I love stories about people finding their voice and speaking up despite the consequences, and Lenox and Naomi's story on Chicago Med Season 10 Episode 13 was one of the best.
Lenox has been pushing Naomi to stand up for herself and not let fear of other people's judgment get in her way, but she didn't like it when Naomi did just that.
This obstacle could have easily set Naomi back, but she didn't let it, proving that she's going to be a great doctor.
Lenox is a complex character, and this conflict between her and Naomi makes her even more interesting.
She respects people who speak their minds and doesn't respect those who hold back. It's a different perspective than many Chicago Med characters hold.
Many people, especially those in authority, want people to smile and nod when they disagree with their opinions.
Lenox's behavior suggested that's what she wanted too, but it wasn't. She was uncomfortable with Naomi's challenging her, yet it made her respect her more.
Naomi: It seems like you're mad at me.
Lenox: I'm not mad. I disagree. There's a difference.
Naomi challenged Lenox's anger toward her for going ahead with a surgery that Lenox didn't agree with even though it made her anxious and went ahead with the surgery even though Lenox disapproved.
That might seem like a young woman doing her job, but it took a ton of courage. It's not easy to stand up for what you believe is right when your boss makes it clear she doesn't like it.
I usually have a pretty good grasp of psychology, but I had trouble figuring Lenox out.
At first, I agreed with Archer that she was jealous. I also was cynical enough to think of a dark motive for her decision not to participate in the surgery.
Lenox kept insisting that this surgery would fail and then Naomi's career would be ruined, so for a split second, I thought that was what Lenox wanted: Naomi being alone in the room with the surgeon so that if things went sideways, she'd lose everything -- and deserve it for not listening to Lenox.
Of course, Lenox isn't that kind of person. By the end, I finally realized what was going on with her.
Of course, Lenox isn't that kind of vindictive person, so that motive didn't make any sense.
I think she truly wanted Naomi to succeed. Part of her problem was that she was convinced that her opinion about the surgery being too risky was an objective fact.
In her mind, there was no way this surgery could possibly work, so Naomi was setting herself up for failure and then refusing to listen when Lenox tried to protect her.
I wonder how much of that came from trauma. Lenox's big fight with Archer on Chicago Med Season 10 Episode 6 happened because Lenox chose a risky surgical approach that failed and Archer blamed her for the patient's death.
Could she have been expecting the same thing to happen again? It's not entirely clear, but that would make sense.
Additionally, it's obvious that Lenox doesn't know how to deal with emotion. She can handle data pointing to a tragic conclusion, but she doesn't know what to do with feelings.
That's why her mixed emotions about Naomi standing up to her made her so uncomfortable.
I'm still waiting for the reveal that Lenox is neurodivergent. Chicago Med Season 10 has been dropping a ton of hints, but nothing concrete yet.
I'm going to be extremely annoyed if they leave it like that forever.
We should be well past the point where it's obvious that a character is autistic or otherwise neurodivergent but it can't be said outright. Autism and ADHD should be sources of pride, not shame, and we need positive representation now more than ever.
It'll be forever ironic that Sarah Ramos, who played the sister of an autistic character on Parenthood, now is playing an autistic-coded character herself, but it will be stronger if Chicago Med has the courage to call her what she is someday.
Ripley finally got in trouble for all the crap he's been doing all season long.
His stupid bar fight landed the other guy at Gaffney with life-threatening injuries, leading Ripley to find new and innovative ways to be an idiot.
He kept trying to take over the patient's care, and when Frost pushed back on it hard enough, he blurted out that he was responsible for beating the guy up.
That brilliant move earned him a suspension and possible termination. Did anyone else cheer when Sharon warned him that she was pushing to get rid of him?
I'm not naive enough to believe Ripley is really gone. This is as much of a fakeout as Archer's attempt to resign.
Still, the idea of being Ripley-free for even a few weeks excites me. The guy is nothing but trouble, mostly of the stupid variety, and at the moment I'm hard-pressed to find anything attractive about him.
The dementia story was so important.
There aren't enough stories about transgender senior citizens on TV, or anywhere, for that matter.
I used to work on a crisis line meant for LGBTQ+ youth, but we got a LOT of calls from seniors. Often, these people had spent a lifetime in the closet and didn't know whether they could transition or if being 60, 70, or older meant it was too late for them to be themselves.
Transgender senior citizens often fall through the cracks because so much pro-LGBTQ+ programming is geared toward young people, but older ones also need support, visibility, and love.
Chicago Med handled this story beautifully. It wasn't about Loretta being transgender as much as it was about understanding, respecting, and listening to people with dementia.
She was trying to communicate that she didn't feel like herself when she saw her male face reflected in mirrors or TV screens. It was SO easy to assume she was just confused and didn't know what she was talking about, which is why her nurse did.
Well done, Chicago Med! That's the way to tell these types of stories -- focus on the human element, not exclusively on the character's gender identity.
I shed a few tears when Loretta put on her makeup and said that now she looked like herself.
Was I the only one?
Over to you, Chicago Med fanatics. What did you think of Chicago Med Season 10 Episode 13?
Hit the comments with your thoughts, and don't forget to vote in our poll to rank the episode.