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BuzzSugar's Must Haves for August

BuzzSugar — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 08:30:27 -0700

August is the month when Summer comes to a close and entertainment-land gets a case of the doldrums. It's typically slow for music releases, and Hollywood doesn't necessarily put out the year's best films this month either. But that doesn't mean there aren't a few good gems out there that you'll want to get your hands on this month. To see what I uncovered, hit "Start."

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Private Practice: A New Crossover and Violet's Future

BuzzSugar — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 05:50:49 -0700

The last thing I was expecting from Private Practice and Grey's Anatomy creator Shonda Rhimes when a bunch of reporters descended on the Private Practice set on Tuesday was a spoiler. But she must have been feeling generous toward the TCA crowd, because we didn't even have to work for our news: Dr. Miranda Bailey of Seattle Grace (the Emmy-nominated Chandra Wilson) will be guest-starring on the third episode of Private Practice's third season.

I suppose it would be too much to ask, though, for Rhimes to reveal exactly why the crossover takes place. The most we could get was that she'll be "performing a very interesting medical procedure" and "will have her own comments about what's going on" over at Oceanside Wellness. I like the sound of that second idea: I think the Southern California doctors could use a patented Bailey smackdown every now and then.

The Bailey visit wasn't the only thing I learned on the set. What follows is spoilery, but if you want to hear details of Violet's fate after that freaky season finale and what's up next for Addison's romantic life, just read more.

Amy Brenneman was on set, so it was clear pretty quickly that Violet survives the attack by her unstable patient. But that doesn't mean she's unharmed. "She gets hurt. Big time," Brenneman said. "She is saved - I mean, she survives. But she gets hurt. It's ugly." We won't have to wait long to find out the details: The first episode of the new season picks up just 20 minutes after the last scene we saw.

After that, though, the episodes will jump a bit forward in time, and things in Violet's relationship with Cooper won't be the same. "There is an emotional fallout for him," Brenneman said, explaining that not only are Violet and Cooper no longer roommates in the first part of this season, they haven't even really spoken for a while. Added Paul Adelstein: "Cooper is kind of avoiding her. He's avoiding going back to the house. . . . He's trying to pay a lot of attention to her, but he feels this guilt that he can't even quite identify, I think." Adelstein said Cooper thinks he's just giving Violet space to bond with her baby - which means, yes, there is a baby!

Some other hints about the new season:

Cooper and Charlotte are still together and just as dysfunctional as ever - and the stress of dealing with their own reactions to Violet's trauma isn't doing them any favors.
Naomi really has moved downstairs to the other practice (her on-set office was practically empty).
"There's a lot of Pete" and Violet, Brenneman said - though Sheldon will also continue to appear. The first episode of the season involves a lot of flashbacks with Violet and Pete, including Pete's early days at Oceanside.
Addison is going to start the season single. "And maybe to a comedic extent," Kate Walsh said. "There might be a pet cat involved."

Will you follow Bailey to Private Practice? Do you have thoughts on what's next for Violet? And are you glad Addison will try to be happily single for a change?

Amy Brenneman Says Violet's Baby Is in Danger Tonight

BuzzSugar — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 12:30:54 -0700

In general, babies don't have the easiest time at Private Practice's Oceanside Wellness. So will Violet's baby survive tonight's season finale? My recent chat with Amy Brenneman confirmed there's some merit to the question.

It's been rumored that Violet's mentally unstable patient, Katie, will return tonight, blaming Violet for her own unsuccessful pregnancy and seeking revenge. Meanwhile, we still don't know if Pete or Sheldon is the father - nor do we know if Violet will accept Sheldon's marriage proposal. Lots of questions for just one hour!

I asked Brenneman what the heck Violet sees in Sheldon, why Violet lacks female friends, and lots more. Here are highlights:

Let's start with the big proposal. I feel lukewarm on Sheldon. What does Violet see in him?
Sheldon really understands her, and I kind of like that storyline in that last episode of them working on a case together. Because I do think that for as kind of sloppy and messy as Violet is, she still has a really inquisitive mind about psychology - both hers and other people's - so I think there's something really comforting to her about Sheldon's familiarity with that subject too. I think he adores her, and I think Violet knows that. What [creator] Shonda Rhimes basically said to me was - and you know this is a little black and white - but that Sheldon is the safe guy in that he has been very steady with his affection and she knows he'll probably never go away. Pete, even though [Violet's] known him longer, the idea is that [she's] seen him through bad behavior so . . . can she really trust in Pete?

Do you personally have a preference for which guy Violet chooses, if any?
You know, not really. I mean, I love both these men. Brian Benben [Sheldon] makes me laugh all day long. And I think with Tim [Daly] - you know what's so brilliant about Shonda putting me and him together is because I worked with his sister [Tyne Daly] for 10 years . . . he's very familiar to me. At first it was like "Ew! It's going to be like kissing my brother!" He's gorgeous and he's great, but yeah, Shonda's like, "Well, yeah, that's kind of what I want to explore with Violet and Pete," because they've known each other a long time and then it turns into a sexual relationship, and what is that like? Then, you know, for Violet, too, there's the whole Coop factor. . . . Still at this point in her life the real day-to-day guy to see is Cooper.

To hear about Violet's friendships and what's happening with her baby, just read more.

Do you ever wish Violet had more girlfriends?
Yeah! I do. I do. Sometimes I don't know if certain things are deliberate or if we don't have time to tell every story that we'd like to tell, because that's something we explored a little bit at the very beginning of the season with my friendship with Naomi. Because during the very first season . . . I kept saying to Shonda, "Wait a minute. You know, Naomi might be happy that Addison's there because she's great and adorable, but Violet's world is kind of rocked." Addison comes to town and because she has the older relationship with Naomi, Violet just kind of gets tossed aside. But I think that it's interesting with [Violet's] history, you know the fact that she was raped in the past. In one way, I think these men really protect her and really love her, and that's a safe place for her.

Will she and Charlotte get closer?
Well, I think that's a situational thing. I mean, they're literally sort of on the same couch together, you know? But I think that Charlotte is trying to be generous. I don't know. I have no idea what's planned. I find it really hard to believe. Charlotte's just so weird! I mean, even watching her behavior with Cooper . . . they get close and she's just such a little nervous thing. I think there's genuine love that we both have for Cooper.

Is Violet annoyed that Coop and Charlotte have so much sex around her while she's pregnant?
Totally! Oh, totally. No, I think everyone's annoyed, and Cooper's trying to be the good guy. I mean, I think that's something that Shonda writes about a lot: How do sexuality and intimacy go together? How do intimacy and fantasy go together?

Babies on Private Practice don't fare too well. Is Violet's baby in danger?
Violet's baby is in a little bit of danger. I know that's what Tim Daly always says - he's always like, "Wow! We're not a very good practice. We lose patients!" He always says to me, "Violet's not a very good therapist!" But yes, that is a good observation, and, um, all I know is what you guys are going to see [tonight] but . . . yes, the baby's in danger.

Five Questions for Private Practice

BuzzSugar — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 05:30:36 -0700

It's Summer, and that means it's time for my Five Questions series, where I reflect on the most recent seasons of some favorite shows and chat about their challenges for the future. Today, I'm posing some questions for Private Practice, which will launch its third season this Fall.

What's Violet's condition? Despite the dire circumstances in which we last saw Violet, Amy Brenneman was on set when I visited last week, and there are some spoilers at that link about what she may be facing this Fall. Even if Violet does live, how will she live? Will the attack leave her permanently damaged? Will she have flashbacks to that horrifying scene? Speaking of which . . .
Will Private Practice turn into a parade of over-the-top plotlines? Even Brenneman herself said it felt like she was "in a Quentin Tarantino movie - I'm in a whole other universe" during the season finale, and I hope this Violet situation is an anomaly. I like when the doctors interact and fall for each other and work out dilemmas. I like when this show moves me. I do not like it when it suddenly feels like an episode of Law and Order: SVU. The show needs to create buzz and draw in viewers, but there's got to be a better way.

For my next three questions, just read more.

Can Naomi really run a competing practice? Do we want to watch her set up a new business that competes the one all of her friends are running? Naomi's office was conspicuously empty on set. But part of me still thinks she'll be back at Oceanside before long, and I think that might be for the best. I like everyone on the same team.
Who should and should not be romantically involved? Assuming Violet survives, do we like her with Pete? Should this be a long relationship that spans many episodes? I'm not sure I see it lasting forever, but they may already share a child. And what about Naomi and Sam? It seems like they can never quite get over each other, and the friendship thing is officially not working out well at all. Will this next season be all about them moving on or moving back? And will Charlotte and Cooper ever get it together, or will they always be sort of annoyingly mismatched?
Could we have some more humor? At one point last season, I dubbed Private Practice "the show that kills children" because it seems like one kid or another was constantly in peril. True, I like to have my heartstrings tugged, but part of the original appeal of Oceanside was that it would be lighter than Seattle Grace. Sometimes this show does have great comic relief - especially with Cooper - and I really wouldn't mind seeing more of that in season three. These friends have great chemistry together; not everything needs to be so heavy all the time.

Private Practice Rundown: Episode 22, "Yours, Mine, and Ours"

BuzzSugar — Fri, 01 May 2009 12:30:56 -0700

So, I wouldn't say a whole lot gets resolved on the season finale of Private Practice. The episode is basically one big custody battle, with characters fighting for control of their children, their lovers, and their entire lives. And then, in the second half, it becomes a bit of a horror movie. Ready to talk about it? Just read more.

Guys, this twist with Violet and Katie and the baby is messed up! As Amy Brenneman hinted, Violet's baby's in trouble - as is Violet herself. Katie turns up at Oceanside and appears immediately to be off her meds, almost manic. But Violet and Pete can't come up with any reason to have her hospitalized - a decision Violet pays for dearly when Katie shows up at her house and drugs her, paralyzing her from the neck down. Soon, Katie's whipping out surgical equipment, preparing to take back the baby she believes Violet stole. Logic doesn't stop her (Katie seems oddly aware of what a crazy thing she's doing), and Violet can't fight back. And of course Cooper chooses this one time to pick Charlotte over Violet, meaning he doesn't discover the gruesome scene. As the show fades to black, Katie's getting ready to cut, with Violet seemingly resigned to the fact that she'll die. All she can do is beg Katie to be good to her boy. On the Shonda Rhimes scale (remember, the woman killed Meredith Grey, put a bomb in a body, and brought back Denny), how crazy is this?

What bad timing, too, because Violet had finally just resolved to be happy. And what makes her happy? Being with Pete. Sheldon all but tells him to man up and fight for Violet if he wants her, and Pete - despite a rambling speech about how fighting hurts his knuckles - finally does. I'm relieved that she and Pete at least get to kiss before the Katie stuff goes down. Poor Sheldon, though, doesn't get his answer from Violet before the episode is up. Because she's not answering her phone. Because she's currently paralyzed from the neck down. So it goes.

Meanwhile, I'm so angry at Addison that I could spit. It's not like we never knew on Grey's Anatomy that Addison could do bad things - I mean, she cheated on Derek with his best friend. But I am just not OK with any of this Noah stuff. Hooking up with her pregnant patient's husband while the patient is practically giving birth oversteps so many boundaries, I can't even count them. I don't care if they haven't done anything wrong in the Biblical sense, as Addison claims. Noah's a creep, Addison's playing right into it, and I don't want to watch the two of them anymore, period.

In other news:

Naomi's patient mixup, whether the fault of her or Dell or some combination, is so horrible to imagine. Its resolution is awfully tidy as far as the two pregnant women go, but it has to put doubts in Naomi's head about her own abilities as a doctor.
Which doesn't stop her from taking the job at the rival practice, presumably ousting Charlotte. Naomi feels stuck in neutral, working at a practice she doesn't control anymore with a man she doesn't love anymore - even though, apparently, he still loves her, as he blurted out in this episode.
I can't decide if I pity Charlotte or think it's about time someone tells her nobody likes working for her.
Dell gets his daughter back, thanks to Sam, who kind of apologizes for giving Dell a hard time by giving him the money Heather wants (for drugs, I assume). I hope this means fewer tortured moments for Dell next season.

Did this cliffhanger make you want to come back next season - or want to turn off the show for good because of its sheer ridiculousness? Will Naomi really leave? Will Cooper conveniently realize he left something in the house and return to save the day?

Private Practice Rundown: Episode 20, "Do The Right Thing"

BuzzSugar — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 14:30:30 -0700

You know what? I really enjoyed myself while watching this week's episode of Private Practice. There's good stuff going on, including Dell's self-destructive downward spiral into the world of ladies who wear ripped-up stretch pants, Violet and Charlotte's BFF relationship morphing into more of a frenemies situation, Idina Menzel, and a pregnant tween. Oh, and Addison and Noah are still working hard ~~not to boink each other~~ to save a baby. Ready to chat? Just read more.

So it's kind of hard to hope for Violet and Pete to get together for reals (which has been my secret wish, because Sheldon? Blech!) when someone as beautiful and awesome as Idina shows up. She is the mother of a cute little moppet with allergies who's a patient of Pete's. He wrestles with the ethics around dating a patient's mother and then basically decides to go for it. By the way, I love all the well-intentioned debates that go on in this office, but, like, why bother? Everyone usually ends up just self-indulgently doing exactly what they want to do anyway. Violet, meanwhile, admits to Charlotte that Pete's dating makes her jealous, and Charlotte takes that as a sign to share intimate details about herself, including the fact that she had sex with Archer. This, of course, sends Violet on a self-righteous rant about what a terrible person Charlotte is, which I found to be unfair.

While the ladies in his life bicker, Cooper is extremely distressed by his 12-year-old pregnant patient and angry at the mother who allowed the child to have sex in her home under supervision. Cooper wants to call social services (especially after he spots the "sexting"-ripped from the headlines!) but pretty much everyone else tells him that's a little extreme. What do you think? Then Dell weighs in on the topic by projecting his own issues: "Motherhood is not the trump card! What's wrong is wrong." Dell is angry! And acting out! And showing up late and having sex in the office! Naomi tries to talk some sense into him, but it's Sam who lays down the law in the end (how cute is Sam when he's laying down the law? Sigh). I keep thinking someone should call the cops on Dell's ex - isn't that what people do when a child has been kidnapped? But maybe it's not kidnapping without legal custody papers . . .

More thoughts:

Oh boy. It's one thing to have eyes for your patient's husband and baby-daddy but another to feel obligated to save their marriage. I feel like Addison is too intimately involved in the details of this dysfunctional couple's life to be at all attracted to this guy, but clearly, that's just me, because she makes out with Noah in the end ("I'm not a cheater!").
Hey, Duncan is cute! This is the first guy I've liked for Naomi in awhile. Do you think that Sam should have told him what was going on before taking the stand?
Sometimes Violet sounds like a walking, talking educational pamphlet: "Adolescent sexuality isn't something you can say no to."
The scene where Charlotte shows up in her sex outfit and chats with Violet really is great. I love when she pulls out the whipped cream!
I also really enjoyed Charlotte's description of Violet: "Violet's crazy and hostile and needy and she drives me up the wall . . . but she needs you, Coop." It's really hard to hate Charlotte these days.

Did you enjoy this one as well?

Private Practice Rundown: Episode 19, "What Women Want"

BuzzSugar — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 15:00:41 -0700

I feel really lukewarm about this week's episode of Private Practice. On the one hand, there are surprisingly cute moments, including the budding friendship between Charlotte and Violet. On the other hand, there's a lame, super-crazy patient who I stopped caring about halfway through the episode.

And then, somewhere in the middle, there is this flirtation between Addison and Noah, the doctor married to Addison's pregnant patient. Last week I was annoyed that Addison would enter into a cheating type of relationship again, given her history, but now I'm mostly weirded out by Noah. I'll tell you why if you read more.

Addison does her best to control herself, and even tries (unsuccessfully) to pass the pregnant wife onto another doctor. Noah spends the whole episode making a case for why he can't control his emotions and - get this - he loves her! Hold up! Noah spent like, two days, making eyes at Addison and now he's in love with her? He says something about how he thought he loved his wife and is trying to be a good man by sticking with her but, you know, turns out he doesn't love her. So why on earth would Addison trust a man who said he thought he loved the woman he married but that turned out to be a mistake? The same guy who says he's in love with Addison after, what, three encounters? Um, sure you are, dude.

I'm also confused by the Dell story line. Do you think he blames Naomi for his wife disappearing with his daughter? She advised him not to call the mother of his child while he was angry, so I'm wondering if he resents that advice. Also, I thought it strange that he mopes around the office and talks to the crazy lady after discovering his wife is gone instead of say, calling the cops. That's kidnapping, I believe, and he might be wasting valuable time tracking the mom down. I don't know, maybe I'm being too pragmatic.

Finally, I'm loving Violet and Charlotte as friends. Somehow, compared to Violet's neediness and selfishness these days, Charlotte's starting to look cool and fun. Cooper wanted them to get along but then is weirded out when he finds Charlotte painting Violet's toenails. Be careful what you wish for, my friends! Also, Pete finally took interest in Violet's ultrasound, therefore he's taking a risk with his feeling that the child is his, which probably means the writers will make it Sheldon's. Can we all just pray Violet and Sheldon didn't make a baby? *Shudder*

Some more thought from this episode:

Sam broke it off with Sonya and now he's having a hard time setting Naomi up with other men. Poor guy is not finding it easy to move on.
Speaking of, I love when Naomi asks Sam if she looks slutty and he says she does, a little, and she goes, "Well it's not like I'm looking for a husband!" Ha!
How sad is that HPV couple? That is scary! And do you think that girlfriend is a horrible person for running out on her boyfriend? Or is it kind of understandable?
The best ever is Naomi showing up to work hungover after a big night at the bar with everyone ("Picking up people in bars is a bad idea.").
Violet's having a boy!

What did you think of this episode?

Private Practice Rundown: Episode 12, "Homeward Bound"

BuzzSugar — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 12:41:47 -0800

Man, the women of Private Practice are pretty screwed up emotionally. They all admit it this week, too, which is heartbreaking and kind of interesting when you think about it. I feel like I need to pause and give thanks for the over-30 female-driven storylines. Also heartbreaking? Charlotte King crying on Cooper's lap. Aw! I'm officially rooting for these two now, even though I'm very, very frightened of that woman. Let's chat about it, just read more.

It wasn't just the doctors who had me glued to my TV set this week - it was also the patients. Raise your hand if you knew the mother was gay? I thought maybe she had another lover or something, but as soon as the other lady showed up I figured it out. The poor son! Do you think he's too hard on his mom or is that a totally natural reaction? And then there's that crazy decision that father has to make! I won't even get into the medical explanation of what's going on (I had to rewind four times to try to understand). But the choice he has to make is excruciating, and the way it all plays out pulled at my heartstrings but also struck me as implausible. I mean, if you decide you are going to give up your son so you can be with your daughter, wouldn't you take a second to call an aunt or someone? Instead of handing him to a random doctor? Maybe call up a lawyer and figure out some custody stuff? I was confused.

Meanwhile, Sheldon, who previously suffered from impotence, is now showing up to Violet's doorstep declaring "It's up Violet! Full mast!" I immediately thought Violet would turn him away with an "Um, no thanks. I'm sleeping with a hot guy named Pete" - but no! She starts sleeping with both guys and tells Addison and Naomi she can't choose between Pete's heat and Sheldon's comfort. You guys. I am not a fan of Sheldon's. I get the heebie-jeebies just thinking about him showing up on doorsteps with erections.

In Addison-land, she and SWAT guy are having horribly icky fights. She's all, "A child is dying and you want to chill out!" and he yells back that she's no fun. Why'd they bring him back? Now it's basically cheating when she makes out with Wyatt. And Addison is already branded a cheater from her Grey's Anatomy days. But yay for making out with Wyatt - could he be cuter? He looks like future 40-something Will from Privileged.

A few more thoughts:

I think it's funny when Cooper thinks "Big Daddy" is the username of someone Charlotte's getting it on with online. But no. It's her father. Who is dying.
And wait a minute. . . Violet has sex with two guys at the same time for the first time in her life and she's stricken with some terrible peeing condition? I mean, Pete is the sluttiest person on the show and theoretically could have gotten seven STDs by now, but as soon as Violet is having all this sex, the writers make her come down with a physical ailment and struggle with the double standards of female and male sexuality? Seems like overkill. And what a loopy mixed message that is.
I really felt for Naomi. I would be super sad to see a younger lady hanging out with my ex and my daughter. But Sonya turns out to be cool so it's all good.
Another icky line from Sheldon, which is his version of foreplay: "From a psycho-physiological standpoint, this is remarkable." Wow, could he be less sexy?
Ha! Cooper's advice to Violet about sex is hysterical. Cooper: "You're a red-blooded American - sex is your birthright." Violet: "I will exercise my right!"

What did you think of this episode?

Private Practice Rundown: Episode 11, "Contamination"

BuzzSugar — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 11:31:06 -0800

Private Practice is back and is ripped from the headlines! You've almost certainly noticed the heated debate taking place over the correlation between the immunization of children and autism (both sides have celebrity voices attached to their cause). It's highly controversial, super emotional, and extremely personal to moms especially, which means it was probably just begging for another preachy prime time drama to wade into the fray.

Anyway, despite some clunky, public service-y lines related to the autism (Sam: "CDC is clear, vaccination saves lives. End of story."), this episode on the whole is pretty absorbing and entertaining especially because everyone appears to be friends again. Or, in the case of Violet and Pete, super duper close sexy-time friends. Ready to chat about it? Just read more.

So! The episode opens with-what else?-sex! Between Violet and Pete. This has got to be some kind of record, right? How many episodes in a row can the opening scene involve sex? I'm not necessarily complaining - it's just a little desperate, no? Regardless, Violet and Pete are still going at it and decide to keep things loose without much commitment. Except once Cooper takes Violet seriously that she is, in fact, sleeping with Pete, he freaks out ("Pete is the anti-relationship! Pete is the ruiner of relationships!") and blabs this to the whole office. Everyone stops by to tell Violet what a cad Pete is and to be careful, just as Pete (with some input from Addison) decides that he might want to try the whole relationship thing out with her. Violet pretty much disses him - and wisely so I think. She points out that they started hooking up while Pete had another girlfriend. I think he's going to have to prove his worth.

So meanwhile, a whole family of little boys Cooper has seen before has returned from abroad, and it turns out one has measles. This is because he was not vaccinated due to the mother's insistence that vaccination gave her oldest son autism. The practice basically goes into quarantine, and the health officials are called. The official who shows up is a smoking hot lady named Sonya who's clearly meant to be Sam's new love interest, but we spend the whole episode watching her be really mean to Sam ("You've been a bully!") before we get to the flirting stuff. It's totally cute to watch Sam scramble to make this mean lady happy, though.

The craziest moment of the night, in my book, was one Cooper sticks a needle into the third son's arm without the mom's consent! Is that legal? Do you think that was the right thing for Cooper to do at that moment when the other son is dying? I was actually touched by Charlotte's presence in the hospital the whole time too. I'm starting to maybe sort of wish she and Cooper would get back together. Am I nuts?

A couple more thoughts:

Big lesson from Dell's story line? Crack is whack. Just kidding. I mean, crack really is whack, but who knew Dell got his ex hooked on drugs? That was surprising. I'm glad they're working things out. Gotta think of the child.
I love how impressed Wyatt is that Addison is (was?) dating a cop. If I had an arrogant ass hanging over me teasing me about who to date, I too would be like, "Back off, buddy, I'm dating a man with a gun!"
So how long do you think they're going to make us wait for Addison and Wyatt to have hate sex? Naomi admitted she thought he was handsome too, but I think they're reserving him for Addison.
Ew! Sheldon's back! I do not like this guy, and I don't like him for Violet, and hello? No contest! Pete's a bajillion times cuter and nicer and better at sex.
Another funny moment: dance club with Sam and Sonya.

What did you guys think?

Private Practice Rundown: Episode 3, "Nothing to Talk About"

BuzzSugar — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 12:34:31 -0700

As the title suggests, this week's episode of Private Practice was sort of all about how no one is really talking to anyone else at Oceanside Wellness these days, even as their economic woes continue to get worse. But the thing is, I feel like everyone did a lot of talking (as usual), just not to the people they want to be talking to. Addison would love to talk to Naomi, but Naomi's still mad; Naomi needs Violet to be her new BFF and listen to her talk about Sam, but Violet feels like that ship has sailed; and Pete and Addison have never really talked as friends but now, because there really aren't many options left, they're feeling it out. To see the rest of my thoughts, read more.

OK, raise your hand if you thought the steamy, sexy opening was, in fact, sexy? Sam and Naomi kicked everything off with crazy-suggestive "hate sex" facial expressions that made me feel like I'd walked in on friends doing it. It was really . . . intimate. I'm not sure I need to ever see them having hate sex again. And then straight from that to Cooper in the bathtub with Charlotte. While, in my mind, there are lots of charming, quirky reasons to find Cooper crush-worthy, that fuzzy island of chest hair is probably not one of them. Neither Addison nor Pete got to have sexy time in this opening and decide to jog out their frustrations (Addison's worried about Naomi, Pete feels old after sleeping with the temp) instead, which ends with Addison flying off the treadmill.

Addison is fed up with being ignored so she takes refuge at the hospital feeling all "bad ass," as Dell put it (more on his return in a sec!), rushing from one surgery to another. Charlotte picks up on the fact that Addison's enjoying getting her hands bloody again and decides to "woo" her with a job offer. And just as Addison has given up on SWAT guy, he, too, appears to "woo" her with sprinkled doughnuts. Addison is skeptical (you know, the whole "Why didn't you call?" thing) and SWAT guy says he was crazy busy and assures her that "This is me being charmed by your rambling, incoherent message."

Meanwhile Violet gets a really intense consult - a woman who is losing sleep because she's convinced her kid is a sociopath. He killed the family dog after his father died and hasn't shown remorse. Violet refuses to hand the lady a prescription for sleeping pills (as Sam is pressuring her to do) and instead insists on helping her. Violet also is annoyed that Naomi is Sam's sounding board and has an emotional talk with Naomi at the end accusing her of trading up their friendship for Addison and she was not going to be the next-best-thing-friend ("You were using me as your Addison"). This makes Naomi storm into Sam's office to help Dell get his job back and announce that she will not be his sounding board. So basically, by the end of the episode, at least some people finally started to say things to the people they really wanted to say them to.

A few more thoughts:

I know this sounds dark and a bit twisted, but I was secretly hoping Violet's sociopath was really a sociopath. But I guess that's more say, ER's style than Private Practice. In PP they always turn out to be so heartwarming!
But man, how's this for some pressure? Cooper to Violet re: the sociopath kid: "You don't want to be the one to miss Columbine."
Cooper's little big-headed baby side story was really sweet and cute. The woman who played the big-headed baby's mom was a good actress and I loved her sweet reaction to the situation (Cooper: "You know a lot of presidents had big heads").
Ouch! That young guy confronting Addison and asking her the name of his wife, whom she'd just operated on, stung.
Pete's little lecture to his undies-wearing fireman about how everyone has their "things" to cope with the curve balls life throws at us and this is good, this is what we need, lost me when those "things" included drinking too much.
And, Dell's back! Yay? Or meh?

What did you think about the episode?