Chicago Med Season 2 Episode 14 Review: Cold Front
Elizabeth Harlow
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Things started off so well on Chicago Med Season 2 Episode 14.
Well, for the audience anyway. A massive pileup and a shortage of both personnel and supplies sucked for the residents of #OneChicago. Unfortunately for everyone, things went downhill from there.
Don't get me wrong, there was a lot to love about "Cold Front." Getting the docs out into the city and working on scene was excellent. The cases were connected and strong. But then the entire ED team seemed to suffer from collective stupidity.
Excuse me while I vent; I'll get to raving about everything that was great in just a minute.
In a blizzard situation, with a mass casualty event, I'm pretty sure you don't have to be Smarter Than A Fifth Grader to immediately start setting up a blood drive. I mean, these people all have had medical training, right?
The delay in organizing donors made the resolution of Choi's donation all too obvious and trite, the worst kind of deus ex machina ending. And don't get me started on the clumsy attempt to romanticize Nat's organizing ability.
The idea of her more concerned about Will than that kid makes me want to gag.
Especially after his "emotional" comment. I know he apologized, but that is the kind of whiny MRA, misogynistic, gaslighting total bullsh*t that made me want to punch him in the face all through Chicago Med Season 1.
Will: Hey, I'm sorry for calling you "emotional" earlier.
Nat: You know, you spend a lot of time apologizing to me.
Will: Well, there are very few people I care more about.
I mean, I guess he's growing, but either somebody needs to call him on his ish or Goodwin needs to make him sit through the sexual harassment and diversity HR training modules until it really sinks in and he learns to think before he opens his mouth.
Of course, the stupidity epidemic wasn't limited to delaying a blood drive. Not only did it take five minutes for Choi to come up the idea to manually ventilate his patient (no thanks to Rhodes), but it never did occur to him (or April) that maybe somebody else could squeeze that ambu bag.
You know, like April, who was standing right there. Or one of the many LPN's, CNA's, or useless, addict resident's milling around. Pretty sure that's a task that even Weller couldn't screw up.
Poor Weller. I mean, he's a monumental screw up and seemingly incompetent, but he's also only been introduced so that he can wash out and Sarah has to make a choice between psych and the ED.
Cause a med student cum resident switching specialties after a year is a storyline that NBC's never done before *cough* Sarah Reese is the new John Carter *cough cough*.
I was glad to be back in the ED. [Ethan looks at her disbelievingly] You can fix people's bodies, but their minds...whoo.
Sarah
The upside of having a former psych resident in the ED is that she could point out that making a patient choose which dependent to treat is ethically sketchy and psychologically harmful.
Collective stupidity struck again with that little development. I could see Latham making that decision, but nobody else had Asperger's to blame, so what's their excuse?
Dr. Rhodes, one can lack empathy but still feel compassion.
Latham
Which neatly brings me back to raving about the awesome things about this episode -- and season. As I've said before, the only problem with this arc is that it's impossible that Latham wouldn't have been diagnosed before now.
But everything else is beautiful. The writer's are giving Ato Essandoh beautiful words to work with, and he is bringing this character to life in the most sensitive way. I thought his work on Chicago Med Season 2 Episode 11 was great, but he may have surpassed that.
In Graveyard Shift, he was able to show audiences the internal struggle and devastation his character faced, but this showed us the strengths of the condition, which are often overlooked. His remark to Connor about empathy was at once vulnerable, revealing his inner self, and gently remonstrative, forcing Rhodes and us to reassess our preconceptions.
I also cannot stress enough how awesome it was to have the docs on the accident site. Because I'm a medical show junkie, I also cover Code Black for TV Fanatic, and there's been quite a lot of discussion about often that show chooses to leave the ER behind for over the top on scene rescues.
I won't go into details, but suffice it to say, they sent Rob Lowe onto a Russian submarine to save Putin's nephew.
So obviously, this concept can be overdone. But Med is part of a franchise, and the city itself is a huge character on the other shows in the #OneChicago family. That needs to be integrated more with this branch of the family.
Snowstorms and traffic accidents are so Chicago (way more than that marathon) but there's a thousand more great ideas out there to use. Just please, no more bears unless they play sports.
Daniel: Mr. Kellogg. I am so grateful that you're still alive. And that I get to treat you.
Kellogg: I just want my meds!
Daniel: Yeah. It doesn't really work that way.
Next up is a massive #OneChicago event to launch Chicago Justice. Honestly, this looks like it could be the best crossover yet. I usually complain because the "crossover" only amounts to ten minutes or less of shared screen time. Not so for this two night showing.
The case is a Dick Wolf special; "ripped from the headlines," it's a dramatization of the Oakland Warehouse Fire. It'll obviously start off with Firehouse 51 responding to the call, and then the Intelligence Unit will be building a case for the Justice squad as the ED team treats a well loved victim.
Make sure you're prepared with plenty of hankies and snacks on March 1st and 2nd.
[after a patient fakes his death to expedite being seen]
Daniel: Off the cuff, among other things, I'd say you're probably a malignant narcissist with overt sadistic impulses.
Kellogg: You've got no right to talk to me --
Daniel: Shut your mouth!
I honestly think that Cold Front (despite many detailed frustrations) is worth a second look, so don't forget that you can watch Chicago Med online. While you're at it, you might want to watch Chicago Fire online and watch Chicago PD online, especially if you're not a habitual viewer.
It's going to be helpful to have background information on all the team members -- if nothing else, read reviews and round tables. The Chicago Justice back door pilot was aired as Chicago PD Season 3 Episode 21 "Justice," so that's the one you absolutely must check out above all others.
Let us know what you thought about "Cold Front" in our comments section! We love hearing your thought and predictions, so don't be shy!
Elizabeth Harlow was a staff writer for TV Fanatic. She left the organization in October 2018.
