As one of the latest shows from Ryan Murphy, Doctor Odyssey lacks the fun and upbeat tones of Glee, the urgency, familial bond, and emotional intensity of 9-1-1, or the shock factor of American Horror Story. Doctor Odyssey's troubles began from its first episode, and heading toward the final episodes of its first season, have not improved on many of its problematic fronts, starting with its main characters, who have yet to grow or gain strong personalities. Max, Avery, and Tristan sit at the show's forefront, but nearly an entire season into the series, Doctor Odyssey has barely explored who these characters are outside of the emergency medical scenarios they face each episode. Instead, when Doctor Odyssey does want to explore such a thing, the series tends to throw in the detail randomly, such as revealing that Max had several other medical problems previous to contracting Covid-19, as well as introducing his identical twin brother, and that Tristan apparently just has a drinking problem one day. It also does not help that Avery's entire storyline surrounded a false pregnancy and a dull love triangle.
These are not characters to root for because they act more as puppets working toward solving the boat's emergencies while repeatedly facing the same question of which man will end up with Avery. The show's inconsistency with its characters also extends to their relationships, as Tristan's fling with a fellow employee, Vivian, disappears for several episodes only to return for the specific purpose of reinforcing Tristan's romantic feelings for Avery that never appeared to have gone away in the first place. Max, Tristan, and Avery are dancing around the issue as Doctor Odyssey has no interest in showing Avery making a productive decision. Avery does not need to be with either of the men. However, at a certain point, Avery either needs to make it clear that she has no wishes to pursue a romantic relationship with either of them, or pick one, because this group already decided against continuing a dynamic with all three of them included, and going around in circles is not good for anyone, including the series.
In a good and exciting love triangle, the audience can be emotionally invested in all three characters, seeing the positives and negatives of each potential pairing, or deeply loving one and hating the other. Either way, the audience should be given enough emotional investment in the characters as individuals, as well as the characters as a potential couple, to become immersed in the question of who will end up together. That is not the case in Doctor Odyssey, which is never as interested as it should be in exploring Max, Avery, and Tristan as people. The series shows them to be a solid medical team, but is more interested in the spectacle of the boat than in what human interaction and emotion could bring to the show. It also does not help that the members of the crew are basically there for window dressing, having lines every once in a while, but lacking any real personality or charisma as well.
Even the stakes of the various medical issues are never able to hold up to the emotional ties that other medical shows have provided audiences. Doctor Odyssey is less interested in the person and more interested in their condition, which also creates less space for empathy or connection to the characters. Doctor Odyssey does not appear to care if the audience is invested in its patients of the week. This is a series that wants to capitalize on its doctors doing exciting things, more so than actually inviting audiences into the patients' lives and allowing them to feel for these characters, even the ones that Doctor Odyssey actually does offer backstories to.
If Doctor Odyssey is canceled, it will just be another failed medical drama that has fallen through the cracks. Between Grey's Anatomy, The Pitt, and Chicago Med, among others, there are more than enough other medical dramas out there to keep fans interested in the high stakes of the medical world. If Doctor Odyssey is renewed, then the series needs to do some serious work to turn the show's main characters into people that audiences can be excited to watch and become invested in. At this point, the series lacks the charm, charisma, personality, or excitement to hold a strong foundation of new fans among a world of so many television viewing options.