A number of details make The Pitt an admirable and worthy series, and at the top of the list is the show’s inclusion of raw, relatable vulnerability. No matter their careers or rank, everyone has a breaking point. With this in mind, Dr. Robby’s breakdown in The Pitt Season 1, Episode 13, “7:00 P.M.,” takes the series from great to truly excellent.
The show isn’t afraid of taking its characters through vulnerable beats, and the fact that it allows us to witness a breaking point for the one who’s supposed to be our leader makes it all the more worthy of praise. Often, men are told to suppress their emotions—the outdated, deeply toxic belief that boys don’t cry is exactly what’s made the patriarchy a tremendous threat to humanity, as it’s forced human beings not to feel their emotions. But from beginning to end, The Pitt brings an admirable, deeply comforting focus on the idea that vulnerability is a strength.
We see it in how Dr. Langdon talks to Mel King, and we see it in how Dr. Robby acknowledges her sensitivity in the penultimate. We also see it between Robby and Collins in the back of the ambulance. And, of course, we see with Dr. Robby’s last debrief in the Season 1 finale. The vulnerable, deeply human moments in The Pitt are why it stands out as a series and why a scene like Dr. Robby’s breakdown has stayed with so many viewers.
Directed by Damian Marcano, the scene hits from the moment we realize it’s happening and doesn’t stop hurting until the finale. Noah Wyle is an astounding crier (which is a weird thing to say, but man, he gets you), yet that’s not the reason the scene is so evocative. It’s evocative because of how the frame shows a bigger problem within the real world and in the characters’ lives. The pediatrics room filled with mass casualty patients is something that’ll, unfortunately, happen in a country where there’s no gun control. Doctors will feel the loss of their patients. Doctors will reach a breaking point. And for someone who’s still grieving the way Dr. Robby is, this breakdown was inevitable.
The fact that the scene takes place in a spot that’s covered in cartoon animals also stings harder as we watch a grown man crumble at the weight of everything he’s lost. Still, perhaps there’s also something relatable and maybe even a little comforting about watching a grown man cry in a space that’s “for children” because it carefully exposes the idea that no matter how old we get, we’re never too old to feel something. We try to soothe kids when they’re crying, but we never demand that they stop. Yet, as we get older, crying becomes synonymous with weakness when all it does is release the grief and pain we’re holding onto.
Robby is held by a thread all day, going through one heartbreaking patient after another on the anniversary of Dr. Adamson’s death, where he’s pretending everything is fine. And it’s not just an average day at the hospital, but it’s a particularly godawful one. It’s the type of day that should’ve never happened. So, for him to have to be the one to watch Leah die and simultaneously break the news to Jake is just outright horrific. Nightmares aren’t as cruel. And for Jake’s reaction to be so human, childlike, and so deeply cruel is another heinous blow. And how Noah Wyle delivers every bit of this scene is nothing short of exceptional, so much so that it’s one of the hardest scenes to watch in a season that’s full of difficult scenes to stomach.
The Pitt Season 1, Episode 13, “7:00 P.M.,” reiterates the idea that our emotions always have a way of catching up with us, no matter who we are. It’s excellent writing, too, when we consider the number of times everyone at the hospital checks in on each other because none of them are truly okay. It’s tremendous writing when we watch a man who’s constantly upright and taking care of others reach a point where he himself can’t stand. And, my God, is it brave. Brave in a way that I don’t think there are enough words for.
The Pitt Season 1 is now streaming on Max.
First Featured Image Credit: ©Photograph by Warrick Page/Max