First, she dropped out of medical school. Then she broke off her engagement. But one thing that Dani hasn’t quit is her belief in God. She knows that God has a purpose for her. And she believes that if she steps out in faith to follow His calling, He’ll provide the rest.

Which is how she wound up working as an EMT for the County Rescue department. It’s been a tough road, and the destination still isn’t exactly clear.

Dani feels like she’s on the path God wants her to be on. However, during her training, she was one of three candidates vying for the one permanent job available. And Dani didn’t get it. But she managed to snag a temporary position after another EMT took a six-month leave of absence to seek help for his alcohol addiction.

Now, that six-month window is coming to a close, and Dani still isn’t sure where God wants her. To make matters more confusing, she’s just learned her ex-fiancé, Hunter, has moved back to town and taken a position as an ER doctor at the hospital—the same one she delivers patients to when she’s on duty. If another EMT position opens up and Dani stays, she’ll have to contend with that complication (not to mention the two other guys who are also romantically interested in her). But if she goes, she’s not sure where God will send her next.

Still, Dani’s friends reassure her: If she’ll just have faith and allow God to speak to her, He’ll show her exactly where He wants her to be.

Comforting Rescue

Many TV fans love their medical dramas. One need only look to the success of shows such as Grey’s Anatomy, The Good Doctor or Chicago Med (or beloved older series such as ER, St. Elsewhere or even M*A*S*H, for that matter) to understand that. But Great American Pure Flix brings something new to the genre that makes it stand out against the rest.

County Rescue doesn’t have any foul language or sordid affairs. Dani allows her faith to guide her decisions, not her next romantic liaison. Other characters allow their faith to govern their lives, too. And although not everyone here is a Christian, even nonbelievers are positively impacted by the conviction of their faith-filled coworkers.

Like other medical shows, things can still get pretty intense. Dani and the other EMTs are saving lives, after all. Some people crash under that pressure. (One of Dani’s coworkers takes to drinking, eventually seeking professional help for his addiction.) But no matter what hardships they face, the team comes together like a family, supporting one another and lifting each person up.

And don’t worry, if you’re drawn to this genre’s penchant for interpersonal drama, there’s still plenty of that: Dani is the romantic interest of at least three guys, after all. But it’s all presented in a wholesome, comforting way that will make you root for the characters, not gossip about their salacious antics.

(Editor’s Note: Plugged In is rarely able to watch every episode of a given series for review. As such, there’s always a chance that you might see a problem that we didn’t. If you notice content that you feel should be included in our review, send us an email at letters@pluggedin.com, or contact us via Facebook or Instagram, and be sure to let us know the episode number, title and season so that we can check it out.)

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A day in the sun is exactly what he gets in Watson.

In this modern CBS spin on the classic Arthur Conan Doyle stories, Watson is an American doctor who left his life and career behind to solve mysteries with Sherlock Holmes. But after a fateful encounter on Reichenbach Falls with Holmes’ nemesis James Moriarty, Watson wakes up in a hospital to find he can’t remember the events of the past few weeks — and worse, that Sherlock Holmes is dead.

Watson’s story doesn’t end here. In fact, it’s just beginning. Turns out, Holmes was fairly wealthy, and he left a significant sum of cash to his friend in the hopes that he would resume his medical career.

Watson would never betray his friend’s last wishes. And that is quite a lot of cash. So he heads home to Philadelphia, hires a group of brilliant, slightly eccentric doctors and opens a clinic to treat rare diseases. It seems that Watson and his team are really doing some good in the world…except that Watson’s brain injury might be a little more serious than he’s letting on, and Moriarty might be a little less dead than everybody thinks.

ELEMENTARY, MY DEAR WATSON

After nearly two centuries and countless adaptations, it’s hard to believe that there are any twists left to make to the Holmes stories. Still, Watson does its best. In fact, the ‘Sherlock Holmes’ of it all almost feels like an afterthought. If occasional reference wasn’t made to ‘Moriarty’ or ‘the Reichenbach Falls,’ you might think you were just catching a re-run of Grey’s Anatomy.

The heavy lean into medical drama means you probably also have a good idea of what content issues to expect. Patients find themselves in upsetting situations (in the pilot episode, a young pregnant woman faces a fatal case of insomnia), while doctors get involved in some messy personal entanglements. There’s also the presence of drugs, as one of the clinic patients is a recovering heroin addict and Watson takes various prescriptions to perform “experiments” and develop new treatments.

Because Watson airs on broadcast TV, you won’t find anything very explicit here, but look out for some adverse themes. For example, Watson is a recent divorcee, and his ex-wife Mary is now dating another woman. For now, the couple is only spoken about rather than seen, but it’s highly unlikely things will stay that way in the future.

Watson probably won’t enthuse diehard Conan Doyle fans looking for their next fix of Sherlock Holmes. Still, it’s an original spin on classic characters, and we find plenty of admirable themes about the value of human life and devoting oneself to the care of others. Just be careful of some adverse messages that may pop up, too. All evidence in this case points to them developing further down the road.

(Editor’s Note: Plugged In is rarely able to watch every episode of a given series for review. As such, there’s always a chance that you might see a problem that we didn’t. If you notice content that you feel should be included in our review, send us an email at letters@pluggedin.com, or contact us via Facebook or Instagram, and be sure to let us know the episode number, title and season so that we can check it out. )

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She’s the Chief of Internal Medicine at Westside Hospital. And chances are, she’ll be able to figure out what’s wrong and get you right on your way.

Just don’t expect a kind word or a lollipop during your treatment: Amy’s the worst-rated doctor when it comes to bedside manner. Her work-focused attitude extends to those around her, with many of her fellow staff members merely putting up with her rather than liking her.

But then, Amy wakes up as a patient in her own hospital. She’s been in a severe car crash and has undergone significant surgery. It quickly becomes apparent to the doctors treating her that she’s suffering from a condition called partial retrograde amnesia.

She doesn’t remember anything from the last eight years: her divorce four years ago; her current boyfriend of five months, fellow doctor Jake Heller; or even the death of her son seven years ago.

They aren’t sure if Amy will ever remember what she’s forgotten, and those close to her don’t know how to respond, either. Her ex-husband and estranged daughter both struggle with Amy’s sudden desire to speak with them after years of enduring a broken relationship. And Jake can’t help but hurt that his girlfriend doesn’t even know who he is anymore.

There seems to be only one constant from before the accident: When Dr. Amy Larsen walks into their room, it’s still a bittersweet thing.

Remember When

Medical dramas tend to contain the same general content issues: injuries and romance. And Doc, so far, charts the same.

The romantic focal point of the show centers on Amy’s rekindling relationship with her ex-husband, a man who’s moved on and gotten married again. And given that the series starts with Amy and Jake passionately kissing in the back of a car (with the intent to do more), it’s only a matter of time before romantic drama ensues.

If the first episode is anything to go on, we’ll be seeing a lot more injuries and surgeries as the show continues. The most graphic, so far, involves a surgeon removing a piece of Amy’s skull during surgery to reveal the bloody mess beneath. And speaking of mess, bad language occasionally pops up, too, including “a–,” “b–ch” and “h—.”

Doc has the opportunity to tell an interesting story about fixing broken relationships and second chances. But with the potential for the show to slip into salacious content, time will tell if Doc is worth remembering.

(Editor’s Note: Plugged In is rarely able to watch every episode of a given series for review. As such, there’s always a chance that you might see a problem that we didn’t. If you notice content that you feel should be included in our review, send us an email at letters@pluggedin.com, or contact us via Facebook or Instagram, and be sure to let us know the episode number, title and season so that we can check it out.)

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After unexpectedly losing her husband in a tragic accident, Los Angeles no longer felt like home. So she picked up and moved to Virgin River, a small town in Northern California, and has been working there for a little over a year now as the town’s nurse practitioner and midwife.

And even though this new start has gone amazingly well, it seems there’s always something creeping around the corner to keep life in this small town … interesting.

Feels Like Home

Virgin River is an unassuming place where everyone knows everything about their neighbor. The exact opposite of a big city. And while small-town gossip isn’t Mel’s cup of tea, she’s gotten used to it—and she’s come to love this nosy-but-loving community.

There’s Hope McCrea, the town’s mayor and queen of what’s happening when. Then there’s her husband, Doc, the town’s old-school, rough-around-the-edges physician who just celebrated his practice’s 30th anniversary. There’s Preacher, a retired Marine with his own secrets and life-endangering responsibilities; town bad-boy Brady; Doc’s grandson, Denny (the child of a son he never knew he had) and his pregnant girlfriend, Lizzie; and plenty of others full of muddled stories.

And if you think that’s complicated, just wait. See, although Mel has, in large part, tried to stay out of the town drama, she’s wound up intertwined in the rumor mill more than her fair share. One secret that didn’t stick: Her relationship with retired marine and local bar and restaurant owner Jack Sheridan.

Since the day Mel stepped foot in Virgin River, she and Jack had an instant connection. They’ve dealt with a lot in the short time they’ve known each other, including a miscarriage, a case of false paternity (since one townie lied that Jack was the father of her twins for the larger part of the first few seasons) and a surprise reveal in Mel’s biological father (who just so happens to live in Virgin River). But they’ve finally managed to get their affairs in order long enough to settle down. One can only hope that no more past entanglements impede their forthcoming nuptials.

Throw in the rest of the town, and you’ve got one big, messy family. The kind who are always there for you … even when you don’t want them to be.

A LITTLE BIT OF EVERYTHING

Netflix’s romantic drama Virgin River is based off an award-winning book series of the same name. Each episode clocks in at more than 45 minutes and is packed with enough drama and tension to keep viewers wanting more. If you don’t believe us, just look at the popularity of this show or the sheer number of books sold. It’s wild.

There’s soapy romance, a bit of action, emotional connection and character development. Mix those elements with trauma and war stories, and you’d think Netflix was trying to get wives and their husbands hooked. And while there’s plenty to like here when it comes to moral messages, defending the vulnerable and supporting the needy, there’s also enough to warrant caution.

First, Mel’s past experiences and trauma come in flashbacks (especially in earlier seasons) that could easily trigger anyone who has lost a loved one or a child. The same goes for Jack. He struggles with severe PTSD; it seems that no matter how much he drinks, his night terrors are never far away.

There’s also illegal drug trading (as well as drug growing) that goes on right outside of Virgin River (which is not praised, by the way), resulting in people getting shot and otherwise brutally murdered. There’s also domestic abuse, underage drinking, light language, tons of gossip and more than a few unmarried couples who get in between the sheets every now and then.

So, before you venture up into Virgin River’s fictional forests, just know that not everything that takes place here is fit for the whole family.

(Editor’s Note: Plugged In is rarely able to watch every episode of a given series for review. As such, there’s always a chance that you might see a problem that we didn’t. If you notice content that you feel should be included in our review, send us an email at letters@pluggedin.com, or contact us via Facebook or Instagram, and be sure to let us know the episode number, title and season so that we can check it out.)

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That’s what hospital administrator Joyce would love to say. She’d like to say they’re the best hospital in Oregon … as long as you don’t count any of those in Portland.

You see, St. Denis is a safety-net hospital, meaning its doctors and nurses provide healthcare to everyone, regardless of insurance or financial status. Sure, it puts a burden on their resources, but they care far more about treating every patient who needs assistance … even if they’re understaffed and underfunded.

But still, Joyce hopes that when a camera crew walks through those sliding-glass doors to film a documentary, they’ll be greeted with a smile. After all, Joyce says, smiles are the most infectious disease out there.

Just … don’t expect any of those from Supervising Nurse Alex, the workaholic control freak whose shift ended two hours ago. Oh, and don’t look at veteran Dr. Ron Leonard, whose long years working in the medical field make him far less likely to crack a joke. And maybe don’t ask for any smiles from the timid new nurse, Matt, either. He’ll probably just get confused and mess the facial movements up.

Hmm … who else?

I guess you couldget a smile from Dr. Bruce Schweitz, but it’s hard to tell if it’s a genuine smile or if he’s just acting as a charming and prolific main character for all the cameras.

Look. If you want smiles, maybe go to the dentist next time.

20cc’s of Medical Comedy

We’ve reviewed plenty of workplace comedies on Plugged In.

The Office. Parks and Recreation. Brooklyn Nine-Nine. Superstore. American Auto. Abbott Elementary. Animal Control. Blockbuster. Tires.

What was once a unique venture is now commonplace in comedy. Most come with mockumentary-style camera work; quirky, over-the-top characters; and situations that’ll more than likely be introduced and resolved in a single episode. And while a few of them succeed, most of them fail to catch on, quietly dying out like the struggling companies on which so many of them center.

It’s hard to tell what side of that fence the genre’s newest entry, St. Denis Medical, will fall.

Of all the series listed above, St. Denis Medical feels most similar to Parks and Recreation. It stars a kooky cast of characters who, though they solve (and usually cause) some issues around the hospital, genuinely hope to help patients feel better. Like Parks and Rec’s Leslie Knope, Supervising Nurse Alex is an overworked control freak who fears that her absence may literally cause the hospital to explode. But also like Leslie Knope, Alex is kind—a flawed character who longs to provide the best treatment to her constituents.

As you’d expect, the other exaggerated character types working alongside her, despite their flaws, feel likewise. So the tender, heartfelt moments that appear as suddenly as the show’s jokes can be really lovely, too.

But don’t ignore its vitals. St. Denis Medical, were it a patient, is still at risk of crashing.

Occasional sexual gags; references to drug use and abuse; and mild crude language appear in each episode (though harsh profanities are censored). Because this show takes place in a hospital, some storylines revolve around and include death. And unskilled new-hire nurse Matt, who originally hails from a small medicine-opposing “religious community” in Montana, occasionally references his religious upbringing as he learns medical practices—often as the butt of a joke.

St. Denis Medical, in my opinion, balances precariously between stabilizing and coding. And only time will tell which way the show’s health veers.

(Editor’s Note: Plugged In is rarely able to watch every episode of a given series for review. As such, there’s always a chance that you might see a problem that we didn’t. If you notice content that you feel should be included in our review, send us an email at letters@pluggedin.com, or contact us via Facebook or Instagram, and be sure to let us know the episode number, title and season so that we can check it out.)

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Oh, but what if you eat a little too much shrimp and give yourself iodine poisoning? Well, not to worry, you’ll just take a quick trip down to our medical bay, and our lovely staff down there will do everything in their power to make sure your vacation on our little slice of tropical heaven doesn’t have to end prematurely.

Be sure to say a friendly “hello” to nurses Avery and Tristan, who’ve been sailing with us for years! Led by the newly hired (and probably overqualified) Dr. Max Bankman, there’s no injury, disease or predicament you could bring through their doors that they can’t fix!

I do have to warn you, however, that if you stay too long in Max’s vicinity, and you might just gain an injury: a broken heart.

Love Doctor

Hulu’s newest medical drama, Doctor Odyssey, stars a small cast aboard a luxury cruise ship. But if you were sailing these seas, you might be better off picking a different cruise line.

Sure, Max, Avery and Tristan will tend to your injury, however serious it may be. After all, they’re tasked with making sure whatever pain you’re experiencing won’t detract from your overall experience. But they may also bicker amongst themselves while operating on you.

That’s because this medical drama comes with a hefty emphasis on drama, especially when romantic tensions rise between the main characters. The cruise may sail through the Bermuda Triangle, but this show is far more focused on its love triangle, as Max and Tristan both harbor affection for Avery. And if the first episode is anything to go on, those affections are quick to cause frequent sexual remarks (and sometimes, actions) among all three.

Doctor Odyssey may not be the worst medical drama put to screen, but this cruise liner spends way too much time fixating on all things related to sex to stay afloat.

(Editor’s Note: Plugged In is rarely able to watch every episode of a given series for review. As such, there’s always a chance that you might see a problem that we didn’t. If you notice content that you feel should be included in our review, send us an email at letters@pluggedin.com, or contact us via Facebook or Instagram, and be sure to let us know the episode number, title and season so that we can check it out.)

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While his disability makes it difficult for him to fully connect with his coworkers, it allows him to connect on deeper levels with his patients. He’s the sole neurologist at Bronx General Hospital. And compared to other doctors, he’s known for being a bit more … eccentric in his methodology. Other doctors do things by the book; Wolf dives deeper—much to his hospital’s legal frustrations.

“You want to change how your patients see the world,” an exasperated doctor states in a meeting.

“I want to change how the world sees my patients,” corrects Wolf.

Of course, there’s a personal reason why Wolf continues where others might stop: He was told (by his own mother) that no one could help his father with his mental struggles. That’s why Wolf endures much longer than other hospital workers to understand what really lies at the root of his patients’ mental problems—and how he might be able to mitigate them.

The Doctor Sees You

Brilliant Minds feels familiar and different.

It’s familiar, in that it stars a brilliant, but socially inept medical professional who simply understands how his patients tick better than anyone around him. But it also feels different, in that this show—or at least it’s main character—is loosely based on the work of the late Dr. Oliver Wolf Sacks. The famous neurologist worked in the Bronx and wrote many books on the unique case studies with which he was involved.

Like his real-life counterpart, the fictionalized Dr. Wolf spends his free time swimming the chilly New York waters. They’re both homosexual men. And they both work at understanding uncommon mental illnesses.

The show likewise grapples with issues you might expect from a hospital: bloody procedures and emergencies; violent or disturbing mental illnesses; drug use and abuse. What’s more, while hospitals attempt to create sterile environments, it’s evident that some crude-tongued mouths here need to be washed with soap. (Beyond a brief mention to Wolf’s homosexuality and a nurse who changes out of dirty scrubs, we’ve yet to see much in the way of sexual content.)

Brilliant Minds falls right in line, content-wise, with its medical counterparts. It’s full of noble intentions: We see doctors and nurses who strive to take care of their patients in the best way they know how. But like a visit to a hospital, it’s a show that may require a hand washing afterwards.

(Editor’s Note: Plugged In is rarely able to watch every episode of a given series for review. As such, there’s always a chance that you might see a problem that we didn’t. If you notice content that you feel should be included in our review, send us an email at letters@pluggedin.com, or contact us via Facebook or Instagram, and be sure to let us know the episode number, title and season so that we can check it out.)

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What, another X-Files reboot?

Not exactly. Aliens aren’t in the offing in CBS’ Evil. And our main characters work for the Catholic Church.

IN FULL POSSESSION

David Acosta is a priest in training, hired by the Vatican to cull its backlog of potentially supernatural cases. Does John Doe really need an exorcist, or just a good psychotherapist? Is this startling event really a miracle, or just a clever fraud? The Catholic Church gets, well, legions of requests for investigation and intervention, but it can’t send out fully trained exorcists to check out all of them. So David goes out in their stead to discern which cases really deserve the Church’s attention—and which should be turned over to, say, the local police.

Dr. Kristen Bouchard doesn’t buy into miracles or demonic possession. She’s a psychologist, you see, and a lapsed Catholic to boot. The only demons she’s sure about are those we manufacture ourselves. And while Kristen might seem like an odd choice to work for the Catholic Church, David relies on her expertise. “The problem with my job is that possession looks a lot like insanity,” he tells her. “And insanity looks a lot like possession.”

Kristen may not believe, in the strictest sense, but she finds the work interesting. Plus, it pays the bills. She’s got four little girls to take care of and a mountain of student loans to repay—not to mention a husband who is frequently away. She’ll take on the occasional possession case if it means she can also keep possession of her house.

The team is rounded out by an uber-scientific investigator named Ben. While David and Kristen explore a subject’s mind, Ben taps around the environment. Are those weird, whispering noises a sign of a haunting—or just faulty pipes? Ben’s the guy to ask (though, admittedly, he always thinks the answer is “the pipes”).

But while the trio may not agree on the source of these strange manifestations they investigate, they do agree what they’re fighting: evil. Pure evil, embodied (at least at first) by the oily Leland Townsend. He, along with dozens of horrible helpmates, stirs up trouble on social media and plays into the worst instincts of the society’s most vulnerable and estranged. Is he merely psychotic? Or does he answer to a more infernal boss?

By Season Four, Leland’s still hanging around and causing trouble (as any character played by Michael Emerson is wont to do). And this time, he’s picked up some predatory tendencies. He’s managed to steal and fertilize one of Kristen’s own eggs in hopes that he’ll be the one to bring about the antichrist. According to Leland in Season Four’s premiere episode, the baby’s due in 38 days—a number which coincides both with a prophecy David received from an angel regarding the end of the world and the opening of a nearby particle accelerator…

TOUCHED BY … A DEVIL?

While most networks run screaming from the subject of religion as if it was that little girl from The Exorcist, CBS—the same network that hit paydirt with Touched by an Angel—has shown a willingness to grapple with faith in recent years. And though it was once in a thoughtful way, later seasons (now streaming exclusively on the CBS-related Paramount+) suggests that the directors have traded its respectful roots for absurd and irreverent sensationalism.

Evil, created by The Good Wife’s brain trust of Robert and Michelle King and starring Westworld’s Katja Herbers and Luke Cage’s Mike Colter, may have been its most ambitious foray into faith yet. But with its move to Paramount+ in Season Two, the show has since pushed not only pushed the envelope, but it has burned it to a crisp.

Robert King is Catholic. Wife Michelle describes herself as a secular Jew. “Our intent has always been to have religion front and center in the show. That’s the appeal of it,” Michelle told The Federalist. “The other thing that’s important to me is that we show characters with very different points of view who are willing to discuss these things and listen to each other in a respectful way. Right now, there is a lot of violent disagreement in the world and not a lot of listening with respect.”

Though the characters are indeed respectful of one another, by Season Three, the show lacks that respect for faith—particularly the Catholic Church. Even the show’s priests themselves often show a disdain or disbelief for Catholic orthodoxy. Naturally, the show has questionable bits of content as a result.

Whenever you’re dealing with demonic possession and exorcisms, things can take a turn to the scary … and sometimes the bloody. While not every episode features red stuff dripping and spurting about, it’s completely dependent on what supernatural mystery the team’s exploring in each given week. Sex, too, can be an uncomfortable plot point—in fact, it’s the central focus for the first episode of Season 3, where we uncomfortably watch David have sex with a demonic entity (one who continues to make appearances in Season Four, too). That’s not to mention that David, in order to foster a connection with God, has been known to take psychotropic substances to, ahem, encourage visions—a practice rather outside Catholic orthodoxy. We should note, too, that Kristen flat-out murdered a guy in the first season (the work of her own demonic possession). Sure, the victim was a serial killer who promised to slay Kristen’s daughters, but the act still remains.

And while the first season stayed well within the limits of network broadcast standards, later seasons show no such constraints. Like a possessed girl who breaks her bonds, Evil is pretty unfettered these days. Violence and gore isn’t unusual. Sexual allusions are more crass and more graphic. And as if to make sure everyone knows that Evil’s not on CBS anymore, harsher profanities—including the f-word—pop up much more frequently, sounding wholly inappropriate and vaguely ludicrous in the show’s procedural context.

Generally, evil is something you’d try to stay away from. And many folks will likely want to give Paramount+’s Evil a wide berth, too.

(Editor’s Note: Plugged In is rarely able to watch every episode of a given series for review. As such, there’s always a chance that you might see a problem that we didn’t. If you notice content that you feel should be included in our review, send us an email at letters@pluggedin.com, or contact us via Facebook or Instagram, and be sure to let us know the episode number, title and season so that we can check it out.)

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Now, open your mouth and say, “Ahhhh.” No, your other mouth. No, the other-other mouth, the one on your shoulder. Great. Now let me test your tentacle reflexes with this massive hamm—oh, sorry. That’s your spleen. My mistake.

But listen, it’s not easy to treat patients from across the galaxy, y’know. All those wildly differing limbs and gills and sentient gaseous orifices. It’s a challenge. And just between us, you’re receiving better care than you would in some other medical establishments.

Just take a look at The Second Best Hospital in the Galaxy.

Grey’s Lobotomy

Meet Dr. Sleech and Dr. Klak, two semi-well-meaning physicians who work to cure the galaxy’s sick, injured and momentarily dead. Sure, both are a little sick themselves: Dr. Klak deals with near-crippling anxiety, thanks to her mother writing a book about … well, her daughter’s crippling anxiety. And Dr. Sleech is at least as interested in having sex with the local vending-machine restocker as she is in her patients. Still, both of them work to save their patients. That’s more than can be said for some.

They’re joined by a cohort of other reasonably engaged doctors. Dr. Powlp is an impressive emotional empath who looks a bit like a giant chicken. Dr. Vlam, a medical intern, is actually on her several-hundredth career, being an immortal robot and all. She means well, though—and she’s determined to help her patients reach the end of their pitifully short lifespans.

And then there’s Nurse Tup, who’s seen just about everything and has patience for nothing—especially not these pesky doctors who’re always upsetting her schedule.

But hey, it’s a living.

Go Elsewhere

The care one might receive at the Second Best Hospital in the Galaxy, the actual hospital, might be a bit … dubious. The doctors take unwarranted chances and perhaps inflict unnecessary pain—but it could be worse.

The same could be said for The Second Best Hospital in the Galaxy, the show.

For an adult-targeted animated comedy, Second Best Hospital is … not horrible. Profanity, at least at the show’s early stage, seems rare. Sexual encounters—while more frequent than we’d like, certainly—rarely involve recognizable human body parts, so that’s something. And the gore is—

Well, let’s face it, the gore is where the show begins to go well off the rails.

Yes, the blood is animated, played for laughs and colored every color you might find in an expensive box of crayons. Still, it gets everywhere. Organs, too. And the show seems to revel in making its main characters eat other, smaller-but-seemingly-sentient organisms. (We see the critters pulled apart; and we hear their tiny, anguished screams.)

And certainly, this galaxy is filled with plenty of sexually active characters and quite LGBT welcoming: Dr. Klak seems to have a crush on Dr. Azel, a seemingly fellow female doctor who works at a rival hospital. (That said, Dr. Azel is voiced by male singer Sam Smith, so perhaps in some meta-reality scenario, this could be positioned as a heterosexual crush? Except that Sam Smith is gay, so maybe not? These issues are confusing.)

Yes, if animated shows were held to some sort of traditional Judeo-Christian moral Hippocratic Oath, The Second Best Hospital in the Galaxy would definitely have its license revoked. Its animated rooms are far from sanitized. Sure, you’ll find more objectionable content out there, no question. But if you want to guarantee a healthy entertainment regimen, this is one hospital you won’t want to visit.

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Is it the tangible tension? The murky mystery? The seat-squeezing suspense?

Well, whatever your answers to those questions, the halls of the ER at Gaffney Chicago Medical Center have plenty of drama that Just. Won’t. Quit.

A Cornucopia of Characters in Close Quarters

In any close-quartered working environment, crazy things are bound to happen. And in a frenetic Windy City hospital, things definitely happen—especially given this show’s epic ensemble cast.

Dr. Daniel Charles serves as the head of psychiatry and struggles with depression himself. But he butts heads with the ER’s new attending physician Dr. Mitch Ripley, whom Charles treated as a youth for anger management and impulse control problems.

Ripley hasn’t quite forgiven Charles for treating him with medications (many of which were more harmful than doctors realized at the time), and he makes it his business to ensure the hospital doesn’t continue to overmedicate.

Dr. Dean Archer feels unworthy to receive a kidney transplant from his son since he was a terrible father to the young man (resulting in his son becoming a drug addict). But Dr. Hannah Asher, who herself is a recovering addict, tries to help Archer understand how important it is for his son’s recovery to be allowed to do this good thing.

Marlyne Barrett holds the emergency room together as the charge nurse, directing staff to ensure that every patient receives the care they need. But at home, things are falling apart, and her husband wants a divorce.

Sharon Goodwin was a nurse at one time, and her patients were important to her. But now she’s running the hospital, navigating the challenges of owners who care more about the almighty dollar than patient care.

Now, in a normal drama, you might think that was enough characters to fuel years of conflict-filled episodes. But if you’ve ever watched a hospital show before—or even if you’ve seen this one–you know that these types of things like to cycle out old characters and replace them with new ones. And there’s probably plenty more to come.

Grit, Grime and Gore in the ER

Chicago Med may not be quite as saucy and provocative as we’ve seen in medical shows such as Grey’s Anatomy (a series that has outlived most of its patients by now). But that’s not to say Chicago Med receives a clean bill of health.

Language issues are our first pathogen here, including “d–n,” “a–” and an occasional s-word. With regard to sexual content, we hear verbal allusions to it, see couples kissing and occasionally glimpse scantily clad women in lingerie. LGBT characters also make an appearance, and extramarital affairs aren’t unheard of.

Perhaps more problematic, albeit in a different category, is how graphic this show is. The ER can be a bloody, gruesome place, and the camera spares little when it comes to showing us people’s injuries as well as giving us a front-row seat for wince-inducing surgical procedures. To top it off, the show also deals with tough, real-world issues, such as rape, suicide, assisted suicide, murder, schizophrenia and drug use.

So even if it’s not as salacious as some of its peers, Chicago Med can still be a pretty messy way to spend an evening.

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