Editor’s Note: The following contains spoilers for Doctor Odyssey Season 1 Episode 14.Doctor Odysseyfans have been speculating from the start of the show that the bizarre medical cases, the frequent references to “Heaven,” and the ocean setting could be explained by the purgatory theory.Megan Joneswrote for Collider about how all the episodes“might actually be a COVID-induced fever dream”andThe Odysseyis no mere cruise ship where a carefree vacation is offset by medical emergencies. What if it is sailing in a place between life and death? There are many clues that audiences can notice and compile online, but for all the fun it can bring to watching this wild medical drama, the second half of Season 1 is telling audiences not to expect it to come true.
There are three reasons why this theory has been debunked. A fever dream related to the COVID-19 backstory of Dr. Max Bankman (Joshua Jackson) would be too close to a twist on another recent show, also made byRyan Murphy.Life on the ship may not be too “perfect” anymore with recent developments over the health of the main trio. And one guest star that has stepped onto the ship might just bethe biggest reasonDoctor Odysseyisn’t drifting in an otherworldly limbo.
Another Ryan Murphy Show Put In a COVID Twist Faster Than ‘Doctor Odyssey’
The multiple dialogue references inDoctor Odysseyto the ship being “like Heaven” almost hit you over the head.A cover of “Sh-Boom"is the song of choice in the trailers with the memorable lyrics, “Life could be a dream.” But is the show hinting at a big reveal or is it just a part of capturing the dreamy vibes onboard where medical staff get into a hot throuple?The COVID-19 backstory to Maxseems to be leaving breadcrumbs for the fans to realize there might be more happening on-screen with how traumatic, life-threatening Max’s infection was said to be if it wasn’t for the fact thatDoctor Odysseyco-creators Ryan Murphy andJon Robin Baitzhave already done a COVID-themed plot twist in another show they co-created that premiered on TV at the same time.
The horror crime showGrotesqueriefollows detective Lois Tryon (Niecy Nash-Betts) and Sister Megan (Micaela Diamond) investigating a series of brutal murders in a stylized world that seems more like a place found in nightmares than in reality — thenEpisode 7 pulls Lois out of a coma.It confirms everything previously shown was part of her experience aftera COVID infection trapped her in a liminal state.Now awake, Lois has to confront her fractured relationships and investigate the recreated murders that are no longer confined to her dreamscape anymore.
ForDoctor Odysseyto pull a twist that could be similar would be a baffling choice. It would also weaken Max’s story, given he has just faced his past fears of the pandemic in“Sophisticated Ladies Week.”A sick passenger reinfects him and forces him to be stuck in a room, allowing him time for self-reflection, and it is part of the second reason why the show is straying further from the purgatory theory. Max hoped to find paradise on the ship to escape the world’s problems, but reality is catching up to him.
Reality Is Hitting ‘Doctor Odyssey’ Harder Than Rough Waves
Death in the early episodes was used as evidence of the purgatory theory.Instead ofThe Odysseycarrying departed souls, the various casualties are a reminder of how inescapable the bad parts of life are, like the fatal health problems of Max’s favorite reality TV star, Ken (Justin Jedlica). Avery’s (Phillipa Soo) baby story arc and Max having to deal with COVID again don’t cause death, but they represent the same truth: no one can leave behind reality, even though the ship promises an escape. The good times don’t last, evenon the high seas.If there are fans still hoping for a purgatory or purgatory-adjacent reveal, the show will have to go the extra mile to explain the appearance ofAngela Bassett, whose character might be new inDoctor Odyssey, but she already exists in another TV show.
The ending of a9-1-1episode, “Holy Mother of God,” sets up the events that bring Athena Grant (Bassett) to the dock and ontoThe Odyssey. Stuck on the ship, Grant is horrified it will be as bad asthe last time she was on a cruise, but luckily “Casino Week” is a safer time on the water for her. And with that, Grant’s appearance should be the most undeniable proof thatshe can’t be part of the speculated “limbo” the cruise ship is theorized to exist in, without supernatural consequences affecting9-1-1. As the season gets closer to the finale, it’s more believable that the outrageousness ofDoctor Odysseyis down to it beinga soap operarather than something otherworldly.
Captain Massey (Don Johnson) is not leading lost souls into the Great Beyond or infernal damnation. There hasn’t been a definite reason for her absence, but it’s not likely Vivian (Laura Harrier) disappeared because she “moved on." Of course, that hasn’t stopped Joshua Jackson from continuingto offer his opinion on the purgatory theory, and he loves it,tellingVulturein a recent interview, “I think it would be hysterical because then you could do crazy things. Are we in Dante’sInferno? Do we go through the seven circles? Are we in purgatory one season, then it’s hell, then we’re in heaven?” But the groundwork isn’t in place for the show to steer itself into this concept, not afterGrotesqueriebeat it to the fever dream twist or by seeing Angela Bassett take a break from a related show to step on deck.
New episodes ofDoctor Odysseystream Thursdays on Hulu in the U.S.
Doctor Odyssey
