Allexis Fuchs

Social Media Editor

HBO Max’s The Pitt is a dance between chaos and control. Immediately, viewers are plunged into a high-volume intercity emergency room, hour by hour of their shift. 

The series opens with beautiful views of Pittsburgh, PA, and then follows Dr. Michael ‘Robby’ Robinavitch, played by Noah Wyle, as he walks through the Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center. From there, we move from character to character, coming back to Dr. Robby and the night shift ER attending.

The two are standing on the hospital’s rooftop, with Dr. Jack Abbot, played by Shawn Hatosy, on the ledge. What pulls Abbot from the ledge is Robby stating, “Besides, if you jump on my shift – well, that’s just rude.” As they go back into the ER, they watch nurses chase down a presumed psych patient, who is naked, down the hallway.

This is all within the first five minutes of his shift, and the first five minutes of the episode.

The first season is just as chaotic as those first five minutes. Very quickly, we are introduced to Dr. Heather Collins, Nurse Dana Evans, Dr. Frank Langdon, and other seasoned PTMC staff. Following these introductions, Dr. Melissa ‘Mel’ King, a resident from the VA, is brought in, along with Victoria Javadi and Dennis Whitaker, who are medical students, and Trinity Santos, a first-year intern. 

We begin following this medical staff, case by case. This season features suicidal tendencies, drug addiction, violence against healthcare professionals, miscarriage and PTSD from COVID-19. We watch medical professionals work all day up until the ultimate climax of the season: the Pittfest shooting.

They are overwhelmed with patients. Some cases have personal stakes, with Robby’s son being at Pittfest. We watch healthcare professionals step up, treating the emergency department like it’s an active war zone.

Color-coding each patient’s condition from active monitoring to death on arrival, it’s a statement, showcasing what they see during these mass casualty events, and how they respond.

The Pitt’s first season was unforgettable, traumatic, and chaotic. It was picked up for its second season on February 14, 2025, only seven episodes into the first season. The second season has finally graced our screens this year, with about half of the season airing so far.

Many new characters have been introduced, such as Dr. Baran Al-Hashimi, portrayed by Sepideh Moafi, who came from the VA to cover Robby’s sabbatical. She arrived a day early, wanting to see how Robby runs the ED. With that arrival, we also have two new medical students, Joy Kwon and James Olgivie. Newly represented is a freshly graduated nurse, Emma Nolan.

We still have many characters from the first season; however, there are notable characters that are missing. Dr. Heather Collins, portrayed by Tracy Ifeachor, who, according to Dr. Dennis Whitaker, had finished her residency and moved to Portland, Oregon, has now adopted a baby.

One of our favorite nurses has yet to be seen, Mateo Diaz, portrayed by Jalen Thomas Brookes. He is confirmed to be in the season, however, he had scheduling conflicts due to filming for Prime Video’s Off Campus series.

Luckily, we still have eight more episodes of The Pitt that will air. The season will finish on April 16, 2026, with a third season confirmed before the start of the second season.