So I dunno if you watch that TV show house... it's generally pretty formulaic, but having House stuck in a mental ward was interesting... Especially Andre Braugher (from homicide) making a pretty good psychiatrist
If you haven't seen the first episode of season 6 then some spoilers follow...
Basically, as you may or may not know, clark 8 is named after a mental ward on the 8th floor of st. luke's roosevelt hospital at 114th and Amsterdam ave in Manhattan. I've personally had 6 manic episodes that resulted in hospitalization, so I guess I know a bit about what it's like
House gets stuck in a mental ward to rehab him off of vicodin, which is pretty reasonable, here's an analysis of some plot points:
a) Lin Miranda does a really good job of portraying a rapping, manic person... you'd be surprised how much freestyling goes on in a mental ward. I've only met one really good rapper in a mental ward, but a lot of people get to tossing around words when they get manic or psychotic.
b) Not swallowing your pills, that just about never works. They will open your mouth and check.
c) Getting 5mg of haldol... once again, you wouldn't get that as a pill, you'd get that as an intramuscular injection if you're fighting. You'd be out in 10 minutes or less. Pretty crazy waking up after that in new surroundings, wondering how you got there.
d) Not getting with the program... House eventually gets out when he starts going along with things... that's generally how it works. In CA and NY you usually have a 'hold' put on you, for example the 5150 (in CA) is a 3 day hold. If you are better in less than 3 days they'll let you go, otherwise you get a 5250 and you get another 14 days to get better. It's a bear to get out earlier, but it can happen... one time I got a 5150 followed by a couple days, but they luckily weren't part of a longer hold. In Clark 8 I got a 3 day followed by a 14 day, ending up with 17 days in... a total trip... leading me to name the band after it.
e) people not talking but then doing interesting talented stuff. this sort of thing happens too... there was one girl who didn't talk much at all in one of the wards, and then they put some music on during/after med time and she started doing all this ballerina stuff effortlessly. pretty cool stuff.
Ok, that's my analysis of a TV show... something I don't do often, but the subject matter is something I'm a bit too familiar with.
COME CHECK OUT ME AND WHITMAN ON TOUR!
best,
rich