01.09 Blizzard

A blizzard means there are no patients. Well, you just know that isn't going to last.

Jen left early, so Mark has decided to come in and get Susan to help him plaster up Carter's leg whilst he's asleep. Susan admits Carter is "kinda cute" what with the "nice eyes and a full head of hair", which Mark takes as a low blow.

Our first temp clerk. The first of many bad temps. "If you had an alien baby, would it show up on the pregnancy test?"

Pasta name guy has sprung not for a box of bagels but for a big fat rock of a ring. A $12,000 ring, according to drug sales lady.

Ah. Massive pile up on the freeway meaning the diaster plan goes into operation. Knew the quietness was doomed. This is one of those bits when the difference between old and new ER stand out. As a regular viewer, we're used to the big set piece diasters. Ray triaging fifty people in ten minutes, Neela running into burning buildings after a plane crash. So the build up to the arrival of the victims seems odd. It's giving us things which we take for granted now. We've got missing digits, limbs, head traumas, the works. Naturally, we also have a baby being born. I think there must be some kind of ratio of babies per body count.

Drug sales lady takes over from the crappy temp, revealng she is a decent lady. She also orders loads of pizzas for the ER, and tells Carol that Doug believes in One True Love. The problem being that he thinks Carol is the one for him. Drug sales lady is really growing on me.

Haleh sings, which ties it rather nicely to 12.10 (which was on last week but which I've yet to write up). Help! There's a nun! Also, a new attending: Hicks, played by CCH Pounder who I always think of as the agent who tore Mulder off a strip in Duane Barry but has been in all kinds of things.

'Bob', the clerk from Poland (but not the temp one) operates on a patient to save his life and it is revealed she was a vascular surgeon in Poland.

This is an unusually strong episode. It's not afraid to take its time before the diaster element kicks in, and the staff aren't superhuman after the pile up. Much is made of Doug's mistake in triage which results in a death (which contrasts strongly with Ray's enlightenment in 11.22 The Show Must Go On). It seems like it is confident in itself now.