DOPESICK (S1E7) “Black Box Warning”: It’s All Crashing Down

Dopesick is rapidly reaching its conclusion, with only one episode left, “Black Box Warning” not only began to deliver the final punches, but began to bring closure to some. “Hammer the Abusers” found many of its characters struggling, both for recovery and justice, the final moments leaving our hearts pouring empathy and feeling joy as DEA Agent Bridget Meyer (Rosario Dawson) cries “I got you” into a mirror – almost feeling as though she was speaking to us.

Where the first half of the series opened with jaw-dropping moments that would be staples of the epidemic, “Hammer the Abusers” and here give both the feeling of rigidity and cold aspects of corporations – and the face that sells what it is making. “Black Box Warning” opens with a Sackler (Kenneth Tigar) addressing Congress, speaking to the revolutionary change pain medication could bring. There is a height as he sells the future to congress, viewers looking on with a knowledge of not only the success but also the epic failure that is to come in the pursuit of curing pain. It was important for Dopesick to provide viewers with this view, bookending the episode, its inclusion giving a broader picture to the entire scope the miniseries has attempted to capture.

Gone but Never Forgotten

As viewers are given a broader corporate perspective, “Black Box Warning” does not wait long to return to the victims, continuing its promise to keep their memory alive. At the conclusion of episode 6, viewers found Betsy (Kaitlyn Dever) struggling to stay clean, her constant battle evident even after the devout time spent in prayer and exertion. As she finds OxyContin becoming more and more difficult to acquire, she is offered a solution – heroin. It’s cheaper and easier to come by. As the previous episode created a methodology for finding deaths from OxyContin, the struggle of identifying the cause of death between this drug and others was made starkly apparent.

As you watch Betsy give into heroin at the conclusion of “Hammer the Abuser”, now in “Black Box Warning” watching her mother desperately looking for her in the same alley (finding her passed out from a high), there is a deeper sense of empathy that Dopesick is able to draw out of audiences. As you see Betsy struggle with her recovery, you feel for her as she begins to find other means to satisfy her cravings – this empathy extending to all those affected. Dopesick does not stick with only Betsy, however, providing another perspective to the road to recovery as well. As we saw in episode 6, Finnix (Michael Keaton) too was struggling with his recovery following rehab, his battle causing him to seek out treatment through the prescribed use of methadone. But it wasn’t just his fight against addiction, but also the internal battle with his grief and regret. In “Black Box Warning”, viewers find Finnix on the other side of the spectrum from Betsy, undergoing therapy and embracing a new form of treatment through Suboxone. But with each step forward he takes, the push against abusers continues.

Two steps forward, one step back

As the DEA Agent Meyer and assistant attorneys Rick Mountcastle (Peter Sarsgaard) and Randy Ramseyer (John Hoogenakker) continue their fight against Purdue, short-lived victories are just that – short-lived. With each step forward in their battle for justice they make, they find themselves taking steps backward, having to rework their approach and direction. Yet, as much as they have been struggling to make their case, the tables are finally turning and this is the first episode we see the Sackler family sweat.

With the FDA reconsidering the label placed on OxyContin years earlier, the Sackler family and Purdue Pharma are facing the addition of the Black Box warning label – meaning the drug carries serious safety risks. The label would be a blow to Purdue Pharma for not only their upcoming releases of the drug but for everything they had built up to. As the inclusion seems inevitable, Richard Sackler (Michael Stuhlbarg) hits the ground running, determined to not only commit to damage control but to ensure the existence of OxyContin for a long time. While Dopesick has been building up the idea of corporate capitalism through money and greed, “Black Box Warning” truly drives this home, showing the darkest colors of green yet.

Conclusion: One More Episode Left

Dopesick is not without its struggles, its sadness, and its resilience. While fictitious, based on true events, its story has encompassed layers of an epidemic that is still being fought today. With one episode left, the bricks are starting to fall, culminating in the court proceedings the entire series has been alluding to.

New episodes of Dopesick streaming on Hulu every Wednesday!