Chicago Med season 5 midseason report: Natalie Manning

What’s next

The Chicago Med writers fumbled the ball with Natalie’s brain injury, but they have another great opportunity now that she is entirely, definitively single. Characters are allowed to be single on TV, and if anyone needs to stay out of a relationship for a while, it’s Natalie Manning.

Who is she when she’s not dating Will or dating someone else before eventually dumping them in order to pursue or reconcile with Will? Do we even know how she functions on her own anymore? What about her son Owen, who only seems to pop up sporadically when it’s convenient for the show? There’s a ton of material here—whether it’s Natalie as a parent or Natalie just taking some time to decide what the heck she wants in life after all the drama she’s been through.

And it would be a breath of fresh air this season, since Chicago Med currently has everybody in a relationship or some kind of romantic entanglement.

Having said that, that’s exactly why we’re not sure the show is going to explore Natalie as much as it could. It would not be a shock if either she gets another short-term love interest (since Will has one in his new paramedic girlfriend), or she spends a ton of time pining over Will before they end up getting back together before the season concludes. The show has a significant emphasis on its romances now, and Manstead was a huge part of that for a long time.

But could we at least get one episode of Natalie spending some quality time with her son? Or her taking a deep breath and processing all the stuff she’s just been through? She needs a break, and the viewers might want one, too.

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