S01.E16: Hail Mary

[thewhiteowl]

Odell Beckham comes to the ER to convince his high school football coach (Beau Bridges)  to have surgery to remove his large intestine. Meanwhile, Leanne struggles to fit into her new role as ER Director.  On Valentine’s day, Christa is shocked to learn that Neal’s ex Grace is back in town and is staying with him. Christa worries that there’s something left between them, even as she advocates for Grace’s Haitian patient to get the surgery she needs. Mario learns that Heather works for a cryogenics firm in her spare time, while  Angus struggles with his guilt over letting Gordon bleed out.

 

 

[Netfoot]

Ok, so Gina took over from Guthrie.  Then, when Gina got killed Leanne moved in to fill her shoes, and Angus's brother Mike takes over Leanne's job...  so WTF is Guthrie doing, now that he's back?

[CG28]

Ok, so Gina took over from Guthrie.  Then, when Gina got killed Leanne moved in to fill her shoes, and Angus's brother Mike takes over Leanne's job...  so WTF is Guthrie doing, now that he's back?

Gina took over for Dr. Taylor who got suspended for letting a young boy observe center stage. Not sure where Dr.Guthrie has been but I sure am glad he is back.

[sphares]

Gutherie was not the head of the ER he is just an attending like Neal, and I do not no where he has been. The original man who did Leanne's job was name Thompson or something. He was put on leave because of the mishandling of a kid who needed to go to child services.

Gina took over for Dr. Taylor who got suspended for letting a young boy observe center stage. Not sure where Dr.Guthrie has been but I sure am glad he is back.

Taylor that was his name!!!

[CG28]

Okay let me try to get all my shipper feels/frustrations out first. Where were Christa and Neal this episode??? I think I blinked and miss their interaction. No, not really, I saw them but boy in a Grace filled episode I definitely needed more. Not sure whether to be upset they didn't have a Valentine's date or relieved it didn't go badly. Sigh...

Now, +1 for Christa, she remained professional, non meddling and there was no cattiness. I guess that's one good thing. But she isn't dumb, it took her two seconds to figure out there is a past between Neal and Grace. Which brings me to Neal, what is he doing exactly? Has he ever been in a healthy, adult relationship with proper communication? Because it sure doesn't seem like it. Maybe he thought Grace would be there and gone and there would be no need to explain everything, but that doesn't excuse him. Sorry, he really got on my nerves this episode. On the bright side, he did tell Grace there wasn't a them anymore, they wouldn't be picking up where they left off, and that she didn't know him like she seems to think. Another plus is the fact that him and Christa were happy in their first scene and I guess they've been in this relationship for a month now according to the timeline but other than that the episode seemed to be a bit too much of Neal toeing the line of still having feelings for Grace for my sanity.

Other than that, Yay for having Dr. Guthrie back!! Does anyone else think he somehow knows about what Angus did? I mean I get the whole thing was stressful for Angus, and he knows that, but his whole thing about him getting right with God? Seems like he at the very least suspects something.

Angus is seriously struggling and I have a feeling while going to the funeral may help, this isn't over for him. While I love Mike and he is doing a great job at being a mentor, my reservations about him being able to be Angus's boss are only growing. He is not objective when it comes to Angus and its effecting him and Angus both.

Also, glad Neal decided to give surgery a try again, but I am not too sure he is ready for it. Maybe a fellowship is in order first? Or at least assisting first to refresh himself? I just hope if surgery is what he wants to do he doesn't let what happen in the OR with the little girl make him doubt himself. He needs to learn more, yes, but Campbell also needs to be willing to teach him.

Best parts of the episode...Christa's speech to Malaya about her being stronger than she thinks (love their friendship), Leanne changing back into her scrubs, and Mama holding that baby, that was just too cute!

[Happy Harpy]

Can I say I'm glad that the medicine is still first on this show? There were lots of it tonight.

 

Of course, I couldn't agree more about the lack of Neal/Christa. At least they weren't at odds, I guess that's something. I think that Neal is the kind of man who says things once and considers them known and accepted. He told Grace they were over, in no uncertain terms, so I think that things are clear for him and he is in "let's be friends and colleagues" mode. Plus, he told Grace he was with someone else and it means a commitment to Christa (I don't think that anybody knows about him and Christa but Leanne). The problem with Neal is imo that he doesn't see that when things are settled for him, they aren't for everyone.

So for now, I think his last shot was him checking on his patient, allowing the character to get a follow-up of Grace's story since she confided in him, and nothing more.

I think some scenes were cut, once again, because Grace was supposed to live at his place and there was nothing about it. It's better this way considering she still has feelings for him. 

He didn't sound angry or bitter when he rejected Grace, he was calm and resolute. And he was giving "that look" at Christa while he was talking with Grace and rejecting her (yes, I love writing those words. I really, really loved him in that scene and R.Jaffrey's acting was on spot imo). Let's keep things this way, OK?

 

The last scene with Grace and the little girl, I didn't care about at all. Overkill. She was already showed as compassionate and as having a personal link with her patient. If I had been invested, if it had been a regular character like Leanne or Angus or Mario, it might have been a cute payoff scene. But Grace is new, she was in many scenes already so nope. I was rolling my eyes and getting annoyed because I saw the running time and I began to understand that I'd have no Neal/Christa scene.

Maybe I can like Grace if/when she stops being a potential source of trouble for Christa and Neal. The jury is still out. I find it rich that she left, expects Neal to come back, and pretends she knows him better than everyone (I just loved when Neal said "No you don't"). On the other hand, she doesn't rub me the wrong way like Gina did, for example. But the writing had better not prop her and give her too much screentime at the expense of the regular characters or I'll want her gone like yesterday.

 

I'm proud of my girl Christa. She was good with Malaya, she kicked ass, and I liked how the fact that was she a mother was referenced to thoughout the episode. She brought a book to Grace's patient, I guess she knows very well that kids in the hospital need more than just medical care. Also, she felt that something wasn't right and kept on thinking about it, nice reference to the patient she lost but with no pathos. I LOLed when she gave the baby to Jesse, and the baby bottle, too.

 

I love Mike. I love, love, love Mike. Now that Neal has  own his job (hey, they explained why Cole was always the one in the ER) I like that he's the director of the residency program, he's good at it. I also like his rapport with Leanne, there's respect here and he knows how to avoid antagonizing her, which I think is the key when dealing with her.

 

I don't "love" to hate Campbell yet. But somehow, since the writers don't go out of their way to make him sympathetic, I'm still OK with him. I prefer professional foes to romantic rivals, if you see what I mean. It's more interesting to me, storyline-wise. Oh, and I liked that Neal wasn't a egotist and recognized immediately that he needed help during the procedure. Also, that he didn't argue with Campbell and left instead of getting into a sterile argument.

 

They are so setting up Leanne with the HR guy. I am so all for it. I like very much her storyline as the ER director for now. I find her less snippy and brash and it suits her imo. And her scenes with Jesse are always a joy to watch. Loved her with the scrubs.

 

Rollie Guthrie is my bae. I lurve him. He's so good with Angus and I'm so glad that 1) he's baaack 2) he isn't reduced to a Dear Abby role, but is the voice and reason and someone to rely on.

Angus and Malaya were really cute.

 

I can't help, I love Mario. He's done some growing up and against all odds, he's imo the most "stable" of the residents for now. I liked his scene with Heather at the end. I'm changing my mind about the writing for their relationship, it's more realistic than I thought. They rushed in a sexual relationship, it fizzled because that's what happens when you rush in a sexual relationship without knowing your partner. But there was a little more than that, and the little more is still here as they get to know each other. Plus, everything is always better without a romantic triangle.

Edited February 11, 2016 by Happy Harpy

[silverbell]

 

I think some scenes were cut, once again, because Grace was supposed to live at his place and there was nothing about it. It's better this way considering she still has feelings for him. 

Or maybe they made a mistake and they are in the next episode ? (not that I am advocating this but something seems off)

[90PercentGravity]

I love this show, but that was some serious shit writing. The whole exchange between Grace and the girl at the end had my eyes rolling so far back they almost spun back around.

[anlinn]

Or maybe they made a mistake and they are in the next episode ? (not that I am advocating this but something seems off)

 

Rather descriptions have nothing to do with the episodes. Probably they were written a long time ago and episodes are adapted to the current situation.

In next episode probably: "Grace is surprised when Campbell asks her out. " if it has not changed

[Granny58]

If I were an actor and it was written that I called the doctor "young squire" every episode, I would soon be pissed.

[Netfoot]

Gina took over for Dr. Taylor who got suspended for letting a young boy observe center stage. Not sure where Dr.Guthrie has been but I sure am glad he is back.

 

Ah, yes,  Thanks for reminding me.  I was getting a little confused by the soap-opera antics of this show.

[howiveaddict]

Does this hospital only have one neuro surgeon?  Seems odd with the big trauma program.  They could have found someone other than Campbell to do the surgery.  What is Neal's surgery specialty?  A thoracic surgeon wouldn't perform neuro surgery unless they are in a small podunk town and then they would transfer the patient to a trauma center.  I shook my head  when Campbell wouldn't operate because  they needed all the required pre testing for the girl.The blood tests would have taken 30 minutes max to get back.  Ped's consult would have been easily obtained. Just call and get the peds hospitalist on call to do an exam.   Didn't they already scan the girl?  I really like this show and hate to have to quit watching it because of the sloppy, unrealistic medicine involved.

 

Oh, and Beau Bridges wouldn't necessarily have to have a colostomy unless the whole colon was involved.   Then it would be an ileostomy , not a colostomy.  Or if he had to have one, it could have been temporarily colostomy while the remaining colon heals.  Even patients with colo rectal cancer that have to have colostomys sometimes get them reversed.

Also, Beau was too perky after having that surgery.

[Netfoot]

I love this show, but that was some serious shit writing. The whole exchange between Grace and the girl at the end had my eyes rolling so far back they almost spun back around.

 

At least the little girl was saved from the horror of not being an American!  

[Ohwell]

Odell Beckham, Jr. was cute standing there holding that baby.

[Fable]

I have to wonder how was it that Grace was in the OR.  If she no longer worked at Angel Memorial, it would seem to me that she no longer had privileges there. I don't mind if the show doesn't get everything right regarding medical/hospital policies and such, but that just seemed like a glaring error to me.  

[Bobcatkitten]

I was not impressed with that episode at all. 

 

The stunt casting of Odell Beckham fell flat - would have preferred a real actor to deliver those lines. I felt no attachment to the cryo patient or frankly the mom and the baby. 

 

Grace is beautiful and it could be interesting having her around. But the ridiculousness of Neal in one day switching over to surgery and being immediately ready for a major operation was just too much. And frankly I was kind of glad he got knocked down a peg or two in that surgery. 

[twoods]

I think Beau was shown before his surgery which is why he was chipper. I thought it said they had to remove his entire large colon, hence the colostomy term.

I agree with the medical gaffes this episode. General surgeons don't do neurosurgery procedures, or even a pediatric orthopedic doctor could have done it since it's near the spine. Also if they knew the marathon mom would have complications to her c section bleeding, don't know why the OB was waiting while they were giving her the clot dissolver. Oh, show. Good thing the characters still kick ass which is why I'm still watching.

I don't mind Grace. She doesn't seem like a bitch and hope she doesn't get in the way of the Christneal goodness.

[krimimimi]

At least the little girl was saved from the horror of not being an American!

lol! Yeah, that felt clunky. That whole scene/SL was a bit too much.

So I guess we're getting yet another new doctor? This show has a really non-traditional approach to casting. I can't help wondering if this is network retooling or what. Maybe swapping out semi-regulars helps keep the budget down. (Didn't Malaya have a girlfriend in the pilot? Where did she go?) Glad to see Dr. Guthrie back, though. Still waiting for Dr. Taylor, or is that skewing too old in total? Pity, if so.

I know the medicine isn't always spot on here, and far too often comes down on the gorefest side of things for my tastes, but I appreciated two of the ep's medical storylines. We lost Mom not that long ago to cancer, and while she ultimately couldn't have been saved, we didn't have to lose her this soon either, if she'd had surgery much like the coach's that (also like him) she wasn't up to facing. To be fair, her's would have been way more severe and I completely understood not wanting it (which doesn't mean that I don't wish she'd had it), but by the time she was willing to face it, things were too late for her. I wish there had been someone who had been able to get through to her earlier. (I tried and failed, obvs.) I also think it helps if people have confronted the idea intellectually before ever getting into a situation like that, so I really like that they made a story of it. Sure it's scary, but inaction = death, so... Contrasted nicely with the cryo story, too.

The other SL I liked was the mom with the clots. I ended up in the ER with a number of pulmonary embolisms a year ago, the doctors misdiagnosed them and nearly killed me. (Spoilers: I survived.) I was saying the same thing the lady did: no idea what's wrong, but I know something sure isn't right. In my case, extremely low everyday blood pressure helped masked the severity, just like her low resting pulse did. Long story short, they kept trying to send me home, I insisted on a CAT-scan, I was right and finally got treated. (PSA ALERT. Moral of the story: know your bodies, pay attention when stuff goes wrong, and insist on the care you need. Doctors can't know what it's like to be you, so you have to help them and for the love of Mike: stick to your guns, people.) Realistically, if we hadn't recently lost Mom due to years of misdiagnosis and lack of treatment, I don't know if I would have had the courage (or distrust) to refuse to leave. (Honest to Dog, I found the necessary behavior pretty embarrassing. I may have clamped onto a gurney and refused to let go. (I mean, it's not like they have wheels or anything, right?) Dignity, as is so common in hospitals, was nowhere to be seen.)

Ooh! One other thing, I was watching Chicago Med this week, and they also did a story on DNRs and the doctor(s) that can't respect them. I just wanted to say how much classier it was handled here. Chicago Med's doc couldn't be bothered to apologize and saw no wrong in his actions. Came off as a total knob, and I'm reasonably sure he's one of their heroes of the piece. And then the hospital covered his backside to reduce their chance of getting sued, when he totes should have been suspended. (I don't think I'll be watching that show much longer.) I like that this show clearly painted that SL with the doctor as a flawed human being who succumbed to inner impulses but was decidedly in the wrong and got that. Good job.

[silverbell]

lol! Yeah, that felt clunky. That whole scene/SL was a bit too much.

So I guess we're getting yet another new doctor? This show has a really non-traditional approach to casting. I can't help wondering if this is network retooling or what. Maybe swapping out semi-regulars helps keep the budget down. (Didn't Malaya have a girlfriend in the pilot? Where did she go?) Glad to see Dr. Guthrie back, though. Still waiting for Dr. Taylor, or is that skewing too old in total? Pity, if so.

I know the medicine isn't always spot on here, and far too often comes down on the gorefest side of things for my tastes, but I appreciated two of the ep's medical storylines. 

I think in a real high volume public hospital there is probably a lot of personal change so the personal change in this series is actually fitting. 

The problem with medicine is that you are often taught about Occam's razor (Among competing hypotheses, the one with the fewest assumptions should be selected) and in a very stressful high volume public hospital with over worked staff it unfortunately translates to mistakes or almost mistakes (Leanne made the same mistake in the first episode with the pregnant lady), which is very realistic in this series. 

I agree with you about Chicago med, even though what Christa did was wrong you could understand her initial feeling, and in the end with the help of Neal she understood what she did was wrong and she even apologized for her conduct what did not happen with the doctor on Chicago med even though he was confronted about it more then once. That is why I think code black is a better series.     

 

[starri]

So I guess we're getting yet another new doctor? This show has a really non-traditional approach to casting. I can't help wondering if this is network retooling or what. Maybe swapping out semi-regulars helps keep the budget down. (Didn't Malaya have a girlfriend in the pilot? Where did she go?) Glad to see Dr. Guthrie back, though. Still waiting for Dr. Taylor, or is that skewing too old in total? Pity, if so.

I'd say it's pretty much exactly network retooling.  Otherwise why put your Oscar-winning, top-billed star into a supporting role.

 

This show is on life support with me right now.  I don't mind medicine with the drama amped up to make for good TV, I loved ER and House, but I do dislike a medical drama becoming a soap opera about doctors.  I mean, that's all well and good, I watched General Hospital for years, but that's not what this was sold as.  We have one Grey's Anatomy, I don't think we need another.

[secnarf]

(Didn't Malaya have a girlfriend in the pilot? Where did she go?)

They had broken up, and then she was pregnant and had cancer and had the baby and died. It was a story arc over several episodes that was then totally dropped after she died and we have no idea what happened to her son.

[starri]

I'm pretty sure they showed Malaya jumping into a car and kissing a woman who wasn't Carla in the pilot, who's never been mentioned again.

[krimimimi]

I think in a real high volume public hospital there is probably a lot of personal change so the personal change in this series is actually fitting.

The problem with medicine is that you are often taught about Occam's razor (Among competing hypotheses, the one with the fewest assumptions should be selected) and in a very stressful high volume public hospital with over worked staff it unfortunately translates to mistakes or almost mistakes (Leanne made the same mistake in the first episode with the pregnant lady), which is very realistic in this series.

Good point about personnel fluctuations, but I'm still betting network meddling. Can't believe Gutherie Jr, for example, was originally supposed to be gone that soon. Still kind of disappointed, although Mike is much better than I expected.

I'm okay with the whole "if you hear hoofbeats, think horses and not zebras" bit. In show and out. Despite the misdiagnoses, I never blamed the doctors for my mother's death, because what she had was more in the range of unicorns than zebras, so no way were they getting it right. That's just how things go sometimes. It sucks, but it just is. I can actually be fairly reasonable about stuff like that. But I literally had a doc telling me she didn't know what I had, but whatever it was, it wasn't a pulmonary embolism. That is some pretty crap diagnostic work right there. (But in as much as it was not, in fact, a single embolism, but rather multiples, she was still kinda right, so good for her??? Bleurgh.) Probability was very much on her side, and I still trounced her. Hope it hurt.

Anyway, I really liked that Christa kept thinking about her patient until it finally clicked. Somthing's weird, something's off, something's wrong... and presto: answer! That's the doctor I want (if there's a) next time.

ETA:

Pretty sure starri's right, secnarf, and the smooched girlfriend from the first or second ep was not the baby/cancer momma. I remember liking how they didn't make much of thing about her being gay, she just happened to be pickedup by a SO that was female. And then nothing?

Edited February 12, 2016 by krimimimi

[secnarf]

I'm okay with the whole "if you hear hoofbeats, think horses and not zebras" bit. In show and out. Despite the misdiagnoses, I never blamed the doctors for my mother's death, because what she had was more in the range of unicorns than zebras, so no way were they getting it right. That's just how things go sometimes. It sucks, but it just is. I can actually be fairly reasonable about stuff like that. But I literally had a doc telling me she didn't know what I had, but whatever it was, it wasn't a pulmonary embolism. That is some pretty crap diagnostic work right there. (But in as much as it was not, in fact, a single embolism, but rather multiples, she was still kinda right, so good for her??? Bleurgh.) Probability was very much on her side, and I still trounced her. Hope it hurt.

Anyway, I really liked that Christa kept thinking about her patient until it finally clicked. Somthing's weird, something's off, something's wrong... and presto: answer! That's the doctor I want (if there's a) next time.

I actually like when this show has stuff like that, because it happens often in real life. As the saying goes, common things are common.

But there are exceptions to that, as well. I remember a patient I had a few months ago - she had just started on a medication that commonly causes a cough as a side effect, and then she developed a cough. Nobody would have thought it odd or negligent for the resident to say, well, the cough is probably because of the medication. He switched the drug, but instead of waiting to see if the cough went away, he thought something wasn't quite right, did further investigations, and found cancer mets in the lung. When I asked him what made him investigate further, he couldn't tell me - he just said he had a feeling.

I think then the danger of having a ton of medical shows with doctors doing this several times per episode is that people can develop unrealistic expectations of doctors. It's almost like they can't win - they can't be god or develop god complexes, but they're also expected to figure things out in god-like ways.

 

However, I wouldn't say it was unreasonable of Christa to realize the heart rate was high for this specific patient, but I do think that if everything except for HR had been suggesting PE, they should have done a CT scan or V/Q test just to make sure. I think they do a good job of portraying residents with less experience than a staff physician on this show.

[starri]

However, I wouldn't say it was unreasonable of Christa to realize the heart rate was high for this specific patient, but I do think that if everything except for HR had been suggesting PE, they should have done a CT scan or V/Q test just to make sure. I think they do a good job of portraying residents with less experience than a staff physician on this show.

They do seem to be really inconsistent about when the residents are working on their own versus when they aren't.  I don't remember anyone looking over Malaya and Christa's shoulders until they had the PE diagnosis, which wouldn't really happen, even if the only thing they'd found on workup had been the atelectasis.

[Dowel Jones]

If I were an actor and it was written that I called the doctor "young squire" every episode, I would soon be pissed.

 

Someone must have had That Thing You Do on their DVR before writing the episode.

 

Didn't Christa tell the pulmonary patient that "It's just a collapsed lung, a small portion.  It's not a big problem", or words to that effect?  That sounds like a great deal more than a small problem, and worthy of more investigation on the spot, unless I misheard the entire exchange.

 

I think Heather made a rather odd choice in showing up at her workplace to cryo the patient.  I know that she was there on her off/opposite shift, but people are bound to look at you twice if they know you are involved in a practice that is not widely regarded in the medical field. 

 

Can they do anything to make Dr. Campbell a more unlikable person?  Stay tuned.

[secnarf]

Didn't Christa tell the pulmonary patient that "It's just a collapsed lung, a small portion.  It's not a big problem", or words to that effect?  That sounds like a great deal more than a small problem, and worthy of more investigation on the spot, unless I misheard the entire exchange.

I thought it was Malaya, but yeah, they did a pretty bad job of explaining the patient's diagnosis to her in a reassuring way. It definitely sounded like 'nothing to worry about, your lung is partially collapsed, we'll send you home now', which would certainly be alarming to a patient. It kind of made me laugh, but the patient took it well. Probably better than I would have :P

[twoods]

Atelectasis isn't exactly a collapsed lung, but I guess they couldn't explain it better. It happens commonly post op, but whenever there is someone post pregnancy and they have the difficulty breathing symptoms, I always think PE because it's a common boards question.

I do think it's hard for doctors to catch everything, and agree that you should listen to your patient. Yeah, some are hypochondriacs and come in with a web MD diagnosis, but they (or the parents) do know their bodies pretty well and would know what is up. I try to order things that alleviate their stress (and mine too since I'm always afraid of missing something).

[juliet73]

I think this episode was the worse one thus far. I didn't really care for any of the characters or their storylines this episode. Btw, I'm not a doctor, but I have had multiple c-sections and that lady had a huge incision!!

[statsgirl]

Ironically, the TV doctor most admired is Greg House, the one who never listens to the patients ever.

 

Is Heather a resident?  How does she have time to work a second job?  Aren't residents hours insane?  (Insane as in 'if the patients knew how little sleep they got, they wouldn't let them touch them.')

 

Ooh! One other thing, I was watching Chicago Med this week, and they also did a story on DNRs and the doctor(s) that can't respect them. I just wanted to say how much classier it was handled here. Chicago Med's doc couldn't be bothered to apologize and saw no wrong in his actions. Came off as a total knob, and I'm reasonably sure he's one of their heroes of the piece. And then the hospital covered his backside to reduce their chance of getting sued, when he totes should have been suspended. (I don't think I'll be watching that show much longer.) I like that this show clearly painted that SL with the doctor as a flawed human being who succumbed to inner impulses but was decidedly in the wrong and got that. Good job.

The contrast is interesting.

 

I preferred Chicago Med's because that's going to be an on-going story, or at least as on-going as Dick Wolf lets his stories be.  There it was made clear by a number of people, from the doctor working with him who reported him, to the hospital administrator who took him off the case, to the family who is suing him, that this was wrong and his sad tale of his own mother dying doesn't excuse it.  There is going to be a price to pay.

 

Here, Crista is presented as someone who feels too much and she did what she did out of the goodness of her heart.  Any negative looks were only for a minute and by the end of the episode, it's presented as a heroic act.  Nobody learns anything and the patient's wife ends up being the one to suffer.

[CG28]

I think some scenes were cut, once again, because Grace was supposed to live at his place and there was nothing about it. It's better this way considering she still has feelings for him. 

He didn't sound angry or bitter when he rejected Grace, he was calm and resolute. And he was giving "that look" at Christa while he was talking with Grace and rejecting her.

 

The last scene with Grace and the little girl, I didn't care about at all. Overkill. She was already showed as compassionate and as having a personal link with her patient. If I had been invested, if it had been a regular character like Leanne or Angus or Mario, it might have been a cute payoff scene. But Grace is new, she was in many scenes already so nope. I was rolling my eyes and getting annoyed because I saw the running time and I began to understand that I'd have no Neal/Christa scene.

Maybe I can like Grace if/when she stops being a potential source of trouble for Christa and Neal. The jury is still out. I find it rich that she left, expects Neal to come back, and pretends she knows him better than everyone (I just loved when Neal said "No you don't"). On the other hand, she doesn't rub me the wrong way like Gina did, for example. But the writing had better not prop her and give her too much screentime at the expense of the regular characters or I'll want her gone like yesterday.

  

Yes I agree, scenes were cut and while I would have loved more interaction if that interaction would have brought about Grace staying at his house as the description mentioned than I can do with the lack of interaction. I too noticed Neal looking at Christa during his rejection of Grace, which I did appreciate.

Now Grace. I may could like Grace's character. While I am obviously a Christa/Neal shipper, her being Neal's ex will not stop me from liking her. After all back in the day when I watched Grey's Anatomy I liked Addison, even though I was a Meredith/Derek shipper. But they simply have to quit cramming her down my throat. Try to force me to like her and I will go the other way. Even with her abrasive manner, I liked how they added Gina's character. It didn't disrupt the flow of the show and she wasn't spoon fed to me. I watched again today in an effort to feel better about this episode and ended up counting, Grace was on the screen for almost 12 minutes out of the total 42 minutes alotted to the entire cast. And Neal spent the entirety of the show propping up her character. Literally there wasn't a scene with Grace without Neal in the scene as well (unless you count that last scene with the little girl but even then Neal was looking through the window). It just bugs me, they haven't don't this with any other character they added to the show, why this one?

I agree with the medical gaffes this episode. General surgeons don't do neurosurgery procedures, or even a pediatric orthopedic doctor could have done it since it's near the spine. Also if they knew the marathon mom would have complications to her c section bleeding, don't know why the OB was waiting while they were giving her the clot dissolver. Oh, show. Good thing the characters still kick ass which is why I'm still watching.

Yes! I don't get what surgeon is in what specialty. I got the feeling before, from the conversations between him and his father, that it's possible Neal completed a residency in neurosurgery. Which if so would make him performing this surgery partly understandable. But then if that were the case he would not be qualified to become a trauma surgeon in the ER, he would have needed to complete a general surgery rotation to do that. And I certainly don't think he completed both, he is just not old enough for that. Dr. Campbell has been shown to me to be either a cardiothoracic surgeon or a general surgeon, neither of which would explain why Neal says to Grace that Campbell has "done plenty of these" when operating on Rosalee, or why they would go to him in the first place. It's like the writers just wing it based on the needs of the episode and that irks me.

Even upon rewatching this episode this evening, it just felt off to me and the only thing I can pinpoint is the chemistry between the cast didn't seem fully there. There were moments where I could see it, but for the most part it was lacking that "feel" I've come to love about this show. I can look past some of the medical inaccuracies, even get past the soapiness to a certain extent, but not if you take away what makes the show work. I am not sure what caused it, if it's a result of the massive screen time spent on Grace or three different people switching to new positions or a combination of the two but either way I hope it finds its way back next week. The show is in a critical spot, it has begun to generate some really good press, but if they follow that press up with episodes like this, I worry it isn't going to help them.

[silverbell]

Another problem with this episode is that is one of the slowest episodes and it was put just after one of the fastest paced and best episodes of the season. 
Part of the reason I think this episode was off was that this episode has a different pace then any other episode we have seen so far. While almost every other episode starts with a major trauma, (car accident, stabbing , shooting ect ) this episode started with chronic patients, and it continued this way till the last 15 minuets of the show when things finally started happening .
It was not a bad episode,but it was not as good as we are used to, and the pace was different then what we started to expect from the show. 
I hope next week it will go back to the normal pace of the show they have gotten us used to. 

Edited February 12, 2016 by silverbell

[molshoop]

 

Otherwise why put your Oscar-winning, top-billed star into a supporting role.

 If that is where they keep her, I'm out.

[Shannon L.]

I agree that this episode was a bit off.  I liked it, but, it was one of the weaker episodes.  Grace seems nice, but the scene with the little girl wasn't as strong as it could have been had it been added later after we'd learned to care for her character.  It's like someone mentioned last week:  ER's stabbing episode worked better because it was a few seasons in after we'd gotten to know and love the characters.  The Code Black writers are pushing new characters on us and then heavy story lines almost immediately and it doesn't always work. 

 

Having said that, I love Mike.  I love how he is with his brother, with Leanne and with the other interns.  I hope they don't drop the ball with him.

[Finagler]

Re: Beau Bridges and the colon cancer issue.  Speaking from experience, you can have your large intestine removed and NOT have to have a colostomy.  I have the 'colon cancer' gene and had my baseline colonoscopy at 32 years old (I should have been checked at 15 years old and was lucky).  Doctor found 100's of polyps.  They ran a genetic test found that I suffer from FAP (familial adenomatous polyposis) so it was only a matter of time before I got colon cancer (not IF I got it, but WHEN).  They removed my entire large intestine and created a "J-Pouch" (officially called an ileo-anal anastomosis).  This is done by taking a portion of your small intestine, stretching it to the anal opening and folding it back up- when created it looks like a "J".  This piece of small intestine now acts as the 'holding area for poop.  I was expecting a temporary colostomy bag but my doctor decided to hook the new plumbing straight up.  (yay).  Sorry for the TMI....

 

However, Beau was very stupid to wait so long for chemo.  When my dad waited for over a year before he saw the doctor for rectal bleeding, he was at stage 4.  He died 6 months later.  It was painful and totally unnecessary.

 

PSA- when you turn 50 years old...get your colonoscopy!!  The worst part of the scope is the prep.  If caught soon enough it is very recoverable.  Colon cancer can be a silent deadly killer.  Get checked.  <end rant>  ;)

[Texasmom1970]

I think this episode was the worse one thus far. I didn't really care for any of the characters or their storylines this episode. Btw, I'm not a doctor, but I have had multiple c-sections and that lady had a huge incision!!

Totally agree, I actually found myself fast forwarding through parts. Did not care about the girl wanting to be frozen.

The Dad who was the coach, don't watch football had no clue who the big star was.

Really did not like Neal ex just expecting everything to be right how it was when she left. I really dud not like all the jumping through hoops and rule breaking for her surgery. Even worse was the over the top scene between the little girl and Grace at the end.

Man I just realized I must be in a bitchy mood this week. The only parts I liked were with Malaya, Krista and Angus.

[mojito]

Damn, for 74, Beau Bridges is believable as a father of a 30-something daughter. And I'm not talking about the daughter of his and his third trophy wife. He looks great.

 

 

Other than that, Yay for having Dr. Guthrie back!! Does anyone else think he somehow knows about what Angus did?

I'd like to think that he just can read Angus well and knows that something's been bothering him.

 

I know that shows have to appeal to the lowest common denominator to get renewed, but it's a shame to see a show like this begin with "Previously, on Code Black" and take the show away from medicine and away from the hospital so we can see that two characters have had sex. Have our standards always been so low?

[CG28]

I'd like to think that he just can read Angus well and knows that something's been bothering him.

 

I know that shows have to appeal to the lowest common denominator to get renewed, but it's a shame to see a show like this begin with "Previously, on Code Black" and take the show away from medicine and away from the hospital so we can see that two characters have had sex. Have our standards always been so low?

You may be right about Angus and Dr Guthrie, esp. since he does seem to have a special connection with Angus and seems to understand him really well. Plus I really can't see how he would know.

Personally I would rather them cut away from the hospital than to show couples like Mario and Heather having sex in the hospital locker room multiple times. However, I will also admit that I don't mind seeing some of the doctor's personal lives and relationships outside of the hospital being shown on the show, as long as it's within reason. There definitely needs to be a balance though so that the medicine stays at the forefront and relationships, etc. occur in the background. Now having said that, did they really need to show that Christa and Neal went back to his place to have sex? No, but since the scene was short, didn't feel overly sexualized (to me anyway), and it wasn't talked about the whole episode, it really didn't bother me.

[Happy Harpy]

Here, Crista is presented as someone who feels too much and she did what she did out of the goodness of her heart.  Any negative looks were only for a minute and by the end of the episode, it's presented as a heroic act.  Nobody learns anything and the patient's wife ends up being the one to suffer.

Oops, I think we're going to have to borrow that dead horse gif from the Arrow forums :D

 

  I am not sure what caused it, if it's a result of the massive screen time spent on Grace or three different people switching to new positions or a combination of the two but either way I hope it finds its way back next week. The show is in a critical spot, it has begun to generate some really good press, but if they follow that press up with episodes like this, I worry it isn't going to help them.

 

The Code Black writers are pushing new characters on us and then heavy story lines almost immediately and it doesn't always work.

 

It was not a bad episode,but it was not as good as we are used to, and the pace was different then what we started to expect from the show. 

I hope next week it will go back to the normal pace of the show they have gotten us used to. 

I think it's a combination of all those reasons.

Imo, Mike worked because he was written to accommodate the show, so he was immediately a fit, whereas here the show was accommodating Grace and it threw a lot of things off balance imo. It isn't the character in itself that is a problem, but the fact that half of the episode was written for her. Same would have happened with Mike or even Campbell if the writers had made the same (imo) mistake. I think it might be why several of us have this feeling of something "off" because the show as a whole wasn't a priority, the main cast and their interaction weren't a priority (= off chemistry)  the focus was on one new character instead so it derailed the general feel. Still and always imo.

Also, I think there was a lot of medicine in this episode, and I liked that there was a lot of medecine in this episode. Unfortunately, it wasn't fascinating medecine imo, and aside from Annie W. I didn't find the actors/guest characters compelling (not even Beau Bridges, with all due respect to this great actor).

 

 If that is where they keep her, I'm out.

I don't think they're doing this at all. Code Black isn't like Arrow or the X-files, where the whole show revolves around one or two characters. It's always been an ensemble. MGH/Leanne is the center, and that's exactly what she was in this episode imo.

She had her personal storyline, adjusting to her new job. I don't think that many other characters on the show have scenes where they're alone, looking at a mirror...or even scenes where they're alone, at all. IIRC, Leanne had several, and I think it's telling.

She had a storyline with Mike, linked to the former but not exactly part of it either.

She was involved in the Grace storyline.

They are developping her relationship with Dr.Harbert.

Imo, she was the central character, the one who interacted with the most others. Unless MGH wants a lighter schedule to do movies, if there's a second season it will stay this way imo.

 

I know that shows have to appeal to the lowest common denominator to get renewed, but it's a shame to see a show like this begin with "Previously, on Code Black" and take the show away from medicine and away from the hospital so we can see that two characters have had sex. Have our standards always been so low?

To be fair, most of the medecine is "case of the week" so it can hardly be relevant in a "Previously". I think that locker room sex was overkill, yes; I know it was to remind the viewers that Heather/Mario had a "thing" since they interacted in this episode, but I would have liked better if they had used another scene with them.

 

Imo, the best thing that could happen to Code Black if it's renewed would be a change of timeslot. I think it might happen anyway because if the Criminal Minds spinoff works (and Gary Sinise? It will work with the CBS audience imo) it will take Wednesdays at 10. For me, the best that could happen would be Friday at 9, before Blue Bloods -show that lasts forever and doesn't go for soapy drama at all IIRC- or Sunday night, replacing the Good Wife or exchanging slots with Madam Secretary. I think the audience would be more prone to appreciate the DNA of the show in any of those slots.

Also, they should do a summer rerun so that people can get acquainted to Code Black. They can promote the last episodes Grey's Anatomy way, but I don't think that droves of the general audience are going to start watching two episodes before the end of the season.

Edited February 13, 2016 by Happy Harpy

[Ely]

 

I think Heather made a rather odd choice in showing up at her workplace to cryo the patient.  I know that she was there on her off/opposite shift, but people are bound to look at you twice if they know you are involved in a practice that is not widely regarded in the medical field.

I don't  really get it. It's so blatantly shoe-horned in and just lazy writing. From my understanding of her line of work she cannot have enough time to work a job like that, even part-time. I'm also frowning at her attitude. You'd think she believes in what she's doing. I understand that you're not neccessarily always enthusiastic about your job but when you do something as life-changing as that you should not call your clients crazy. You should at least believe in the concept. Maybe I'm too idealistic.

 

I think this show is suffering from those added episodes. I havn't been happy with it lately. Everything seems rushed. Biggest example being Malaya and her stalker. It's been said before and I agree with everybody who says it's too rushed. That storyline definitely would've made a bigger impact on me in s2 or s3. Now we constantly get new supporting characters instead of really focusing on the core cast and fleshing them out.

 

I'm also sceptical if Mike should mentor Angus. Eh.