It isn’t any wonder why TV medical shows have been enduring. Whether reality-based or fictional, they present a perfect example of all facets of human behaviour. All types of people go through a hospital with their various personalities on display.
Since the medium began, TV has used the medical format to wring as much tension, comedy and drama from any situation. From The Young Doctors, E.R. and M.A.S.H., most have enjoyed huge success. The Night Shift is the latest to benefit from audience fascination of the profession.
The San Antonio Medical Centre is always a hive of activity. Situated near a military base, it is populated with doctors from army backgrounds. Among them are headstrong surgeon TC (Eoin Macken), his ex-girlfriend Dr Jordan Alexander (Jill Flint), and Dr Topher Zia (Ken Leung). Working the night shift, their skills are tested on a daily basis.
Their patience is further tried with the presence of hospital administrator Dr Michael Ragosa (Freddy Rodriguez). Attempting to work together to bring their charges back to full health, the clock continues ticking as everyone aims to save as many lives before dawn breaks.
Making The Night Shift stand out from so many others is its premise. Night time is usually when the worst accidents happen with people’s tempers often fraying. Into this mix are the health professionals trying to cope with those they meet. Acting as carer, psychologist and healer, the doctors run the gamut of emotional trauma.
The combination of battling patients and other staff provides a potent cocktail of differing personalities for all to handle. Whilst the characters are sketched in broad strokes with a familiarly bland feel to events, it’s interesting watching the American health system at play. With the doctors coping with an administrator keen on saving money, their devotion to those in their care – whether they have health insurance or not – leads to some interesting moral dilemmas.
The performances are strong with Macken and Flint making for fine leads. All do a fine job in conveying the anguish and professional bond their characters have. Whilst all the doctors look like magazine cover models, it has some modicum of reality to maintain engagement. The whole enterprise has a very slick, fast-paced look common to many current American commercial TV shows.
The Night Shift isn’t a world-beater by any means but fans of medical dramas could do worse than this latest foray into the profession. It also proves the genre still has enough legs to see it past the operating theatre and into a comfortable recovery.
Reviewed by Patrick Moore
@PatrickMoore14
Rating out of 10: 6
- The Night Shift official website
- Season 1 trailer: https://youtu.be/2H0SfnB76GA
Season 1 of The Night Shift is available this month on DVD.
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