Start up the grill, get those fireworks going, and glove up; It’s the 4th of July in Pittsburgh and The Pitt is back.
10 months have passed since we left the coveted “pitt crew” in the aftermath of a mass casualty incident (MCI) that has left the department shaken. But just what have we, as viewers, missed going down in the Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center (PTMC)? Smooth sailing? Tensions squashed and harmony throughout the department? Is serenity what the future holds for everyone’s favorite Emmy-winning dramatic ensemble that Entertainment Weekly called the “Entertainers of the Year?”
Just about the opposite. After Dr. Frank Langdon’s (Patrick Ball) dramatic departure (brief return for the MCI, but ultimate departure), he’s back to work following rehab for stealing drugs from patients. It’s possible that Dr. Santos (Isa Briones), former intern, now second year resident, has been feeling the heat from her colleagues for sniffing out their golden boy’s illegal habits on her first day. If the pressure has been getting to her, it appears she’s found a certain, specific stress reliever: one Dr. Yolanda Garcia (Alexandra Metz). We see this told through the perspective of her new roommate, Dr. Dennis Whittaker (Gerran Howell). Whatever may be going down between Santos and the trauma surgery fellow, their apartment walls are too thin. Will the writers ever stop torturing poor farmboy Whittaker both on and off screen? He’s showing clear strides in his medical education, having graduated from the role of fearful student doctor, despite what his badge may say, and is even teaching the new med students how things rock ‘n roll around the Pitt. Give the man a break, R. Scott Gemmill!
The only one excited for Langdon’s return is Dr. Mel King (Taylor Dearden), PTMC’s resident ray of sunshine. Seen forming a strong, emotional connection with Langdon in season one, which has sent fans and TikTok editors alike up the wazoo, Mel is eager to see her old pal, running to him with open arms, much to the dislike of some of the other staff. I’m curious to know just how much everyone knows regarding Langdon’s time off. Is the who, what, where, when, and how stale gossip or still piping hot tea waiting to be spilled to the newbies on the scene?
Speaking of Mel, she’s being sued for malpractice, or “Mel-practice” as described by Santos. Will this have something to do with the anti-vax family that had measles from the season one finale? Her stress and worry right off the bat of season 2 is cause for concern. When she tries to express her concerns to Santos, she is met with classic Santos sarcasm and dismissal. One could assume that the two of them have gotten closer over the past 10 months. Has anyone made an effort to get to know Mel outside of work, or at all? Her connection with Langdon is no secret despite having only known him for one day. I would love to see him act as a driving force that keeps her grounded and level-headed as she continues to strive in a career she was so clearly born to do, similar to their break room chat in season one.
And why is her deposition on a major, national holiday?
As always, Dr. Michael “Robby” Robinavitch (Noah Wyle) (or as Garcia called him, Rabbit-b*tch), is having another day in paradise as PTMC’s Chief Attending Physician. With his replacement breathing down his neck on his last shift before his three month long sabbatical, just how far under Dr. Robby’s skin will Dr. Baran Al-Hashimi (Sepideh Moafi) get? And just as he needs, Robby is taking a nice, long trip on his motorcycle, far from practicing emergency medicine, and even farther from a therapist’s office. The man needs help. His self-destructive habits were smeared all over the walls in the first season: hypocrisy, misogyny, making his problems everyone else’s, short temper, tendency to snap at his staff, especially the women– sorry, too much? He (emergency medicine physician) even rode into work (a hospital) helmetless on his motorcycle (idiot!). All of this to say, for this ER to stay as functional as it can be, he needs to get his sh*t together. As Dr. Heather Collins (Tracy Ifeachor) (who will be greatly missed this shift/season) tells him in episode seven of the first season, “Leave your baggage at the door like everyone else, but don’t take it out on the rest of us.” At the end of the day, of course we can’t help but root for Dr. Robby and his incomparable medical knowledge and skill that keeps the Pitt afloat, but couldn’t his not-so-fearless leadership be a bit… nicer? Kinder? More respectful of his female colleagues?
Much to Robby’s dismay, Baran has different approaches to running the Pitt than he does. With brief mentions of implementing AI, “patient passports,” and overall empathy, it is clear that these two attendings are not going to get along. She is the “freeze” response to his “flight” as seen in the first episode of this new season; Baran stoic at the sight of the abandoned infant just before the episode ends in comparison to Robby pivoting on his heels hoping to avoid Langdon. He’s already suggesting that the two of them split up not even an hour into their shift just to run things the way he wants to. And the tension is real. So what does this mean for the rest of Robby’s last shift before his sabbatical? Will he storm out angrily mid-shift, get on his motorcycle, and head for the hills, all for his recklessness to wind him back up at PTMC on the other side of care? Perhaps then he will learn to accept the help he so clearly needs.
There is a lot to come from season two of The Pitt with 14 more episodes on their way. Fans eagerly await to see how other fan favorite characters like Charge Nurse Dana Evans (played by Emmy-winner Katharine LaNasa) and Dr. Samira Mohan (Supriya Ganesh) will navigate another possible shift from hell. The Fourth Of July can only hold so many surprises: fingers blown off by fireworks, burns from cooking on the grill, alcohol poisoning, and more. Will the “pitt crew” rise to the occasion? I think they just might.