The Resident

The Resident already seems to be straining credulity with the demonic Dr. Bell. How long can he rule with an iron fist as the hospital’s most-requested celebrity surgeon? That hand isn’t getting any steadier while his ego shows no sign of downsizing. This isn’t supposed to be a soap opera in the mode of Dallas, so Bell seemingly can’t get away with being a broadly drawn J.R. Ewing. Something’s got to give. And I’m interested just enough in The Resident to see if something soon does.

It's a drama. ... The Resident turns out to be hilarious in so many ways, but first you must get through the horror.

Although the series milks melodrama at every opportunity, it explores interesting ethical issues arising from its fundamental premise that a medical institution’s concern for the bottom line sometimes takes priority over saving lives.

The confusion around Conrad feels like some of the broader confusion of the show; it aims to be cynical, but it still needs an idealistic core for the audience to root for. It’s smart that The Resident seeks to disrupt TV’s pleasant fantasies of healthcare in America--and in the show we see one of the most frank discussions of how profit-seeking degrades patient care. But it needs a stronger, broader ensemble. When everyone is terrible, it’s hard to care.

[The Resident] is an exercise in frustration. Self-important, predictable and inconsistent, the series delivers bland stories about terrible people playing God, just because they can.