Chicago Med Review: For the Want of a Nail (Season 6 Episode 9)

The word best used to describe Chicago Med Season 6 Episode 9, “For the Want of a Nail,” is chaotic. 

With troublemaker patients and colleagues, there is no room for rest for anyone at Gaffney Chicago Medical Center. This isn’t a complaint, for the most part. In fact, the new elements introduced on Chicago Med work well, from Natalie and Marcel’s new relationship to the new hire, Dr. Archer. 

Change is good, albeit suspicious on Chicago Med. But for the time being, new direction and elements introduced into the show breathe fresh life into it, distracting from the more repetitive plot and characters.

Chicago Med is a show that should know how to reinvent itself, having aired for six seasons, but it hardly does. “For the Want of a Nail” inches closer to change, but doesn’t quite take as long as strides as necessary. Other shows, such as Grey’s Anatomy, had at least two or three huge events by this point that disrupted the status quo on a larger scale.

Chicago Med, on the other hand, stays mostly consistent. The most shocking event of the series sent Dr. Rhodes on his way, even surpassing the bounds of belief for a Chicago show. 

Introducing as little as one character, Dr. Archer, has had a ripple of effects across the ED, reaping a much bigger reward than possibly introducing Maggie’s biological daughter, continuing a string of isolated developments that puts the balance of the ED off-kilter. 

In fact, a lot of time has been devoted to Maggie this season when most of her development isn’t connected to any other main cast member in any significant way.

Auggie was a way to keep Maggie present on screen without having to involve her much in any other character’s lives, other than a conversation with Sharon every now and then. Even as Auggie exits Chicago Med, Maggie’s plot remains insulated as she moves on from one child to the next. 

This juxtaposed to the introduction of Dr. Archer, who has been able to affect Ethan, Natalie, Marcel, and more, shows how Maggie no longer serves the plot of the show as a whole, nor the development of the doctors and nurses around her. 

And while some characters still remain stuck either where they are or have faded into the background (April is very overdue for some spotlight), others have successfully moved on. That shows the potential that the character still currently slighted the plot can have. 

Natalie struggles with going public in her new relationship with Marcel, something that, in the past, would have given Chicago Med episodes worth of back-and-forth content in her and Will’s heyday. Instead, she and Marcel handle the situation and are stronger for it, proving that a couple doesn’t need to be bogged down with inner turmoil to be interesting or epic. 

Marcel also opens up more and more through this relationship, although this is much less of a feat due to his short-lived time on Chicago Med.

Chicago Med is in the danger of hitting a rut but still shows some promise as finally moves some characters forward into new interesting directions that don’t necessarily fit the typical repetitive mold of a long-term Dick Wolf property.

Still, some characters are still bogged down by their Med typecasts, and for the show to remain interesting without dropping off viewers, it needs to continue making bold decisions. 

“For the Want of a Nail” shows both ends of the spectrum, with a highly versatile combination of an interesting case with Charles, a blooming new relationship with Natalie and Marcel, but a disservice to its nurse leads. 

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

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Chicago Med airs Wednesdays at 8/7c on NBC.

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