SCRUBS: THE COMPLETE EIGHTH SEASON

By: Iggy Michniacki on 11.20.2009

The Movie Itself:
To be honest, I end up reviewing quite a bit of the television series around here but I wouldn’t consider myself a television nut. My interest in Weeds (1, 2, 3, 4) wasn’t introduced until the Blu-ray releases, and Dexter (1, 2) never made it onto my television before I was the one to review it here. My obvious love for Mad Men (1, 2)also wasn’t discovered until a cheap Blu-ray fell into my lap but Scrubs, well that is a different story.

My love for Scrubs goes back to the first season when we meet all the main characters and we have a more mellow tone than we see in the new seasons. J.D. (Zach Braff) is the lead from the get-go and sets up a series to be corky and fun in every episode while still being able to touch on important issues and the fact that they are in a hospital and everything isn’t always peachy. Scrubs is easily my favorite series, so when the Blu-ray release of season eight was coming out I didn’t hesitate to throw my name in to review it.

Scrubs: Season 8 bounced from NBC to ABC when NBC was ready to can the series after the seventh season. After seeing much success, Buena Vista ultimately opted to bring it home (ABC and Buena Vista are both properties of Disney) and give it a bit more run time. Even though the network switched J.D. and his crew return including best friend Christopher Turk (Donald Faison), love interest (on and off) Elliot Reid (Sarah Chalke), mentor Dr. Cox (John C. McGinley), Turk’s wife Carla (Judy Reyes), the pesky Janitor (Neil Flynn) and the former Chief of Medicine, Dr. Kelso (Ken Jenkins). Along with the normal cast, a few new interns are introduced (and introduced again) that would later become major players in season eight.

Upon the ending of season seven, it was obvious Elliot and J.D. were back in each others sights and their relationship was geared to take flight again. Dr. Kelso had stepped down as Chief of Medicine but still found his favorite hangout to be Sacred Heart Hospital. Turk and Carla were parents looking to work that into their lifestyle still and Dr. Cox was still the same old Dr. Cox. Missing no beats, season eight quickly dove into the matter of Chief of Medicine and found a short-term replacement in Dr. Maddox (Courtney Cox) and then changes the bill to pinning the responsibilities on the man who deserved it, Dr. Cox.

When the ball gets rolling a few interns fit the bill to start being major players, most notably tomboy Denise Mahoney (Eliza Coupe) and “Sunny” Day (Sonal Shah). As the season continues the Janitor, who is still nameless, gets married in the Bahamas and finding time for children becomes a major question mark for all the parents in the show. As the development of the interns continues, Elliot takes Denise under her wing to get her to show some emotion and Sunny tries to brighten up everybody’s day. Finally J.D. is given another opportunity at a different hospital and it puts a question mark on his relationships with Turk and Elliot. But when Scrubs: Season 8 is ready to wind down the end of the series is upon us and yet it is ready to start anew.

In many ways Scrubs seems to be just as good in its eighth season as it was in its earlier seasons. There is plenty of humor to go around, and all the characters personalities contribute a great bit to the series. As new characters are introduced the ones that don’t fit in are quickly dwindled away, and whether this was pre-scripted or not it ends up working out.

As a die-hard Scrubs fan, season eight does leave me with some issues. Once again, J.D. and Elliot are back together and this has those who have been watching for eight years wondering if it will last this time or if J.D. will just realize once again he only wanted her because he couldn’t have her. My biggest issue is with what goes down at the end of the season as some ties are cut and the knowledge of the cast being completely different in season nine will take some major re-adjusting for the fans of the series.

Even with some issues Scrubs: Season 8 holds its own in the series and does a great job of keeping up with what needs to be kept up with as well as issuing some change. Dr. Cox still address J.D. by his girly nicknames, Carla still wears the pants in her relationship with Turk, Dr. Cox and his ex-wife still love, err hate, each other and finally Kelso is still a jerk who is there to watch everybody fail. The show follows suit to previous seasons so well that when the nameless Janitor is ready to be married, when his name is spoken at the wedding some nice seagulls interrupt and don’t allow us or any of the cast to hear what it is.

Scrubs: Season 8 is great for anybody who has watched all the seasons before it or has caught some reruns here and there and still finds the show entertaining. The long-running jokes are still present, and the traditions of the show carry on very well but the change is in the air and Scrubs may be remembered as season eight being its finale even though a new look season nine is ready to begin.
Rating: 8/10

The Presentation:
Buena Vista allowed Scrubs to run seven seasons without giving it a thought of high definition, or even widescreen. But when the masses demanded Scrubs not only did Buena Vista return it for an eighth season, on it's home station, but it also upped the ante with a nice upgrade in picture.

The video is presented in a nice Mpeg-4 1080p transfer that is a noticeable upgrade from the television broadcast. The Blu-ray boasts strong colors that add a dimension to the image. The colors are bright and true showing off the bright canvas Scrubs normally has. The detail is greatly increased as well, with images looking great. J.D.'s beard is full of scruffy detail, and the hospital has many objects that benefit from the upgrade. The picture isn't perfect though, with a few of the norms television shows carry over to Blu-ray showing up. The image doesn't have the 'pop' that some of the recent movie releases do. The dark areas can lose some of the image, and the skin tones, although dead on sometimes, can be inconsistent. Even with the negatives, the fans of the show should be pleased with this upgrade as the positives far outweigh the negatives.

The DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio track is nice, but not as nice as I was hoping for. The upgrade is obviously there, as I've gone from watching Scrubs in stereo from the television speakers to getting a full, lossless surround experience. The dialogue is perfect, crisp and clear, never being drowned out by anything else. The front speakers are lively and on the mark every time. There is some issue with it being front heavy, but as mentioned in the video area, these are the problems that usually come with a television show's transition into high definition. Overall, the audio is a treat, and with the show being extremely dialogue heavy the issues won't bother many.
Rating: 8/10 (video 8/10, audio 7/10)

The Extras:
Scrubs: Season 8 hits Blu-ray a bit later than DVD and it’s not due to an overwhelming addition of extras. Yes, there are two special features that can’t be found on the DVD, but for the most part it is the same pot of stew found on the DVD. Luckily, many of the features are in high definition and nearly all of them add to the experience for the Scrubs fans out there.

• Audio Commentaries: Bill Lawrence is joined through sixteen of this season’s episodes with actors from the series. The basic discussion goes much deeper than just the episode itself as it also talks about the season and the series. Some are funny, some are boring, and pretty much all of them are for die-hard fans of the show. They include:
  • "My Jerks": Creator Bill Lawrence and writer Kevin Biegel
  • "My Last Words": Bill Lawrence and Zach Braff
  • "My Saving Grace": Bill Lawrence and writer Kevin Biegel
  • "My Happy Place": Bill Lawrence and Robert Maschio
  • "My ABCs": Bill Lawrence, producer Randall Winston, and actors Eliza Couple and Sonal Shah
  • "My Cookie Pants": Bill Lawrence and John C. McGinley
  • "My New Role": Bill Lawrence and actor Ken Jenkins
  • "My Lawyer's In Love": Bill Lawrence and actor Neil Flynn
  • "My Absence": Bill Lawrence, producer Randall Winston, actors Eliza Couple and Sonal Shah
  • "My Comedy Show": Bill Lawrence, Randall Winston, Eliza Couple and Sonal Shah
  • "My Nah Nah Nah": Bill Lawrence, Donald Faison, and Sarah Chalke
  • "Their Story II": Bill Lawrence, Neil Flynn, and Randall Winston
  • "My Full Moon": Bill Lawrence, Donald Faison and Sarah Chalke
  • "My Soul on Fire (Parts 1 and 2)": Bill Lawrence and Christa Miller
  • "My Chief Concern": Bill Lawrence and Zach Braff
• Season Play: Also featured on some of Buena Vista’s other television series releases, this feature allows you to create a profile and bookmark where you are in the series. Meaning, if you can’t remember which episode you watched last, this will remind you.
• It's All in the Name (HD): Very short, but possibly one of the best extras of any Scrubs season is this montage of Dr. Cox’s female nicknames for J.D. Also included, a scrolling list for those who want to see as well as hear.
• My Bahamas Vacation (HD): For the wedding sequence to take place in the Bahamas the cast and crew really had to go there. This feature chronicles their short trip (short, a couple of weeks) to this tropical paradise and shows how the episodes were put together.
• Deleted Scenes (HD): Cut due to it being a half hour television show, these fifteen scenes didn’t make the television broadcast but they did make the extra features. There are only fifteen cut scenes, which is underwhelming when you’re talking about a nineteen episode season.
• Alternate Lines (HD): Kind of like the deleted scenes, these are scenes that made it but didn’t make it with these spoken lines. There are seventeen scenes where the actors tryout different lines to see how it affects the scene and show.
• Bloopers (HD): The typical gag-real. There’s a funny moment here and there but for the most part I don’t find these, and don’t know too many that do, too hilarious.
• Scrubs Interns Webisodes (HD): Some webisodes featured from ABC.com that include some appearances from the main part of the cast part are mainly from the interns (hence the name). There are thirteen and they include "Our Intern Class", "Our Meeting with J.D.", "Our Meeting in the Broom Closet”, "Screw You With Ted and the Gooch”, "The Late Night with Jimmy Show", "Our Meeting with the Braintrust", "Legal Custodian Outtakes", "Our Bedside Manner", "Our Meeting with Turk and The Todd", "Our Final Advice", "Our Meeting with Carla", "Legal Custodians Episode".

Overall:
Scrubs has been my favorite show for sometime, and even with the changes I will be tuning in on December 1st for the ninth season. The eighth season comes to Blu-ray, and even though it's not perfect, I am more than pleased. The season was one of the best, fun and entertaining; keeping inside jokes running for the long fans and churning out new characters and relationships to keep everybody happy. The video and audio see a huge upgrade from the television broadcast. Both the video and audio shine even though perfection is out of reach. Finally, the extras are jam packed, and add much to the plate for any fan. Scrubs fans shouldn't hesitate to pick this up, and I also recommend people not familiar with the show to at least check it out.
Rating: 8/10