Inevitably, comparisons have arisen between Noah Wyle’s new medical drama, The Pitt, and the beloved ER. Each sequence star Wyle and happen in a bustling large metropolis emergency room (ER in Chicago, The Pitt in Pittsburg). However that is not all: together with Wyle main the sequence, ER government producers John Wells and R. Scott Gemmill are hooked up to the challenge. The latter who serves as showrunner for The Pitt and in addition served as a author throughout ER‘s sixth to thirteenth seasons. What’s extra, the property of ER creator Michael Crichton is suing Warner Bros. Tv, claiming the brand new drama is an unauthorized reboot of ER. As evaluations trickle in for The Pitt, critics are agreeing on one factor: it isn’t ER. However that is not essentially a foul factor.
The Pitt lands on Max over 15 years after ER signed off, by which Wyle starred within the critically-lauded and award-winning present as Dr. John Carter (undoubtedly his most memorable position). Wyle was a well-known face on the medical drama throughout its total 15-season run, showing from 1994 to 2009. He earned three Golden Globe Award nominations and 5 Emmy nominations for his work.
In The Pitt, which premieres on January 9 with two episodes on Max, Wyle stars as Dr. Michael “Robby” Robinavitch, the chief attendant of the Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Hospital’s emergency room. Per the present’s logline, The Pitt follows the “each day lives of healthcare professionals in a Pittsburgh hospital as they juggle private crises, office politics, and the emotional toll of treating critically sick sufferers, revealing the resilience required of their noble calling.”
The Pitt at the moment holds an 83% ranking on Rotten Tomatoes, and whereas which will appear spectacular, there are solely six evaluations at the moment accounted for, in order that quantity will possible change. Preliminary evaluations have been typically optimistic: The Hollywood Reporter labels it an “efficient ‘ER’-adjacent medical procedural.” The publication notes that if The Pitt have been truly an ER spinoff, it possible would not begin as slowly – as a result of having to take care of introducing new characters and storylines:
“As soon as it will get going, although, The Pitt emerges as a well-executed medical procedural made by individuals who know from well-executed medical procedurals, boasting a structural twist that is sometimes very efficient and typically only a bit annoying and distracting.”
TVLine calls it “excellent” and says it is the primary medical drama since (you guessed it) ER to “prioritize drugs over melodrama — a welcome change of tempo after years of Gray’s Anatomy and Home clones.” The publication additionally praises the real-time format (every episode follows an hour of Dr. Robby’s 15-hour shift), which is able to make viewers really feel like they’re “within the trenches with Wyle’s Dr. Robby and his underlings.”
‘The Pitt’ Divides Critics
Collider’s evaluate by Maggie Boccella is the present outlier, slamming The Pitt as a complete knockoff of ER, claiming “it is easy to see why” Crichton’s property would file a lawsuit:
“Very similar to police procedurals, it is robust to provide you with a medical drama that stands out in a sea of them that every one appear largely the identical, and there is nothing to counsel that ‘The Pitt’ is not only a relabeled ‘ER.’ The fixed shuffle of emergency instances mixed with private drama appears like a near-exact mirror of the long-running, beloved sequence, and Wyle looming over everybody’s shoulders as attending doctor does not precisely assist something.”
Boccella goes on to critique the present’s setting as she has “lived within the space for twenty-six years, with a mom who’s spent even longer than that working as a nurse for 2 of its main hospitals, it is not possible to overstate how in contrast to the actual factor ‘The Pitt’ feels.”
Together with Wyle, The Pitt stars Tracy Ifeachor, Patrick Marron Ball, Supriya Ganesh, Fiona Dourif, Taylor Dearden, Isa Briones, Gerran Howell, Shabana Azeez, and Katherine LaNasa. It premieres January 9, on Max, with two episodes.
So, is The Pitt a worthy ER successor? Early evaluations point out sure; simply do not get too hung up on the similarities – or variations – between the 2.