Warning: SPOILERS for Doc season 2, episode 1, “Her Heart.”
After an intriguing reveal in the season 2 premiere, Fox’s Doc can finally justify a coupling between two characters that seemed excessively toxic throughout season 1. Despite being prominently featured in trailers, Felicity Huffman’s Doc season 2 character won’t appear for another episode, but it’s the premiere’s focus on established cast members that allows this surprisingly suitable romance to develop.
The new season picks up not long after it left off, leaving many of Doc season 1’s biggest questions unanswered. Jake has been dodging Amy since seeing her kiss Michael at the end of the finale, but their first conversation since that troubling development raises valid concerns that could drastically alter the course of Doc season 2’s story moving forward.
Sonya’s Crush On Jake Was One Of Doc Season 1’s Worst Storylines
Her Early Character Arc Doesn’t Earn Much Sympathy
By the end of its first season, Doc successfully managed to paint Richard Miller in a somewhat sympathetic light despite his seemingly unforgivable attempt to use Amy’s injury to frame her for malpractice. On the other hand, Dr. Sonya Maitra’s crush on Jake sets her up to largely reverse a season’s worth of character growth with just one dramatic twist.
Jealousy is rarely a good look on anyone. Sonya’s unrequited feelings for Jake are relatable enough, but she constantly tries to edge him away from Amy for her own benefit. And because Sonya’s his best friend at the hospital, Jake’s not receiving genuine support while grappling with his own one-sided feelings for a woman who no longer remembers their relationship.
Much of this is done subtly, but she pushes hard enough over the course of the season that it nearly threatens their friendship, leaving Jake with another potential loss to mourn. As Doc’s love triangle between Amy, Jake, and Michael gains traction, Sonya uses an overheard argument between Amy and Nora to try and separate Jake and Amy for good.
Jake certainly deserves to know about Amy and Michael. But after Amy and Sonya spend all season developing a more respectful, compassionate relationship, Sonya never even gives Amy a chance to let Jake hear the truth directly from her. If she had, Jake might have been spared from seeing the kiss between Michael and Amy that leaves him so distraught.
The Doc Season 2 Premiere Explains Why Jake And Amy No Longer Work
While Sonya’s actions suggest an undercurrent of toxicity and selfishness that make it hard to see her and Jake as ideal partners, Jake’s confrontation with Amy in the Doc season 2 premiere makes their relationship seem irreparable. He understands Amy still mentally sees Michael as her husband, but empathy and forgiveness aren’t enough to warrant staying in a fraught relationship.
Additionally, seeing Amy kiss Michael touches Jake in a way the sophomore season has yet to address. Jake’s been cheated on before by the mother of his child, and he’s now watched Amy pull Michael into a kiss mere days preceding the birth of Nora and Michael’s son. Doc actor Jon Ecker believes this could lead to a breakup.
“It’s hard. I mean, if I’m Jake’s mom, being like, ‘What do I want for him?’ I think a somewhat healthier and more stable relationship would probably be the smartest way to go, even though our emotions don’t make the best decisions. But getting involved with a coworker who has a family with somebody else who we also work with is definitely not the smartest idea, so I would probably suggest to him to maybe find somebody outside of the hospital and have a little bit of a healthy relationship.”
Finding somebody outside of the hospital might not be difficult, as showrunner Barbie Kligman already suggested Doc season 2 will feature Jake’s ex. Confirmation that Amy will begin remembering her relationship with Jake complicates things further.
But memory alone might not be enough, as Jake also admits in the premiere that it was the old Amy’s personality in general that he fell in love with. He tells her this directly when she pleadingly explains that her reunion with Michael only happened because she’s been struggling emotionally since her injury.
“I know you are. And look, I know everyone’s telling you how terrible you were during that time you don’t remember, which I’m sure makes it all very confusing. And yeah…she was a pain in the ass. And she didn’t suffer fools, and she could be hard to reach, but man…once you reached her, she was worth it. That’s the woman I fell in love with. I really miss her.”
The problem is that the woman he misses could be effectively deceased. Regaining her memories won’t necessarily snap Amy back into the same person for whom those memories were lived experiences. And while Jake does forgive her, he chooses to end the Doc season 2 premiere by Sonya’s side as Amy poignantly watches Michael return to his new family.
Why Jake’s Love For Old Amy Makes Him And Sonya Doc Season 2’s Best Couple
They’re Much More Alike Than Jake Seems To Realize
If Jake blamed Sonya for what happened with Amy nearly as much as some fans (and writers), he didn’t show it in the premiere. The two share a powerfully emotional embrace at the end of the episode’s hostage crisis, saying enough about where they stand as friends through their body language that no dialogue becomes necessary.
But there’s no indication Sonya’s feelings for Jake have changed. And with the Fox adaptation seemingly setting up the original Italian Doc’s memory twist a season early, there’s a chance Amy and Sonya could become romantic rivals if Amy starts truly feeling the love she remembers. Ecker himself ponders the direction Jake and Sonya might take:
“Sonya obviously has feelings for Jake, but he’s been somewhat oblivious about it because he’s been blinded by his love for Amy.
I don’t know if this would be a slap in the face or [if] something else happens that will make him see Sonya in a different light, and how he’ll feel about that. If he’ll be interested or not, or if he’s just resigned to be single for a while, I don’t know, but I’m sure we’ll explore that in some realm.”
But with the old Amy still largely gone and potentially never coming back, it’s noteworthy that Sonya shares past Amy’s best qualities. Earlier criticisms about her season 1 arc highlight that Sonya can come across as callous as Amy when she’s confidently direct, but she’s also been portrayed as a deeply complex and caring person when she drops her shields.
Even as a doctor, Sonya has the potential to follow in Amy’s footsteps. When forced to treat an abscess without access to a CAT scan, Sonya recalls how to guide the procedure using ultrasound having seen Amy do it only once before. Looking pragmatically at everything Jake loves and respects about Amy, there’s very little that doesn’t apply to Sonya.
It’ll take more than practical similarities for Jake and Sonya to get together. But currently, going back to Amy means being with someone who’s caused him immense pain in both new and familiar ways. Doc should let Jake be happy. Maybe Sonya can be a little toxic sometimes, but Jake’s thirst for pre-crash Amy suggests maybe that’s just his type.
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