The Night Shift - Recovery - Advance Preview: "Balls. Lots of Balls."

2.01 - "Recovery"

Reviewed by Gavin Hetherington

NBC's summer series The Night Shift premiered in May 2014 with a very brief eight-episode run that essentially proved itself to be a worthy contender for a Winter premiere amongst NBC's other hit shows. Quite the upgrade! Season one was fun and fast, never wasting an episode with any slow material but instead took advantage of what they had and delivered adrenalin-pumping hours of television until July.

The upgrade to being a mid-season show in NBC's schedule could be quite risky but they're taking the chance. Fortunately, I had the pleasure of watching the first episode of the show's second season a little ahead of time. All I can say is, THANK GOD! This was a great premiere and promises a stellar second season. Make sure you guys tune in this Monday, 10PM on NBC!

'Recovery' Preview

The premiere doesn't waste any time whatsoever with the action. We have TC (Eoin Macken) jumping down the side of a rocky mountain to attend to a child in a sort of 127 Hours situation, but without the arm stuck in a rock part. The patient has a very, VERY disturbing injury which for our team should not be a problem whatsoever. We don't dwell on this outside the hospital though as we do go to our favourite bunch of doctors on television at the moment, and things seem to be running smoothly. Only thing that seems odd is Ragosa (Freddy Rodriguez) who smiles more in one scene than he did the entire first season. Must admit, as strange as this reformed Ragosa is, I like it. But can it last long? He's been through his tumour ordeal and of course he must have that over-joyous feeling of life. High on life. He could be a bit much in the first season but he starts this season in a much better place. Almost everyone seems to be in a better place actually.

There are several patients in this episode but TC brings in the one he found in the wild. For those wondering, yes he's still on suspension but come on, it's TC, he does what the hell he wants. We should frown upon this rule-breaking but how can we when he's saving lives, right? Other patient cases are just as strange, like some sort of Bizarre ER, the X-Files of medical dramas. I have to admire these characters for what they're doing, these cases honestly look hard - perhaps the hardest night shift they've faced yet. As you can see in the photo, there's someone who is crushed by an elevator and it's right in front of his daughter too which is pretty traumatising. Bare in mind, the guy does not start off with that much blood on his shirt by the way, just food for thought to give you an idea on how this episode starts unfolding. It's an exciting, exhilerating case that even I felt a bit of a rush of while watching. There's also a part involving a neck and I had to keep my hand on my own because I felt like it was me on the screen. Chills.

Some of the bitterness from the first season has spilled over following the love triange of Jordan (Jill Flint), TC and Scott (Scott Wolf), and it shows through how they work together. Mainly Scott being a dick but I guess that can be subjective depending on how you look at it. You would think TC and Jordan could stay away from Scott for the time being but they're forced together. Personal feelings clash with doing what's right which is a sort of theme for this episode. Can they work together to save a man's life? Personal feelings also drive other characters to make decisions. Ragosa included. He makes a couple of decisions, one that's quite shocking and both are very admirable too. There's great character development in this episode and will only further their complexities in a way we still relate to them.

As for the other characters, they do have good roles in this episode. Topher (Ken Leung) is getting along famously since his terrifying ordeal at the end of season one as he gets on with his job. He offers Ragosa some fantastic advice that truly helps him. Krista (Jeananne Goossen) helps a lot in this episode when it comes to the cases and I do hope she gets to do more coming up. Drew (Brendan Fehr), Kenny (J. R. Lemon) and Paul (Robert Bailey Jr.) usually share scenes together and they're electric when they're together. The new doctor, Joey Chavez, is great fun and I can see him becoming more and more involved as the season goes on which will actually be very welcome. He has some funky suggestions that would definitely make working these hard cases more of a breeze.

Episode Verdict

A fantastic episode to return to as we arrive at the show's second season. We all fell in love with these characters in season one and now we can see them come into their own. They've developed but it doesn't stop these characters from progressing and becoming more interesting. The cases in this episode were fascinating and exhilerating, sure to make you squirm a little as you watch. Some pleasant surprises and some beautifully written moments shine through this premiere. The episode does slow down a little by the time it reaches its end as we focus on some key character relationships but it's nice to have that breather. This episode kept that fearless feeling the first season had, and just like I say in my tagline, it had balls. Lots of balls.

'Recovery' Teasers

- You will most likely have to turn away a couple of times due to patients and their bizarre cases.
- The Spice Girls. My favourite childhood group. I feel like I love some of these characters more.
- New character called Gwen who is besties with Jordan. I like her so far.
- Another new character, Joey Chavez, who is also a great addition too. So much fun!
- We have more outside-the-box thinking when it comes to patient cases which still helps separate this medical drama from others.
- The premiere balances traumatic cases with some light-hearted fun in the hospital.
- TC and Jordan have great scenes together. Chemistry is just so natural and effortless.
- Ever wonder what Eoin Macken would look like as Hermione Granger from Harry Potter? I knew you did.
- Feels strange not having Daniella Alonso around but fortunately there's no time to sit and wonder where Landry is. Her absence does not hinder the show, though she will be missed.

Have any questions about the episode? Let me know in the comments and be sure to watch the episode of The Night Shift when it aires on February 23rd on NBC at 10PM!

About the Author - Gavin Hetherington

Award-winning author of 'Abyssal Sanctuary: Remnants of the Damned'. Gavin joined SpoilerTV on August 9, 2014 and will be reviewing 2 Broke Girls, Mistresses, Orange is the New Black, Pretty Little Liars, Salem and Sleepy Hollow in the 2014-15 season. Gavin's favourite shows include Charmed, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Desperate Housewives, The Walking Dead, Once Upon a Time, Revenge, Scandal and much more. You can contact him at gavin@spoilertv.com.

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