Time to check the pulse on Max's spiritual successor to ER.

"The Pitt" may take place in an emergency room and star Noah Wyle, but nothing else about Max's new medical drama resembles the classic series "ER" -- at least according to the show's creators. The new series,

The Pitt immerses us in the high-stress environment of Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center's emergency department, headed up by Dr. Michael "Robby" Robinavitch (ER's Noah Wyle, no st

"The Pitt" is a smart show that values character detail and intricate medical science that sometimes succumbs to doses of melodrama that can be forgiven for everything that it does very well.

The Pitt,” on HBO’s streaming platform Max, is a weekly medical drama that emulates the kind of shows that have long been — and remain — a staple on network TV. It’s an instructive blueprint for other streamers to follow suit.

The cast of Max's medical drama "The Pitt" is clocking in for their shift, meet the stars of the intense new streaming series.

Consider this example both an enticement and a warning. Created by ER alum R. Scott Gemmill, The Pitt takes a ruthlessly realistic approach to its depiction of our beleaguered/broken healthcare system — but it’s also the most engrossing and addictive medical drama to come along since Grey’s Anatomy and, well, ER.

When watching the premiere of Max medi- cal drama "The Pitt," one might feel as if they've stepped into a time machine. The series stars Noah Wyle, who rose to stardom in the future-celebrity-studded cast of "ER.

The premiere of The Pitt covers 07:00-08:00 and 08:00-09:00 of a single continuous shift at the fictional Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center; it’s a two-episode, two-hour span of drama that turns out to be long enough to make it feel like you’ve been punched in the stomach,