‘Dr. Death’ Recap: ‘Worth the Risk’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

DR. DEATH -- “Worth the Risk” Episode 202 -- Pictured: Edgar Ramírez as Dr. Paolo Macchiarini -- (Photo by: Scott McDermott/PEACOCK)

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode 202 of ‘Dr. Death’. To revisit the Season Two Premiere, click here.

When we last settled in to discuss the fascinating season two premiere of Dr. Death on Peacock, we talked at length about how said premiere, spent a lot of time setting up explorations of two important concepts. Specifically, how hope can be weaponized and used to manipulate a person in ways no one thinks is possible, and what drives men like the good Doctor to continue to use hope in that manner and continue to forge ahead and take part in the wild acts they do, despite the danger inherent to others their actions create and the damage they cause with their ego and well, it’s important to revisit that critical setup. Simply because the next episode in this story kicked off those grand explorations in a fascinating manner.

For ‘Worth the Risk’ picked up shortly after Paolo completed the surgery on young Hannah, and well… the ominous moment we saw come to fruition at the end of the premiere, came to fruition for Hannah as well. Which meant… she was gone from this life and the story for Benita was in many ways… over. Because what was there to tell the world about a failed surgery? But Benita was told to resume the story, chase it, and focus it on Paolo. Because people need hope, to know that the struggle will eventually pay off despite setbacks and well… that allowed for us to learn plenty about how it can be weaponized. Because just like that, Paolo was not held to account for the death of a little girl, it was just attributed to hope, to the mistakes made by a pioneer and well… that is the stuff that drives men like Paolo.

Because it makes them feel large, akin to a pioneer, regardless of the failures they face or have taken part in. For they believe they can rise above, they can find the way forward and make miracles happen and well… that would explain how Paolo was able to operate for so long… with failure in his hands. After all, most of the trials of the past were an outright failure. Since we came to learn all the animals that underwent the procedure died, and really there was only one success story. For reasons that weren’t explored from a scientific perspective. All because… hope fueled this and fueled others to follow him forward because one win would somehow equate to more wins, and that made for a fascinating tale… one that also offered up quite the surprise. 

After all, we didn’t expect Benita, to become deeply romantically involved with Paolo. But she did. Simply because the confidence he always carried, combined with the care and dedication he offered Benita, made her believe she could love again. That the world wouldn’t end with the sorrow she was facing, and, in many ways, he gave her an injection of hope. One that she latched onto romantically and held onto tight because she needed it, wanted it, and didn’t think twice about the possibility that she might be engaging in a love affair to heal what only she could heal. But that too… speaks to the power of hope, how people can swoop in when we are hurt or vulnerable and use it to lift us up and well, while one could cite that observation might be wrong… that they found real love… that simply cannot be the case. Because of how Paolo responds to people believing in him.

But that aside, this was… a fascinating story through and through. One that really did answer a great deal of questions and set the stage for more explorations. For now, that we understand what drives a guy like Paolo and how hope can be weaponized, we can dive deeper into such matters. Such as how that weaponization falters and backfires and how substance is eventually required for what men like Paolo do, and of course… the fallout of such matters. Because no mistake about it, Paolo hurt people, damaged lives in the name of being seen as this beacon and it will be fascinating to see how he and Benita handle reality and hard truths as this powerful story continues along. Until next time.

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