| medialifemagazine.com TV Reviews
The series’ creator, Bill Lawrence, sent out the review screeners for the first two episodes of the new season, which will air on Tuesday at 9 and 9:30 p.m., with a note to critics saying that he had wanted to retitle the series but that the demands of the TV business prevented him from doing so. (In interviews, he has said that keeping the title allows ABC, which also produces the series, to package new episodes with old ones in syndication.) Lawrence has no reason to be defensive. The new “Scrubs” is up to the standards of recent seasons. The witty, ironic dialogue and voice-overs are as funny; the characters are still well played and well written; and each episode has a dose of real emotion mixed in with the comedy. Unfortunately, the recent seasons of “Scrubs,” while always enjoyable, weren’t its best. A no-laugh-track, single-camera sitcom that cuts frequently to flashbacks and fantasy sequences was less novel than when the series debuted in 2001. J.D.’s “guy love” relationship with his colleague Turk (Donald Faison) and his dysfunctional-mentor byplay with Dr. Cox (John C. McGinley) had been overdone. And the emotional payoffs sometimes devolved into sentimentality. The new locale does allow for some fresh plot lines. J.D., who started out season one as a starry-eyed intern, is now just as starry-eyed as he begins a new career as a teacher at a medical school affiliated with Sacred Heart. He comes to his first day at the school dressed in the jacket worn by Michelle Pfeiffer in “Dangerous Minds,” and he tries things like holding a class while perched on a tree in the quad. (“I call it teachertainment,” he says in voice-over.) Drs. Turk and Cox are basically unchanged, except that the latter is now abusing medical students instead of interns and residents. He tells his new students, “"You are all murderers and assassins that have been sent here to try to kill my patients.” One of Cox’s favorite targets, Lucy (Kerry Bishé), is a self-doubting neurotic who in the first two episodes shares protagonist and voice-over duties with J.D. The character is appealing, and her immaturity and emotional neediness are more believable than J.D.’s — even when she says that she’s never seen herself naked. Another major new character, a first-year student named Drew (Michael Mosley), is less interesting, if only because his look (permanent three-day growth) and back story (he’s returning to med school after having flunked out once before) feel so familiar. Fortunately, with Braff, McGinley and Faison doing at least partial duty, the transition to the new locale should go smoothly enough for most fans. Although this season isn’t likely to attain the heights of the series’ first year, new viewers may be pleasantly surprised. ABC was wise to keep the title intact. “Scrubs” isn’t going to turn into another “Archie Bunker’s Place” or “After MASH.” © 2010 Media Life |
