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The Big C Season 2 Episode 1

Losing Patients

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AIRED: Jun 27, 2011

8.7

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Episode Summary

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Cathy threatens her friendship with Dr. Todd when she consults another specialist. Meanwhile her brother Sean tries to come to term with his new life as a soon-to-be father.

Fan Episode Reviews (1)

Cathy tries to find a new doctor while Sean prepares to be a father.

8.8

By JaCkKbAuEr2424, Jun 30, 2011

"The Big C" was one of those shows last year that a lot of people complained about, mostly because despite a strong performance by Laura Linney, everything seemed slight and by the books. Showtime already has three female leads to their comedies that are self-destructive and sometimes irritating, despicable people, and Cathy Jamison is not quite like Nancy Botwin or Jackie Peyton. Probably closer to Tara. She can't control what's happening to her. But that doesn't mean that the show didn't have that typical "Showtime" feel. There were times during the season that were downright frustrating(anytime she almost revealed her cancer but didn't) and others that were really powerful (any time the writers were focused and wrote great dialogue between characters, and the season finale, which had some insanely sad and emotional moments).

Season 2 is off to a great start, I'm pleased to say. The episode seemed bursting at the seams with a new type of energy, something that was missing through a lot of last season's episodes. Some of the plots that seemed a bit lame last season (Dr. Mauer kissing Cathy, Sean getting Cathy's friend pregnant) are paying off a bit now, especially the Mauer/Cathy kiss. It all starts when Mauer claims the chemo is not working but that marijuana may help the nausea and headaches. As a result, Paul goes to his old dealer from twenty years ago and gets Cathy weed and together, they get high. It's a hilarious scene, one that was missing from Season 1 and already made this premiere much more exciting for me. After learning Mauer kissed Cathy, Paul punches him in the face, saying "It's is NOT okay for you to kiss my wife." Cathy ends up getting in to see a new doctor.

Another strange plot point throughout the premiere was the ghost of Marlene visiting Cathy… not in the lame way that some ghosts appear in shows but moreso as a figment of Cathy's imagination, and likely a result of her chemo and medication. The Marlene appearances were nice because Phyllis Somerville was a great actress on the show but lame at the same time because ghosts in shows or movies tend to be disappointing and annoying. Not in this case. The visions coincide with Marlene's old dog accidentally eating muscle relaxants and maybe dying (honestly, I'm surprised at how tight the writing was… Cathy feeding Sean pills ties in with the dog plot early on, and for the most part, everything comes together well).

For the most part, the show hasn't changed much. The biggest change is that everybody knows about her cancer, so it's not as if she has anything to hide anymore. This means we get to see the writers come up with fun things for her to do without her getting into ridiculous situations. I was pleasantly surprised with the premiere tonight.moreless
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Cast & Crew: STARS

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Laura Linney	Cathy Jamison
Oliver Platt	Paul Jamison
Gabriel Basso	Adam Jamison
John Benjamin Hickey	Sean

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Cast & Crew: RECURRING AND GUESTS

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Phyllis Somerville	Marlene	Guest Star
Ned Eisenberg	Dr. Vollmer	Guest Star
Ann Harada	Brenda	Guest Star
Cynthia Nixon	Rebecca	Recurring Role
Reid Scott	Dr. Todd Mauer	Recurring Role

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Gabourey Sidibe as Andrea and Gabriel Ba...

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John Hickey as Sean and Cynthia Nixon as...

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Gabriel Basso as Adam on The Big C from ...

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Laura Linney as Cathy and Gabriel Basso ...

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NOTES (2)
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- Original International Air Dates:
  United Kingdom: January 19, 2012 on More4
  Finland: January 28, 2012 on YLE TV1
  Germany: February 21, 2012 on FOX
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- Phyllis Somerville (Marlene) and Cynthia Nixon (Rebecca) are credited as special guest stars.
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