Nurse Jackie recap Season 7, Episode 5 — it’s all about Coop (tissue please)

Nurse Jackie recap Season 7, Episode 5 “Coop Out” (original airdate May 10, 2015) As the title implies, this episode sees Dr. Fitch “Coop” Cooper (Peter Facinelli) making his final rounds and a pretty heartfelt goodbye (yep, I almost cried), but before we go there, here’s the rundown on the episode.

It’s all about Jackie (Edie Falco) and Eddie (Paul Schulze) – and they got that thing everybody wants. Jackie thinks it’s the suitcase of drugs that Eddie is towing in his pharma-bag, Eddie thinks it’s a special kind of love. He’d do anything for her, and he kisses her goodbye, tells her to keep her head low as she heads into All Saints and he starts his new job.

Yeah, that’s not going to happen because the next time we see Jackie she’s leading the basement meeting on the future of All Saints. “We have to mobilize. We have to let the community know, this is their hospital too,” Jackie champions, to a room full of her colleagues. “It we want to stop these guys, we have to get in their way.”

Thor (Stephen Wallem) and Zoey (Merritt Wever) happily cheer her on, as they appreciate the power when she takes full charge. Akalitus observes from the back. Jackie schedules their next meeting for tomorrow.

Coop is in high spirits despite Thor questioning him on why he’s so happy. Heck, he’s gone through the miscarriage, the break up, he’s moving to a new city, getting a new job — always nice to have a friend remind you of all those things. “You can’t stop the waves Thor, but you can learn to surf them. This is me hanging 10,” Coop enthuses. “I’ve got a self-help book that’s helping me.”

Akalitus introduces the entire team to Coop’s replacement — Dr. Bernie Prince (Tony Shalhoub), a well needed intellect with energy and an eccentric style. His first action in the ER involves winding up his arm and chest punching a cardiac patient — “I always wanted to try that.” It looked impressive, but the guy died and he fucked up his shoulder in the wind up.

Dr. Prince stops Jackie in the hall later and asks if she can pop his shoulder back into position. She tells him she’s not allowed to — you know — touch any of the patients. But he’s a doctor, he reminds, so she agrees. “You are good,” he says.

“Yeah, for a janitor,” Jackie shrugs.

But her janitor role is actually working out as she eavesdrops her way into a board meeting on the luxury condos. Akalitus is in attendance.

“Jesus Christ shoot me now,” Akalitus says, responding to the developers comment about having a team available to deal with the public pressures on keeping the hospital open. She spots Jackie and tells her she shouldn’t be there.

Coop makes his final rounds at All Saints. Carrie and Zoey can’t believe how happy he is to leave. “I’m wicked excited,” Coop enthuses, throwing up a hang loose gesture. Gawd, I’m going to miss that dork.

While mopping, Jackie is approached by one of the Norwegian developers who gushes about admiring the nursing profession. He knows she’s Jackie Peyton and about her pending nursing suspension, and he also knows she’s the one rallying her colleagues to step up to try and save All Saints. He makes her a proposition in that if he ceases interfering on the project, he’ll see to it that her nursing license gets reinstated. Jackie seems pleased that she has an option, but she doesn’t have long to digest the thought when Zoey approaches telling Jackie that she might need more chairs for the meeting.

Carrie’s (Betty Gilpin) got a surprise for Coop. It’s tickets to the New York Philharmonic’s movie night — all his favorites like Jaws and Indiana Jones. “I think this might be the most thoughtful thing I’ve ever done,” Carrie tells Coop.

Coop’s confused. “Carrie I’m going to be in Boston,”

She knows but she also thought he’d still make trips back. Now it’s Coop’s turn to call it quits, and suggests it might be easier for both of them if they don’t see each other.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t ready,” Carrie says.

“I know, me too,” Coop says.

A car accident brings three severely wounded into All Saints. As a nurse struggles to get vitals going, Dr. Prince takes charge ordering Jackie to assist. The whole diversion flag is raised, but he dismisses the issue.

“I don’t give a shit about diversion and I don’t think this lady does either,” Prince says, about the patient about to die. Jackie is ecstatic and jumps in for the assist. After finishing she tells Zoey, “That was really fun.”

After her diversion peer group meeting, she runs into Dr. Prince in the basement who is taking a drag on a banana-flavored electric cigarette. Prince explains why he’s hiding in the basement smoking, as it’s his first day and “let’s be honest, these are a little douchey.” Prince mentions that there was some activist nurse trying to keep the hospital open. Jackie said she wouldn’t bet on it. Prince says he’d totally bet on it and tells her to keep the faith.

“If this place is closing in a few months, let’s make it a fucking great few months,” Dr. Prince suggests, and just like that their friendship begins.

Once back on the ER floor, Akalitus is all over Jackie warning that she better had not been administering care to a patient. As the newbie Dr. Prince takes the blame — he doesn’t know all the rules yet, you know?

As Coop rambles on about his departure and wondering if he is going to have new people that annoy him, Thor reminds him of the transverse, as it will be they who are left wondering who next will annoy them. Dr. Prince insists a party be held in Coop’s honor, despite Coop not wanting one.

The staff meeting is packed. But this time Jackie takes the floor and tells her colleagues that they are wasting their time and the reality is not good, as the developer is way further along than we thought. Big sigh, Jackie’s back to her selfish ways.

Thor and Zoey look like they just learned there was no Santa. “I thought you were going to save this place, what happened?” Zoey asks Jackie.

“Zoey, I am shoveling shit,” Jackie states. “After 23 years of working my ass off in this place, why the fuck would I want to save it?”

As Akalitus goes over the exit papers with Coop, he turns in an item he borrowed four years ago – it’s an odoscope. “They are great for reading the back of the TV,” Coop admits. Once everything is final, he asks: “Should we hug?

“You really need to ask,” Akalitus responds. Coop assumes it’s a no go, but Akalitus is up for it.

Coop stops Jackie before she leaves to see if she’s coming to his party. She’s not, confessing that things have gotten too weird for her. Coop got her a gift. “Sometimes I do nice things for people who are mean to me,” he tells. It’s a charm of St. Agatha, apparently the patron saint of nursing.

Then it’s on to Coop’s going away party, planned by Dr. Prince (who knew him for like one day). The party is like an adult bar mitzvah (assesses Eddie, yes — the fired Eddie does show up). In between the shots and dancing, Coop’s in the cook’s closet literally banging Carrie. When it comes time for a toast, Coop takes the stage and gets serious on us. “It’s really hard saying goodbye,” he starts, and then turns to the table of his colleagues. “You guys are my people. Gloria – you’ve been like a mother to me, not that I don’t have enough of them already. Zoey – I think you might be the nicest person in the world and a damn fine nurse, too (OK, am I really going to cry in Nurse Jackie?). THOR – my Viking dude, thanks for always having my back. Carrie – what can I say? You changed my life. Thank you beautiful.”

His peeps shower him with applause. But he stops to say one more thing.

“This might make certain people here a little uncomfortable, but there’s one more person I would like to thank and in a lot of ways, she’s probably the most important one. She made my life a living hell, most of the time, but the truth is she made me a better doctor. So I just want to say thank you Jackie, wherever you are.”

Flash to the New York City streets where we see Jackie outside putting a thumb drive into an envelope and heading into The New York Times.