Chicago Med season 3 by character: Ava Bekker

How was Chicago Med season 3 for your favorite character? In this retrospective profile, we look at how Chicago Med treated Ava Bekker this season.

As we continue to look back on Chicago Med season 3, we’re breaking down the season for each of the show’s characters.

Did your favorite character have a good season or a bad season? What were their strong points and were there any weaknesses? Was the character affected by the show’s writing, or vice versa? Where could they go from here?

Check out our detailed character breakdown, and let us know your thoughts on how this season was for each character in the comments.

In this profile, we’re looking at Chicago Med‘s newest staff member Ava Bekker, played by Norma Kuhling.

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MAJOR DEVELOPMENTS:

This was Ava’s first season as a regular (she was introduced as a guest star in the second season finale), so the show gave her plenty of screen time as she integrated into the team.

Ava’s primary storyline was her rivalry slash very obvious flirtation with Dr. Connor Rhodes (Colin Donnell). The two slept together by midseason, but also competed to work on a prestigious surgery, and Ava ultimately got the job—after Connor removed himself from the team.

Ava also had to fend off an advance from Connor’s father in “The Parent Trap” and dealt with the arrival of her mentor (guest star Malcolm McDowell).

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ANALYSIS:

In bringing Ava Bekker onto the team, Chicago Med made a concerted and obvious effort to show the audience why she needed to be there. Ava got a lot of screen time, particularly as the series emphasized her sexual tension with Connor and whether or not the two would stay involved in the face of professional competition (they didn’t).

But in wanting the viewers to embrace her, the writing often veered out of balance. Ava flirted with or insulted Connor at odd moments, like in the operating room. Ava wasn’t allowed to face the consequences of an honest mistake. And Ava had to turn down the creepy flirtation from Cornelius Rhodes (guest star D.W. Moffett), purely so the writers had a reason for Connor to be jealous.

There’s the potential for Ava to be a great character, and Norma Kuhling did a wonderful job with what she was given, when she was allowed to flesh the character out. But the character wasn’t as fleshed out as she could’ve been, even for a first season, and the show needs to let us root for Ava on our own—not keep trying to push us in that direction.

PROGNOSIS:

Let’s state the obvious: Ava isn’t going anywhere, and her relationship with Connor isn’t either. The Chicago Med writers have made it clear they ship Connor and Ava; they ended Connor and Robin’s relationship to make room for it. So at this point, either you ship it as well or you have to get used to it.

Having said that, Ava (and Norma Kuhling) deserves more development in the fourth season that is unrelated to Connor. We haven’t learned a lot about who she is outside of her mentor (who was a jerk to her), and she deserves to make mistakes and fall on her face a bit. Let’s see if she gets to spread her wings next season.

What did you think of Chicago Med season 3 as it relates to Ava Bekker? Let us know how you’d evaluate her season in the comments.