A Promising Prognosis for ‘Scrubs’

Patient name: “Scrubs.”

Date of birth: Oct. 2, 2001.

Symptoms: The chief complaint is anxiety over the end of the first season, which will occur next Tuesday, preceded by an episode tonight at 9:30 on NBC.

Diagnosis: The patient exhibits signs of hysteria and an active imagination, envisioning itself in a hospital populated by interning doctors named J.D. (Zach Braff, in actuality), Turk (Donald Faison) and Elliot (Sarah Chalke). They can be tormented by taskmaster Dr. Bob Kelso (Ken Jenkins), ridiculed by the oddly heroic Dr. Perry Cox (John C. McGinley) and vexed by fellow interns and even the janitor (Neil Flynn). This altered state of reality has resulted in mildly delusional, “Ally McBeal”-esque moments and dramatic tension undercut by uncontrollable fits of laughter.

Upon examination, the patient is concluding a two-part episode tonight in which Dr. Cox’s former brother-in-law (Brendan Fraser) is battling leukemia, with J.D. helping to treat him.

Meanwhile, Turk must come to terms with the fact that he isn’t as good as he thinks he is; and Elliot and Nurse Carla Espinosa (Judy Reyes) get their chance to exact revenge on Dr. Kelso. All of these scenarios point to the basic difficulties of how to face the truth, something the patient clearly has deep-seated issues with.

Further examination reveals that “Scrubs” is lacking a laugh track; however, because laugh tracks are vestigial, the patient is better off without one.

Prognosis: With all vital signs holding strong and regular Thursday night sessions planned for next season, the outlook is good.

If laughter is the best medicine, “Scrubs” has all the means to cure the anxiety and lead a fulfilling life.