Quantum Leap Season 1 Episode 16 Review: Ben, Interrupted
Quantum Leap Season 1 Episode 16, “Ben, Interrupted,” is its best yet, taking Ben and the team on a high-stakes adventure full of plot twists and intense drama. It strikes the perfect balance between solving the mystery of Ben’s leap-of-the-week and providing ample developments for the overarching plot.
“Ben, Interrupted” tackles the terrifying — and human rights violating — landscape of the 1950s mental health scene. Ben’s undoubtedly in one of his most dangerous predicaments thus far, as there’s the chance the formidable Dr. Mueller (played by the terrific Patrick Fischler) could perform a lobotomy on him.
ADDISON: Maybe the universe wants you to finally get a good night’s sleep?
BEN: In here? Good one, universe.
Dana Melanie also delivers a fantastic turn as Judith Murphy, the woman Ben must save. Melanie organically doles out tender vulnerability and heart-wrenching pain. “Ben, Interrupted” churns out solid performances from the cast as a whole, but Raymond Lee and Caitlin Bassett rise to the top as the episodic MVPs.
This outing puts Ben and Addison through the emotional and physical wringer. Ben dances precariously on the edge of death, eliciting visceral emotions from him and Addison as the latter fights tooth and nail to save him without the sense of touch. It’s hard to imagine how difficult it must be to prevent your loved one from dying by directing them on what to do.
Bassett easily delivers her show-best performance thus far. We can feel Addison’s pain through the screen. Lee offers consistently fantastic work on Quantum Leap, and this episode is no exception. “Ben, Interrupted” showcases his versatility as a performer. He offers nuanced, understated work along with emotionally heightened character beats.
MAGIC: When we restarted this project, I swore to your father we’d never lose another leaper.
Quantum Leap does a terrific job of methodically developing Ben and Addison’s bond without having them rely on physical touch. It harkens back to the cinematic era wherein romantic chemistry existed sans touching. It’s a great way to build a solid foundation for said chemistry.
On the plot front, “Ben, Interrupted” zeroes in on catapulting the narrative forward as we march toward the season finale. Ben working in tandem with Martinez (or Leaper X) allows the team to learn more about who he is and his objective (although that’s still a bit murky). Janis’s involvement also sheds light on Ben’s mission and why he leaped.
The episode raises the stakes exponentially for Ben’s leap and the seasonal arc in a way that makes sense. The references to Evil Leapers from the original series and Magic reminding Janis of his promise to Al feel organically placed, especially in the context of whether Martinez is considered an Evil Leaper.
JANIS: Admiral, do you seriously think we can win a war without sacrifice?
As for that jaw-dropping cliffhanger, Ziggy gaining sentience works for this storyline. What makes it more shocking is that Ziggy doesn’t talk in this version of Quantum Leap, adding to the unexpectedness of it all.
The Evil Leapers mention is undoubtedly crucial for the coming episodes. This begs the question: could we have been dealing with Lothos all along? Lothos runs the Evil Leaper project. Perhaps when the gang had issues with Ziggy in the beginning, it was Lothos overtaking it as the “evil” counterpart of Ziggy.
After all, Lothos can control where leapers go and can control multiple leapers at once. Feasibly, Lothos could exert influence over Ben and Martinez simultaneously. The narrative prospects here are exciting.
Overall, “Ben, Interrupted” dishes out intrigue, excitement, and promise in equal measure. It’s a damn entertaining hour of television and proves how far this series has progressed, quality-wise, since its rocky beginnings. Here’s hoping it maintains momentum for the final two episodes of the season.
Stray Observations:
- The episode title is inspired by the 1999 psychological drama Girl, Interrupted, starring Winona Ryder and Angelina Jolie.
- That mole reveal toward the episode’s end gives off “The call is coming from inside the house” vibes.
- I love all the nods to the original Quantum Leap in this episode. “Ben, Interrupted” is the most connected to its predecessor in that regard. It feels like part of an expansive, intricate TV universe.
- As someone who’s been to Griffith Observatory, it’s the perfect place to pop the “I love you” cherry. Astronomy is inherently romantic, as are the steep drop-offs where murderers have undoubtedly disposed of bodies over the decades.
- Why does Martinez try to kill Addison? Is it because she knows something? Does she tamper with his plans? So many questions and only two episodes left to provide answers.
- You know it’s serious business when we don’t see where Ben leaps next, and the episode ends with Ziggy’s betrayal.
What did you think of this episode of Quantum Leap? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
Critic Rating:
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Quantum Leap airs Mondays at 10/9c on NBC, with next-day streaming on Peacock.
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Melody McCune
Melody loves TV. Maybe too much. Besides being a Senior Writer for Tell-Tale TV, she's the Managing Editor for Geek Girl Authority, an Independent Contractor for Sideshow Collectibles, and a Senior Writer for Eulalie Magazine. Additionally, she has bylines in Culturess, Widget, and inkMend on Medium. To top it all off, she's a critic for Rotten Tomatoes and CherryPicks.
3 comments
Where are Dr. Donna Beckett (bring back Mimi Kuzyk or Teri Hatcher!) and Sammy Jo Fuller (Sam’s daughter) already?
It DOES NOT work that people, who’s lifes were lived by a leaper, remember how the leaper looks like through their dreams.
It DOES work that people like Magic and Dottie remember the waiting room and seeing Sam and future Ian’s face in a mirror.
Fingers crossed that in some future episode Magic and Dottie DO remember the waiting room and seeing Sam and Ian’s face in a mirror and that THAT is the true explanation of how they know what Sam and future Ian look like.
This episode has me thinking that the death of future Addison was not intentional by Martinez. Martinez only meant to take future Addison down by non lethal means because she stood in his way of carrying out his mission.
Future Quantum Leap Accelerator may get damaged? Still functional but can only control the leap of 1 leaper who can go wherever the leaper wants to leap to, and then return the leaper back to from whence the leaper, leapt from?
So future Ian leaps to 2022 to inform Ben who and when will cause the death of future Addison and what the method is he needs to execute in order to get to the destination in the future to prevent future Addison’s death?
(Furure Ian can’t do it himself because the future Quantum Leap Accelerator can only get him to leap and return once).
I hope that in future episodes Magic and Janis will share their frustration with Ben. Although his mission is to prevent Addison’s death it also comes at the cost of not locating Dr Sam Beckett from WHENever he is and bring him back.
Magic OWES his life to Sam (in the original course of history his commander Tom Beckett, his fellow platoon members and he, ALL died in Vietnam half a century ago).
Janis OWES her very existence to Sam (in the origial course of history, Janis and her 3 sisters, never existed in the first place).
This show is a farce. There was maybe one or two palatable episodes. Scott’s intuition paid off and he’s not having any part of this series which is extremely predictable in every way. It’s not only woke, but an insult to the “previous” generation who loved TOS. Shame on the Hollywood execs for caving in to the woke crowd without ensuring a solid script, dialogue, and platform.
“I love all the nods to the original Quantum Leap in this episode. “Ben, Interrupted” is the most connected to its predecessor in that regard. It feels like part of an expansive, intricate TV universe”.
Hmm. I don’t see what you’re seeing. Then again, I don’t choose to see something which isn’ there.
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