Fox's Upcoming Mental Episode Deals With Autism

“MENTAL is a medical mystery drama featuring Dr. Jack Gallagher, a radically unorthodox psychiatrist who becomes Director of Mental Health Services at a Los Angeles hospital where he takes on patients battling unknown, misunderstood and often misdiagnosed psychiatric conditions. Dr. Gallagher delves inside their minds to gain a true understanding of who his patients are, allowing him to uncover what might be the key to their long-term recovery. “

I have been watching this show since it’s first episode. I find it to be funny and intriguing. The topics that have been covered so far are handled with care. The main characters interact in a similar way that characters on a soap opera do. I love my daytime shows, so this is a compliment, not an insult.
Dr. Gallagher, played by Chris Vance, is the doctor with a heart. He has personal experience with mental illness. His twin sister has issues that are slowly being explained. Dr. Gallagher is more concerned with helping his patients then doing what other staff members may consider the politically correct choice. This puts him at odds with Dr. Carl Belle, played by Derek Webster, the “money maker” of the show. Dr Belle is more concerned in furthering his status, rank and checkbook then doing what is right for the patient. He also has no qualms about blackmailing another doctor to spy on Dr. Gallagher.

All the characters work well together, and I am looking forward to watching the next episode airing on Fox Broadcasting Co., on Friday, July 24, 2009. The show will center around a young autistic child that witnesses a horrible crime. Dr. Gallagher wants to do anything he can to help and protect this young girl. Now, I got this information from watching the preview commercial. It looks to be really interesting and the kind of show that will really pull on my heart strings.

Whenever I watch a show that has a character that is an autistic child, I have a hard time controlling my emotions. There have been several shows that have written an autistic character into it’s storyline and done so with great care and sensitivity. I am anxious to see how this show handles the complexity of this type of character and I hope I will not be disappointed.