im like if a man and a woman had a child

it's to show dennis looks up to robby. and that's what gets robby. because dennis is a person who saw him curled up on the floor like a baby, crying and whimpering, completely breaking, and stayed through it. saw all of it. and still, still respects him, trusts him, likes him, looks up to him afterwards.

he saw robby at an extremely vulnerable moment and did not "abandon" him. thaaat is the root of the attachment. that is why robby is so careful to keep dennis from seeing the uglier parts of him. he is desperate to have at least one person who still thinks he's good. who still looks up to him as the "captain" of the ED.

They exchange meaningful glances when she misses a point

They agree that she is not bright as they are, cannot reason as they do

This collusion does not save the daughter from the mother’s fate

And it is both very telling and very interesting that his final straw is Langdon openly mocking his masculinity, the back-handed compliment of stating Whitaker doesn't seem like a gym guy, starting to make what was obviously going to be a crude and inappropriately derisive joke about his sex life. And I don't think Langdon is intending to be as mean spirited or triggering as Whitaker is perceiving it--he has had moments of trying to be a genuinely good teacher to him, being helpful and kind. But still, he has been condescending and patronizing all day, forcing a familiarity and power dynamic to their non-existent relationship that Whitaker is very clearly not okay or comfortable with at all. And exhausted from this shift, stressed about his badge and the shitty old lady and Amy and money, Whitaker has completely lost his ability to swallow it all down. And so for the first time that day, maybe ever, he asserts a firm boundary and stands up for himself.

Sassy Whitaker: