Blowups

Blowups
Season 3
Episode 10
Addison's mother comes to visit.
Episode Information
Airdate	December 3, 2009
Written by	Sonay Washington
Directed by	Mark Tinker
Episode Guide
Previous	The Parent Trap
Next	Another Second Chance

Blowups is the tenth episode and mid-season finale of the third season and the 41st overall episode of Private Practice.

Short Summary

A terrible explosion at Dell's house lands Betsey and Heather in the hospital, and everyone is pushed to the limit trying to save their lives. Tensions rise even higher between Addison and The Captain when her mother, Bizzy, shows up and a shocking family secret is revealed.

Full Summary

Episode in detail.

Cast

• Addison Montgomery
• Pete Wilder
• Naomi Bennett
• Cooper Freedman
• Charlotte King
• Dell Parker
• Sam Bennett
• Violet Turner
• Sheldon Wallace
• Bizzy Montgomery
• Heather Parker
• Susan Grant
• The Captain Montgomery
• Betsey Parker
• Joe Hoffman
• Nurse
• Dr. Simcox
• Paramedic #1

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Main Cast

• Kate Walsh as Dr. Addison Montgomery
• Tim Daly as Dr. Pete Wilder
• Audra McDonald as Dr. Naomi Bennett
• Paul Adelstein as Dr. Cooper Freedman
• KaDee Strickland as Dr. Charlotte King
• Chris Lowell as Dell Parker
• Taye Diggs as Dr. Sam Bennett
• Amy Brenneman as Dr. Violet Turner

Also Starring

• Brian Benben as Dr. Sheldon Wallace

Guest Stars

• JoBeth Williams as Bizzy Montgomery
• Agnes Bruckner as Heather Parker
• Ann Cusack as Susan Grant
• Stephen Collins as The Captain

Co-Starring

• Hailey Sole as Betsey Parker
• Bruce Katzman as Dr. Joe Hoffman
• Grace Matias as Nurse
• Lon Gowan as Dr. Simcox
• Jeff Skier as Paramedic #1

Medical Notes

Heather Parker

• Diagnosis:
  • Severe burns
  • Inhalation injury
  • High potassium

• Doctors:
  • Pete Wilder (critical care medicine)
  • Joe Hoffman
  • Dr. Simcox

• Treatment:
  • Lactated ringers
  • ECMO
  • Morphine
  • Burn treatment

Heather, 24, was cooking meth on the stovetop at her house when it exploded, injuring herself and Betsey. She was severely burned over 60% of her body. They stabilized her, but she was given a 30% chance of survival. They started treating the burns, but Heather crashed. They got her back, but at that point, her death was inevitable. They gave her morphine and Pete sat with her as she died.

Betsey Parker

• Diagnosis:
  • Brain contusion
  • Carbon monoxide poisoning

• Doctors:
  • Cooper Freedman (pediatrician)

• Treatment:
  • Intubation

Betsey, 7, was injured when the house exploded. She had a brain contusion and carbon monoxide poisoning. She was intubated until she woke up and started to fight the intubation. Cooper examined her and said she showed no on-going effects of the explosion.

Higgins Parents

• Diagnosis:
  • Pregnancy

• Doctors/Medical Personnel:
  • Dell Parker (student midwife)

• Treatment:
  • Delivery

Dell said he was supposed to deliver the Higgins baby. Naomi covered it for him, sending the on-call doctor.

Addison Forbes Montgomery

• Diagnosis:

• Doctors:
  • Sheldon Wallace (psychiatrist)

• Treatment:
  • Talk therapy

Addison spoke to Sheldon about The Captain, Bizzy, and Susan, trying to work out her feelings.

Music

Song	Performer	Scene
"Marie Floating Over the Backyard"	Eels	Addison is stunned in the elevator. Dell leaves for work and promises to tuck Betsey in when he gets home. As he gets in his car, their home explodes.
"Marie Floating Over the Backyard"	Eels	Addison lies down in bed. Back to Addison in the elevator. Sheldon notices she's not wearing heels. She's puzzled on a crossword clue. When he notices she's struggling, he rides up the rest of the way with her. She sees Bizzy and Sheldon invites Addison to his office.
"Cataracts"	Andrew Bird	The Captain gives Addison the answer to her crossword clue. Cooper tells Charlotte he's tired of talking and starts kissing her. Sam asks Addison what's wrong. She doesn't say anything, but starts to kiss him. He stops her. She tells him she's sorry.
"The Sound Asleep"	Sometymes Why	Pete pretends to be Dell and sits with Heather as she apologizes. He tells her he forgives her. He tells her he'll tell Betsey she's sorry. Pete tells Heather Betsey will be okay and holds her hand while she dies. Dell comes in and sees that Heather is dead.
"Hold Onto Hope Love"	Amy Stroup	Sam tells Addison he's going to the hospital and she gets up to go with him. The doctors express their condolences to Dell as he prepares to go tell Betsey. Addison advises Dell to tell Betsey the truth, even though it's horrible. Dell tells Betsey and holds her while she cries. Charlotte says she lied and she's sorry and she'll keep saying that until he forgives her. He tells her Heather's dead. Addison goes to the airport to see her parents off. Addison tells Bizzy she'll take care of calling Wilson for her.

"Marie Floating Over The Backyard" - Eels

"Cataracts" - Andrew Bird

"The Sound Asleep" - Sometymes Why

"Hold Onto Hope Love" - Amy Stroup

Notes and Trivia

• This episode scored 9.21 million viewers.
• This episode was the second part of a two-hour Private Practice event along with The Parent Trap.

Gallery

Episode Stills

See Also

A complete overview of this episode's crew can be found here.

Private Practice Season 3
#01	"A Death in the Family"	#09	"The Parent Trap"	#17	"Triangles"
#02	"The Way We Were"	#10	"Blowups"	#18	"Pulling the Plug"
#03	"Right Here, Right Now"	#11	"Another Second Chance"	#19	"Eyes Wide Open"
#04	"Pushing the Limits"	#12	"Best Laid Plans"	#20	"Second Choices"
#05	"Strange Bedfellows"	#13	"Shotgun"	#21	"War"
#06	"Slip Slidin' Away"	#14	"Love Bites"	#22	"In the Name of Love"
#07	"The Hard Part"	#15	"'Til Death Do Us Part"	#23	"The End of a Beautiful Friendship"
#08	"Sins of the Father"	#16	"Fear of Flying"
<< Season 2			Season 4 >>