Just to reiterate, I loved this show with my whole heart. I accepted it, flaws and all. I was never crazy critical, it was an enjoyable medical show that showed the kind of doctors you'd wish you could have on your side. Always felt like the writers meant well even though things sometimes went in a ham-fisted way or were outright fantasy like. The fantasy aspect was a little bit of the charm of the show, and it never used to be so outrageous. With that out of the way, now I will attempt to discuss the episode. I just watched it, I know I'm a few months late but better late than never? Debatable.
We start off with Max attending virtual job interviews. I love Max, but I'm seriously wondering if he suffered brain damage when he was getting the experimental cancer treatments. Or maybe it was during 03×12, the toxic spill episode (a highlight of the series). It would explain A LOT. I still love him but I'm exhausted. Anyway, imagine the surprised Pikachu face here because Max can't find a job in England! This is a concern I vocalized at my TV many months ago when I was convinced they'd realize how dumb an idea London is. Silly me thought both characters would realize it's a dumb plan or come to some kind of compromise but no they just abandoned life in NY for this stupid, forced, poorly thought out London plot. The only thing that matters is what Sharpe wants. That's not a partnership. And I know both Max and Sharpe will be all surprised Pikachu face at how terrible things are back at New Amsterdam, because everyone on this show has lost massive IQ points this year. Anyway, best girlfriend ever Helen fired Max in the last episode. I just have no love left for this woman. She went from being tied for being my favorite character and now I wish they'd write her off. She can come back to New York in the very last episode and maybe then she and Max could ride off into the sunset (a New York sunset) in a way that wouldn't make me want to throw up. My apologies to Freema Agyeman, still love her dearly but Helen Sharpe can take a leap into the Thames and stay there for all I care.
Sharpe knew what she was getting into with Max but still seems surprised at the stuff he does. She does not seem the least bit concerned or bothered that he is seemingly unemployable for the time being. It's like "whatever, not my problem. I have a job and my career is the only thing that matters now so you just keep looking pretty and worshipping me, American trophy boyfriend." Sorry that's the vibes she gives off. It's literally like she is a new, tertiary character who was only just introduced instead of somebody who was established from the beginning. I should start calling her nuSharpe because this is not the same character I watched the first three seasons. I'm not begrudging her for having career ambitions, but the way all of this has been written and played out feels insincere, forced, and just plain stupid. This whole move to London feels like it was a big career thing for nuSharpe and Max is along to be her trophy prize from America. Max doesn't notice though, he's head over heels in love with somebody who seems to treat him like a pet. It's really unpleasant to watch. I'm frustrated with how much I dislike nuSharpe, and I'm frustrated with how much of a pushover Max is in regards to her. Anyway, Max is unemployable, and nuSharpe has to hire someone to fill an important position. She won't hire Max because she's sleeping with him, which is definitely a conflict of interest. She also could not care less that he's unemployed in a foreign country and has a young child to care for.
I'm sorry to say I just couldn't get invested in her plot about trying to hire someone at the clinic. I tried, I really try to go in every episode with a positive attitude in the hopes that things will improve. It's stagnant and no matter how hard I try, I tend to be quite annoyed whenever nuSharpe is on screen. I feel like I'm watching a pod person who took over a human's life and no one noticed. Fun fact: a pod person storyline pretty much happened in season 4 of Doctor Who, except The Doctor noticed and it was an awesome episode.
Again, the highlight of this episode was Dr. Wilder who is just sunshine and I love her dearly. She is sneaky, smart, charming, and has the right idea. I wish we'd had her on the show sooner, when it was better written amd all. I really hope we get to see her interact with Max again in the future. Wilder is now in my top three characters, hopefully she sticks around until the series ends and they don't taint her like they have half the main characters. But not even Wilder has softened my opinion of the annoying unnecessary holistic medicine woman. She's unsettling and I wouldn't trust her one bit, especially considering Veronica is the one who insisted on giving this woman her own department at everyone else's expense.
Another highlight was again the maybe 8 minutes sprinkled throughout the episode where Max is trying to treat a patient on the street. I enjoyed when he was being sneaky and stealing supplies from the clinic to help Sid. We haven't seen a ton of Sneaky Max, the last truly sneaky thing he may have done was help a guy fake a heart attack in season 1, but at this point I'll take what I can get. Someone please tell me Ryan Eggold is working on another project while doing the show this year so I might have something to look forward to watching. Nothing's on his imdb, but I still have hope. May I suggest a show where he plays a sort of morally gray double agent trying to make up for his past sins and find answers about his mysterious past? I'd watch that... Sorry I got off topic again, no one's reading this anyway.
I liked the scenes with Iggy and the police officer.
Iggy did good this week! His wish to make a difference and help the police department with their traumas was touching to me. I'm sure lots of people had a problem with it, but I liked it and with so little to like on the show these days, I'll take what I can get.
Bloom trying to help her patient with his unusual addiction and depression was sadly relatable. Bloom used to be my least favorite, I'm sure she'll do something to annoy me again soon but right now she's okay. If only she'd wake up to her own privilege. I sorely miss Casey, he and Bloom had a great friendship.
I struggle to care about Malvo. Her entire ordeal is a disaster and I have no sympathy for anyone involved. I wish they would do a test and find out the baby is Baptiste's. Maybe Reynolds could be freed from this mess. I used to love Reynolds. He used to have such a good personality and brought a lot to the show. Now his entire life is this uncompelling, dishonest woman and competing with her husband. Except this time he does something good and lets the husband take credit. I am exhausted. I can blame Max's newfound stupidity on possible brain damage but I don't know what happened to Reynolds. All his own goals, wishes, and principles out the window for a married woman who lies and refuses to do a DNA test. And he took the biggest steps towards this mess during that lazy time jump at the end of season three. This is not romantic, believable, or compelling. It's simply awful writing.
I would have rather Reynolds ended up leaving with Evie then be in this Maury Povich mess. Again, I freaking loved Reynolds the first three seasons and was very bothered at the prospect of him leaving to be with Evie while she starts a new job. I liked Evie, I just didn't like that she'd rather work across the country. Sadly the writers were really fond of the "the guy leaves entire life behind to follow girlfriend" plot and recycled it this season but unlike Reynolds and Evie, this was executed in a lopsided, toxic way. God I miss seasons 1 & 2.
I gave this a 6/10 because I wouldn't say it was any better or worse than the prior episode. It was another weirdly forgettable installment. To recap: I've renamed Sharpe into NuSharpe and she does nothing for me. Not enough Max, but I appreciate that he was able to help somebody this week without getting yelled at. It's like the writers got rid of his cancer and haven't quite known what to do with him since. He's a mostly a verbal punching bag and trophy boyfriend. They also forget he has a kid, but since she's not nuSharpe's kid who cares?! Max should leave her with her grandparents and move on! Reynolds situation is annoying and I wish they'd wake up and realize how awful it is. Bloom and Iggy are doing alright, for now. Dr. Wilder is my new co-favorite character.
I have an idea as to what happens in the next free episodes, but I don't know exactly what episode is next. I'm sure I'll probably want to rant about it into the void. I know it will probably go something like this: "Season 4 is a dumpster fire, no wonder the show got canceled but also how dare you NBC?? Why are the writers ruining their once special show? Do they have any idea how bad many of us have found this season? Do they care or do they just think we're disagreeing with their morals or whatever? Bad character stories are tainting everything. Who can I email to talk to about this? Why is Max so willing to stand up for everyone but himself? Will he ever get a more fleshed out backstory? Why is Ryan Eggold only in this episode for like 6 minutes? Someone should reboot Redemption without all the Blacklist baggage. Wilder is possibly the only pure and good thing to come from this disaster of a season. NuSharpe is making me mad, someone find real Sharpe and send away this pod person. Free Reynolds!" Or maybe it will be a high quality, meaningful episode reminiscent of the show I once loved! Not holding my breath. Cast and crew get 10 stars. The writers do not.
We start off with Max attending virtual job interviews. I love Max, but I'm seriously wondering if he suffered brain damage when he was getting the experimental cancer treatments. Or maybe it was during 03×12, the toxic spill episode (a highlight of the series). It would explain A LOT. I still love him but I'm exhausted. Anyway, imagine the surprised Pikachu face here because Max can't find a job in England! This is a concern I vocalized at my TV many months ago when I was convinced they'd realize how dumb an idea London is. Silly me thought both characters would realize it's a dumb plan or come to some kind of compromise but no they just abandoned life in NY for this stupid, forced, poorly thought out London plot. The only thing that matters is what Sharpe wants. That's not a partnership. And I know both Max and Sharpe will be all surprised Pikachu face at how terrible things are back at New Amsterdam, because everyone on this show has lost massive IQ points this year. Anyway, best girlfriend ever Helen fired Max in the last episode. I just have no love left for this woman. She went from being tied for being my favorite character and now I wish they'd write her off. She can come back to New York in the very last episode and maybe then she and Max could ride off into the sunset (a New York sunset) in a way that wouldn't make me want to throw up. My apologies to Freema Agyeman, still love her dearly but Helen Sharpe can take a leap into the Thames and stay there for all I care.
Sharpe knew what she was getting into with Max but still seems surprised at the stuff he does. She does not seem the least bit concerned or bothered that he is seemingly unemployable for the time being. It's like "whatever, not my problem. I have a job and my career is the only thing that matters now so you just keep looking pretty and worshipping me, American trophy boyfriend." Sorry that's the vibes she gives off. It's literally like she is a new, tertiary character who was only just introduced instead of somebody who was established from the beginning. I should start calling her nuSharpe because this is not the same character I watched the first three seasons. I'm not begrudging her for having career ambitions, but the way all of this has been written and played out feels insincere, forced, and just plain stupid. This whole move to London feels like it was a big career thing for nuSharpe and Max is along to be her trophy prize from America. Max doesn't notice though, he's head over heels in love with somebody who seems to treat him like a pet. It's really unpleasant to watch. I'm frustrated with how much I dislike nuSharpe, and I'm frustrated with how much of a pushover Max is in regards to her. Anyway, Max is unemployable, and nuSharpe has to hire someone to fill an important position. She won't hire Max because she's sleeping with him, which is definitely a conflict of interest. She also could not care less that he's unemployed in a foreign country and has a young child to care for.
I'm sorry to say I just couldn't get invested in her plot about trying to hire someone at the clinic. I tried, I really try to go in every episode with a positive attitude in the hopes that things will improve. It's stagnant and no matter how hard I try, I tend to be quite annoyed whenever nuSharpe is on screen. I feel like I'm watching a pod person who took over a human's life and no one noticed. Fun fact: a pod person storyline pretty much happened in season 4 of Doctor Who, except The Doctor noticed and it was an awesome episode.
Again, the highlight of this episode was Dr. Wilder who is just sunshine and I love her dearly. She is sneaky, smart, charming, and has the right idea. I wish we'd had her on the show sooner, when it was better written amd all. I really hope we get to see her interact with Max again in the future. Wilder is now in my top three characters, hopefully she sticks around until the series ends and they don't taint her like they have half the main characters. But not even Wilder has softened my opinion of the annoying unnecessary holistic medicine woman. She's unsettling and I wouldn't trust her one bit, especially considering Veronica is the one who insisted on giving this woman her own department at everyone else's expense.
Another highlight was again the maybe 8 minutes sprinkled throughout the episode where Max is trying to treat a patient on the street. I enjoyed when he was being sneaky and stealing supplies from the clinic to help Sid. We haven't seen a ton of Sneaky Max, the last truly sneaky thing he may have done was help a guy fake a heart attack in season 1, but at this point I'll take what I can get. Someone please tell me Ryan Eggold is working on another project while doing the show this year so I might have something to look forward to watching. Nothing's on his imdb, but I still have hope. May I suggest a show where he plays a sort of morally gray double agent trying to make up for his past sins and find answers about his mysterious past? I'd watch that... Sorry I got off topic again, no one's reading this anyway.
I liked the scenes with Iggy and the police officer.
Iggy did good this week! His wish to make a difference and help the police department with their traumas was touching to me. I'm sure lots of people had a problem with it, but I liked it and with so little to like on the show these days, I'll take what I can get.
Bloom trying to help her patient with his unusual addiction and depression was sadly relatable. Bloom used to be my least favorite, I'm sure she'll do something to annoy me again soon but right now she's okay. If only she'd wake up to her own privilege. I sorely miss Casey, he and Bloom had a great friendship.
I struggle to care about Malvo. Her entire ordeal is a disaster and I have no sympathy for anyone involved. I wish they would do a test and find out the baby is Baptiste's. Maybe Reynolds could be freed from this mess. I used to love Reynolds. He used to have such a good personality and brought a lot to the show. Now his entire life is this uncompelling, dishonest woman and competing with her husband. Except this time he does something good and lets the husband take credit. I am exhausted. I can blame Max's newfound stupidity on possible brain damage but I don't know what happened to Reynolds. All his own goals, wishes, and principles out the window for a married woman who lies and refuses to do a DNA test. And he took the biggest steps towards this mess during that lazy time jump at the end of season three. This is not romantic, believable, or compelling. It's simply awful writing.
I would have rather Reynolds ended up leaving with Evie then be in this Maury Povich mess. Again, I freaking loved Reynolds the first three seasons and was very bothered at the prospect of him leaving to be with Evie while she starts a new job. I liked Evie, I just didn't like that she'd rather work across the country. Sadly the writers were really fond of the "the guy leaves entire life behind to follow girlfriend" plot and recycled it this season but unlike Reynolds and Evie, this was executed in a lopsided, toxic way. God I miss seasons 1 & 2.
I gave this a 6/10 because I wouldn't say it was any better or worse than the prior episode. It was another weirdly forgettable installment. To recap: I've renamed Sharpe into NuSharpe and she does nothing for me. Not enough Max, but I appreciate that he was able to help somebody this week without getting yelled at. It's like the writers got rid of his cancer and haven't quite known what to do with him since. He's a mostly a verbal punching bag and trophy boyfriend. They also forget he has a kid, but since she's not nuSharpe's kid who cares?! Max should leave her with her grandparents and move on! Reynolds situation is annoying and I wish they'd wake up and realize how awful it is. Bloom and Iggy are doing alright, for now. Dr. Wilder is my new co-favorite character.
I have an idea as to what happens in the next free episodes, but I don't know exactly what episode is next. I'm sure I'll probably want to rant about it into the void. I know it will probably go something like this: "Season 4 is a dumpster fire, no wonder the show got canceled but also how dare you NBC?? Why are the writers ruining their once special show? Do they have any idea how bad many of us have found this season? Do they care or do they just think we're disagreeing with their morals or whatever? Bad character stories are tainting everything. Who can I email to talk to about this? Why is Max so willing to stand up for everyone but himself? Will he ever get a more fleshed out backstory? Why is Ryan Eggold only in this episode for like 6 minutes? Someone should reboot Redemption without all the Blacklist baggage. Wilder is possibly the only pure and good thing to come from this disaster of a season. NuSharpe is making me mad, someone find real Sharpe and send away this pod person. Free Reynolds!" Or maybe it will be a high quality, meaningful episode reminiscent of the show I once loved! Not holding my breath. Cast and crew get 10 stars. The writers do not.
