5 reasons Chicago Med will regret losing Connor Rhodes

1. He’s a disruptor

When Connor Rhodes leaves Chicago Med, you’ll know. That’s because it’s going to get a whole lot quieter around the hospital—and the show is going to lose the character who drove it forward in ways no one else ever did.

Going back to that first episode, Connor has always shaken things up at Chicago Med. It started with him jumping right into the fire and butting heads with Will, when Will didn’t even realize that he worked there. Since then, he’s prompted a lot of change and conflict. He’s threatened to sue the hospital. He’s challenged just about everyone. He’s changed his job three times!

Connor is an electric character; you never quite know what he’s going to do, and he can change the course of a storyline just by being involved in it. That’s something Chicago Med honestly needs. It has helped the show stand out from other medical dramas, and it keeps the show from falling into too much of a familiar rhythm.

With him gone, who’s going to challenge the status quo around the hospital? Who’s going to push back against Goodwin for more than one scene at a time? Who’s going to have the heft to get into a standoff with someone like Gwen Garrett (Heather Headley)? Nobody, because nobody else has the connections and resources Connor has, and nobody’s as tenacious as he is.

Connor’s departure means that Chicago Med is at real risk of falling into the same situation that Chicago PD is in now—that everybody is always on the same page and nobody really voices any kind of contrary opinion. Sure, characters disagree for a scene or an episode, but it never lasts and there’s not a lot of noticeable change.

Connor’s a character who is different, and who makes the show feel different. Without him, the series is going to have to find some other way to prove it’s not like the other half-dozen medical dramas on the air. Chicago Med is getting rid of the biggest reason why it stands out.

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