Veronica Fuentes has entered the building, and she’s prepared to shake everything up.
If Max doesn’t like a person, isn’t that more reason for us not to either? She didn’t leave the best impression on New Amsterdam Season 4 Episode 3 when she roamed around the hospital with a latte and a power suit, telling people how much they sucked at their jobs without introducing herself.
Could Veronica be the reason Max and Helen stay?
What does one make of this hour? It’s hard to say, but we’ll figure it out as we go through the bulk of it.
Initially, it seemed as though Iggy would excel in a teaching role, but now, it feels like he’s the one learning most of the lessons.
What continues to be an issue is that Iggy projects all of his stuff onto his students, and he doesn’t leave any room for them to be their own person and doctor.
Gladys is a saving grace who can always set Iggy right and on the best path when he doesn’t notice the error of his ways.
Losing patients in that field can be difficult. Iggy and his student’s patient died by suicide (the current politically correct terminology, which only stood out this much in this case because of the Psychology professionals failing to use it).
But Iggy’s student handled the news in stride. Her lack of expression made Iggy think something else was going on, and it almost felt as if he’d delve into some notion that she lacked empathy or something.
What I’d give to be able to ground you, too.
Karen
However, didn’t it seem as if she had a reasonable response to the death? On the surface, Iggy’s student appeared to have a better grasp on boundaries and not getting too emotionally invested beyond professionalism and self-preservation than Iggy displays.
Iggy finding fault in that reflected poorly on him rather than highlighted anything wrong with her. It’s as if he’s not accustomed to others not reacting or handling things as he does.
The lesson in all of it should’ve been that Iggy overreacted to how she responded rather than him forcing her to cry it out and feel things.
Instead, to prove Iggy right (when he probably shouldn’t have been), it became a thing where his student struggled to find the balance between being empathetic and guarded and protecting her heart. She was trying not to feel.
You taught me something important, Dr. Goodwin. When someone says they can change the world, don’t listen.
Imani
Lauren also had to learn a few things about meddling in Leyla’s life in the hospital. She has Casey spying on Leyla and reporting back everything.
Most of the reasons Leyla had issues with her fellow residents in the first place were because of Lauren. Leyla did need a reminder to stand in her glory rather than stepping aside and out of the spotlight. However, Lauren needs to butt out of the politics amongst Leyla and her peers.
They always manage to work through their issues and make all of this work for them. But there are only so many times that working together with Lauren as her superior won’t evolve into more serious issues for them in their personal lives.
Leyla showing up her peer with her superior technique that doesn’t involve all the fancy equipment American hospitals have the luxury of using was a badass scene.
Leyla’s alpha coming out is more than welcome, and it’d be great if we see that version of her more. Leyla can run circles around most of these doctors, residents, and attendings alike.
She may even be a better-skilled doctor than Lauren. The series exploring how different her knowledge is as someone who practiced in a war-torn country is quality content.
They should continue to lean into that. It fits with the messages the series explores anyway. As messed up and flawed as the American healthcare system is, doctors in the States are far more privileged than others, and in other ways, their skills are lacking because of it.
They don’t have to be innovative in that way when their backs aren’t against the wall.
On the subject of innovation, Imani was one of the best guest stars so far this season.
The talent on display at that science fair was incredible for such a young group of kids and teens.
Imani possesses the spirit that got Max’s attention and gave him hope for the future of medicine.
Her turnip suture concept was brilliant, and it would’ve served millions of people in undeveloped nations. For that reason alone, you knew damn well she’d face issues.
The 18-year-old is a fast learner and figured it out quickly. How do you fix the world when the people who run it want it to stay broken?
It’s far more profit in a broken world, and money talks way before helping people ever does.
The pharmaceutical company who wanted to sue a teenager for half a billion dollars rather than allow her to change the world with her invention needed their asses kicked.
Max’s proposal during the negotiation period made perfect sense to anyone with a heart, and everyone would’ve won, but they still wanted to say no.
The solution to that was muddled and didn’t make the most sense. They relied on a loophole, but there also seems like there’s a loophole for that loophole.
Nevertheless, Max won Imani over again after the entire experience crushed her positivity and earnest do-gooder mentality.
He also introduced her to the head of the Science and Arts department at Colombia, and he gave Imani a full scholarship.
It’s what that brilliant, beautiful, and sweet girl deserved.
Everything about Imani’s storyline was interesting, and Max is so damn good with kids and teens. Their final hug was the cutest.
It was one of those cases where it served as a reminder of what New Amsterdam will miss when he and Helen leave.
Helen had a busy day. For starters, she had to assist Floyd for another round of treating gunshot wounds after the hospital’s fourth mass shooting in a week.
For most of the hour, we saw Floyd envisioning different faces and claiming that he knew the victims.
It took until moments before his scene with Lyn for it to make sense. The show intended to explore the emotional effects on medical staff after a steady stream of mass shootings and gun violence.
New Amsterdam isn’t always known for its subtlety when covering topics, so this was a change of pace for them. The attempt is appreciated, but it was more confusing than anything else, and it didn’t fit in with the rest of the hour.
But then, Floyd is having that issue in general with this Lyn business too. His emotional state earned him an off-schedule night with her. Woohoo!
But getting back to Helen, what is this woman’s deal?
In every installment, they’re teasing the potential demise of Sharpwin or exploring all the reasons that their relationship might be wrong or won’t work.
And most of the time, it’s because of Helen’s fickleness or penchant for relationship self-sabotage. They’ll overcome one obstacle, and she goes hurdling toward another one for the hell of it.
It’s as if they insist on showing us why they shouldn’t be a couple, maybe to confirm something for or appease those who don’t care for the pairing while also making those who are happy by technically putting them together.
The attempt to straddle both sides of the fence doesn’t have the desired results.
It also makes Helen look bad. Why is she whining to Karen about Max’s messiness or whatever else? That man is the love child of the Tasmanian devil and an excitable golden retriever; did she not think he was messy in his daily life?
Helen keeps searching for reasons to be miserable, and it sucks the fun out of everything.
You know it’s bad when you could appreciate Karen stating that if she’s not going to be happy, then she’ll take Max off of her hands.
Karen doesn’t want Max to go, and you can’t blame her. She’s also annoyed that Helen didn’t inform Karen about her and Max’s decision to leave before announcing it to everyone.
And that’s fair too, for everyone. Helen spent all of that time riding Max’s case about informing people that he was going to London, but in the interim, she never informed Karen?
Better yet, she didn’t tell any of their friends either. The group is close, and that montage of the others processing the news with their significant others in bed amused, but you can understand why they were so annoyed by that development.
But the slack for Karen stops there. She is also on thin ice. She’s the one who brought this Veronica woman to the hospital, and if Karen begrudgingly loves Max so much, then why did she hire the anti-Max?
Veronica’s shtick of being rude, calling people by name, criticizing the hell out of them, and then refusing to answer who she was got old quick.
How can I fix the world when the people in charge want it to stay broken?
Imani
For one, it was bizarre to see this random woman in an off-white power suit roaming around the hospital like she owned the place, and no one called her out on it or called security or something.
But now we know that Max has a history with this woman and doesn’t like her. And that’s good enough reason to dislike her.
But while she may not have the desirable personality, she’s waltzing in here and choosing violence at every turn. She came to raise hell, and that’ll be entertaining to witness.
Over to you, ‘Dam Fanatics.
Karen: I’m glad you all are here.
Max: Oh, because you want to bring it in.
Karen: No, I want to introduce you to the new medical director of New Amsterdam.
Max: Really? You hired her?
Fuentes: Good to see you too. We go way back.
What’s your impression of Veronica Fuentes? Did the Floyd storyline confuse you? Does Helen seem too nitpicky, fickle, and difficult to please? Hit the comments.
You can watch New Amsterdam online here via TV Fanatic.
Jasmine Blu is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow her on Twitter.