Season 2 of Transplant has been rough for Dr. Bishop in the aftermath of his stroke, and it wasn’t guaranteed for the first few episodes that he’d ever be able to return to his job. He was finally cleared to return as a doctor and teacher, but not one who could be hands-on. In an exclusive clip (seen above) from the episode that will air on April 10, called “Roads,” Dr. Bishop’s attempt to teach is sidelined when June decides to take over treatment, and he needs to set the record straight. And let’s just say that he’s not happy about it!
It may not help that the patient who June swoops in on is somebody who Bishop has known for two decades, or that Claire is the one who he’d been trying to teach. Frank the mechanic needs to have his dislocated shoulder popped back into his socket, but passes out almost as soon as Claire starts trying to fix it, with Bishop’s guidance. June quickly arrives to take over the procedure, bringing Frank back to consciousness.
Bishop manages to keep his cool well enough in front of Frank, but finally had to say his piece later to June, Claire, and everybody else assembled:
Let me set the record straight. I am not hands-on, but if I need anyone stepping in on a patient I am overseeing, I will ask. Any questions?
Well, Bishop’s return to work is undoubtedly less stressful than it would have been if Dr. Novak hadn’t decided to leave rather than accept a demotion back to his old role, but it appears that some characters are having a hard time adjusting to Bishop being back at work but not physically able to pitch in.
At least he seems to be following the rules so far! The last thing that anybody probably needs is for him to start bending the rules and keeping secrets again after he covered up his symptoms to disastrous results in Season 1. Then again, will Bishop be able to stop himself from providing aid if there’s an emergency and nobody else around who knows what to do?
Only time will tell on that front, but things may start to go back to normal at York Memorial Hospital now that Bishop is back in the mix, although there have been some changes that are going to stick. Claire’s goal to become a nurse practitioner is going well at York, if Bishop’s comment about her starting “a new role soon” is any indication, and June earned the promotion to chief resident. (Even if some other surgical residents may disagree.)
Mags will presumably be happy to have Bishop back and Novak gone, after Novak spent several episodes giving her a hard time about how she practices medicine, and Bash never left Team Bishop even when he was bonding with his replacement over their shared unconventional approaches to the job.
Depending on how well Bishop’s return goes – and how well he set the record straight – things may be looking up for just about everybody other than poor Theo. In a pretty short span of time, Bash became a man with a family to go home to, while Theo’s marriage has fallen apart. Sure, Bash’s relationship with Rania is more than a little complicated, but what’s an interesting TV relationship without some complications?
Find out what happens with the next new episode of Transplant on Sunday, April 10 at 10 p.m. ET on NBC. In addition to Bishop struggling with some hurdles, Theo will be joined by a new medical student, while Bash will try to help an undocumented friend. If you’ve fallen behind on Transplant, you can catch up on Season 2 with a Peacock subscription!
