Yeah, I have only seen the 1st 2 episodes but I like this show's naturalistic, almost documentary style--you noted the almost-total lack of music, which struck me as well, especially in comparison to ER (a show I loved for many years) and that pulsing, almost action-movie soundtrack it had. I think Noah Wyle is smart casting. You can almost see Dr. Robby as Dr. Carter, just 16 years further down the road.
Totally. The show's creator R. Scott Gemmill talked about the lack of music at the press conference. He didn't want to use music to tell the audience how to feel. "You just have to write it in a certain way — quickly, basically — and trust the scenes and your actors that it's going to be emotional," he said. "When you get bad news and nobody's in there with violins, that makes it more real."
I've been enjoying "The Pitt" on your recommendation. The show is entertaining and the writing is both believable and emotionally accurate. A teaching hospital ER is a complex and highly stratified organism. The levels of training such as 3rd year med student, ER residents (R1,R2,R3) and physician supervision from ER director to attending physician and consulting subspecialty physician are well represented and the dialogue is accurate.
Cognitive intelligence is a prerequisite for getting into med school. Emotional, social and spiritual intelligence are not. Proper specialty training can make a resident aware of the benefits of the each non-physician member of the clinical team. Patient care in the Pitt ER is enhanced by the Charge Nurse and Social Worker who serve as a conscience for physicians and students alike.
The ER support staff is what makes this ER drama for me. That and the focus on effective communication in end-of-life care. Another observation: the Institute for Doctor-Patient Communication at the Univ. of Pittsburgh Medical Center is a nationally recognized center of excellence.
Thank you for the excellent insight, Dr. Mathews :). It makes me happy that you checked out the show on my recommendation. That's very interesting about the Institute for Doctor-Patient Communication. I wonder if that's part of why they chose Pittsburgh.
I love the show but I've had a few friends shy away from it because of the amount of blood. I understand that. The show is very intense in its depiction of illness and injury. But I'm guessing this show doesn't even come close to the intensity of a real ER. In any case, I think the intensity and interpersonal drama are powerfully linked.
The Pitt is the replacement of ER that we didn't know we needed -- even if nothing can possibly replace ER entirely. I'm enjoying it a lot, too, but I think the lack of music is doing a disservice to the series. There was a reason ER was so iconic and its music played a big part in that. It's too bad The Pitt opts not to use that to its advantage. I get it, but I believe it'd lift the show even higher.
Wyle is lights out in this. And I love that the writers refuse to overexplain the jargon. This is the world; we don’t need to understand every lab order. It’s brilliant, accessible TV.
Yeah, I have only seen the 1st 2 episodes but I like this show's naturalistic, almost documentary style--you noted the almost-total lack of music, which struck me as well, especially in comparison to ER (a show I loved for many years) and that pulsing, almost action-movie soundtrack it had. I think Noah Wyle is smart casting. You can almost see Dr. Robby as Dr. Carter, just 16 years further down the road.
Totally. The show's creator R. Scott Gemmill talked about the lack of music at the press conference. He didn't want to use music to tell the audience how to feel. "You just have to write it in a certain way — quickly, basically — and trust the scenes and your actors that it's going to be emotional," he said. "When you get bad news and nobody's in there with violins, that makes it more real."
I've been enjoying "The Pitt" on your recommendation. The show is entertaining and the writing is both believable and emotionally accurate. A teaching hospital ER is a complex and highly stratified organism. The levels of training such as 3rd year med student, ER residents (R1,R2,R3) and physician supervision from ER director to attending physician and consulting subspecialty physician are well represented and the dialogue is accurate.
Cognitive intelligence is a prerequisite for getting into med school. Emotional, social and spiritual intelligence are not. Proper specialty training can make a resident aware of the benefits of the each non-physician member of the clinical team. Patient care in the Pitt ER is enhanced by the Charge Nurse and Social Worker who serve as a conscience for physicians and students alike.
The ER support staff is what makes this ER drama for me. That and the focus on effective communication in end-of-life care. Another observation: the Institute for Doctor-Patient Communication at the Univ. of Pittsburgh Medical Center is a nationally recognized center of excellence.
Thank you for the excellent insight, Dr. Mathews :). It makes me happy that you checked out the show on my recommendation. That's very interesting about the Institute for Doctor-Patient Communication. I wonder if that's part of why they chose Pittsburgh.
I love the show but I've had a few friends shy away from it because of the amount of blood. I understand that. The show is very intense in its depiction of illness and injury. But I'm guessing this show doesn't even come close to the intensity of a real ER. In any case, I think the intensity and interpersonal drama are powerfully linked.
Yeah, seeing a degloved foot is not for everybody.
Yup!
The Pitt is the replacement of ER that we didn't know we needed -- even if nothing can possibly replace ER entirely. I'm enjoying it a lot, too, but I think the lack of music is doing a disservice to the series. There was a reason ER was so iconic and its music played a big part in that. It's too bad The Pitt opts not to use that to its advantage. I get it, but I believe it'd lift the show even higher.
That's a counterintuitive traditionalist take. I like it.
Couldn’t agree more, Liam! I’m obsessed.
Wyle is lights out in this. And I love that the writers refuse to overexplain the jargon. This is the world; we don’t need to understand every lab order. It’s brilliant, accessible TV.