New Amsterdam Review: Matter Of Seconds (Season 2 Episode 18)

New Amsterdam is in quite a unique situation coming into New Amsterdam Season 2 Episode 18, “Matter Of Seconds”.

An episode titled “Pandemic” has been pulled because of our current reality. But that episode also introduces a new doctor on the show, Cassian Shin. The actor who plays Cassian, Daniel Dae Kim, believes he contracted COVID-19 while filming “Pandemic.” 

It’s all quite a lot to take in before watching “A Matter Of Seconds,” but taking the time to introduce the character through usable clips shows the team’s dedication to the narrative and respect for fans. 

NBC is also smart in referring to “A Matter Of Seconds” often (not always) as the “final episode of the season” rather than the “season finale”.  Perhaps it’s a small distinction, but it’s an important one to make that most productions are overlooking.

Many productions shut down early for the good of the world, frankly. That doesn’t mean we have to slap a “season finale” label on an episode where it’s not meant to fit. In New Amsterdam‘s case especially, more context is lost than other shows because of the episode that is currently shelved. 

This episode is not a season finale and shouldn’t be treated as such. It is, however, a lucky place for the show to pause — at least where Max’s love life is concerned. 

Max and Alice going their separate ways is not a cliffhanger. It’s a natural way to end that relationship. This writer likes the idea of Max with Alice more than Max with Helen, but it’s true that neither of them is ready to have an instant family. They both have baby girls. If they stayed together, they’d have no choice but to move faster than necessary to create structure. 

Does that mean Helen is right for Max? Absolutely not.

New Amsterdam will probably go there soon. In fact, they are slowly setting up a love triangle with Helen in the middle of Max and Cassian already. If any show is going to do this cliché right, it’s this one. I just refuse to delight in it whenever it does happen. 

Helen and Cassian are already a better fit for each other. Max fits well with an artist, or maybe just someone who knows how to enjoy the beauty in life more and work less. 

Pleasure is a part of self-care, and Dr. Cassian has persuaded more people than just Helen that self-care is an important aspect of doctoring. He’s a unique character who is tough to take in at first, but he’s a true twist on most doctors on any medical drama. It’s too bad we won’t be spending more time with him this season.

Max would do anything for more time throughout the whole episode.

His fight to get Liam into a clinical trial for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) is nicely paralleled with his holding on to his relationship with Alice. 

I’m unable to confirm if the actor who plays Liam actually has DMD in real life, but even if this is the one case in its history so far that New Amsterdam has failed to cast authentically, it’s forgivable.

Liam’s DMD is in an early stage, or he wouldn’t almost qualify for the trial. It’s possible that it’s difficult to find a disabled actor Liam’s age who could portray his symptoms accurately. Of course, it’s also quite probable that New Amsterdam did find someone disabled to do just that. 

What’s most important here is the story Max, Liam, and his parents are telling. 

His diagnosis is so new that his parents are crushed and desperate for a cure or any hope at all. It’s so hard to blame Jeremy for pushing his son to get up from the floor faster. The poor dad just wants hope for his son. 

DMD is degenerative and fatal, but as a disabled wheelchair user (with a non-degenerative, non-fatal condition), what I love about the story — especially the ending — is that no one catastrophizes Liam’s fate.  

It’s true that he doesn’t have a normal life span. That’s sad, and his parents should mourn that. They probably aren’t done being sad and angry about that off-screen. 

But Max is right that all parents can do is give their child the best of them in the limited time they have. It’s especially heart-warming to see Liam’s mother go from blaming herself for passing on the gene mutation to realizing she doesn’t have to fix him instantly. 

It’s perfectly fine to love your son and enjoy all he has to offer as he is while you wait, desperately hoping for a trial that will extend Liam’s for longer than the other trial that Max finds. 

It’s especially gut-wrenching that because of antibodies, DMD patients have one shot (if any) at a trial. That fact, plus the two seconds extra that Liam takes to stand, is a one-two punch. Everyone deserves to live a full, complete life until they are old and grey. 

The truth is, no one has a guarantee. Even as I write this and you read it, we can only hope for that privilege. 

That’s why Brendon and Allie’s story fits so well into the episode, too. In fact, they might be some of the first people on New Amsterdam who aren’t doctors or romantically linked to them that we see again. 

Gun sense is an important issue. New Amsterdam is completely right to make the important distinction between someone who is “against” gun ownership and someone who just wants guns in the hands of people who are healthy enough to use them sensibly. 

But, it’s literally a matter of those extra seconds that Brendon admits to keeping his gun pointed at Allie that cause Iggy to be worried he might be a danger to her. 

Sadly, the Red Flag law is black and white, yes or no. It doesn’t leave room for the gray “maybe” that exists everywhere with the topic of gun sense. Brandon is not an “immediate threat” to himself or others. 

Iggy has no choice but to put Allie’s life in danger… maybe. 

It’s the fact that Allie tells Iggy she’s purchased a gun because she knows the law would fail her that signals that it’s possible New Amsterdam had plans to bring them back during Season 2. 

If that hunch is correct, this particular story makes for a decent medium-sized cliffhanger in the unintentional final episode of the season. 

Bigger cliffs are often emotionally manipulative for no reason, so this is a great accidental ending. But hunches are wrong all the time. We can only hope New Amsterdam knows what they set up and continues the story when production starts up again. 

Doctor’s Notes:

• I cannot wait to see Vijay and Karen Brantley’s date. 
• I wonder if we missed any more of Lauren’s bonding with her mom. The story has developed well so far. 
• There are kids who have to live with their parents forgetting their birthdays and that’s sad. But this time it’s kind of sweet and funny. Lauren’s right, why waste cake? 
• Honest question: Lauren tasting the drug in the syringe to save lives means she has to start over in her sobriety count, right? That is so sad.  
• Hopefully, there’s a way the TV industry can finish out this season next fall by just giving us extra episodes. 
• I miss Ella. Plus she’s pregnant. Gosh I want new episodes of this show already. 

What did you think of this episode of New Amsterdam? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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