(S08E01) It's interesting how much attention Scrubs gets from us TV-loving types, considering how little attention it gets from everyone else. Why is it?Well, partially it's because of Bill Lawrence and the cast, who have been entertaining to cover and very press-friendly. But mostly,
it's because of the comedic potential the program showed over it's first couple of years, which included the ability to go from comedy to high drama in an instant and make it look easy. The eighth(and final?) season premiere was more comedic than dramatic (the second episode of the night, "My Last Words," demonstrates this balance quite well), but it showed that Lawrence was serious when he told critics that he was going to dial down the silly and get back to what made people like the show to begin with.
I discussed the episode a bit when I previewed season eight a couple of months ago, so, I'll just give some quick hits on this one. And, to be honest, the better episode of the night is "My Last Words," which I'll discuss more in depth in a separate post.
Fun stuff from this episode:
- Courteney Cox as the new Chief of Medicine, Dr. Taylor Maddox. She has a little bit of Monica Gellar in her (her fear of spiders seems very Monica-esque), but Cox plays the "friendly but really a jerk" thing pretty well. Maybe it's best that J.D. keeps asking her about her vagina, just to keep her on her toes.
- Leave it to Dr. Cox to suss out the "jerk" in her. "The position attracts jerks," he tells Carla, and he was reluctant to be "that guy" and fight yet another chief, but he did what he felt was right. Nice performance by John McGinley in the scene where he tells J.D. that he's tired of being "that guy." You can just feel his exhaustion through the screen.
- Some meta jokes, but not too many: J.D. points in the direction of the ABC logo and goes "that's new," which was kinda on the nose, but at least it led Janitor to make fun of J.D.'s "new pre-pubescent Miami Vice beard."
- The best meta joke was during the credits tag, where J.D. says, "I know it's tempting to just mail it in, but there's still a lot of people who rely on us week to week. I think we owe it to them to be as inspired as we were during our first few years."
- You can see that Elliot's come the longest way in the eight years of the show. Even at her most self-involved moments, she seems so much more mature than even the Elliot of a few years ago. Her sincere apology to Keith for breaking things off felt sincere. Too bad she had to be a jerk to Keith for a year-plus first.
- The interns ... well, what can you say about them? Eliza Coupe as the unfeeling Denise and Aziz Ansari as the text-messaging Ed are the standouts in this one, but we'll be seeing more of them (think webisodes) as the year goes on. And I want to see more of Jimmy the Overly Touchy Orderly.
- Poor Ted. He just gets more pathetic every year. The smiley face button and handgun in his briefcase are just Ted's life in microcosm, aren't they?
- Kelso's going to observe this whole circus from Coffee Bucks, huh? It'll be fun to get his view of things now that he's no longer the boss.
- Janitor fired? Nah ... that's not right.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
1-06-2009 @ 10:31PM
Wii60 said...
I love the uncaring intern. She's going to be fun this season, but I'm afraid the other two won't be able to carry the show if they try and base season 9(?) around them.
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1-07-2009 @ 12:38AM
TX2Step said...
So glad to see this show back and in HD... I am loving it!
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1-07-2009 @ 1:11AM
Dan Buckley said...
Finally, HD. Pretty sure it's the last prime time show to make the switch. Glad ABC could pony up the big bills. Or actually, thanks NBC. I was glad to see that the old opening looked good in HD.
1-07-2009 @ 8:11AM
Jesse said...
The show seems to be shot differently. In some scenes at least. In that scene where JD and Cox are sitting there discussing being tired of it all, the ambient light from t he window seemed out of place for a Scrubs episode. Still a damn good episode, best in a while.
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1-07-2009 @ 12:43PM
fsu120 said...
I was thinking the same thing
1-07-2009 @ 2:36PM
Wii60 said...
It really does look like a mix of an NBC show and an ABC show.
1-07-2009 @ 8:27AM
Martin said...
Ben Lee "Catch my Disease"
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1-07-2009 @ 8:44AM
GL said...
"how little attention it gets from everyone else"
I had never watched this show but found myself watching it in syndication sometime in November. Due to the lack of options in the pre-prime time slot, I settled on a Scrubs episode. I was surprised, amused and wondered aloud how I managed to not watch a single episode when they were still producing new shows.
Imagine the hilarity of finding out a new season was coming up. Somewhere in this mess of a post is an insight into why people ignore this show.
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1-07-2009 @ 8:50AM
Target Lockon Stratos said...
Glad to see Ed's over his racist tendencies, considering his last job as a fruit seller.
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1-07-2009 @ 9:22AM
Usama said...
Nice.
1-07-2009 @ 12:06PM
Adam E said...
THAT'S where I had seen him before!! Thanks.
1-07-2009 @ 9:21AM
Kim said...
I really appreciate Courtney Cox's portrayal of the sickeningly sweet but souless chief of staff. The CEO of my hospital is a male copy of her. You know, the guy with the big smile who fires you over lunch?
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1-07-2009 @ 9:48AM
Jimmy said...
I tried watching but was disappointed to see the same tired, irrelevant, formulaic, uninspired show that should have ended its run on NBC two or three seasons ago.
Paging Dr. Kevorkian!
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1-07-2009 @ 11:15AM
R-Bro said...
"Eliza Coupe as the unfeeling Denise and Aziz Ansari as the text-messaging Ed are the standouts in this one." Episode trivia: Both actors appeared in episodes of Flight of the Conchords!
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1-07-2009 @ 11:54AM
Flip said...
Wow! Have I missed "Scrubs". The "key" that fits everything, "Steak Night", "Jerks",etc.. But the "Cougar" (happy hour) and the "MILF" (I forgot I had a son) exchange were "priceless". I will be a part of any movement to keep this show afloat.
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1-07-2009 @ 12:07PM
Adam E said...
..YOU'RE my favorite..
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1-07-2009 @ 12:28PM
Jeff N. said...
Loved the show, and loved seeing it in HD. Finally!
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1-07-2009 @ 3:29PM
Elf said...
Yeah, I'm afraid Kelso will be the odd fit this season. I thought I read that he'd eventually return as a rep for a pharmaceutical company, which could explain his recurring presence at the hospital, though that would still make it awkward if they tried to integrate him into storylines. He could also go into private practice like Elliot, so his continued presence would make sense and also allow him to work around the hospital's mandatory retirement age for employees.
However, character-wise, it also makes a little sense for him to just hang around the hospital and watch what's going on, since beyond the Asian hookers, what else does he have going on in his life? It's not like he's going to spend his retirement hanging around the house with his wife there...
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