S01.E06: Bound

[WendyCR72]

There's another week off 'til this airs, folks!

 

Two airplane stowaways are brought into the hospital after suffering major injuries from the travel, prompting Sharon Goodwin to receive a visit from the Department of Homeland Security regarding the undocumented immigrants. Cornelius Rhodes, the wealthy father of Dr. Connor Rhodes, is honored after making a big donation to the hospital for a new psych ward, forcing dark family secrets to the surface. Dr. Natalie Manning's big day arrives and Dr. Will Halstead's good intentions to help are misconstrued by her mother-in-law, Helen. Meanwhile, Dr. Sarah Reese asks Dr. Charles for advice on how to deliver heartbreaking news to a young boy while also warning his family about the possibility that their other son may also have the same life-threatening disease.

[LittleIggy]

The part about that little boy was so poignant. I can't even imagine having to tell a child that he had a disease like that (I looked up Krabbe disease and it is awful). I love Oliver Platt!

[betsyboo]

Hey - Annie Potts. Despite your AGELESS countenance (is she sharing moisturizer with Rob Lowe??), back off. Look, I don't want Dr. McDouche with Nanny Carrie any more than you do. And I'm terribly sorry your son was killed. But let's trust Nanny Carrie is smart enough to fend off his advances (should he be dumb enough to move beyond pining) and let the girl have her friends around her at this very emotional time. I mean, she ASKED for him, and Annie Potts didn't even look guilty. You don't get to step in and send him away. Now Maggie - if she wants to talk to Dr. McLovelorn about his borderline-inappropriate behavior, fine. Harrumph.

 

Also, color me surprised that common TV trope didn't have her name the baby after her dead husband.

 

If I was the OB, I would have slapped Maggie in the face. --- Not to say I don't like her, but - I think the OB outranks you, even if you are a certified midwife. (Please note I am not trying to start a war about who is better - OB or midwife. In the end, it was Natalie's decision to let Maggie try to turn the baby. But IMO, Maggie should have never argued with the OB to begin with.)

 

This was the first ep I cared about the intern. What a brutal day for her. I thought she did remarkably well. Also, I heart Oliver Platt. 

 

I'm glad Connor told Dr. McLoveDouche to back off in the trauma room. Don't question him in front of everyone. Also, Connor, come here. I will soothe your furrowed brow after dealing with your meanie father. Yes, come here. Right here. Lay your head on my shoulder. That's it.  Shhhhh.....

 

No med student brother. Yay! No Splendorkable. Boo!

 

ETA to ask: What was the point of the boy who fell off the bike to later be killed in a driveby? Just general Chicago horrific-ness? That a doctor may end up treating the same patient more than once in the same day? That the boy was secretly a drug dealer? That Dr. Choi FEELS all the FEELS? I didn't get it. Maybe there was no actual takeaway other than sometimes innocent people die in drivebys.

Edited January 20, 2016 by betsyboo

[rollerblade]

The part about that little boy was so poignant. I can't even imagine having to tell a child that he had a disease like that (I looked up Krabbe disease and it is awful). I love Oliver Platt!

 

Kids tend to handle deaths (of their own) fairly well. Maybe they are just too young to comprehend. And 5 years would seem like "a long time" to  7 year old.

 

 

ETA to ask: What was the point of the boy who fell off the bike to later be killed in a driveby?

 

For drama.

Or to balance out the happy endings with sad endings.

Or it may be relevant callback to a future plot.

[MakeMeLaugh]

I bet bike boy killed in a driveby will feature in a Chicago PD. So many shootings like that in Chicago, so so sad (I live outside Chicago).

I wish just once a main character on ANY show would just have the frigging baby, without complications or a big crisis that ALWAYS turns out okay.

I was thinking intern's superfast diagnosis on her iPad of the little boy's terminal illness followed up by its verification in two sentences with Dr Natalie was going to involve either a mistake or at least a second opinion.

Halsted's brother's wig should get its own lines. And Canaryville is a neighborhood right smack in in Chicago, not outside it.

So the hospital deported the patient who was undocumented and had no insurance--oh, wait, that's probably a pretty good percentage of its patients. That was a deadend storyline, and a terrible way to not stand up for your staff and patients, S'epatha.

[Noirprncess]

Sadly, getting patients to a point of sending them to another facility has been an issue for a while. Lots of articles about how hospitals use this as a way to discharge uninsured patients, not surprised that the show made it a "hospital board" derision vs an local director's decision.

Kept falling asleep during the episode. Just wasn't holding my attention.

[Texasmom1970]

If I was the OB, I would have slapped Maggie in the face. --- Not to say I don't like her, but - I think the OB outranks you, even if you are a certified midwife. (Please note I am not trying to start a war about who is better - OB or midwife. In the end, it was Natalie's decision to let Maggie try to turn the baby.

I agree with you,? If I was the OB I would have told her to get her ass out so I can safely deliver this baby. I know the patient is a doctor, and the other is a mid-wife but that does not mean they know it all. They are walking a thin line with Maggie. Sometimes I like her and times like during the delivery and the other episode where they got mouthy when on the maternity tour I want to back hand her, not just her both of them.

Halstead continues to be a douche, no surprise. Saving grace of this episode for me was Oliver Platt and the intern. Very sad storyline had me all verklempt.

[Bobcatkitten]

I kept feeling like the administrator was told something else about the stowaway and wasn't allowed to say. It just didn't make any sense.

 

Also, I love Dr. Rhodes, but he believed that stowaway's story hook, line and sinker. I mean did it every occur to him she could be lying? 

Edited January 21, 2016 by scribe95

[Lady Calypso]

Man, Dr. McDouche really sucks. He's only tolerable when he has that stupid, silly grin about Manning. That's why Connor and Maggie both telling his smug face off in less than a minute was absolutely satisfying. I was also fine, for the most part, with Annie Potts telling him off. She was certainly out of line, but it wasn't like she was incredibly rude about it. I had more problems with Maggie acting all high and mighty, yet again. You see, I like her in some instances and not in others. Maggie, you're a midwife. The other doctor is an OB. Maggie may have experience in this, but I do think OBs have more knowledge and more experience in what to do when complications arise. I don't know much about midwives themselves, so I could be wrong. Also, Maggie, you're very biased with your friend. Go away. I hate that she 'won' against the OB. 

 

Man, the only characters I consistently like are Dr. Charles, Dr. Rhodes, Reese and Goodwin. Reese did remarkably well with the parents of the dying child. That has to be tough on an intern who has never done that before. Her relationship with Charles is so well done and so sweet. 

 

Rhodes also was having a bad day. I did feel bad for him as well, and he may have not handled the situation perfectly, but that's why I like him a lot. Also...of course there's a twist to his mother's suicide. Of course it has something to do with Evil Daddy. 

[MizArk]

I see everyone here is calling Girl Whose Name I Can't Remember an intern. I was under the impression she's a 4th year med student, not an intern, which was taking me out of the story so hard I could hardly focus on the plot. No way in hell a student would order MRIs or give news like that to a patient's family -- at least not at the med school my two MD kids attended! I've had other issues with her during the series so far, but this was the worst -- which makes me hope I misunderstood and she really is an intern? Other than that -- sad episode. If that baby had died, I'd have been out for good!

[Neurochick]

Ugh, mother in law needs to STFU. And mind her damn business, she's not her mother, and even if she was STFU.

Why did Dr Rhodes mom kill herself? Or did dad give her a shove?

Edited January 21, 2016 by Neurochick

[twoods]

I see everyone here is calling Girl Whose Name I Can't Remember an intern. I was under the impression she's a 4th year med student, not an intern, which was taking me out of the story so hard I could hardly focus on the plot. No way in hell a student would order MRIs or give news like that to a patient's family -- at least not at the med school my two MD kids attended! I've had other issues with her during the series so far, but this was the worst -- which makes me hope I misunderstood and she really is an intern? Other than that -- sad episode. If that baby had died, I'd have been out for good!

Yep, she's a med student with her short white coat. She doesn't do enough dirty work to classify herself as an intern. Ridiculous she gets to order things. Even more ridiculous is Maggie. I may be done with this show...

[jay741982]

Ugh, mother in law needs to STFU. And mind her damn business, she's not her mother, and even if she was STFU.

Why did Dr Rhodes mom kill herself? Or did dad give her a shove?

I thought either Dad gave her a shove or he abused her mentally maybe physically and was cheating on her

[Lady Calypso]

Why did Dr Rhodes mom kill herself? Or did dad give her a shove?

 

Well, Rhodes made the point in saying that his dad and him both knew the 'real reason she killed herself'. So I assume she did actually kill herself, but Evil Daddy provoked it somehow, by either being abusive, threatening her life, somehow making her feel like she needed to take her own life, or something. He was probably there too when she jumped....and actually, I'm wondering if Connor was there too. If so, that has to be scarring for a ten year old kid, and I can absolutely see why he would hate his dad if he knows the exact context of his mother's death. 

[Sonja]

Look, I don't want Dr. McDouche with Nanny Carrie any more than you do. And I'm terribly sorry your son was killed. But let's trust Nanny Carrie is smart enough to fend off his advances (should he be dumb enough to move beyond pining) and let the girl have her friends around her at this very emotional time. I mean, she ASKED for him, and Annie Potts didn't even look guilty.

 

Also, color me surprised that common TV trope didn't have her name the baby after her dead husband.

 

If I was the OB, I would have slapped Maggie in the face. --- Not to say I don't like her, but - I think the OB outranks you, even if you are a certified midwife.

 

ETA to ask: What was the point of the boy who fell off the bike to later be killed in a driveby?

Helen (?) was way out of line. Natalie is a grown woman; she doesn't betray her dead husband in any way if she chooses to enter a new relationship and it's none of mother-in-law's business. Even if she's apparently gravitating towards a gigantic moron. At least she didn't throw a fit when her grandchild wasn't named after her son.

 

The OB's face when the baby was finally the right way around was brilliant. You could see it wasn't a pissing contest for her, but concern for the child. Nice choice by the actor.

 

The scene with Choi and the kid who fell off the bike was great, but I had an inkling he would be back under different circumstances. Only 6 eps in and the show is already very predictable. Too bad they can't let us have one lighthearted interaction with a patient who actually survives.

 

I kept feeling like the administrator was told something else about the stowaway and wasn't allowed to say. It just didn't make any sense.

 

Also, I love Dr. Rhodes, but he believed that stowaway's story hook, line and sinker. I mean did it every occur to him she could be lying? 

 

I was waiting for her to stop Rhodes from leaving to give some kind of explanation as well. After all, what was that supposedly big meeting before about? Sometimes I wonder about the show's editing.

 

Man, Dr. McDouche really sucks. He's only tolerable when he has that stupid, silly grin about Manning. That's why Connor and Maggie both telling his smug face off in less than a minute was absolutely satisfying.

 

 

Good that Connor told McDouche off - and that he did it outside, not in the room. While I liked Maggie telling him off as well, I thought it was for the wrong reason. It's not about cutting Connor some slack because it's a tough day for him, but about not being an unprofessional, contrarian idiot who would apparently risk a patient's life (and not the first time in the last eps) than do what someone he doesn't like tells him. I'm surprised no one warned him he might get reported if he keeps refusing to act properly in emergency situations.

Also, you can grow up rich and have compassion, but not having money doesn't entitle you to be a judgemental brat.

 

Man, the only characters I consistently like are Dr. Charles, Dr. Rhodes, Reese and Goodwin. Reese did remarkably well with the parents of the dying child. That has to be tough on an intern who has never done that before. Her relationship with Charles is so well done and so sweet.

 

Couldn't agree more about those four. Charles also seems to be the only one actually willing to teach Reese something. When she came up with the child's diagnosis earlier in the ep, Manning rudely interrupted her instead of letting her actually say what she thought was going on with the boy. Let her finish the bloody sentence to see if she's right.

 

Rhodes telling his father he was glad to be back sounded like an 'I'm going to make your life miserable by being here', didn't it? I'm curious how long they let us wait to find out what happened to Mrs. Rhodes and if Claire is going to stick with daddy once it is revealed. BTW, was Russell at the ceremony?

[MakeMeLaugh]

Helen (?) was way out of line. Natalie is a grown woman; she doesn't betray her dead husband in any way if she chooses to enter a new relationship and it's none of mother-in-law's business. Even if she's apparently gravitating towards a gigantic moron. At least she didn't throw a fit when her grandchild wasn't named after her son.

Because of how that subplot ended, with Halsted's brother taking flowers into Natalie and the MIL not being at all upset about it, I was okay with her suggesting to him earlier that Natalie was very vulnerable at that point (pregnancy hormones, adrenaline, whatever) and how short a time it had been since the baby's father died. He probably hadn't considered that he was sort of taking over the father's role as "birth coach" and really Natalie probably has put off grieving while the pregnancy occupied her attention. I really think the show wants to bring in more love interests for him and this is a good way to put his and Natalie's relationship on the back burner in a way that neither of them is the bad guy, just the busybody MIL. I was afraid he might have completely backed off from even being a friend in the classic miscommunication setup, so was glad to see them cozy in the end.

 

 

 

[statsgirl]

I felt very sorry for Annie Potts' character during the birth.  Natalie and the baby are the only connection she has to her dead son and Maggie and Halstead were pushing her aside.  This moment is what she had been waiting for for seven months, since her son died, and these two intruders are taking it away from her. Especially seeing Halstead there, doing what her son would have been doing for Natalie, must have been very hard for her.

 

And then there's Maggie ......  why are they making me dislike her?  Maggie, you're not an OB, you're not even a midwife, you're an ER nurse and the second hand knowledge you got from your mother doesn't entitle you to give orders to the OB.

 

Not to mention, when I had my baby, I was told that it was important for the baby to feel the contractions of a vaginal birth because it helped kickstart breathing but the actual birth was more dangerous for the child than a caesarian section.  So Maggie, insisting on a vaginal birth, put the baby at more risk than the c-section the OB wanted. Oh, look, the cord is around the baby's neck. Will it survive?

 

I wasn't impressed with the level of medicine in this episode, but I did really like Dr. Charles, from commenting that Rhodes Sr. is a narcissist (nailed it, doc), to talking to Reese, to his interactions with the boy.  I had a seminar on how to deal with families earlier that day and Charles followed it really well, except for the part where he told Reese "and we're the ones chosen to tell them".  Let's put aside the God complex, shall we?

 

Along with Charles, I liked Rhodes standing up to his father (I wonder how Rhodes Sr. caused his wife's death) and putting Halstead in his place.

[starri]

I felt very sorry for Annie Potts' character during the birth.  Natalie and the baby are the only connection she has to her dead son and Maggie and Halstead were pushing her aside.  This moment is what she had been waiting for for seven months, since her son died, and these two intruders are taking it away from her. Especially seeing Halstead there, doing what her son would have been doing for Natalie, must have been very hard for her.

I totally get that Helen was desperate to be a part of the birth of the last bit of her son, but that by itself doesn't give her any particular rights in the situation.  Natalie is the one who gets to handle the birth any way she sees fit, and as much as I dislike Halstead, she had no business forcing him away when Natalie wanted him there.  For that matter, doesn't Natalie have family of her own?  I can't imagine her own mother wouldn't have wanted to be by her side.

 

Regarding Maggie, while I realize she was over the line with the OB, the flipping the baby in frank breech into vertex presentation from the outside is something I've only read about, so seeing it, even if it was dramatized, was really cool.  And while I'm not particularly impressed by the way she conducted herself, again, that call was Natalie's to make.  From a dramatic standpoint, I would have found it more interesting if there had been something wrong with the baby after his birth, and there not being any way to determine if Maggie's delaying the delivery would have contributed.  But since we needed the old "birth and death in the same episode," that couldn't happen.

 

I not only really felt for/identified with Reese for the first time, I came damn close to crying when Dr. Charles was so gently explaining things to the boy.

[statsgirl]

 

, I would have found it more interesting if there had been something wrong with the baby after his birth, and there not being any way to determine if Maggie's delaying the delivery would have contributed.

I agree that it would have been more interesting and they could still do it in the next episode but they're not going to because Maggie is a Mary Sue. Even if we see what she does as wrong (snarking at the educator the last episode, giving the OB order), in-show it's always seen as right.

 

I don't think Helen forced Halstead away so much as made him consider what he was doing.

 

While Natalie is in theory in charge of the birth, she's shown a reluctance to take charge of having this baby maybe because she hasn't really come to terms with losing her husband.  She didn't want to have a shower, her friends organized putting together the crib for her and Maggie made her go on the pre-birth tour.   Her passivity makes it easy for someone else to step in and take charge and while I think Maggie will be there for her even after the baby is born and further on, I don't trust that Halstead will after his crush on her has ended.

 

If it was important to Natalie to have Halstead there, she could have asked him to come back after his shift was over.

[starri]

If it was important to Natalie to have Halstead there, she could have asked him to come back after his shift was over.

Except that he had already told her that he'd gotten someone else to cover his shift.  As far as Natalie knew, he'd just disappeared.

[statsgirl]

That's on him then.  He could have told her that he thought the room was getting too crowded so he would wait in the waiting room or some other part of the hospital in case she wanted him, at which point she would have said either "No, please stay" or "Okay".

 

Helen didn't evict him from the room, she suggested he needn't stay and he decided to go. Halstead's a big boy, if he'd really wanted to stay, he could have.

 

I think my bottom line is that Helen shares 1/4 of her chromosomes with that baby while Halstead thinks he likes Natalie but not enough not to take away the tank she's carrying for his patient.  If he really wants to be in the labor room with her,  he should have fought to be there.

Edited January 23, 2016 by statsgirl

[TobinAlbers]

Of course Rhodes was sucked into the girl’s story. Once he heard ‘bad dad’ he was all in. At least he didn’t pull a Doug Ross and deck the authorities when they took her away. My Question: why is Claire (his sister) Connor’s responsibility? Both she and dad have thrown that in his face as if she was his responsibility to support. She’s got a dad. An asshole to be sure but still Connor does have his own life to lead. Hopefully it’s not going to be all about getting back at daddy but the end of the episode seems to lean into Connor going down a self-destructive/sabotaging road to stick it to dad.  In the shallow pool, CD looks good in anything - scrubs, suits, aprons, no clothes.

 

It will be interesting to see where they take Halstead and Natalie as they seem to be the future stable rock couple of Chicago Med while Connor flits about with the hot chicks. They seem right for each other but he's way too ready to step in and she's nowhere near emotionally ready to start a relationship so soon after her husband's death and having her baby. Then again romance novels would have you think in a year she'll be ready to do so. Still these two need to clear a few relationship testing hurdles for me to root for them. Right now it's too easy.

Choi needs more to do than doctoring. Everyone else has got personal storylines, give him one. 

Oliver Platt and S. Epatha Merkerson are doing their thing without even trying. Love them.

Dream Casting: Sam Waterson to guest as Dr. Goodwin’s ex-husband. Or future boyfriend.

[WendyCR72]

Dream Casting: Sam Waterson to guest as Dr. Goodwin’s ex-husband. Or future boyfriend.

 

Alas, Sam Waterston is busy with Grace & Frankie on Netflix. Oddly, he was playing a lawyer there, too!

[SnarkySheep]

 

Helen didn't evict him from the room, she suggested he needn't stay and he decided to go. Halstead's a big boy, if he'd really wanted to stay, he could have.

Geez, poor Will can never catch a break! First everyone calls him out for acting too smug and presumptuous; then when he tries to consider the feelings of others, it's seen as him not standing up for what he wants. What exactly IS the guy supposed to do here?

 

Re: someone commenting upthread about Will's hair - I just watched the ep of Chicago PD where we first meet Will. As he's talking to Jay, it's VERY obvious that the hair he had then is nothing whatsoever like the hair he now has. I wonder why?

 

[wineaux]

If it was important to Natalie to have Halstead there, she could have asked him to come back after his shift was over.

 

No, not really...because the writers didn't write the character interaction like that.

 

Except that he had already told her that he'd gotten someone else to cover his shift.  As far as Natalie knew, he'd just disappeared.

 

 

That's on him then.  He could have told her that he thought the room was getting too crowded so he would wait in the waiting room or some other part of the hospital in case she wanted him, at which point she would have said either "No, please stay" or "Okay".

 

Helen didn't evict him from the room, she suggested he needn't stay and he decided to go.  Halstead's a big boy, if he'd really wanted to stay, he could have.

 

I think my bottom line is that Helen shares 1/4 of her chromosomes with that baby while Halstead thinks he likes Natalie but not enough not to take away the tank she's carrying for his patient.  If he really wants to be in the labor room with her,  he should have fought to be there.

 

Again, nope.  That's not how he was written.  It's so amusing to read in postings how a character could have or couldn't have done or said a certain thing when we are just watching the WRITER'S vision of what they should do and say.  

 

In other news....Maggie is supposed to be the ER Charge Nurse.  I read up a little on what that entails and the duties they may have, and they seem to have a LOT of responsibilities.  Aside from her taking over at the birth (and Natalie wanted her to step in), what else is she doing/not doing that some of you not like about this character?

Edited January 28, 2016 by wineaux

[WendyCR72]

There is no "wrong interpretation" of characters. We all see things differently. So let's live and let live and forge ahead. State what you see and express your opinions, just as others will. Some will agree, some won't.

 

But, again, it all hinges on perception. And no one knows what goes on in the heads of the writers. (If we did, we may be scared!)

 

So carry on with that in mind. Thank you!

[Chas411]

The saving grace about Halstead for me is his friendship/crush on Natalie. I love them together and I appreciate that the angst factor hasn't been cranked up to overkill. It's innocent enough. I get where her mother in law is coming from and I think Halstead made the right call in backing off. Where's Natalie's family though? It's weird that they're never mentioned. With everything she has going on you'd think that they'd be more involved.

 

Rhodes overreaction to everything in the episode was annoying. His lecturing of Goodwin bugged me too. It was out of her control.

 

Is the running theme in this show that every episode one of the doctors tries to resuscitate someone to no avail while another doctor looks on and then says "he/she's gone". It's happened every episode now.

 

Poor Dr. Reese that was a horrible situation. The actress is so pretty.

 

Maggie has annoyed me both this epsiode and the last by being so dismissive towards other doctors. Also is she a midwife? I thought her mother was.

Edited January 28, 2016 by Chas411

[statsgirl]

That is what Maggie said, that her mother was a midwife.  She's an ER nurse herself.

 

In other news....Maggie is supposed to be the ER Charge Nurse.  I read up a little on what that entails and the duties they may have, and they seem to have a LOT of responsibilities.  Aside from her taking over at the birth (and Natalie wanted her to step in), what else is she doing/not doing that some of you not like about this character?

I have an enormous respect for the ER nurses. Along with the OR and ICU nurses, they are like the rock stars of nursing.  But Maggie isn't an OB nurse or a midwife so her ER credentials don't count in the labor room..

[TV Anonymous]

Without discussing characters, these are what I think (not a medical professional myself) wrong with the episode:

 

1. A nurse (or a midwife) getting in a pissing contest with a physician. I am quite speechless watching that scene. A close family member is an ob-gyn and I can not imagine a nurse snapping at him that way.

 

2. A medical student, by definition not yet licensed, doing diagnostics and ordering tests, initially without supervision from licensed physician.

 

3. The hospital repatriating a patient under DHS interest. Should the DHS not clear them first before doing that?

 

4. An ob-gyn treating a newborn. Should they not have neonatal paediatrician for that?

[starri]

2. A medical student, by definition not yet licensed, doing diagnostics and ordering tests, initially without supervision from licensed physician?

Med students can do that, they just have to have their orders cosigned.