Scrubs, My Old Friend's Last Hurrah

***Yes, I know I haven't posted in forever, who knew having a family and real job could be so time consuming?***


You’re probably familiar with the TV show Scrubs. Hopefully, you saw it in the first 5 seasons, and not the downhill slide it has become for the last 2, but I digress. My wife claims I am obsessed with Scrubs, but I disagree, it is far more serious than mere obsession. I can sit and watch old episodes, saying every line of every episode (and yes it is funnier that way) and be perfectly content for hours. The show, the jokes, the slapstick, it never gets old. So what is it about a mere sitcom that entertains me so?

First of all, it’s just that damn funny. The brilliance of the comedic writing is that it manages to be very complex and childishly simple at the same time. It's more than just the jokes though. The show not only became a part of my life, in a way it helped to save it.

I was introduced to Scrubs in the late spring/early summer of 2003, which was between the 2nd and 3rd seasons. I had just moved to Athens, and I was literally starting my life over. I was awaiting the start of a new job, but all my friends worked, so there was about a three week period where I did nothing but watch the first two seasons all day, taking a long break to meet my buddies for a two hour lunch. I watched those early episodes over and over, and I knew (and still know) them by heart. It was an escape of sorts, a way to get away from the shit storm that was my life at the time, and that was the beginning.

From there Scrubs became not just a television show; it became ingrained in my life. I was sharing a house with my best friend, and we had every episode stored digitally and able to be played at will. Scrubs was on constantly at our house. In fact, it was often on and just running on mute in the background. We quoted every line, both during the show and randomly throughout the day, we called out continuity errors in the show, and I even somewhat modeled my management style after that of Dr. Cox. The show was a constant during a time in my life when everything else was changing.

As time tends to do, it moved on. I moved out of Athens, got married, and started a family. I still watched Scrubs, both in syndication and the new episodes, but it wasn’t quite the same. I only saw the new episodes a couple of times each, not the ridiculous quantities of past seasons. Scrubs was changing too, it was also moving on. Season 5 was probably the pinnacle, and the slide downward was quick from there. The jokes were still funny, but storylines were running thin, and I found myself laughing out loud fewer and fewer times each episode. As I write this, I have just finished watching the final episode of the strike shortened season 7, which has been quietly billed as the “Final” episode. Not so however, as ABC will shortly be announcing that they are picking up an eighth and final season of 18 episodes. I have mixed feelings about this, as the show’s time has come, and it really needs to go, but I do want it to get a proper ending. On the other hand, something that played a significant role in my life is coming to an end. It may be just a sitcom, but any social event that manages to impact someone the way that Scrubs has me must have been something pretty unique, and something we may not see again for some time.