St. Denis Medical is one of those shows that surprises you at every turn. What I love the most about it is how much it leans into the realism of working in a hospital that needs a lot of love and support. Many episodes have showcased the challenges St. Denis Medical and the staff faced, but none was more relatable than St. Denis Medical Season 1, Episode 18, ‘This Place is Our Everything.’
“Big J.”
Joyce is on cloud nine after receiving a hefty donation of $10 million from Amelia Irving in St. Denis Medical Season 1, Episode 17 ‘Bruce-ic And The Mus-ic’. Because of that money, her vision board can become a reality. However, she didn’t realize just how many needs there were for the hospital until people started lining up and making requests. Having all that money gave Joyce a sense of power and control. But as always, it got out of hand really quickly.
Because Joyce also wants to be liked, she felt as if she were some magic genie granting everyone’s wishes. Unfortunately, when you start telling everyone yes, it tends to backfire, and it did. With Joyce telling everyone they could have what they wanted, she learned just how much it was all adding up. The $10 million was gone in a day. Of course, she didn’t spend that money, but if she honored every request, that money would have been gone. This alone spoke to the intense need of the hospital.
Everyone had something they wanted, including Joyce. Her vision was not unreasonable by any means, but St. Denis Medical needs to do many other things before her dream can be realized. For instance, Ron wanted a dedicated CT scanner, a practical need. Now, Bruce and his surgical amphitheater? Not so practical—at least not at the moment, especially when there were other, more emergent and pressing matters of the leaky roof kind.
There Is No Perfect Balance
On St. Denis Medical Season 1, Episode 18, it was Alex’s day off and she was at, of all places, St. Denis. But not for herself. Her hubby, Tim, was there to have a vasectomy. After that conversation they had about children, they came to the understanding that they were both done. Alex wanted to ensure she was by his side because it was “Tim day.” But, as the saying goes, “The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry.”
With a huge storm in the area, the ER at St. Denis was slammed with patients, including a group of rambunctious women who were at a bachelorette party. The staff was incredibly overwhelmed and in desperate need of a charge nurse. The nurse who was supposed to cover for Alex could not get to the hospital because the storm was so bad that it washed the bridge out. So, who was next in line for the phone call? You guessed it, Alex. This is something I know all too well from days of working at the bedside. Your day off is sacred; sometimes, you don’t get peace.
Showing Up
When Val called Alex to ask if she could come in, she lied, and I didn’t understand. She told Val she was at home when all she had to do was tell her she was at the hospital with her husband. I don’t care if Val saw her and knew she was there. She wasn’t there to work. It was her rightfully earned day off. Alex didn’t owe Val or anyone at the hospital anything, but because Alex is gonna Alex, she of course said yes to helping out.
We get that Alex is one of the best charge nurses, and things fall into place when she steps in. But the staff should be able to manage even when she isn’t there. It places a lot of pressure on her that they didn’t seem to get or care to get. Especially Val. But, as I said, it was also Alex’s fault for not saying no. Even Ron tried to tell her she didn’t and shouldn’t have been there helping. Ron will always tell it like it is, and I appreciate that he knows how important it is to take some time for yourself.
You Can’t Save Lois Lane And The Bus Full Of Kids
Tim was so understanding, but deep down, he was hurt; his wife was busy supporting other patients, not her husband. She promised she’d make it back in time to be by his side, but things continued to pile on back to back. Those things included the hospital’s leaky roof caving in near a patient and Joyce having a slip-and-fall that led to an injured ankle. After having a conversation with Joyce about the two of them being similar in the way they give everything they have to St. Denis, it’s in that moment that Alex realizes she’s done enough for the day. She takes a moment, and it sinks in that she cannot always be everything for everyone, which is okay.
Alex remembers who and what she was at St. Denis for, and she puts Serena in charge, then returns to having her day off to be with her husband. Alex has given a lot of herself in quite a few episodes of St. Denis Medical, and each time I have thought to myself, when will you say no? I’m glad this was the day she finally did it and felt okay. Nurses deserve to be with their loved ones, too. Alex spends every waking minute being someone else’s support system; this time, she wanted to make her husband that priority.
Serena The Oblivious
We were really hoping after that McMoment (yes, I said that) between Serena and Matt at McDonald’s after the gala, we’d see a shift in their relationship. That was not the case on St. Denis Medical Episode 18. For some reason, every single person in Matt and Serena’s orbit can see how much Matt cares about her, but she is totally oblivious. Serena spent most of the episode trying to hook Matt up with one of the bachelorettes. She even asked him what type of girls he likes.
When he went into his description, it was very much saying, “Serena, you are my type.” And yet, she was unmoved. What was interesting about Serena completely missing Matt’s signals was the fact that she said he was “Boyfriend material.” I know a girl can think this about a guy, and it doesn’t necessarily mean they mean boyfriend material specifically for them, but Serena has been spending so much time with Matt, I thought by now she would have picked up the signals.
Matt Takes The Hint
As Val pointed out, Serena is very smart, so she couldn’t figure out how she didn’t see that Matt is in love with her. It was, of course, shocking for her to hear that because being in love with someone is a scary thing. We do feel bad for Matt because he’s basically heard Serena’s thoughts expressed out loud as it pertains to dating someone who is a coworker. This pretty much made him shut down entirely, and he has now accepted that though Serena is the girl of his dreams, he’s not the guy of hers.
Clearly we don’t know how Serena feels about Matt. Once the initial shock wears off from her learning he’s in love with her, I am curious to know what she will do with this information. I’m also curious if this will change how she sees him. Once you know someone has feelings for you, things can change rather quickly. Here’s hoping this doesn’t make things more awkward.
Other Thoughts
- Ron’s superpower of warm hands is a win. Nobody likes a Doctor or Nurse with cold hands.
- Bruce saying his superpower is X-ray vision wasn’t what I thought he’d pick. I just knew he’d say something like super strength.
- Alex saying the superpower question reduces them to machines, facts, but also, she was overthinking it.
- “Everyone’s wet and pissed.” Yup, rain will do that.
- Pleather pews? Really? Chaplain Steve?
- “…A Mrs. Doubtfire situation. That always ends well.”
- “It was a run-by fruiting.” is indeed a classic line from Mrs. Doubtfire.
- Leaky roof on a rainy day at work… been there. It is a hectic time for sure.
- A leaky roof collapsing over a patient is what we like to call a sentinel event.
- That slip and fall. Ouch Joyce. Ouch!
- If Alex put Serena in charge when she left, why didn’t she just tell Val to do this from the start?
- Speaking of Serena, again, girl I love you but really? you couldn’t tell Matt likes you?
- “I’m never going to be everything to everybody.” The realness of this statement.
St. Denis Medical airs Tuesday Nights at 8/7c on NBC.
