My Review of Doctor Odyssey: "Shark Attack!"

 

Written by Mike Schaub And Liz Friedman

Directed by Millicent Shelton

Avery: "Then I have to ask, what were you all doing in potentially shark infested waters?"

Brooke: "That was my client's call. Which I'll regret not saying no to for the rest of my life. And now Brody is my patient, so it's my call."

It's been nearly four months since this show had fun with rubber ducks and a pregnancy storyline for our trio - Max, Avery and Tristan. However, less time has definitely passed between episodes in the show itself and this mid season premiere injected some much needed danger into the mix.

The episode began with Max and Avery at odds over her pregnancy while a surfing lesson between Tristan and Spencer resulted in the latter being bitten by a shark. We don't see the creature in question but The Odyssey being in warm waters meant that sharks and orcas were a problem for our main players this week.

Of course it wasn't just the main ship in troubled waters but a smaller one named The Flicker also found themselves interacting with our crew this week. If we're getting potential new characters for the rest of the season, then Dr Brooke Lane (Adrianne Palicki) could be a very interesting spanner in the works for the trio.

First of all, while Max managed to show self restraint during his scenes with Brooke, there's definitely a spark between the pair of them. Avery wasn't exactly shy in expressing jealousy towards Max and Brooke but to be fair, Avery also rejected Max in this episode as well. Suddenly this triangle has potentially become a quadrangle.

Anyways, work related hook ups to one side, Brooke's crew included the autistic Ray who Tristan was initially a bit hostile towards before realising his mistake. Ray made a more positive impression on Robert, especially given his knowledge for sharks and orcas while Max, Brooke and Avery had to amputate the leg off a man named Brody while Tristan took care of his girlfriend, Josie (Rumer Willis).

Then there was Spencer himself. The first episode to really focus in on him had him attacked by a shark and at risk of death and leg amputation to boot. As for the cliffhanger, the lights are out on the ship and the waters are dangerous. Here's hoping the second part can deliver on the promise of this first part.

- Spencer talked about fishing trips with his father. Tristan also stepped up as a friend to him during the sick bay scenes.

- Rosie really knows her saws, which came in handy for this particular episode. I did miss Corey though.

- This was the first episode not to be co-written by any of three creators of the show. It had to happen sometimes.

- Chronology: Not long from where the mid season finale left off.

Shark Attack! might not be a game changer of an episode but it's a good start to hopefully a more campy and insane direction for a show that's been a bit too tame compared to its network predecessors. Brooke and Ray are two characters I hope we get to see more of beyond this two parter.

Rating: 7 out of 10