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Gun violence. Racial bias. Anti-vaxxers. Opioid abuse. Abortion access. Mental health. A national nursing shortage. Understaffed hospitals. Lasting effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. And an overwhelmed emergency medicine system. These are just a few of the many topical issues tackled in Season 1 of “The Pitt,” Max’s hit word-of-mouth hospital drama that couldn’t have arrived at a better time.

I remember when I finally started watching the show earlier this year, shortly after its Jan. 9 premiere, and having doubts that a show whose entire season takes place during one 15-hour, stress-inducing shift at the Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center could pull off such an elaborate plot.

That uncertainty quickly melted away once I saw more people talking about “The Pitt” online, week after week. Much of that buzz has to do with the TV drama’s of-the-moment appeal and an impressive performance from “ER” alum Noah Wyle, who scrubs back in to play lead man in charge, Dr. Michael “Robby” Robinavitch.

Unlike most scripted medical shows that hinge on the melodrama of a chatty hospital staff, “The Pitt” found the perfect balance between that and addressing society’s most pressing issues, all while being an unusually spot-on depiction of a swamped emergency department. The show’s refreshing realism is one of its many superpowers. That, and heaps of empathy for the fractured state of American health care, which is much needed for the turbulent times we’re living through.

The result of this televised catharsis? Rightfully earned praise, a rabid following of Pitt crew fanatics and bragging rights to being the most essential medical drama of the year — perhaps the decade.

Season 1’s Thursday finale cemented that acclaim for “The Pitt,” which finally brought its tumultuous day of critical patients, personal crises and a devastating mass shooting to a close, albeit a bittersweet one. The show traded in another abrupt cliffhanger — like Dana (Katherine LaNasa) getting decked in the face by a patient, or McKay (Fiona Dourif) getting handcuffed in the ER, or Langdon (Patrick Ball) getting thrown out the hospital for stealing patient meds — for a calm conclusion where everybody on the day shift clocks out in peace (mostly). But that doesn’t mean everything gets wrapped with a neat little bow.

The PittFest shooting fiasco is finally over, with most of the patients (the ones who survived, anyway) in stable condition; McKay is free to go, although her ankle monitor is a different story. The deathly ill measles kid with anti-vax parents finally gets his spinal tap — after Robby took the kid’s father on a bleak trip to the patient morgue; Doug Driscoll (Drew Powell) finally gets arrested for punching Dana; and, after finding out Whitaker (Gerran Howell) is essentially homeless and living at the hospital, Santos (Isa Briones) redeems her villain arc of the season by offering her coworker a place to stay.

But still, after an unbelievably chaotic shift, Dana seems ready to call it quits at PTMC for good. And Langdon’s job still hangs in the balance after an intense shouting match with Robby, who’s on the verge of having another mental breakdown — especially after his stepson Jake (Taj Speights) told him to “fuck off,” still blaming Robby for his girlfriend Leah’s death.

The end of “The Pitt” finale mirrors the start of Episode 1, with Robby and his pal Abbott (Shawn Hatosy) having another come-to-Jesus moment on the hospital roof, only this time Robby is the one teetering on the edge. We’ve been wondering if he has the mental capacity to handle another uncontrollable shift like this all season. Robby seems just as unclear when the crew gathers at the nearby park to toast beer cans for making it through their day. But if the new residents can survive their first mass casualty event — the worst one in Pittsburgh history, mind you, according to Robby — on Day 1 on the job, maybe there’s still hope for the senior attending yet.

Obviously, there is still much to be resolved on “The Pitt,” but we can rest assured knowing (some form of) the Pitt crew will return for their next shift in the already green-lit Season 2, set to premiere in January. Fans are already anticipating the show’s return after its flawless finale, which is still getting praised on social media:

Seeing the impact “The Pitt” has made in so little time is astounding. And not just on avid viewers who enjoy adrenaline-fueled TV dramas and incredibly detailed medical procedurals, but the entire nation’s health-care system, especially those who work in it.

“It’s the first time that I’ve watched doctors on television that I felt like I could see myself in them,” Michigan physician Tricia Pendergrast told The New York Times in February. Many doctors and health-care workers who tune into “The Pitt” share a similar sentiment, which was the whole point of launching the series, according to executive producer John Wells.

“The show is extremely realistic, very well-researched. Lots of physicians are involved, and the response that we’re getting from all of the people who work in emergency medicine is, ‘This is exactly what it’s like,’” he told Variety.

“What we’re trying to tell [viewers] is, ’This is what we ask these people to do, and we need to be conscious of what their needs are because we’re ignoring a lot of the things that are going on,” Wells added. “‘We need to provide them with the tools to do this job because we’re asking them to do something that’s very difficult.’”

The moral compass of “The Pitt” — plus its strong ensemble cast and raw portrayals of hospital life — will likely take it very far in TV land (not talking about awards here, although they’d be well deserved). This show could potentially set a precedent for future TV series that aren’t a reboot, remake, existing franchise IP or any other gimmick-fueled piece of programming to see massive success.

At the end of the day, what people seem to appreciate most is original and authentic storytelling, and “The Pitt” is loaded with it. Hopefully, they’ll keep giving it to us for years to come.

All episodes of “The Pitt” Season 1 are now streaming on Max.

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