Chicago Med Season 1 Episode 2 Review: iNo

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Oh baby!

The doctors face quite the dilemma on Chicago Med Season 1 Episode 2, when a young girl is brought in after giving birth – but without her baby. Everyone has lots of feelings about the case, but they're not all in agreement about what should be done about the girl.

And two doctors are forced to confront their own hubris, but with very different outcomes. What happens when a doctor refuses to recognize that he's not God?

Difficult Decisions - Chicago Med

The main case was compelling and thought provoking, two things good television should always strive for. Still, I ended up feeling ambivalent about it. 

On the surface, I really liked it. A young girl giving birth and (possibly) abandoning her baby is a realistic scenario for a metro ER, and Med focused on the ethical issues and societal causes for the drama. It was a nice way to get out into the world without leaving the hospital.

And Choi's background was fleshed out as he changed his position on Erika, although I would have liked for more of that change to have been externalized. But I got the impression that just isn't Choi. He seems like a deeply thoughtful man, but his emotions are definitely turned inward. 

Dr. Daniel Charles: You were in the, uh, what, the navy, right?
Dr. Ethan Choi: Still am. Naval Reserves.
Dr. Daniel Charles: Doc I did my residency with was on away leave from the Navy. Tough as hell practicing psychiatry with you guys. Couldn't get anybody to open up.
Dr. Ethan Choi: Could be a sign of weakness.

On the other hand, the way the other doctors treated Nat's investment in this case rubbed me the wrong way.

Poor Nat really needs another female doctor to commiserate with. I'm not saying I don't appreciate her friendships with nurses Maggie and April, but the kind of sexist dismissal she encountered demands the consolation and outrage of a peer. 

I doubt the show will address the casual sexism by the male doctors, but her treatment by her fellow docs was pretty unacceptable. Not only were her personal experiences and understandings discounted and dismissed as a symptom of her pregnancy, but Will physically accosted her when he took that tank of nitrous oxide. 

Try thinking like a doctor and not like a pregnant woman.

Dr. Will Halstead

I'd be writing up a report to HR, friend or not. 

Will was too focused on his own ego to even bother apologizing to Nat for his actions or his words. I couldn't tell if he was more upset about the future his patient, Doug, was facing or that he might have missed a potential warning sign.

This case was a little more mundane – as soon as Doug's tests came back negative and Will released him, you knew that he'd be back. The drama came with Will's hubris and the outcome.

Of course, even when confronted with the fact the patient would be facing massive deficits the family wasn't equipped to handle (financially or emotionally), he only questions his mistake in missing something before the MI. He's still impressed with his fancy save with inhaled nitrous oxide and doesn't question if that was really best for the patient.

What's the difference between God and a doctor? God knows he's not a doctor.

Dr. Zurney

Dr. Charles worked with the student Sarah Reeves, who is still struggling on so many levels. She's got no bedside manner, she misses obvious symptoms, and, so far, is kind of boring. Her move with the iPod at the end made her a little more likeable, but she could use a major dose of personality. Stat.

Charles, of course, remains a bright spot in the ED (a terrible name, by the way, I keep thinking of Cialis commercials). I'm sometimes not too sure what he's doing down in emergency instead of attending to his own department, but his wit and sensitivity make me willing to overlook that.

Dr. Daniel Charles: So, it didn't occur to you that she might have dementia? That name didn't mean anything to you, "Connie Francis?"
Sarah Reeves: Should it have?
Dr. Daniel Charles: Oh, I'm so damn old. Just call her contact.

Outside of all the medical cases, there was also a bit of intrigue about Connor's past. Will tried to question him in Chicago Med Season 1 Episode 1, but didn't get very far. Now we've met his father, and I only have more questions. 

Something obviously went down between the two of them, and they both seem to think they're the injured party. Is this a case of everyone or no one is to blame, or just bruised egos? And who is this Claire? Sister, step-mother, stolen girlfriend? There are endless possibilities. 

Mr. Rhodes: When you left this town, Connor, I was deeply hurt. Yeah, you ask Claire. But right now, I'm willing to put all that behind me. For the two of us to start over.
Dr. Connor Rhodes: That's a good pitch, dad. Really. You hit all the right notes. Not buying it.

Luckily, it looks like we won't have to find out the dirty secrets of the Rhodes family. Chicago Med Season 1 Episode 3, "Fallback," will air on the December 1st, and it looks like this will be a main focus. Papa Rhodes even turns up at the hospital to "warn" Sharon about Connor! Is there a term for a helicopter parent who sabotages their kid? That's some serious dysfunction.

Miss "iNO?" You can always catch up and watch Chicago Med online. Let us know what you thought of the second episode in the comments section. Did anybody else catch that Annie Potts is playing Nat's mother-in-law? Who else is looking forward to that story playing out?

iNo Review

Editor Rating: 4.0 / 5.0
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User Rating:

Rating: 4.8 / 5.0 (28 Votes)

Elizabeth Harlow was a staff writer for TV Fanatic. She left the organization in October 2018.

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Chicago Med Season 1 Episode 2 Quotes

Maggie: Napkin diaper nut cups.
Dr. Natalie Manning: What?
Maggie: Napkin diaper nut cups. You fold up the colored napkin, you see, and then you hold it together safety pins, and then you stuff it...

Dr. Daniel Charles: So, it didn't occur to you that she might have dementia? That name didn't mean anything to you, "Connie Francis?"
Sarah Reeves: Should it have?
Dr. Daniel Charles: Oh, I'm so damn old. Just call her contact.