Loveday Writing

The job of a season finale is to wrap up the season’s story arcs and establish new ones for the next season (if there is another one).

The episode kicks off with everyone attending Pete’s hearing in front of the Health Care Complaints Commission for the complaint submitted by Johnny’s family over his conduct on the day of White Cliffs Rodeo. Eliza defends her findings and Chaya does her best to stand up for Pete as they are being questioned.

A month later, Graham is flying Taylor, Chaya and Eliza to a clinic, Leonie to a meeting, and Mira to a check-up, when he gets a call about an emergency beacon going off over Watu Lake. As they are the closest plane to the Lake, they have been asked to fly by and check it out. Taylor and Chaya find a singular boat on the Lake and the word ‘help’ spelt out with sticks on the land nearby.

Meanwhile, Pete and Wayne are on the road on their way to a fishing trip. Pete confides in Wayne that even though he hasn’t been the best partner, uncle, or brother, he always viewed himself as a good nurse, but the hearing is making him doubt himself. Pete then asks Wayne if he quit to become a full-time dad or because of the system, pointing out that even though he doesn’t know what he’s had to put up with, he has saved a lot of lives. They then get a call from the air and are asked to check out what’s happening at Watu Lake.

Pete and Wayne walk to Watu Lake, with Wayne confiding in Pete that after Darren’s mother died, Timmy continued to raise Darren and Wayne decided to leave things that way, until Timmy told him to get his act together, as he was losing time with Darren. Wayne then tells Pete that they are the same, in that they shut people out when things get too hard. They then see the boat and approach it, only to discover a man, Bruce, laying on the ground with an arm injury. He tells them that the boat got caught in a log and he was thrown off. He tells them to tend to his kids, Regina and Clint, as they are still in the boat. Despite his suspension, Pete starts treating Bruce’s arm injury, which is revealed to be a stick impaling his upper arm. Wayne goes into the water to find Regina with an ankle injury, and Clint lying down and unconscious, as he went into the water, but Bruce dragged him back into the boat.

Meanwhile, the rest of the team land at Menindee. They discover that helicopter pilot, Gazza, has arrived with a smaller chopper than expected, which means that only one team member can go with limited equipment. Raylene then arrives to help, which leads to Mira having to ask Wayne if he wants her assistance. He says that they need all hands on deck. Meanwhile, after Bruce pulls the stick out of his arm, Pete has to stitch him up using Bruce’s fishing gear, but backs out as his hands won’t stop shaking and swaps with Wayne – Wayne stitches up Bruce’s arm, and Pete tends to the kids.

Eventually, Regina, Clint and Bruce are treated on land. Meanwhile, Gazza goes back and forth with his chopper, bringing Eliza and then Chaya out. Due to the limited transport options, eventually Wayne and Raylene are left alone with Regina. Raylene apologises to Wayne for both Timmy’s loss and everything. He quietly accepts her apology.

Meanwhile, as Pete and Eliza drive back to the base, with Mira sleeping in the back seat, Pete tells her that he froze out there. Eliza tries to reassure himself by telling him it’s normal to doubt himself, and just as he opens up more about their past relationship, Mira goes into labour.

Meanwhile, Matty and Wayne are in the air taking Regina and Clint to Adelaide. Regina asks Wayne who he lost, and he tells her about Timmy. Regina tells him that they all went out on the boat to be with their recently lost mother, but she’s not sure that she was there. Wayne tells her that Timmy had a smile on his face as he passed away, like he was going home, and that her mother would have a lot of catching up to do in the afterlife and that after she’s finished catching up, she’ll come back to watch over her.

Hours later, Mira starts to give birth in the back of the car, as the paramedics Eliza have called for assistance are backed up. Pete realises that the baby’s shoulder is stuck and that he will have to break the baby’s collarbone to get her out, otherwise she will be deprived of oxygen and die. They call Wayne to keep him informed. When Wayne eventually gets back to base, Mira and their baby girl, named Kalte, are waiting for him.

When Pete gets home, he finds Chaya waiting for him with a bottle of whiskey. She tells him that she’s 492 days sober and explains that she entered sobriety after being hungover during a retrieval, but ever since the drug incident with him, Taylor, and Cameron, she is questioning her choices. Pete apologises to her and explains that he treated Cameron the way he did, as he reminded him of Nate and it made him angry. He also tells her that she’s right and he doesn’t know where to place his emotions and he hurts the people he cares about most. When Pete takes the whiskey off her hands, he says Graham will find a home for it to go to.

Back at the base, we see Graham and Leonie drinking whiskey and toasting to new life. Leonie then gives him a new toy plane that she had 3D printed for him, as she couldn’t find his nomad that his girls gave him (I still think Leonie left it behind in Dubbo after her surgery). They then kiss.

The episode ends with the gang going back to hear the outcome of the review on Pete’s conduct. Taylor arrives and gives a character reference, with video references from past patients. Despite these references, the Commissioner still suspends his nursing licence for six months, with mandatory skills and training to be undertaken before it is reinstated. Everyone is outraged by the decision, but Pete calmly accepts it, as it gives him time to sort things out for himself. When Pete suggests going out for drinks, Eliza offers to pay and tells them to have fun as she is on-call. Pete then tells her that he’ll see her around and goes off with the group.

The episode and season ends with Eliza standing by herself and taking a call from the RFDS on-call phone.

Overall, this was a solid season finale as it brought the Pete-conduct and Mira-pregnancy story arcs to a close. I felt that Pete’s licence being suspended despite the glowing character references was more realistic and true to life, and whilst Mira’s quick labour was a little cliché, I appreciated that the cliché was offset by the complications being realistically portrayed. I also appreciated that the episode was focused on one singular medical drama, albeit with multiple obstacles, as it allowed for fantastic acting and character development across the board.

In regards to the season as a whole, I felt that this was a solid second season with well-rounded character development, especially with Wayne during Mira’s pregnancy and grieving Timmy’s sudden death, and Pete with his anxiety after the White Cliffs Rodeo incident. I did feel that Chaya was an underused but also necessary addition to the cast, and I also feel that Cameron was underused, especially in the final two episodes. However, I appreciated that the love triangle subplot between Darren, Taylor and Cameron fizzled out rather than dragged out, as the latter would have made it cliché. I also appreciated the subtle Leonie-Graham romance subplot. I also felt that there were less medical dramas this season, which is surprising considering the show’s premise.

Overall, I enjoyed watching and reviewing the second season, and I’d be happy for RFDS to be renewed for a third season.

Best one liners and interactions:

• “You could thread a bougie through a frog’s arse.” “I’m not sure that would help with the breathing.” (Pete-Wayne on Wayne’s medical skills)
• “Good lung function, maximum cuteness, apparently.” (Pete to Chaya when she asks how Kalte is)
• “So, pump your milk, line your stomachs and insert your IVs.” (Matty to everyone on Pete’s offer to pay for drinks)