'Red Band Society' Review/ Recap: "So Tell Me What You Want, What You Really, Really Want"
Nora Dominick ‘17 / Emertainment Monthly Staff Writer
The episode focused on Charlie (Griffin Gluck) and the night he ended up in his coma. Through a series of flashbacks, the audience learns about the unfortunate car accident that led Charlie to being hospitalized and the heart-warming promise Nurse Jackson (Octavia Spencer) made to him that night. In the present, conflicts arise between Charlie’s parents, Nick (Thomas Ian Nicholas) and Mandy (Susan Park), when their insurance company insists Charlie be moved from Ocean Park Hospital to a long-term care facility. Nurse Jackson does everything in her power to convince the insurance company and Doctor McAndrew (Dave Annable) that keeping Charlie at the hospital is his best chance. However, by the end of the hour, Nurse Jackson crosses a line no nurse should ever cross.
Although Charlie and Nurse Jackson’s storyline soared this week, others fell flat. This week, Dash (Astro) and Kara (Zoe Levin) broke into an apartment building so Dash could graffiti a wall in order to “leave his mark.” Meanwhile, the awkward love triangle between Emma (Ciara Bravo), Jordi (Nolan Sotillo), and Leo (Charlie Rowe) escalated when Emma tried to teach Jordi how to drive. Both of these additional storylines fell flat and seemed like after thoughts. It would have served the episode better to have it entirely in flashback and focused on Charlie rather than throwing in two, seemingly boring, B and C storylines.
Besides Charlie’s character, none of the other characters really saw any development this week. The episode began to build a solid foundation for Dash and Kara’s friendship however, the storyline wasn’t very memorable. Meanwhile, Leo, Emma, and Jordi were arguing once again over Emma’s affection. This storyline had a little more going on in it and based on the preview for next week it will continue to escalate and be important to the overall plot.
Overall, the best part of this week’s episode was that it showcased Spencer’s incredible acting skills. She brought moments of drama and comedy to the show, which is something difficult for any actor to do. Red Band Society needs to continue to work on its storyline development and the ensemble of the show. With main ensemble members getting lost in the background, storylines need to be re-imagined and have more action.
Red Band Society airs Wednesday at 9/8c on FOX.
Overall Episode Grade: B-