With Dr. Daniel Charles in the clear, Chicago Med gets back to business as usual in Season 11, Episode 18. “Things Left Unsaid” is a mix of medical dilemmas and personal problems that make the medical issues seem boring. It’s one of the episodes where the “previously on’ bit is actually very relevant.
There are only a few episodes left in the season, so the NBC show has to get to the handful of plot threads that it’s been pulling along. It offers a lot of forward movement, but some of it works better than others. The most successful is that Dr. John Frost and Dr. Naomi Howard finally become a couple, after Frost unloads his feelings on Naomi, which happens following a meeting with Naomi’s boyfriend. One could call this all a convenient series of events—especially with Naomi and her boyfriend breaking up quickly off-screen—but it plays well because of the performances by both Ashlei Sharpe Chestnut and Darren Barnet.
Chicago Med fans know this is where these characters have been going for awhile now, and it’s a relief to see them finally get there in a few ways. Not just the fact that they should’ve just gotten together the first time, but because maybe this will mean that the show can talk about something else other than Frost’s history as a child actor. That’s been run into the ground by now—and spoiler alert, based on the preview for Episode 19, it’s not over yet. But perhaps Naomi’s presence will have a positive effect on whatever happens next. And her being with Frost means she should be featured more, which in turn should allow for further exploration of Naomi’s character, too.
It would also be fantastic to put Naomi in a scene with Dr. Caitlin Lenox, as perhaps Naomi could provide support for Lenox, in the way that Lenox was there for Naomi during Season 10’s sexual harassment storyline. “Things Left Unsaid” once again addresses the idea that Lenox’s behavior needs to be called into question, but again stops well short of anyone actually doing it. It seemed like Dr. Mitch Ripley was going to get Lenox in hot water after he disagreed with her performing a risky surgery (the promo gave big “Will threatening to turn in Hannah” vibes)—but after a few choice words, then there’s just Ripley telling the patient’s father how great of a surgeon Lenox is. Even at episode’s end, when Ripley has another talk with Lenox, it doesn’t feel like it’s going to change anything. Chicago Med has been trying hard to create this push-pull with Lenox and Ripley, but it’s just never worked, in large part because he hasn’t taken a firm stand with her. No one has. So when is that going to happen, with Ripley or with anyone else? And when will Ripley realize that he deserves better?
What makes this a little more frustrating is that “Things Left Unsaid” does include a scene where Lenox’s prion diagnosis is used for more than just her erratic behavior. When she’s talking to Mr. Bennett about his son’s options, it’s clear she’s speaking from the heart and the viewers can see her point. But then the show just goes back to Lenox acting out and the most awkward flirting between Ripley and Lenox that is actually painful to watch, even before he almost gets beaten up. There’s more that can be done with both these characters, and they don’t have to do it together.
Speaking of deserving better, “Things Left Unsaid” also goes back to the reveal that Sharon Goodwin’s son David was fathered by someone other than her late husband Bert. David’s biological father Spencer is introduced here, which is neat in exactly one way: Spencer is played by JAG alum Scott Lawrence. However, the rest of this subplot is just pain. Viewers don’t get to see David meeting his dad, which would’ve been a great scene between Lawrence and Gbenga Akinnagbe; they’re just told that it was a disaster. In place of that scene is an argument between Spencer and Goodwin. While Lawrence and S. Epatha Merkerson are superb, the character of Spencer has absolutely no nuance. He exists to tick off Sharon and David, and then disappear again.
The person audiences will absolutely feel for, though, is one of the guest characters. Poor Mr. Bennett loses both his wife and his daughter as a result of a car accident, and it’s understandable if viewers feel like Chicago Med is just piling on the dude. He has to deal with a lot in the episode. On top of that, the subplot with Frost and Charles reveals an abusive football coach, so aside from Frost and Naomi’s first kiss, there’s not a lot of joy at Gaffney in Episode 18.
There are some small moments that are neat, such as Ripley being the first person to welcome Charles back, and getting to see Dr. Dean Archer and Dr. Hannah Asher giving each other surgical tips as they both operate on separate patients in the same room. But in a general sense, “Things Left Unsaid” lives up to its title because it’s getting things out in the open that Chicago Med needs to move forward.
Yet is there enough time left for these stories to flourish now, or will things get truncated because they’ll have to be tied up before Season 12? There’s a big opportunity for Frost and Naomi in Episode 19, but the Lenox subplot seems like it’s just going in circles, and the frenemies thing between Charles and Dr. Theo Rabari is back to being a little less friendly. Plus, Hannah and Dean still have to welcome their baby. This episode is a big step forward, but there’s also a lot of work to do in the last three hours, in order to make these developments pay off.
Chicago Med airs Wednesdays at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT on NBC.