Medium 2.12: "Doctor's Orders"

Written by Rene Echevarria
Directed by Helen Shaver

In which Dr. Walker emerges again, this time threatening Ariel and driving Allison to a violent act in defense of her daughter, as Ariel finds her teenage life more complicated than she imagined…


At the end of the first season, in the episode “Penny for Your Thoughts”, there was the hint of an ongoing storyline for the series in the form of Dr. Walker: a spirit that would routinely take control and twist the minds of young men so they could become murderers themselves. The episode suggested that Walker, thwarted by Allison, would become a recurring problem. More to the point, it introduced the idea of spirits with considerable malevolence with the intention of subtle possession.

While this is a natural extension of the “mythology” of the series, since Allison herself has been overcome with the desires and mandates of powerful spirits (the previous episode being an example), there are drawbacks. The writers need to be careful with the idea of a recurring spirit killer, because the series is grounded in a certain level of everyday reality. Such a concept could quickly become silly and break down the suspension of disbelief.

At the same time, I think that the idea of Walker targeting Ariel makes sense. For one thing, it’s an interesting measure of revenge. Walker uses Ariel to distract Allison, and there’s the sense that he is testing the waters. In short, Walker is trying to find a way to beat Allison and continue with his murderous ways.

I’m not sure that this was the best way to approach this idea, because in some ways, it violates the logic of “Penny for Your Thoughts”. Walker would typically take years to twist the minds of his “hosts”, roughly 15 years at a time, which is what made the idea so disturbing in the first place. If someone can be transformed into a killer by a malevolent entity with a taste for living vicariously, how can one predict and prevent the subsequent murderous activity?

Yet in this episode, Walker pushes a butcher into his dirty work with very little prodding. Sure, the butcher seemed to be ready to kill in the first place, but it doesn’t quite track. The story also required a young woman to make herself an easy victim. Did Walker know that the young woman was that sexually adventurous? That guy wasn’t much of a catch, so it wasn’t convincing for her to have been making a concerted effort to have a torrid affair.

The writers seem to be reaching for a metaphor, but in rushing the story, the idea loses power. Walker could have become a stand-in for all the fears that parents have regarding their teenage daughters as they step into the shark-infested waters of young adulthood. Parents are endlessly worried about what kind of hidden influences will shape their children’s psychology, and Walker is an extreme example of a situation specific to Allison’s daughters. As interesting and clever as the episode was, I worry that any future return for Walker would be mitigated by the fact that Allison, Joe, and Ariel actually have reason to look for trouble.

Writing: 1/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4

Final Rating: 7/10