Category Archives: HBO Max

The Pitt S2 E13

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“7:00 PM”

I have never watched The Pitt live on HBO Max on the night it released until tonight. It had a premiere feel to me. Maybe it was just a coincidence, but it did seem to make the episode pop even more than it does.

Robby and Dana continue their conflict with each other that resulted in a fiery scene to end the episode. Dana is trying to get Robby to go home and start his sabbatical and Robby is listing the reasons why he is still there. You can tell why these two are the backbone of the ensemble. Then, Robby blurted out the episode ender, leaving us all with our mouths agape… “What if I don’t come back?”

Obviously, this is something that has been weighing on Robby for awhile now, and part of the reason he is avoiding his departure is that he is afraid that if he heads out, he’ll find what has been missing and he won’t come back. Robby stated that he was unsure if the place could go on without him. This is, of course, extremely narcissistic feelings, but they stem from his own breakdown.

There are speculation online that this might be leading to suicidal thoughts for Robby, with some going as far as to say that Robby might die. It does seem as he has been getting worse as this season progressed, but I find it hard to believe that there is going to be any sort of suicide attempt by the lead character of this show.

It was nice to get some extended time this week with Whitaker as he has seemed to be somewhat benched this season. It is ironic that we get more of Whitaker on the screen at a time when his shift should be over. It is funny how the show consistently looks for ways to keep these people in the ER well past when they should be gone.

I have to say that I am not sure I appreciate this show giving me a character like Ogilvie, who I hated, only to bring him down to earth, humanize him, and make him someone I can relate with.

Then, I did not understand why Sean was here as a night shift doctor named Henderson. I thought Sean was preparing to be a sous chef. Of course, this is a reference to the fact that actor Luke Tennie, who has played Sean on Shrinking for all three seasons of that show is now appearing on The Pitt. It was a touch distracting through no one’s fault but my own.

There are two remaining episodes of the season and with Robby’s friend Duke getting a horrible diagnosis, things may be amping up to a painful final two episodes of a season that has been sensational once again.

The Pitt S2 E12

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“6:00 PM”

We left last week with a patient holding Emma in a headlock. Dana to the rescue. Unfortunately, her efforts might get herself into trouble as she gave Versed that she had been carrying around in her pocket. This tense scene was strong and brought conflict between Robby and Dana. Katherine LaNasa was amazing in her performance this week as she railed against everyone that might hint at the fact that she took the step a touch too far.

The patient is a jerk and was revealed to have been on cocaine and alcohol at the time of his accident. This apparently could lead to psychotic behavior. He was not very understanding about it.

Speaking of Robby, he seems to be waffling about leaving the ER. He was scheduled to head on a motorcycle run on vacation, but it feels as if he is finding reasons to stick around. I am not sure what the major issue Robby has right now, but he is completely unsure.

There was a nice story of an elderly couple who came to the ER after a car accident. The story expanded into a question whether this couple was capable of taking care of themselves any more. Their daughter, played by Britney Young (from GLOW), expressed concern that they refused to listen to her concerns.

There is only three more episodes of season 2 and I expect some big character moments coming up, especially featuring Robby.

The Pitt S2 E11

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“5:00 PM”

I found myself yelling “Don’t end there” at my TV as The Pitt went to black screen.

I thought the lead of this week’s episode would be ICE.

Instead, the sudden awakening patient who grabbed Emma, who was just checking his vitals. The patient was a golfer who had been admitted after passing out from drinking too much and, as he held Emma in the headlock, said “What did you do to me?”

Oof. That was rough and the door was closed, keeping the sound away from the busy ER. I hope Emma gets out of this ok.

Now, back to the big event this week… ICE brings in a detainee for medical attention and brings chaos with them. The Pitt has never shied away from the political storytelling, but this one was a big swing. The very presence of the ICE agents sent a ripple effect through the ER and the waiting room as people were just taking off in fear of what could happen.

It was certainly implied that the patient, the little lady with the torn rotator cuff, had that injury because of the ICE agents. Then, when they were trying to take her away (before she got her sling), nurse Jesse (Ned Brower) tried to intervene because the ICE agents were hurting the patient and he wound up on the ground, arrested too.

At first, Robby wanted to get the patient treated and out of the ER quickly to minimize the presence of ICE, but his monologue he delivered to one of the agents showed how on edge he was about the situation. This whole ICE beat played into Robby’s own struggles this year as he let him have it.

It was a tense stretch of time that really colored the episode.

There were other major things that happened. Rosie dies. Ogilvie is facing so many challenges, including a misdiagnosis that led to a patient’s major trauma. A young boy is brought in with severe heat exhaustion, and his mother struggled with the her failure to protect him. Mel is having issues with her sister’s sex life. Then there is a conflict with Langdon and Santos. Robby’s friend gives Robby the reason to stick around after his shift ends.

This was a solid episode with a lot of things happening.

The Pitt S2 E10

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“4:00 PM”

“You hold the leg.”

I laughed at this line as Ogilvie was handed the severed leg of an incoming patient. The look on his face was just hilarious.

The Pitt was thrown several more rough cases after a water park ride collapse.

Robby is showing the stress of everything a bit more this year as he ripped into Samira after her panic attack. Robby did come right to the point sharply. He also had some words with Dr. Al-Hashimi. Robby has been slowly cracking over this show and those cracks are beginning to show.

There are a bunch of characters struggling with their own personal issues. Mel came back from her disposition and the lawyers were apparently rough on her. Langdon and Santos’s dialogue is sarcastic to say the best. Both Samira and Javadi are having mommy issues. Becca tells Mel that she had a UTI because she has been having sex with her boyfriend- lots of sex, she said.

Things feel as if they are beginning to get tense among the characters and I wonder if things are going to become rough soon.

The Pitt S2 E9

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“3:00 PM”

I was thinking that it has been a while since we had a patient that seemed okay and then suddenly is in jeopardy. Wouldn’t you know that the next scene was that exact thing happened.

What would the Fourth of July be without having some kid blow off some fingers with a firecracker? We got one of those in this episode, but it is leading to more of a story than just that. The kid is being raised by his sister after their parents had been deported back to Haiti. This one feels more topical in its storytelling.

Howard, the overweight man returned with specifics. He needed surgery immediately, and the phone call he had with his estranged sister was heartbreaking. I have a real bad feeling that Howard is not making it. I sure hope I am wrong about that.

We got a new “old” character. Apparently, Monica was a clerk who got forced into retirement by the tech, but she was quite the storm coming into the ER with all the online stuff down because of potential cyberattack. She only had a few scenes, but she immediately became one of my favorite.

Mel was taken off for her disposition, just minutes after her sister was brought into the ER with stomach pains. Langdon took over that case and seemed to know exactly what was needed.

Roxie, the lung cancer patient, is actively preparing to die, as the morphine continues to be increased. It is another tough storyline currently being run through The Pitt.

And my favorite quote of the week was from Dr. Robby…

“Ogilvie, put your hand down.”

The Pitt S2 E8

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“2:00 PM”

The Pitt dropped its latest episode this past Thursday, entitled “2:00 PM.” Our group of ER responders are facing yet another new threat.

At the end of last week’s episode, they were informed that they were shutting down their online presence because of another hospital that had suffered a cyberattack. Much like last season when the team prepped for the mass shooting victims they expected, everyone gathered around the hub and got their instructions on what they had to do now that so many of the items they were used to having would be unavailable.

Coming in clutch immediately was Dr. Joy Kwon, who admitted to having photographic memory and she was able to recreate the board when Whitaker’s pictures turned out too blurry.

Another MVP of the hour was Princess, who had to take over as floor nurse during the chaos because Dana was still tied up with the sexual assault case. Princess was never confident during the time, but she still did her job.

A new patient struck a chord with me as they wheeled in a man who was well over 450 pounds and the discussions of his weight hit close to home. Once again, I wanted to throttle Ogilvie for his insensitivity. The actor who played the overweight man was great though, funny, self-deprecating, and kind-hearted.

The anger shown by Dana when she had finished the new rape kit only to find one that she had done two weeks before still in the pick up location. He phone call to the police was a great moment of the episode.

We got some foreshadowing this episode as Robbie’s friend Duke was late showing up. That was apparently unlike him and makes me wonder if Duke is the motorcycle accident that the show has been hinting at all season long.

The Pitt S2 E7

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“1:00 P.M.”

The Pitt dropped the reason why all the patients have been sent to them from the other hospital … it is a cyberattack. And, starting next episode, the Pitt is heading for a world without technology.

Before we get to that, the episode deals with several of the patients that have been taking up time during the season, plus a new sexual assault victim, who Dana spends a lot of time with.

We get a quick scene between Robbie and Langdon that just makes me think that Robbie is being hardheaded for some reason. It is tense, and it does not seem that the loss of Louie brought them together, but that does not seem to be the case.

Dr. Abbot returned to the ER after helping a police officer who had been shot in the field.

The Pitt S2 E6

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“12:00 PM”

I have been dreading this episode since the beginning of the season. All the hints and foreshadowing was there, but I tried my best to ignore them.

Then, last week, the show ended with Louie nonresponsive and Robby and Langdon trying to revive him.

Of course, that is where the show picked up this week and we watched as this secondary character died of a pulmonary hemorrhage due t liver failure. Louie had been a drinker, we knew. We just never knew what had led to the drinking.

During the debrief and the chance to say goodbye, Robby told the whole group assembled that Louie had been married and that his wife and unborn child had died in a car wreck and that Louie had never been the same after.

Ernest Harden Jr. played the role of Louie and you can tell how great of an actor he was when he was a side character that only had a bit of screen time and yet his character’s death impacted me dramatically.

This episode featured the nurses of the Pitt more than we had gotten prior, which was a long overdue look. There were other arcs to the episode, my absolutely most hated one was the hot dog competitor. I hate vomit scenes and this had two of them. I really hated that and I am glad he seemed to be a one and done arc.

However, the episode belonged to Louie and the grief that the staff showed. It was poignant when we discovered that the ER was Louie’s emergency contact.

Then, there was Ogilvie, whom I have not liked much this new season, but now I hate him for his callousness tied to Louie’s death. The way he broke the news to Whitaker so carelessly and his comment about “an alcohol abuser” was heartless. I am cheering for this guy to flame out in the program.

Emotional episode and we are still only six episodes in.

The Pitt S2 E5

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“11:00 AM”

What I have been dreading all season long finally came to head, and it was right at the end of the episode.

Louis has been a gigantic foreshadow the first four episodes of this season. I was hoping that I was not picking up on the hints that were being dropped, but, damn it, it was exactly what it seemed. And then to leave it as a cliffhanger was just rude.

That will be for next episode, I guess.

The relationship between Robby and Langdon is coming to the forefront and I believe the forgiveness of this pair is a major arc of the season.

One of our patients from last week, the waitress with the sepsis, continued to slip. When her boss called her, threatening her to get to work, Robby took the phone from her and let him have it. I loved that moment so much. I actually threw my hands into the air afterwards.

Another new patient is from a prison. This is another one that feels like it will be something that was developing into the near future.

It seems like Ogilvie has taken Whitaker’s place as having horrible things splattered on him. This week: explosive diarrhea after performing a fecal disimpaction, which was horrific. Oh, and he may have been exposed to tuberculosis.

The Pitt has been so strong, yet again. There are so many things that feel like are building over the year. I do love this show.

The Pitt S2 E4

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“10:00 AM”

This week’s episode of The Pitt was a slower one, as we got some specific, individual cases that allowed the staff to show that they are all very competent and intelligent doctors.

We also got some info on Dr. Collins, who is the one actor not returning to season two. The character is said to have gone back to her home in Portland, taking an attending job and planned to adopt a baby. It was nice to know the story behind the character’s departure.

Whitaker is reveled to be “helping” out a patient’s widow on a farm. The widow was from last season too and it did seem that Whitaker protested about being just friend a bit too much.

Whitaker also joined in on the betting pool about the reason why patients were being diverted from Westbridge Hospital. Whitaker chose power outage. Dr. Al-Hashimi joined the pool too.

It seemed as if Louis is doing better, bringing the stress level down that the happy-go-lucky patient was going to face something critical this season.

There was a interesting story involving eating disorder with Mel showing a lot of empathy in the situation. The show revisited the boy who was brought in an sedated early in the season, with his sister showing up, unsure about what was going on.

More foreshadowing involving a motorcycle and Robbie. Something is going to happen with that this season, I would bet.

It feels like they are setting up for something big later on in the season, but these slower episodes give some great opportunity for character development in both the staff and the patients.

The Pitt S2 E3

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“9:00 AM”

This show has trained me to anticipate someone suddenly dropping over unexpectedly. I am always on edge waiting to see what is about to happen.

It is also why I am dreading every second that Louis is on screen because I am expecting something horribly tragic to happen before he is done with his draining and his tooth.

Now, we are getting a Code Black from Westbridge Hospital, averting their overflow patients to The Pitt. Is this going to be the massive section like the shooting was last season?

Does the fact that Robbie lies about his wearing of a motorcycle helmet foreshadow something down the road? It is another thing to just stress me out about.

The scenes with the little Jewish lady with the burned leg were remarkably sweet and heartfelt. I loved how she bonded with Dr. Robbie right away and how she chastised him when she found out about a 50ish man riding a motorcycle. Another piece of foreshadowing?

The little girl who they suspected of being abused by her father turned out to have something totally different to account for the bruising. The father certainly has a temper as he flew off the handle a couple of times once he arrived.

Langdon got to pull out a trick (much like Robbie always does) to help settle down an active child so they could extract some beads from his nose. The best use of virtual video games ever.

Another solid episode of the show but I feel there are some really painfully tragic things that are about to happen. I sure hope I am wrong about them.

The Pitt S2 E2

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“8:00 AM”

Does Dr. Robby have a sneaky, behind-the-typical-treatment treatment for every emergency situation? He sure feels like he has a folksy solution to all kinds of situations, from shoulder dislocations to baby urination. It feels that our new Dr. Al-Hashimi isn’t as impressed as I am.

Dr. Whitaker’s main focus of the day was trying to comfort a Alzheimer’s patient whose husband had died that day. It was heartbreaking seeing him, for the second time, tell her that her husband had died. He took her to see the body and even that did not seem to work as she just thought he was resting. Alzheimer’s Disease is truly a tragic thing.

A man who was choking on broccoli delivered the line of the episode. After they had removed the broccoli, he told about his wife making him count calories in an attempt to lose weight and he said “I never choked on an sausage egg McMuffin.” LOL.

Dr. King got knocked to the ground and struck her head. She spent most of the time worrying over her part in a malpractice case that she would be testifying in later today so I hope that head blow does not come back in a bad way.

Maybe I am getting used to this show as I was cringing and saying out loud “What is going to be in there?” as they started to cut off the cast from the arm of the man who was brought in last week with a horrendous odor. The made sure he showered last week and disposed of his clothes this week. Anyway, back to the cast, I knew something would be coming out of that thing and, sure enough, we has a whole bunch of maggots. Ugh!

We also have evidence that an 8-hour erection is not a good thing. Not sure I needed the dick-shot in the scene. I could have used my imagination.

Another solid episode that was spent more with the characters than anything major in the emergency room. The show blends the cases and the doctors/nurses brilliantly and this is why it is one of the best shows on TV.

The Pitt S2 E1

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“7:00 AM”

I just finished the first season of The Pitt on HBO Max just in time for the start of season two. And season two kicked off setting up the overarching drama that will be running through the day.

The show’s concept is that every hour is shot in real time as the day shift comes in to take over. Doctor Robby arrived at the hospital on what was supposed to be his final day before heading on a sabbatical.

The show had its typically gross injuries that made me turn my head away. I have always had trouble with medical shows dating back to Quincy. This is far more realistic than most medical shows.

We have a brand new attending physician who will be replacing Robby when he was gone. She is Dr. Baran Al-Hashimi, and she definitely has a story to tell. They ended the episode on her as she stared down at a baby that had been deserted in the hospital’s bathroom. She also has a series of “improvements” for the Pitt that will surely create a conflict with Robby.

Dr. Langdon’s story continued. It did not seem that Robby had forgiven him yet. They had Langdon apologize to Louie, the patient we met last year who drank a lot. He is back and I am getting the feeling that something terrible is going to happen to him. The scene between Langdon and Louie, when Langdon revealed that he had stolen Louie’s medication in season one was a great scene and it made me like Louie all the more. I sense heartbreak coming.

Whitaker seems to have taken some steps to being even stronger than he was before. He led a moment of silence for a patient they lost (as Robby watched approvingly in the background). However, the first impression of the new interns was not the most impressive I have ever seen.

The Pitt is such a fantastic show and I am happy that it will be back weekly moving forward.

The Pitt S1 E14, E15

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“8:00 PM”

“9:00 PM”

The final two episodes of The Pitt were great, making this one of my favorite, if not my favorite, medical dramas ever. Admittedly, medical dramas and me do not necessarily mix. However, this was worth the moments of being uncomfortable.

The mass shooting patients slowed down in the fourteenth episode. Things were unbelievable with this show during this mass shooting story arc. I am also happy that David turned out to not be the shooter. Admittedly, he did make the eliminate list, and I liked the fallout from that.

Robby was discovered by Whittaker on the floor. He did a nice job handling Robby, but Robby was still very off-balanced. He seemed to be so angry over the last several episodes. His confrontation with Langdon in the parking lot was tense and sharp.

The end was wonderful, filled with hope and light among the darkness and depression. Robby looked as if he was going to make it through and they show did a nice job of tying up the different dangling threads that were out there. Some of them were simple mentions, but I do believe everything that the show had set up or hinted at was covered.

This show was really strong and became epic during the mass shooting event. The show did a great job with characterization and giving us specifics on the different characters. With a large cast, the show was great at giving each individual something specific about them. I feel like I know most of these characters now, and not just the main two or three.

Season two will start on HBO Max on January 8 and I will be watching it weekly after that instead of the way I watched this first season.

The Pitt S1 E11, E12, E13

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“5:00 PM”

“6:00 PM”

“7:00 PM”

Dr. Robby kept saying in episode 11 that there was only two hours left in the shift, but I knew there were still multiple hours of episodes remaining. I did not know what was going to happen.

And then all hell broke loose.

Some of the most unbelievably intense, stressful stretches of television that I have ever seen. The whole active shooter storyline came back around and slammed everyone at the ER in one massive blast.

I get the feeling that David, the boy who had the hit list back at the beginning of the day was not the culprit of this shooting. It may seem a bit contrived, but I believe it is all coincidence. When David strolled back to the hospital to pick up his mom, he did not seem like someone who just shot dozens of people.

Either way, this series of episodes was amazing, in the most difficult and painstakingly horrendous ways possible.

Who would have thought that the high pressure baby delivery in episode 11, with Dr. Collins working it after suffering her own miscarriage, would be the low stress scene of these three episodes. That whole baby thing was just anxiety-filled and I was begging the screen to save the baby.

Then, it went crazy.

Watching the hospital prepare for the mass shooting before the victims arrived was fascinating. I wonder if that is the way most/all hospitals respond to an emergency like that? They knew what had to happen and they turned their ER into a MASH unit. I have never quite seen anything like it.

Then, Robby cracking at the end of episode 13 brought one more scene for Noah Wylie’s Emmy roll, with all the weight of the deaths of the day, compounded by this horrible triage situation, and trying to explain to his step-son (of sorts) how he could not save the girlfriend.

I can’t imagine what would be going through the minds of those doctors and interns who were having their first day on the job before everything went to crap. They all were having their moments during the chaos.

The first season is down to just two episodes remaining, which does not seem to be enough to manage everything that the show has set up. This makes me feel that there will be plenty of things dangling at the end of the season, when this day finally comes to a close.