Writer’s note: The second paragraph of this article (just below the first image) contains a basic outline of the show’s premise. There are no spoilers that weren’t already inferred in the show’s own trailer. However, if you want to completely avoid potential spoilers, skip over the second paragraph.
For as long as television has existed, the most commonly recurring shows centre on police, lawyers or doctors. This is because those three professions allow for settings and characters that are perfect for serialised storytelling. Every episode can showcase a new crime to solve, case to win, or patient to save, meaning the series can continue indefinitely, even when it reaches more than 10 seasons. Medical shows are particularly notable, with examples such as ER running for 15 seasons, while Grey’s Anatomy has reached 22, with a 23rd on the way. With that kind of oversaturation, it may seem as though there’s nothing more to be done with medical dramas. Last year, HBO’s smash hit, The Pitt, proved that to be false, with a first season which immediately ranked as one of the best dramas on TV. With the second season now concluded, does The Pitt still hold that high distinction?
Set over the course of one shift at the Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Centre’s emergency room, we are reintroduced to attending physician Dr. Michael “Robby” Robinavitch (Noah Wyle). Across 15 episodes, with each covering one hour of the 15 hour shift in real time, we watch as Robby oversees the doctors, student doctors, nurses and patients, balancing teaching, management, conflicts, and life saving care. The only thing Robby isn’t doing is looking out for himself, as it starts to become clear that his own mental health is on a precipice. At the same time, charge nurse Dana Evans (Katherine LaNasa) is doing her best to keep the ER running smoothly, a difficult task given that the Fourth of July weekend has resulted in a large influx of injured patients. Things aren’t any easier for senior resident Dr. Frank Langdon (Patrick Ball), who is finally out of rehab and back to work after Robby turned him in for drug abuse. Despite being completely clean, Langdon isn’t trusted by Robby, or Dr. Trinity Santos, (Isa Briones), who is still unafraid to say what she thinks, no matter how harsh. Other returning characters include Dr. Dennis Whitaker (Gerran Howell) and student Dr. Victoria Javadi (Shabana Azeez), who are both just trying to get through the day and find their place in this chaotic profession. Things are further complicated by the arrival of Dr. Baran Al-Hashimi (Sepideh Moafi), a new attending physician who will be taking up Robby’s position while he’s on leave. However, Robby and Al-Hashimi don’t always see eye to eye on how to run this busy ER.
As is evident from the above description, there are many characters and many storylines playing out at once, and that’s not even half of them. Regardless of whether you saw the first season or not, The Pitt has an intimidating number of threads to follow, and yet it has never been easier to follow. The first season of course was filled to the brim with characters and character development, but it focused on delivering pinpoint accuracy with the medical procedures and medical jargon. If you weren’t following the character drama, there was plenty of academic surgical information to keep you interested. This time around, the medical information and the character building are intertwined. Thus, you’ll come to care about the interpersonal relationships, the psychological, and emotional depth, of the doctors and nurses, just as much as the health of the patients.
To be clear, this season remains a staggeringly accurate depiction of hospital work and emergency procedures. If you thought that season one had covered every possible surgical scenario in extraordinary detail, then season two will leave your jaw on the floor. By the end of the season, your appreciation for the difficulty and bravery of hospital work will skyrocket, as you will see things that defy belief, but are absolutely truthful. All credit goes to the production team and cast, all of whom have had to learn and almost master complexities of the medical field to an impressive degree. As has been highly publicised, the team behind The Pitt had to engage in a medical boot camp in order to convincingly portray these real world scenarios, and the success of the boot camp is evident.
The accuracy of medical procedures isn’t the only aspect of hospital life that The Pitt portrays, given that the morals, ethics, and processes common in this workplace are put under a microscope. When a student doctor misdiagnoses a patient resulting in an emergency procedure, we are given a scene showing how a skilled attending physician would turn this mistake into a teachable moment. When a doctor loudly reprimands paramedics on their improper conduct, we are given a scene of a nurse telling that doctor off for not reprimanding in private. When a resident is overloaded and unable to find time to chart their findings, we see how this would negatively affect the next doctor’s ability to give appropriate care. Every scene, whether dramatic or minimalist, is highlighting the challenges, bureaucracy, and methodologies that healthcare workers deal with every day. In a way, The Pitt may be high budgeted HBO entertainment, but it could be just as useful as a learning module in the workplace.
That being said, all of the above was just as true of the first season. With that in mind, does season two of The Pitt fail to match the first’s fresh impact? Is The Pitt going to be a show which peaked in its first year and gradually became less impressive? Happily, that’s not likely, as season two remains just as vital, current and relevant in very key ways. Along with portraying the procedures and ethics of the Hospital workplace, the first season also showed how various political realities can affect doctors, nurses and patients. Namely, season one delivered a sobering look at the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, and frequent school shootings. While these themes are of course powerful and remain topical, they weren’t necessarily wedded to the year 2025. COVID had been with us for five years, and school shootings have (unfortunately) been a common part of American life. Season two ups the ante by depicting issues plaguing our society right now, including sexual violence, racial hate crimes and ICE. If the creative team continues to have their finger on the pulse, The Pitt may become the most iconic and important show of the entire decade.
Most importantly, season two hits harder than the first due to its deeper focus on mental health. This angle is of course highlighted in some of the patients, but it is mostly displayed and analysed through our various doctors, residents and nurses, all of whom have various traumas and demons they are battling. The mental health analysis is never overdone or theatrical, coming across as highly relatable and sensitive. For those who struggle with anxiety, The Pitt is highly empathetic, never showcasing its characters troubles in a cartoonish manner. What’s most impressive, is that The Pitt feels very comforting by the end of the season, providing a hopeful and life affirming message. For all the difficulty, hardship and tears, The Pitt is ultimately a show about good people, doing good things, who deserve to live happily.
In its second year, The Pitt remains at the very top of what TV has to offer. If the quality of the writing, directing, acting, storytelling and realism is maintained, The Pitt may soon be spoken of in the same breath as The Sopranos (1999) and The Wire (2002). Specifically, in how the show, its characters and its themes depict a microcosm of life today.
10/10
