The Gallant Hero and the Tragic Victor

"The Gallant Hero and the Tragic Victor" is the 266th episode of the NBC television series, ER.

Plot synopsis

Gallant is in a convoy travelling through Iraq when they come under attack. A fellow soldier is wounded. They drag him into a Humvee and speed away with Gallant trying to resuscitate him. It is too late and the soldier dies. One of his friends notes that the soldier was just about to get married. He asks if Gallant has a girlfriend. Gallant begins to describe Neela. Then the truck explodes.

Clemente sits in his apartment. He jumps at a noise outside of his door and peers through the peep hole suspiciously. In the ER he is behaving strangely, muttering to himself, repeating orders and being paranoid. Luka expresses concern when he's treating a patient but Clemente claims he’s fine - he starts unzipping his pants offering to take a drug test but Luka says this is not necessary. When in a trauma with Ray and Abby, Ray asks the advice of Abby over Clemente.

Morris wakes up with Albright. Not believing his luck (and sure that no-one else will) he takes photos of them in bed together while Albright sleeps. When he gets into the ER he brags about having slept with Albright. He shows Ray the pictures but the quality is bad and Ray is not convinced. When Albright comes down for a consult she treats him with the usual amount of distaste. Morris continues to brag that they slept together but already no-one believes him.

An Army officer and a chaplain enter the ER looking for Neela. It is clear what their purpose is and the staff set about searching for her. Neela is up on the surgical floor. Dubenko has managed to get her a spot in surgery and she is ecstatic. Happy she rushes down to the ER. She tells Sam and Ray about her new job and is surprised when they aren't very enthusiastic. At the front desk she meets with Abby who tells her gently that there are some soldiers there to see her. Neela goes out into the waiting room. They try to shepherd her off into somewhere more private but she demands to know what has happened, already crying with the knowledge of what is to come. They tell her that Gallant was killed by a roadside bomb. They try to console her but she storms off saying that she has patients to see. The rest of the ER staff watch her go, upset. Abby gets further details from the soldiers but is cut short by Clemente getting into an argument over the war.

Pratt has returned from Darfur. He tells Luka that he's grateful that he sent him. He gets stuck in straight away with the case of three people brought in after serious assault, two are children. The ER staff work on the father but he doesn't make it. The youngest child is in a coma. Pratt speaks to the older boy about what happened. The boy's name is Sean and the other two victims are his brother and his father. After some kind words from Pratt the boy opens up. His brother was playing with a toy and started crying when Sean took it away from him. They father picked up his brother and started shaking him and smashing his head against the wall to get him to stop crying. Sean picked up a bat and hit his father until he stopped hurting his brother. When he hears that his father died the boy fears that he will go to hell. Pratt tells him that people don’t go to hell for killing to protect others.

Ray finds Neela up on the roof. She tells him that she was only speaking to Gallant four days ago and that she can barely remember what they talked about. She notes she was probably watching celebrity poker when he was killed. Ray tells her to go home and says he'll help her in any way he can. She tells him to stay away from her.

Clemente leaves the hospital to go and get coffee, despite Luka telling him to stay. Walking back he starts arguing with an altered homeless man. Not looking he walks out in front of a cab, spilling his coffee. He starts to argue with the driver, who gets out of the car. Clemente starts smashing up the car. He jumps onto its bonnet, pulls off his coat and shirt, smashes the windshield and then urinates on the car.

Abby and Luka reflect sadly on Gallant's death and Neela's grief. They ponder the idea of going away on holiday for a few days before the baby is born. Neela appears and Abby follows her. She tells her to go home and so does Luka. Finally Neela consents.

Luka finds Jane and Pratt arguing about the Iraq war. Pratt is upset over Gallant's death and feeling hopeless over the situation, especially after just returning from the Sudan with all he experienced there. He storms off but later speaks with Luka about how he wanted to come back to the ER and actually manage to save some lives, not hear about the death of his friend. Luka tries to get him to open up about his experiences in Darfur but Pratt only says that he'll tell him 'someday'.

Clemente is brought in by the paramedics. He has been wandering through traffic arguing with people. He claims he's fine and alternately argues and laughs at his situation while also muttering to himself. Abby, Sam and Ray deal with him gently but he protests and gets increasingly distressed when he sees Sam preparing Haldol. Once she has injected him he becomes sedate. Dr Nelson comes down from psychiatry and assesses him. He is suffering from sleep deprivation and post-traumatic stress disorder and is put on a psychiatric hold. Luka wheels a sedate but mumbling Clemente to the elevators and Sam, Ray and Pratt all wish him well as he goes, a shadow of his former dynamic self.

Abby arrives at her apartment, where Neela has been staying, intent on looking after Neela. She insists that she doesn't need anything. Later that night in her room she opens a package from Michael that the soldiers dropped off. It is a video tape from Michael to be watched in the event of his death. He tells her how much he loves her, that marrying her was the best day of his life but that he wants her to move on and have a happy life without him. Neela breaks down.

Guest starring

Staff -

• Sharif Atkins as Dr. Michael Gallant
• John Leguizamo as Dr. Victor Clemente
• Leland Orser as Dr. Lucien Dubenko
• Maury Sterling as Dr. Nelson
• Sara Gilbert as med student Jane Figler
• Dahlia Salem as Dr. Jessica Albright
• Laura Cerón as Nurse Chuny Marquez
• Dinah Lenney as Nurse Shirley
• Abraham Benrubi as Desk Clerk Jerry Markovic
• Troy Evans as Desk Clerk Frank Martin
• Louie Liberti as Paramedic Tony Bardelli
• Demetrius Navarro as Paramedic Morales
• Emily Wagner as Paramedic Doris Pickman
• Montae Russell as Paramedic Dwight Zadro

Others -

• Christopher Amitrano as Officer Hollis
• Bobby Nish as Officer Danny Yau
• Tim Griffin as Captain John Evans
• Braeden Lemasters as Sean

Music

"Gold Digger" by Kanye West and Jamie Foxx

References

External links

• Full Cast & Crew at the Internet Movie Database