Great job, Cary Christopher!
One of TV’s most talented young actors got to play a troubled kid, and his story both fascinated me and made me cry.
It almost made up for some unnecessary Halloween-induced nonsense, too.
If You Don’t Yet Know Who Cary Christopher Is, You Soon Will
Christopher recently wrapped his run on Days of Our Lives, where he’s played Thomas DiMera since the age of four, to pursue other opportunities, including this episode of Chicago Med.
Ironically, there have been several other times when children on the medical drama reminded me of him, but were played by other actors, almost as if this type of role is a natural for him.
It isn’t easy to play a child who is terrified of something only he can see, never mind one who turns out later to have a history of severe abuse, but Christopher knocked it out of the park.
Lucas’ visual-perception problem caused him to see distorted, frightening images when he looked at people’s faces, but not when he looked at their photographs.
As a side note, this would have been a perfect time for a crossover with Brilliant Minds. I’d have loved for Dr. Charles to have gotten on the phone or Zoom with Brilliant Minds’ Dr. Wolf for a consult on this issue.
While Dr. Charles’s struggle to understand what was causing this problem for Lucas was fascinating, the scene where Lucas finally spoke with his foster parents broke me.
The scene moved quickly from relief that the new glasses Lucas was wearing had solved the problem to heartbreaking as he explained that he didn’t knock on the door when he heard his foster parents crying because that would have been a “mistake.”
Lucas: Bothering people when the door is closed would have been a mistake.
Charles: Who told you that? Your mom and dad? What else did they say was a mistake?
Lucas: Being too loud, not cleaning up my toys…
Charles: And what happened when you made a mistake?
Lucas: They’d yell bad words at me. Tie me to my bed, not let me eat… I don’t want to go back there.
Like many child abuse victims, Lucas didn’t know that the way he had been treated was not normal, though he was relieved that his foster parents didn’t do that.
I’m passionate about medical and legal dramas, among other types of TV shows.
I bet you’re passionate about a lot of TV too — otherwise you wouldn’t love this site so much.
Grab our newsletter so you don’t miss a single article about your favorite shows. Just hit the button at the top right of the screen.
No wonder he thought the distorted faces he was seeing were terrifying monsters!
That scene had me in tears. It was beautifully written and acted.
Chicago Med Turned The Foster Parent Trope On Its Head
Foster parents on TV often get a bad rap, partially because there are too many out there in the world who are only taking kids in for the money or abusing or neglecting their young charges.
Chicago Med Season 11 Episode 5 did a masterful job of making us think that was the case by having the foster parents drop off the grid and the teacher say that Lucas had been different lately, as if something was wrong.
When the foster parents finally got back in touch, they completely turned those expectations around. They had been out of town, but cared deeply about Lucas and were frightened that his biological parents could take him away from them.
It was so refreshing to see the foster parents be the good guys! I mean, nobody should have abused Lucas, but if he had to be in foster care, at least his foster parents truly loved him.
Lucas’ Story Was Far From The Only Emotional Storyline On Chicago Med Season 5 Episode 11
Sharon’s story also deeply affected me.
As I’ve shared before, my grandfather died of complications of vascular dementia. I have a love-hate relationship with dementia stories for this reason.
They’re heartbreaking, on TV and in real life, especially when the person begins to change into someone you don’t recognize — someone with wild mood swings and angry outbursts.
I wasn’t sure if Bert even recognized Sharon while she was visiting. He had this blank look in his eyes, and if he didn’t know who she was, that would explain why he was getting so agitated.
Is Chicago Med your favorite of the One Chicago shows?
If so, my reviews are for you. Say hi in the comments and share this article with your Chicago Med-obsessed friends.
The whole situation was made even sadder not only by Sharon taking Bert’s rejection personally and being hard on herself for her reaction, but also by the possibility that it might have been the last time she ever saw him alive.
I couldn’t tell from the last scene if Bert was alive or dead, but I won’t be surprised if he’s killed off. He’s been off-screen since he went into nursing care, so Chicago Med might have decided to end his storyline.
The Story With Hannah’s Patient Was Okay, But The Hannah/Archer Stuff Sucked
Hannah also had a heartbreaking pregnancy story: a young patient who had a stillborn birth and blamed herself for the child’s death, to the point where she didn’t even want to admit she’d ever been pregnant.
This was another one that used the surprise twist technique to great effect.
It certainly seemed like this was going to be a tragic story about a teenager who killed her baby out of desperation — thank goodness it wasn’t that, even if the baby did die and the girl had to have a visit from Chicago PD‘s Kim Burgess about her mysteriously absent baby.
I wouldn’t have minded a story about this case making Hannah think about her own baby and whether it could be stillborn. However, I hated the Archer/Hannah stuff this week.
This perpetual argument they were having about whether they should learn the baby’s sex was not worth an entire subplot.
I liked Hannah and Archer as friends, not as former lovers, and definitely not as co-parents who argue all the time about the stupidest, least consequential decision they will ever make for their baby.
Besides, it’s nearly impossible to get excited about this story now that showrunner Allen MacDonald has implied that Hannah will miscarry. That makes the whole thing seem pointless.
Ripley’s trick-or-treating story wasn’t much better.
He and Sadie went to a trick-or-treating extravaganza, debated whether it was a good idea for Sadie to run off with some other kid, and shared an intimate moment. Yawn.
These scenes weren’t terrible. They were just… boring.
I preferred Dr. Charles’s friends’ insistence on celebrating his birthday while he tried to forget he was turning 65.
Too bad they disappeared after one scene. They were fun.
Also, can we please retire the cursed-treatment-rooms concept? Like, forever?
The same concession to Halloween was on Brilliant Minds this past week. I didn’t like it the first time and definitely didn’t need a redux on Chicago Med!
You’re up, Chicago Med Fanatics.
Let’s hear your thoughts about Chicago Med Season 11 Episode 5.
It’s YOUR voice that keeps the lights on around here, so don’t hold back! And if you’d like to share this article with your friends, that’ll make for twice as much fun in the comments.
Vote in the poll below to rank the episode.
If you enjoyed this review, check out our coverage of the other One Chicago shows. We also cover other medical dramas, including the long-running Grey’s Anatomy.
Chicago Med airs on NBC on Wednesdays at 8/7c and streams on Peacock on Thursdays.
-
Chicago Med Season 11 Episode 5 Gave Days of Our Lives’ Cary Christopher One Of The Most Emotional Roles Ever
Chicago Med Season 11 Episode 5 kept Halloween in the background and featured Cary Christopher in an emotional storyline. Our review!
-
Chicago Med Season 11 Episode 4’s Frost Story Was As Heartbreaking As It Was Soapy
Chicago Med Season 11 Episode 4’s Frost story leaned in a soapy direction, but that didn’t make it less of a tearjerker. Our review!
-
Chicago Med Spoilers: Will Dr. Charles Cross the Line to Save a Patient?
When Dr. Archer gets a patient refusing treatment, it’s up to Dr. Charles to help in Chicago Med Season 11 Episode 4.
TV Fanatic is searching for passionate contributors to share their voices across various article types. Think you have what it takes to be a TV Fanatic? Click here for more information and next steps.
The post Chicago Med Season 11 Episode 5 Gave Days of Our Lives’ Cary Christopher One Of The Most Emotional Roles Ever appeared first on TV Fanatic.
