Actually, I'm not too excited about another "battered woman" storyline, particularly so soon after "Oedipus Hex," when the female victim was brutally beaten to death by an ex-lover. Also, I have a very sinking suspicion that this will be less about Stella and more about continuing to set up for Lindsay's storyline -- remember how she acted in "All Acess"? But I hope that's not the case -- I really hope it's a solid, Stella-centric epsiode.
Kudos to Flack for being persistant, and I agree about the tension between Mac and Flack!
Okay, so maybe I missed this earlier in the thread, but Mac's stepson is searching for Claire? So she gave him up to adoption when he was born, or something along those lines? I'm looking forward to this, and perhaps that could lead to some development for Stell, too -- she's an orphan herself.