[VIDEO PLAYBACK]
- Ooh.
- Thorns!
- Bloody.
[END PLAYBACK]
This is Scrubs.
When a show's at its best, well, it's
one of the best on television.
At least, it was at the time.
And Scrubs brings its A game, well,
a good amount of that time.
There have been some seriously great episodes over the years.
But today, I want to focus on just a single episode that
sets itself apart as being the best of the bunch--
mostly to point out what Scrubs gets right
when it's getting things right.
That episode?
"My Screw Up."
Season 3 episode 14 sets a pretty high bar
for what can be accomplished in a 22-minute single-camera
comedy.
So what makes a perfect Scrubs episode?
This episode is an exploration of so many
different emotional themes-- guilt, grief, love, compassion,
regret, forgiveness, acceptance-- all explored
in their own unique ways throughout the episode
of Scrubs, which is a sitcom.
The structure of the episode is supported
by the strong foundation it builds before we even
get to the opening credits.
Immediately, we're brought into our three main characters
doing what they do best--
banter and support one another.
This is a critical component to what
makes a great Scrubs episode.
These characters are our friends,
or at least, that's how they are presented.
And sometimes, it's fun just hanging out with them.
It's slice-of-life in the middle of narrative.
The next scene sets up a bit of a low-stakes relationship
drama between Turk and Carla, which touches on some potential
insecurities surrounding Carla and taking Turk's last name
after they get married.
[VIDEO PLAYBACK]
- We'll just have one of those modern marriages
where the husband and wife don't love each other.
[CRYING NOISE]
- Turk?
[END PLAYBACK]
This scene is only 15 seconds long,
yet these three lines of dialogue
set the tone for the journey these two characters are
about to embark on.
[VIDEO PLAYBACK]
- Wait, Turk.
Turk!
Whoa!
[END PLAYBACK]
Again, love, insecurity, compassion, concern, and fear
all delivered in just, well, three quick lines of dialogue.
It's good writing.
[VIDEO PLAYBACK]
- You OK?
- All good.
[END PLAYBACK]
Third scene of the show's opening sequence
introduces the linchpin of the entire episode--
Dr. Cox.
He enters the scene planning his son's birthday
and sarcastically insinuates that he and his wife
should give the parents a loaded gun
to play Russian roulette with.
[VIDEO PLAYBACK]
- And here's the kicker--
we put bullets in all the chambers.
That way everybody wins.
[END PLAYBACK]
This joke, if you want to call it that,
really paints the character of Dr. Cox
in an almost cold and insensitive light-- something
that will be challenged later on.
This scene also introduces another key element
to the episode, which is Jack's first birthday party.
[VIDEO PLAYBACK]
- Will there be a piñata?
Because I need to know if I should bring my piñata helmet.
- Huh buh buh.
Would you zip it, nerd?
[END PLAYBACK]
Final moment of the opening sequence
re-introduces us to Dr. Cox's brother-in-law and best friend
Ben as the catalyst for the rest of the events
that will inevitably unfold in the episode.
Snaps photo of J.D.-- and I want you to remember this camera
because it's actually a key piece of storytelling.
Point here is that Scrubs always does an excellent job, when
it's getting things right, of setting up its narrative
and setting it up in a way where each episode can be
isolated even in serialization.
What you want to do is make sure that anybody
can hop in anywhere and have a good time, especially
with a sitcom.
And Scrubs-- it's one of the best at doing that very thing.
And it's the foundation of what they build here
that expertly sets the stage for the rest of the episode
to play out.
All the ingredients are in the pot.
Now it's time for the show to start cooking.
In the next scene, we get a little extra piece
of hidden foreshadowing by way of Ben's character.
Ben tells Dr. Cox that he will be carrying his camera with him
until the day I die.
[VIDEO PLAYBACK]
- So are you still doing the whole kooky
guy who brings his camera everywhere thing?
- Till the day I die.
[END PLAYBACK]
--effectively foreshadowing the fate of Ben.
Now we start to expand on the show's B
plot, which is equally as rich as the primary storyline.
In this scene, Eliot's foot problem
serves as a catalyst in Carla confessing to Turk
that she hates his mole.
[VIDEO PLAYBACK]
- I hate your mole.
- What?
[END PLAYBACK]
Not only does this make us laugh,
but it also puts the characters of Turk and Carla
in extremely vulnerable places.
Turk is in more of an insecure shock place.
And Carla is in more of a guilty place.
This scene kicks off our theme of guilt, which will
run throughout the episode.
In this sequence, there's a little more foreshadowing
as someone literally screams he's
going to die right before cutting over to Ben and Dr. Cox
here.
[VIDEO PLAYBACK]
- Oh my god.
He's going to die.
- Oh, [INAUDIBLE].
Perfect timing.
[END PLAYBACK]
Anyway, this scene is incredibly important
because it effectively sets up Dr. Cox's and J.D.'s
inevitable battles with their own guilt later on.
Dr. Cox has to leave the hospital
to go bail a party clown out of jail and leaves Ben in J.D.'s
care to run some blood tests.
We also get the detail here that the patient J.D.
is wheeling around, Mr. Taylor, is dealing
with cardiac issues which, again,
is another piece of brilliant misdirection from the writers.
Now we return to the subplot and get to the point a little bit.
Scrubs does an excellent job of balancing A and B line
plots all the way throughout its series.
A lot of shows will give you nice A line plots
and let you have fun with those and then just shove in B line
plots simply to pad an episode, reach a 23-minute run time,
but that's not what Scrubs does here.
This subplot gets a little more insight
into Turk and Carla's battle with his lip mole.
Elliot and J.D. prey on Turk's insecurity.
And quickly after that, J.D. gets
an extremely urgent and intentionally mysterious page.
[VIDEO PLAYBACK]
- That's a code.
[END PLAYBACK]
Ted is experiencing some guilt as his band will not
be able to play Dr. Cox's kid's birthday party.
[VIDEO PLAYBACK]
- Now, even though I never asked you to,
that is still just terrific news.
[END PLAYBACK]
We're now smack dab in the middle of the episode.
And this is actually the most pivotal moment.
J.D. enters and tells Dr. Cox, 20 minutes after you left,
he went into cardiac arrest.
We tried to resuscitate him.
But there was nothing we could do.
Since we see Ben enter the frame in the background,
we assume that J.D. is talking about Mr. Taylor.
[VIDEO PLAYBACK]
- Ah.
- Mr. Taylor.
[END PLAYBACK]
There's just one thing missing.
Ben is no longer wearing his camera.
Now J.D. is overwhelmed by guilt as well.
He can't even look at Dr. Cox in the eyes.
What comes off to us as a satellite character dying
is actually an emotional atomic bomb in disguise.
Turk tries to bargain his way out
of getting his mole removed to no avail.
It's also worth noting that bargaining
is another stage of grief, which is the primary theme explored
in the episode.
Step 3 to a great Scrubs episode is
understanding your thematic tone and balancing it properly
with comedy but, more pertinently,
driving the emotion of each episode home-- something
that a lot of sitcoms get wrong or don't even attempt to do.
So now things are getting really heated between Dr. Cox and J.D.
We're now exploring what happens when extreme anger meets
extreme guilt.
[VIDEO PLAYBACK]
- So wait, you think this was my fault?
- Hey, this is an emotional situation.
So why don't you just go easy on the kid?
- It was your fault. Now get the hell out.
[END PLAYBACK]
You never really question why Ben
is standing around hovering over Dr. Cox's shoulders.
And we should, shouldn't we?
Shouldn't we be paying attention to how awkward
it is having a non-medical professional following a doctor
around and giving him advice?
It's now revealed that Dr. Cox has
been sleeping at the hospital for 2 straight days.
And he is still lacing into J.D. J.D. reminds him of an event.
[VIDEO PLAYBACK]
- Look, you want to be mad at me, that's fine.
I get it, OK?
But Jordan called.
She wants to make sure you show this afternoon.
[END PLAYBACK]
--which we assume is Jack's first birthday party,
and all the while, we never question Ben's presence.
It's 2 days later and Ben is wearing the exact same outfit.
But the episode is so well written
that we don't even notice.
Turk and Carla's moral dilemma is coming to a head.
And we get one of these seamless transitions here as Turk says--
[VIDEO PLAYBACK]
- I hate her for doing this to me.
- I hate him for doing this to me.
[END PLAYBACK]
We immediately get a cutaway to Carla
saying the exact same thing about changing her last name
as we understand these two characters are experiencing
parallel emotions over two different things.
When you see this next scene here-- with Dr. Cox and Ben--
for the first time, it seems like these two old friends
are just comforting one another as Dr. Cox explaining
that he feels responsibility to his patients.
When we watch it a second time, we
understand that this scene is one of the saddest scenes
of maybe the entire series.
Dr. Cox is wrought with grief over the death of his friend.
And instead of coping in a healthy way,
he is burying himself in his work.
There's another great moment here
where Elliot throws us off a bit.
She turns around and appears to lock eyes
with Ben, making this illusion a little more tangible.
[VIDEO PLAYBACK]
[YELPS]
- Oh, that outstanding commitment.
- Thanks.
[END PLAYBACK]
As we transition ourselves away from the guilt and anger,
the theme of acceptance begins to emerge
as Dr. Cox forgives J.D. And Turk and Carla come
to terms with each other's wants and needs
in their relationship.
And finally, one of the best things about Scrubs,
and what makes a perfect episode really work,
is the element of surprise.
The show consistently keeps you on its feet,
especially with plot reveals.
The finale of this episode is what
really cements it as being the pinnacle of what Scrubs can do.
As we get to what we assume is Jack's birthday party,
Dr. Cox is speaking with Ben and J.D.
about taking photos of kids.
[VIDEO PLAYBACK]
- Pictures of what?
- You know, crying babies covered in chocolate.
People singing happy birthday to my son who
have never even met him before.
You know, the whole routine.
[END PLAYBACK]
And we finally get this great line from J.D.
[VIDEO PLAYBACK]
- Where do you think we are?
[END PLAYBACK]
Ben suddenly disappears.
And it's revealed that we are at a cemetery for Ben's funeral,
revealing that it was Ben who died and not Mr. Taylor.
The music here fits perfectly with these slow camera moves.
And it really highlights the emotional impact
Ben's death has had on the character who
is famously callous and cold.
J.D. and Turk both comfort Dr. Cox during his time of grief.
And we get this whole storyline coming full circle
in a truly beautiful way.
We get the signature J.D. voice-over
and the credits roll over an emotionally vulnerable Dr. Cox.
This episode touches on the complexities
of interpersonal relationships while delving deep into what
it means to love someone.
It's not only a statement which attempts
to dig up how humans care for one another,
but also for how we experience grief and loss.
And somehow, through all of this, the episode's hilarious.
It's hard to think of another show that
can capture this level of emotional depth
and nuanced character development in a single episode
while still being, well, funny--
like a sitcom's supposed to be.
Scrubs is truly one of a kind.
And while there are many episodes of Scrubs
that are great, "My Screw Up" is one of the only episodes
that I think could be considered, well,
close to perfect.
Well guys, that's it for today's episode of Nerdstalgic.
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[MUSIC PLAYING]