There are countless TV medical dramas to watch. Some are good, some are bad, and some are ‘House M.D.’ However, if there was one show that I would absolutely recommend, it would be HBO Max’s ‘The Pitt.’ As of late, it’s been praised for various things across its completed first season and presently-airing second season. I’m going to tell you right now: those claims are not unfounded. Once you start watching, you’ll soon be saying “I LOVE DA PITT!” alongside the rest of us.
First of all, it’s incredibly medically accurate. I have quite a lot of friends and family who work in medicine, and if there’s one thing they praise this show for, it’s the show’s realism. The actors on this show have taken classes on medical terms, lingo, and behaviors, providing a kind of accuracy not seen on many of these medical dramas (sorry, ‘Grey’s Anatomy’). So, when you see a doctor looking over a patient’s vitals, injuries, treatment, and more, know that it’s grounded in real medical practice.
Similarly, the show isn’t afraid to hold back when showing the viewer what some of the most gory wounds and illnesses really look like. It’s great for those who want to get a sense of what emergency department workers see every day, but if you’re squeamish, you may have to look away one or two times an episode. The showmakers will easily and gladly show you degloving, gunshot wounds, sliced arteries, childbirth, and more. Again, amazing for realism, but it might be terrible for the stomach.
Secondly, the characters themselves are fantastic. My three personal favorites are Dr. Dennis Whitaker, Nurse Dana Evans, and Dr. Melissa King. Whitaker is the show’s punching bag, and his sad little eyebags make you feel attached immediately. Dana’s the scariest woman on ‘The Pitt,’ and if you don’t respect her, then you’ll forever fear her (and I adore her Pittsburgh/Brooklyn accent). And King is objectively the best person on that team and can never do anything wrong. If she does do something wrong, then it’s not her fault at all. Dr. King, you are perfect.
Lastly, ‘The Pitt’ is so genuinely entertaining that you won’t even realize you’ve sat through three hours of it in one sitting. The show follows a bit of a unique format when compared to a normal TV show. On most other shows, episodes would be cut up between days and sometimes weeks. ‘The Pitt’ is incredibly different, in that each episode is just one hour out of a 15-hour shift. You get to really experience the hecticness and volatility of an emergency department, following your favorite doctors and medical students around as they learn. This is set in a teaching hospital, after all, so when a student or resident learns something new, you get to learn it, too.
‘The Pitt’ is the kind of show that you’ll be fully invested in by the end of the second episode. If you can, try watching it alongside someone who works in medicine. I watch it with my mom, who works at a teaching hospital, and it makes the experience way more entertaining to hear directly why certain procedures are done. It’s also great to hear her explain all of the ways those doctors violate various HIPAA oaths, which you’ll find happening pretty often. They don’t call it ‘The Pitt’ for nothing, after all.