For me, the single most dramatic moment of Remedy‘s two episode second season finale wasn’t the shocking conclusion to the first hour, when Sandy had been hit head-on by a truck while driving around Toronto looking for Griffin, or the subsequent roller coaster surgery on her leg. It was that quiet scene between Griffin and Allen in the hospital chapel, a respite from the insanity of the world around them. And the perfect place for Allen to seek confession from his son.

“You don’t have to be a doctor. You don’t have to be anything. I’ll still love you, OK?” Allen said to Griffin during those spare minutes, tears in his eyes. Neither man knew then if Sandy’s leg would be saved by Dr. Jake (with help from Sam and Mel), but Allen took the first important steps to mending their fractured relationship. Congratulations to Dillon Casey, Enrico Colantoni, the episode’s writers, John Callaghan and Greg Spottiswood and director David Frazee for a scene that oozed emotion via body language, facial expressions and soft dialogue.

“Fight or Flight” began the night by serving as a set-up to the season finale, “Day One,” in several ways, the key being Cutler and Mel’s impending outbound flight to Dallas and Griffin’s drop further down the mineshaft of addiction. An attempted intervention for him held by Allen, Sandy, Zoe, Mel and Rebecca had the results I expected—Griff bolted after saying he’d go into rehab—and by nightfall he was literally teetering on the edge of an apartment building.

Which led to this:

And then this:

“I’m quitting. Today. I promise,” Griffin told Allen while Sandy was in surgery.

“And all it took was your sister being hit by a truck?” Allen responded.

Seeing the sister he could always rely on to support him like that shook Griffin to his core, especially when she told him post-surgery she already had one baby to take care of and couldn’t play mother to him anymore. That, paired with the time in the chapel with Allen, confirmed he needed to get better and for that he had to get away from his family. The final scene, where he, Frank, PJ and Bruno took a road trip to the Guelph rehab centre was a bro moment and established to Griffin that those three dudes would be there for him when he gets out.

Oh, and Mel is staying at Bethune. No surprise, though the news Cutler is sticking around too was.

Notes and quotes

• Nurse Patel busting Cutler’s balls for leaving was fantastic. I laughed out loud at her having him paged as Dr. Quitter and scaring him by pretending to be a dead patient.
• “We can just drive and eat and be miserable. You know, like a proper family.” — Rebecca
• “Righty-tighty, lefty-loosy.” I hope someone comes up with an excuse to keep Jake around.
• Did anyone else channel Forrest Gump when Allen took that bite of a chocolate?
• Those Remedy folks sure come up with interesting ailments to spotlight. I was surprised to discover (via Google of course) that Kleine-Levin Syndrome or “Sleeping Beauty” syndrome really exists.
• It was great to see Flashpoint‘s Michael Cram drop by for a guest gig on Remedy. Can we book Sergio Di Zio for Season 3?

What did you think of Season 2 of Remedy? Comment below or via @tv_eh.

“You’re not alone, Griffin. You’re not alone.” Unfortunately, Allen’s cell phone plea fell on deaf ears. Last week I wondered just how far Griff could fall; if he goes any further Dillon Casey will be looking for another gig because Griffin is going to be dead.

By the time “Looking for Satellites” concluded, Griff had lied to Sandy, taken $1,000 of her money and bought coke with it. His face dusted with blow, he sat in a drugged-out haze in the apartment. I complained last week about Griff’s actions because I genuinely want him to succeed and kick the habit. Mirroring real life, it’s clear showrunner Greg Spottiswood isn’t going to do that with Griff this year. With just two more episodes left in the season, no epiphany is going to save Griff. I can only hope he doesn’t die.

Allen, meanwhile, did everything he could to get his son’s job back. He succeeded—and scored a tasty-looking omelette to boot—by threatening to let Frank’s job be eliminated, but he got the job done. But I fear it was all in vain. Griff has no interest in listening to Mel or Allen or in working at Bethune.

Monday’s new episode of Remedy wasn’t all about Griffin. Mel was waffling over her decision to move to Dallas with Cutler and it looked like she might not end up going … until EMT Nicole Foster (Kate Hewlett, The Stanley Dynamic and Stargate: Atlantis) walked into the ER looking to see the body of her dead wife, cop Stephanie. The sorrow in Nicole’s voice as she recounted how she and Stephanie met gave me a lump in my throat. I admit things got a little dusty on my couch when Nicole collapsed of a literal broken heart. That close call was enough to strengthen Mel’s resolve—and feelings for Cutler—and finalize her plans to move away.

The season is coming to an end, Remedy fans. Will Griffin die? Will Mel really move to Dallas? Sandy will find out about Griffin’s lie; will she forgive him?

Notes and quotes

• “All my everything turned upside down.” Nicole with a perfect way to describe love.
• “You’ve seen my face. Beauty rest. It’s the only shot I’ve got Conner.” Gotta love Sam.
• “You’re too wild. Too alive.” Ooo, Marla.
• “He has a vision. It involves a fertility clinic and a stripper.” Can Hugh hang out with Griffin every week?
• Did Jerry really think kissing Mel would win her back? I just felt badly for the dude.
• Lanagan Pike? Just where do the Remedy writers come up with these cool names?

Remedy‘s two-hour season finale airs Tuesday, May 19, at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Global.

So Griff is back at square one, and I gotta say I’m not too happy about it.

See, I thought Griff and Zoe were going to be an unstoppable team, a couple that supported each other through good and bad. After everything Griff went through last season—kicking drugs, earning his family’s trust and deserving a second chance to be a dependable dude—and this is where we’re left? Griff fired from work, kicked out of the apartment and walking down the street alone? I trust Remedy‘s writing team immensely and having Griff backslide is certainly realistic. But as a Remedy fan? I don’t like that I’ve gone through a roller coaster with him this year only to see this happen again. With only three more episodes to go, can Griff pull off a happy ending? Doubtful.

Mel certainly looks happy, doesn’t she? Though part of me really wanted to see Mel play floor hockey, she and Cutler needed to chat about Dallas. And unless there is a major shakeup on the show, Mel won’t be going to the Lone Star state. Still, Cutler is good for her and perhaps she’ll spend a few weeks with him down there. Assuming, of course, that he really does leave Beth-H in his rear view mirror. After spending her time worrying about what her family thinks, it was a major triumph for Mel to shed that and let loose with Cutler for the night. (And she looked pretty damned good in that cowboy hat.)

“Everything in Moderation” also featured an interesting storyline concerning Faith (Bahia Watson), a young woman with anxiety issues and missing her dead mother. Migraine headaches, coughing up blood and dizziness concerned Allen immensely and it took until nearly the end of the episode for him to figure out Faith had become infected with a hantavirus from mouse droppings. (Insert shudder here.) Allen’s need to parent Griff matched perfectly with Faith’s feeling of loss; the two made a cute pair if just for a few moments.

Also, was anyone else hoping Darryl Sittler would do a little more than what he did?

Notes and quotes

• I love Nurse Patel. There, I said it.
• Sandy trying to get her patient to eat by treating her like Maya was hilarious.
• That young guy really, really, doesn’t want to work construction.

Remedy airs Mondays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on Global.

The first time I saw Niall Matter on the small screen, it was chasing—and being chased by—dinosaurs on Primeval: New World. Next up was flyboy Tag Cummins (still the best-ever name in primetime TV) on Arctic Air and murderous Damian Cutter on Motive. They’ve all been memorable roles, but nothing has compared to his gig as Dr. Peter Cutler on Remedy.

Up until Monday’s new episode, “Secrets and Lies,” Cutler has been the hottie (and sometime hot-head) mixing it up with Allen in the ER and Mel in the bedroom. But last night’s storylines not only fleshed out the character but showed Matter’s acting chops as well. Kudos to writer David Barlow, who successfully balanced humour (snake on the loose!) with the drama and family angst we’ve come to expect every Monday.

(And congratulations to Enrico Colantoni for his directing. I count the fact I didn’t see a boom mike in any shots as a job well done.)

The first word in Monday’s episode, “secrets,” certainly pertained to Cutler in two instances. He’d been keeping it under wraps that he applied to a hospital in Dallas … until they called Bethune for a reference and were passed along to Allen. That forced Cutler to admit it to Mel, who took it with her usual level-headedness. In other words, she immediately began to shut him out in order to hide her own feelings at the thought of him leaving.

(Mel is a complex character who is fascinating to watch. When she’s happy, she’s positively giddy. But upset her or betray her? You’re pretty much dead to Mel, something driven home once again to Griff when she assumed he was lying regarding being clean for five days. Now Mel’s cut ties with Griff and doesn’t want to hear from him until he’s hit rock bottom? Not cool.)

But back to Cutler, whose latest patient in peril, Jennifer, was in the ER and suffering from an acute infection. Turns out she’d been keeping a secret from hubby Nick: she’d had an abortion because having a baby would have screwed up their career plan and residual tissue infected her uterus and threatened her life. I’m always fascinated by couples who put having kids on hold “until the right time.” You can’t plan a good time to have kids, something Jennifer and Nick found out. The tortured look on Cutler’s face was killing me—he was caught between patient confidentiality and telling Nick what was really going on—and led to great emotional moments.

When will TV characters learn that telling someone “not to freak out” will ALWAYS cause them to freak out? Griff learned that the hard way when he informed Zoe of his drug situation. It didn’t matter to her that he was clean now, he had been using drugs and lying to her about it. Zoe is leaving me a little cold this season. I understand she’s won’t suffer fools anymore—look at the way she dismissed her mom—but she and Griff became a couple and moved in together so they could support each other. Griff is asking Zoe for help and she’s not listening. Of course, that conflict opens the door for a possible romance with the researcher…

And finally, I’m hoping the whole feud between Sandy and Jason is over. He punched out a prisoner to save her from being a hostage for crying out loud; time for her to listen and heed his warnings. It meant Sandy broke up with Gord (tear), but she needs to get her head in the game and concentrate more on work and less on butting heads with her boss.

Notes and quotes

• I love over-the-top funny moments like the snake in the ER. There’s often so much drama we need levity to break things up.
• “You have a sex date!” — Mel
• Where’s Bruno? He had some meaty storylines in Season 1 but has been missing for most of this season. What gives?
• It was great to see Noam Jenkins guest as Dennis, the new chief of staff. His plans to turn Bethune into a largely out-patient facility didn’t win him any friends with Zoe and Allen.

Remedy airs Mondays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on Global.