The Gist:
Myra and Horace are getting hitched! Bit by bit, Myra loses control over her wedding until she learns to voice what she wants. They get married and you can't help but feel so happy for them. Sully is derelict in his Best Man duties for a minute because he has a huge migraine, but manages to pull through.
Meanwhile, Sully and Michaela are more solid than ever. And then her old fiance, David, whom she presumed to be dead, shows up. Of course, he's pretending to be someone else, Andrew, and commissions Sully's help in navigating the countryside. And oh, Michaela is tortured!
Commentary:
1. I'm a believer in the Power of Poetry, and so I love it when a poem takes center stage in anything the way it does in this episode. While planning the bridal festivities, Michaela recites the poem that was read at her engagement dinner -- A Red, Red Rose by Robert Burns. When "Andrew" recites the poem, Michaela knows for sure that it's David.
2. When "Andrew" takes Sully out surveying, there are some clips very obviously from an old nature special. Two elks locking horns. In competition for a female. IN CASE YOU DIDN'T UNDERSTAND, THERE WILL BE A CONFLICT OVER MICHAELA. But because we are humans, the men will not lock antlers. Not even Sully.
3. Dr. Quinn goes to treat Sully's migraine and he winds up building a sweat lodge. During his time in the hotbox, Sully has a vision of her walking away from him. He calls out for her and she (the real she, not the vision one) runs to him. He promises that he will love her all of his days and asks for her to marry him. Michaela says yes, of course, and you feel so gosh-darn happy that you could explode.
4. Myra's wedding dress is one of the most hideous dresses I've ever seen. Hank shows up at the wedding just in time for the objection part, but makes a big show of not objecting. If looks could kill, though, Horace would be so very dead.
5. And speaking of Horace -- he gets absolutely hammered at the reception and it's amazing. As is the confrontation it leads to between Michaela and "Andrew." Even better is the group of pranksters and well-wishers that follow Horace and Myra to their home on their wedding night.
6. I can't believe Michaela isn't more angry at David for deceiving her -- not only for the few short days he was pretending to be Andrew -- but for the six years he let her believe he was dead. That's pretty much the least loving thing he could have done to her. And Sully is so decent. I have to agree with Jake Slicker, "if it were me, I'd run that flower-picking jackass right out of town." Preach.
7. It turns out, David did some time as a POW at Andersonville, which does make him a bit more sympathetic as a character. As does the chilly reception he receives from the Cooper Kids at dinner.
8. Because not enough truly horrific things have happened or been referenced in this episode, a glass of preserves or something that Grace is cooking explodes in her face. Her eyes are filled with glass. Fortunately, David is there and can help (Michaela is 100% into getting retired doctors back into the saddle). It is super shitty for Sully to watch them doctoring together, and I can't help but wonder if it's a good idea for a man with one eye (David) to be performing surgery. Won't his depth perception be a problem?
9. Sully wins man of the century for his controlled response to the David debacle. He tells Michaela that he just wants her to be happy and that he will stand by her no matter what. How she does not choose him then and there is beyond me. David does make an excellent move in protesting some local deforestation because he can sense that she likes environmentalists, I guess. But he is too bold in telling her that he still loves her and wants them to be together; he is too explicit about his expectations for what they will accomplish together. And then Sully gives Michaela space to breathe and think. So how could she ever choose anyone else?
10. And to come full circle, Michaela puts a ring on it. She proposes to Sully:
"I want to tell you how much I appreciate what you did."
"What's that?"
"You left me free to decide."
"So you must have decided --"
"How do you know that?"
"I know. You love David."
"Yes, I'll always love him. But that's the past and you're the present. We're the present. If you'll have me. Will you, Sully?"
"Will I what?"
"Will you marry me?"
"Yes."
And then they frolick. No, really. It's a full-on frolic.
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