HOLLYWOOD—After such a chaotic past few months, I have been secretly finding small bits of time to catch up on my favorite TV shows. As of late, I have returned to a series that immediately caught my attention when it first premiered years ago. I’m referring to the FOX medical drama “The Resident.” The first season was fantastic, season two just as good. I will admit I started to lose a bit of interest around season four and when I learned fan favorite Nic (Emily VanCamp) was vacating her role it was a devastating blow.

The only thing I could think is how the series would bounce back without this staple character. The show did a time jump. Time jumps are never great in the television universe. Some series just don’t know how to do it seamlessly where it works with the narrative and keeps the viewer’s attention. I always harken back to “One Tree Hill” which I thought did a phenomenal job with a time jump, and “The Resident” is another series that can now be added to the list.

The latest season has been so juicy with drama and narrative that just hooks the audience. Plots involving mental health, drug addiction, medical mistakes, debilitating diseases, finances and the notion of medical service as a whole. At its core, Conrad (Matt Czuchry) is our primary player where a vast majority of the narrative follows. Side note: in the begging the focus was on Devon (Manish Dayal), who was under Conrad’s wing when the show first premiered.

Things immediately shifted in the first season, where Devon soon took a back seat to a majority of the narrative, but still remained a power player. We’ve lost some iconic characters, Mina and Dr. Hunter, but we’ve also introduced favorites in AJ (Malcolm Jamal Warner) and Dr. Kitt Voss (Jane Leeves). The sixth season witnessed more of the impact of that time jump, as renowned pediatric surgeon Ian Sullivan (Andrew McCarthy) joined Chastain, as he found himself working alongside his estranged daughter Cade (Kaley Ronayne), who is dating Conrad. Dr. Sullivan has been secretly operating while addicted to drugs, which Cade had been keeping secret, until she finally forced her father to take a leave of absence to get help in rehab. Sullivan returned in the season finale as he helped consult on a case involving Maggie, Dr. Bell’s (Bruce Greenwood) granddaughter, who goes terribly ill.

The truth is ultimately revealed about Ian when he is forced to confess to Bell and Kit, FYI, Bell has his own issues as his blindness is starting to impact his ability to operate in the ER. Remember, Bell was coined ‘Doctor Death’ in the first season of the series, so this character who was a fantastic villain has transformed into a hero that you root for. Very rare in the TV world people. Kitt and Bell did indeed get married this season, which resonated sparks with Billie (Jessica Lucas) and Conrad. Yeah, Conrad’s so called relationship with Cade was always a fluke, as the chemistry was stronger with Billie and they two eventually started dating which only pleased Gigi, Conrad’s daughter with Nic.

AJ has been flippant to the struggles that his partner Padma, Leela’s twin sister has been struggling with after giving birth to their twins. Padma ultimately got help after she attempted suicide. Leela on the other hand has been juggling a lot as her dyslexia proved difficult for her in the operating room, but she ultimately became a doctor at Chastain and received a proposal from Devon in the season finale.

The sixth season finale just found a way to tie up any loose ends in the narrative and it provided you a glee in my personal opinion. I usually want a series to end the season with a shocker or cliffhanger, but I was pleased with what the writers did this time around. It was fitting for the series that was a bit shorter this time around with only 13 episodes. I’m hoping that is not a sign that the show is on its last life, because I think “The Resident” has so much more story to tell.