In Treatment Premiere, Part 2
(Monday, Apr. 6, 2009)
They say you prefer to watch it in chunks; therefore, in season 2, chunks is what you'll get. Dr. Paul Weston (Gabriel Byrne), his divorce finalized and a new practice set up in Brooklyn, has a new lineup of patients — perhaps even more intriguing than last year's. Last night (i.e. recurring Sundays), we met Mia (Hope Davis) and April (Alison Pill), the former being a lawyer Paul treated 20 years ago, who now blames him for how alone she's become, and the latter being a college student that won't stand for a much-needed medical prognosis. Tonight (i.e. recurring Mondays), Paul will feel pained by 11-year-old Oliver's dilemma (above), battling a "divorced kid" complex, who in contrast to the guilt that Paul feels for putting his own kids through it, Oliver is flip and merely shrugs his shoulders at the life-is-life situation. Next is Walter, who claims he just needs help with sleeping when in fact his traumas run much deeper. The last patient is, of course, Paul himself, who travels back to Maryland — en route to visit his kids — to consult with his trusty Gina (Dianne Wiest). We're used to observing Paul as the most emotional lump-on-log listener that ever lived, but it's his own therapy with Gina that we see: He can unload like the best of us. LAST FRIDAY'S DO-IT: Paul Dano and Zooey Deschanel sittin' on a mattress!