The Good Doctor Fans Have Nothing But Praise For Lea Standing Up For Shaun
Intelligence comes in many different forms. Some people might be able to recall exceptionally fine details from events long since past, while others might have an innate understanding of emotions and thoughts. "The Good Doctor" highlights the positive aspects of neuro-divergence with its main character, Dr. Shaun Murphy (Freddie Highmore). As an autistic savant, Shaun is finely tuned when it comes to dealing with medical emergencies, and his unconventional thought process often leads to novel solutions that his coworkers often overlook.
Currently in Season 6, the previous season ends with Shaun marrying his long-time friend, roommate, and coworker Lea Dillalo (Paige Spara). Although Lea isn't a medical professional like Shaun, she possesses a mechanical and technological skill set that eventually sees her become the head of the hospital's IT department, which puts her much closer to Shaun. As mentioned earlier, Shaun is incredibly smart but struggles with some interpersonal interactions, though Lea certainly has a much better grip on communication. It seems, though, that a certain scene is invoking a strong response in fans of "The Good Doctor," and it involves Lea standing up and supporting Shaun to another.
Fans love that Lea stood up for her husband Shaun
The most recent episode, titled "Growth Opportunities," has several different converging plots with the background of Halloween festivities — that means that many of the attending doctors, support staff, and patients are decorated head to toe in costumes. However, the costumes are simply flavor in the episode as it deals with the fallout involving a recently paralyzed patient, as well as a burgeoning romance, a philandering mother, and the dynamic between Shaun and Dr. Aaron Glassman (Richard Schiff). Both Shaun and Glassman are at odds with each other, and Lea decides to take matters into her own hands and tell Glassman to open up and talk to Shaun about the previously mentioned occurrence. It was this moment that fans absolutely adored, and they took to Twitter to express this opinion.
@TheGoodDoctorAr posted an image of Lea talking with Glassman and brought up their conversation by focusing on Lea telling Glassman that Shaun is his son, and the onus is on him to speak with Shaun and clear the proverbial air. They added that this was a tremendous point to be made and that they love Lea and are crying tears of joy. @FebWriter also quoted this interaction and later said, "Lea standing up for Shaun to Glassman was WONDERFUL," which truly highlights how poignant this scene is in the minds of fans.
Paiga Spara has said that she thinks her character's relationship with Shaun is important for representation
@EndgameShea also enjoyed this scene and said that they absolutely love Lea, later adding that she is very brave to stand up for Shaun. This seems to be a reoccurring trend in the comments, as it seems like many people are happy to see Lea take a proactive role in reconciling Shaun and Glassman, which is already a pretty erratic dynamic because it is both father and son as well as employee and boss. Others were also impressed with this scene, with @Cunananllah stating, "Lea is standing up for Shaun to Glassman was amazing," and @StarMzytk saying, "You Go Lea!!!!"
Lea and Shaun's growing relationship and dynamics were eluded to before the season even started. In an interview with New Beauty in early October 2022, Paige Spara was asked about "The Good Doctor" raising awareness about autism and if that aspect of Spara's character drew her to the role. She replied, "I really wanted to be a part of the conversation of someone who's on the spectrum and someone who's not on the spectrum can come forth and have a relationship. I really wanted to explore what that looks like and what that can be like and put that out there in the world as part of that. I was really excited to be a part of that for sure." In other words, Lea's conversation with Glassman is definitely a component of Lea and Shaun's relationship, and it shows that Lea truly understands her husband and his motivations and thought process. Either way, fans are 100% on board with Lea standing up for Shaun.