Code Black Season 1 Episode 14 Review: Love, Family, and Insanity

Code Black season 1 episode 14, “The Fifth Stage” is one of those episodes you really need to watch more than once to get the nuances of.  Not because it wasn’t great to watch the first time, but there is so much packed in here!  With all that’s happening in Code Black season 1 episode 14 not only might you miss some things, but you might not notice just how tightly weaved together these stories are.

In retrospect it shouldn’t have been a surprise to me that this is another two-part episode.  While having nothing but this format would be annoying, I appreciate that Code Black is willing to give stories a chance to play out fully instead of going with TV conventions that say two-part episodes should only be once a year, or just used for premieres, finales & hiatus breaks.   As a result of this break with convention the writers for Code Black don’t have to sacrifice good story-telling because they are trying to fit everything into a 43 minute framework!

…Before I get all serious and deep about this episode,  I have to talk about Christeal!!!

Oh my God, that was perfect!

That opening scene is sexy, funny, and intimate.  I  like how they use the flashback so we get glimpses of them the night before, but it’s the whole morning afterglow thing that says it all.  The best thing about that whole structure is Christa being the one to wake him up and then Neal starts talking about making breakfast.   Food is not Christa’s mind!

Christa:  There’s no time.
Neal:       Of course, there is.
Christa:   No…there isn’t.

Neal’s a little slow on the uptake here.  He’s looking at the clock trying to figure it out.  Dude, why do you think she woke you up?  That is such a fun and sexy moment!

Sigh…okay.  Fangirling is now over.  The writers were smart to put that scene first, because the tone of the episode gets heavy and serious right after and never lets up.

 The Set Up

Code Black is without question an ensemble show, but it still has a center that everything radiates out from: Dr. Leanne “Daddy” Rorish (Marcia Gay Harden).  Last week we learned that she was thinking about leaving her job completely, not just as the head of the Angels Memorial residency program, but as an E.R. doctor.  Still, that was just talking!  When the first thing we hear  spoken after Christeal is her closest friend Jesse “Mama” Sallander (Luis Guzmán) saying Leanne is leaving and doesn’t know who’s replacing her it’s a shock.  I was expecting more therapy sessions, and some talk about taking time off!

I should have known better.  Code Black writers are very good at cutting to the chase.  Even though this decision appears sudden, it doesn’t feel like it’s coming out of nowhere for the character.  That’s because the writers have been building to Leanne coming to this decision all season.  We know about her tragic past and how she’s thrown herself into her job in a way that isn’t entirely healthy.  There’s also been some errors, major errors, that she’s made.  Those have made her question both her approach to emergency medicine and her ability to not let the loss of her entire family affect her judgement and objectivity.

The work between Harden and Guzmán is excellent as always.

Jesse:    You bought a lottery ticket called ‘Mega Zombie?’

Leanne: See, you don’t know me at all….

Jesse’s reaction says it all. Leanne should know better….

… and she does.

Leanne: Nothing lasts forever.

Jesse:     Some things do.

The two hug, and Jesse gives a little whimper….  You don’t need to use many words with actors like this.  The way these two are able to convey the depth of their friendship without a word is pure acting poetry.  It’s the kind of scene that feels like they’re on stage in front of you.  Leanne knows that wasn’t fair, and under the circumstances it’s hurtful.  Love is never having to say you’re sorry – because the words aren’t necessary.

Leanne and Jesse, aka “Daddy & Mama” are the first look at the bonds of love & family.  It isn’t the last.

The Family: Fathers, Friends and Brothers

We learn that the reason Leanne is there and telling Jesse this is because she’s been summoned on her day off to meet with the head of the hospital Dr. Ed Harbert (Jeff Hephner).   She’s annoyed to see he’s brought Gina Perello (Christina Vidal) – the acting head of the E.R. – to sit in on their meeting.  He may have an M.D. after his name but he’s just a game-playing corporate politician – and Leanne knows it. (Hence her almost walking out.  She doesn’t look the least surprised that as soon as makes a move to leave the door opens and he’s ready for her!)

In that slimy way that people like this work Ed tells Leanne that she’s completely earned the right to choose who will take over the residency program – but he’s already picked Dr. Mike Leighton (Tommy Dewey) because Mike’s father is a prominent board member  and he asked the board to consider Mike.   Ed is hoping Leanne will go along with this as she’s the one that brought Mike back to the hospital (over Gina’s head) – and he thought (hoped) that was her reasoning.  It wasn’t.  She’s been thinking about Neal in that role, and says she didn’t “necessarily” bring Mike in to be the residency director.  Instead, “despite his father” she brought him in because the hospital would be short one attending doctor when she leaves.

The CEO plays hardball, first by discounting Leanne’s contribution to Angel Memorial’s residency program. Yes, the E.R. residency program may be its crown jewel, but it’s bigger than just that.  More importantly, he’s bigger than she is.  In other words Ed can railroad through whom he wants.  Furthermore, the board is meeting the next day to decide who should replace her.   Leanne’s disgusted and walks out, while both Ed and Gina are looking smug.

As soon as Leanne leaves however, Ed is a lot less smug.  Gina promises him that she’ll talk to Leanne and reason with her – and she’s got some swagger going on.  She seems quite confident that she can save Ed’s butt and get Leanne to approve Mike.

Gina: “Well, you mentioned this gig would
have a few challenges when you hired me.”

Here’s the thing that wasn’t said in that meeting.  Although they don’t need Leanne’s approval to give Mike the position, if they appoint someone who she won’t approve it won’t look good for the program.  The truth that they all know is that Leanne is a big part of the residency program’s success – and her name is linked to its reputation.  If people learn that she didn’t think Mike was the right man for the job then the assumption will be that Mike only got the job because of his father.  That will cause people to wonder if the program’s standards have dropped.  If it really didn’t matter if Leanne approved of Mike or not the meeting wouldn’t have taken place at all.

As for Gina’s role in this?  She and Leanne have been at odds more often than not and so she doesn’t mind Leanne being dressed down some.  That’s not the main thing though. Gina just enjoyed all of that power-playing in general.  It was like she was watching a tennis match! We saw her acting similarly to the CEO last week with Christa and Neal.  She gets off on feeling she has power over other people and she likes these kind of power games.  Gina can be concerned about the wellbeing of others, and she’s a pretty woman. However, this aspect of her personality is not attractive.

The next time we see Leanne she’s sitting in her car which is sitting in a highway diner’s parking lot.  (It is so weird to see her not at the hospital!).  She runs into a quirky, good-natured teenager (who needs a ride “North” – to a state penitentiary.  Leanne isn’t sure where she’s going (at least not consciously) – but she agrees to buy the kid some pie.

Downstairs in the E.R. locker rooms resident Malaya Pineda (Melanie Chandra) is letting fellow resident Mario Savetti (Benjamin Hollingsworth) that she saw him hooking up with surgical resident Heather Pinkney (Jillian Murray) – and that he’s a jerk because he knows resident Angus Leighton (Harry Ford) likes her.  Her advice is that he tell Angus – before Angus finds out about it from someone else.  To be fair, at one point Mario actually did try to do the right thing and not hook up with it Heather again – she just wasn’t having it, and he gave up trying.  After Malaya leaves you can see he still feels conflicted about it, despite his bravado with Malaya.

I’m going to wrap up the outcome of this now because it’s the shortest storyline in the episode.  Mario ends up treating a patient – who is portrayed as being a loose party-girl – for gonorrhea in her knee! (Like, I did not know that was even possible! )  It seems like a random case to throw in, until Angus reveals to Mario and Malaya that his hopes with Heather have been dashed.  Heather was caught making out with her attending!  Furthermore, she only will go out with an attending or higher.  For Angus, not only is she “tacky” but he’s not an attending – so he’s out.  When Angus leaves Malaya tells Mario she hopes he used protection!

Mario is more upset about this than he lets on, and I don’t think it’s just about pride.  He doesn’t like to admit to caring about people, but maybe he actually liked Heather as more than just a hook up?  He’s super-short with Heather when they have to work together, and eventually the topic of her with the attending comes up.  Heather doesn’t deny it and tells Mario not only did they never say they were exclusive, but they “are not a couple.”

Heather: If you still wanna hang out, I’m cool with that – but don’t try and control me in the process. 

Heather is becoming a more complex character.  It would be easy to paint her as a party-girl looking for a rich guy, and that may be part of her gestalt.  That would explain her cozying up to Angus, because while he’s not an attending everyone knows who his father is.  I suspect it has more to do with men she thinks can advance her career.  Again though, I think there’s more to it.  For one, she’s clearly super smart.  We say that last week when she was passionately concerned about the fate of that girl from the strict religious family.  The thing about the father violating his own rules about medical intervention by wearing glasses was a stroke of genius! (Yes, I’m still tripped out on that one – kudos to writer Kristen Kim!)  Then there’s the reveal about her own religious upbringing where she read the Bible with her father every night?   While the actual hooking up story with Mario and the “love triangle” hasn’t interested me, Heather Pinkley as character is starting to draw me in.

Now let’s get back to the set up.  Mike is completely oblivious to the fact that Leanne is quitting and that his father is pulling strings to get him the job. He’s too busy being a doctor alongside his buddy Neal!
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Whoa! Now, that, is a dysfunctional family! Did you follow all of that Kiran Petrosian (Trevor Page) is the son of major mob boss Caro Petrosian (Hal Ozsan). Kiran was guarding a warehouse of his father’s when his uncle Emmanuel came with a gang of his own and attacked it! Kiran was shot by his own uncle! The guy that Caro’s men all drew guns on is Emmanuel’s son and Kiran’s cousin Manny (Deniz Akdeniz). is beside himself and pleads with his uncle.

Manny: We couldn’t have known it was Kiran. We would never hurt him.

Caro is furious and afraid for his son, he warns Manny to tell his father there’s “no going back from this” if Kiran dies. Then there’s this pause and a moment of flickering sadness as his takes in his nephew. The subtext is clear: Caro realizes that if Kiran dies he will have to kill him. Manny knows it as well – because that’s the way of the family.  Again, there are no words here, just great acting.

Manny goes to Mike and Neal to learn how bad Kiran’s situation is.  At first Mike is skeptical of Manny’s intentions, but Manny tells him “It’s our fathers’ feud – not ours.”  When things when south between their fathers – each felt the other was trying to cheat the other – the cousins secretly stayed friends – more like brothers.

Manny: Who else is going to understand what it’s like growing up in our crazy family?

Mike, who was pretty judgmental when Manny talked about his father and Uncle having an “enterprise” together, has his own kind of crazy family stuff to deal when his father shows up.

Daddy Dearest

Mike and Angus’s father is a real piece of work.  He has two sons,  but obviously prefers Mike – and Angus and Mike both know it.  The good news is we can see that’s just one of the reasons Mike can’t stand his father.

Dad:  You know, I hear he’s really coming into his own here.  I’m a little surprised actually.

Mike: Why?  I always thought he’d make a great doctor.

Dad:   You know, I wish I had some of your optimism.

No wonder Angus is so insecure!  Good grief!  Mike’s anger and disgust with his father reads loud and clear.  Mike be loaded with more charm, charisma, intelligence and talent than the average doctor, but he’s far from being a jerk – he’s the opposite in fact.  …He and Angus must get that from their mother.

Things in this conversation get worse when Mike learns that Leanne is leaving and that his father can pull strings to get Mike the job!

Mike:  No! That’s exactly why I left this place to begin with.

Mike feels the job should go to Neal or Dr. Rollie Guthrie (William Allen Young).  More importantly, he doesn’t want his father helping him to get jobs – period.   Mike’s dad is hurt by this – which should tell everyone how clueless and out of it he is.  Seriously, why would someone like Mike want their father pulling strings?  Mike wants to his own man, one respected for who he is, not whom his father is.  Most children feel this way – and most parents get it.

Who’s Really Insane?

This episode gives us something to think about in terms of mental illness and insanity.  It starts when Christa and Neal get a patient named Logan who had jumped from a four-story building!  His wife, Lori Nicholas (Rebecca Field) is crying and upset – but doesn’t want him resuscitated.  In the middle of the emergency they ignore her, but afterwards she presents to Christa, Neal , Jesse, and Gina that she has power of attorney.  The kicker is the jumper is paranoid schizophrenic.  Christa hates this!  She passionately notes that with the proper medications the man can have a great life, then  furiously asks Neal if  he’s okay with this.  He’s not, but “the rules” say there’s nothing they can do.

Christa: Screw the rules. Am I the only one who thinks this is wrong? Jesse!  Tell them what you’re always telling us! We are not allowed to kill a guest in your house

Jesse:     This is different.  This man doesn’t want what we offer.

There is a moment of silence, where Gina is casting major attitude about Christa’s outbursts.  As far as she’s concerned, there’s nothing they can do – end of story.  That’s when Neal steps up to say that Christa has a point in that the situation doesn’t feel right.

Gina:  It’s not about how it feels.  It’s how it is.  We follow the wife’s instructions.

This makes Lori sounds like a horrible woman, but we soon realize that she’s trying to do what her husband wanted….  It gets complicated.

The other patient that shows up is Malaya’s weirdo guy from last week, Gordon Heshman (Jesse Bradford).  He’s got a bad stomach ache, but he’s “surprised” Malaya still remembers him.  Malaya points out he’d just been there yesterday.  Gordon says he had a friend that recently died from cancer – one he’d stayed with until the very end – so maybe he’s just being paranoid.  The cancer story gains Malaya’s naturally gains Malaya’s sympathy and while she’s examining Gordon she reveals having gone through a similar thing as well.   She decides there actually is something up with his stomach and tells him she’s going to run some tests and get him something for the pain.  Even though his being ill may be legitimate, something about his reactions to Malaya seem off.

The Cases/Stories

Because this is a two-part episode most of the storylines don’t conclude, they just pause.   Some stopping points are cleaner than others though.

Malaya and Gordon

Malaya comes back with Gordon’s tests and tells him that, no, he doesn’t have cancer.  He is greatly relieved…and holding on to Malaya’s hands for way too long.  She’s uncomfortable, but doesn’t freak out.   She has found a couple of problems though: blood in his urine, and his blood isn’t clotting properly, which does run a risk of internal bleeding.  This freaks him out some, but Malaya reassures him that they’re ahead of things and will run some more tests.  In the meantime she’s getting him some vitamin K to help with the blood-clotting issue.

Okay, I’m not a doctor, but I am a Googler and something didn’t sound right.  Who’s blood just stops clotting?   After the episode I looked up blotting clotting problems.   Maybe Malaya missed something… Could that pain in his “stomach”  be his liver?

The next time Malaya sees Gordon is when he surprises her in the doctor’s break room!  Okay, that’s a major boundary being crossed.  Now everything he’s doing and saying is coming off as strange – like psycho strange.  Malaya is handling it pretty well, but then Gina comes in with her arrogant take-charge attitude.  She sends Gordon packing with some sarcastic remarks.  Once he’s gone she warns Malaya that she needs to be careful.  Gina can tell that Gordon, “likes her.”  Gina then gives Malaya some almost sisterly advice.

Gina: Trust me on this, Malaya.  As a woman, you have to be aware that the appearance of a situation matters just as much as the real.

Later, near the end of the episode, Gina goes to her locker to grab a snack out of her bag.  She’s just taken a bite when her pager goes off.  As she’s walking out, she surprised by Gordon – and he’s wearing hospital scrubs.  As usual, Gina’s reaction is one of an annoyed authority.  Gordon doesn’t like it.

Gordon:  You have an attitude problem.

At this point, that slight creepiness that we’ve been seeing in Gordon has gone into full-on Criminal Mind serial killer mode.  We all know this will not end well for Gina!

Kieran & Manny

Kieran Petrosian is rushed back to center stage after his vitals start crashing after a scan.  Angus is doing the heart compressions while Neal is trying to stop the bleeding on one of the spurting wounds.  Mike arrives on the scene and the three work together to stabilize him.  In the middle of this, Angus asks Mike what their father wanted with Mike.  Seriously, he does this.   In the middle of dealing with a patient he’s asking about their father and sounding resentful in that their father’s never come down to Angels to see him.  Mike, who doesn’t want to talk about this in general, really doesn’t want to in the middle of dealing with a patient! As such he’s a little short with Angus, which briefly draws Neal’s attention.

Once Kieran has a pulse again Neal and Mike look at his scans.  Kieran has major liver damage and there’s no time to put him on the donor’s waiting list.  The only other option is to see if anyone in the family is a blood type match and can donate a piece of their liver to save Kieran.   Being that half the family is the reason that Kieran is in the hospital to begin with, Mike’s not optimistic – but Neal says he’ll go talk to them.

As soon as Neal leaves Angus comes over and starts pestering Mike about why their father is there! Ugh! Why couldn’t he have left it alone – at least until they weren’t in the middle of  the E.R.?  He pushes Mike for the reason and Mike tells him.  Just in time for Neal to hear.  Great.  Not only is he learning second-hand about Leanne leaving, but he’s learning that Mike’s father is pushing him into a job that should be his. This is one time Angus really annoys me, even though I feel badly that he has a father who plays favorites and things so little of him.  Mike tries to smooth things over with Neal, who says everything is fine – but Mike can see that it’s not.

Nevertheless the two have a job to do.  It turns out (not surprisingly) that Manny is the only one who turns out to be a donor match for Kieran.  Nor is it surprising that Manny’s father absolutely forbids Manny to be a donor and doesn’t want Mike or Neal talking to his son.  When Manny speaks up voicing his concern for Kieran’s well-being, his father turns on him, saying that Manny is “as weak” as Kieran.  Manny, angry, hurt, and frustrated walks out.  A while later Mike finds him and tried to convince him to do the liver donation. Manny says he can’t go against his father because “respect” is everything to his dad.    Mike  says he “gets” Manny’s father – and that’s why Manny needs to stand up to him.

Mike: “Tell him no.  Make him respect you.”

Oh, Mike….  Your father is an egomaniac and a control freak – but he’s not a criminal or killer. My gut feeling during this scene is that the consequences could end up being deadly.  The feeling intensifies when Manny takes Mike’s  words to heart…although perhaps not in the way Mike expected!  Manny turns the tables on his father in a big way!

Manny:        You’re letting your hatred blind you – makes you look weak.

Emmanuel: What did you say to me?

Manny:         How are you not getting this?  I’m giving a piece of me to save Kieran’s life.  That will make Uncle Caro owe us.  It puts us in an advantage,gives us a position of strength.  Isn’t that what we want?

With that, Manny is wheeled away by Neal and Mike to the transplant team.  He feels great, but Emmanuel’s reaction is unreadable.  All I know is if something happens to Manny, someone is gonna pay!

Leanne’s Decision & Mike’s Dilemma

The title for Code Black season 1 episode 14, “The Fifth Stage” comes from Leanne’s storyline.  It refers to The five stages of grief  first described by Swiss psychiatrist Elisabeth Kübler-Ross.  The fifth stage is acceptance.

Once in a while you get shown the light in the strangest of places if you look at it right
– The Grateful Dead

For the love of  “Bam,”  pie and the Grateful Dead, Leanne ends up driving this teen to go see his father in jail, but really, that’s where she was unknowingly heading all along.  Part of the Code Black aesthetic is a lyrical structuring of story ideas, much like you’ll find in serious plays. It’s one of those things that you either love or hate.  (I happen to love it,  so there ‘s my bias).   It’s also something you can only pull off with actors who are loaded with talent and skill – otherwise the works and situations won’t ring true.  Not only is the regular cast of Code Black up to the challenge, but the entire guest cast is stellar, (the teenager  is played by Ezekiel Bridges.)

The Grateful Dead quote is an excellent frame for what’s going on for Leanne.  This season the journey we’ve been on with her has been about her having to confront the past and her tremendous loss.  The one person she can really confront about it?  The drunk driver who wiped out her family.

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This scene is profound.  We’ve seen how the loss of her family in that drunk driving accident has affected Leanne’s entire life.  Maybe she’s going to an extreme in deciding to quit her job, but being that the job is so tied up with her past it’s understandable.  Maybe it was the kiss from Cole Guthrie (Cress Williams) that woke her to the need to move on and opened her eyes to how much her judgement has been affected as a doctor – or maybe it’s just time.  There’s no real timeline for how long a person is supposed to grieve a loss. The bottom line is Leanne wants to move on in her life and she can’t do that if she’s holding on to the hatred of the person (played by Will Rothhaar) that’s killed her family.  All the things that we’ve seen her go through, they have brought her to this place of acceptance.  She now able to see the light.

When Leanne leaves the prison it’s to head right back to Angels Memorial and tell Gina that she’s ready to name her recommendation for the new head of the residency program.  Before she can say a name, Mike comes in and announces to both Gina and Leanne that absolutely will not take the position, which was offered to him via his father and hospital CEO.  Furthermore, he says that if it’s not Leanne running the program the position should go to Neal – and credits Leanne for teaching him to do the right thing.  In other words, he’s not about to use his father’s pull to take away a job from a friend who’s put in the time and deserves it.

There’s one problem with Mike turning down the job.  He’s perfect for it.  From different places Leanne and Neal watch him working with Mario and Angus when Mario’s gonorrhea patient’s vitals suddenly start going down.  Mario doesn’t know why it’s happening since she’s on all the right medications, but Mike does: it’s septic shock.  They take the patient to center stage, where Angus and Mario start panicking because they can’t tell if they’ve gone into an artery or vein to put in the IV line. (I’m guessing septic shock makes the color of the blood in the arteries dark because it’s not getting enough oxygen.  I’m sure someone with more medical expertise will comment and let me know if that’s right or not.)  Mike calmly shows them a trick to be able to tell in this kind of situation, but doesn’t try to take over the job.  He watches as Mario gets the line in the vein and starts ordering what’s needed next.  Only then does Mike call out the order of what’s needed next.  It’s exactly what Mario just ordered.  He grins at Mario.

Mike:  See, you didn’t need me.  It’s in the vein already.

From their different vantage points Neal and Leanne exchange a look.  They need to talk.

For Neal, his first question is why Leanne didn’t tell him she was leaving.  He’s genuinely hurt by that. Leanne evades that question by saying Neal already knows why, and cites the recent incident in the highway accident. Neal isn’t having it.  Sure, she made the wrong call and both patients could have died – but they didn’t.  The unstated truth:  they didn’t because Leanne is that good.  Yes, she didn’t follow protocol, and yes it was a risk, but because she’s got the experience and the talent, one person that was left for dead is alive.  There’s got to be a bigger reason than her making a mistake.

Leanne: The truth is, I never took the time I should have after the accident.  You told me that, many times before. I let this place fill the vacuum that my family left behind….  I never figured out, who I am without them…I need to do that.

There’s nothing else to say after that and Neal puts his arm around the weepy Leanne.

I know the Emmys are tilted toward the cable and streaming shows, but I hope people are seeing the work Harden is doing on this show, because it’s incredible and deserves some recognition.  (If you want to go watch that scene again, here’s the link to the episode: www.cbs.com).

Anyway, after having talked with Leanne, Neal runs into Mike.  Neal tells Mike that he and Leanne have spoken and Mike is relieved.   He’s expecting to hear that Neal was offered the job, and is puzzled that it wasn’t.  Neal isn’t.  He and Leanne both saw how with Angus and Mario.  Among Neal’s observations is the fact that Mike was able to  instruct and teach the residents, “without humiliating them.”

Neal:  You were born for this Mike – I knew that.  That’s why you’re here.
Mike: Oh, come on. You’re great at all this stuff.
Neal:  Don’t, don’t walk away from this.

Wow.  It takes a big man to admit that someone is better suited for a job they wanted.  It’s not an easy moment for Neal at all, but he means it wholeheartedly.

In just two episodes we’ve been given a complete picture of who Mike is, and a more general question to think about.  It’s easy to put down a person’s achievements when they have connections – but what if they actually deserve them?  Mike isn’t a “golden boy” because of his father’s connections – he is in spite of them. (Although, I do wonder why Jesse doesn’t like him!)

Is Mike going end up taking that job?  Well, that assumes that Leanne will truly end up leaving and since Harden is headlining this show I doubt Leanne’s going anywhere.

Logan & Christa

The fact that Logan’s wife Lori was willing to just let her paranoid schizophrenic husband die feels so wrong to Christa (and the rest of us watching) because the assumption is that Lori is doing so because she was tired of dealing with him.  This isn’t the case.  Christa listens to Lori talk about witnessing Logan’s descent into madness, and the fact that they did try medication.   It’s not Lori who gave up – it was Logan.

Lori: “A year ago, he decided it was over.  He was clear
….He wanted to be allowed to die.

Christa is torn.  Obviously Lori is not a woman trying to get rid of her husband because she sees him as a burden.  Lori loves her husband and would have hung in and fought for his mental health, but the man himself was tired of fighting.  At the same time, everything in Christa says just letting someone die is wrong.  With Jesse standing by, Christa reminds Lori that if Logan’s heart stops the hospital won’t do CPR.  Is Lori sure this is what she wants.  Lori takes a deep breath and replies that it’s what her husband wanted.

What Lori is doing – that is true love.  The right to die is an ongoing issue and question in medicine under “normal” circumstances.  In Lori’s case it’s even harder because Logan didn’t have a legal “do not resuscitate” order.  Instead she’s upholding the verbal wishes of her husband – which are contrary to her own.

Christa gets this…but doesn’t.  It goes against everything she believes in – but it’s not her decision to make.  Jesse offers to take Lori to the waiting room until it’s over, but she refuses.  Maybe he should have taken Christa, because when Logan’s monitor goes off saying his heart has stopped Christa can’t stand it.  She rushes over and starts doing CPR! She’s basically gone out of her mind for a few seconds.  Luckily Neal is there.  He physically grabs her and pulls her away!  Christa comes back to herself and realizes how completely wrong what she was doing was.  The entire situation is too upsetting for her though, and after apologizing to everyone she runs out of the room.  Neal calls the time of death.

The Wrap Up

The ending of Code Black season 1 episode 14 is a brutal one.  Christa has run to the locker room to try to pull herself together.  What she finds does not help!
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Gordon must have left Gina for dead – but she’s not dead yet.  The real question is where did he go next? Is he going to look for Malaya? I get the feeling all hell is going to break loose next week.  There’s a crazy guy running around willing to kill anyone who gives him attitude, plus two opposing mobsters with their sons in surgery.  Is there a code for murderers in the hospital?

This is the most dramatic and story-heavy episode of Code Black yet!  Aside from the life and death dramatics of mobsters and a killer it’s filled with emotionally intense situations:  falling in love, dealing with loss, the right to die, and dysfunction family dynamics.  Most shows pick one or two of these heavy topics to deal with per episode.  Then again, most shows aren’t Code Black!

Are you excited for next week’s episode? Do you think Gina will make it?  How happy are you about Christeal?  Let’s hear in the comments what you’ve thought of all this action!