New Amsterdam Review: Replacement (Season 2 Episode 3)
New Amsterdam Season 2 Episode 3, “Replacement,” is a filler episode, albeit a very good one. There are interesting topics to explore that may become a part of character stories in the future. But no one’s personal story moved forward.
There is one big exception, however, because Ella is pregnant.
Yes, Rojan is a jerk who should be ashamed that he’s (presumably) abandoning his child. But look at what New Amsterdam has done, here. A hospital barista befriended a doctor and now she’s part of his family.
There is love between them, but though they teased it on Season 1, the show ultimately didn’t go weird with a familial love triangle to get there.
That’s all I can ask for, and hopefully, Ella’s pregnancy will more often be a source of joy than it is pain on the show.
Another unique little surprise this episode offers is Todd.
He represents privatized medicine in the debate between socialized and privatized medicine at the forefront of the episode.
You could also assume he represents one political party while Max represents another. But, focusing on the issue alone allows the show to have a more nuanced, less polarized conversation.
No matter how you label Max and Todd, Todd is an important addition to the show.
Healthcare issues are more complicated than Max’s optimistic brain makes them seem. Max is good at solving individual problems, but his solutions often come at a cost New Amsterdam hardly ever shows.
The situation in question on this episode is an easy one because Renee just needs someone to check in on her every day. Is it the perfect solution? No. But it’s a long-term one and it works for the show.
I’m not convinced that a dog and dog walker is a good solution for the majority of people in real life. But thankfully it’s not my job to find healthcare solutions for most of the U.S.
My job is to review New Amsterdam, and a dog walker is a more realistic option than a New Amsterdam Visiting Nurse Program.
So, overall I support Todd Benson being on the hospital board. But he does scare me a bit because of quotes like this:
Self-reliance is the key to a good life…
That’s ignoring people with disabilities and other pre-existing and chronic illnesses. Some of us need help and always will. We also have good lives.
Letting subtle statements like that slip by without addressing them is an easy way to accidentally reinforce negative, and frankly, false stereotypes about disability and illness.
Moving on to Helen, it’s exciting to see her battle with the two sides of herself that we were only told about throughout most of Season 1 — the TV personality Dr. Helen and Dr. Sharpe, who cares and fights for her patients.
She forcefully stands up to Max on this episode and it’s amazing to watch. She says,
You push me away and you expect me to understand, and then you need me and you use your feelings as leverage.
That’s exactly what Max has been doing and it’s awesome to see him called out on it so early in the season.
Often, TV shows avoid honest conversations between two people (especially ones they may set up as love interests) in order to build tension that explodes on a later episode like the mid-season finale.
That approach feels inauthentic to many viewers. We know the issue the two characters are avoiding and therefore can guess when they’ll confront it and sometimes even how the story arc will end.
Max and Helen’s relationship has been complicated lately — to say the least. Georgia’s death has only made matters more confusing.
We know Max is holding plenty of feelings inside. But at least Helen isn’t and her words and actions are forcing him to talk.
That said, fans need Helen on the show as much as Max does, so thankfully she doesn’t call out the medical supply company that manufactured the fake hip on national TV.
Of course, taking on the FDA could have bigger ramifications in the future. But New Amsterdam is right to put off the “individual doctor gets caught up in a lawsuit” story for as long as they can.
It’s been done to death on medical shows, and the way New Amsterdam can keep standing out and improving this season is to keep their optimism in check and always go for surprising little twists over predictable plots.
Doctor’s Notes
- They don’t ignore Max’s grief or the crash which is good, but it would’ve been nice to see Georgia.
- If I were Evie, I would’ve insisted Floyd pick up that box of cake and bring it into the room — you can get romantic with cake.
- Iggy’s mass hysteria plot is fun (in the end). But the fact that Emily actually has a tumor makes everything more believable.
What did you think of this episode of New Amsterdam? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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New Amsterdam airs Tuesdays at 10/9c on NBC.
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Esme Mazzeo
Esme Mazzeo is a lifestyle and entertainment journalist from Long Island. When she's not writing for work, she's writing for fun, or searching for something to satisfy her sweet tooth. She thinks rainy days are the best kind of days. Certified night owl.