7. "Middle of Nowhere" - Season 5, Episode 107, Airdate: February 25, 1999
To change things up, the show would usually do at least one episode a season away from the hospital, putting a spotlight on a character or pair of characters. Earlier examples include season three's Hathaway spotlight "The Long Way Around" and season four's "Fathers and Sons", which followed Ross and Greene's daddy issues-fuelled road trip in California. I chose to go with season five's Benton spotlight "Middle of Nowhere" both because I wanted to spread out the episodes on this list throughout several seasons, and because it stood out for its portrayal of Peter Benton.
Benton travels to Mississippi to fill in for a local doctor to earn some extra money to help out with his son's therapy, and finds things in the rural south much different than what he's accustomed to. What I love about this episode is how it shows the depth of Peter Benton that he usually keeps hidden behind his veneer of arrogance and stoicism. Being removed from the pressures of County General does wonders for him in this episode, as he overcomes his initial disdain for the slower pace and culture shock he encounters, presenting a happier, more relaxed Benton, even while dealing with the overt racism of his environment. Dude actually laughs and smiles in this one. I always liked Benton, with episodes like this being the reason why.
8. "Be Still My Heart" - Season 6, Episode 126, Airdate: February 10, 2000
The list moves from one of the warmest episodes to probably the most horrifying in series history. You could argue that the following episode, "All in the Family", is the superior episode, dealing with the fallout from the end of this one, but it doesn't get much more memorable than the moment when Carter is silently stabbed from behind by a psych case (played by David Krumholtz). When I think about Carter falling to the floor in pain, only to reveal that his med student Lucy Knight (Kellie Martin) had already been stabbed, it still gives me a sick feeling. Everything prior to that moment was standard ER stuff, with plans for the Valentine's party afoot, Carter ignoring Lucy's difficulties with what seemed to be a routine patient, and Rocket Romano (Paul McCrane) performing surgery on his dog. Little did we know that they were setting us up for a moment that is still difficult for me to think about nine years later.
Article comments
1 - Clare
I will miss ER so much.
Thanks for the article, Andy. You really captured the great episodes.
2 - James
Good choices. I just finished watching the last season on dvd, and before watching the very last episode I watched the series pilot. Yes - it's very noticeable how much less 'fancy medicine', as you put it,is in the earlier seasons, and how relatively slow- moving it is compared to the camera-batics on season 15 (but then slower can be better....see The Wire, The Killing, et al). The medical equipment looks positively medieval! But it's a more rounded show, encompassing politics, with several references to insurance and other financial issues, and Benton's surgical disdain for the "pill pushers" of the ER; not to mention the various interesting relationships of the first seasons (compared to which the Ray-Neela relationship of later seasons was a damp squib - I honestly didn't get any romantic spark at all, or much of any spark really). And young Carter! A masterpiece of goofy, loveable comedy, fresh-faced and fresh-minded, before the tragedies that were to befall him. I was glad you included the stabbing episode - I too find it difficult to think about, because Lucy was such a wonderful character, so well played by Kellie Martin, and her flirtacious back-and-forth with the the still young and loveable Carter was one of the highlights of the entire series for me. I vividly recall Romano overturning the table in anger when she died, and feeling upset for the rest of the day (which never normally happens with fictional TV, I hasten to add!) The story arc which followed over the next couple of seasons, with Carter becoming addicted to drugs and Benton ultimately helping him through it, was one of the most moving I have ever experienced. When that fizzled out, and Greene and Benton left, and Carter became hardened (great performance by Noah Wyle to show the change) is when I stopped watching. I've recently watched the later shows on dvd and, while there are slapstick moments and lots of fancy procedures, they lack the heart and the magic of the early years.
Wow, didn't expect to write that much! I just enjoyed the show, and I guess that whole period of my youth, so much. Thanks ER :)