The Lost Biker
Episode 3 of Brilliant Minds starts with a look at how memories work and can be changed or distorted over time. However, a knock at the door that night interrupts his train of thought. A gang of bikers show up, and Oliver Wolf is quick to do some impromptu surgery on their leader, Wyatt.
Apparently he was just cleaning his gun but ended up having a tremor and his gun fired. Wolf though, wants him to come in and do some tests, just to see if there are any additional issues. Oh, and there will be no cops either.
At the hospital, the gang have another case to contend with. This is Emily, and apparently one minute she was on her iPad, and the next she’s on the floor and not breathing. When she gets too excited, it seems like she has seizures. They’ve done multiple tests at the hospital and nothing seems to be working.
They’ve never seen one of these episodes themselves, but they need to try and provoke one to see if they can diagnose it. Previously, they’d just throw medication at the issue, which obviously isn’t the best way to do this.
Wyatt shows at the hospital but apparently these tremors are actually his memory. He’s been forgetting things – both big and small – and he gets some nasty headaches too. He’s also been more tired than usual, so Wyatt is going to get a brain MRI. Unfortunately, Wyatt loses control afterwards and suddenly has a violent episode.
The MRI reveals that he’s got a tumour, explaining the memory loss. Unfortunately, if it’s removed, he will no longer be able to form brand new memories. If he doesn’t get the surgery though, he’ll only have weeks or months to live. Wyatt though, refuses to take the surgery. However, is this him speaking or is it the tumour?
Wolf manages to convince Wyatt to get the surgery eventually, but he also knows he needs some great memories to hold onto before he loses the ability to craft new ones. Part of this includes heading into the bar his daughter is working in, and Wyatt apologizes for being a poor dad and not doing right by her. Things don’t go well, given she refuses to ever forgive him for missing out on all those years.
Wyatt ends up with a worse headache than before as he leaves the bar, becoming dizzy and struggling. Dr Nichols shows up just in time and they rush him to the hospital.
Meanwhile, Wolf is brought back into seeing Emily. She hasn’t had an episode yet and the parents are angsty. That is, until they make Emily laugh and that’s what triggers her black-outs. It’s also not a seizure either – it’s laughter-induced heart block.
In the midst of this, Van ends up blacking out too, and it seems there’s something going on with him. The interns contemplate whether to use beta blockers but Van has a better option. A pacemaker.
Wyatt’s surgery is successful and he makes peace with his situation, and manages to find joy in his everyday life after all. It’s a happy ending, as he keeps a diary to make sure he doesn’t forget anything. As for Emily, Van’s idea of a pacemaker works really well and it manages to save her life.
That afternoon, Morris shows up to see Carol in her office. She can’t move on from what’s happened in the past and she owes it to herself to see what their lives are like apart. She wants them to separate but they eventually agree to a “trial period”
Wolf also speaks to Van and believes he’s got a neurological condition where he feels what other people feel. His “curse” could be a real asset in the hospital if they can utilize him correctly.
Wolf ends the episode by speaking to his mother, whom he finds out was the one who brought him to the botanical gardens, rather than his father, which he initially believed. The reason she let Wolf believe it was because his father couldn’t get off the couch that day. Wolf blocked a lot of this out and as Muriel herself mentions, “memories are subjective”.
The Episode Review
Brilliant Minds is turning into a really solid medical series and this episode is no exception. We can clearly see that there’s going to be a consistent effort here to try and patch up Muriel and Wolf’s issues, while I think we may actually see a romance brew between Dr Nichols and Oliver Wolf.
Given the text message read out in the car, Wolf is pretty surprised to find out his co-worker is gay. There must be a reason there’s this tension brewing between them… could that turn romantic?
Meanwhile, Van’s issues are explained nicely here, although the interns are still paper thin in terms of depth and motivations. Hopefully we see a bit more of them in the episodes ahead.
For now, this is another solid chapter, focusing on the idea of memory and how that can be both a blessing and a curse.
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