REVIEW: ‘Brilliant Minds’ Season 1 Is The Next Hit Medical Show

Spoiler warning for the end of Brilliant Minds Season 1

The conclusion of NBC’s Brilliant Minds Season 1 solidifies it as one of the best medical dramas. Based loosely on the work and life of neurologist Dr. Oliver Sacks, Brilliant Minds follows Dr. Oliver Wolf (<Zachary Quinto), a neurologist who has a neurological condition of his own. He leads a group of medical interns in diagnosing and treating neurological cases while also putting together the pieces of his past.

This premise is familiar in a lot of medical dramas, but what makes Brilliant Minds stand out is how the cases don’t often have an explanation or a cure. Instead, Dr. Wolf leads with empathy for his patients, advocating for them when no other doctor would. Within the first ten minutes of the pilot episode, Dr. Wolf tells a medical board of doctors that he wants to “change how the world sees my patients.” And every episode in this short 13-episode season strives to do just that.

One of the greatest aspects of Brilliant Mindsis how the show visually represents the patients’ experiences. Because they are neurological patients, their symptoms often aren’t visible. However, the show makes those symptoms visible to the audience by expertly crafting stunning visual sequences that put us in the patient’s shoes. Oftentimes these sequences are haunting, or frightening, but it’s in the service of showcasing the lived experiences of the patients.

Brilliant Minds is also filled with a great ensemble. The medical interns, Dr. Ericka Kinney (Ashleigh LaThrop), Dr. Dana Dang (Aury Krebs), Dr. Jacob Nash (Spence Moore II), and Dr. Van Markus (Alex MacNicoll), all bring unique skills and personalities to the table, and of course, offer another comforting found family dynamic.

Brilliant Minds Thrives On An Ensemble Held Together By Quinto

Dr. Carol Pierce (Tamberla Perry), Wolf’s best friend, runs the psychology wing of the hospital. The friendship between her and Wolf is one of the warmest and caring friendships on TV right now as they each support and challenge the other during their respective journeys throughout Brilliant Minds Season 1.

Wolf’s mother, Dr. Muriel Landon (Donna Murphy), also the chief medical officer, is a complicated presence within the halls of Bronx General. Still, her dynamic with her son is fascinating in its own right. Dr. Josh Nichols (a href=”https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1146243/”>Teddy Sears), a neurosurgeon, rounds out the ensemble and also plays Wolf’s love interest.

Quinto holds this ensemble together, imbuing Wolf with so much passion, love, and hope without veering into trite sentimentality. Wolf’s passion for his patients sometimes gets the better of him, where the stubbornness that allows him to fight for his patients can also get in the way of actually listening to them. There’s a warmth Quinto brings to Wolf that makes you wish he was your doctor.

The relationship between Wolf and Nichols is another stand-out aspect of this show. What started off seeming like a slow-burn quickly became canon in Brilliant Minds, Season 1 Episode 7, which is the best episode of the season. The prickly beginning of Wolf and Nichols as colleagues morphs into a relationship built on respect and love.Their workplace romance doesn’t come wrapped in the melodrama of dating someone you work with.

Instead, their conflicts—whether professional or personal—get reconciled through communication and patience. They haven’t been together long, but they’re already one of the best contemporary couples on TV. And even though the season leaves them in a questionable place, their same maturity from previous episodes will hopefully get them through whatever the future brings for them.

 Brilliant Minds Season 1 Ends on a High and Sets Up Lots More

Speaking of where the show leaves things, Brilliant Minds Season 1 closed out on such a promising note that if it doesn’t get picked up for Season 2, it’ll be a major loss for network television. Especially now that Mandy Patinkin guest stars as Wolf’s father, who has been presumed dead all season.

The two-part finale delivered on the collapsed building cliffhanger, allowing Ericka the spotlight while she’s trapped in the building’s elevator. Katie (Mishel Prada), the paramedic at the center of Brilliant Minds Season 1 Episode 10, returns as one of the first responders on the scene and appears again in the finale to woo Dana. Jacob and Van put aside their rivalry for Ericka’s affection to get through the hectic day, and at the same time, the show wraps up that love triangle (for now) in a way that seemingly leaves all parties on good terms.

Patinkin’s Noah Wolf, Wolf’s father, arrives in the first finale episode as a good samaritan assisting with the collapsed building, but he returns in the second finale episode to reunite with his son, who believed him to be dead for the past 30 years. It’s a great reveal, considering all season Wolf has been haunted by what happened the last time he saw his father.

This also appropriately shakes up the dynamics he has with his mother, Carol, and Nichols. As those relationships reach a tipping point, we’re left with Wolf meeting his father at a diner, and his father asking to be saved by him.

It’s a fantastic two-part finale that closes out a fantastic first season of a show that offers hope in every episode, despite the scary situations the patients find themselves in. But the show’s emphasis on truly caring about the patients and not just diagnosing them is what really sells Brilliant Minds as a show in a league of its own.

If you haven’t tuned into Brilliant Minds yet, do so. It might just heal a part of you.

Brilliant Minds is streaming now on Peacock.