Chicago Med Season 11 Episode 4's Frost Story Was As Heartbreaking As It Was Soapy

Critic’s Rating: 5 / 5.0

5

I was wrong.

I’ve been begging Chicago Med to leave the soap opera plots to General Hospital and focus on medical drama.

But Chicago Med Season 11 Episode 4’s Frost story was as soapy as they come — and one of the best, most emotional plots the series has had in a while.

Cora’s Story Was Heartbreaking Even Without The Soapy Twist

The stories about severely ill kids get to me more than any other.

This time, Chicago Med introduced Cora, a little girl with a severe immune system disorder who was probably going to die… and for once, it gave us a happy ending.

Cora was a sweet 10-year-old who had so much love to give (to zebras and people!), and it sucked that she was in this situation, so I was primed for tears before the mother mix-up.

I wasn’t expecting the soapy twist that she was actually someone else’s daughter — and that woman had thought her child was dead.

Yes, this is the sort of thing that happens on both of the soaps I watch regularly, but this time, it was surprisingly effective.

I immediately felt horrible for Lily. She found out her biological daughter actually was alive, but the child was likely about to die, and on top of that, she was supposed to keep it a secret that they might be related.

My Only Complaint Is That Lily Was Told Off-Screen

I know that happened because there wasn’t enough room in the script.

Chicago Med Season 11 Episode 4 had to move quickly, so Lily just randomly showed up at the hospital already aware that her biological daughter was in an isolation chamber for her protection.

Medical dramas. Soap operas. Reality TV.
We cover it all, and we don’t want you to miss a thing. Hit the subscribe button in the upper right corner to get our newsletter full of hot-off-the-press takes on all your favorite shows, delivered straight to your inbox.

Still, I couldn’t help wondering how she reacted to learning that her biological daughter was alive after all this time.

That had to be a huge shock a decade later, especially since the reason the hospital was contacting her was that Cora was in desperate need of a stem cell transplant and could possibly die.

She had to be reeling, yet she came to the hospital composed and excited to meet her child.

There Was No Way Lily Would Be Able To Keep Quiet Once She Met Cora

Cora should have been prepared in advance.

Telling her that Lily was shadowing Frost was a terrible idea, and I knew from the moment the woman walked into the room that she would never be able to keep quiet about who she was.

Even if Cora hadn’t had that black streak in her hair, she looked like a mini-Lily, and I bet Lily loves zebras, too.

Of course she blurted out that she was Cora’s biological mother. How could she help it?

Besides, it would have been far less dramatic if the news hadn’t crushed Cora and her other mother.

The Mothers’ Fight Was Short-Lived, But I’m Okay With That

On the one hand, it’s unrealistic that the two women would have calmed down so quickly and accepted each other’s presence in Cora’s life.

We went from maximum anger — threats to call attorneys and refusal to let Lily donate — to Lily saving Cora’s life after only two conversations with hospital staff.

Are you an obsessed Chicago Med fan who has watched every season multiple times or a newbie who just fell in love with it recently?
Either way, I’m glad you’re here. Pop into the comments and let me know how long you’ve been watching and what you thought of this episode.

While that wasn’t entirely realistic, both Sharon and Frost had powerful things to say, reminding the two mothers that though their pain was valid, Cora’s life was at stake, so I’m okay with it.

Besides, we wouldn’t have gotten a happy ending had the women not gotten along for long enough to do the stem cell transplant. Chicago Med rarely has good news, especially when it comes to seriously ill kids, so I’ll take what I can get.

I also loved what Frost had to say about found family.

Cora: Can that  woman… can she take me away from my mom? 

Frost: I wish I could tell you what was gonna happen, but I can’t. But what I can tell you is family has nothing to do with genetics or blood. It’s about who loves you and who shows up.

Cora: Is that what your parents were like?

Frost: No. My parents, um, they weren’t always very good to me. They didn’t put me first, you know? But your mom, she’s not like that. She spends all day every day thinking about how to best take care of you. She’s gonna be your mom no matter what any test says.

Frost knows better than anyone what it’s like to have selfish parents and how important real family is. I think he’s found that at Gaffney more than anywhere else in his life.

Speaking of Abusive People, Let’s Discuss Lenox’s Storyline

October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, which is why many shows are featuring stories like this.

I had mixed feelings about this one.

It’s important to highlight the ways hospitals can help people who are currently being abused. I was glad Lenox explained the meaning of the red sticker on the bottom of the cup, as I had no idea.

However, I didn’t like the way Lenox handled it.

I understood where she was coming from. As a doctor, it’s her job to ensure her patient’s well-being, physically and mentally.

However, Lenox was way too pushy. Back when I lived with my abuser, I wasn’t ready to hear that there were any other options, and my friends came off as judgmental when they tried to tell me that I should just leave and not look back.

That’s the same feeling I got from the way Lenox handled the situation, and I knew from experience that Faye would double down on insisting she was fine.

Lenox was right to mention the sticker and ask if Faye needed help, but if Faye said she didn’t, Lenox should have pivoted to giving her her card, but she didn’t do that until she’d pushed and pushed. No wonder Faye wasn’t interested!

Of course, that’s Lenox. I wish that Chicago Med would come right out and say she’s autistic instead of hinting at it with her blunt manner and constant discussions of how she never understood the world or why people expected her to behave a certain way.

Still, she did more harm than good with her approach, and now she may be in the abuser’s crosshairs herself because of it.

The way he subtly threatened her while she made it clear she knew what he was doing to Faye was among the creepiest scenes Chicago Med has had in a while.

I hated the Sharon stalking story on Chicago Med Season 10, so I hope we’re not in for anything like that with Lenox.

Also, she needed a psych consult. Ideally, Dr. Cuervas would be the best person to consult, as she might know more about how to help another woman in this situation. However, if she wasn’t available, Dr. Charles could have assisted.

Unfortunately, he was involved in a different story, so that didn’t happen.

Dr. Charles’ Story Appears To Have Been A Vehicle for Introducing a New Character

At first, I thought it was going to be yet another fear-of-AI storyline.

There is a lot of fear around this subject, and it’s a hot topic right now, so that seemed logical, though we already went through that annoying OR 2.0 arc and threw the baby out with the bathwater, so I didn’t trust Chicago Med to do the subject justice.

However, this time Dr. Charles realized he wasn’t completely right and that the new fMRI technology could help his patient.

Afterward, he decided to keep working with Theo, so it looks like we’ve got a new recurring character and a potentially interesting story.

Random Chicago Med Season 11 Episode 4 Thoughts

• Frost and Ripley’s friendship makes Ripley seem more tolerable.
• How long ago was the bankruptcy? While filing messes with your credit, you can rebuild, and after several years, your score should begin to go up.
• No Hannah today, though we did get a mention of the baby. I was surprised that Archer attributed it to a lack of self-control, given that he then suggested it was a good thing.

I’ve talked enough — now I want to know your thoughts.
TV Fanatic wouldn’t be here without your contributions. So take all your passion for this show and let it all out in the comments! Be sure to share this article with your friends so that they can join in too.

Vote in the poll below to rank the episode.

If you enjoyed this article, check out our other One Chicago coverage. You might also enjoy our takes on other Dick Wolf shows like FBI and Law & Order: SVU.

Chicago Med airs on NBC on Wednesdays at 8/7c and streams on Peacock on Thursdays.

TV Fanatic is searching for passionate contributors to share their voices across various article types. Think you have what it takes to be a TV Fanatic? Click here for more information and next steps.