“You Feelin' Alright? I'm Not Feelin' Too Good Myself”

Last week was kind of a bummer, as even in New York, Alex was almost non-existent in the season opener. There is more to look forward to tonight, though, in “A Stereotypical Day”, even if Alex would disagree (I doubt she's looking forward to mononucleosis). But just how much?

Anticipation Level: High. It is Alex's first story of the season, and it does have some game-changing potential. The big question is how Alex-centric is the story – is it more about Alex and how she copes with her bout of mononucleosis, or is it more about her family and how they deal with her? If it's the latter then this won't be as big a deal as I'd hoped. Phil and Haley do have their own issues (which might be combined into one story) in this episode so I do have my fingers crossed that we still might get something out of it.¹

Emotional Moment Potential: Medium. If the story is about Alex and if it's played seriously (especially if her status at CalTech is affected) then this goes way up. But even if neither is true I still might feel bad enough about Alex's plight to be sad at the end of the night (e.g., if it's about the family and it's played for laughs, but if they treat Alex cruelly I still might be in tears).

Are There Any Other Questions?
Will this story end after one week or will Alex still be sick next week and beyond? I'm going to guess one and done, just because I'm pessimistic (and I've seen no signs that this is going to be a multi-episode story arc), but, you never know.

As for when I'll post the recap, I'm not sure – remember I am working tonight so I won't be seeing the show right away (probably not until about 10:30 or 11:00). I might still have the recap up at the usual time (actually that probably wouldn't be a good thing, as that meant I had little to say about it), or it might be delayed, either by an hour or two or the next morning. I'll probably tweet the status (search for or follow @aystad1) after I've finished watching the episode.

¹ I had typed this stricken-through part late last night before I saw the press release for "Weathering Heights" this morning, based off the photos with Phil and Haley in the news studio.  Since that's now probably not part of tonight's episode it doesn't really apply any more.