Chicago Med Season 10 Episode 12 Review: In The Wake

For the sake of Goodwin’s storyline, Chicago Med Season 10 Episode 12, “In The Wake,” pretends as if the One Chicago crossover event had never existed. Or maybe Goodwin pretended during the crossover that she wasn’t seeing her attacker everywhere she went.

However, she can no longer escape this reality after her consultation with Sam. It is clear that there is nothing neurologically wrong with her, but it still makes sense that she sees her attacker in her office holding the same knife she used to attack Goodwin.

To be quite frank, it would have been crazy if the show moved on from what happened to her without addressing the aftermath and Goodwin’s feelings.

When viewers discover Dr. Eleanor Hess is Sam’s aunt, we feel he chose someone he knows personally to speak to Goodwin because he cares about her and understands what she’s going through. He hand-picks someone he can trust instead of simply passing her on to another colleague.

Nevertheless, this doesn’t mean Goodwin is ready to trust anyone with her problem. While she gets a diagnosis from Hess (post-traumatic stress injury) and a new referral, she isn’t ready to take the next step in her recovery.

Finding out who Goodwin’s attacker was took several episodes, so, normally, the consequences of said attack take more than one episode for her to overcome. As strong as Goodwin is, this is an incident she can’t push under the rug.

However, she is taking steps in the right direction by choosing to stay in her office and facing the image of her attacker. It’s not all she has to do, but it is one way to address what is happening.

For someone with a psychiatrist as a best friend, she seems to be avoiding the cure at all costs.

To Like or Not To Like Lenox

Lenox has become the love-hate character of Chicago Med who we genuinely don’t know if we like to have around or can’t wait for her to disappear like so many other characters did.

This time, the issue with her presence in the ED goes hand-in-hand with another issue the show has addressed more than once: hospitals being understaffed. It feels more pressing on Chicago Med Season 10 Episode 12, “In The Wake,” because it affects a nurse we have loved since Season 1, Doris.

While Lenox is unable to help solve the issue with the pharmacy, her advice to Maggie to delegate tasks isn’t exactly the ideal solution. In the end, this backfires, and Doris makes a mistake that could have cost a patient their life.

Like Maggie, we’re ready to metaphorically walk out of Gaffney Chicago Medical Center if Doris is fired. As terrible as her mistake is, Doris is pushed to the limit by taking more patients and tasks than she can handle.

At first, the anger is directed toward Lenox. If she hadn’t told Maggie to delegate, Maggie wouldn’t have made Doris handle a task that wasn’t part of her job description.

However, Lenox’s character shines when she listens to Maggie’s explanation and promises to bring her wrath on the board to solve the problem. While we’re mad she created this problem, we’re thankful she is willing to address it.

The love-hate continues, and at this point, we’re pretty sure it will last for as long as Lenox is around.

Ripley vs. Asher

Asher has never shied away from her past, always owning up to her addiction and how badly she behaved. Ripley, on the contrary, has always tried to keep his past a secret because he’s not proud of who he used to be.

A huge part of his storyline when he first joined Chicago Med was that he wanted Charles to keep their past a secret. He never wanted other doctors to know how he used to behave.

When Asher mentions she is happy she is getting to know Ripley’s past, we know this will bring problems. For Asher, the issues appeared as Ripley staying out to drink with his friends and going straight to work.

While she worries he might be going down a self-destructive path like she used to, as viewers, we worry he is falling back into old habits. His anger issues used to be a problem and something that has manifested as punching lockers and screaming on previous episodes.

Even though he doesn’t make a mistake with his patient, he lashes out at Asher and lets his anger control everything he does. Ultimately, this anger takes complete control, and Ripley ends up beating a man close to death outside a bar.

Maybe Charles’s concerns from the beginning were valid. Maybe Ripley hasn’t outgrown who he used to be, and Asher has a right to be worried about his drinking.

While Goodwin deals with PTSI and Ripley lets his anger win, Jackie and Charles are getting closer. The lingering too long while hugging, helping her find a good lawyer, and being each other’s sounding board seems to be leading to something more.

However, is this the right path for Jackie to go down with the man who put her in a psych ward? It might not be the best professional step Charles could take next.

As always, Chicago Med keeps things interesting. There is always plenty of drama among these doctors to keep us coming for more.

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

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