Crime
Poker Face
This new Peacock show deals in an intriguing setup and fine performances, but it comes with a flush of problems. And that’s no lie.
When Dr. “Robby” Robinavitch walks into the ER, it only takes a single look around the crowded waiting room to know it’ll be a long day.
The waiting room at Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Hospital is always really crowded. To be seen in eight hours is a blessing there. But there are other signs, too: The medical students and interns are starting today, for instance. And there goes a naked man running down the hall, screaming something about “no more needles.”
“You sure you want to work today, huh?” Dr. Abbot jokes.
But Robby doesn’t want to work today. He hasn’t worked this day in four years—not since his mentor, Dr. Adamson, died. It was a terrible day, those four years ago, when COVID left the ER—known affectionately as the Pitt—scrambling.
And Robby has a feeling that today is going to be just as bad.
“This is the job that keeps on giving,” Robby quips, “nightmares, ulcers, suicidal tendencies.”
Robby says it with sad sarcasm, but we see some of the very nightmares he references.
The Pitt brings us into a single shift at the fictional Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Hospital. Each of the 15 episodes covers roughly one hour of the shift, 24–style. And comparing how those 15 episodes stack up against the typical 12-hour hospital shift, you can guess that things get rather hectic.
But the show gained a quick audience for its unflinching approach to the medical sphere. Sure, we’ve had plenty of medical dramas in the past (including, of course, star Noah Wyle’s very own iconic role in ER, perhaps the granddaddy of them all), but they usually focus far more on doctor-on-doctor romance, playing fast and loose with hospital procedures for the sake of intense narratives. The Pitt, in contrast, sticks to hospital protocol. Perhaps that’s why it’s often referenced as one of the most realistic medical dramas of all time.
But that’s where things take a turn for us, content-wise. Because in striving for accuracy, The Pitt gives us a close-up view of many operations and injuries that’ll churn a stomach or two. For example, in the first episode, we see a woman suffering from a degloved leg (when the skin and tissue is peeled away from the muscle underneath). We see others succumb to their maladies, including a young child. And blood is near constant.
Likewise, given that nudity is a medical reality within hospitals, the show doesn’t hide it, either: some patients require their clothes removed to receive care, meaning we see men and women fully naked. We see an insane man’s anatomy as doctors attempt to sedate him. And in one episode, nothing is hidden from the camera as we watch as a woman give birth. While it’s important to note that none of this nudity is sexualized, its presence still merits viewer consideration regardless. We also meet two gay men who are using a woman for a surrogate pregnancy.
Hospital staff likewise have to handle a wide variety of other difficult topics, too, such as: a 17-year-old girl seeking mifepristone and misoprostol for a chemical abortion (which she unfortunately obtains and ingests); a trans person whom hospital staff must apologize to for “misgendering”; a drug overdose; a miscarriage; the death of a 6-year-old girl; child abuse; a boy with suicidal thoughts and a boy who wishes to kill his classmates; and mass shooting victims.
And, yes, as you may expect at this point, crude language is frequent, too, each episode administering hefty doses of the f-word, among other profanities.
In other words, The Pitt comes across extremely realistic. But if you want realism in a hospital setting, don’t expect anything to be sanitized.
(Editor’s Note: Plugged In is rarely able to watch every episode of a given series for review. As such, there’s always a chance that you might see a problem that we didn’t. If you notice content that you feel should be included in our review, send us an email at [email protected], or contact us via Facebook or Instagram, and be sure to let us know the episode number, title and season so that we can check it out.)
Robby starts his shift at Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Hospital. Meanwhile, the new staff medical students adjust to the chaotic life of the ER.
We see a patient’s naked rear as he runs down a hall. Doctors cut off a woman’s bra during an operation, and we see her breasts. A shirtless man is defibrillated.
A woman screams in agony as she’s wheeled in with a degloved leg, and we see the muscle tissue and bone on what’s left of it. Later, someone snaps the leg back into a proper position. Another woman suffers from severe burns on her hand. A man recovers from a gunshot wound to the shoulder. And another patient receives care for bruises on his face. A man receives stitches on his head, from which ample blood pumps. An elderly woman passes away. We hear a reference to a teen coming in to receive pills for a chemical abortion later in the day. A woman warns a doctor that her son threatened to kill his classmates.
We’re told that a man survived having a blood alcohol content of .42. Doctors discover that an unconscious young boy unknowingly ingested his father’s marijuana gummies.
A doctor crosses herself. A woman vomits. A medical student accidentally walks in on a patient as they’re defecating due to an enema, and we can see some of the brown stains. A medical student jokes about defecating herself.
We hear the f-word and s-word six times each. We also hear many uses of “a–,” “d–n” and “h—.” God’s name is used in vain once, and Jesus’ name is likewise used in vain twice.
With patient influx slowly coming back under control, Robby and his team begin to clock out of their shifts—and to process the grief of the day.
A man’s genitals are visible as doctors begin operating on his pelvis. We see another man shirtless.
Blankets cover the dead bodies of six shooting victims. A teen admits to attempting suicide. We hear about a girl who committed suicide due to the trauma of being sexually assaulted. A man suffers from a crushed pelvis after being pinned by a truck. We see an incision made with a scalpel. A teen awaits care for a fork that’s been stuck through her nose.
A doctor gets accused of abusing drugs. A woman smokes a cigarette. People drink beer, and they allow an underaged woman to drink with them.
Someone describes a shift as “baptism by fire.” A woman asks if someone is a “religious freak.”
We hear the f-word roughly 25 times, including one instance that’s paired with “mother.” We hear the s-word nine times. We also hear a crude word for female genitalia once. “A–,” “d–n,” “h—” and “p-ss” are also used. God’s name is used in vain three times, including one instance paired with “d–n.” Jesus’ name is likewise abused once.
Kennedy Unthank studied journalism at the University of Missouri. He knew he wanted to write for a living when he won a contest for “best fantasy story” while in the 4th grade. What he didn’t know at the time, however, was that he was the only person to submit a story. Regardless, the seed was planted. Kennedy collects and plays board games in his free time, and he loves to talk about biblical apologetics. He thinks the ending of Lost “wasn’t that bad.”
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