Scrubs: Med School (aka Season 9)

[Kerensky287]

So, most people who follow Scrubs know that Season 8 included the series finale of the show. It had a very nice wrap-up, all the loose ends were tied up, and it ended pretty much as the show had to.

...And then they announced another season. As excited as I was (I only got into the series around the middle of Season 8 because my friends had the boxed sets, and the shows are MEANT to be watched in a chain) I was very confused. There wasn't really any room for expansion. The main character had left for another hospital, gotten married to his on-and-off love interest, his best friend had become the Chief of Surgery, and his mentor/father figure had become the Chief of Medicine. Plus, half the cast apparently hadn't actually signed on for the next season.

We're now 3 episodes in to Season 9 (4th episode airs tomorrow night) and I can honestly say that all of my fears were misguided.

The director of the show was trying really hard to push the idea that Season 9 was more of a spinoff/sequel to the original series than anything else, and even though ABC refused to change the name, I think that the spinoff idea is actually the perfect way to think of the new episodes. It really feels like a different show that happens to be full of Scrubs cameos.

Has anybody else been following the new episodes? If not, I recommend that you check them out - they're probably on that newfangled Hulu thing y'all Americans have access to.

[Aerozord]

you know you might want to put spoilers on the series ending since it not only ruins that episode, and that season, but potentially the entire series

[Kerensky287]

Right, right. Whatever.

It's still the natural happy-ending sort of thing, but I suppose it would be necessary.

[Nique]

So it's, what, new characters with cameos from the original cast? Sounds interesting.

[BloodyMage]

Turk and Cox are still main cast members. J.D. is around for the first few, and I think there are cameos from Elliot but apart from that the cast is pretty much all new. I'd agree that it's better than I expected it to be, especially if you don't rank it as a continuation of the old Scrubs.

It's nothing ground breaking, but it's fairly interesting and decently engaging.

[Nique]

I'm not sure I can understand the format of the show without JD's extremely vivid daydreams...

[Kerensky287]

I'm not sure I can understand the format of the show without JD's extremely vivid daydreams...

For the first few episodes, JD still daydreams, but the new main character appears to be basically a female JD. Like, more feminine.

Dr. Mahoney: "So, do you want to shadow me a bit?"
New girl (name escapes me): "Do ponies love rainbows?!"

She has had a few daydreams already, though they seem to have a markedly different style from JD's.

She still feels like her own unique character, though. Mostly because at this point she seems like more of a screw-up. She's another underdog character to root for, which fits pretty perfectly in the setting... though ironically, now that JD's a little outside of the spotlight, he seems a lot more annoying than he used to be.

[neoadept]

I find myself enjoying the show, but I can't stand the way it brushed off Dr. Cox's character development. All of it.

Seriously, after everything the series did to make him a family man, all of one line is devoted to telling us that his not-marriage fell through in the intervening year. I realize they had to work around not everyone coming back to the show, but there had to be a better way to do that. And at least that got a line. Cox spent eight years working towards that Chief of Medicine position, and it's not even brought up that moving the hospital to a med school has bumped him back to a doctor/professor.

Besides that, I'm liking it. The characters are new and interesting, and it's not just rehashing the old series.

[Professor Smarmiarty]

Dr. Mahoney

http://reflectivepraxis.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/mahoney.jpg

[synkr0nized]

though ironically, now that JD's a little outside of the spotlight, he seems a lot more annoying than he used to be.

JD was always annoying. While I indeed felt really happy whenever he and Cox connected, even briefly, if it wasn't for his daydreams I'd have been happier without him in the show... But perhaps he served his purpose as someone for the others to play off of. And was the initial reason for the Janitor being so awesome.


So, yeah, he's certainly always been super annoying and a pretty big jerk a lot and pretty pathetic. Yet women date him all the time!

[Nique]

I just watched the new episode last night.

Lucy: Lots of groan worthy jokes, will probably get better as the season goes on
Drew: Horrible writing but the actor and the character is capable of a lot more than what's being given right now
Cole: This James-Franco lookin' idiot is ruining this show (Oh... his name is Dave Franco. Hm)

[The Sevenshot Kid]

What the hell did they do to the song? Cole needs to die a horribly violent death and the song needs to be changed back for me to really start liking this season.

This season hasn't struck the sweet spot in balancing drama and comedy, but it might get there once the new actors and the writers get used to it.

[Bells]

The show lost it's handle with me... sadly.

even from the series finale o the 8th season, it was a low note for me. Simply because JD & Turk are WAY too much into their "Brouple" (Bro Couple) stuff, it's... it's just not funny... it's... too much.

Dr Cox ALSO went on a low note for me. It seemed that they thought that he was only great when he was an unbelivable jerk, so he just got stuck in this way.

You know, for me two of the best Dr Cox momments in the whole show was early on when perry made a big speech to the Board about keeping JD inthe Hospital. JD wasn't there but he was true, respectfull and professional... it was great. And the second one was when JD helped him to get over after loosing his patients, it was the first time Cox called JD by "JD". I thought that was great.

Now this series finale... it felt forced. It gives clousure, but it's not how i thought it would go for them.

And the new series? Jd and Turk are even more of a couple, Cox Is SINGLE again, WTF? and No ted?

Sorry, but no dice.

[Nique]

It does feel like they may be simply escalting old jokes instead of finding new and clever ways to tell them (JD and Turk's Bromance the foremost example of this). Still better than most stuff on tv though actually.

[Dracorion]

What, no Janitor? Sorry, I'm out.

[Solid Snake]

I think I'm just going to keep pretending that this show ended with the Season 8 finale, just like I keep pretending that Frasier ended with its Season Six finale (before the Niles/Daphne marriage bullshit.) And, just like I keep pretending Family Guy never got back on the air. And, just like I keep pretending that season four was the end of Futurama. And, just like I keep pretending that Smallville never existed.

The real problem is that JD was a much more nuanced character at the end of Season 8 and now he's been reduced to a series of the standard comedic gags, but without any of the heart and soul in his interactions that added depth and made him unique. He's become an utterly one-dimensional fragment of his former self. As for the new characters, none of them are three-dimensional. The new chick is like a female JD if you took out everything that once made JD a somewhat coherent, believable character. This chick is like a series of stereotypes. She likes horses! Also, she has frequent sex with the wrong kind of guy for the wrong reasons. This kind of feels like the typical "male writers attempting to create female characters" problem, she's less her own character and more every man's stereotype of how women think and act.

[The Sevenshot Kid]

Snake, what about midichlorians? Do they exist?

[Premmy]

I think I'm just going to keep pretending that this show ended with the Season 8 finale, just like I keep pretending that Frasier ended with its Season Six finale (before the Niles/Daphne marriage bullshit.) And, just like I keep pretending Family Guy never got back on the air. And, just like I keep pretending that season four was the end of Futurama. And, just like I keep pretending that Smallville never existed.

I never thought I could be in awe of someone else's denial before...
*Golf Clap*

[Solid Snake]

Snake, what about midichlorians? Do they exist?

Star Wars ended with Return of the Jedi. I have no idea what the hell those "prequels" are that everyone's been talking about.

[Ryanderman]

So far I've been enjoying the new Scrubs. Though I missed the screwing they did with Dr. Cox's life. Where did he say that he's single now? As opposed to not-married to Jordan? If they really did mess that up, I may have to start hating the show.

But at least I'm not bothered too much by the characture of JD. He's annoyed me and been pretty much my least favorite part of the show since seasons 7. Actually, I think I lost respect for him during the Kim plot line. I won't miss him.

[Magic_Marker]

Snake, what about midichlorians? Do they exist?

Squeezes shoulder

Star Wars was a trilogy.

And a Holiday Special.

[P-Sleazy]

I also want to say part of what messed up scrubs, viewer wise and it not seeming as prominent as when it was first aired in the first two-three seasons is that it constantly kept having its time slot changed. There was one season where it had three different time slots in the week. and just about every season was in two different time slots. One for the fall and a completely different one in the winter/spring. The networks lacked consistency.

[Archbio]

I have no idea what the hell those "prequels" are that everyone's been talking about.

They're an historical fictionalization by historians from the late post-Imperial period.

[The Sevenshot Kid]

I liked the prequels and thought the midichlorians made a lot more sense...

[synkr0nized]

I can't remain angry at the prequels when the original trilogy has so much nonsense in it.

At least the dialogue was 253454363x better in the original trilogy, though, campy and all.

[Mirai Gen]

Yeah I don't see Scrubs: Interns working as anything other than a subpar spinoff to Scrubs. Scrubs was so complete after Season 8 the idea of continuing it is just...I dunno.
And a Holiday Special.

Don't be silly.

The Star Wars Holiday Special doesn't exist. (http://thatguywiththeglasses.com/videolinks/thatguywiththeglasses/nostalgia-critic/14801-ncchlist11)

[Nique]

I liked the prequels and thought the midichlorians made a lot more sense...

It wasn't so much that the midichlorians didn't make sense, it was that it nearly flatly contradicted everything that was established in the original films that made the concept of the force interesting.

On Scrubs, I'm still somewhat ok with Season 9 but I don't think anyone involved is fooling themselves into thinking it will be as good as it was before.

[Mirai Gen]

It wasn't so much that the midichlorians didn't make sense, it was that it nearly flatly contradicted everything that was established in the original films that made the concept of the force interesting.
Naw - I mean it did that too - but it just didn't make sense.

"Midichlorians are the science that makes you do magic!"

[Premmy]

Is'nt that what all science in sci-fi is?

[Mirai Gen]

None of them spend three movies establishing science as science and magical all-encompassing spiritual energy nobody truly understands as magical all-encompassing spiritual energy nobody truly understands before saying, oh yeah, there's no mystery in it anymore cause we scientifically figured it out.

Also:

[Bells]

Yeah.... about that picture there...

Both darth vader and Obi Wan were old when they died... so... why does Obi Wan Appears old, while Vader shows up young again?

That's.... yeah...

[The Sevenshot Kid]

I liked the old Anakin and since I've only ever owned the trilogy on VHS, I was outraged to see that whiny emo kid's insertion when I first rented the DVD. The old Anakin was how he would've looked if he hadn't done the whole turn to the dark side thing.

[Professor Smarmiarty]

I'm still waiting for them to find a way to measure the amount of Christianity in your blood.

[Premmy]

Easy, They throw you up in the air, and if you're one of God's chosen people, He keeps you.

[greed]

I'm still waiting for them to find a way to measure the amount of Christianity in your blood.

Oh that's easy. If it comes out of holes in your palms at regular intervals that's a pretty good sign. Also if it's wine.

[shiney]

Just gonna go ahead and tease this one back toward the actual topic, which is that Scrubs sucks without the Janitor and most of the supporting cast.

Though I never really liked Carla, to be honest.

[Premmy]

Though I never really liked Carla, to be honest.
I hated Turk because he got to hit that.

[Archbio]

I caught an episode of it by mistake and there does seem to be an issue of uninspired casting, relative to the original series? I mean I wasn't Scrubs' biggest fan at any point ever, but the actors and characters reall stood out from each other.

[Magic_Marker]

which is that Scrubs sucks without the Janitor and

I have to agree. It doesn't reflect well on this season when my favorite joke so far was the last Janitor joke on the first episode.

[Eldezar]

Yeah.... about that picture there...

Both darth vader and Obi Wan were old when they died... so... why does Obi Wan Appears old, while Vader shows up young again?

That's.... yeah...

Not that I am defending the change, just that I am pretty sure the official explanation is that Anakin 'died' in Episode III, when Vader was born, so the soul of Anakin is still young. The most common counter argument to this being that Anakin was 'reborn' at the end of Episode VI, and subsequently died old.

I also miss Scrubs. What's this new show that stole it's name doing on my monitor?

[Solid Snake]

Mirai, what's up with photoshopping Hayden Christensen's head into a Star Wars image?

...I'll never get this photoshopping craze. And I'll never quite understand why so many people associate Hayden Christensen with Star Wars, given he probably wasn't even born when the movies came out. It's like those lunatics who think that Yoda fought the Emperor or that Anakin Skywalker built C3PO. Who comes up with that crazy stuff? They must've just read a few crappy fan fiction novels.

EDIT: Oh man I hate it when I fail to check out the second page of a topic and assume that the last post I see is the last post made, and then after I write up my post it's like hugely outdated.

Back to Scrubs: Really I'm just not sure why the creators couldn't have gone the "Frasier" route, insofar as Frasier was a very successful spinoff and most "sequel" shows should follow its lead. Take a single character -- like Turk, or Dr. Cox. Move him to a completely new environment, hundreds of miles away from home, and don't introduce any other characters from the original series. Have the other original characters only be introduced in single episodes of subsequent seasons, as kind of a "Reunion Show" routine. In the meantime, go in an entirely new direction and explore unseen aspects of this character's life. And don't call the show Scrubs -- change the name. I'm reasonably certain that show would be far better. The real cringeworthy moments in new Scrubs: Med School episodes for me are the ones with Turk and JD that try to recreate the old-school magic and fall hopelessly flat. New Scrubs has to stop imitating Old Scrubs and find its own unique brand of humor, its own unique and fully developed characters (so far, none of the new characters really has any three-dimensional depth. Frasier was helped tremendously by introducing characters like Niles and Daphne from the get-go.)

[Mirai Gen]

Mirai, what's up with photoshopping Hayden Christensen's head into a Star Wars image?
I love spreading torture that much.


And don't call the show Scrubs -- change the name.
This is pretty much entirely what's wrong with MD. They're trying to have their cake and eat it too. Make a new show that's also new Scrubs, maybe nobody will notice.

Cox and JD and Turk and Carla and Janitor and whoever else I'm missing worked on each other real well - putting in JD and Turk in with the new cast is just trying to throw a fastball by the viewer and not let them know it's really an all-new show.

[BloodyMage]

J.D. has left now anyway.