Minor joker spoilers for the first two episodes of St. Denis Medical.
As someone who started the fall 2024 TV schedule with worries about the future of sitcoms, I’m happy to report that NBC’s newest comedy, St. Denis Medical, is hilarious from start to finish. Though large ensemble casts can make it harder for characters to stand out in early episodes, the medical mockumentary is so well-written that I already have a favorite hospital staffer after just two episodes: Kaliko Kauhai's Val.
In case you didn’t catch the first two episodes of St. Denis Medical, the medical mockumentary centers on an eccentric team of doctors, nurses, and medical professionals led by The Goldbergs matriarch Wendi McLendon-Covey. Justin Spitzer serves as a co-creator, and like his hit Superstore, this show juggles competent, slightly burnt-out employees with the demanding and often-times outrageous patients that stumble into the hospital looking for assistance.
Like most mockumentary shows, St. Denis Medical relies on familiar character tropes and quippy humor, but the setting and incredible cast give it a fresh and unique spin. I will be tuning in every week for new episodes for several reasons, but mainly because I can’t wait to see Kauhai shine in the role of Val.
Meet Val, St. Denis Medical's Veteran Nurse Administrator
Sure, doctors get all the credit in the real world for saving lives, but anyone who has spent any time in hospitals knows it's the nurses who are doing all the hard work with patients. While St. Denis Medical does feature two skilled doctors, the show focuses more on the nursing staff, which is a refreshing change of pace from other medical shows.
Kauhai’s Val might not be the main focus of the series but she stole the show for me. The no-nonsense character is a far cry from the Superstore alumni’s role as Sandra, which makes her all the more enjoyable to watch on screen. Since there have only been two episodes, we don’t know much about her just yet, but I look forward to seeing her evolve alongside the rest of the cast.
Val Made Me Laugh Every Time She Was On Screen
First impressions are always important, but even more so with ensemble shows where everyone is vying for attention. When we first meet Val, she’s behind the check-in desk of the hospital, calmly but exhaustingly explaining to an agitated patient that her symptoms are not the most important in the room. Her deadpan delivery of her lines is impossible to chuckle at, especially when she makes the new RN (Mekki Leeper) wait in the long line of would-be patients.
Later on, Val delivers one of the best lines in the pilot episode when she hands the aforementioned patient a number to the White House, telling her to call Joe and inform him that there’s a nursing shortage and that he should fix the health care system. It might not be one of those laugh-until-you-cry type of lines, but it's comparable to Abbott Elementary in that it shines a light on their underfunded services, and you can’t help but laugh at the harsh reality.
Val's dry humor and delivery continues into the second episode, where she gets to shine by making fun of the new RN and then the hospital’s emergency physician (David Alan Grier) for thinking a young patient is flirty with him. It’s a nice change of pace for Kauhai, who spent her tenure on Superstore being the butt of the joke.
As a fan of so many of the actors on St. Denis Medical, I didn’t think I would come out of the first two episodes with a clear favorite. However, Kauhai really stole the show, and I can’t wait to see what she does with the role of Val in the rest of the season.
St. Denis Medical airs Tuesday nights on NBC at 8 pm ahead of Night Court, which airs in a new timeslot for Season 3. And if you miss it, you can always catch episodes the following day with a Peacock subscription.
