Scrubs (Season 8)

With Seasons 6 & 7 marking a dip in quality, I think this was the perfect time for Scrubs to end on a high note. Thankfully, the crew put their a-game into this final season, making for the best one since Season 5.

Season 8 spends its time dealing with tying up the loose ends of Season 7 and bringing the characters to their natural conclusions to end the series off in a satisfying way. I actually really like the first few episodes of Season 8, they kind of feel like the ending Season 7 should've had, between the great storyline about the new Chief Of Medicine and JD and Elliot finally getting together. I also really happen to like "retired Kelso", as he spends much of this season hanging around the hospital, and his mellowed-out nature is just so fun to watch. The rest of the season is spent giving all the characters satisfying endings, like JD moving away, Kelso realizing he misses be a doctor, Turk becoming Chief Of Surgery, and Janitor getting married. It's all great stuff. The only thing I don't find all that great about this season plot-wise is the new interns, who I find to be mostly dull and forgettable, especially compared to the ones who were introduced in Season 5.

While they had their dark moments (especially Season 5), I feel like Scrubs had kind of dialed it back on the introspection and bittersweet-ness over the past few seasons, especially the mostly goofy and light-hearted Season 7. The characters spend their time contemplating whether they're truly happy with the lives they lead right now, which is perfectly fitting for a final season. However, one aspect about Season 8's episodes that I'm really mixed about is how many of them only focus on a few characters, most likely due to the budget cuts the show suffered during the making of this season. On one hand, it allows for some pretty unique episodes like My Absence, My Happy Place, and My Last Words, which go for a more small-scale approach to great effect. However, we end up getting this stretch in the middle of episodes that only use a few characters at a time and it makes the hospital feel oddly empty. Sometimes it's justified, My Last Words takes place at night after all, but other times it just feels wrong.

Highlights:

My Last Words: It's been a while since we had an episode like My Last Words, one where a character gets attached to a patient who ends up dying at the end. It's as sad as any other of those kinds of Scrubs episodes, but what makes My Last Words hit especially hard is how personal and small-scale it is. Most of the episode is just JD, Turk, and the patient George chatting away, eventually delving into a really thought-provoking and mature discussion about their fear of dying. It's also not very shocking, we know George is going to die from the start, to it gives the episode this bittersweet feel where we're happy that George has people to comfort him in JD and Turk, but we also know that he could pass away at any moment.

My Happy Place: So whenever a will-they-won't-they relationship finally gets together, it's this big event that usually happens at the end or midpoint of a season in the most bombastic way possible. But JD and Elliot getting together isn't bombastic at all, as a matter of fact it's kind of boring. They spend all of My Happy Place just talking it out, discussing their relationship, their fears, and whether or not they should be together. When JD and Elliot get together, it's after a long stretch of healthy communication and discussion, and that's a massive breath of fresh air given how carelessly their relationship was treated in previous seasons.

My Chief Concern: This was a great penultimate episode for Scrubs, as the cast has to deal with JD's massive decision to leave Sacred Heart and move away. It has a great sense of finality to it and really makes it clear that the show is coming to an end.

My Finale: This is just a really solid and heartwarming series finale, everything you'd really want from the end of a sitcom. JD trying to get a goodbye with every single character leads to a series of heartwarming moments that utilizes the whole cast, but the highlight is definitely Dr Cox secretly admitting that JD is a great doctor and his friend. However, my only gripe with the episode is that vision scene at the end, which is heartwarming but went on a bit too long for my tastes.

Overall, while it suffers from budget cuts and the introduction of a few dull characters, Season 8 is otherwise a fantastic and bittersweet final season that really delves into the main cast to get each and every single character the end they deserve.

4/5 Stars

My ranking of the Scrubs seasons is:

5 > 3 > 8 > 4 > 2 > 6 > 1 > 7

My ranking of the Scrubs finales is:

8 > 4 > 1 > 2 > 6 > 3 > 5 > 7

Favorite Episode: My Lunch

What? Were you expecting me to bring up Season 9? I don't know what you're talking about, Scrubs doesn't have a ninth season.