Chicago Med
Chicago Med Review – Will Dr. Choi Ever Learn? (5×11)
Chicago Med packed in some heavy storylines into one gut-punching episode that will have plenty of repercussions in the weeks to follow.
An electrical fire at O’Hare filled the ED with a few burn victims including one man that was so far gone, they weren’t even able to identify him.
Based on the seat number and the medical convention pass in his pocket, they deduced that it was their Head of Neurosurgery, Sam Abrams.
It was a blow to everyone on the staff as the realization that Sam would never walk or operate again set in.
His wife, Michelle, was a mess and after some time, decided to pull the plug on him because “Sam wouldn’t want to live like this.”
It was a fair assessment as the odds weren’t in his favor. Crockett and Choi believed he’d be mentally okay once his brain swelling went down, but Michelle knew that this wasn’t the quality of life an independent and successful man like Sam would have wanted.
And, of course, Choi didn’t respect Michelle’s wishes at all.
Choi’s always had an arrogance about him and his ego has pushed him into corners that don’t paint him in the greatest of light, but assuming that Michelle didn’t know what she was talking about because she was his wife of three months was a new low.
How did Choi think he had any authority to speak on Sam’s behalf if he mistook Michelle for Sam’s daughter? Clearly, they aren’t as close as Choi led on and thus, Choi wasn’t equipped to be making any kind of calls for Sam.
In fact, it’s way out of line for a doctor to try to push his own beliefs onto a patient or the patient’s spouse. And that’s what they were — Choi’s beliefs of what he would have wanted versus what was in Sam’s best interest.
Choi went to great lengths to stop Michelle, who he even called money-hungry, but even the board didn’t agree with him.
And neither did Crocket, who seems to be the only doctor in Gaffney who ever practices what he preaches and stays in his own damn lane.
Dr. Choi did do one thing right and that was saving the unknown patient after realizing that Sam is very much alive.
Sure, he was a little burnt by the Hawaiian sun, but not nearly as bad as the man they thought was him lying on the table getting the plug pulled.
Everyone’s reaction to seeing Sam was the equivalent of seeing a man get raised from the dead. Technically, he was, he just didn’t know it.
And yet, Dr. Choi still couldn’t let it go.
After Michelle left the hospital, he approached Sam to inform him that Michelle was going to remove him from life support and that proposed they wait until his daughter could be there to make a ruling.
Sam echoed the same exact thoughts Michelle did — he didn’t want to live like this and he never wanted his daughter to see him this wear or bear that responsibility — meaning that Michelle knew Sam better than anyone.
When Choi suggested that Michelle was a gold-digger, Sam pointed out that she’s the one with money in the relationship after inventing the formula for a widely popular protein shake. Cha-ching.
See what happens when we make unwarranted assumptions about a person based on our own personal bias.
Choi should spend more time worrying about his relationship and less about others.
Because last time I checked, he proposed to a woman who cheated on him with the very doctor he’s been clashing with and judging without really knowing.
Passing judgment is such an ugly look on Choi.
He apologized to Crockett in the end, but a friendship between Choi and Crockett is even more dangerous than them being frenemies.
Crocket promised to keep his and April’s kiss a secret, but will he be able to lie to a colleague for long?
The longer April keeps this from Choi, the worse it’s going to be for their relationship when he finds out because the fact that she’s hiding it means that it meant more than just an in the moment kiss.
April is trying to ease her guilt and smooth things over by marrying Choi and proposing IVF, but those are just attempts at covering up the truth.
Another employee at Gaffney had an eventful day and proved that she’s a terrible person who probably deserves everything that’s coming for her.
Gwen Garrett, the Chief Operating Officer, left her baby in the car when she went to work.
If it wasn’t for Natalie finding the baby (and knocking on the window as if an infant would somehow open the door and let her in), the child would have died.
Then, things would have been even worse for her.
Sharon Goodwin took mercy on Gwen, despite their very obvious differences when it comes to patient care. She understood that Gwen’s going through a lot with her divorce and custody battle and knew that it was an honest mistake that Gwen deeply regretted.
It’s the kind of compassion that mothers should show each other in a time where judgment for actions isn’t necessary and won’t’ change anything.
And here I thought we were making some kind of progress with Gwen; that she was being humanized from the constant profit-turning machine that we’ve known her to be.
It’s easy to make calls to protect the hospital when you’re not on the receiving end, but now that Gwen was, it was obvious how much help and support she needed.
She also wanted Natalie and Sharon to keep the secret from her husband and lie about what happened, which isn’t only unethical but it’s just wrong.
Yes, telling the husband the truth would give him a lot of pull in the custody battle to paint Gwen as a bad mother, but owning up to her mistakes was the right thing to do.
Sharon thought that Gwen would understand that. Instead, Gwen tried to “return the favor” for Sharon’s silence by pushing through Halstead’s proposal for safe injection sites at Gaffney.
Eventually, Natalie came clean to the husband who did not have kind words for Gwen and in return, Gwen pulled the plug on the proposal that would help thousands of drug users with a safe space to wean off drugs.
It was an eye for an eye with her.
She never thanked Natalie for saving her son in the first place or the hospital for showing her so much sympathy when they could have dialed up DCFS.
Gwen proved that she’s a monster through-and-through who didn’t learn from her mistakes. She doesn’t care about other people, she only cares about what’s in it for her.
I hate to say it, but I don’t feel bad for her one bit. I do feel bad about the patients who will suffer at the hands of her wrath.
Speaking of Halstead’s safe injection site, it’s a cause near and dear to his heart following the death of his patient on Chicago Med Season 5 Episode 10 who died of addiction after being hooked on painkillers he prescribed her.
It’s great that Halstead is trying to right his wrongs and take responsibility, but with the proposal shut down, he has decided to open his clinic at an unsanctioned site, which Dr. Charles informs him is illegal and could cost him his medical license.
Halstead agrees seemingly admitting defeat, but if we believed that, we wouldn’t truly know Halstead.
Instead, he went to the site and struck up a deal with his partner to move forward with the injection site.
There’s trouble ahead for Halstead, but what else is new?
Amidst all of that action, there was an IVF switch-up storyline that found a couple from the plane crash delivering a baby that wasn’t there’s.
The baby needed a lung transplant, but only one of the parents was a donor match, which brought up the revelation that they weren’t the biological parents.
The real parents were finally tracked down (and were pregnant with the other couple’s embryo) and one of them was also a match so the “mom” that carried baby agreed to donate to save the baby’s life.
Despite the trauma that they endured due to the switch-up, everyone bonded and they came out of the situation with new family members. Sometimes, there is a happy ending.
What did you think of Chicago Med?
Are you happy Sam is still alive?
What did you think of Dr. Choi? Should April tell him the truth?
Is Gwen the worst or is Gwen the worst?
And be sure to watch all episodes of Chicago Med season 5 right now
It’s the end of an era. The Chicago Med Season 8 finale saw Will Halstead saying his final goodbye to Gaffney Medical.
And the best part is that you don’t even have to wonder where he’s going!
After realizing that his time at the hospital had come to an end, Will thanked his colleagues and friends who have been like family for all these years and made a swift departure to Seattle to be with his one true love, Natalie Manning!
Chicago Med pulled off the ultimate surprise by bringing back Torrey Devito for a brief yet emotional cameo. She greeted Halstead outside of the airport along with her son, Owen, and they made it very clear that this time they were going to make things work. “I’m never letting you go,” Natalie told Halstead as they embarked on their new chapter together.
CHICAGO MED — “Does One Door Close and Another One Open?” Episode 822 — Pictured: (l-r) Ari Morgan as Owen, Torrey DeVitto as Natalie — (Photo by: George Burns Jr/NBC)
While I usually wouldn’t recommend going back to a relationship that didn’t work in the past, in this case, it just makes sense. They both had a clean break to find themselves and figure things out and yet their paths crossed once again. Timing is everything, and without the setting of Gaffney, I think they may actually be able to work things out this time around.
And that’s a wrap on Will Halstead. Thank you so much to Nick Gehlfuss for bringing such an “irritating” yet “inspirational” character to life for eight seasons. Sharon Goodwin was right on the money with that comment.
He even went out in such Will style by going off the rails and doing something that only Will could ever justify as a good idea.
Halstead was very triggered by 2.0’s glitch, and when he realized no one was going to do anything about it, the took matters into his own hands without realizing the larger implications of his decision.
By reprogramming 2.0 to go completely haywire during Jack Dayton’s hernia resection, he not only destroyed the product by setting in plenty of doubt, but he also ensured that 2.0 would never see the light of day again as it tarnished Dayton’s reputation in the process.
Dayton could no longer go through with the IPO, which meant that he couldn’t secure the funding to make 2.0 a better and more reliable product, which in turn meant that Jack Dayton had to sell Med, putting everyone’s fate up in the air.
As much as I want to praise Halstead for trying to do the wrong thing, his decision was very costly, especially because, as Crockett pointed out, 2.0 did a lot of good. With the right improvements, it could be a very useful tool in the future, but Halstead ensured that said future would never happen.
However, on the other hand, maybe selling the hospital isn’t the worst idea as it will likely put the power back in the hands of someone who cares about the patients over profits. Turning Med into a for-profit hospital has not been a welcome change for the doctors as they are limited in who they can treat, and it’s also a terrible experience for patients who don’t have the best insurance and can’t pay exorbitant prices.
Turning away patients is never ideal, especially patients who need critical care. One of Archer’s patients, Rachel, was admitted to Med with terrible stomach pains, and by waiting for an ambo transfer to a hospital that would have accepted her insurance, she likely would’ve died in the process.
The doctors took it upon themselves to do the surgery under the radar so as to not put her in debt for life, but that was a risky move. If anyone from upper management found out, it would not be pretty. Though, it’s nice to see Archer coming around and doing what needs to be done to save lives.
CHICAGO MED — “Does One Door Close and Another One Open?” Episode 822 — Pictured: (l-r) Luigi Sottile as Sean Archer, Steven Weber as Dean Archer — (Photo by: George Burns Jr/NBC)
During the surgery, which Hannah Asher assisted, Archer became very weak, and he realized he had another infection from his “DIY dialysis.” At this point, Asher insisted he start at a proper dialysis clinic, which he was against because of the time commitment, and when Sean suggested they just go through with the surgery as he was approved as his father’s donor, Archer and Asher had to inform him that he was no longer eligible after falling off the wagon.
It was honestly heartbreaking to see Sean come to terms with what his relapse meant. It was one misstep—that stemmed from a misunderstanding in the first place—and yet, it set back his plans to help his father for at least six months.
Hopefully, this doesn’t set Sean back even further because I can see how he’d deal with thinking that he’s a “disappointment” by turning to drugs and alcohol yet again.
CHICAGO MED — “Does One Door Close and Another One Open?” Episode 822 — Pictured: (l-r) Jessy Schram as Hannah Asher, Steven Weber as Dean Archer — (Photo by: George Burns Jr/NBC)
Archer, however, cannot blame himself for what happened, nor can he blame the fact that he allowed his son to be a donor as the relapse had nothing to do with the pressure of the situation. Sean was set off after seeing his father and Hannah getting “close,” and while there may have been some flirtation happening, when he finally addressed it with the two of them, they were both quite shocked.
I honestly think that Asher and Archer are good friends, and though there may be underlying feelings there, they’ve never considered them because they’ve never thought about going there. Could this be what convinces them to give things a try? Or did it cement them in the friend’s zone forever? I’m not surprised the romance hasn’t gotten the spotlight as Archer’s health is definitely a priority.
Hannah also seems pretty adamant about keeping her personal life and professional life separate, so I could see her shutting any possibility of a romance with either of the Archer men down.
Dr. Charles dealt with two patients that Dr. Loren Johsnton brought in via ambo. There was also a misunderstanding there as the wife, Janice, thought her husband Fred was trying to kill her, when in reality, Fred was fighting with his body impulsively doing things he couldn’t control. Turns out, he had a small stroke that resulted in a rare neurological called alien hand syndrome. With everything cleared up, the couple was back on track, and it put Charles’ relationship with Liliana in perspective. He realized that he had to clear up the misunderstanding by simply being vulnerable and honest with her about his feelings—he didn’t think of her as a charity case, and just because he has a fancy title doesn’t mean he doesn’t share the same insecurities as other people.
And Liliana, for her part, realized she’d put up a wall because she’s so used to being independent. Of course, there’s still the issue of her overbearing brother Pawel, who, quite frankly, needs to be told to get his own life. I understand siblings being there for each other and helping each other out, but he’s constantly bossing her around, talking down to her, and being kind of emotionally abusive.
Also, I truly hope Dr. Loren becomes a new addition to Med next season!
With Maggie interviewing at other hospitals, I was certain she’d be the person leaving Med at the end of the season, but Halstead’s problematic heroics make so much more sense.
I’m just glad it isn’t Crockett because I was just getting invested in the character, while Archer and Asher have been the best duo this season.
What did you think of the Chicago Med Season 8 finale? Are you pleased with how Halstead’s storyline ended?
What do you want to see next season?
Chicago Med Season 8 Episode 21 mostly focused on Jack Dayton’s continuing efforts to ruin Gaffney at every turn.
It’s starting to become a little exhausting to constantly write about Jack, but he’s the main focus this season, with the latest storyline focused on the impending 2.0 IPO launch that would propel Med into a destination hospital, naturally, at the cost of all the other patients needing healthcare services.
But even more concerning and daunting is the last-minute revelation that 2.0 may have been the reason for killing a man. Richard’s death in the prior episode was weighing heavily on Crockett and Halstead. Neither of them could truly understand what went wrong, and when they went to look for the data from 2.0, it was nowhere to be found. Once Crockett confronted Jack, he was given a flash drive that detailed a mistake he made during the procedure that ended up being deadly.
However, once Halstead gave the drive to Grace, she found that it wasn’t Crockett’s fault at all. 2.0 showed Crockett a phantom lesion that was never actually there, and if it wasn’t for that display, Crockett would’ve never operated and Richard would’ve still been alive. The machine is faulty, which isn’t something that looks good when you’re about to go public. As of now, it seems as though Jack wasn’t aware of the glitch on 2.0 and assumed he was genuinely protecting his star doctor, though, I wouldn’t be surprised if that was his cover to protect the integrity of the product. But if Jack really knew that 2.0 glitched, I don’t think he would entrust his life to it, especially on live television with the whole world watching.
At this point, it’s clear that while machines and AI can be great tools, they should complement doctors and their skills rather than replace them.
We’ll see what comes of this development.
One of the more intriguing plots included Sam Abrams, who found out he was going to be a father despite having a vasectomy years ago. Sam’s shocked reaction likely wasn’t what Michelle wanted, but for someone who is an empty nester and never expected to have more kids, it was genuine.
Hannah was able to intervene with a cervix surgery that assisted in Michelle’s pregnancy, but more importantly, the writers were able to humanize Sam a little bit, which is always nice to see. He pops in and out, but he’s always so blunt and stoic, so it was nice to see him get a little personality. Plus, we got to see a little heart-to-heart with Hannah, who, while encouraging Sam to embrace this opportunity life handed him, also decided to put herself out there in the dating world again. Can you believe she hasn’t dated anyone since Halstead?
Meanwhile, Archer learned that Sean was a donor match, much to his dismay, but any moment of happiness was fleeting as he also found out his son missed work and wasn’t picking up any calls. Naturally, his mind went to the worst-case scenario that Sean relapsed, and boy, I’m hoping that isn’t the case. Things were going so well for Sean and he was doing so well in his recovery. However, seeing his father cozying up to Hannah may have put him over the edge, or he simply decided to distance himself from his father’s world as he felt betrayed. Either or, I think we’re going to see Sean and Neil’s relationships with Hannah come to a head.
Elsewhere, Maggie interviewed for a new job spearheading the ED at a local hospital. While Sharon Goodwin wasn’t pleased as Maggie’s employer since she didn’t want to lose her best people due to Jack’s poor decisions, she was personally happy for her friend for putting herself first. I hope Maggie doesn’t end up leaving because she makes this whole place function!
As for Dr. Charles and Cuevas, they helped their patient, David, who has been a recurring guest on the series this season, navigate the normal fears and complexities of being a teenager, which was refreshing for a change. David thought he was hearing voices again, but it was simply his inner monologue and he needed to understand how to live with it and alongside it.
As for Charles’ relationship with Liliana, well, it’s not going in the right direction and that’s mostly because she has a very codependent and toxic relationship with her brother, Pawel, who we now know has a gambling problem that she’s going to pay off at the expense of buying her own house because “that’s her brother.” I feel like Charles needs to make a run for it before he’s dragged down too much, but I understand it isn’t that easy since he really loves Liliana and wants to help her. When he learned that she still needed to move out of her place, he asked her to move in with him, but it only backfired as she saw it as Charles thinking he needed to rescue her. The whole “charity case” mindset simply stems from the difference in their positions—if they don’t get over it, it’s always going to drive a wedge between them.
What did you think of the episode? Are you excited for the season finale next week?
Everyone is starting to feel the brunt of Jack Dayton’s decision to turn Gaffney into a for-profit hospital.
When the board voted to support Dayton’s money-hungry decision, the writing was on the wall, but Chicago Med Season 8 Episode 20 honed in on the aftermath revealing that everyone is suffering–from patients seeking treatment to doctors wanting to help.
Halstead couldn’t fathom seeing uninsured patients get turned away, so he found a loophole (classic Halstead), meanwhile, Crockett decided to act first and apologize later by booking 2.0 for a prior patient whose cancer metastasized. If I’m being honest, Richard should’ve been a VIP member since he was the first person to use 2.0 and, essentially, a test dummy for the program.
Crockett made up his mind, and he was backed by Goodwin, who agreed that Richard was going for a “necessary follow-up” and that they would forgive the bill. Unfortunately, it seems as though Dayton didn’t exactly agree because 2.0 glitched halfway through the procedure and Richard didn’t wake up from the anesthesia, falling victim to a stroke despite showing absolutely no signs of distress.
Goodwin assured Crockett that these things happen, but he wasn’t convinced, and based on the teaser trailer for the upcoming episode, we can’t exclude the possibility that Dayton retaliated and purposefully glitched 2.0 to put Crockett’s patient in danger. If that’s the case, we’re talking about a much larger issue than just turning non-paying patients away. We’ll have to wait until next week to find out how this will pan out and if Dayton brings a new meaning to the word “villain.”
Dr. Charles and Maggie teamed up to deal with a paranoid patient with a phobia of hospitals. Jan was spewing all of the conspiracy theories she’d read online verbatim, which prompted her to refuse the necessary care following her car wreck. The dynamic duo did their best to quell Jan’s concerns and prove to her that they didn’t mean her any harm, but in the end, they couldn’t get through to her and she refused to provide any bloodwork so they could check out why she was experiencing jaundice.
This wasn’t a straightforward case for psychology because Jan was simply gullible and fearful as she experienced a traumatic incident where her sister walked into a hospital as a healthy person and was diagnosed with cancer that took her life in less than a month. Jan is still processing all that trauma, so Charles had to believe that she’d deal with it when she was ready and on her own terms. There’s no forcing someone to seek out help when they don’t want it, especially if they seem to be of sound mind. Hopefully, her storyline will circle back around in the future and they will be able to give her the proper care she needs.
Meanwhile, the Archer boys and Hannah Asher once again found themselves rotating in each other’s orbit. Dean came around to the idea of Sean donating a kidney to him, though he definitely chewed out Hannah for clueing his son in on his waning health.
Dean dealt with a patient with a 6-foot-long tapeworm in his intestines—yeah, suddenly, we’re not hungry either—while Hannah and Sean assisted the patient’s wife, who shockingly went into labor without even knowing she was pregnant. The two scenes mirrored each other in that Dean was removing the tapeworm while Hannah was removing a baby. Gruesome and brilliant at the same time! And Sean fit in perfectly by stepping in for the father to help Pam during the delivery process, which also gave him a front-row seat to Hannah’s skilled labor and delivery.
He was in awe seeing her in action, which just confirmed that he has feelings for her, but when he told his father, Dean shut it down by suggesting that it was too early to get into a relationship as they are both focusing on their recovery. Of course, the admission threw Dean off, especially because we know he has a soft spot for Hannah, which was evident when she trolled him in the doctor’s lounge and helped him clean up his coffee off of his medical coat. Sean witnessed the moment, and though it definitely looked more romantic than it was, you can’t deny there’s chemistry there. I smell a love triangle brewing—not a first for Med. And while I want Sean to find someone, I think it’s written in the stars for Hannah and Dean!
Lastly, and I won’t say much about this, I’m genuinely disliking the storyline between Dr. Charles and Lilliana’s brother, Pawel. I get that he’s going through a tough time in terms of finding himself in a new country, but I continue to cringe at the way immigrants are being represented on this show. We’ll see how things escalate and if the storyline can be salvaged in my eyes.
What did you think of the episode? Is Maggie really considering leaving Med? Are we on the brink of a Crockett and Dayton face-off? How will Sharon figure this out to once again save Med?
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