Doctor Odyssey’s fate is in purgatory at ABC, but any future developments need to keep a few major issues in mind. Though there were loose ends after theDoctor Odysseyfinale, there are currently no plans for season 2 on ABC’s fall 2025 primetime schedule. As such, it’s possible we’ve already seen the last of theOdyssey’s melodramatic medical crew.
Yet, the onus ofDoctor Odyssey’s season 2 statusrests on creator Ryan Murphy, who reportedly didn’t confirm his interest due to uncertainty regarding the procedural’s creative direction. An understandable concern, considering the memorable mishaps of the drama’s pilot year. Regardless,Doctor Odysseystill deserves a season 2— if for no other reason than to learn from its past mistakes.
7Ignoring Vivian’s Character
She Could Have Added So Much To The Plot
Doctor Odysseystarted with an intimate focus on four main characters— Joshua Jackson’s Max Bankman, Phillipa Soo’s Avery Morgan, Sean Teale’s Tristan Silva, and Don Johnson’s Robert Massey. InDoctor Odysseyseason 1, episode 3, however, Vivian Montgomery (Laura Harrier) joined the ship as its new chef. Subsequently, her appearances were rare but felt deeply important to the overarching plot.
Vivian offered a breath of fresh air as Tristan’s secondary love interest, butTristan and Vivian’s romance inDoctor Odysseydisappeared almost completely in the second half of the season. In fact, Vivian had only one appearance in the second batch of episodes: “Crew Week,” where it seems as though she and Tristan are in a healthy, somewhat exclusive relationship.
Vivian then gets vulnerable, asking Tristan to take their relationship to the next level. The chef wraps the request in a loaded speech about how much Tristan has grown, which ironically prompts Tristan to realize how little he has grown in reality.Doctor Odysseynever shows the end of their relationship, but it’s implied that Tristan broke her heart.
Sadly, Vivian is never seen again after the breakup, leaving her character to be remembered as nothing other than Tristan’s former fling.Doctor Odysseydid Vivian a disservice by limiting herto being a mere accessory to Tristan, especially since she could have offered so much depth as a full-blown character, head chef, and member of the ship’s crew.
6Wasting Phillipa Soo’s Broadway Background
Avery Even Mentioned Theater Camp
Doctor Odyssey’s cast was filled with familiar names and faces, but Phillipa Soo had a particularly large following due to her history as a Broadway darling. Soo originated the role of Eliza in the smash-hit musicalHamiltonand has had leading roles in Broadway productions, such as Amélie Poulain inAmélie, Cinderella inInto The Woods, and Guenevere inCamelot.
Doctor Odysseyeven includes a nod to Soo’s impressive careerin episode 6. When the medical trio discuss their bucket list items, Avery mentions her theater camp past and how she wanted to be on stage. While the conversation could have simply been a reference to Soo, it seemed to suggest aDoctor Odysseymusical episodewas a future possibility.
Unfortunately,Doctor Odysseynever let Avery sing. I’d understand not wanting to commit to the production of an entire musical episode, but they could have easily incorporated a karaoke night or musical theater week aboard theOdyssey. Aside from flexing Soo’s amazing vocal ability,Doctor Odysseycould have returned to Avery’s childhood dreamand given her a chance to perform.
5Having Multiple Two-Parters
It Took Time Away From More Important Plots
As a freshman procedural,Doctor Odysseyneeded to build a strong foundationif it had any hope of long-term success on ABC. Considering it directly followed9-1-1, a beloved first-responder procedural,Doctor Odysseyalready needed to work twice as hard to set itself apart and prove its merit. Rather than perfect the basics, however,Doctor Odysseyemployed multiple two-part episodes.
The issue with breaking up storylines into two parts is that it leaves the series at a standstill until it returns, robbing other plots of their development. Sadly,neither of the two-parter inDoctor Odysseyseason 1 was effective. The shark/orca attack saga introduced exciting new characters, only to write them off immediately and never mention them again.
Similarly, the earthquake/tsunami final emergency seemed more like a ploy for action sequences than an actual high-stakes disaster.Doctor Odysseytried to bend its genrevia two-part events, but it only resulted in a confusing mix-match of storylines and tones.
4Following Max To His Hometown
The Cruise Ship Setting Is Doctor Odyssey’s Hook
ConsideringDoctor Odyssey’s luxury cruise shipsetting was its unique aspect, it felt odd when the show suddenly split in two— one storyline aboard the ship and another in the suburbs. The purpose was to show Max’s dilemma between joining a hospital in need or staying on theOdyssey. Following Max onto land, however, completely changedDoctor Odyssey’s feel.
Seeing Max perform emergency care in a hospital rather than a cruise ship, where there’s the constant threat of turbulent waters or marine predators, was uncanny. The entire episode was a strange glimpse into whatDoctor Odysseywould be like as a typical medical drama. Arguably, seeingMax in a traditional medical setting took away fromDoctor Odyssey’s charm.
3Writing Off Avery & Heather’s Pregnancies For A Twist
Every Storyline Should Feel Intentional
There were plenty of celebrity guest stars inDoctor Odyssey’s pilot season, but none impacted the plot as much as Shania Twain’s Heather. The widowed passenger first appeared in “Singles Week” and later returned in “Sophisticated Ladies Week” to rekindle her fling with Captain Massey. After a sweet reunion, Heather dropped a bombshell that she was pregnant with Massey’s child.
Likewise, Avery learned she was pregnant in “Quackers,” the midseason finale ofDoctor Odyssey. Unlike Heather, though, Avery didn’t know who the father of her baby was, since she had a threesome with Max and Tristan in episode 6. The tight-knit medical team tried to navigate the news peacefully, but the pregnancy only made everything more complicated.
In one fell swoop, however,Doctor Odysseywrote off both its pregnancies and abruptly cut off the storylines. Heather experienced a miscarriage and was never seen or heard from again, while Avery discovered she was never actually pregnant in the first place.Doctor Odysseybacktracked with ease, making the storylines feel pointlessand cruelly abandoning the plots without true closure.
2Not Leaning Into Its Absurdity
Doctor Odyssey Shouldn’t Be Afraid Of Its Camp Factor
From theLove Boat-adjacent premise to theridiculous theme weeks inDoctor Odyssey, there was always something pleasantly absurd about the medical drama. Unfortunately,Doctor Odysseyfailed to fully commit to its camp factor, a decision that only worked against the series in the end. Serious storylines felt out of left field, while the silly subplots felt too tame.
As a result,Doctor Odysseytrapped itself in lukewarm waters by forcing a loose sense of professionalism.
Doctor Odysseycould have cemented itself as a modern classic if it had embraced its quirkiness and exaggerated it. Instead, the procedural tried to amp up action, romance, and adventure while taking itself a little too seriously to succeed at any of it. As a result,Doctor Odysseytrapped itself in lukewarm waters by forcing a loose sense of professionalism.
1Dragging Out The Love Triangle
The Convoluted Romance Got Stale Fast
Without a doubt, the most out-of-place storyline inDoctor Odysseyseason 1 was the love triangle between Avery, Max, and Tristan. From the very first episode,Doctor Odysseyset up Max and Tristan as romantic rivals, both interested in Avery. After their threesome, however, Avery wanted to be a throuple, while both men expressed their desire for monogamy.
The drama continued to unfold with each passing week asDoctor Odyssey’s most pointless subplotcontinued to regress character development and keep its characters trapped in toxic cycles.Avery would reject Tristan, Tristan would “get over” his crush, Max would deem himself above it all, only to go backwardsas Max and Tristan professed their love for Avery yet again.
Doctor Odysseyonly freed Tristan and ended the exhausting love triangle in the season 1 finale, which now may be the series finale. There’s always the possibility thatDoctor Odysseywill be renewed in future network TV cycles, but there’s honestly no point if the medical drama doesn’t learn from its past and correct its most egregious mistakes.
