The shadow of Grey’s Anatomy lies heavily over new Netflix medical drama Pulse. As with the seemingly immortal Grey’s – which has clocked up 435 episodes and counting – it tells the story of romantically busy young medics at a bustling hospital in a culturally distinctive part of the United States (Miami, rather than the grainy Seattle of Grey’s).
There is a regular supply of patients rolling through the doors with arms dangling off and with feelings in need of repair, but the true surgery is that which needs to be carried out on the personal goings-on of Will Fizgerald’s Dr Danny Simms, an ER medic whose love life could do with a live-saving jolt.
Having once fainted while lying down when a doctor waved a needle in my direction, I can’t vouch for the medical veracity of the series, which is produced by Lost co-creator Carton Cuse. It serves up soapy thrills at a rapid clip, however.
Episode one starts with a high school soccer team plunging off a bridge, while, in later episodes, the fictional Maguire Hospital goes into lockdown when a hurricane hits.
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There are also lots of juicy personal issues. Danny’s superior and secret boyfriend, Xander (Colin Woodell), is suspended for inappropriate conduct after a third doctor (Jessie T Usher) reports their relationship to the suits upstairs. We also get a geezer-ish British expat (Jack Bannon) who chirrups about like Danny Dyer in scrubs while Daniela Nieves is a smug student doctor who hopes to stand out by turning up for work slathered in make-up.
Plot isn’t a priority. The big confrontation in part one is between Danny and the head of surgery (Justina Machado), who is miffed when her fellow doctor does not reveal that her daughter has been brought in for treatment. They never actually have a row, though – instead, they growl at one another and throw death glares.
It’s all honkingly derivative of other medical dramas – to the point where one character asked another if she “watches a lot of Grey’s Anatomy”. It even leans into Grey’s trademark “montage-core” by soundtracking emotive scenes with voguish artists such as Birdy and Benson Boone (a sort of “Hozier: the mullet and hipster moustache” years).
As soapy distraction, Pulse is hugely effective – albeit as paper-thin as a hastily applied Band-Aid. In other words, it is not good for your health, yet there is no denying that it goes down easily and is a perfect fit for the glorified junk food emporium that is Netflix in 2025.
