After a long summer hiatus leaving us to ponder on that shocking cliffhanger, Chicago Med season 11 episode 1 has finally arrived. When we last left the Gaffney staff, Asher's baby bombshell sent shockwaves through the doctor's life, especially since the father apparently isn't who we thought he would be. In the final moments of season 10, Asher knocks on Archer's door... not Ripley's, essentially teasing a shocking twist in Asher's personal life we didn't see coming.
Speaking of Ripley, in the Chicago Med season 10 finale, he reconnected with Sadie, the woman he helped saved from being trapped in a well with her young daughter. While sparks were flying between those two after their shared near-death experience, Goodwin was forced to make difficult staffing cuts at the hospital, which included Washington and ended their relationship.
Elsewhere in the season 10 finale, Lenox learned that she tested positive for GSS, the disease that abruptly ended her mother's life at a young age, while her brother Kip tested negative. They shared in their relief, but she's keeping her diagnosis a secret to protect her brother (and avoid reality). How long can she keep her secret? Chicago Med won't be able to keep the secret of Marlyne Barrett's exit for long, as the actress left the series after playing Maggie for 10 years, since the first season.
Heading into the season 11 premiere, fans will be wondering how the series will explain Maggie's sudden absence, but even more pressingly for some fans, we want to know if our theories about the father of Asher's baby are true. Is it actually Archer as the cliffhanger suggested, or was he just a red herring? We're live recapping season 11 episode to answer all of our burning questions!
Major spoilers ahead from Chicago Med season 11 episode 1!
Asher's baby's father revealed (and it's who we assumed)
Chicago Med season 11 episode 1 almost immediately where season 10 left off with Asher informing Archer that she's pregnant and that he's the father. She intends to have the baby but doesn't expect Archer to step in as a parent again, which he shuts down. He's in for anything she needs on the journey to motherhood. But they're just friends having a baby... or are they just friends?
She's not telling anyone in the emergency department that she's pregnant, even though she's three months into her pregnancy. The staff gets a distraction from Asher throwing out her lunch when a man, his wife, and a young boy come in with severe burns. Lenox informs the woman that she has sustained non-survivable injuries just before she dies. Her husband watches from across the room.
Goodwin continues to deal with setbacks at the hospital, including a broken window. She and Charles catch up and briefly mention Maggie's absence. They don't explain why Maggie isn't currently at Gaffney. All they say is they haven't heard a "peep" from her. Interesting! Meanwhile, Lenox actually has told someone about her diagnosis. She's leaning on Abrams, who pushes her to deal with it.
Lenox and Abrams jump right into a new case with two girls whose injuries have dangerously connected. (It's reminiscent of the episode of Grey's Anatomy where a man and young woman are stuck to a pole.) Doris jumps right in running the ED in Maggie's absence, and she's doing so expertly. We finally catch up with Ripley who works on a young man who begs him that he wants to die.
Chicago Med welcomes a surprise return and gives Ripley a real shock
Frost and Archer don't have high hopes for their patient's condition, but they're committed to helping him. Lifting up his mood, Frost learns that Howard has returned to the ED, and they seemingly pick up where their light sparks left off in season 10. Now that they're working closely, Abrams doesn't appreciate Lenox's methods of telling her patients the complete, honest truth.
During surgery on the young boy, Archer unexpectedly faints and Howard must take the lead. Meanwhile, in the doctor's lounge, a nurse hugs Ripley and congratulates him on the baby, effectively breaking the news to him that Asher is pregnant. She completely misread the gossip she heard. Speaking of surprises. Frost and Doris come face to face with the real wife and mother to the burn victims.
Archer, clearly recovered from his fainting spell, speaks with the wife and informs her that her husband's fate isn't looking good. She asks why they assumed the other women was her, and Archer shows her the body in the morgue. She identifies her as her son's babysitter, who she fired since she assumed she had a crush on her husband. This is one tragic way to learn about an affair.
Charles speaks with Ripley's patient from the rave who wishes he died. He explains that he wants to die before the drugs wear off and he begins to feel bad. Following this conversation, Goodwin commends Doris on filling Maggie's shoes, and Doris says she's only keeping them warm until she gets back. Confirmation that she's (hopefully) coming back (eventually!)
Ripley rushes to catch up with Asher in an elevator, which he stops, so they can talk about the pregnancy. She has to break it to him that he's not the father and that Archer is, which seems to break his heart. She conceived the baby after they broke up, but Ripley doesn't want to hear anything else about their co-parenting. After assuming he was the father, he realized how much he wants to be one.
Lenox saves her patient and Asher admits that she's scared
Lenox learns from her patients that having some hope and connection might not be such a bad thing after all. During surgery, Lenox and Abrams work together in order to help save both sisters. Meanwhile, Archer and Frost are horrified when their patient removes his intubation to speak with his wife about their son. They have a tearful conversation before she leaves.
Charles checks in with the young man from the rave again, and he finally admits that a girl helped him remove the heavy object from his leg. When the roof collapsed, he saw that she had been decapitated. He feels guilt that she stopped to help him and she died. The reason he wants to die is due to survivors guilt, but Charles talks him through what he's going through.
The surgery goes well for one sister, but it's touch and go on the other sister. No matter how hard they try to revive her, they can't. Abrams calls time of death, but Lenox jumps back in to save the girl's life. In spite of Abrams' insistence to stop, Lenox doesn't give up and saves the girl's life against all odds. Abrams can't believe that Lenox was able to bring her back and assumed it was futile.
Asher and Archer speak about the rumors that Ripley was the father, and Archer assumes that Asher is ashamed of the fact that she's having a baby with a 64-year-old man. But she's terrified of being a mother, what her sister thinks, and her place at work. She also worries about raising a child with Archer. She's scared to tell people because then having a baby will be real.
Unfortunately, not every patient made it through the episode. Ricky lost his father due to his burns (and probably for taking out his intubation). Frost watches as the young boy grieves the loss with his mother. Abrams insists that Lenox calls a therapist. Ripley arrives for his date with Sadie, but she doesn't want to introduce him to her daughter (again) just yet. But she's quickly changes her mind when he tells her that he's all in. While at a bar, Lenox crumples the therapist's card and hooks up instead.
Chicago Med airs Wednesdays at 8/7c on NBC, streaming next day on Peacock.