Paging the Chicago Med writing staff. Your show needs more heart, STAT!
Med has been one of my favorite shows for a decade, but something is missing this season.
Part of the problem is that Chicago Med has too many doctors… but that wouldn’t be a problem if it were still inspiring the types of emotion it used to do.
Ripley Is the Least Popular, but Not the Only Problematic Doctor
I want to like Ripley, if for no other reason than the actor is Australian and got his start on Neighbours in 2008.
And I’ve tried, but every episode he’s in is worse than the last.
When I say Chicago Med doesn’t have heart, he’s the first one that comes to mind.
There is little that is redeeming about him and a lot that is annoying. I’m always grateful for episodes that have little to no Ripley.
That’s not the feeling the writers want to inspire in their audience, I’m sure.
This Isn’t Yet Another Anti-Ripley Post. He’s Only the Symptom of a Deeper Problem
Look, Ripley’s unlikability is not Chicago Med’s sole issue.
I was unsure about Chicago Med Season 10, not because there was a new head writer, but because my favorite doctor had left.
It was just about a year ago that the news broke that Crockett Marcel was leaving Chicago Med.
Perhaps the fact that I was so heartbroken meant I needed a few minutes before I could even begin to write about it. And that suggests I’m way too attached to a fictional character. However, it also highlights the difference between the earlier era of Chicago Med and now.
Marcel was a character that I could relate to. I wanted good things to happen to him because I understood and liked him.
That’s what Chicago Med used to be like.
I’m not a doctor and never even considered following in my dad’s footsteps into medical school. But I loved each character and looked forward to spending time with them.
I haven’t felt that way this season.
It feels like Chicago Med Season 10 hovered between a thriller and a soap opera. I love both genres, but I had a hard time getting into this.
Half the problem is that Chicago Med has too many doctors, period. No story gets the attention it needs, and characters are just being pushed around to fit half-developed plots.
Sharon’s stalker story was a great example of this.
This is the type of story that should be exciting. But instead, it seemed like a random series of events that culminated in gratuitous violence.
Agree with what you’ve read so far? Great. Disagree? Even better.
Hit the comments with your thoughts and share this article with a friend who’ll argue with you.
It wasn’t a true mystery.
The culprit appeared only in Chicago Med Season 10 Episode 1 and the midseason finale, with no hints in between that she was the person after Sharon.
Instead, the story dragged on.
It wasn’t clear at first if anyone was really stalking Sharon. But then the series followed that up with the cops discovering it was a random person who had never been on screen before, and just as randomly turning out to be wrong.
Meanwhile, we had week after week of Ripley self-destructing over Sully and taking it out on Hannah, and that uninteresting story consumed all the oxygen, leaving little time to develop Sharon’s story properly.
You Know What Else We Didn’t Have? Compelling Medical Stories
I don’t mind some soapy relationship stuff. That’s part of the One Chicago brand.
However…
Somehow, despite having way too many doctors and not enough room in the script for all of them, the medical drama was lacking.
There were some interesting stories, yet they took a back seat to random mass casualty events and stories about who was dating and who had a traumatic secret in the past.
I Don’t Mean To Imply The Season Totally Sucked
I didn’t completely hate it.
There were stories I enjoyed, but I’m having a hard time remembering them, other than the season finale story about Dr. Charles’ daughter.
That story was more like it. It had heart. It had a doctor I cared about.
I’m fairly certain there were also some Archer moments that made me reevaluate my former hatred of his character. But unfortunately, all I recall right now is how annoying it was that the series undid his decision to resign in five minutes rather than being part of a story.
And I enjoyed Lenox’s storylines. You can’t go wrong with Sarah Ramos, though I’m still waiting for Chicago Med to confirm that she is autistic or otherwise neurodivergent.
Still, there are some things that need to change in order to restore this show to its former greatness.
The most obvious solution is to eliminate Ripley, with the corollary that Hannah needs to revert to the strong woman she usually is.
I was thrilled she didn’t go back to drugs, but unless there’s a compelling story on the horizon about her realizing she is just as addicted to Ripley and his drama, she needs to cut ties with him.
Of course, if her baby is his, that might be hard to do. Still, there’s such a thing as co-parenting without being in a relationship, and that’s what needs to happen here.
She made a strong decision, set her boundaries … and then reconsidered because Ripley almost died because of his own stupidity and arrogance.
That needs to change in Chicago Med Season 11.
We also need fewer stories so that each plot can be fully developed and bring us more of the character-based drama that made this show so great.
I’d also suggest focusing on Dr. Charles more. Having a full-time psychiatrist in the ED sets this show apart from other medical dramas.
Your turn, Chicago Med Fanatics.
Let’s keep the conversation going in the comments. The more engaged readers are, the more likely we are to keep being able to write articles like this about your favorite shows.
Tell me whether you agree with my diagnosis that Chicago Med has lost its heart, and what you hope will happen in Season 11.
Chicago Med Season 11 will air on NBC sometime in the fall. In the meantime, you can watch all 10 seasons on Peacock.
Watch Chicago Med Online
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