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* FairForItsDay: Racism, sexism, and social Darwinism were all extremely common in the year 1900. It doesn't make it less horrific, it just makes the setting more plausible.
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The Knick is a medical drama that premiered on {{Cinemax}} in August 2014, and is set in New York in 1900. It stars Creator/CliveOwen as Dr. John 'Thack' Thackery, the cocaine-addicted and casually racist chief of surgery at the Knickerbocker Hospital, who succeeded his mentor and the previous chief, Dr. J.M. Christiansen (MaxHeadroom Matt Frewer). It also stars Andre Holland as Dr. Algernon Edwards, a brilliant and accomplished black surgeon, who joins The Knick as assistant chief of surgery, over Thackery's objections and despite the personal disdain of much of the hospital's all-white staff. Thack's work is overseen by hospital administrator Herman Barrow, a highly competent bureaucrat who conceals an horrifically racist and social Darwinist worldview under a veneer of diplomacy and niceness. Thack and Barrow also have to contend with the wishes of the socially-progressive Miss Cornelia Robertson, who represents her father, Captain Robertson, who is the financially-strapped hospital's primary benefactor.
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The Knick is a medical drama that premiered on {{Cinemax}} in August 2014, and is set in New York in 1900. It stars Creator/CliveOwen as Dr. John 'Thack' Thackery, the cocaine-addicted and casually racist chief of surgery at the Knickerbocker Hospital, who succeeded his mentor and the previous chief, Dr. J.M. Christiansen (MaxHeadroom ([[MaxHeadroom Matt Frewer).Frewer]]). It also stars Andre Holland as Dr. Algernon Edwards, a brilliant and accomplished black surgeon, who joins The Knick as assistant chief of surgery, over Thackery's objections and despite the personal disdain of much of the hospital's all-white staff. Thack's work is overseen by hospital administrator Herman Barrow, a highly competent bureaucrat who conceals an horrifically racist and social Darwinist worldview under a veneer of diplomacy and niceness. Thack and Barrow also have to contend with the wishes of the socially-progressive Miss Cornelia Robertson, who represents her father, Captain Robertson, who is the financially-strapped hospital's primary benefactor.
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The Knick is a medical drama that premiered on {{Cinemax}} in August 2014, and is set in New York in 1900. It stars Creator/CliveOwen as Dr. John 'Thack' Thackery, the cocaine-addicted and casually racist chief of surgery at the Knickerbocker Hospital, who succeeded his mentor and the previous chief, Dr. J.M. Christiansen. It also stars Andre Holland as Dr. Algernon Edwards, a brilliant and accomplished black surgeon, who joins The Knick as assistant chief of surgery, over Thackery's objections and despite the personal disdain of much of the hospital's all-white staff. Thack's work is overseen by hospital administrator Herman Barrow, a highly competent bureaucrat who conceals an horrifically racist and social Darwinist worldview under a veneer of diplomacy and niceness. Thack and Barrow also have to contend with the wishes of the socially-progressive Miss Cornelia Robertson, who represents her father, Captain Robertson, who is the financially-strapped hospital's primary benefactor.
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The Knick is a medical drama that premiered on {{Cinemax}} in August 2014, and is set in New York in 1900. It stars Creator/CliveOwen as Dr. John 'Thack' Thackery, the cocaine-addicted and casually racist chief of surgery at the Knickerbocker Hospital, who succeeded his mentor and the previous chief, Dr. J.M. Christiansen.Christiansen (MaxHeadroom Matt Frewer). It also stars Andre Holland as Dr. Algernon Edwards, a brilliant and accomplished black surgeon, who joins The Knick as assistant chief of surgery, over Thackery's objections and despite the personal disdain of much of the hospital's all-white staff. Thack's work is overseen by hospital administrator Herman Barrow, a highly competent bureaucrat who conceals an horrifically racist and social Darwinist worldview under a veneer of diplomacy and niceness. Thack and Barrow also have to contend with the wishes of the socially-progressive Miss Cornelia Robertson, who represents her father, Captain Robertson, who is the financially-strapped hospital's primary benefactor.
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* ChekhovsGun: Gallinger's decision not to resect [[spoiler: Mr. Gentile's]] bowel leads to the climactic surgery.
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* ChekhovsGun: Gallinger's decision not to resect [[spoiler: Mr. Gentile's]] bowel leads to the climactic surgery.surgery in the pilot.
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* ChekhovsGun: Gallinger's decision not to resect [[spoiler: Mr. Gentile's]] bowel leads to the climactic surgery.
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* NotEvenBotheringWithTheAccent: Played with. It's not clear whether Thack is meant to be American or British, but Clive Owen sounds almost the same as he always does.
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* FightingIrish: Cleary. He uses physical violence and intimidation to steal patients from other hospitals' ambulance drivers. When Cleary brings in a good-paying patient, he gets a cut of the profits.
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* NeverBringAKnifeToAGunFight: Pete the ambulance driver learned this the hard way when Cleary came by to poach their patient. Pete puts up his fists, and Cleary pulls out a baseball bat.
-->'''Cleary''': Now, as to my mind, you can either give us the goods or youse can all travel to the Knick as patients.
-->'''Cleary''': Now, as to my mind, you can either give us the goods or youse can all travel to the Knick as patients.
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* CoolTeacher: Christiansen to Thack. Thack idolized him, and Christiansen appears to have been Thack's mentor. He's also the man who got Thack hooked on cocaine.
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* TheObiWan: Christiansen to Thack.
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->'''Dr. Algernon Edwards''': ''"Is your race listed on your credentials?"''
->'''Dr. John Thackery''': ''"There's no need for it to be."''
->'''Dr. John Thackery''': ''"There's no need for it to be."''
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[[caption-width-right:252:''"[[{{Hamlet}} Though this is madness, yet there is method in't."]]]]
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[[caption-width-right:252:"[[{{Hamlet}} Though this is madness, yet there is method in't."]]]]
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[[caption-width-right:252:''"[[{{Hamlet}} Though this is madness, yet there is method in't."'']]]]
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[[caption-width-right:252:"''[[{{Hamlet}} Though this is madness, yet there is method in't.''"]]]]
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[[caption-width-right:252:''[[{{Hamlet}} Though this is madness, yet there is method in't.]]]]
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* HyperCompetentSidekick: Barrow to Thack and The Knick in general. The Knick is in financial trouble, but Barrow manages to keep it afloat all by himself.
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* BileFascination: Despite being horrified at the risk of paralysis to the patient, Edwards still finds himself compelled to explain how Thack can inject cocaine into a man's spine ''without'' paralyzing him.
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* {{Squick}}: The surgery scenes are extremely graphic. In particular, virtually the first scene of the show is of a pregnant woman bleeding to death.
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* BileFascination: Despite being horrified at the risk of paralysis to the patient, Edwards still finds himself compelled to explain how Thack can inject cocaine into a man's spine ''without'' paralyzing him.
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* MadDoctor: Edwards accuses Thack of being this when he hears Thack's plan to anesthetize [[spoiler: Gentile]] by injecting ''goddamned cocaine into his freaking spine''.
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* MadDoctor: Edwards accuses Thack of being this when he hears Thack's plan to anesthetize [[spoiler: Gentile]] by just after Thack finishes injecting ''goddamned cocaine into his freaking a living person's spine''.
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-->'''Thack''': Thank you ''(walks away)''
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-->'''Thack''': Thank you ''(walks away)''away)''.
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* ItsAllAboutMe: Thack. He's not quite a narcissist, as he does appear to genuinely want to help people, but his main motivation is improving his own reputation. He even makes [[spoiler: Christiansen's]] eulogy about himself.
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* ItsAllAboutMe: Thack. He's not quite a narcissist, as he does appear to genuinely want to help people, but his main motivation is improving his own reputation. He even makes [[spoiler: Christiansen's]] eulogy about himself.''about himself''.
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* JitterCam: Averted. Despite being shot with handhelds, Soderbergh (who is his own cinematographer, going under a PenName) is an exceptional photographer, and so the frame moves just enough to give the show a little additional energy, which is perfect for the hectic setting, but without being particularly noticeable.
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* DeepSouth: Subverted with Nurse Elkins. She has a southern accent, but she's from West Virginia, in the Upper South.
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** Also Miss Robertson, who is determined to assert herself as a businesswoman despite the casual and pervasive sexism she faces at The Knick.
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* FunctionalAddict: Both Thack and Christiansen are dependent on cocaine.
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* FunctionalAddict: Both Thack and Christiansen are dependent on cocaine.cocaine, but it doesn't impact their performance.
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Also in the mix are several supporting characters, including junior surgeons Dr. Everett Gallinger and Dr. Bertram Chickering, Jr, Nurse Lucy Elkins, widwife Sister Harriet, and ambulance driver Cleary.
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Also in the mix are several supporting characters, including junior surgeons Dr. Everett Gallinger and Dr. Bertram Chickering, Jr, Jr., Nurse Lucy Elkins, widwife Sister Harriet, and ambulance driver Cleary.
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Also in the mix are several supporting characters, including junior surgeons Dr. Everett Gallinger and Dr. Bertram Chickering, Jr, Nurse Lucy Elkins, widwife Sister Harriet, and ambulance driver Cleary.
All ten episodes of the first season will be directed by Creator/StevenSoderbergh. The Knick was renewed for a second season of ten episodes before it aired.
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* {{Blackmail}}: Speight blackmails both Barrow and a building owner by threatening, respectively, to send city patients to other hospitals and to report his building for code violations.
* BoisterousBruiser: A negative portrayal in Cleary.
* BoisterousBruiser: A negative portrayal in Cleary.
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* {{Slimeball}}: Jacob Speight is virtually a caricature of a [[PoliticalCartoons Thomas Nast cartoon]]. Cleary is also a scumbag.
* SmugSnake: Again, Speight, especially when he's extorting bribes.
* SmugSnake: Again, Speight, especially when he's extorting bribes.
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The Knick is a medical drama that premiered on Creator/Cinemax in August 2014, and is set in New York in 1900. It stars Creator/CliveOwen as Dr. John 'Thack' Thackery, the cocaine-addicted and casually racist chief of surgery at the Knickerbocker Hospital, who succeeded his mentor and the previous chief, Dr. J.M. Christiansen. It also stars Andre Holland as Dr. Algernon Edwards, a brilliant and accomplished black surgeon, who joins The Knick as assistant chief of surgery, over Thackery's objections and despite the personal disdain of much of the hospital's all-white staff. Thack's work is overseen by hospital administrator Herman Barrow, a highly competent bureaucrat who conceals an horrifically racist and social Darwinist worldview under a veneer of diplomacy and niceness. Thack and Barrow also have to contend with the wishes of the socially-progressive Miss Cornelia Robertson, who represents her father, Captain Robertson, who is the financially-strapped hospital's primary benefactor.
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The Knick is a medical drama that premiered on Creator/Cinemax {{Cinemax}} in August 2014, and is set in New York in 1900. It stars Creator/CliveOwen as Dr. John 'Thack' Thackery, the cocaine-addicted and casually racist chief of surgery at the Knickerbocker Hospital, who succeeded his mentor and the previous chief, Dr. J.M. Christiansen. It also stars Andre Holland as Dr. Algernon Edwards, a brilliant and accomplished black surgeon, who joins The Knick as assistant chief of surgery, over Thackery's objections and despite the personal disdain of much of the hospital's all-white staff. Thack's work is overseen by hospital administrator Herman Barrow, a highly competent bureaucrat who conceals an horrifically racist and social Darwinist worldview under a veneer of diplomacy and niceness. Thack and Barrow also have to contend with the wishes of the socially-progressive Miss Cornelia Robertson, who represents her father, Captain Robertson, who is the financially-strapped hospital's primary benefactor.
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[[caption-width-right:252:''[[{{Hamlet}} Though this is madness, yet there is method in't.]]
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[[caption-width-right:252:''[[{{Hamlet}} Though this is madness, yet there is method in't.]]
]]]]
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Never mind. I guess I figured out indexing and possibly images. Still would like to have a bigger image though.
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[[caption-width-right:252:''[[{{Hamlet}} Though this is madness, yet there is method in't.]]
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* DrJerk: Thack and Gallinger.
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* NiceGuy: Bertie, Nurse Elkins, and Miss Robertson. Bertie, especially, who often concerns himself with apologizing obliquely for the conduct of Thack and Gallinger.
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* PluckyGirl: Lucy Elkins, as seen where Gallinger dispatches her to find Thack, and she immediately sprints off, despite having no idea where he lives or her way around New York in general. Bertie helps her out.
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[[quoteright:252:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_knick_promo_poster_4637.jpg]]
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* ShoutOut: To {{Hamlet}} See MadDoctor, above.
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Planning on creating a characters page and such soon, but I\'m not sure I\'ll be able to figure out how to index them. I have also consistently failed with my attempts to upload usable images, so help on that front would be appreciated.
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* BadassBeard: Not physically {{Badass}}, but Dr. Christiansen is a pioneering surgeon and supports one of the most impressive arrangements of facial hair ever committed to film.
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* BadassBeard: Not physically {{Badass}}, but Dr. Christiansen is a pioneering surgeon and supports sports one of the most impressive arrangements of facial hair ever committed to film.
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-->'''Miss Robertson'': ''(To Sister Harriet)'' If not a little self-aggrandizing.
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-->'''Miss Robertson'': Robertson''': ''(To Sister Harriet)'' If not a little self-aggrandizing.
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The Knick is a medical drama that premiered on Creator/Cinemax in August 2014, and is set in New York in 1900. It stars Creator/CliveOwen as Dr. John 'Thack' Thackery, the cocaine-addicted and casually racist chief of surgery at the Knickerbocker Hospital, who succeeded his mentor and the previous chief, Dr. J.M. Christiansen. It also stars Andre Holland as Dr. Algernon Edwards, a brilliant and accomplished black surgeon, who joins The Knick as assistant chief of surgery, over Thackery's objections and despite the personal disdain of much of the hospital's all-white staff. Thack's work is overseen by hospital administrator Herman Barrow, a highly competent bureaucrat who conceals an horrifically racist and social Darwinist worldview under a veneer of diplomacy and niceness. Thack and Barrow also have to contend with the wishes of the socially-progressive Miss Cornelia Robertson, who represents her father, Captain Robertson, who is the financially-strapped hospital's primary benefactor.
----
* TheAce: Dr. Edwards is in his prime, a graduate of Harvard University, and has worked with some of the foremost surgeons in Europe. He's at least as good a surgeon as anyone at The Knick. And yet all anyone sees is the color of his skin.
* BadassBeard: Not physically {{Badass}}, but Dr. Christiansen is a pioneering surgeon and supports one of the most impressive arrangements of facial hair ever committed to film.
* CircularReasoning: Thack's defense of his racist refusal to hire Dr. Edwards is this. He claims that he refused to hire him because no patient would consent to being treated by a black man, but the only reason people refuse to be treated by black men is because they are racist. Therefore, Thack is essentially arguing that, because of racism, it wasn't racist not to hire a black man because he is black. Miss Robertson points this out, and that they must show people that Edwards is at least as good as any white surgeon. Thack responds:
-->'''Thack''': [[StayInTheKitchen Please, find yourself another hobby]].
* CorruptBureaucrat: New York City health inspector Jacob Speight takes bribes from building owners to let them slide on code violations, and from hospitals, so he'll steer more patients (whose bills are paid by the city) to their wards.
* CrazyEnoughToWork: Thack's decision to anesthetize [[spoiler: Gentile]] with an injection of cocaine into the subarachnoid space between his six and seventh vertebrae.
* DeadpanSnarker: Thack snarks constantly, even ''while he's injecting'' cocaine into a living person's spine. Mind you, this is a procedure that's only ever been tried once, on a dog, and the dog ''died''. Which he also snarks about. In the hearing of the fully-conscious patient.
-->'''Thack''': It's been tried once before, on a Labrador retriever.
-->'''Edwards''': What happened?
-->'''Thack''': There isn't a day that goes by where I don't miss that dog.
* DeliberateValuesDissonance: A ton of it. Barrow is an enthusiastic racist and social Darwinist, while Thack and Gallinger are both extremely resentful of Dr. Edwards on account of his color. The Knick's board are also casually sexist towards Miss Robertson, who has to present a signed copy of her father's proxy in order to participate in the meeting.
* {{Determinator}}: Dr. Algernon Edwards is a black surgeon determined to make it in a white man's world. He is so determined, in fact, that he resolves to remain assistant chief of surgery at The Knick despite being despised by pretty much everyone, after he witnesses Thack successfully save [[spoiler: Gentile]] with his crazy anesthetic solution and a device he invented himself.
-->'''Edwards''': I'm not leaving this circus until I learn everything you have to teach.
* GadgeteerGenius: Thack is a bit of an inventor, designing new medical devices in his spare time.
* FailureHero: Christiansen [[spoiler: killed himself]] after his experimental surgical procedure failed for the ''twelfth'' time, resulting in the loss of both the pregnant mothers and their children.
* {{Flashback}}: Thack has a flashback to when Christiansen introduced him to cocaine.
* FunctionalAddict: Both Thack and Christiansen are dependent on cocaine.
* HistoricalDomainCharacter: Both Christiansen and Thack incorporate elements of real-life pioneering surgeon [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Stewart_Halsted William Stewart Halstead]], who invented many new surgical techniques and aggressively promoted aseptic surgery. He was also one of four founders of Johns Hopkins University Hospital, one of the best hospitals in the world, attached to ''the'' best medical school in the world. He was also dependent on cocaine and morphine for his entire professional life.
* HookersAndBlow: The very first shot of the show is of a coked-out Thack sleeping it off in Chinatown brothel.
* HumansAreSpecial: Thack and Christiansen firmly believe this.
* ItsAllAboutMe: Thack. He's not quite a narcissist, as he does appear to genuinely want to help people, but his main motivation is improving his own reputation. He even makes [[spoiler: Christiansen's]] eulogy about himself.
-->'''Miss Robertson''': Lovely eulogy, Dr. Thackery.
-->'''Thack''': Thank you ''(walks away)''
-->'''Miss Robertson'': ''(To Sister Harriet)'' If not a little self-aggrandizing.
* MadDoctor: Edwards accuses Thack of being this when he hears Thack's plan to anesthetize [[spoiler: Gentile]] by injecting ''goddamned cocaine into his freaking spine''.
-->'''Edwards''': ''(To Chickering)'' He's a madman.
-->'''Thack''': [[ArcWords Though this is madness,]] [[{{Hamlet}} yet there is method in't]].
* MedicalHorror: The surgeries are so explicit, the show verges on this. Still, assuming the show is accurate about the level of medical knowledge in 1900, it's sometimes amazing how much they actually ''do'' know. Many viewers will recognize terms and other medical elements from modern medical dramas.
* PoliticallyIncorrectHero: Thack is an excellent surgeon, but is unabashedly racist.
* PlotTriggeringDeath: [[spoiler: Christiansen's suicide]].
* TheSocialDarwinist: Herman Barrow.
-->'''Barrow''': The poor are just weaker than us.
* {{Squick}}: The surgery scenes are extremely graphic. In particular, virtually the first scene of the show is of a pregnant woman bleeding to death.
* StayInTheKitchen: Most male characters have this reaction to Miss Robertson's exercising proxy for her ailing father.
* WeHardlyKnewYe: [[spoiler: Christiansen]] kills himself in the first five minutes of the show. If later scenes are any indication, however, we may be treated to some flashbacks.
----
* TheAce: Dr. Edwards is in his prime, a graduate of Harvard University, and has worked with some of the foremost surgeons in Europe. He's at least as good a surgeon as anyone at The Knick. And yet all anyone sees is the color of his skin.
* BadassBeard: Not physically {{Badass}}, but Dr. Christiansen is a pioneering surgeon and supports one of the most impressive arrangements of facial hair ever committed to film.
* CircularReasoning: Thack's defense of his racist refusal to hire Dr. Edwards is this. He claims that he refused to hire him because no patient would consent to being treated by a black man, but the only reason people refuse to be treated by black men is because they are racist. Therefore, Thack is essentially arguing that, because of racism, it wasn't racist not to hire a black man because he is black. Miss Robertson points this out, and that they must show people that Edwards is at least as good as any white surgeon. Thack responds:
-->'''Thack''': [[StayInTheKitchen Please, find yourself another hobby]].
* CorruptBureaucrat: New York City health inspector Jacob Speight takes bribes from building owners to let them slide on code violations, and from hospitals, so he'll steer more patients (whose bills are paid by the city) to their wards.
* CrazyEnoughToWork: Thack's decision to anesthetize [[spoiler: Gentile]] with an injection of cocaine into the subarachnoid space between his six and seventh vertebrae.
* DeadpanSnarker: Thack snarks constantly, even ''while he's injecting'' cocaine into a living person's spine. Mind you, this is a procedure that's only ever been tried once, on a dog, and the dog ''died''. Which he also snarks about. In the hearing of the fully-conscious patient.
-->'''Thack''': It's been tried once before, on a Labrador retriever.
-->'''Edwards''': What happened?
-->'''Thack''': There isn't a day that goes by where I don't miss that dog.
* DeliberateValuesDissonance: A ton of it. Barrow is an enthusiastic racist and social Darwinist, while Thack and Gallinger are both extremely resentful of Dr. Edwards on account of his color. The Knick's board are also casually sexist towards Miss Robertson, who has to present a signed copy of her father's proxy in order to participate in the meeting.
* {{Determinator}}: Dr. Algernon Edwards is a black surgeon determined to make it in a white man's world. He is so determined, in fact, that he resolves to remain assistant chief of surgery at The Knick despite being despised by pretty much everyone, after he witnesses Thack successfully save [[spoiler: Gentile]] with his crazy anesthetic solution and a device he invented himself.
-->'''Edwards''': I'm not leaving this circus until I learn everything you have to teach.
* GadgeteerGenius: Thack is a bit of an inventor, designing new medical devices in his spare time.
* FailureHero: Christiansen [[spoiler: killed himself]] after his experimental surgical procedure failed for the ''twelfth'' time, resulting in the loss of both the pregnant mothers and their children.
* {{Flashback}}: Thack has a flashback to when Christiansen introduced him to cocaine.
* FunctionalAddict: Both Thack and Christiansen are dependent on cocaine.
* HistoricalDomainCharacter: Both Christiansen and Thack incorporate elements of real-life pioneering surgeon [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Stewart_Halsted William Stewart Halstead]], who invented many new surgical techniques and aggressively promoted aseptic surgery. He was also one of four founders of Johns Hopkins University Hospital, one of the best hospitals in the world, attached to ''the'' best medical school in the world. He was also dependent on cocaine and morphine for his entire professional life.
* HookersAndBlow: The very first shot of the show is of a coked-out Thack sleeping it off in Chinatown brothel.
* HumansAreSpecial: Thack and Christiansen firmly believe this.
* ItsAllAboutMe: Thack. He's not quite a narcissist, as he does appear to genuinely want to help people, but his main motivation is improving his own reputation. He even makes [[spoiler: Christiansen's]] eulogy about himself.
-->'''Miss Robertson''': Lovely eulogy, Dr. Thackery.
-->'''Thack''': Thank you ''(walks away)''
-->'''Miss Robertson'': ''(To Sister Harriet)'' If not a little self-aggrandizing.
* MadDoctor: Edwards accuses Thack of being this when he hears Thack's plan to anesthetize [[spoiler: Gentile]] by injecting ''goddamned cocaine into his freaking spine''.
-->'''Edwards''': ''(To Chickering)'' He's a madman.
-->'''Thack''': [[ArcWords Though this is madness,]] [[{{Hamlet}} yet there is method in't]].
* MedicalHorror: The surgeries are so explicit, the show verges on this. Still, assuming the show is accurate about the level of medical knowledge in 1900, it's sometimes amazing how much they actually ''do'' know. Many viewers will recognize terms and other medical elements from modern medical dramas.
* PoliticallyIncorrectHero: Thack is an excellent surgeon, but is unabashedly racist.
* PlotTriggeringDeath: [[spoiler: Christiansen's suicide]].
* TheSocialDarwinist: Herman Barrow.
-->'''Barrow''': The poor are just weaker than us.
* {{Squick}}: The surgery scenes are extremely graphic. In particular, virtually the first scene of the show is of a pregnant woman bleeding to death.
* StayInTheKitchen: Most male characters have this reaction to Miss Robertson's exercising proxy for her ailing father.
* WeHardlyKnewYe: [[spoiler: Christiansen]] kills himself in the first five minutes of the show. If later scenes are any indication, however, we may be treated to some flashbacks.
