The Pitt,” on HBO’s streaming platform Max, is a weekly medical drama that emulates the kind of shows that have long been — and remain — a staple on network TV. It’s an instructive blueprint for other streamers to follow suit.

A medical drama going for bracing realism is anchored by a strong central performance from a veteran TV doctor.

It’s nigh impossible for a new American emergency room medical drama not to be compared to the enduring prime-time hit ER. Once the gurneys come crashing through the door with bloodied patients and the doctors start making life and death diagnoses on the spot,