‘The Pitt’ Season 2 Episode 14 Recap and Review: “8:00 pm” - Hard Place to Leave, Harder Place to Stay
While it is certainly one of the most calm and rather uneventful episodes in all of ‘The Pitt’s run, there was plenty of hard hitting insight into the mindset of those who suffer from depression.
This review of The Pitt contains spoilers.
Producer and star of ‘The Pitt’ Noah Wyle has undoubtedly earned the accolades that have come his way since the show debuted last January. While he has collected what is essentially the pentad of acting awards one can win for television, and also as producer when the show has taken home ‘Best Drama’, there may be one feather in the many caps he wears that remains elusive - that which would recognize his writing.
Wyle has contributed some of the strongest episodes in the show’s young history, most notably last season’s “10:00 am” when Robby (Wyle) was comforting a couple of older siblings who were having to say goodbye to their father. The mantra of “I love you, thank you, I forgive you, please forgive me” is carved into the brain of any fan of the show, and it showed just how deftly sensitive Wyle can be as a writer. He tried to repeat that success with a similar mantra about fatherhood in this season, but it lacked the same shot to the heart as his early writing.
Enter the penultimate episode in the sophomore season this week, and one where reflection seems to be the mantra of the day. With only one episode left after this week, this was more than an opportunity for the show to wrap up some of the proverbial loose ends. The show even winked at itself hinting that it had more loose story threads than Dana’s (Katherine LaNasa) mother had dangling from her macramé wall hanging. Yet, in a bizarre choice, Wyle and the showrunners thought it was a good idea to add a few more threads rather than simply address the ones that were already tickling the back of the audience’s neck.
Whitaker (Gerran Howell), who is essentially finished his shift (as most of them are at this point, save some work they have to do after hours to ensure all charts are digitized) had several small adventures in a time when things should be winding down. First, he lost his new key card and identification badge that he was just awarded a few hours before. This sent the young doctor on a scavenger hunt around the E.D. trying to find it, and to build up karma wherever he could in order to do so. This led to another tiny mishap, where he offered to pay for a Lyft in order for an elderly patient to get home. No good deed goes unpunished, and with Whitaker that meant that this patient apparently uttered a racial slur at the driver and vomited in the back of the Lyft car, sending a $250 charge Whitaker’s way.
These amusing little side stories could be forgiven, if it weren’t for the fact that Wyle decided to make Whitaker one of the focus characters of the hour. There were more than a few bizarre choices in this writer’s opinion as to why this would be the time, in the penultimate episode to introduce yet another ‘foible’ or Whitaker ‘oopsie’. They were a cute character touch in the first season, but with Whitaker’s growth and really coming into himself as a leader within the Pitt this season, it felt unnecessary. Another incongruous storyline came in a confrontation between Langdon (Patrick Ball) and Whitaker when the two bumped into one another in the break room. Langdon was seen taking over the counter pain killers for his back, which immediately sparked a bit of confrontation between the two, as Whitaker seemingly gave Langdon a bit of a concerned look. It’s unclear if Whitaker knows the entire situation, but given his closeness with his frienemy and roommate Santos (Isa Briones) you can assume she probably told Whitaker every detail about the situation.
But this was just an appetizer to a larger issue that apparently has been building up within the season, bubbling so quietly, one could sleep through it until all the water had evaporated. Whitaker had a major issue with Langdon, even asking him to ‘cut the shit’ at one point. Apparently, Whitaker had an issue with the way Langdon talks down to him. While it has been clear since the first season that Langdon, at least at the time, was full of himself and often talked down to people, this seemed like it came out of nowhere. If you were to throw darts at a bulletin board of the cast, you could randomly hit two characters that have more tension that Langdon and Whitaker. It seemed as if the writing team decided to wrap up a storyline that no one felt needed wrapping up, instead of perhaps addressing some more pertinent threads.
It could be that once again the focus was shifted (somewhat negatively) on Langdon, at least just for a moment this time. For the majority of the season, it seems that he has certainly been paying his penance for his sins of the past. Even when he caught a bit of a break, or got some encouragement from others, it often was double-sided. That might be simply the opinion of this writer, as Lagdon’s character has always been a favorite, but the show has done well to show the insecurity of Langdon throughout this season.
That self doubt came to a head (pun not intended) when Langdon had to cowboy up and perform a spinal realignment on the fly. Without it, the victim of a car crash would have ended up a quadrapalegic. This was perhaps the most conclusive moment of any character arc that we have received this season, as it was a cheer worthy happenstance. Langdon got his groove back. People showed faith in him. Robby encouraged him. This was something the character, and any fan of Langdon needed, and truly has been the only storyline that has really wrapped up when it has come to the original cast members and their conflicts.
This episode really centered on the triangular brotherhood of Whitaker, Langdon and Robby, which is an interesting trio to write about considering what the two younger doctors mean to damaged journeyman Robby. Robby defines himself by fraternity, and in many ways, knows that his legacy lies in the younger generation he guides, especially in men like Whitaker and Langdon, as that’s the same relationship he had with his mentor. In another moment of reassurance for Langdon and his fragile mental state, Dr. Parker Ellis (Ayesha Harris) revealed to Langdon that Robby was never mad at him, Robby, in fact, thought that he somehow let Langdon down. Ellis hilarious points out that this Emergency department, through no dramatic irony recognized on her part does have its fair share of drama, and within that drama there are a lot of white knights with martyr complexes. But the healing moment between Robby and Langdon, while no laughing matter, certainly will put a smile on any fan’s face. When Robby told his protege “good job”, it lifted a spiritual load off the show. It made it feel as if Langdon has completed at least this first step in his healing. It only remains to be seen if Langdon and Santos can put their past behind them, or if Langdon will take an even larger step towards healing and tell his crew all the details of his addiction.
But there is still plenty of spiritual heaviness to go around, and Robby has certainly borne most of the weight. So much so that Dana, Dr. Caleb Jefferson (Christopher Thornton) and Duke (Jeff Kober), all of whom have already expressed their concerns about Robby, brought it up again. It seems that perhaps all those other aforementioned loose story threads are going to remain untethered, because who can concentrate on anything else other than Robby’s fate at this point? It seems like the finale has to spend the majority of its time resolving this crucial storyline. The very future of the show depends on it.
Kober’s performance has been one of the most under-the-radar and underrated characters this entire season. Yet his final scene with Robby (which may in fact be the final scene if Duke merely takes off before Robby can say goodbye) is perhaps the most poignant five minutes of television the show has produced all season. This was the writing we expected from Wyle after his brilliant teleplay from the first season. This is also the episode that might sinch up why Wyle is strongly considered for a repeat for all the awards he’s earned in the last few months.
The conversation they have says so much with barely saying anything at all. Duke recognizes the self-destructive nature of Robby like so many of Robby’s close friends and colleagues, and tries to impart a little aged wisdom on Robby. He recognizes that running away from all his problems is no way to remain mentally or even physically healthy. What is arguably one of the largest revelations is that it is not the stress of Robby’s job that seemingly makes him want to run. In fact, that’s his salvation. The Pitt is a place he can help people, where he can guide, where he can lose and distract himself from the pain he feels otherwise. What was truly remarkable about this exchange was that it slightly went against the mantra of the show. The Pitt isn’t choosing to merely show the mental stress that people within the medical field are dealing with, they are choosing to address dark, suicidal thoughts as a whole. Robby represents anyone who might have those thoughts or feel that way, and to see Wyle’s tearful inner turmoil in his eyes is to understand those thoughts. When Robby reveals “Maybe I don’t want to be… anywhere” is simply put, one of the most powerful moments the show has ever produced.
And even though so many have offered help, guidance or a friendly hand to Robby the tragic and scary part is the show also reflects why so much mental health still slips through the cracks. For these individuals who suffer, it is nearly impossible to want to help themselves. It is a rut to end all ruts. You feel stuck. So as much as Dana, Caleb, Duke and yes, Abbott (Shawn Hatosy) are there for Robby, he has to be there for himself as well. We knew this entire season that Robby was going through something, he certainly has not been the understanding and guiding light we know he can be, and with only one episode left, we’re running out of time. Let’s just hope that Robby doesn’t feel that he’s out of time.