Bull (2016–…): Season 1, Episode 6 - Bedside Manner - full transcript

How you feeling, Erica?

ERICA: One blackout away from
being able to have little ones, I hope.

Absolutely. And I told your
husband the same thing.

He's in the waiting
room with your mom, dad.

ERICA: You are going to knock
me out, right? The doctor didn't say.

Dr. Robeson's not one to chat.
Trust me, you'll miss the whole thing.

- Julio, some help?
- OK.

On three. One, two, three.

- There we go. Let's bring in Atticus.
- ERICA: Is that the robot arm?

ROBESON: It's the Atticus Surgical
System. It's the best tool for the job.

- Where's my music?
- NURSE: Coming, Doctor.



OK, Erica Povery, myomectomy.

- ERICA: Hi, Dr. Robeson.
- Hi, Ms. Povery.

NURSE: Here's
your music, Doctor.

Give me 100 mikes of
fentanyl and the propofol.

All right, you're gonna feel a chill
come over you. Count down from ten.

- Ten, nine... Good.
- ERICA: Ten, nine, eight, seven...

ROBESON: There's more fibroids
in the uterus than we thought.

- Heavy bleeding from that insertion.
- I see it.

Blood pressure's dropping fast.
We've gotta stop this bleeding.

- I know.
- She's bleeding out.

This isn't working.

Dr. Robeson, what
do you want me to do?

[RAPID BLEEPING]

Dr. Terrence Robeson. First
in his class at Harvard Med.



Now one of the top gynecological
surgeons in the world.

Terry and I went
to college together.

- Terry.
- Ooh.

Wait, he looks like
that and he's a surgeon?

- Doesn't seem right, does it?
- What'd he do?

Saved a woman's life, and
now she's suing him for it.

Erica Povery. She and her
husband wanted to start a family.

But a cluster of fibroids
was preventing pregnancy.

Terry was brought
in to remove them.

Unfortunately, there were a larger
number of fibroids than expected.

Now, heavy bleeding
is not uncommon,

but in Erica's case the
bleeding wouldn't stop.

The only way to keep her
alive was to remove her uterus

and perform an
emergency hysterectomy.

So now she can't have kids?

And that's why she had
the surgery in the first place?

Erica is claiming that the
hysterectomy was avoidable

and she's suing for malpractice.

BENNY: Well, to
prove malpractice,

she has to show that Robeson
violated a reasonable standard of care.

That means a significant violation
of skill, diligence or judgment.

Not easy to do.

Maybe not, but there are people
with skill, diligence and judgment

lining up to
testify against him.

My guess is that they're
gonna focus on one aspect,

that he rushed the decision
to perform the hysterectomy.

Judgment.

They're gonna say that he could
have used less drastic measures

to stop the bleeding.

And there's diligence.

OK, listen, I know that it sounds
bad, but I've known Terry for 16 years.

If there was another way,
he would have found it.

- What about the hospital?
- They offered a settlement.

But Terry refused.

It would have meant admitting
that he made a mistake,

and he insisted
he didn't make one.

So if he loses, he'll be held liable
for damages, which could be millions.

And he may never practice again.

For someone like Terry, brilliant,
a pioneer, that's all he has.

I'm assuming that the good doctor
has an equally accomplished lawyer?

Actually, no. He's had some
disagreements with his lawyers.

Lawyers? Plural?

They sent over some
pretrial files and motions.

I could pull 'em up.

All right. Let's see
what we're up against.

BENNY: At this
time, we, the plaintiffs

would like to call Dr. Terrence
Robeson to the stand.

Benny's a little too excited
to play Erica's attorney.

Residual nostalgia
from his prosecutor days.

But don't worry, it's what we
need to find the weaknesses

in your old boyfriend's case.

Terry. Sharp intake of breath
tells me it was no more than a year.

You're trying to be relaxed,
which means it was a long time ago,

but that little pulsing
vein is the giveaway.

He still has a
place in your heart.

It is hard not to feel
continually judged by you.

Oh, well... not
judged. Observed.

And you shouldn't be
insulted, because I can't help it.

We were together almost a year,
after college. Still close friends.

Why didn't you
tell me about him?

Well... Terry's...
an acquired taste.

BULL: Well, let's see what we
can acquire from Terry's stand-in.

Dr. Robeson, as simply as you can,
please walk us through the surgery.

Certainly. We began with anesthesia,
a mix of fentanyl and Marcaine.

- Then once the patient had...
- ROBESON: Wrong.

Wh... Are you insane?
It's fentanyl then propofol.

Marcaine would have
the inconvenient effect

of giving her seizures
and putting her in a coma.

Terry, you were supposed
to call me when you got here.

I know. I just wanted to
see the magic happen.

We'll be sawing Marissa in half
later. You should stick around.

- I'm Dr. Jason Bull.
- Oh.

You're a psychologist, though,
right, so not a real doctor?

MARISSA: This is
all part of trial science.

This is where we run the mock
trials with experts, like this MD.

And we present
various facts in the case

and track the jurors' responses.

And once we hone our
strategy, we bring you in.

Well, based on your so-called expert,
I'd say you need to bring me in now.

We didn't wanna waste your
time, given your busy schedule,

but since you're here, ain't
nothing better than the real thing.

OK.

- Get out of there.
- Like I said, acquired taste.

Wow.

Dr. Robeson, you're considered
the top surgeon in your field.

- Is that correct?
- And I'd kill to keep it that way.

It's a joke.

BENNY: Right. Right, well, let's
just talk about Erica's case, OK?

There's a line of
surgeons who will testify

that you should have waited to
perform a radical hysterectomy.

Yeah, I can get you a line
of idiots to tell you anything,

especially doctors who are paid to come
to court instead of the operating room.

BENNY: Are you aware that
you perform fibroid surgery

in half the time as
the national average?

Yes.

So isn't it possible that you might have
rushed through surgery to fit more in,

make more money?

Is it possible you were fired
by the DA for incompetence?

Oh.

I see you did your due
diligence. In the OR...

Yeah, in the OR, I pioneered the
use of a robotic arm called the Atticus

which allows me to
perform fibroid surgery

in half the time with one
thousandth the number of mistakes.

CABLE: Their empathy
lines are plummeting.

I'm no surgeon, but wouldn't
you call maiming Erica a mistake?

No, because she lived. And
you're right, you're no surgeon.

You have no idea what it's like when
every decision, every incision you make,

is the difference
between life and death.

It's bloody, it's ugly,

and it's nothing anyone who went to law
school should be able to second-guess.

So let me make this simple.

The closest thing that
we have to God on earth

is a surgeon at
the top of his game.

So next time... you know,
maybe laugh at his jokes.

Well, your friend may
have saved Erica's life,

but he just took his
own on the stand.

We got the results
back from our mock jury.

All six found Terry
liable for malpractice.

Anyone surprised?
He's egotistical.

- Elitist.
- Perfect, or so he thinks.

Holier than thou.

Our client has what we not
real doctors call... a god complex.

The good news is he's
the best at what he does.

The bad news is... he knows it.

My doctor can think he's a god as
long as he saves my ass in the OR.

So our strategy is to find people
who are comfortable with jerks,

so long as their
jerks are on their side.

- Deep pragmatists.
- Exactly.

Marissa, would you start building
out a motivational matrix, please?

I wanna know which jurors
are willing to bite the bullet

when they stand to benefit.

Danny, let's find better facts,

starting with the hospital
and this robotic arm.

Cable, want you to
deep-dive this surgery,

find out what the hell
went wrong and why.

Chunk, get our doctor
spruced up for court.

Yep.

- Benny.
- Hmm?

Walk with me.

I know you enjoyed going up
against Robeson in mock trial.

Yeah, you know I
love going toe-to-toe.

I know. And that's why
he needs new counsel.

Seriously?

We're up against a
sympathetic young woman

who wanted nothing
more than to be a mother.

We need a new attorney who can
balance out Robeson's uber-ego

with a more earthly presence.

Well, who do you have in mind?

Welcome back, Liberty.

Oh, hi. I'm excited to be here.

[SIGHS]

- Sorry. The walk's a killer.
- Glad to have you back.

- You remember Benny.
- You kidding?

Working with you guys on the
Peters case, that made my career.

Really?

So I can't thank you
enough for this opportunity

to work with one of
your clients again.

Wait till you meet the client.

Which one's the
magic acquittal tie?

No magic, just
medicine for the soul.

In here, I'm the surgeon,
and you are flatlining.

See if we can pump
a little life into it, huh?

Unstructured jacket, earth
tones for balance and strength

and a pocket square
adds sophistication.

Can't imagine anyone's
gonna care what I wear.

- I'm gonna pretend you didn't say that.
- Look, I'm a doctor.

- You wanna put me in a lab coat?
- No, but let's talk psychology.

Something called
enclothed cognition.

Subtle changes in clothing
affect a person's perception of you.

- You went to military school.
- You read my bio.

I read your posture.

Take that off.

It's too rigid.

In the OR what
do you do to relax?

- Play music.
- What kind?

Hip-hop.

[HIP-HOP PLAYS]

Here we go. We need
some of that in the courtroom.

Dr. Robeson's the man who put
Atticus on the map. He's a pioneer.

Smartest addition I've made to
our surgical staff in the last ten years.

Is it because of his skill
or because of Atticus?

Both.

The procedures he's
developed with Atticus

have become the gold
standard worldwide.

These arms are fitted
with surgical blades

which allow for smaller incisions,
less bleeding and faster recovery time.

Which means you can
squeeze in more surgeries.

Excuse me?

I read that your hospital does
30 times the number of surgeries

as your closest competitor.

Everyone wants the best
medical care they can receive.

Why not testify
to that in court?

Hospital policy is to stay
out of malpractice suits.

Our employees are welcome
to testify, should they choose,

but don't expect
a line out the door.

He's not our most
appealing doctor.

So you wouldn't mind if I spoke
to other members of your staff?

Suit yourself.

All right.

BULL: Liberty.

You ready to spin the wheel
of fortune we call voir dire?

With the questions
you like to ask the jury,

I actually enjoy
spinnin' the wheel.

Doc. Doc!

[HIP-HOP PLAYS]

Had you pegged as
more Britpop than hip-hop.

I'm relaxing.

Let's hope dancing isn't
part of his relaxation routine.

Oh, there's
Erica, the plaintiff.

- Hey.
- Hi.

Wow. She looks... nice.

[BULL SIGHS]

Are we going in? Or is standing
outside part of trial science too?

Is it too late to switch sides?

Hand in your phone.
Judge's orders.

- Wait, what? Since when?
- Today.

You can have it
back when you leave.

[SIGHS]

Well, Marissa, this is
where we part ways.

Looks like our judge has
an aversion to technology.

Wow. It's been a long time since
you read a jury without backup.

- Do you miss me yet?
- Kidding? I love flying without a net.

See you on the other side.

What historical figure do
you most admire and why?

Your Honor, is this jury
selection or a talk show?

She has the right to ask, no
matter how stupid it sounds to us.

I assume there's some
strategy behind this question.

Historical figure...
I'd say Nikola Tesla.

He was a visionary and wanted
to give electricity to the world.

We move to strike, Your Honor.

Why would you strike someone who
cares about intellect and innovation?

Because she's an idealist

and we want pragmatic jurors who will
put up with you because you're the best,

despite your prickly exterior.

How about finding people
who care about the facts?

- LIBERTY: Juror number three.
- I'd go with John McEnroe.

That guy was fun to
watch and played to win,

and if anyone got in his way, he'd
shove that racket right up their...

Not in my courtroom, sir.

Do you see how they're
leaning away from you?

It's because you're
alienating them.

Yes, well, according to
you, they'll look past that.

Have you ever heard of
the ass-to-awesome ratio?

Because it means the bigger an
ass you are, the better you'd better be.

- And you're reaching that threshold.
- Counselor?

- Ever applied that ratio to yourself?
- Cut.

We move to strike
this juror, Your Honor.

What?

No. No.

Liberty, no.

- Your Honor, a brief recess, please?
- BULL: Marissa...

Bull, if you're calling me this
soon, something happened.

Huh. Robeson happened.

He's managed to alienate
almost every member of the jury

and we haven't even started.

- Who have we got left?
- Well, we have two pragmatists.

The rest are giving
him the cold shoulder.

- So what do we do?
- BULL: Give me a second.

I'm gonna crack the door.

OK, juror number two, bespoke
suit, Patek Philippe watch. Flashy.

Everything about
him is expensive.

MARISSA: 34-year-old
investment banker.

His last two vacations
were Vegas and...

Vegas.

High-rollers' table, I bet.

Look at him, sitting in that
box like a king on a throne.

Let's talk about
juror number 12.

Looks like she's itching
to jump into the game.

Good guess.

She coaches the Lady Jackals,
women's college basketball team.

Ooh. Ejected from three of six
games for fighting with the ref.

Pragmatists will vote for
our doctor despite his attitude.

But these guys will vote for
him because of his attitude.

It's funny, to save a
client with a god complex,

we're gonna fill the
rest of the box with...

A jury of gods.

We've got a high-finance
investor, the high-fashion designer,

high-scoring coach,
high-calorie food critic.

These are all uncompromising,
arrogant alphas.

Let's give 'em Greek names.

Zeus, Apollo,

Athena.

And Dionysus.

For the food critic. The
god of wine and good times.

I like Dionysus.

I forgot you minored in Greek
mythology. That's gonna come in handy.

- So our jury's a bunch of jerks.
- BULL: Not all of 'em.

We have two mere
pragmatic mortals.

Erica needs five of six to win.
She has everyone but Zeus.

We just need the other gods
to see themselves in Robeson.

We have our work cut out for us.

I will go assemble
a godlike mirror jury.

I finished the deep-dive on the
surgery. You're gonna wanna see this.

What I found scrubbing the hospital
security footage is kind of amazing.

Dr. Robeson didn't just
save Erica's life once.

He saved it three times
during this surgery.

The first time, 12 minutes in.

Erica's breathing gets
hoarse. Her face gets red.

BULL: She's having a
reaction to the propofol.

CABLE: But the anesthesiologist
didn't catch it. Robeson did.

He gave her a combo
of Benadryl and steroids.

Then, two hours in,
Erica's lost a lot of blood.

But watch the nurse.
She's totally confused.

Robeson has to come over
to help her pick the right bag.

BULL: B negative. That could
have made her sick, even killed her.

What's the finale?

CABLE: The bleeding's gotten
so bad they can't continue.

Robeson pulls Atticus out
of the surgery, steps forward

and performs the
hysterectomy by hand.

BULL: Oh, wow.

Robeson saved
her life three times.

But I don't understand why
these mistakes aren't in his notes.

Simple. Robeson covered it up.

But... But why? I mean,
they're not his mistakes.

- They are, in a way.
- Exactly.

I spoke to one of the
many hospital employees

Robeson rubbed the wrong way,

and it turns out he pulled strings to
get these two on his team that day.

Question is, why? What
else is this god hiding?

BULL: So, Doc, here's the thing.

We're having some trouble
with your eye for talent in the OR.

- Really?
- Mmm.

You pulled rank to get the
anesthesiologist, Dr. Edwyn,

into the OR,

a man whose record
is average at best.

He is, however,
an excellent golfer,

and he pulled rank to get
you into his fancy country club.

Are you suggesting I request him
so I can play at a nice golf course?

I'll admit, it felt like a stretch, until
we learned that, um, Kelly Abbott,

the nurse you most
often requested,

has been criticized
for slow response time,

and you had an affair
with her 18 months ago.

We didn't have an affair.
Neither of us are married.

Never have been. And
this isn't worth my breath.

Yes, it is.

Terry, this is your life.

Now sit down and let
us try to help you save it.

I chose my team with the
same care that you chose yours.

Preparing for surgery is
like preparing for battle.

There are dozens of risks.
Now, the known risks I can handle.

It's the unknown risks,
those are the landmines.

Now, if I wanna be successful, I need
to turn those unknowns into knowns.

In the hospital,
mistakes are inevitable.

That is why I use
Dr. Edwyn and Nurse Abbott.

Not because they
won't make mistakes

but because I know what
mistakes they will make.

And our records show that
we are an excellent team.

You can't have flawless,
so you go for predictable.

The problem is, her surgery was
neither predictable nor flawless

and their whole case hinges on the idea
that you violated the standard of care,

and you're doing
their work for them.

They are gonna say that you were
distracted at very critical moments.

Why would I bring in people
that would cause a disaster?

Golf. Sex.

I'd stick with golf, because a subpar
performance is considered good.

Terry, we dig up these facts

because we'd rather prepare for
them here than get ambushed in court.

Do you know why I chose
Nurse Abbott? She's not slow.

- She's fast?
- She's thorough.

Records processes hundreds
of surgeries from our hospital.

We're the busiest in the area.

Records got the
blood type wrong.

Kelly caught it because
she cross-referenced

the charts with the records
and saw two blood types listed

and, as a result, we were
only able to save Erica's life

because she had the two
different blood types on hand.

And as for Dr. Edwyn,

what you can't see is how
cool he is under pressure.

The only other available
anesthesiologist that morning

is a bag of nerves.

He drives me crazy.

Now, Edwyn handled a life-or-death
circumstance without breaking a sweat.

That's also what makes
him a scratch golfer.

So... we know he can do that.

[SIGHS]

He's more than just ego. He
has a mind, and it's brilliant.

Who wouldn't wanna be around
that? It's exciting, invigorating.

And, yes, it's
infuriating, crazy-making.

- If only you could change him...
- Yes... No.

Well... if he were
just... a little bit more...

Tolerable?

When I finally left him... I thought
he'd actually try to win me back.

Maybe he knew he could
never give you what you need.

LIBERTY: If the gods on our
jury are these arrogant jerks,

they're never gonna
listen to anyone.

Not experts and
certainly not lawyers.

That's not true. We
have an opportunity here.

We have a panel of
jurors so self-absorbed

that each one of them is gonna
think that we're talking directly to them.

And how do we do that?

Well, we start with the plaintiff's
star witness, Dr. Talbertson,

senior gynecological surgeon
at New York Sacred Heart.

They are relying on him to prove
that Robeson violated standard of care,

and he's gonna
say something like...

When faced with severe bleeding,
the key is to promote clotting.

You give drugs, give transfusions
and, above all, give time.

- And did Dr. Robeson do all three?
- Two. Drugs and transfusions.

But instead of giving it time,
he rushed to the hysterectomy.

No doubt he had a
surgery waiting or...

- What do you know, you hack?
- What do I do?

You let him vent.
The gods will love it.

But cut him off before the
judge finds him in contempt.

ROBESON: No, ask him how
long it took him to get board certified.

How many research
grants does he have?

- Counselor.
- Terry.

Is it your belief that if Dr. Robeson
had exercised diligence, good judgment

and waited for
clotting to take hold,

Erica would still be
able to have children?

- Yes, it is.
- We have no further questions.

Robeson's outburst
got their attention.

Now you keep it by
using tailored language,

words that make each god feel
that our reasoning is their reasoning.

Take Zeus, an investment banker.
He'll respond to statistical analysis.

Dr. Talbertson, how often
have any of your myomectomies

resulted in an
emergency hysterectomy?

I've been practicing 20 years...

Three times, according
to hospital records.

And were those three times an
avoidable risk or just bad luck?

I don't take risks in my OR.

Really? Let's examine that.

Now that Zeus is
listening, you turn to Athena.

You'll appeal to her as a basketball
coach hell-bent on winning.

So you claim that Dr. Robeson rushed
to perform the emergency procedure,

like an armchair general
second-guessing another's battle plan.

But when things went
wrong in your OR, Doctor,

how long did you wait before
beginning the hysterectomy?

- I really couldn't say.
- Three unit transfusions, on average.

So do you recall the number of
Dr. Robeson's unit transfusions?

- I do not.
- Almost four.

So Dr. Robeson gave more time
for the bleeding to stop than you did.

- And Dionysus.
- Our food critic.

Did you rush to judgment?

Did you feel the heat of the
fire and panic in the kitchen?

Were you guilty of malpractice?

- There are other factors.
- There always are.

For instance, when you
say that Dr. Robeson rushed

because he had
another surgery waiting.

Isn't it true that the waitlist
for Dr. Robeson is months long,

while yours is...?

- It's less.
- And why do you suppose that is?

Could it be because the success
rate for Dr. Robeson is near perfect,

while yours is, to borrow
your own words, less?

More surgeries and
a higher success rate.

It seems to me that Dr. Robeson
is more of an expert than you are.

Liberty's cross-examination
of Dr. Talbertson

couldn't have gone any better.

So Erica started out with five.

Now it's an even split,
three for, three against.

And Erica needs five
to win. It's great odds.

Oh, we are not out of the woods
yet. Erica's gonna take the stand next.

You couldn't ask for a
more sympathetic plaintiff.

Ms. Povery, when did you and
your husband decide to start a family?

During his last
tour in Afghanistan.

When he got back for
good, we started trying.

Did you ask your doctor why
you were unable to conceive?

She said I had uterine fibroids.

- And did she recommend a surgeon?
- Yes. Dr. Robeson.

She said he was the best.

And after the surgery, how did
Dr. Robeson behave toward you?

He barely acknowledged
me. Mumbled something.

A nurse had to come in later
and explain what happened.

I tried calling him. He
didn't return my call.

How is that being the best?

Your witness.

Erica, I appreciate how hard this
is for you, especially considering...

well, would you agree

that the defendant,
Dr. Robeson, is kind of a jerk?

Objection!

- She's trashing her own client.
- Are you sure you want to object?

Objection withdrawn.

Are you aware that Winston
Churchill was called a jerk?

Steve Jobs, a jerk.

I guess.

World-class achievers and
world-class egos go hand in hand.

So thank God you can't
sue someone for being a jerk.

I'm not suing him
for being a jerk.

I'm suing him because
he made a mistake,

and his ego is so big
he can't even admit it.

My husband and I have been
trying to have children for years.

This surgery was supposed
to allow us to fulfill that dream.

He knew that.

Instead, he butchered me.

[SIGHS]

I wanted to be a mom.

This jerk missed the point of her
surgery. He should have tried harder.

He wouldn't risk his ego by
talking to his own patient. Weak.

I wonder how
much for that watch.

Something's up with Dionysus.

BENNY: Erica turned
two jurors against us.

I mean, they feel
she's been wronged,

even if she didn't technically prove
Terry violated her standard of care.

That's not the only challenge
we've come across today.

Dionysus was paying more
attention to Zeus's watch

than paying attention
to Erica's testimony,

and that is wrong
on many levels.

Dionysus has a
spring in his step.

Yep, the spring of a man about
to step into a new Mercedes.

I tailed him all the way
from the dealership.

According to his emails, he also
just put in for a two-week vacation.

Where is he off to?
Mount Olympus?

St. Barts. His room's
going for two grand a night.

St. Barts. I like St. Barts. So the
son of a bitch has been bought off.

Yeah, someone else is
definitely working this trial.

Yeah. Nobody messes
with my jury but me.

I found this guy Victor.
He's a contract fixer.

Danny got some photos of him.

BULL: And who is
he speaking with?

Alexander Greyridge, PhD,

VP of the company that
makes the Atticus robotic arm.

So Atticus bought the fixer.

- The fixer bought the juror.
- Right.

Dionysus is on our side
but not under our control.

I still haven't found
a digital footprint yet

and I don't really understand why
they're so desperate to get Robeson off.

I need access to the Atticus,
but it's secured inside the hospital.

Remember that outfit Danny wore
to the Halloween party last year?

- What, the nurse's outfit?
- Mmm.

Oh. I see what you mean.

I'll let you two take it
from there. Have fun.

[SIGHS]

Whoa.

43-year-old single malt. You
have impeccable taste, sir.

Thanks. I recognize
you from court.

- You're defending Robeson, right?
- I think we both are.

I don't know what
you're talking about.

Relax. I'm not here to expose
you. I'm here to help you.

Nicky.

You've been making some noise.

I've been very discreet.

Nicholas, a $200 bottle of
Scotch, a plane ticket to St. Barts

and a new Mercedes
is not discreet.

You know what'll happen if
you get caught? Five years.

And you would have to find
your own defense attorney,

because our mutual benefactor
wouldn't be able to help you out.

- Victor said he'd help me out.
- Victor.

Maybe you don't know Victor
as well as you think you do.

If you keep misbehaving,
I'll go to the judge myself.

I want out. Please?

- There's gotta be a way.
- I'll tell Victor.

Just don't show up in court.

JUDGE: This is ridiculous.
Where's juror number four?

That's it. Officer, we need a
replacement for juror number four.

- Please call the first alternate.
- BAILIFF: Alternate juror number one.

Ah, that would be Gladys,
licensed sex therapist.

Looks like we're in for some
mutually gratifying deliberations.

I think we call her Aphrodite.

MARISSA: Nice work
getting rid of Dionysus.

Tell me Aphrodite's had a
consensual effect on our jury.

Oh, our jury loves
her. See for yourself.

Well, leave it to
a sex therapist

to have all the skills it takes
to unite Mount Olympus.

But she has already formed
an opinion of our good doctor,

and it's not so therapeutic.

So, what does it take for
someone with a big heart

to warm to someone
with a prickly ego?

We are talking about me
and Terry now, aren't we?

Are we?

Cable, let's go.

OK.

Hurry, Cable. We've got a
tight window to hack into Atticus.

- We need a go word.
- What?

You know, a word that tells the
other person that the coast is clear.

- Something like... ampicillin?
- Ampicillin?

I don't know. What did
you use in the bureau?

We used to say, "Clear."

OK, clear.

This is incredible. It's
a near-flawless system.

10,000 self-checks a second,
no history of malfunction.

- Wait. When was Erica's surgery?
- The 16th.

There was an update
just two days before that,

but they installed a patch
the day after Erica's operation.

- Why the hell would they do that?
- Uh-oh. Cable, we have a house call.

- Come on. Come on.
- I'm on it.

You're fast, Doc,
but I'm faster.

[BLEEPS]

[BLEEPS]

Is anybody in here?

Security? Hi. This is Dr. Lewis.

- I'm trying to get into OR Room 3.
- Hey, talk.

- The keypad won't work.
- Go.

Dr. Lewis. Dr. Lewis to the ER.
Dr. Lewis, you're needed in the ER.

- Clear?
- Ampicillin.

Atticus's quarterly
software update

caused an error in one
of the arm's calibrations.

It wasn't much.

Less than 100 nanometers off
of what Robeson commanded.

But impossible for the
human eye to detect.

It was already a bloody surgery,
making it difficult to see clearly.

But when Robeson
commanded Atticus

to cut into one of the
hard-to-reach fibroids,

it nicked one of
Erica's blood vessels.

Terry didn't make a
mistake. Atticus did.

And they knew it, so they patched
the software and bribed Dionysus

so they could buy
the "not liable" verdict.

Didn't wanna damage
the doctor's good name.

It's their best marketing tool.

This evidence was
obtained illegally.

We're gonna have to subpoena
Atticus for their records.

If they're dirty
enough to bribe a juror,

they'll definitely
cover up the patch.

Oh, yeah, they'll try.

But if Liberty calls
Dr. Greyridge to the stand

and he's the lead
engineer for Atticus,

then he'll assume he's
there to defend Robeson.

And then we make him
meet his own creation.

The Atticus Surgical
System took 12 years

and more than $100
million to develop.

And since then, how many
surgical errors have been reported?

- Zero.
- None whatsoever.

That is impressive.

Would you be willing
to put that to the test?

- GREYRIDGE: There's a demo mode.
- What about something more hands-on?

Specifically, your
hand on this table.

We would like to play a
version of the knife game.

Only in place of the knife...

Objection. Your Honor, we respect
the court's decision to use the machine.

But this is turning into a
sideshow, a dangerous one.

I'm inclined to agree. Counselor,
where are we going with this?

Nobody is going to get hurt. We
have calibrated the machine to this grid.

The jury deserves
to see it in action.

JUDGE: Dr. Greyridge?

Of course. I trust Atticus.

LIBERTY: Oh, one more thing.

In order for this
to be accurate,

we need to use the same
version of the software

that was used
for Erica's surgery.

So we've had the technician
roll it back. Everybody ready?

LIBERTY: When I give the word,
we will demonstrate for the jury

the 100% accuracy of the
Atticus Surgical System,

calibrated with the same
version of the software

used on the day
of Erica's surgery.

[ATTICUS WHIRS]

And...

- Wait.
- Dr. Greyridge, what's wrong?

I... I don't understand.

Are you saying that even in
the hands of a skilled technician,

Atticus could miss?

He could cut the wrong thing?

I... I don't know.

LIBERTY: How do you not know?

Was there a change
in the software recently?

A patch just 18 hours
after Erica's surgery?

I... don't have to answer that.

All right, one against
and four on the fence.

Zeus works with high-tech
investing algorithms,

so exposing the flaws in Atticus's
software was enough to convince him.

But I'm at a loss how
to win over the others.

I mean, the machine malfunctioned.
How could they not be swayed by that?

Because this was never about
the machine or the surgery.

It's about what happened after.

Robeson never violated
any physical standard of care,

but when he wasn't really there for
Erica, he violated an emotional one.

They need to emotionally
connect with him or he's done.

And Aphrodite is the most influential
juror, so we're gonna turn her.

Here's everything
we have on her.

Happily married, multiple
awards in her field...

Weekly advice column:
"Gladys Gets Intimate."

Mmm. Here's her latest post.

"Who is the sexiest man alive?"

"The one who knows
he can't fix everything."

- Do men really try to fix every...
- Yes, you do.

BULL: Aphrodite needs to hear
a man say he can't fix everything,

so we're putting
Robeson on the stand.

You kidding me? He'll never
admit to something he can't do.

It's true. You said
it yourself, Bull.

When it comes to surgery,
Terry thinks he's infallible.

- Nobody could make him say otherwise.
- Oh, I know someone who could.

Me?

[LAUGHS]

You went toe-to-toe with
him and you struck a nerve.

And now, Benny, now I
want you to go for his jugular.

Uh, Terry.

What, so I'm
testifying after all?

Do you remember when you
invited me to an operating theatre

to watch a man get a high-tech
pacemaker surgically installed?

- Yeah, you threw up.
- Twice.

It wasn't until you kissed
me on the walk home

that I realized that
was our first date.

I'm just glad I
brought breath mints.

What does this have to do
with me taking the stand?

That was the worst
idea for a first date ever.

You knew you screwed
the whole thing up.

The man who, on our second date,

asked me to come with
him to change his car tires

and wore corduroy shorts and
a stained NASA jersey that said,

"Failure is not an option."

[CHUCKLES]

Well, that was the
day I fell for you.

You were just so easy to spend
time with. You made me laugh.

Likewise, believe me.

That jury has only seen
Dr. Robeson the surgeon.

They need to see
Terry the endearing.

That's the man I fell for.
That's the man they need to see.

Would you say you followed all
reasonable protocols and standards?

No, I exceeded them.

But expert witnesses
said that your actions

fell below a reasonable
standard of care.

- They were wrong.
- I... I believe you.

But I don't think that they
do. Why do you think that is?

- You'd have to ask them.
- I can't. I'm asking you.

- You cut up an innocent woman.
- I didn't cut her up.

- I performed an operation...
- An operation she didn't ask for.

Now she can't have kids.

She couldn't have children before
the surgery because of the fibroids.

So that gives you permission to
mangle a young woman's body?

I didn't man...
I saved her life.

Then why don't they believe you?

Well, I can't force
them to believe me.

So let me get this straight.

You're asking them to somehow get
inside your head during the operation?

- I don't want them inside my head.
- Why?

Because you're
such a private man?

Because you're so brilliant
they won't understand?

No, because it's overwhelming!

Do you wanna know what's going
on inside my head in the OR that day?

Blood pressure 100 over
65, normal but dropping.

Watch for 70 over 45.

Heart rhythm irregular,
common under anesthesia.

Incising first fibroid.
Tissue firmer than expected.

Adjust angle. Oxygen a bit too high.
May need pulse oximeter to verify.

- And that's just the first ten seconds.
- That all sounds very technical.

Well, there are a dozen more decisions
to be made every second after that.

Decisions that call on every ounce of
my education, my expertise, my judgment.

Decisions that threaten
life, alter life, save life.

Decisions that none of you are qualified
to make, none of you wanna make.

[SPECTATORS MURMURING]

You make a lot of
friends at Harvard?

I went to Harvard because I wanted
to be a great surgeon, and I am.

I just can't do anything else.

This flood of information
makes me excellent at what I do.

I see flaws, I diagnose them,
I attack them and I fix them.

In the OR, I know
exactly what to do,

whom to have on my team,
when and where to cut and sew.

But outside...

that information fails me.

I don't know how
to be around people,

how to prep a patient, to console
her through a devastating loss...

what to say to the woman
I loved... to make her stay.

Isn't it enough that I was
born to do one thing well?

If you're carried into that
hospital, clinging to life...

You may want a
doctor who's kind,

who knows just what to
say to put your heart at ease.

You may want a friend.

But given that choice,

how many of us would want a kind,
sympathetic friend over Dr. Robeson?

He saved Erica's life,

and if, God forbid, you
need it, he will save yours.

He just won't know how
to talk to you after he does.

Excuse me, Erica.

You're with the defense. I'm
not supposed to talk to you.

Well, the jury's deliberating.
It's out of our hands now.

This thing with Atticus isn't.

- Was there really a software glitch?
- I believe there was.

And if you wanna go after
'em, I'll help you prove it.

Excuse me.

I'm really sorry
for what happened,

and I know it's not my
place or any consolation...

but I was adopted.

Not a day goes by that I don't thank
my parents for giving me a home.

There are a lot of
ways to make a family.

BAILIFF: All rise.

Ladies and gentlemen of the
jury, have you reached a verdict?

We have.

We the jury find the
defendant, Terrence Robeson...

not liable.

JUDGE: Ladies and gentlemen,
the court thanks you for your service.

Court is adjourned.

[BANGS GAVEL]

- Well done, Liberty.
- Oh, Dr. Bull, thank you.

[GREEK MUSIC PLAYS]

Thank you.

So, what he said on
the stand, I never knew.

Well, he wanted to tell you.

The god is human after all.

Love him or hate him,

he has confidence enough
to follow his own compass,

and he doesn't let
himself get pushed around.

Neither do you.

Thanks.

You know, I realized the
reasons that he and I didn't work

are the reasons
that you and I do.

I can spend my days
with a brilliant, difficult man.

I just can't date him.

[CHUCKLES]

- Well, you're better off.
- So are you, Dr. Bull.

To platonic love.