Return To Base – This episode of SkyMed starts three days ago. Lexi (Mercedes Morris) talks to Nowak (Thomas Elms) about getting a new plane and whether it’ll mean layoffs. Nowak suggests the airline could go belly up, but Tristan (Kheon Clarke) thinks SkyMed is doing well if it is expanding. Tristan admits he isn’t worried because people are always getting sick and finding ways to hurt themselves. That night, a man complains while his friend tries to get the snowmobile working. Mal (Robert Ifedi) worries when he hears a snowmobile approaching. Brett (Chris Farquhar) continues working on theirs.

The snowmobile speeds down the trail and hits Brett while Mal manages to jump out of the way. Tristan, Nowak, and Lexi arrive later to help Brett while Mal complains about him buying junk. Brett’s heated vest backfires and begins sparking so Tristan has to get rid of it. Tristan believes that proves his job is bulletproof. Hayley (Natasha Calis) talks to Crystal (Morgan Holmstrom) about her recovery. Crystal urges her to take it easy so she doesn’t rush going back to work too soon. She admits she hasn’t heard anything even though it has been six months. Crystal says he needed time to clear his head and that’ll take as long as it takes. She wants to get this right because she is the first person from North House to go to medical school.

Hayley promises she is going to crush it. Before Crystal leaves, she reminds Hayley not to hurt anyone or herself. Later, Tristan welcomes Hayley back. It has been hard to feel Chopper’s shoes. They’re calling the new guy Skippy who wants to be called Reese (Ryan Ali). Madison (Emilia McCarthy) arrives to pick up her son from Bodie (Aason Nadjiwon). She wants to make sure Bodie paid the daycare company so they don’t lose their spot. Bodie says he dropped it off yesterday. Crystal hears other students talking about their Dr. Yana who is very strict. She stands up to Glenn (Matt Paradis) and takes up for their doctor. Dr. Yana arrives moments later. She is quickly introduced to Crystal.

Crystal is surprised when Jeremy (Braeden Clarke) comes in and admits this is exactly what it looks like. She complains that he showed up after all this time dressed as a paramedic. Jeremy reveals he is training as a PCP. He got back a couple of months ago and signed up at the academy. Jeremy says not everything is about her. She admits he made that clear when she said she loved him and it took her six months to realize he never said it back. Chuck (Robert B. Kennedy) speaks to his wife on the phone while scraping snow from the road. He ends up passing out and hitting a tree. Hayley arrives to help. When she asks if he has passed out before, Chuck admits he felt weak while shoveling the drive last week.

He thought he was just overdoing it because he has been putting in long house. However, a couple of his fingers went numb and his arm wouldn’t work. Chuck hasn’t seen a doctor because it always goes away. Hayley believes he is having transient ischemic attacks which are a warning sign for a stroke. Reese tells Tristan that they don’t have to talk about that day in the locker room since he knows he is with someone now. Tristan says Nowak doesn’t know and he’d like to keep it that way. Hayley begins grunting in pain while trying to help Chuck so Tristan rushes over to take over. They find a pool of blood nearby and someone buried under snow so the plow must’ve hit someone.

Although Tristan finds a pulse, the man’s leg is badly injured. At the Whiskey Hatch, Nowak tells Tristan that everyone is new since they can’t keep the place staffed. They celebrate Chopper making it to the final 16. Wheezer (Aaron Ashmore) is sitting nearby. Bodie joins him and learns more about his responsibilities. At one point, Nowak shouts out that he can share a room with Tristan although Tristan says they never talked about it. In private, Tristan tells Lexi he likes knowing he has his own room if he needs it. Lexi says Nowak doesn’t commit easily so there are no escape hatches when he does. Nowak notices Lexi checking out a woman nearby so he gives her advice.

Lexi isn’t dating right now because she needs to focus on her career. A female worker ends up getting cut during an accident. The woman Lexi was checking out quickly takes care of it. Wheezer introduces her as Stef, the new Ontario paramedic. Crystal approaches Hayley to see if she knew about Jeremy training to be a paramedic. Hayley offers to go out and get drinks with her later. She can’t believe they’re not sending Chuck to the stroke center in Winnipeg. Crystal says Dr. Yana ordered a CT and a transfer but he refused both. He is also denying a history of symptoms. Chuck admits he is worried he could go to jail since he knew he shouldn’t be driving.

Crystal says the skier should make a full recovery. Chuck blames himself for the skier losing his leg. He wants to go home. Before he can, he begins having a stroke. Dr. Yana arrives and tells them to stand down because she wants the man sent for an emergency CT. Crystal and Dr. Yana argue about whether TPA could’ve helped or killed him. Dr. Yana reminds her of the differences between being in the field and being a doctor in a hospital. She tells Crystal to follow the rules. At home, Tristan and Nowak talk about sharing a room. Tristan admits he has never shared a room with anyone. When he sees Reese, he tells Nowak they should do it because he is the only person he wants to share space with.

He soon learns that Nowak and Reese were partners in flight school. Stef catches up with Lexi at work and says she gets to fly with SkyMed’s famous girl pilot. They talk about the North being intense. Lexi is sure Stef will get some action. Wheezer says he is coming with them so he can keep an eye on the kids. They arrive to help Dale (Ryanb Blakely). They find tanks full of snakes before Dale warns them some of the tanks are empty now. He tells them about Jenny biting him yesterday. Dale turns off the heat to make them sluggish only for some of them to die as a result. He took antivenom yesterday but started getting chills. Stef says the bite looks infected so he is going to need antibiotics.

Dale is worried he’ll go to the hospital, they’ll find out about his collection, and put some of his snakes down because many aren’t legal. As Wheezer tries to find the heat, Lexi and Stef talk about the excitement of being around something dangerous. While flying Dale in, he begins complaining that his throat is tight. Stef is shocked to find a snake named Jenny around his neck. Jenny slithers down into his sleeping back. Lexi goes into the back to help Stef deal with the snake. Eventually, Lexi grabs it and throws it out of the window. Madison confronts Bodie because his check bounced. He remembers that the car payment came through.

If they don’t get the payment today, Joel is going to lose his place. They try to find another way to cover the costs. Madison thinks Bodie should speak to his parents. Two men working end up causing an explosion. Crystal catches up with Hayley who says Chuck’s CT scan came back clear. Crystal was right to give him TPA and he didn’t have a bleed. Hayley says she is finally going to get credit for everything she already knows how to do when she is a doctor. Crystal doubts herself. Then, they go out and help the man who was injured during the explosion. When they check the man, they realize it is Chopper. They take him to Thompson in an airplane. On the way there, Chopper wakes up. Crystal believes it is a cardiac tamponade.

Although he needs pericardiocentesis, Crystal worries she won’t be able to do it without an ultrasound. When Chopper begins arresting, she has no choice but to do it. She does it and they get Chopper to the hospital a short time later. Dr. Yana speaks to Crystal and tells her again that she needs to follow the rules. She tells Crystal that the path is going to be hard. Stef joins Lexi outside by the fire to talk about Chopper. They discuss going after their dreams. Stef loves being a first responder. They almost kiss before Lexi says she worked way too hard to get distracted now. Stef says she is wrong if she thinks that tough cadet vibes are going to turn her off. Nowak catches Tristan getting a gift from Reese, but Tristan hides the note before he can see it.

Bodie gets a call from the donation coordinator with Donor Screening Canada. He is a match for a patient in Toronto for a kidney. Bodie learns that the recipient is a close genetic relative. Chopper’s wife arrives at the hospital and surprises Crystal and Hayley.

 

SkyMed Review

The second series of SkyMed started with an okay episode that had some ups and downs. Crystal continues with clinicals while striving to eventually become a doctor. Jeremy showed up and revealed he is studying to be a paramedic. Bodie and Madison are struggling with money so they may not be able to pay for Joel’s daycare and could lose his spot.

Near the end of the episode, Chopper has an accident during astronaut training and has to be rescued by his former colleagues. His wife arrives at the hospital at the end of the episode. Lexi also has a potential love interest in Stef while Tristan worries his kiss with Reese could ruin his relationship with Nowak.

There is really a lot going on in this episode and certain things were more effective than others. The work with the patients wasn’t great because it basically just skimmed over everything. The episode tried to cram so much in that the outcomes for Brett, Chuck, and Dale were never covered. In the last season, the patients were sometimes more compelling than their rescuers.

Nevertheless, SkyMed remains a watchable series that is a good way to kill time if nothing else. The episode was a good starting point since it set up the primary storylines for the series. It scores a 6 out of 10. Recaps of SkyMed can be found on Reel Mockery here. Find out how to support our independent site at this link. Learn more about advertising on Reel Mockery here.