| Leave It to Weaver (season premiere) | Two doctors, Luka Kovac (Goran Visnjic) and Cleo Finch (Michael Michele), join the staff, and Rebecca De Mornay makes an appearance as Carter's cousin's ex-wife, whom Carter treats following a fender bender. But it's the aftermath of another accident---a truck crash through a coffee-shop window---that fills the ER with patients. Amid the ensuing turmoil, Greene and Weaver (Laura Innes) try to find out if the rumors are true that Romano (Paul McCrane) is being named the new chief of staff.
| Last Rites | Romano makes a surprising promotion; Greene and Weaver clash over a young woman being resuscitated; Carter and Malucci (Erik Palladino) help in a construction-site accident; Elaine (Rebecca De Mornay) receives some disturbing news; Jeanie (Gloria Reuben) seeks to gain custody of a baby with HIV.
| Lawrence of Northwestern | Alan Alda makes his first appearance as surgeon Gabriel Lawrence, an old friend of Weaver's who joins the staff as an attending physician. Lawrence arrives at the hospital and, almost immediately, he's splattered with the blood of a stabbing victim and snaps on a pair of gloves to assist in the ER. When he meets Dr. Greene (Anthony Edwards), the younger doctor showers the accomplished surgeon with compliments. But the two physicians later clash when Lawrence takes the liberty of discharging one of Greene's patients. Meanwhile, Kovac suspects a case of spousal abuse, and the ER is the scene of a gun battle.
| Sins of the Father | Lawrence (Alan Alda) again clashes with Greene; Hathaway helps a pregnant waitress (Martha Plimplton); a little girl being treated by Finch (Michael Michele) disrupts the ER; Malucci (Erik Palladino) has problems with insensitivity.
| Truth & Consequences | Doctors deal with the aftermath of a high-school science-class explosion; Lawrence (Alan Alda) loses his temper; Elaine (Rebecca De Mornay) says goodbye to Carter.
| The Peace of Wild Things | Victims of a nursing-home fire are treated; Weaver (Laura Innes) checks up on why Lawrence (Alan Alda) left his last position; Hathaway takes a drastic step in dealing with Meg (Martha Plimpton); there's an explosion in the suture room.
| Humpty Dumpty | Corday (Alex Kingston) goes to the scene of a car crash; a bus accident injures a choir and its leader; Lawrence (Alan Alda) saves a life; a teen is tested for drugs.
| Great Expectations | Hathaway gives birth to twins in this exceptionally strong episode. On an elevated-train platform, Hathaway (Julianna Margulies) goes into labor. Fortunately, Kovac (Goran Visnjic) happens by and helps her to the hospital, where she's determined not to have her babies in the ER. Her Lamaze coach, Dr. Greene (Anthony Edwards), is needed, causing him to bow out of Thanksgiving dinner at Corday's condo. That leaves the British-born doctor (Alex Kingston) playing awkward hostess to Greene's daughter (Yvonne Zima) and his cantankerous dad (John Cullum). Complications ensue---in both Corday's meal and Hathaway's delivery.
| How the Finch Stole Christmas | Six sick Santas have a less-than-merry Christmas, and Hathaway brings in one of her twins to be checked. Also, Corday (Alex Kingston) tries to persuade a patient to undergo an operation and Finch deals with a teen's drinking problem.
| Family Matters | Ming-Na returns as Dr. Chen; Kovac treats two young brothers (Brian Hooks, Andre Fogenay Wilson) living on their own; other patients include a Jane Doe, and two athletic students.
| The Domino Heart | Greene is concerned about a gay couple's abusive relationship; a daughter (Diane Baker) wants her elderly mother admitted; a fever may prevent a heart transplant; a water shortage complicates matters; Hathaway returns to work.
| Abby Road | A new med student starts in the ER during an outbreak of flu cases in this well-scripted episode. Abby Lockhart (Maura Tierney), a third-year med student, has an awkward beginning to her ER rotation when Hathaway recalls Abby as the nurse who helped in the delivery of her second twin and mistakenly thinks that she's switching nursing assignments. Meanwhile, Romano and Benton (Paul McCrane, Eriq La Salle) clash over a scheduled surgery; a young mother (Giuliana Santini) seeks help for her baby; two teens (Shia LaBeouf, Christopher Marquette) are treated following a school altercation; and Corday's mother (Judy Parfitt) comes to town.
| Be Still My Heart | A tension-filled Valentine's Day ends with an alarming twist in this well-scripted episode. Among the dramas that unfold: Lucy (Kellie Martin) tries to treat a law student (David Krumholtz) who's had a headache for two days; Malucci and Chen argue about a patient (Lenny Wolpe); two children arrive in the ER with their parents, who were badly injured in a car crash; an elderly woman (Amzie Strickland) returns to the scene of her husband's passing; and Greene's father (John Cullum) meets Corday's mother (Judy Parfitt). But just as the staff tries to wind down and begin its Valentine's Day party, an unexpected occurrence puts two of their lives in jeopardy.
| All in the Family | Several staff members work to save the lives of two employees who were victims of a patient who's still on the loose.
| Be Patient | Kovac witnesses a hit-and-run and rushes the young victim to the hospital in a plumber's truck; two teenage girls want to be checked for a sexually transmitted disease; Corday's mother (Judy Parfitt) and Greene's father (John Cullum) deepen their relationship.
| Under Control | Greene's in charge for a busy shift that sees Carter returning to work and numerous patients, including a male nurse (Morris Chestnut) being treated for having fainted.
| Viable Options | Various would-be recipients are in line for an organ transplant; Weaver disregards an order from Romano because she feels sorry for a patient's mother (Patty McCormack); Greene and Corday clash over his father's treatment.
| A Match Made in Heaven | Patients include a woman with five children, a 16-year-old (Matt Doherty) who had a car accident and a worker Carter thinks is faking an injury.
| The Fastest Year | As Weaver returns to work, Greene's father develops pneumonia; a 5-year-old's leukemia returns; an elderly couple come in for treatment; Kovac helps Hathaway buy a used car.
| Loose Ends | Greene takes time off to tend to his father (John Cullum) at home; Hathaway's distracted, which interferes with her work; Malucci cares for a young incest victim.
| Such Sweet Sorrow | After six seasons as nurse Carol Hathaway, Julianna Margulies made her final appearance as a series regular in this poignant episode, which features a cameo by George Clooney. The episode finds Hathaway reaching a crossroads in her life after she revives a "do not resuscitate" cancer patient (Rachel Singer) to allow the woman to spend a few last moments with her family. In other storylines, Greene decides to spend more time with his daughter (Yvonne Zima); and Corday assesses Malucci's performance.
| May Day (season finale) | According to co-executive producer Jack Orman, who wrote the script, the focus of this episode "involves Carter (Noah Wyle) and his personal struggles, [leading] to a crisis and confrontation with the staff." As the hour begins, Orman says, "Benton and Kovac (Eriq LaSalle, Goran Visnjic) are flown by helicopter to a grade school, where there's a shooting incident that is not yet contained. Gunmen are still at large, and Benton and Kovac are in intense conflict over who they need to transport first"---a young victim or a wounded shooter. | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
