Talkin' Bout a Revolution

"Talkin' Bout a Revolution"

Season 4

Episode 11

Information

Airdate

January 4, 2022

Viewers

3.27 million

Written by

Graham Norris

Directed by

Nick Gomez

Episode Chronology

Preceded by	Followed by
Death is the Rule. Life is the Exception	The Crossover

"Talkin' Bout a Revolution" is the eleventh episode of the fourth season on NBC drama series New Amsterdam, and the sixty-fifth episode overall. It aired on January 4, 2022.

Synopsis[]

Max and Helen settle happily into their new life in London. Dr. Fuentes takes over as medical director, with disastrous effects. Bloom provides assistance to a patient who believes he is under a curse. Iggy develops a plan to get his psych patients gainfully employed.

Plot[]

Max and Helen are travelling through London traffic to get to their new home. They thoroughly enjoy setting up their new place and exploring the neighbourhood; once it settles, they welcome Luna home.

Meanwhile, in New Amsterdam, Dr. Fuentes tries to speak to several of the staff, who ignore her or close the door on her. She is particularly harsh on her staff member, Adam, and expresses her frustration that they have been avoiding her since Max's departure six weeks ago. She calls for a department head meeting in an hour, threatening to fire anyone who fails to show up. A man interrupts their chat, shouting "Merry Christmas" in the lobby, despite it being January. Adam informs Veronica that this is part of Dr. Iggy's occupational therapy for inpatients. All the compliments and attention from his new assistant clearly distract Iggy.

Lyn had her pregnancy ultrasound, and Jan commented on how Dr. Claude Baptiste must be over the moon because she never thought she could get pregnant. Outside the room, Claude sits with Floyd, who mentions that the test Lyn is doing could confirm who the father is.

Lauren attempts to call Leyla, saying it is weird not having her at the hospital. She desires to honor her personal space and inquire about her safety; however, her call abruptly ended when she saw a pedestrian hit by lightning. Lauren rushes him into the Emergency Department (ED), where she informs her patient about the lightning strike, to which he responds that it's a common occurrence.

Dr. Fuentes holds a meeting where she forces Iggy to defend his patients, emphasizing the importance of these jobs for his healthy patients and their post-hospital lives. As a result, she decides to close the program. She gives Floyd the time to review what is going on in his department. She then targets Lauren, saying she cannot send any patients up for elective surgery; if it is not urgent, she has to discharge them. Lauren defies her and will not send patients home to call their insurance companies, which shouldn't be deciding what is elective or not.

Veronica continues to bark orders out for each department but ends up praising Dr. Wilder, who is receptive to her changes. Veronica forces the departments to welcome Dr. Mia Castries, a crystal-working specialist. She gives her blessings and says she is excited to be there, something Iggy can only nod to. After the meeting concludes, Dr. Wilder instructs Lauren, Iggy, and Floyd to proceed to the mortuary, where they discover a text from him. He believes they must collaborate clandestinely to subdue Veronica. No one seems very enthusiastic to help her. Iggy says he is not going to risk his career because he has a family. Floyd has too much happening in his life, and Lauren doesn’t want to cope with it, until Mia asks them what Max would do.

Lauren reminds her that she did not know Max, but Wilder explains how she had someone like Veronica running her old hospital. Iggy solemnly reminds them that Max isn't there and he isn't coming back, prompting all three of them to walk out on Dr. Wilder, leaving her shaken.

Back in London, Helen encounters Dr. Clement during a discussion about physiotherapy, and she proposes to accompany him on his lectures. Next, she talks to Dr. Grey about several suggestions for her department, saying she just hired six more pediatricians for the clinic. Helen notes how terrible their numbers are and wants to know what they are doing wrong. Max is scurrying through his files as an elderly patient tries to reschedule her biopsy. He tries to convince her not to put it off; Max explains that he is a doctor, but his license is somewhere in the mail. Helen grits her teeth as she hears Max giving extensive medical advice to Ruth when there is already a huge line-up of patients.

Lauren walks into the ED, and when she cannot find “Lightning Guy,” she finds him in a room with Mia, who is doing acupuncture on him. Mia insists that he is cursed, and when he explains his various incidences, Lauren says there is no such thing as a curse, but the metal door swings open and knocks him unconscious.

Iggy notifies all his patients of their dismissal. He insists they did nothing wrong, but one of the patients comes forward, saying they all did something wrong. People don't want to see them or remind them of their mental illnesses.

Outside, Claude and Floyd sit together after taking cheek swabs, both admitting that their parents would be furious if they witnessed this scenario. Floyd reveals that his father wasn't a very good one, and Claude tells him that he will be a great father, but both say there is no shame in stepping away if the other is the father.

Greg, the lightning guy, goes into scan as Lauren says that she likes things that are proven by science as Mia sits with her, discussing the differences in their beliefs and how spirituality can very much be explained; both are distracted when they notice a cancerous tumour on Greg. Iggy's patients clean up their Christmas display, a task he admits to Dr. Wilder as "brutal," and he and Max take great pride in this program's ability to instill hope in everyone they encounter. Elisabeth Wilder gives him an idea about hiring these people for real janitorial jobs, as it would be so much better to hire people they have already seen work from. Iggy smirks and says she sounded just like him in that moment.

In London, Helen races down the stairs, Max catching her and saying it is only lunchtime. Helen tells him about the surveys and how they gave the clinic a bad review. She takes his hand, and he explains that he notices a long line at his clinic, which he attributes to universal healthcare. He doesn't seem to understand her point until she mentions that someone is coming to survey the clinic and shares her suggestions for the afternoon. She wants him to expedite the line for her today; he kisses her hand and says she will answer the phone today.

Greg learns from Lauren that he should feel lucky because if it weren’t for the lightning strike and freak head injury, they never would have found the cancer. Lauren says they could do a simple surgery on him, but he is terrified that if it goes wrong, it will go wrong, and he says Lauren doesn’t understand. Mia concurs with him, emphasizing that he must allow Lauren to perform the surgery to cure his cancer, and she promises to stand by his side to help him overcome his curse.

Iggy meets with each of his patients, announcing their rehire, to their extreme excitement. Iggy informed the year-round Santa, the only one not hired, that he would need to reapply after the Thanksgiving holiday.

Lauren meets with Mia, stressing that Veronica will not allow cancer tumor removal because she feels it is elective. Lauren is concerned that even a few days could potentially result in the patient's death. She pleads with Mia to do the surgery anyway and defy Veronica. Mia says she will not, but when Lauren calls her stance BS, Mai jumps into action, explaining how they can get around Veronica by sneaking the surgery on other floors or another room. Lauren nods.

Lyn comes into Floyd’s office, saying she needs to talk and vent. Floyd must confess that he supports Claude's decision to undergo a paternity test. He says it is against human nature for him to not care who the father is. She is furious that they went behind her back; as Floyd said, he got it because it was complicated. Lyn begins to start cramping, says something is wrong, and thinks she is spotting. Floyd is concerned and holds her hand.

As Claude arrives, Floyd instructs the nurses on what they should do, prompting Lyn to kick both men out of the room.

Max ends a call, finding the waiting room calm, and approaches them about their surveys, explaining that he is the new guy and would like to make some big changes. He asks for their harshest critiques. Patients feel there is always a new doctor, so no one seems to care. As one patient explains that they are all there because they have cancer, Max empathizes and shares his own cancer story, acknowledging that he understands their desire for dignity. They agree to assist him in fixing their broken system.

Lauren explains to her staff that everyone in that room is now part of the resistance, and the only risk is to their jobs. Everyone smiles with her, and Greg begins his procedure. Meanwhile, Iggy is attempting to converse with his patient, who is feeling depressed about his decision to no longer play Santa. He explains that the suit and the beard define who he is; being Santa is his identity, and if he is not Santa, he is nothing at all. Iggy expresses his disbelief in the story, stating that he is highly employable. However, he becomes quite aggressive when Iggy questions him about his identity as Santa. Mid-rant, Iggy tells him he has the perfect job for him.

Helen faces criticism when she attempts to explain that London does not practice American medicine. She brings in the director, who finds himself caught up behind her as all the patients are ranting about the changes they want to make. Max can't help but look helplessly at Helen.

The hospital asks Claude if he would like to sit with his wife, whose foetus is now stable. Floyd watches from the nurse’s station until Claude invites him along. Both men apologize to her, acknowledging that the journey they are on may trigger many insecurities, but none of their competitive games hold significance. Floyd says they don’t know who won, as they asked the lab to destroy the results. Claude tries to comfort her, but she pulls her hands away, saying she wants to know too, but it doesn't take DNA results to show who the father is; a real father will show up, and she wanted them to be better than this. Claude glances from Lyn to Floyd.

Lauren informs Greg that they have removed all his cancer, and medically speaking, he is cured. Greg raves that it was Mia who did it, as Lauren was skeptical. She transports Greg to the post-op area, just as he narrowly avoids the medicine cabinet. Lauren grabs the wheelchair and insists she is going to bring him up to his room herself.

Veronica discusses how demanding her job is and conducts an interview with Chris, who was the Santa patient. Veronica reviews his resume, saying everything sounds excellent to her. He reveals that he needs December 25th off every year and hopes it isn’t a deal-breaker.

Mia arrives at Greg's place, perplexed as to why he underwent the surgery when she was aware of its cancellation. Lauren, Iggy, and Dr. Wilder are thrilled about sharing their deeds from the day. Iggy admits that the hospital has started to feel like New Amsterdam since Max walked out, and it is because of who walked in. Dr. Wilder signed a huge thank-you.

Max prepares dinner for Helen. She reveals that they have repealed all her reforms and cut 10% of her funding. Max asserts that he has received his licence and is prepared to work the required hours, but Helen dismisses him, accusing him of being the worst receptionist ever. She must acknowledge that her American adjustments, including Max's, are incompatible with this system. She knows he is looking for something, and she will help him find it, but she needs to do this on her own. Max smiles, joking that he is the terrible receptionist, but he is in awe of her and everything that she is. She was worried about how much he would hate it there, but he says he loves it because she is there. When he makes fun of his receptionist skills, Helen giggles.