31 thoughts I had while watching Scrubs for the first time

Is Scrubs on your quarantine binge list? A first-time watcher puts the fan-favorite sitcom to the test and reacts to the pilot episode.

If there was ever a time to finally get into Scrubs, it’s right now. Obviously, everyone’s looking for levity in the safe comforts of past favorites, and to add further incentive beyond big laughs, Zach Braff and Donald Faison launched their podcast, “Fake Doctors, Real Friends,” which finds them chatting about their hit series episode by episode. But as we often do around here, we’re talking about the very first episode.

Now, like my experience with Seinfeld, I have actually seen a few episodes (including the Season 6 musical episode) of Scrubs throughout the years, meaning I’m not going in blind. However, I’ve never watched the series from the first episode and seen how it all begins. Being so, I’ve taken my first trip to Sacred Heart Hospital for a taste test of the fan-favorite comedy series.

Here are 31 thoughts about the pilot episode from a Scrubs first-timer.

1. Any preconceived notion I have about the tone and energy of Scrubs, which mostly originates from the scattered, later-season episodes I watched at least a decade ago in syndication, don’t exist in the pilot. It’s entirely possible this could be a different show than what it evolved into.

2. Knowing that J.D. winds up a lovable goof, he doesn’t seem to have started out at his fullest potential in his introductory scene… even though he used shaving cream to create skeletal bones on his body.

3. This theme song (“Superman” by Lazlo Bane) and opening sequence is one of the all-time best for a comedy series. It’s short and sweet but perfectly matches the series, unlike some sitcom theme songs (if they even have them these days).

4. Okay, so J.D. arrives for his first day and is immediately overwhelmed. We’re rooting for him. He’s our entry to this world. He’s our Meredith Grey. (Yes, Scrubs existed before Grey’s Anatomy, ignore the inconsistencies of the metaphor.)

5. Randomly, in this flashback to J.D. and Turk’s orientation, the series gives a lesson in not being problematic. No, you can’t say a racial slur, even if it’s in the lyrics of a song. Looks like a few celebrities who shall go unnamed should watch this scene…

6. “Alcohol + Surgery = NO NO.” Triple underlined for emphasis as if it wasn’t obvious.

7. Something tells me Dr. Kelso insisting the Sacred Heart team is “family” is an epic bait and switch. He doesn’t seem very warm and fuzzy.

8. “Your butt looks like two Pringles hugging.” Oh, my GOD. I feel horrible for laughing at J.D.’s inner monologue, but… that’s kind of hilarious.

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9. Already love Elliot’s chaotic energy! (If you’re a “First Time” regular, you saw this coming.)

10. Clearly, I was wrong about Scrubs not being totally itself on arrival. This running cutaway is exactly what I’d expect from this show, and it’s great.

11. Oh, no, not this guy. Dr. Cox and I aren’t going to get along very well. Not loving his energy.

12. Wait, maybe Dr. Kelso is actually nice? A twist! Wow, I’m all kinds of wrong about Scrubs. Please forgive me, Zach Braff.

13. J.D. already shot his shot with Elliot in the first act. You have to love a sitcom with excellent pacing.

14. Hmmm, Dr. Cox thinks Dr. Kelso is “Satan himself,” when he’s the one who’s been mean to J.D. all day. Insert Oprah “so what is the truth” gif.

15. And with that threat, J.D. has to step up and stop letting the nurses do the work he’s too timid to do. He has stakes, motive, room to grow—it’s all working to get me emotionally invested.

16. Turk’s having a great day, doing surgeries, making friends… But when will there be time to talk about his apartment with J.D.?!

17. Hold on. I love J.D.? At least right now? He’s very sweet and endearing and adorable.

18. Finally, the Janitor! There are so many principal characters in this show (not a critique, by the way, just an observation) that I’d forgotten about him.

19. I had a thought about J.D. fumbling an answer because he was thinking about Elliot, but this patient’s yellow radio headset with an antenna just unlocked a deep, locked-away memory from the early 2000s. Remember those?! And the matching boombox! AirPods are definitely a downgrade.

20. Turk wants to branch out from J.D., but J.D. secretly doesn’t want to. The dynamic in their friendship and how close they are isn’t something you see between straight men on TV very often. The only other male character I can think of who ever openly expressed a need for his best friend was Cory from Boy Meets World.

21. Dr. Cox catches J.D. and Elliot hiding from responsibility in the supply closet. They’re lucky he didn’t catch them at their near Grey’s Anatomy moment. (Again, let me have this one, imaginary person yelling at me to reference ER or something!!!)

22. Wait, Turk and Carla are already hooking up?!

23. You have to give Dr. Cox credit for telling J.D. like it is and not coddling him. As much as J.D. needs reassurance and emotional support, Cox giving him tough love and a healthy dose of reality will be more beneficial in the long run.

24. Here for Carla defending herself and teaching Elliot a lesson in privilege, but I’m also here for them lifting each other up… whenever that should happen.

25. “Please Forgive Me” by David Gray during a montage of J.D. on call. Oh, yes, we’re in 2001.

26. Did we really need to include a transgender character for a cheap laugh? I wish the same care that was taken to disavow racism would have been taken for homo/transphobia.

27. After a long night of struggling, J.D. has to pronounce a patient dead. He’s learning these life lessons at light speed tonight.

28. J.D. and Turk forever!!!! (You don’t even need context for this.)

29. On second thought, Dr. Kelso’s a wolf in sheep’s clothing. It’s crazy that, while looking for the good guy and the bad guy, J.D. might have read Cox wrong.

30. J.D. and Elliot kiss and make up (literally!) at the last second. The pacing of their relationship waffles back and forth, but this will ultimately be a will-they-or-won’t-they slow burn. Who doesn’t love the slow burn of a sitcom coupling?

31. Consensus: Although the few instances of dated jokes worries me, the stylistic elements of Scrubs will keep me coming back for a full binge-watch. The fact that single-cam sitcoms were outnumbered by multi-cams at the time (the opposite of the current comedy landscape), and it was able to survive as long as it did on a unique mixture of endearing and surreal humor, proves it wasn’t a fluke. This show had something special, and it was apparent from day one.

All nine seasons of Scrubs are available to stream on Hulu.