(S08E13) I always think that a J.D.-less episode of Scrubs would be refreshing, mainly because it's always good to get out of his head. But it's one thing to not have Zach Braff around; it's completely another when no one in the main cast but Donald Faison and Sarah Chalke is on the call sheet for the week. That's the situation we got this week, and, man, was this episode boring.Not that Chalke and Faison didn't carry their weight in this one; jeez, just watching them do the HIV (pronounced "Hivee" by Turk) dance alone justified their presence. But in handing much of the episode over to the interns, we can see that -- for the most part -- they just can't carry the load on their own.
I say "for the most part" because I'm extremely intrigued by Denise/Jo. Like I said last week, she seems to be the only intern who is more than just a caricature. We didn't see much of her this week, but her admission to Derek that the reason she used to sleep with chubby guys is that she liked seeing a guy's pathetic, vulnerable side shows that she's got a bit of a soft side buried deep beneath the tough exterior. I wish there was more time to explore that.
But the rest of the interns? Sunny is happy, Derek is arrogant, Howie is boring, and Katie is a kiss-ass. That's all I know about them so far, and that's just not enough. I could go over a number of individual jokes and lines that they gave, but for the life of me, I can't remember any of them.
Back to Turk and Elliot. They showed why Scrubs was always about the ensemble rather than than just J.D. Between Turk's whining that J.D. went to Disneyland without him and Elliot writing "Dr. Reed has a slamin' tushie!" on all of her charts, they made sure the episode wasn't laugh-free.
They also carried the dramatic load, especially Sarah Chalke; her monologue at the end of the episode that explains why Turk will always be a doctor while she probably won't was well done. Elliot looked like she carried the weight of all the bad news she's had to give her patients over the years, and I could definitely see her ditching the life after she and J.D. had kids. It was as mature and thoughtful a speech as we've heard on this show -- at least coming out of the mouth of anyone but Dr. Cox.
More fun stuff (though there's not much):
- The Todd's admonishments of others using his high fives.
- Elliot and Turk teaming up on the full moon story about the guy who got his tongue cut off... The payoff was predictable but funny.
- Elliot's inappropriate jokes with the patient she thought was anorexic but really had HIV. Seems like it would be silly, but seems in character for her, especially given the speech she made at the end.
- One fantasy: Turk as mechanic. Only really worth it for the J.D. impression Elliot had him do as he came out of it.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
4-02-2009 @ 10:59AM
cdawg said...
Might not have been the best ep this season, but you have got to hand it to Bill Lawrence for really bringing the drama this season to go with the comedy. Especially cuz I feel the same way as Elliot - I only wish I didn't need the money to keep working and I'd start popping out kids like there's no tomorrow!
I can't see any of the interns carrying another season of the show.
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4-02-2009 @ 2:13PM
Dan said...
I liked the episode, but definitely felt the loss of Dr. Cox and JD in this one. That being said, I hope that this show continues even though they said it wont. I can't see why Scrubs should have to end now when it's just about a teaching hospital. I bet a few of the main cast members would stay to help the transition.
Also, what's with TV Squad completely ignoring "BETTER OFF TED"? The show is one of the best reviewed of the midseason replacements (Metacritic has it as a 70, which is very good for a TV program) and there's plenty that goes on in an episode that could be written about. Please start a column for that show too.
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4-02-2009 @ 11:39AM
Jason C said...
Boring? Actually I thought this was one of the strongest episodes of the season. And, the kicker was pretty great as well.
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4-02-2009 @ 11:52AM
jasahl said...
This was one of my favorites - didn't think it was boring at all.
I like the serious eps.
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4-02-2009 @ 12:04PM
Michael said...
Thought this was a great episode, one of the best of the season. Great mix of laughs and drama, Zach Braff or no Zach Braff. I'm actually digging all the interns (some more than others, but still) this season, but maybe I'm really shallow. Almost makes me want to see a spin-off that focuses on them; never thought I would have said that before the season started.
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4-02-2009 @ 12:16PM
MadMup said...
Any episode without Zach Braff feels weak. Loved the Turk and Elliot interaction, but it wasn't enough.
I wouldn't watch a Scrubs that was only the interns.
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4-02-2009 @ 1:45PM
TheBigGuy said...
I thought this was the best episode this season by far.
The interns are a little weak but it was nice, and interesting, seeing them more on their own both in their characters as interns as well as in caring the stories forward. While Denise is the only one that has really developed, IMHO, all of them made strides this episode, including Derek.
And speaking of Denise and Derek, that could be an interesting coupling. But what made it interesting - and this is a nod to the good story-telling and structure that Scrubs has had over the years - was the way it was juxtaposed against the conversation between Elliot and Turk: what if "they" had found it other?
While if that happened, the show would not have been the Scrubs we all know and love - and we know that Turk and JD is the couple meant for one another - it is the type of question that comes up between a group of old friends. Most times, thankfully as in the case with Scrubs nothing comes of it - sorry again but Turk and JD is "the" couple on the show - it but was interesting how that conversation played out just as we cut to the scene of Denise and Derek making out. Sort of a, "what might have been if it wasn't them" type of thing.
And Elliot's speech and exit from the hospital at the end of the episode was classic. I've heard rumors about how the series will end with JD (don't worry, no spoilers here) but when I thought about that and the way this episode ending with Sarah Chalke, all I can say is, "Wow!"
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4-02-2009 @ 1:52PM
Jeff B said...
Boring? I'm a doctor. Over it's life, this show has always been more realistic than ER, Chicago Hope, or any of the other medical show I can think of. Elliot's monologue at the end spoke to me in a way that Scrubs never has before, though. This episode encapsulated all that is good - and bad - with my chosen profession. As the season draws to an end, I'm truly sad.
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4-02-2009 @ 2:52PM
bruce said...
I've always hated JD so I didn't miss him, but other than the last few minutes I was horribly bored. Only the final discussion between Turk and Elliot about being doctors was interesting or added anything to the series. The rest was just dull. Sad/unfortunate patients are nothing new.
And why was the "dog cone" less humane than shackling the guy's hands down? Seems quite the opposite.
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4-02-2009 @ 3:48PM
Malren said...
I actually watched last weeks and this weeks eps back-to-back. I barely giggled at all with JD in the picture...I'm so tired of the character and the actor.
Meanwhile I laughed all the way through the episode that featured the interns. It was exactly as refreshing as I expected.
The show could survive without JD. I think it would be a better show.
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4-02-2009 @ 6:07PM
George said...
Wow, Joel, I'm a bit dismayed by your superficial dismissal of the interns. Boring? Hardly.
Denise, if she wants anything at all in life, seems to see out gratitude... as seen in her sex life. Never mind that she's incapable of responding to a sincere expression of gratitude; she's lined herself up with a thankless job that will make her a female Dr. Cox in short order.
Sunny is happy -- but it's a relentless, desperate sort of happiness, inspired by a firm belief that if she stops being happy for more than a few seconds, the darkness will swallow her up forever.
Howie isn't boring -- he's just so laid back and matter-of-fact that very little can faze him, so his reactions will always be interesting.
Derek is arrogant... but as we learned last night, his arrogance isn't the result of a lifetime of success and attractiveness.
Katie has learned to rely on a simple set of behaviors -- her kiss-ass persona, if you'd like -- and they've brought her to this point in her life. Now they're starting to fail, and she's discovering how much she doesn't know and didn't learn.
JD is a whining, self-absorbed prat. Dr. Cox has been painted into a corner character-wise and Carla is descending into caricature. The janitor and Ted are barely tethered to reality, which ironically makes them far less funny than they used to be. Perhaps that's why I enjoyed this episode so much -- it focused on an unusual pairing of key characters, didn't push the comedy too hard and fleshed out its most promising new characters. Where were these interns two years ago when everything went all "meh"? I'd watch a sitcom about these people. It wouldn't even need to be called Scrubs.
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4-03-2009 @ 10:17AM
StillBash said...
Joel how do you manage to always have a contrary opinion to the general population?
This was the best episode of the season - to be honest I found the Hivee-dance to be the only moment I did NOT like in the episode.
I loved the interns. To be honest I thought with this episode they showed that they could simply go on without Braff and just have in on every now and then or maybe just have him leave the show with Elliot like Doug Ross and Carol Hathaway. I think compared to House the new guys are way better - you have the nerdy guy, you have the little cute insecure one, you have the intelligent hottie and you have the black hunk. Throw in a new mexican janitor trainee and you're done.
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