User Reviews

On this episode of Code Black, a family had been brought in after they managed to survive a home invasion.

Apparently, Mr. and Mrs. Irwin had been at home with their son when two men pushed their way into the building. And following that, the home invasion took a turn when the two men decided to become kidnappers who held the family hostage for hours on end. That ended with them all having suffered from injuries.

Both the husband and his wife were repeatedly stabbed although Mr. Irwin got the worse of it. The older man was in fact stabbed near the heart and was left unable to move on his own in case it moved the knife. Meanwhile, the wife suffered wounds to both of her legs as well as her arms. And their son Pete escaped mostly unscathed with his only major injury being the result of having jumped out of a second story window to get help.

So one could say that Pete was the hero of the day and the only person that didn't see it that was Pete himself. It seems he had been tied up in the bathroom and was threatened if he were to move. Hence Pete stayed still for a very long time before he finally worked up the courage. And looking back, Pete felt like he should have jumped sooner.

But Mario didn't see it that way. Therefore he talked to the young man and explained that what Pete did was extraordinary. And it was. Not many people would have jumped nor have dragged themselves while they were in an incredible amount of pain to get help.

And although Mario ended up helping Pete with that little speech, Angus felt like his sometimes friend had missed something with Mrs. Irwin. So he went behind Mario's back to order a CT scan because Mario refused to do one of his own volitions. And Jesse helped him set everything up.

Yet Jesse couldn't always be there for the new guys. Not when Rorish needed him just as much and was actually a lot more reluctant than the kids to ask for it.

Roris had been treating Lawrence who was a performer with Disney. However being there for her patient made Roriish remember how much her son used to love watching Lawrence as Mufasa in the Broadway version of Lion King. And it especially when she mentioned that out loud and was asked about her son because of it.

Meaning Rorish was in a fragile state and it was probably not the best time for Dr. Taylor to be put on paid leave. But the board hadn't particularly enjoyed hearing about the time he let a kid follow him around the hospital. You know rather than turning said kid over to a social worker! So he got to take a vacation while Dr. Perello stepped in as a temporary replacement.

The new woman in charge was tough to call but Mario strove to impress her all the same. And when Angus was later proved right about Karen Irwin, Mario quickly stepped in to take credit for ordering a CT when he hadn't. Thus Jesse took both men aside and told them to work through their issues.

And after the drama passed with Mrs. Irwin, Mario took upon himself to make the first step by at least asking Angus why he thought the scan was necessary. Though, as it turns out, he hadn't been prepared for Angus's answer. For Angus realized something before anyone else did – he questioned what really happened to Karen once she had been separated from her family.

When people get separated, it's usually for a reason.

And the reason, in this case, had to be confirmed in order for Karen to properly treat her. So Karen did have to say what those men did to her and in return, all she asked was for was that neither her son nor her husband would be told the truth. Luckily father and son were able to pull through and so Karen wanted them to enjoy that without anything else marring their happiness.

But Angus did eventually have to break a bit of bad news to one of his own patients. A groom had come in after he had gotten kicked off a flight and during treatment, Angus found out the man had tried to swallow a bag of cocaine for his honeymoon. So Angus's patient was arrested in the end though that didn't compare to the fact the groom's bride had done a runner the second she found out her groom was going to jail.

Talk about a double blow! Though thankfully this episode ended with a beautiful rendition of "He Lives in You" thanks to a performer on the mend. And the song was extremely poignant for a young man that had recently lost his father, all being deeply tragic for us, and for Leanne, to digest.

Change is good.

At least that's what Rafiki said. It's coming to Angel's ER whether the docs are ready or not, with Dr. Taylor leaving due to a suspension. There's a new chief in town, and she's sure to have her own way of doing things.

Taylor is on the outs with the board following his adventures with Randall in Code Black #1.8, and we can only hope that the fact he's on paid suspension means he will be back and not banished forever.

The incoming chief, Perello seems to share some of Taylor's best attributes – the ability to make inappropriate jokes with impeccable timing first and foremost. But she's making more of an effort with the residents than is Taylor's habit, and seems like she might have a more hands-on attitude with patient care.

So the question is, how will this play out for Rorish? The other attendings will be making an adjustment as well, but Rorish is the "cowboy" of the department, in part because Taylor has allowed it. With this outsider new on the scene, will she be forced to reign herself in?

Leanne's facing change in her personal life as well. She's starting to open up more about her family, and that story she shared with Lawrence and his wife was the best use of her tragic past so far. I usually feel like it's really common when Leanne's family is spoken about, but this was so organic.

Jesse won best supportive friend of the year again when he cheered up by belting out his own version of The Lion King, and I have to say, his singing voice wasn't terrible. Anybody who will publicly humiliate themselves just to make you smile is a friend worth having.

But perhaps the most turbulent aspect of Leanne's life right now is Dr. Cole Guthrie. I'm still not really feeling the chemistry between them, but the writers are doggedly pursuing the romance, so we (and Leanne) better get used to it. At least they still fight over cases, keeping things from getting too sappy or fairytale-esque.

Of course, the fledgling romance might crash and burn once Leanne finds out that Cole wants to poach Neal from her staff. They may have clashed in the pilot, but she relies on him to be her back up -- with her patients and her students.

I was intrigued by the surgical resident, Dr. Heather Pinkney. She had some chemistry with Mario as they battled it out over procedures, so she could be a potential love interest.

Or maybe we'll be branching out from emergency and heading upstairs to the OR on a regular basis. It's far from unprecedented, but even ER took a few seasons to make that jump.

I was pleasantly surprised with how the cast of the Lion King was worked in. Based on the promos, I was dubious about the move, and afraid that it would be an artless stunt of some kind. But they really pulled it off, and even my cynical heart was touched.