Intake

It's a shame because if they released all of the episodes at once, the suspense would make sense. By the time the next episode comes out a week from now, all of the tension and mystery will be long gone and it's easy to assume that the next episode will likely leave me feeling the same. Drawn out Tarantino-like establishing shots work in Tarantino movies because they're typically 3 hours long. It doesn't work in a 20 minute episode once a week. It's too slow for the short run time and spread out episode releases.

All of that being said, I have enjoyed it so far but I'll probably wait until they release all of the episodes so I can actually get the experience they were going for until Hulu made the terrible decision to space it out weekly. Taking a series that would make a heck of a weekend binge watch and dragging it out over 2 months.

Good character development for Alan. However, it's too short. It jumps quickly into therapy sessions, the building of the relationship between Alan and his patient, and then being locked up.

I think they could have focused another episode or two on further character development. We know very little about Alan, nothing about his "Patient," and what the purpose of the relationship is.

Overall, excellent start to a show that can really be excellent about mental illness, and the chaos of society. Super excited to see how this further progresses, but it feels like it may end up one way and a dead end in some capacity.

The Patient's premiere is primarily setup. It introduces the main character, Dr. Alan Strauss, a therapist who recently lost his wife and is distant from his kids. Though he's not a particularly unique protagonist, Steve Carell's subdued performance as a depressed widower resonates. These background details are subtly integrated into the episode, but its primary focus is Sam Fortner. Domhnall Gleeson plays a shy and slightly psychopathic patient; the talent gap is obvious when the two actors are side by side. A majority of the episode is shot-reverse-shot dialogue. What shook me awake was the kidnapping, a tense and thrilling scene that is excellently paced. The composition is not particularly unique but it has the potential to engage if it leans into its thriller elements and away from the pondering drama.