Brilliant Minds’ Fall Finale Ends on a Very Scary Cliffhanger: Is [Spoiler] Alive? — Plus, Grade the Episode!
It’s going to be a long, anxiety-filled Brilliant Minds hiatus for Drs. Jacob Nash and Van Markus, along with all other fans of Dr. Ericka Kinney.
In the final moments of the NBC medical drama’s fall finale Monday, Ericka got stuck in an elevator at her apartment building. Unlike the older man and other woman in the car, she didn’t panic when the elevator stopped working — but her expression quickly turned to one of worry as the premises started to shake.
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At the hospital, Dr. Wolf found most of his staff near the desk, staring at a TV news report about a building that had just collapsed a few miles from Bronx General. As everyone started prepping for an influx of injured people, Dr. Deng had a horrible realization: “That’s Ericka’s building.” Then the episode went to black.
The cliffhanger came at the end of an episode in which Van and Jacob got into a bit of a peeing match stoked by Jacob’s realization, in the previous episode, that Ericka and Van were sleeping together. Van acknowledged that Jacob had feelings for Ericka, but was unrepentant in reminding him that “she picked me.” Out of spite, Jacob then let it slip to Ericka that Van has a kid — information that was news to her. She angrily and immediately sought out Dr. Markus to inform him that their hookup was over, because “This isn’t fun for me anymore.” Next thing we know: Building go boom.
Elsewhere in the episode:
* The hospital staff saved Alison’s life then put her on a psychiatric hold. Though she threatened to report Carol’s unethical behavior and end her career, Alison eventually came around to thanking Dr. Pierce for saving her life. And even though Carol is not longer Alison’s doctor, she diagnosed her with borderline personality disorder and helped her get admitted to a psychiatric facility for treatment. After that was sorted, Carol went home and told Morris that she wanted a divorce, because “I love you, but I can’t forgive you.”
* Dr. Wolf was bothered that a former patient, Ezra, wanted to undergo brain surgery to help with his Tourette syndrome. Wolf argued that the world should accept Ezra exactly as he is, though Dr. Nichols argued that there was nothing wrong with wanting to make the situation easier for Ezra. Then Nichols wondered if Wolf was so negative about the endeavor because he didn’t see Nichols as his equal. By the end of the episode, Ezra’s surgery was a success and Wolf had changed his mind about it all. In a conversation in Nichols’ office, Wolf told his boyfriend about his father’s mental health struggles, apologized for his behavior, then made it clear that he thinks Nichols is every bit as smart as he is — “otherwise, I wouldn’t bother arguing with you.”
Brilliant Minds returns on Monday, Jan. 6, 2025 (10/9c). Until then, grade the final via the poll below, then hit the comments with your thoughts!
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