The Good Doctor plot hole: Why weren’t Melendez’s family called to say goodbye?

The Good Doctor: Claire tells Neil that she ‘loves him’
The Good Doctor season three ended with the death of Dr Neil Melendez (played by Nicholas Gonzalez) in a heartbreaking twist. However, some viewers have been upset after his family was not able to say goodbye to him in his final episode.

Why weren’t Melendez’s family called to say goodbye in The Good Doctor?

The finale of The Good Doctor featured a brutal twist for the beloved character of Melendez.
Following a dramatic earthquake, a lot of the doctors were placed in serious danger.

But of all the staff, it was Melendez who suffered the most after rubble fell on him.

This quickly escalated into septic shock and viewers watched as his health dwindled in the finale.
By the end of the episode, it was heavily implied he had died after he said some emotional goodbyes to Dr Claire Browne (Antonia Thomas) and Dr Audrey Lim (Christina Chang).

However, some viewers have wondered why his family was not brought in for his death.

Posting on Reddit Fitztragedy asked: “We don’t know much about Melendez but he has talked about his parents a few times in the series.

“We saw his sister once when he went to visit her at her group home.

“Isn’t it weird that none of them were called to say goodbye? Not even on the phone?”
Viewers will remember how not much is known about his family in the series.

However, he did visit his sister Gabby Melendez (Brenda Isabel Santiago) who has Down’s Syndrome in a care home.

She was introduced during the season two episode Tough Titmouse where it was implied her parents do not visit her.

Another fan named JustAnotherTutor added: “Didn’t their parents basically ditch her in the care home? This makes things 10 times sadder.”