Previously, on the Netflix series Pulse, Dr. Sophie Chan (Chelsea Muirhead) worked alongside Dr. Natalie Cruz (Justina Machado) during surgery. Sophie successfully saves the patient’s life. Dr. Danielle Simms (Willa Fitzgerald) and Dr. Harper Simms (Jessy Yates) visited their father for a wellness check. The two of them argued about their childhood, resulting in their father being left unconscious and rushed to Maguire. Dr. Tom Cole (Jack Bannon) and Dr. Ruben Soriano (Nestor Carbonell) work alongside each other when a big contributor to the hospital comes in with concerns about a medical emergency. 

The episode starts with the staff starting their next shift. Harper tells Danielle that their dad is home and that he has his new medications with him. 

Luis Dominguez (Arturo Del Puerto) tells the staff that two patients are coming in: one for respiratory and the other for an alligator bite. Dr. Sam Elijah (Jessie T. Usher) takes the alligator bite patient, while Danielle takes the other. Cruz will be watching the two of them for the day, trying to figure out who will be the Chief of Residence next year. 

Sam takes his patient, Diego, in for surgery. Diego was trying to save his dog from the alligator. Cruz watches from afar, observing his process. Tom takes over and pushes Sam out of the way. Cruz leaves with a disappointed look on her face. 

Later, we see Dr. Xander Phillips (Colin Woodell) on a run, getting a call from his mother. He finishes his run and goes home, with her waiting for him. She brings up Danielle, and he tells her that she heard rumors about the previous hospital he was at. He tells her that he fell in love with Danielle and that he needs to handle the situation by himself. 

Danielle tells her patient, Cynthia, that she has a pulmonary embolism, which is why she’s having trouble breathing. Cynthia asks if it could kill her, and Danielle tells her the truth, saying that it could. Luis comes in and pulls Danielle to the side, letting her know that Cynthia’s wife has just arrived. Danielle goes to the waiting room to find her. The wife, Amy, tells Danielle that Cynthia started smoking again right after her first lung transplant, which wasn’t mentioned to Danielle. 

Sophie finds intern Camila Perez (Daniela Nieves) crying in the locker room. Camila tells her that Sam snapped at her, and Sophie tells her that she can’t let it get to her and that she’ll get used to it.

Sam has Camila work with him on a young patient, Blanca. Camila gives the diagnosis, thinking it’s just a virus from traveling in Mexico, but Sam feels that something may be off. 

Dr. Hoffman, who practices plastic surgery, assists Ruben and Tom with a surgery. When Dr. Hoffman asks Tom for his story, he tells him about his schooling and his childhood dream of saving lives. Dr. Hoffman offers him a spot to join a plastic surgery fellowship after his residency ends. Tom says no, not wanting to offend Ruben.

Danielle tells Cruz about Cynthia, so Cruz goes to her room, with Danielle right behind her. Cynthia tells them that she has tried to stop smoking, using all methods possible. 

Later, Sam and Camila go back to see Blanca, Sam wanting to ask more questions to narrow down what the problem could be. Camila sneaks to talk with Blanca alone when her parents leave to make a phone call. Before she can get more information on what happened in Mexico, Blanca’s dad comes back into the room. 

Xander’s mother meets with Cruz. Even though Xander and Danielle were in a consensual relationship, there is nothing Cruz can do to make the legal formalities of the situation go away. 

Tom gets invited to attend Dr. Hoffman’s yacht party with his partners. Cassidy Himmelstein (Jessica Rothe) doesn’t like the idea, thinking that it might be bad for him because Hoffman works for a private practice. She thinks that Soriano might feel different about him if he does choose to move forward with Hoffman. 

Sam and Camila rush to Blanca, her vitals decreasing. Sam checks her legs and notices a rash on her hand. Camila realizes it could be Toxic Shock Syndrome. Sam ordered a pelvic exam, and they noticed their assumptions were correct.

Danielle is about to take Cynthia up for surgery, but Cynthia is crying, scared of what could happen. She tells Danielle to let Amy know that she’s sorry and that she loves her. Danielle leaves the room, and Gabriel Moreno grabs her, telling her that Cynthia can’t breathe, so they rush back over to her room. Luis starts to do chest compressions, and Amy comes in, watching from afar. They begin to do shocks, while Luis continues to do compressions. Unfortunately, they aren’t able to save Cynthia’s life. 

At the end of the episode, Danielle goes to HR. She drops her complaint on Xander. 

Overall, this was an intriguing episode. Both Sam and Danielle want the spot as Chief, being dedicated to making a good impression on Cruz. Daniela Nieves and Chelsea Muirhead have done a good job with the platonic chemistry between Camila and Sophie, creating a great friendship, and the more we watch, the stronger they become, both lifting each other during hard times. Will Tom attend the yacht party with Dr. Hoffman? What will he decide to do after his residency? 

Rating: 8.5/10