Tonight’s two-part season finale smart mind It was an absolutely wild rollercoaster of emotions until the final moments between Oliver and – spoiler warning – His father, Noah Wolfe.
Episode 1 “The doctor whose world collapsed”, gives us an idea of the aftermath of the apartment building collapse – the same one where Erica lived. Everyone was worried about Erica because they still hadn’t heard from her. There was no time to worry, though, Oliver tells the interns to try their best to focus on what’s about to happen.
Bronx Medical Center was the closest hospital to the collapse, which meant a lot of trauma. Within minutes, the hospital was filled with people. Oliver manages to keep his intern focused on what’s going on, but he can’t help but volunteer to go with Josh to the building collapse site (they just need a neurosurgeon, but Oliver, I get it) . Of course, his guise is that he wants to help first responders who may be overwhelmed, but when he gets there, he immediately looks for Erica.
THE DRAGON WHO FALLS THE WORLD – BRILLIANT MINDS – Pictured: Zachary Quinto as Dr. Oliver Wolfe. Photo: Rafy/NBC © 2024 NBCUniversal Media, LLC
Back at the hospital, Dana must stop Van and Jacob from trying to embark on a mission to find Erica. She told them that there was no doubt that she was okay and that they needed to stick to helping those currently in the hospital. However, as time goes on, we see Dana start to worry about Erica because she hasn’t heard from her. She called her and left voicemails begging her to contact us.
This episode definitely highlighted how Erica is the glue that keeps this team going. As more trauma patients filled the hospital, Van experienced intense bouts of mirror touch syndrome. Jacob goes to see him and explains that he can’t control it if Erica isn’t nearby to act as his anchor.
THE DRAGON DRAGON – BRILLIANT MINDS – Pictured: Zachary Quinto as Dr. Oliver Wolfe and Teddy Sears as Dr. Josh Nichols. Photo: Rafy/NBC © 2024 NBCUniversal Media, LLC
Erica turned out to be okay, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief when she finally arrived at the hospital. What they don’t know is how her life was saved by her decision to get out instead of Celia, the other woman trapped in the elevator with her.
Now to the end of the episode, it’s an exciting revelation. When Oliver’s mother got home, she found her back door had been broken into. When she goes to investigate, she sees a man she immediately recognizes: Oliver’s father.
It’s a heartbreaking moment when we see young Oliver visiting his father, delirious and unaware that he’s there. This is similar to a moment we saw earlier in the episode, except it’s now and in reverse. The helpful doctor who helps Oliver and Josh at the beginning of the series is Oliver’s dad – jaw dropped! tearful! – This was a journey I didn’t expect.
BRILLIANT MINDS – Pictured: Mandy Patinkin plays a doctor. Photo: Rafy/NBC © 2024 NBCUniversal Media, LLC
There’s little time to really process what just happened, but that’s okay, because the second episode of the finale,”man without face”, gives us more answers – sort of.
Noah Wolfe still exists. He told Oliver’s mother, Miriam, that he was in a good place. He comes back because he wants to connect with Oliver and bless Miriam for wanting to keep Oliver safe because he’s doing a great job, but is it up to her now?
Erica is dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder after the building collapsed. Van, Jacob and Dana used exposure therapy to help her overcome her fear of elevators. When that didn’t work as quickly as she expected, Dana suggested she see a psychiatrist, who could give her medication to help her. She told Dana she’d never been someone who needed drugs or “a crutch to get through something.” [the] sky”. This was a crazy statement to her. Dana did a great job of pointing this out while educating her on why medication is nothing to be ashamed of.
THE MAN WITHOUT SEEING THE FACE – BRILLIANT MINDS – Pictured: Tambella Perry as Dr. Carol Pierce. Photo: Rafy/NBC © 2024 NBCUniversal Media, LLC
Against Miriam’s advice, Noah visits Oliver. It wasn’t a good idea on his part as he just pissed off Oliver for lack of better words. Meanwhile, Miriam arrives with Carol, whom she believes can help her break the news to Oliver, but it’s too late for their reunion. Betrayal was written all over Oliver’s face. He began to vent his dissatisfaction to the people around him (Even Josh makes my heart ache). Then it becomes self-destructive – drinking at a bar with an intern, which is probably not the best thing to do.
Oliver and his mother talk about what happened that night after his father left him in the woods. The truth is finally revealed: Noah decided to stay away from him because he didn’t trust Oliver. His idea is to make Oliver think he died in the woods rather than letting him know he left him.
“The Man Without a Face” – BRILLIANT MINDS – Pictured: Zachary Quinto as Dr. Oliver Wolfe, Spence Moore II as Dr. Jacob Nash, Alex McNicol as Van Dr. Marcus. Photo: Rafy/NBC © 2024 NBCUniversal Media, LLC
The self-destruction continues – Oliver doesn’t attend the party with Josh. I wasn’t ready for the conversation that followed.
The episode ends with Oliver meeting his father. He asked his father why he decided to show up after so many years and he told him the truth, that he didn’t want Oliver to worry about him all the time and that having a mentally ill father would be difficult. Oliver says it’s much harder not having a father. It’s as if both his parents made the decision for him without considering that Oliver’s father’s departure would do more harm than good. Noah goes on to tell Oliver that he is sick (not just mentally ill), but has other issues. He thinks Oliver is the only one who can help him.
BRILLIANT MINDS – Pictured: Mandy Patinkin plays a doctor. Photo: Rafy/NBC © 2024 NBCUniversal Media, LLC
It was the craziest two hours I’ve ever seen. I’m still shocked that Oliver’s father is still alive, a fact that only Oliver’s mother knows. It made me look sideways at her and think back to how she treated him when it came to his father. I was also looking at him sideways──did you see that? An emotional rollercoaster! What did you think of tonight’s season two finale? smart mind? Share your thoughts below or connect with me on X/Twitter @chenfordhugs
