New Amsterdam Review: Perspectives (Season 2 Episode 16)

While trying to help Danica cope with the trauma she’s experienced after the school shooting simulation on New Amsterdam Season 2 Episode 16, “Perspectives,” Iggy tells his patient: 

“The story itself is less powerful than the way we tell it, isn’t it?” 

There is no better way to begin this review of an episode, filled with so many powerful stories that it’s hard to know where to invest our (reasonably) limited emotions. 

A simulated school shooting, Castro’s trial, and a “whodunit” style storyline involving a racist patient and flashbacks are all big issues that could take up whole episodes by themselves. Instead of giving each plot the attention it deserves, New Amsterdam repeats its most common mistake — packing too much into approximately 42 minutes. 

It’s hard to pinpoint much that is “wrong” with “Perspectives,” but its impact would be much stronger if the fat were trimmed, so to speak.

As humorous and even interesting as Ella and Kapoor’s story with Callie the cat is, it’s definitely superfluous for now, as are Lauren’s issues with her mom. 

At the end of the hour, it’s even hard to see the point of Iggy’s therapy with Danica and an entire middle school. Simulated school shootings are a compelling and important issue to explore, but not when there are other topics like a dead racist whose family is suing the hospital for wrongful death to consider.

Definitely not when also devoting time to an arc that’s been going on for most of the season like Castro and Sharpe’s battle over the cancer trial. It’s just too much. 

Before we move on, we must say that the closest real-life example we could confirm of the trauma that happened to Danica happened in Indiana, where teachers felt outraged because they were the participants “shot and killed” in a simulation that they did not expect to be so graphic.

New Amsterdam is usually more sensitive when it comes to issues like this. It’s disappointing that a decision wasn’t made to have the deceased person be Danica’s favorite teacher instead of her friend. We don’t meet these people. What’s the harm? 

School shootings are real, so sadly precautions like simulations are real too. I’ve heard of kids playing deceased passengers in drunk driving simulations, but not victims in school shooting simulations. It’s just unnecessary to suggest that a school would put children through the most extreme form of trauma in the name of safety. 

But let’s stay more securely within the fictional walls of New Amsterdam because Castro’s study is the arc that deserves the most focus. 

First of all, it’s nice that this is no longer a fight that pits woman against woman. They may not like each other, but Sharpe and Castro are on the same side now. It’s a relief that Helen realizes that advancements in precision oncology are more important than the fact that Valentina falsified data. 

She’s done it to give her drug better chances of moving forward to future phases. 

It’s a bit unclear if we’ll ever see Valentina again, but if we don’t, this ending is still a tad unsatisfying. 

Yay fighting cancer and women joining forces to solve problems without needing a man — but does all of this struggle just serve to bring Helen’s feelings for Max into focus for her? She only eases up on Castro when she remembers that precision oncology is what saved Max’s life and “everyone” needs Max. 

I like Alice and have always liked Max and Helen the most as simply colleagues and friends. Whenever they catch whatever feelings they have for each other, something feels off.

Plus, love triangles are the most tired trick in the writers’ room. New Amsterdam has two slowly forming, but it doesn’t need any. 

Doctor’s Notes 

• The episode’s title gets its name from the lawsuit storyline, but it’s hard to find a takeaway there that moves the whole show forward since the lawsuit will be settled. 
• The direction and cinematography during the flashback scenes are beautiful. 
• Ella and Kapoor’s scenes are so cute. Ella with a cat and supporting Kapoor’s anxiety as much as she can? I could watch a whole episode of it. 
• I really can’t wait for New Amsterdam to tackle one issue on an episode or do a bottle episode. 

 

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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