Reviewer Rating: 4.8/5.0
4.8
I usually hate Halloween episodes, but Chicago Med Season 10 Episode 5 could be forgiven for having one like this.
Regardless of what the promotional video looks like, this is more or less a typical medical event that happens on Halloween.
After the opening scene, everyone changes out of costume and gets to work on some of the more interesting cases of the season.
‘Chicago Med’ Season 10 Episode 5 Halloween Party Is a Cute Tribute to the Holidays
While I usually don’t like Halloween episodes, I love TV Masquerade. It’s fun to see what everyone is wearing and decide who has the best outfit.
Hannah and Ripley’s Barbie and Ken cowboy costumes are cute, and I love Maggie’s hockey player outfit – whether it’s a nod to NBC’s Irrational , which centered around a show the night before it aired Hockey game death mystery unfolds?
Dr. Charles’ costume is the best, though. I really like the costumes of classic literary characters, and Sherlock Holmes suits him very well.
In some ways, being a psychiatrist is similar to being a detective, except you’re looking for clues to explain why someone is experiencing mental health problems rather than trying to determine who committed wrongdoing.
There’s something comforting about the way Charles chews his Holmes pipe before the trick-or-treaters arrive.
I’d love to know how everyone switches to regular scrubs so quickly though!
Hannah’s story is one of the few that includes a non-verbal autistic child
I’m not sure how I feel about Hannah’s story.
When the synopsis for Chicago Med Season 10 Episode 5 included this plot line, I expected it to be handled better than most depictions of autism on television.
It’s rare to see any type of nonverbal child on television, whether due to autism, trauma, or other reasons. Today, autism on television seems to be synonymous with “verbal but weird.”
There is a spectrum of autism, or more accurately, different people with autism have different skills and challenges. (Some people are very expressive but have trouble communicating or meeting basic needs, so it’s not as cut and dry as it’s often portrayed.)
However, accurately describing nonverbal autism is difficult. People often assume that nonverbal means stupidity or violence, and television often reinforces this narrative.
Leo is a kid who’s scared about being in the hospital with his mom, but he doesn’t really have a way to express it.
I don’t know if he is completely nonverbal or has limited speech abilities. His only form of communication was through screaming and rolling on the floor.
It’s a great way to show off Lennox’s softer side. She lay on the floor with him and spoke softly to him until he calmed down.
Later, she declined to discuss the incident, but it was clear that she knew something about autism and what sensory overload was like.
Hannah: Dr. Lennox is a mysterious woman.
I wonder if Lenox has a sibling with autism. This would be a cool nod to Sarah Ramos’ role as Max’s sister on Parenthood.
I’m surprised she was the only one on Chicago Med Season 10 Episode 5 who knew what to do.
I think nurse managers like Maggie should have had some training in dealing with autistic children who may have meltdowns in the ER. I imagine this happens more often than this episode makes it seem.
Sharon’s future plans are a delightful plot twist
Medical dramas often discuss issues with for-profit healthcare.
If doctors don’t want to find a way to get around someone’s insurance restrictions and provide them with treatments that are critical to their survival, they face having important programs cut for financial reasons.
Chicago Med Season 10 Episode 5 seems to be heading in this direction.
Sharon had to step in and get Lenox to allow Hannah to see her patients at the prenatal clinic after hours, and the clinic’s existence was threatened because not enough people were using it to justify the expense.
I was so relieved when Sharon suggested using a mobility device so women can get the care they need to avoid unnecessary complications. This is a great plot twist!
This ties into what April and Ethan left Gaffney to do, so this storyline also leaves room for a cameo.
I’m not sure how a mobile device would help Eloise.
Her problem wasn’t an inability to get to the hospital; The problem was that other doctors ignored her symptoms, leading to a situation where the problem wasn’t discovered until it was too late to save her.
Still, I like the idea. It will open up new storyline possibilities and hopefully bring about change in the community surrounding the hospital.
Will this Scully story ever fade away?
Scully’s arrest was supposed to be the end of his storyline. When Ripley gets involved with that guy and his family, he always turns into some nasty, unrecognizable person.
Hannah said Ripley was “improving” and things were getting better between the two of them.
However, just when he finally started to become likable, Chicago Med Season 10 Episode 5 had to bring a drunk Lynn into the hospital with the baby.
Ripley is so picky about her going to a Halloween party and leaving the baby with a nanny that I kind of expected the CPS lady to show up.
As far as I know, Lynn was not negligent.
She didn’t think Nate’s cough was serious, made sure to leave him with a babysitter, and rushed to the hospital when she learned he was admitted.
Does Ripley think being a parent means you can never leave your kids in the care of an adult you trust so you can have some time to yourself?
Would he have made the same judgment if his old friend Scully had gone out for the night while Lynn was at home caring for a sick baby?
Ripley’s other story isn’t much better.
I thought the nuns would object on religious grounds to using D&C to remove fossilized fetuses that had been there for many years.
It’s not an abortion, but for a very devout Catholic, I can imagine that removing the fetus even in this situation might feel like ending a life.
Chicago Med Season 10 Episode 5 didn’t go there, instead opting for a weirder story about a nun’s near-psychic level of intuition that allowed her to serve as Ripley just minutes before he went into surgery consultant.
Chicago Med Season 10 Episode 5 Has a Weird Story in Honor of Halloween
The story of the child bitten by a bat and the weirdo attacking Frost is not scary. This is very strange.
I spent most of this episode expecting the kids to laugh because they pulled a pediatric resident over. They all took pictures, so it must be real.
But what about the mentally ill patient with the same name as the ghost in their “haunted house”? This seems too coincidental.
Is this a hint that this guy is really Kevin? That must be the point of the story, but the whole thing seems like a contrived teenage prank taken too seriously.
Also, since the psycho bit him, shouldn’t Frost get a rabies shot, or at least a tetanus shot?
At least Dr. Charles stayed away from that mess.
His conflict with Nurse Nelson seems to exist for the sake of drama, though their final scene, in which she shares that she’s sensitive to mentally ill people because of her experiences, almost makes it all worth it.
Sharon’s stalker was unnecessary, but at least there was movement
I don’t know why I dislike the Sharon Stalker storyline so much.
I write novels that sometimes fall somewhere between mysteries and thrillers, which is my favorite genre to read, but this storyline pissed me off so much.
I guess this doesn’t seem necessary. I also don’t like the tired TV trope of a woman alone, feeling increasingly helpless because someone keeps harassing her.
The scene in Sharon’s apartment is by far the worst part of the story. I can understand her nervousness, but if that’s the case, why open the door?
It’s annoying when people on TV keep opening doors to let violent criminals in without looking who’s there.
In Sharon’s case, it was made worse because her “attacker” turned out to be a neighbor boy who was trick-or-treating, and she reactively pepper-sprayed him in the face.
The boy’s mother was quick to forgive. I don’t know if I would, but at least it leads to the discovery that someone is stalking Sharon so we can continue the story.
Over to you, Chicago Med fanatics. What did you think of Chicago Med Season 10 Episode 5?
Vote in our poll to rate this episode, then voice your thoughts in the comments.
Chicago Med airs Wednesdays at 8/7c on NBC and Thursdays on Peacock.
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