The pilot episode of Doctor Odyssey on ABC, starring Joshua Jackson as Dr. Max Bankman presented a unique premise—medical emergencies aboard a luxury cruise ship—but its execution left a lot to be desired. Visually, the show is impressive. It’s clear ABC put a lot of money into this production, with the cruise ship set standing out as a stunning and immersive environment. Unfortunately, the high-budget spectacle can't fully compensate for the pilot’s uneven storytelling and some questionable character dynamics.
“Pilot” - DOCTOR ODYSSEY. Pictured: Joshua Jackson as Doctor Max Bankman. Photo: Tina Thorpe/Disney © 2024 Disney Entertainment. All Rights Reserved.
The show follows Dr. Max Bankman, the newly appointed doctor on the cruise ship, and introduces the medical team he works with, including Phillipa Soo's Avery Morgan and Sean Teale's Tristan Silva. Right from the start, Doctor Odyssey delivers on the promise of medical drama with a backdrop that’s inherently chaotic and unpredictable, combining the tension of life-or-death emergencies with the opulence and isolation of cruise life. While this setting is fresh for a medical drama, the pilot doesn’t quite capitalize on its potential.
One of the pilot’s major missteps is how it portrays women, particularly Avery. She’s introduced as a smart, capable nurse practitioner who clearly has the qualifications to be considered for the head doctor position. Yet, her ambition is swiftly brushed aside, and she’s not even in the running for the job. Her frustration is short-lived—she spends maybe two minutes angry about the decision before she becomes smitten with Max. The speed at which she goes from being professionally frustrated to seemingly forgetting her career aspirations in favor of a romantic interest feels forced and reductive. It’s especially disappointing to see such a qualified character reduced to a romantic subplot so quickly, as Avery contemplates sleeping with Max mere hours after meeting him.
One of the pilot’s major missteps is how it portrays women, particularly Avery. She’s introduced as a smart, capable nurse practitioner who clearly has the qualifications to be considered for the head doctor position. Yet, her ambition is swiftly brushed aside, and she’s not even in the running for the job. Her frustration is short-lived—she spends maybe two minutes angry about the decision before she becomes smitten with Max. The speed at which she goes from being professionally frustrated to seemingly forgetting her career aspirations in favor of a romantic interest feels forced and reductive. It’s especially disappointing to see such a qualified character reduced to a romantic subplot so quickly, as Avery contemplates sleeping with Max mere hours after meeting him.
“Pilot” - DOCTOR ODYSSEY. Pictured: Joshua Jackson as Doctor Max Bankman and Phillipa Soo as Avery Morgan. Photo: Tina Thorpe/Disney © 2024 Disney Entertainment. All Rights Reserved.
On top of these character issues, the pilot crammed four medical emergencies into the episode, creating a frantic pace that made it feel like the show was trying too hard to assert itself as a high-stakes medical drama. While Doctor Odyssey is clearly aiming for the same kind of pulse-pounding intensity found in shows like 9-1-1, it doesn’t leave enough room for viewers to connect with the characters. The emergencies themselves felt a bit contrived, as if the writers were rushing to prove that this show belongs in the medical drama genre without letting the scenarios unfold naturally.
In short, while Doctor Odyssey offers a unique and visually striking setting, its pilot struggled with pacing and character development. The spectacle is there, but the story needs more balance between its high-octane medical crises and the relationships between its characters. There’s potential for the show to improve as the season progresses, but the pilot felt like it’s trying to do too much too soon. Hopefully, future episodes will allow the characters to grow and the plot to breathe.
