Scrubs: My Moving On

After 8 seasons, Scrubs aired its final episode (in its original form; there is a chance it could come back as a sort-of-spinoff of itself next year featuring the new interns as the leads and characters like Turk, Carla, and Dr. Cox in background roles) last night. There were a few less-than-great episodes (I'm looking at you, "My Night To Remember"), and Season 7 was not up to par with the rest of the series, but overall, the show was a great comedy. It was one of the first half-hour comedies shot in single camera and without a laugh track, and it paved the way for shows like Arrested Development and 30 Rock. The series (sort of) finale won't go down as one of the best TV finales ever (I'd have to think about it for a few minutes, but off the top of my head, that award goes to Arrested Development or Six Feet Under), but it was a good enough send off of J.D., Dr. Kelso, and possibly the rest of the Scrubs cast.

J.D. spent most of the episode trying to get the goodbye he felt he deserved from the staff of Sacred Heart Hospital, but while Turk and Carla each gave him their own special goodbyes, no one else saw the day as important in the way J.D. did. Elliot was sad she wouldn't be working with her boyfriend anymore, but they would still be together. The interns (Sunny and Denise were the only ones present, and I would really have liked to see Howie not care or Katie show J.D. her true self because she would no longer have to suck up to him) were somewhat put off by J.D.'s man-child ways, and most of the rest of the hospital staff went about their day as usual. Dr. Cox was his callous self, though he was appreciative of the gift J.D. gave him. And Dr. Kelso put everything in perspective for J.D. Kelso may be the character who has changed the most on the show; he began the show as a cold villain, and although he never lost some of his darker traits, they were explained, and his human side was shown. Anyway, he explained to J.D. that life goes on and one person rarely ever makes such a big difference to merit what J.D. was looking for. Then again, Dr. Cox eventually told us what he really thinks of J.D., and that, maybe, J.D. did make such a difference.

I really wish that I had actually said this to someone or written it in this blog (I joked to a friend that predictions that aren't made out loud or in writing are invalid), but I was thinking about what the Janitor's name could be, and Glenn was something that I considered. Bill Lawrence also created a cartoon called Clone High, and with the exception of Judy Reyes and Ken Jenkins, nearly every major Scrubs cast member contributed at least one voice. Neil Flynn voiced a janitor named Glenn in one episode who was the complete opposite of his Scrubs character; he was kind, helpful, and he actually cleaned up. Then again, Glenn may not actually be the Janitor's name.

Finally, the last scene, in which J.D. walked down the corridor and saw numerous former patients and co-workers, then saw a possible montage of what his life COULD become was very moving and uplifting (especially the scene with adult Sam and Izzie), though I will admit that my fiction-sadistic side came out when J.D. mused that maybe, just once, his fantasy could come true (I thought he was going to be killed by a car accident). Instead, we saw him drive off into an unknown future. As I said, not a perfect ending, but one that fit the show.

Up next: Send in the clones...

Scrubs: My Supermen Return

After a subpar (by Scrubs standards) seventh season, it looks like Scrubs is getting back into form. I don't know if the writers felt rushed last year because of the impending strike or network mandates made writing difficult (the show was required to do a "green" episode, requiring it to have an environmental-friendly message, which was probably the worst of the season, and I got the feeling that NBC no longer had any love for the show), but things just didn't work. J.D.'s abrupt break-up with Kim didn't feel right, Turk learning Spanish didn't have the emotional impact it should have, and Dr. Kelso's forced retirement happened before the characters could truly appreciate what had actually happened (also, the so-called "series finale" was blatantly aired out of order, because Kelso was still Chief in it). The one part of the season I really enjoyed was Josephine, the fun-sized intern because of the way Cox hated her but couldn't help but love her (and her voice was hilarious).

But this year, everything is clicking again. Kelso's new role as the annoying guy that everyone wishes would go away, even though he gives out sage advice is hilarious, and Cox's role as the new Chief of Medicince is a great way to explore new relationships. The episode "My New Role" really caught me by surprise; the title led us to believe that it was referring to Cox's role as Chief, but the title actually refers to J.D. (I won't explain why, though). I will admit that I really didn't want J.D. and Elliot to get back together because of what happened at the end of Season 3, but the writers are handling it well (and they acknowledged those events, which placated me a little).

It looks like the writers are moving towards a planned ending that should tie everything up nicely. The characters have certainly grown over these past eight years while remaining true to who they are at their core, and it is going to be interesting to see how everything ends.

Up next: Looking for a home...

The List: #14 Scrubs

#14
Number of Seasons (To Date): 7
Years Active: 2001 - Present
Network: NBC

Possibly one of the most underappreciated shows on television, Scrubs follows the daily goings-on at a hospital. But unlike most medical shows on TV, the preceding statement is pretty accurate. There isn't a medical crisis every week; instead, the series looks at the lifestyle of a hospital as well as what it's like treating patients who aren't constantly at death's door.

Scrubs has its fair share of fantasy to go along with the major dose of reality it presents; lead character J.D. is a daydreamer, and we are treated to onscreen views of his bizarre fantasies. It doesn't take much to send him off into the twisted world of his head (just mentioning the name Alice made him wander into The Brady Bunch), which is a good thing for us, since nearly 100% of these sequences are laugh-out-loud hilarious.

The entire cast is hilarious, and they appear to have wonderful chemistry. Some features on the DVD sets give us evidence that improvisation is allowed on the set (alternate line readings are featured, and they are often as good as what made it into the show), and good improv would not be possible without a cast that didn't get along.

Sadly, this show has barely gotten by these past seven years; the audience seems to have been just big enough to sustain the series for another year. The most recent season wasn't as good as the ones that have come before it, but it was still very enjoyable. However, it was supposed to be the final year, until the writers' strike occurred, and though NBC kept their promise that it would be the final year on NBC, ABC has picked up the series to do a proper send-off.

Up next: #13...

Scrubs: My Supermen

Wow. Sorry for the lapse between posts. I've been in Buffy and Angel overdrive lately (I'm not sure whether I should label my quick progress as sad or impressive). Anyway, the humor of Scrubs would be nothing without the incredible ensemble cast. Each character and actor has their own unique contribution to the show, which allows everyone to be as funny and/or dramatic as they can, without stepping on other people's toes. Each character has a role to play at the beginning, and these parts believably evolve over the course of the series, based on experiences and interactions.

Zach Braff's J.D. is a quirky man-child prone to bizarre fantasies and goofy mannerisms. One of the first things we ever see him do is make a shaving cream bra for himself before coming in to work on his first day at Sacred Heart Hospital. He and his best friend Chris Turk (usually just called Turk) are portrayed as being as close to a couple as possible without either of them actually being gay, and J.D. is definitely the girl of the relationship. His man-childishness extends beyond the whimsical; J.D. is a great doctor, but he needs to learn how to be comfortable being himself. He is often needy and cannot keep his romantic relationship going, usually due to silly reasons (I know this sounds like a traditional sitcom, but Scrubs rises above these trappings through great writing). Turk is the yang to J.D.'s yin; whereas J.D. can be a little too emotional, Turk tries to hide his feelings and project a macho exterior. Fortunately, this disguise is thin at best, and Turk's true geeky nature often shines through (remember when he couldn't resist calling Billy Dee Williams "Lando", much to Williams' chagrin?), and while it is funny to see Turk failing to be ubermanly, he is at his best when he is being himself. Elliot Reid, who is a woman despite what her name suggests, is the third new employee at Sacred Heart. Elliot and J.D. are internal medicine interns (while Turk is a surgeon), and there is a bit of a friendly (usually) rivalry between the two. Like J.D., Elliot is nervous as hell about her life as a doctor, but unlike J.D., her approach to survival in the hospital is much different. And with doctors like Cox and Kelso as her superiors, "survival" isn't hyperbole, but more on them later. Whereas J.D. gets the hang of things relatively quickly, Elliot's insecurities keep her at home when other people are out having fun, since she feels that she has to stay on top of all the latest medical journals in order to be the best. For the first few seasons, this nearly drives Elliot crazy, since these same insecurities prevent her from reaching her full potential while J.D. excels. But things change, and when the tables turn, J.D. can't seem to handle inferiority for a while.

Carla Espinosa, who has been a nurse for a few years, is a supportive force for the new interns, which is much needed in the harsh reality of the hospital. That's not to say that her only role is to be motherly and supportive. She develops a relationship with Turk that is probably the most stable one on the entire show. And while she knows how to handle herself in the workplace, it is real life where she sometimes needs help. The unfairness inherent in being a nurse (doctors get all the credit, and aren't always respectful) wears on her, and though her relationship with Turk is stable, that doesn't mean that it is without its problems. But, while her advice isn't always heeded, she is a beacon of hope for the new interns. And she is certainly needed.

Dr. Perry Cox and Dr. Bob Kelso are pretty much the only higher-up doctors who get any screen time, especially in the early seasons (eventually, the supporting cast of Dr. Beardface, Dr. Mickhead and Col. Doctor develop, and some recurring guests appear, like Dr. Molly Clock and Dr. Kim Briggs, but these characters usually don't stick around for a while), and they are forces to be reckoned with. Dr. Cox is a cynical doctor who would prefer to be left alone and pursue his own goals and cure his own patients. He genuinely cares about the people that he helps (though he does get aggravated with the more annoying ones; and before you make any House comparisons, remember that Scrubs started about three or four years before House), and deep down, he also cares about the new interns. He hides his compassion by insulting everyone around him; he particularly delights in picking on J.D. (though this may be a sign that he cares for J.D. the most) by calling him girls' names and launching into drawn-out rants against the things J.D. cares about. But this behavior is almost pleasant when compared to that of the Chief of Medicine, Dr. Kelso. Kelso begins the show as an evil jackass who only cares about turning a profit, even if that means turning away patients who don't have insurance. For the first few seasons, Kelso is the villain of the show; he provides obstacles for the interns and conflict for Dr. Cox. This doesn't mean that he isn't funny, though; Kelso's personality makes him bizarrely funny due to his many quirks, such as his love of cupcakes and other baked goods, callous attitude towards his wife, and preference for Asian hookers. As the series goes on, Kelso's initial villainy is steadily scaled back (sort of like Mr. Burns' on The Simpsons). Starting around Season 3, Kelso becomes much more lovable, and his initial villainous tendencies are explained to be the result of having to make the tough decisions. When he fires nurses for seemingly no reason or chooses to treat a rich patient over a poorer one, the rest of the staff may become understandably and justifiably upset, but it was because the budget is stretched thin. Not firing the nurse may have hindered patient care in other, more destructible ways, and the rich patient survived to donate large sums of money to the hospital (the cost of this was the death of the poorer one).

The final regular cast member is the hospital's janitor, known only as Janitor. He was originally created to only appear in the pilot, but Neil Flynn's portrayal impressed the staff so much that they made him a recurring character for the first season, and a regular from then on (of the seven current regulars, he is the only one not to be a regular since the beginning of the series). For the first year and a half, he had no purpose other than to torment J.D. An innocent comment by the young intern in the pilot about a broken door jamb made the somewhat psychotic Janitor believe that J.D. was responsible for the break, and made it his personal mission to terrorize, deride and undermine J.D. whenever possible. After that year and a half, the Janitor expanded his antics to include anyone caught in his path; the writers were afraid of a quick cancellation, and wanted a cool twist for the finale, which would have been the revelation that the Janitor was only a figment of J.D.'s imagination, representing his insecurities. When it became clear that the show was safe for a while, Flynn asked the writers to let him interact with someone other than Braff.

In addition to the great regulars, the show also has a great cast of secondary and tertiary characters (few other shows paid so much attention to the people in the background; right now, the closest example I can give is the first two seasons of Veronica Mars, where characters whose actors' names appeared in the closing credits actually contributed to the plot). Most of the tertiary characters are crew members. These include Dr. Beardface, Dr. Mickhead, and Col. Doctor. I think that all three of these characters started out as one-joke characters, but continued to show up to keep a sense of continuity. Other characters, like Dr. Doug Murphy, Dr. Todd Quinlan, Jordan Sullivan and Ted Buckland are more or less full-fledged characters, but have never been as important as the regular players.

Up next: Series highlights (sort of)...

Scrubs: My Introduction

I didn't start watching Scrubs until right after its fourth season ended. A few people had told me that I should watch it, especially since I enjoyed Garden State, which was written, directed by, and starred Zach Braff, who plays Dr. John "J.D." Dorian on Scrubs. Finally, when the first season was released and received glowing reviews, I decided that it was time to start watching. Without having seen an episode, I bought the first season, and was beyond satisfied. The show is based on the life of creator Bill Lawrence's friend, a doctor who also has the initials J. D. Lawrence's friend, Jonathan Doris, had plenty of crazy stories from his years as an intern and resident, and Lawrence used them to make a medical comedy show. Amazingly, despite some of the outlandish aspects of the humor, people I've met have said that Scrubs isn't far off in some of its portrayals of hospital life. Obviously, real life isn't anything like ER or House, where there is an incredible medical incident/mystery every week, so it is refreshing to see a show where we see some of the goings-on that occur between the big cases.

But what is often less obvious are the claims that the hospital is like high school, with the surgeons like athletes, internal medics like nerds, and nurses like cheerleaders. But that is one of the things that I was told was not exaggerated! Also, since three of the main characters start off as interns, we see how doctors start out their career, before they become seasoned veterans who may or may not be cynical (they don't know that everybody lies yet). In the pilot episode, "My First Day", two of the new doctors chicken out and hide in a supply closet. And with a job where people's lives depend on every decision you make, it has to be pretty hard not to freak out at the beginning (or even at times at later parts of one's career). This is an aspect of the job that most other medical shows don't focus on, and frankly, we as people don't want to think about. But played the right way, it is incredibly funny.

I'm going to have the next post focus on the characters, but I will briefly touch on certain aspects of the doctors that contribute to the humor of the show. In addition to the new interns' own insecurity, they have to put up with strange patients and cranky superiors. But not all of the humor is based in reality; J.D. constantly drifts off and has bizarre fantasy sequences that take a line said by one of his friends/colleagues and spins it off into a random, often sexual, fantasy. Lately, due to the South Park episodes that blasted Family Guy and the random "manatee" jokes, it may seem like these fantasy sequences would be a burden to the show, but they are handled very well. They are funny because they are usually fairly short (make a note, Seth MacFarlane), so they don't detract from the plot, and they remind us that J.D. is still very immature, despite being a doctor.

This is a hospital, though, so not everything is light and comedic. Every now and then, the show completely shifts gears and tells excellent dramatic stories. Very few shows can so effectively balance comedy and drama at the levels that Scrubs does (examples include Joss Whedon's shows). At its most comedic, Scrubs is on the level of the likes of Arrested Development and 30 Rock, while the dramatic moments are incredibly powerful.

Up next: Meeting the doctors...