Scrub-a-dub

One of my favorite shows in the entire world is Scrubs.  I love every single aspect of the show--from the quirky character types--truly original in my opinion--to the fantastical interludes (which came first...Family Guy or Scrubs?  I don't know, but they both do it a LOT.  I think Scrubs weaves them in better...often realistically imitating my own train of thought sometimes.)

As many of you know, Season 9 of Scrubs just started this December.  I've never really heard of a show that has gone through as much as Scrubs.  Two years ago, it first it looked like it was going to be cancelled.  Then ABC bought it from NBC (i've literally never seen that done during my lifetime).  Last season, after like, a ridiculously short season, they acted as if the show was over.  I can tell you this because I cried at the Season Finale. But here we are again.  Season 9.

Before I go into my current thoughts on the new season (confusion), it is worth talking about the concept of the "spin-off."  Many shows have done it successfully (Frasier, old Melrose Place, Private Practice), while some have crashed and burned (Saved by the Bell: The New Class, Joey.  I was almost going to include Saved by the Bell: The College Years, but then I remembered, I LOVED the college years even if it wasn't on for very long.).  Most spin-offs can be recognized by their new title, a pilot episode, and most importantly, a new premise.  Season 9 has all of these things...a new title in the opening credits, "Scrubs, Med School," a new premise, which goes something like this--"our favorite old characters are med school professors until we phase them out and leave you with med school students as they struggle to make it through school."

In my opinion, it is a completely new show.  My confusion lies in the fact that while this season of Scrubs has all of the characteristics of a new show, minus a technical pilot (let me tell you, the first episode had all the awkwardness of a pilot).  It's not like ER where over time they completely replaced all the characters, because the premise of ER was always the same.  Here, they have created a spin-off (which for the most part, lets be real, are failures) and have tried to pass it off as my favorite show, thereby tainting the whole series in a way.

Now let me tell you, i am most loyal to the spin-offs of the shows I love.  I watched Joey for that whole year it was on the air just because I REALLY loved Friends. Sidenote--judging by the number of horrendous Matthew Perry movies I saw over the 10 years friends was on the air, you can see how dedicated I was to the cast (Serving Sara anyone?).  Imagine if they had made Season 11 of Friends, stuck a little "Joey" under the title in the opening credits, and proceeded to follow him out to LA to pursue his acting career.  It would be outrageous.  This is why I'm so angry about Scrubs. And while I will continue watching, because I am loyal to the show just that much, there will still be that tinge of disappointment with the creators/writers for not properly ending my favorite show before creating a brand new spin-off.