No man is an island.
Mario's connection with a surprising patient centered the drama on Code Black #1.8, but it was far from the only thing going on. Christa had to go it on her own, while Leanne received a surprising proposition. And Taylor had to be on his best behavior while he got stuck with babysitting duty.
If there's one thing that no one can argue, it's that Code Black is great at writing guest characters. Ted wins the award for best guest this episode, though young Randall might have given him a run for his money if he'd had more screen time.
Ted was great not just because he quoted old movies and complained about his friends settling down and becoming obnoxious Facebook posters, which is enough for me to want to grab brunch with him, but because he allowed for an organic revealing of Mario's background.
I'll admit I was skeptical of the whole needle stick storyline. It's a standard of medical drama's, but Angus' point about the likelihood of contracting HIV, under those circumstances, echoed my own thoughts on the matter.
But making the real point of the story Mario's inability to trust people changed my mind. Savetti is a bit of a puzzle - at first, he was just some overconfident jerk, but we keep getting these pieces to his story that really make him more intriguing.
...
Mario: I'm not in the mood for a lecture.
Angus: Okay, this is not a lecture, see, this is talking. It's what friends do. They talk. Do you even know what it means to be a friend? I mean, seriously, have you ever had one before?
Mario: Screw you.
...
While Mario managed to knock a brick out the wall around his heart, Malaya was dealing with her own issues.
I know it's heresy to side against the dying pregnant woman, but I kept being struck by how selfish Carla was being. Who returns to their ex-lover's life when they're dying and doesn't intend to do anything about it? And what about the person she is presumably having this baby with? Who is going to take the baby when she dies?
Malaya might not have been in the right to run the bone marrow drive in a way that it publicly disclosed Carla's diagnosis, but her intentions were good. I'm still interested in seeing how this all plays out, and I do like that it's giving the doctors a life outside of the hospital.
Christa running the "code bag" was just not all that interesting. If we hadn't seen her gain confidence in cases before, it would have been fine, but at this point, it feels repetitive. I was much more interested in what happened with Neal at the bar, and now am wondering how they'll get out of this awkward limbo they've entered.
Neal and Christa aren't the only hospital romance lighting up. Cole straight up asked Leanne out, because who doesn't find splenectomies sexy? I don't really see the chemistry between these two yet, and all they seem to have in common is grief and a temper, but I'll give it a chance.
He at least seemed understanding about her readiness to date, even if it was expressed in a weirdly aggressive way. Grief Olympics, really? Cole may be hot, but Leanne is probably smart to steer clear. He seems like he could be a fun fling, but I'm not sure he's ready for her.
Another great episode of Code Black! The stories get better each week and I am learning more about the characters now to really care about them. Best of all is Marcia Gay Harden as Leanne. Just give her the Emmy now!
Mario's connection with a surprising patient centered the drama on Code Black #1.8, but it was far from the only thing going on. Christa had to go it on her own, while Leanne received a surprising proposition. And Taylor had to be on his best behavior while he got stuck with babysitting duty.
If there's one thing that no one can argue, it's that Code Black is great at writing guest characters. Ted wins the award for best guest this episode, though young Randall might have given him a run for his money if he'd had more screen time.
Ted was great not just because he quoted old movies and complained about his friends settling down and becoming obnoxious Facebook posters, which is enough for me to want to grab brunch with him, but because he allowed for an organic revealing of Mario's background.
I'll admit I was skeptical of the whole needle stick storyline. It's a standard of medical drama's, but Angus' point about the likelihood of contracting HIV, under those circumstances, echoed my own thoughts on the matter.
But making the real point of the story Mario's inability to trust people changed my mind. Savetti is a bit of a puzzle - at first, he was just some overconfident jerk, but we keep getting these pieces to his story that really make him more intriguing.
...
Mario: I'm not in the mood for a lecture.
Angus: Okay, this is not a lecture, see, this is talking. It's what friends do. They talk. Do you even know what it means to be a friend? I mean, seriously, have you ever had one before?
Mario: Screw you.
...
While Mario managed to knock a brick out the wall around his heart, Malaya was dealing with her own issues.
I know it's heresy to side against the dying pregnant woman, but I kept being struck by how selfish Carla was being. Who returns to their ex-lover's life when they're dying and doesn't intend to do anything about it? And what about the person she is presumably having this baby with? Who is going to take the baby when she dies?
Malaya might not have been in the right to run the bone marrow drive in a way that it publicly disclosed Carla's diagnosis, but her intentions were good. I'm still interested in seeing how this all plays out, and I do like that it's giving the doctors a life outside of the hospital.
Christa running the "code bag" was just not all that interesting. If we hadn't seen her gain confidence in cases before, it would have been fine, but at this point, it feels repetitive. I was much more interested in what happened with Neal at the bar, and now am wondering how they'll get out of this awkward limbo they've entered.
Neal and Christa aren't the only hospital romance lighting up. Cole straight up asked Leanne out, because who doesn't find splenectomies sexy? I don't really see the chemistry between these two yet, and all they seem to have in common is grief and a temper, but I'll give it a chance.
He at least seemed understanding about her readiness to date, even if it was expressed in a weirdly aggressive way. Grief Olympics, really? Cole may be hot, but Leanne is probably smart to steer clear. He seems like he could be a fun fling, but I'm not sure he's ready for her.
Another great episode of Code Black! The stories get better each week and I am learning more about the characters now to really care about them. Best of all is Marcia Gay Harden as Leanne. Just give her the Emmy now!
