ZACH BRAFF, DONALD FAISON
Spoilers Ahead.
Scrubs is back again, and this time it hits every single note.
Zach Braff, Donald Faison, John C. McGinley, Sarah Chalke, Judy Reyes, and company seamlessly step back into their roles at Sacred Heart; instantly recapturing the magic of the original series, with heart, humor, and growth.
The premiere episode seemingly dismiss the Season 9 reboot of the series as we find Dr. John Dorian (“JD”) as a successful private house call doctor returning to Sacred Heart to check on a private patient. We learn quickly that JD and Elliot are divorced. Chief of Medicine Dr. Cox is starting to lose his ability to connect with the interns (as only he can). Turk is terribly burnt out from years of working in the hospital without any sort of respite. This makes for some incredibly tear jerking moments, especially when Turk vents to JD about his personal struggles. Despite the drama, the cast is still able to hit on all the comedic gold.
The new cast of interns to the nursing staff as well the new HR rep Missy (Vanessa Bayer, SNL) all seem promising. While the audience has to get acquainted with all these new faces, and adjust to the sadder story arcs — everything feels true to our Scrubs OG’s.
We also see natural character growth for JD, Turk and even Dr. Cox. Episode 1 of the premiere ends with a heartfelt gesture and speech by Dr. Cox, who unexpectedly passes the torch to JD, promoting him to the Chief of Medicine at Sacred Heart. This was the second tear-jerking moment of the episode; what a way to come out of the gate for the fan favorite series.
After nearly 25 years of Scrubs, we are still very fortunate to see the world through the eyes of Dr. John Dorian. From “Eagle!” to hear Dr. Cox actually call J.D. by his real name, the magic is somehow still there. Nostalgia is a hell of a drug as they say, but Scrubs back on TV feels like a safe place. It feels like home.
