Plot Synopsis

Set in downtown New York in 1900, THE KNICK focuses on Knickerbocker Hospital (aka The Knick) and its groundbreaking surgeons, nurses and staff, who push the bounds of medicine in a time of astonishingly high mortality rates and zero antibiotics. At the center of the hospital's staff is Dr. John Thackery, a brilliant surgeon, who, despite his secret addiction to cocaine, is pioneering new methods in the field. He leads a team of doctors, including: Dr. Everett Gallinger, his young protege, who finds himself to not be quite talented enough when challenged by a new doctor; Dr. Bertie Chickering Jr., an eager surgeon-in-training, who gives up the chance to practice uptown in a wealthy hospital for the excitement of learning in the chaotic downtown world; and Dr. Algernon Edwards, a black Harvard-trained surgeon, who fights for respect in the hospital while trying to navigate his way through the racially charged turn-of-the-century NYC. Plus, Thackery works with these people at The Knick: Captain August Robertson, a self-made shipping magnate, who has used his fortune to keep the doors of the hospital open to the many poor immigrants who have arrived in New York on his vessels; Cornelia Robertson, August's daughter and a member of the Board of Directors, whose passionate social work at The Knick will always play second fiddle to her wealthy father's philanthropy toward it; Lucy Elkins, a naive nurse from the South, who, like tens-of-thousands of others, has come to New York for adventure -- and finds more of it than she ever thought she would; Tom Cleary, the surly ambulance driver, who has learned to work the streets in order to grab his piece of America's pie; Herman Barrow, the crooked hospital administrator; and Sister Harriet -- an Irish nurse, midwife, and nun -- who isn't afraid to speak her mind and who backs down from nothing and no one. Emmy-winning director Steven Soderbergh directed all 10 episodes of the first season of THE KNICK, which, one month before its series premiere, was picked up for a second season during the Television Critics Association 2014 Summer Press Tour on July 10. Season 2 of THE KNICK premiered on Friday, October 16, 2015 at 10pm ET/PT on Cinemax. It's 1901 and The Knick faces an upheaval, as Dr. John Thackery's absence (due to his hospitalization for cocaine addiction), a dearth of affluent patients, and financial missteps have led to the board's decision to shutter The Knickerbocker Hospital in favor of a new building uptown. In this world of corruption, invention and progress, everyone is searching for the new path that will help him or her survive. Whether it's a path toward justice, freedom, love or just plain survival, nothing comes easy. As relocation plans proceed, the gifted but under-appreciated Dr. Algernon Edwards jockeys to become Thackery's successor as chief of surgery, while fellow doctors, nurses, nuns and administrators grapple with challenges at work and in their private lives. In the season opener, "Ten Knots," Edwards lobbies the hospital board to be appointed permanent head of surgery as Barrow and The Knick prepare to move uptown. Though his suspension has been lifted, Gallinger refuses to return as Edwards' subordinate, so he heads to Cromartie Hospital in hopes of getting Thackery to return to work. Lucy's attempts to make amends with Bertie are rebuffed; Cleary schemes to make extra money; Ping Wu demands regular medical checkups for his prostitutes; Speight attempts to trace the origins of a new plague; Cornelia nourishes a quarantined neighborhood in San Francisco.
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On Friday, December 18, 2015 at 10pm ET/PT, Cinemax premiered the Season 2 finale of THE KNICK. In the season ender, "This Is All We Are," Thackery eschews Zinberg's advice at Mt. Sinai and opts for a dramatic, and risky, alternative course of action. Cornelia confronts Henry about his role in the family business; Barrow defends his actions at the hospital construction site; Gallinger considers a job opportunity; Cleary refuses to give up on Harriet.