close
close

The good doctor never recovered from the shocking death of this character

The good doctor never recovered from the shocking death of this character

Summary

  • Following the death of a key character, The Good Doctor struggled with creative difficulties, affecting the narrative depth and direction of the story.
  • Neil Melendez’s departure left a gap in the show that could not be filled, which led to a decline in quality over time.
  • The mishandling and abrupt departure of key characters like Jessica Preston damaged the show’s ability to maintain viewership and quality.



SCREENRANT VIDEO OF THE DAY

SCROLL TO CONTINUE WITH CONTENT

Like most medical dramas, The good doctor was no stranger to changing the cast during its impressive run, but a death sent the series into a creative tailspin from which it never recovered. With The good doctor While the end of season 7 was a success, it’s a shame that the death of a character made an encore impossible in the series finale. Had they appeared, they would have enhanced the episode.


Sometimes popular characters are killed off in series to open up new storytelling opportunities. Unfortunately, this death was a shock as it was part of one of the The good doctors most incredible storylines. The bigger problem with Death is that the person was the glue that held numerous storylines together, so the decision had a detrimental effect on the show.

Related

The Good Doctor: All 7 seasons, from worst to best

“The Good Doctor” ran for a total of seven seasons, with the quality of the series experiencing highs and lows over the course of this time up until the final season.


Neil Melendez was the best character of the good doctor

Nicholas Gonzalez brought a lot to the role

Nicholas Gonzalez as Neil Melendez


The good doctor never recovered after writing off Neil Melendez because he was a crucial element of the show. Looking back on the series, Melendez had the strongest story arc, so there was no reason to cut his story short as there was so much more to tell. Melendez was introduced as Shaun’s opponent in The good doctor Season 1, but slowly he began to understand Shaun and the two even developed a reasonable bond.

When Melendez was unceremoniously written out of the show, their friendship was in great shape. The only logical reason to write Melendez out was that he was starting to overshadow the show’s main character. Other than that, it didn’t make much sense. Many of the major storylines revolved around Melendez because he provided a great counterpoint to some of the other characters and their conflicts.

Melendez brought top-notch skills to the hospital and the show’s attempts to replace him failed miserably because he was irreplaceable. If he had been kept longer, it would have ensured The good doctorThe ongoing triumph as one of the best medical dramas on television.


Neil Melendez should have stayed with The Good Doctor until the series finale

Melendez was a key component to the success of The Good Doctor

Many story arcs in long-running shows go down in flames, meaning changes have to be made to turn things around. At the time of his death, Melendez was still growing, and is therefore one of The good doctorThe main characters. For this reason, he deserved to be present until the end of the series. Despite his importance, the series failed to derive any good storylines from his death.

When you consider that the quality of the show has declined significantly over the last four seasons because of attempts to introduce many new characters, it becomes clear why the show was such a mistake. A better order would have let Melendez leave the city, like Claire Brown and Jared Kalu, who returned several times after their characters left the hospital. Melendez could have appeared and disappeared whenever the show called for him to. Details about Nicholas Gonzalez’s exit were kept secret, so it’s hard to say if he wanted out of the show. Overall, his story arc deserved a better send-off.


The original cast of “The Good Doctor”

character

Freddie Highmore

Shaun

Richard Schiff

Aaron

Antonia Thomas

Claire

Chuku mode

Jared

Beau Garrett

Jessica

Nicholas Gonzalez

Neil

Hill Harper

Marcus

Irene Keng

Elle

Tammy Tomita

Allegra

“The Good Doctor” could have survived longer if it had treated its characters better

The series could have been successful

In “The Good Doctor,” Dr. Melendez speaks to a patient surrounded by his family and other doctors.


A current problem with The good doctor during the seven seasons was the way the character arcs were handled. For example, The show didn’t know what to do with Jessica Preston after her relationship with Melendez ended. As the hospital’s in-house lawyer, she was supposed to be the focus of many episodes, but she did not appear in them.

The good doctor
from one of the highest rated shows to one of the lowest rated shows, but probably would have survived longer if the cast had remained the same.

Doesn’t matter, The good doctor Jessica could not be usedwhen Melendez calmed the situation. Instead of developing a new story arc, she was written out of the series after the first season. The same goes for Carly Lever, who became a main character due to her romantic relationship with Shaun. The character was removed from the series shortly after they went their separate ways. A relationship with a more prominent character should not be a requirement to stay on the show.


These problems made it difficult to get involved in the show because the characters would disappear in an instant, only to be replaced by a group of interns to fill the time. Granted, some of the newer characters have stood the test of time, such as Jordan Allen. The constant changes also affected the numbers. The good doctor went from one of the highest rated shows to one of the lowest rated, but it probably would have survived longer if it had kept its cast. Unfortunately, the show never recovered after Melendez’s death.

Poster for the 7th season of “The Good Doctor”

The good doctor

The Good Doctor is a medical television series that tells the story of Dr. Shaun Murphy, a young surgeon with autism who navigates his career and personal life at the fictional San Jose St. Bonaventure Hospital. Freddie Highmore plays the title role. The series premiered on ABC in 2017.

Pour
Freddie Highmore, Nicholas Gonzalez, Antonia Thomas, Chuku Modu, Beau Garrett, Hill Harper, Richard Schiff, Tamlyn Tomita, Will Yun Lee, Fiona Gubelmann, Christina Chang, Paige Spara, Jasika Nicole

Release date
25 September 2017

Seasons
7

Streaming service(s)
Hulu