Emily Owens, M.D. Review: Changes in Attitude

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Oh, Emily Owens. You're so delightfully awkward. Just like the rest of us. Even those of us who think we're not awkward at all.

Tonight's episode of Emily Owens, M.D., "Emily and...the Outbreak," was the best yet. While Emily may not always hit her stride, or her pinecones, the show is starting to do just that.

Emily Visits High School

I both like and dislike that not much time seems to be progressing between episodes of EO. On the one hand, timelines make some story elements seem implausible. On the other, better hand, timelines like this one make for incredibly tight narratives.

Because of this tight timeline, EO's third installment - which had Emily choosing how she'll deal with her new arrangement with Will - worked cohesively with the previous two episodes. Since they're just going to be friends and she still has feelings for him, Emily decides a change in her perspective is necessary in order to cope.

First of all, When Harry Met Sally proved that men and women cannot be friends. Watching Will and Emily try is a sad, awkward, funny mix. Her decision to pick Will apart to uncover his flaws was nothing short of a humorous failure. She manufactured insensitivity and immaturity to make him seem less than perfect, trying to convince herself that he's the wrong guy for her.

And of course he's the wrong guy for her, mostly because he rejected her, a fact she faces when she sees him consoling Cassandra after Cassandra's surgical choke.

I like that tonight's episode saw both of Emily's potential love interest - Will and Micah - paying attention to other women. I also like that she's still clueless to Micah as a potential love interest. That aspect of this "triangle" makes this feel more natural and less forced upon us.

We also saw more of Emily being, well, Emily.

First, her incredible bedside manner with the gymnast made me maybe more emotional than a cheesy drama should. And then I could feel her nerves as she approached the topic of sex with the high school girls. But, in typical Emily fashion, she pulled herself together telling them to respect and protect themselves, all while dodging purposefully uncomfortable questions.

One of the things that I love about this character is that in clutch moments she gets it together, perhaps proving that maybe people do change after high school. I can't help but like her.

Other things that are worth noting from this episode:

I'm not sure what I'm supposed to think about Micah and Emily. It seemed like things were pretty firmly pointing toward him being attracted to Emily in record time, so I can't decide if his date tonight is a red herring or if the writers are trying to pull back from that just a bit because of how quickly it progressed. Don't get me wrong, I like this idea that he'll date other people while she pines for Will and then they'll eventually find their way to one another better than what we were getting. I just wish that it didn't feel quite so bait-and-switch-y.

Cassandra, even though she choked in surgery and was positively rude when Emily tried to cover for her, still needs to go. Nothing she does really engenders any sympathy in me and actually has the opposite effect of making me dislike her more. Her sole purpose for existence at this point is as Emily's rival and as a love interest for Will and that could easily be achieved with one of the other females in the hospital. I'm still not digging the character.

Tyra was less annoying tonight. She became a doctor seemingly to please her father, but she knows that when her father finds out she's a lesbian, he'll be displeased. She's got personal conflict that's more relateable than Cassandra's bitchiness. I don't like that Tyra is a token character, but I do like her when she's less of an overly-caffeinated gossip girl. Between Tyra and Cassandra, Tyra can stay. She's at least kind to her patients.

We're three episodes in to Emily Owens, M.D. What do you think so far? What did you think of "Emily...and the Outbreak"? Let's talk in the comments! And be sure to check our our Emily Owens, M.D. quotes page!

Emily and...the Outbreak Review

Editor Rating: 4.0 / 5.0
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User Rating:

Rating: 4.4 / 5.0 (75 Votes)

Miranda Wicker was a Staff Writer for TV Fanatic. She retired in 2017. Follow her on Twitter.

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Emily Owens, M.D. Season 1 Episode 3 Quotes

[to Emily] I was up all night suturing oranges practicing for my gallbladder. Were you up all night practicing on your banana?

Cassandra

Cassandra: I hear the first intern to cut is the one to look up to around here.
Emily: If you can deal with the fact that you played dirty...
Cassandra: I certainly can.