Like all medical dramas, The Good Doctor has featured its fair share of heartbreak over the years, from its characters’ personal struggles to their occasional devastating loss of patients. Some of the series’ most heartbreaking episodes were relentless, with patients who served as reminders of the doctors’ own past trauma and seemingly endless emotional moments. But the most devastating episodes of all were ones in which one of St. Bonaventure’s own faced death.
10 “Point Three Percent”
Season 1, Episode 5
In “Point Three Percent,” Shaun treats a young boy with a strong resemblance to Shaun’s late brother, Steve. The case became even more complicated when tests revealed the boy had terminal cancer, something his parents were already aware of but chose not to disclose to him, and something Shaun struggled to understand, as he felt the boy deserved to know about his own medical condition. Meanwhile, the staff worked to find the cause of their patients’ increasingly severe allergic reactions.
9 “Two-Ply (or Not Two-Ply)”
Season 2, Episode 6
In “Two-Ply,” a violinist had an infected finger from a manicure. Shaun suspected the infection could have been caused by flesh-eating bacteria, and their only treatment option—amputation—would end the violinist’s career. Meanwhile, Lim (Christina Chang), Claire (Antonia Thomas) and Park (Will Yun Lee) struggle to determine if their teenage patient with a severe nosebleed and whose parents were divorced was actually in need of treatment or merely seeking attention, while Shaun and Lea (Paige Spara) adjust to their new lives as roommates.
Often, the most heartbreaking episodes of The Good Doctor and similar medical dramas involve a tragic death, but in the case of “Two-Ply,” the devastation came in the form of an ambitious musician’s destroyed career, and its impact on her life overall. Her realization that she would never play again was one of the episode’s most emotional scenes. The episode also underscored the difficult decisions hospital staff are faced with on a regular basis.
Season 6, Episode 8
In “Sorry, Not Sorry,” Shaun, Asher (Noah Galvin) and Glassman (Richard Schiff) treat a patient who had an infection due to a surgical sponge which had been left in her stomach after an appendectomy. While trying to determine the best solution for treatment, Shaun turned to Lim for a consult, but she refused and told him to figure it out on his own. Meanwhile, Morgan (Fiona Gubelmann) is forced to face her own past after treating a patient who had been the victim of a sexual assault.
“Sorry, Not Sorry” once again made the pasts of the staff of St. Bonaventure a very crucial part of their present, from helping patients to mending their own relationships. Morgan had long had a reputation for being an obnoxious, difficult character, but the episode provided a look into her past, and although that didn’t make her more likable, it did make her more sympathetic. Above all, the episode was about forgiveness, as Shaun and Lim took steps to repair their friendship.
7 “Fault”
Season 4, Episode 5
The loss of a patient is always devastating, and it was even more so in “Fault” because it was preventable. Not only did Asher make a mistake, but Shaun turned down his request for help. It was a moving episode for Asher especially, as it also dealt with his faith and included a fitting moment in which his patient, who had also lost his faith, asked Asher to pray. The episode also featured a nice moment from Lea as she urged Shaun to prioritize the patient over their date night.
6 “Frontline”
Season 4, Episodes 1 and 2
As the television industry rebounded in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, some shows opted not to address the pandemic at all, while others went the opposite direction, and The Good Doctor was among the shows to include storylines about it. Season 4 premiere “Frontline” balanced picking up where the previous season ended with acknowledging what had changed in the meantime. The second half of the two-part episode was particularly heartbreaking, with the death of one of St. Bonaventure’s nurses.
5 “Expired”
Season 5, Episode 7
Shaun and Lea helped an injured young pregnant woman who needed immediate medical help after a car accident in “Expired,” the Season 5 mid-season finale. After being taken to St. Bonaventure, the woman’s condition deteriorated, leading the team to deliver her baby prematurely. Ultimately, the baby died after being given expired medication, which hadn’t been replaced on time due to cost-cutting measures at the hospital.
4 “Tough Titmouse”
Season 2, Episode 4
In “Tough Titmouse,” Shaun’s work with a teenager with Fragile X Syndrome whose overwhelmed mother needed a break brought up memories of Shaun’s own childhood, and Claire was caught between an injured rock climber and her parents, whose situation reminded her of her relationship with her mother. Meanwhile, after an operation, Glassman is confronted by his own past with hallucinations of his late daughter, Maddie, and Melendez (Nicholas Gonzalez) had an emotional visit with his sister.
“Tough Titmouse” was an emotional episode all around with plenty of heartbreaking moments, from the cases of the week to the characters’ lives, and the ways the two collided. The episode addressed the pasts of both Shaun and Glassman in particular, to devastating effect. But it also had its share of sweet, lighthearted moments, especially between Shaun and Lea as they worked to repair their friendship in the aftermath of Lea’s departure and return.
3 “Dr. Ted”
Season 4, Episode 16
Pregnancy complications and loss are difficult subjects, and although The Good Doctor handled it with care, Lea’s situation was still heartbreaking. “Dr. Ted” was a harrowing, emotional episode and was among the best in the series, with impressive performances from both Highmore and Spara. The episode also included an emotional scene between Shaun and Glassman, with Shaun breaking down and releasing all the emotions he’d been feeling but keeping at bay for Lea.
2 “I Love You”
Season 3, Episode 20
After an earthquake hit San Jose, hospital staff risked their own safety and scrambled to save lives, including one of their own, in “I Love You,” the second half of the two-part Season 3 finale. Despite being given the all-clear after being injured, Melendez was found to have internal bleeding which his colleagues were unable to repair, and he died as a result, but not before sharing emotional goodbyes with each of his colleagues.
1 “Who at Peace”
Season 7, Episode 5
In “Who at Peace,” Asher and Jerome (Giacomo Baessato) face their differing views on marriage. Meanwhile, Asher’s past with religion resurfaced in his work with his patient, who was converting to Judaism for his fiancée, and because of his negative experience with religion, he struggled to understand why his patient wanted to convert and assumed he was doing so just to please his fiancée. In the end, Asher was the victim of a hate crime and died.
