Mamie Gummer stars as Emily Owens, a doctor who so desperately wishes to leave her high school past behind to move on to bigger and better things in life....if only it were that easy however.
The new CW medical dramedy explores life in a hospital, and on Emily's first day, she soon realizes that a hospital is actually not very different than high school. In one of the opening scenes, she is told by another fellow intern, Tyra Granger (Kelly McCreary) about the social cliques in a hospital—the mean girls go into plastics, the stoners anesthetics, etc. And low and behold, Emily is also confronted by her high school nemesis, Queen Bee Cassandra Kopelson (Aja Naomi King) who just so happens to be a new intern at the hospital as well.
Mamie Gummer is a wonderful actress, but her attempt to pull off the ditzy cuteness that Rachel Bilson produced in the network's other medical show, Hart of Dixie falls short. Annoying voiceovers plague the episode, with Emily's inner-voice constantly speaking to her and telling her what to do. The pilot was also clogged with three different medical cases, making it not only hard to follow, but also also lacking an emotional pull.
Some fantastic actors, including CW veterans Michael Rady and Justin Hartley also star, but both are underused, with Hartley playing your typical pretty boy, and Rady left with little to nothing to do.
Emily Owens M.D. tries too hard to be the soapy goodness of Grey's Anatomy and the adorable feel-good TV that is Hart of Dixie, and when every character mentions that "the hospital is just like high school" a few too many times, things start to not only feel repetitive, but also unbearable to watch.
Emily Owens M.D. premieres Tuesday October 16th at 9/8c on The CW. **Please note that this is only a preview of the early version of the pilot**
