Chicago Med’s Will and Natalie: Should they stay or split?
Why they should stay together
For all of their constant arguing, it’s clear that Will and Natalie care deeply for one another. They have a tremendous amount of history together—they were good friends when Chicago Med first started, though even then it was clear the show was going to ship them together. No one else they could date would have that kind of history.
Fundamentally, these two love each other. You can’t shake the feeling that if the writers just let them work through their problems instead of giving them more problems, they’d be able to make it work. The key issue with Manstead is they don’t fix anything, not that they’ve stopped caring.
There are also off-screen considerations here. Manstead is to Chicago Med what Dawsey were to Chicago Fire. The show has written so much for them, and for them together, that it’s painted into a corner. What do you tell the fans who spent three and a half seasons rooting for them if they do break up? Look how upset Burzek fans are after Chicago PD pushed that ship aside.
The alternatives for both characters are, quite frankly, kind of terrible. Natalie kissing Phillip after talking about his wife’s death—which happened just a few weeks ago—feels gross and it’s also unprofessional. She knows that; she specifically said she didn’t care about crossing boundaries. Is that what we want for her? To gleefully be in a relationship that she’s got no business being in?
As for Will, hooking him up with Agent Lee is not much better. Those two don’t have death in the way, but fans hardly know this woman. Not only is there no chemistry, there’s no idea of who she is. Plus, the actress who plays her was just cast in another Dick Wolf show, so she can’t be here too much longer.
If Manstead ends, then Chicago Med would honestly have to start from scratch with both Will and Natalie, and that’s a huge investment. In a show that’s hooked most of its main cast up with each other, that doesn’t seem likely. The writers have committed to this ship; now they’ve got to stay the course.
Next. Catch up with Chicago Med now. dark
For the latest Chicago Med season 4 spoilers and news, plus more on the entire series, follow the Chicago Med category at One Chicago Center.