E.R. : 'Blizzard'

Well it's the first post on the continuing E.R. mega marathon and it's top mark up the episode that first really sees the series firing on all cylinders and it's the ninth episode of the first season (I watched about a week ago but haven't yet managed to post about it).

Following on from the drama of relationships being put under strain in the previous episode we open a snowy winter's day in the city and the E.R. is as quiet as a mouse, the nurses are playing games, Mark and Susan put John's leg in plaster as a jape and Jerry is happily singing along to Christmas tunes.

Amongst this Doug is reeling for the announcement of Carol's engagement and planning to head off for a glam holiday with his sales rep girlfriend. So the first fifteen minuets of the episode is relatively light and fluffy fare but then it the show changes gear, there's a massive car crash on the interstate with upto fifty casualties of various seriousness and County General is the only hospital fully staffed and open. It's all coming this way.

What follows is a breathless assault of incident as patient after patient is brought through those swinging doors and the entire team is pushed to the limit. Doug is making calls on people as they come in (are they worth treating? Is it minor? Is it already too late for them?), Mark is doing the best he can to talk a man through birthing his child on the phone, Susan is rushing from case to case and making critical calls, Carol is everywhere and also doing her best to deal with Patrick (Patrick is a recurring character, a friendly soul who is sadly mentally disadvantaged, he's harmless but often inadvertently gets in the way) and Benton has effectively set up an emergency surgery theater in the E.R.

A frantic pace that doesn't let up for the rest of the episode and throws in both shocks, pathos and high drama. 'Bob' the cleaner turns out to have been a surgeon in her native Poland as she delves into an emergency procedure when Susan hesitates, Benton reattaches somebody's leg with the help of a new resident and Doug critically misses a diagnosis as a man dies he'd assessed as non-critical on arrival, whilst his girlfriend tells Carol he still loves her.

It's great drama, yes it does finish on a slightly cheesy note as all gather round for Christmas pizza and sing song but the rest of it so well done it's easy to forgive. If you want to know what E.R. is all about this is the episode that encapsulates it without doubt.