A dream study is at the root of an array of anxieties that the characters are dealing with. Morrison in particular has some really unsettling repetitive encounters with an empty hospital with halls to nowhere. Ehrlich is in a boat which capsizes, sending him to an island full of Amazon women. No, they aren't delivering packages. Others face pain in the day to day challenges of their lives. Even Peter appears from the dead. Interesting angle.
2 Reviews
Experimental episode
jarrodmcdonald-123 February 2023
Warning: Spoilers
This is certainly an experimental episode. I should first point out that St. Elsewhere was filmed at the old CBS Studio Center on Radford in Studio City, even though it aired on NBC. This is because the show was produced by Mary Tyler Moore Productions which took over the facilities there.
Other well-known series were filmed there (and are still filmed there) including Gunsmoke, Gilligan's Island and Roseanne. Gilligan's lagoon was an outdoor set there and it featured in an experimental episode of Roseanne and of course, it is what they used to film Victor's dream sequence with the native women on the beach.
Though I am not a huge fan of ZZ Top, I did find Luther's video dream of 'Legs' a comic highlight. And of course, the dramatic highlight is Jack's visit with Peter in an all-white morgue. Are the writers telling us that dreams merge with death?
I like the fact that during their visit, Jack asks Peter if he was really guilty and Peter does not confirm it. If Peter is a figment of Jack's mind in this dream-state then clearly Peter cannot tell him something he wouldn't know. But just what does Jack know about Peter, after all is said and done?
Peter White appears in one more episode later, another experimental episode. It's very interesting the way the writers finally "end" his character, though the rape motif carries forward because Shirley shoots at someone else at the hospital that she accuses of rape. And then Jack Morrison (David Morse) becomes a victim of rape in prison.
The plot with Dr. Craig and the nightmare death was too coincidental. But this was a thematic episode, about sleep and dreams...and that plot was meant to mirror the nightmare of the rapes and the death of Peter White.
I should mention that 'Sweet Dreams' was nominated for an Emmy for writing, for Tom Fontana & John Masius. Plus an Emmy nomination for sound mixing. It also received a nod for director Mark Tinker at the Directors Guild Awards that year.
Other well-known series were filmed there (and are still filmed there) including Gunsmoke, Gilligan's Island and Roseanne. Gilligan's lagoon was an outdoor set there and it featured in an experimental episode of Roseanne and of course, it is what they used to film Victor's dream sequence with the native women on the beach.
Though I am not a huge fan of ZZ Top, I did find Luther's video dream of 'Legs' a comic highlight. And of course, the dramatic highlight is Jack's visit with Peter in an all-white morgue. Are the writers telling us that dreams merge with death?
I like the fact that during their visit, Jack asks Peter if he was really guilty and Peter does not confirm it. If Peter is a figment of Jack's mind in this dream-state then clearly Peter cannot tell him something he wouldn't know. But just what does Jack know about Peter, after all is said and done?
Peter White appears in one more episode later, another experimental episode. It's very interesting the way the writers finally "end" his character, though the rape motif carries forward because Shirley shoots at someone else at the hospital that she accuses of rape. And then Jack Morrison (David Morse) becomes a victim of rape in prison.
The plot with Dr. Craig and the nightmare death was too coincidental. But this was a thematic episode, about sleep and dreams...and that plot was meant to mirror the nightmare of the rapes and the death of Peter White.
I should mention that 'Sweet Dreams' was nominated for an Emmy for writing, for Tom Fontana & John Masius. Plus an Emmy nomination for sound mixing. It also received a nod for director Mark Tinker at the Directors Guild Awards that year.
See also
Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews
