'Red Widow' Gets The Axe
'Grey's' Isn't Going Anywhere
Review: Scrubs - Our Role Models
by Joel Keller, posted Dec 9th 2009 11:20AM
(S09E03) Since I saw the first two episodes via screener, this is the first time I got to see the "[Med School]" subtitle in the opening credits. Wow, talk about barely there... if you blinked, you missed it. I guess it's better than not having it there at all, but wow; it's as if ABC is really trying hard to tie this show to the original Scrubs.I felt a little odd watching this episode. By all objective measures, it was a good episode; funny, good story, lots of glimpses into the characters' personalities. But, as in the first two episodes, most of the good stuff involved the old cast, mainly Zach Braff. And, since this is supposed to work more as a transition to a new show than more of the old show, this trend is getting me worried.
First of all, how much more are we going to see J.D. beg Cox for attention instead of acting like his peer? During the scenes where he acts like the latter -- watching the game with him and Turk, telling Cox to give Drew a chance -- it was good to see J.D. and Cox act more like veteran doctors/mentors rather than son/abusive father (at least according to J.D.). But when J.D. goes ballistic when he sees Turk drinking with Cox, or when he tried to upstage Drew in Cox's class, it makes me wonder if the new writers stopped watching the old show somewhere around season six. It's just too wildly inconsistent to make any sense.
Drew definitely has potential as a character, and not just because he set shrimp boats afire or got shot by a twelve-year-old at a petting zoo. It's because he's more experienced than any of the other students, and Cox has taken an interest in him (loved the pink #1 shirt. Perfectly Coxian). As John Damn Dorian told Cox, "You've finally taken an interest in someone. Don't ruin it by being you." And it looks like Cox is getting the message. The whole dynamic of that relationship is likely what's going to drive the show once Braff is gone.
I'm still not sure about Lucy. She still seems like a mix of J.D. and Elliot than her own character. Maybe Denise will mentor a personality into her. At least she treats Cole the way he should be treated, even if he keeps getting in bed with her. Denise, on the other hand, is becoming the other new centerpiece of the show. Eliza Coupe is doing a pretty good job of showing how much she's struggling with her bedside manner, but she's making advances. You knew she'd eventually give her number to that kid to help him through his mom's fatal illness. And it was good to see her admit to Lucy how she deals with the emotions -- "out the door, out of my head." It'll be fun to see her become a good doctor while keeping her mannish edge.
I just wish we got more laughs out of the new folks. Once Braff's not there to do "Candy hands!" with Turk or luxuriate in "sports grass" while wearing girly OwlCat makeup, the laughs are going to have to come from elsewhere. And, if that ends up falling to the show veterans (McGinley, Faison, and Coupe), then it's not going to work.
More fun stuff:
- Even Lucy's fantasies aren't that good. The 2nd grade gym class dodgeball fantasy was more scary and funny.
- Of course Lucy likes horses. They're just hornless unicorns, right?
- So far, my favorite name for one of Cox's students is "Ugly Don Cheadle."
- The writers are getting Denise down pretty quickly. Lucy: "Mahoney? Maroney? Isn't that funny?" Denise: "Not as I understand funny."
- A Carla mention! I guess we had to hear Turk utter her name at some point, just to assure us that they're still married. Wish they could have come to an agreement with Judy Reyes for at least a couple of episodes.
- "Mo Candy Perry."
- Are you digging the security guards, who are essentially Janitor substitutes? Neither am I.
- How many times have J.D. and Turk played Magnum P.I. Crustache before? Would have loved to have seen Turk as Black Higgins.
[Watch clips and episodes of Scrubs on SlashControl.]
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