The end of the previous episode told us that Noah Wolf was still alive and back. How did that play out in the Brilliant Minds season 1 finale?
Caution: This post contains SPOILERS from the Brilliant Minds season 1 finale
We all knew that Mandy Patinkin had to play someone major to just suddenly show up in Brilliant Minds. By the end of the penultimate episode, we learned that he was Noah Wolf, Oliver’s dad. It left us with a world of questions about what actually happened. Muriel clearly knew her ex-husband was still alive, so why would she lie to Oliver all these years?
Meanwhile, we got to pick up on Ericka after the events of the building collapsing, and we had a chance to see Van as a father. Pierce’s past also came back to haunt her at the end of the finale.
Ericka dealt with her PTSD in the Brilliant Minds season 1 finale
Coming off the back of the traumatic event, even the strongest person can struggle with flashbacks and fear. Ericka certainly has that when she looks at an elevator. She can’t get in one without thinking of what happened to her. Of course, she knew that she would need to get over the trauma.
We do get to see how she gets through the PTSD, and it all comes from her friends. They decide some exposure therapy could help. This isn’t always that successful when done under the wrong conditions, but her friends have their hearts in the right place. They’re also not judging her fears and anxiety. They take her fears seriously and respect her, which I think is one of the best things for Ericka in that moment.
One of my favorite parts of this episode was Ericka sharing the point of view a lot of people have about mental health and medication. I’ve seen it when it comes to other TV shows, and Outlander is one that stands out a lot. When the series included Claire leaning on ether to deal with her PTSD, a lot of fans would comment “Claire is stronger than that.” It struck a nerve, and it’s because it prevents people getting the help that they need. There’s nothing wrong with medication, as long as it’s used safely. There’s nothing wrong with therapy and getting medical help to deal with PTSD and other mental health conditions.
Dana points out that the “crutches” that medications can be viewed as help to get through the day easier. They help to manage the situation more to be able to get through other problems in life. Sure, there’s nothing wrong with getting through things without the “crutch,” but there’s no need to look down on others who do, and that’s what Ericka seemed to do as she said that she didn’t need medications.
I do think the series has allowed Ericka to overcome this PTSD a little too quickly. Of course, healing isn’t linear. You can think that you’re dealing with something only to end up taking a step back.
Van gets a chance to parent
We know that Van has a son, but it was only in the previous episode that we met the boy. We finally got to see him parent, and man, do I dislike the ex. The “I don’t want to be the one to keep you from him” line grated at me. There are far too many women like that, and it’s not good for the kid at all.
I also think gentle parenting doesn’t always work. The whole “validating feelings” is important, but it doesn’t always work. It’s funny how when Van finally told the truth about his mirror-touch it seemed to change the ex. Surely, she should have just been understanding that people have different parenting styles. As long as they’re not harming the child and trying their best, they should get to be present in their child’s life.
Wolf treats a pastor seeing visions
We learned the patients from the building are welcomed to the local church until they all find housing. That’s where we get the case of the week. Wolf learns that Pastor Thomas has visions, and it doesn’t take long to find out that she has brain cancer.
It’s a heartbreaking reveal. How can someone so good and kind find out that she only had a few months to live. Life isn’t fair.
I do understand why she didn’t want a diagnosis in the first place. She fully believed that her visions were miracles, and maybe that would have been the best thing for her to believe. She could have avoided the heartache knowing that she had so little time left.
This show continues to bring us dilemmas. How can we say what is right or wrong? Pastor Thomas decides that she doesn’t want treatment and she doesn’t want to tell her congregation the truth. She wants to offer them the support they need and not take support off them. A lot of people would view this as selfish, but when you get to the end of the episode and see what the opposite can be, I don’t think it is all that selfish. Plus, it’s her illness and death, so she gets to do it her own way. That’s something Brilliant Minds has continually brought up.
Wolf learns that his father is still alive in the Brilliant Minds season 1 finale
Of course, it doesn’t take long for Noah to decide to tell his son who he is. It’s heartbreaking for Wolf, as he learns that his mother lied to him since he was 14.
I understand why Muriel did what she did. As long as we assume that she is the reliable narrator in the story, Noah didn’t give Muriel a choice. He wanted Oliver to believe that he was dead, and he just left. Muriel had to go with it to protect her son. It would have been harder for Oliver to believe that his dad just left him.
Although I do think that Oliver would have understood that Noah had bipolar disorder, and that it was that that caused Noah to do what he did. Knowing that he was in a facility for some time, Muriel could have gone with that story instead. It wouldn’t have completely been a story.
Secrets do destroy families. Lies destroy families. Muriel brought all this on herself, but I do believe her heart was in the right place, and she’s not completely the villain.
Noah coming back and telling Oliver the way he did makes him the villain. It was selfish. If he really was on good meds and had good doctors, he would know that letting Oliver know the truth in the way he did wasn’t a good idea. Then sharing that he’s ill makes it clear that he only did this for himself. He is selfish, and part of that is due to his mental illness, but I also think that he is a selfish person just based on what we’ve seen.
This leads to the self-sabotaging behavior we’ve seen that Oliver has. He cuts off the people that he loves, hurting those closest to him. I did enjoy the part in the bar where Oliver gets to know Van and Jacob better, but it’s not to actually get to know them. It’s to deal with his own pain.
My heart breaks for Oliver in this episode. He’s dealing with a lot of questions and hatred toward those who lied to him. However, he pushed away the wrong person at the end. I wish he could have turned to Nichols for support, but he couldn’t let him in. Hurt people hurt people, and we see that in the Brilliant Minds season 1 finale.
Dr. Pierce’s past comes back to haunt her in the Brilliant Minds season 1 finale
The end of the finale brought us the moment that we feared about. Muriel pulled Pierce into her office to share that there had been a complaint. Yes, treating Allison has come back to haunt Pierce. Someone has put a complaint against Pierce’s ethical malpractice.
Now I do have to question who made the call. I have a feeling that it was Morris. He isn’t happy about the divorce and he wants to get back at Pierce. The problem is that Pierce did act unethically. She shouldn’t have treated Allison at all, and she knew it. She made the choice to carry on treatment and even diagnose Allison.
I have to wonder if Muriel took the complaint seriously to get Pierce back for not supporting the decision to tell Oliver that Noah was dead. However, Pierce did go with Muriel to see Oliver, not realizing that Noah was already there. So I think Muriel was just acting the way she needed to as Chief of the hospital.
Now we’re left with cliffhangers and questions. It’s clear that Brilliant Minds season 2 is needed, but will we get it? Only time will tell.
Brilliant Minds is available to stream on Peacock.
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