I just felt that grief right along with her, and I felt for Dave because he was so incompetent in the situation.

I think you're right about Carter, and it's really a double-whammy because not only did he love her as a person and friend, I think he probably didn't realize it until she died. And he felt guilty about how she died. And he couldn't go to her memorial service and pay his respect to her. Think about that, too: she wanted him to respect her as a doctor, and she never got it. Now he can't even show his respect in her death.

Carter looked so defeated in this episode, so quiet. Noah Wyle really is good. The subtle way he asked about the memorial service, the long pause as he processed the information, the way he looked at Lucy's mom after he told her he felt no pain. Very well done by Wyle, but we've come to expect no less from him.

-- Avan (avanveck@aol.com), July 14, 2000.

That's "someone" going through the death of a loved one. Sorry! That'll teach me to post something after midnight.

-- Avan (avanveck@aol.com), July 14, 2000.

The actress playing Lucy's mom was not only well cast, but was just excellent in her scene with Carter.

I loved that scene, it was so real... also it showed how Carter started down the path to lying which culminated in "May Day" (even though he was doing it to be kind to her)

-- Tracy (bankybooda@aol.com), July 14, 2000.

I fell asleep and didn't get to see it (and oh, my husband will PAY for not waking me up in time to watch!). But I remember Carter's lying to spare Mrs. Knight the truth...I hadn't thought of making the connection to his later drug use.

Still, this wasn't the first time in his career that Carter has lied. Way back when he was still being Ambitious-Carter, he showed us his talent for deception, like the business with weaseling into a procedure that Dale had wanted to do.

-- Cecelia (evilstoat@hotmail.com), July 14, 2000.

Noah was great in his scenes from "Be Patient" and well in every scene I've seen him in. I just wanted to comment also how expressive his eyes are at showing the emotion his character is feeling in that episode and "Sharp Needle" (I believe it is entitled) when he is helping his cousin "Chase" deal with his withdrawal from heroin. The turmoil he is feeling within is brilliantly expressed.

-- SB (SB @aol.com), July 14, 2000.

Noah Wyle is just amazing. My favorite scene in Be Patient was the close up on his face and the mixed look of horror and emotional pain when Mrs. Knight started to ask him what he was thinking and feeling during the stabbing. Plus, the way he kept shifting and wincing in pain during the scene - he is just so convincing!

I agree that the acting of the actress who played Mrs. Knight was also outstanding in this scene.

-- Beth (BSmith@internet-95.com), July 14, 2000.

This is actually one of my favorite Carter episodes of the season, because I think he does it so well. He avoids looking ANYONE in the eye, esp. when talking about Lucy; he jokes painfully with Deb and kind of succeeds at joking w/ Benton, until he runs into the door and he lets down his guard. And Benton obviously notices because he can't stop talking about it w/ Cleo. I think that scene where she says "He's gonna be alright Peter" is one of the reasons I don't dislike her. I'm glad that she wants to talk about it instead of going inside, she can tell it's important to him.

Back to Lucy, I totally agree with Avan about him feeling terrible for not going to the memorial service. I still hope for some sort of closure with that, but we'll see if we get it! And I think Dr. Dave being the one to meet Ms. Knight was perfect. As Phyll, I think, said in the review (and I really like how it was put): He stayed back, feeling unnecessarily like he was intruding on her, although he was not. He did start to reach out to her, but he just didn't know hwat the right thing to do there was.

One more thing...SB, the episode you're talking about is Sharp Relief.

-- Elaine (mrsclooney78@hotmail.com), July 15, 2000.