Sumith Prasad
The seventh episode of NBC’s medical series ‘New Amsterdam’ season 5 centers around the aftermath of the overturning of Roe v. Wade. Max Goodwin and others deal with the Supreme Court decision in several ways. Max tries to set up a floating abortion clinic for a fellow doctor while Ignatius “Iggy” Frome tries to protect a patient from an anti-abortion protestor. Elizabeth Wilder recommends abortion to an anti-abortionist to save the latter’s life. But the most affecting moment of the episode has to be Lauren Bloom’s revelation that she had two abortions in her life. Did one of them happen when she was seeing Floyd Reynolds? Let’s find out! SPOILERS AHEAD.
Why Did Lauren Bloom Abort Reynolds’ Baby?
Lauren Bloom did have an abortion while she was having a casual relationship with Floyd Reynolds. She did have the same without informing him as well. When the cardiovascular surgeon argues with Bloom that she aborted their baby without letting him know, the latter retorts that it was just an embryo to call it a baby, indicating that she moved forward with the abortion soon after getting pregnant. Since Bloom’s abortion is her choice, she never bothered to tell Reynolds, until it became a relevant subject in the wake of the overturning of Roe v. Wade.
When Bloom and Reynolds were having a fling, the former wanted more from their relationship. She even expresses the same to Reynolds, who discourages her wish to build a life with him. At that point in his life, Reynolds wanted to find a partner who would have been accepted by his conservative family, especially his mother. He has always known that sharing his life with a White woman will be the last thing his mother will approve of, which makes him reject Bloom. He candidly makes it clear that she is not part of his future.
When Bloom got pregnant, she must have considered welcoming her and Reynolds’ baby to the world. But she knew that she didn’t want to raise a child whose father didn’t want to accept her as a significant part of his life. Bloom didn’t want to become an “accidental mother” who unintentionally would have burdened Reynolds with their baby. Thus, she chose abortion. As far as she is concerned, she doesn’t have any obligation to let Reynolds know about the same since she was making a decision that only concerns her body and health.
Through Bloom’s abortion, the writers of the show wanted to emphasize that abortion is a matter that concerns only the mother, making it clear that not even the state should have a say in it. “It was very clear early on that we wanted one of our characters to have had an abortion and… to have had it not be a big deal in their life. That was like super important to Shanthi and to all the women in the room to, basically, showcase that this isn’t a big deal,” executive producer Aaron Ginsburg told TVLine about the foundation of Bloom’s abortion storyline.
“This [abortion] is a life decision that should be between a woman and her medical provider. And so we decided we can use that experience and her [Bloom’s] relationship with Reynolds to showcase [that] and how a man can best be an ally,” Ginsburg added. Bloom’s revelation, which concerns her abortion, paves the way for an intimate moment between her and Reynolds. However, he will only be supporting her as a friend and colleague, revealed Ginsburg in the same interview.
“We talked about what we wanted their [Bloom and Reynolds’] final season journeys to be, and it [their union] wasn’t at the top of the list at the end of the day. We wanted to dive more into what it means to be a family this season for all the characters,” Ginsburg further added.
Read More: Do Max and Elizabeth Wilder Get Together in New Amsterdam? Theories
