The first season of the American comedy television series Scrubs premiered on NBC on October 2, 2001 and concluded on May 21, 2002 and consists of 24 episodes. Scrubs was created by Bill Lawrence who wrote the pilot as well as three other episodes in the season. Adam Bernstein directed the pilot as well as four other episodes. Neil Flynn was only a guest star in the first season, although he appeared in every episode of the season. Bill Lawrence said if the show had been cancelled at the end of the first season, he would have made the Janitor a figment of J.D.'s imagination.[1]
The first season follows J.D. (Zach Braff) and his best friend Turk (Donald Faison) in their first year out of medical school as interns at Sacred Heart Hospital. J.D. quickly meets his reluctant mentor, Dr. Perry Cox (John C. McGinley); a young woman (and fellow intern) named Elliot (Sarah Chalke), on whom he has a crush; the hospital's janitor (Neil Flynn), who goes out of his way to make J.D.'s life miserable; the Chief of Medicine, Dr. Bob Kelso (Ken Jenkins), who is more concerned about the budget than the patients; and Carla Espinosa (Judy Reyes), the head nurse and Turk's new girlfriend, who puts Turk through the trials and tribulations of being in a serious relationship. The characters face romances and relationship issues, family obligations, overwhelming paperwork, and a tremendous number of patients. The first season also introduces recurring supporting characters such as "The Todd" (Robert Maschio), a boorishly lascivious surgeon; Ted (Sam Lloyd), the hospital's hapless, nervous lawyer; Laverne (Aloma Wright), fellow nurse and mentor to Carla; Jordan Sullivan (Christa Miller), Dr. Cox's caustic administrator ex-wife, and Doug Murphy (Johnny Kastl), a nervous young doctor who often accidentally kills patients.
J.D. tries to get to know Dr. Cox, but is rebuffed. Turk actively pursues Carla and succeeds through candor where swagger and machismo have failed. Elliot gets on Carla's wrong side. J.D. tries to convince his patient (John Ducey) to quit smoking.
Elliot takes issue with the terms of endearment Dr. Kelso uses for her, but naïvely follows Dr. Cox's advice and confronts him about it. J.D. misses Turk's company because they are both too busy to hang out, and he worries that a patient's post-op reaction is Turk's fault. Elliot and J.D. are getting close, but an interrupted kiss might make the difference between being friends and something more.
The three interns have to face death for the first time: J.D.'s patient is a headstrong but kindly old woman, Turk's is a young man who just needs some company, and Elliot's is a Hispanic woman who does not speak English.
The episode's writer, Matt Tarses, won the 2003 Humanitas Prize in the 30 Minute Category for this episode.
J.D. has to decide between Dr. Cox or Dr. Kelso as a mentor. The decision is not made any easier when all three, along with Dr. Kelso's lapdog Dr. Steadman, play a game of golf together. Elliot believes her breasts to have healing powers. In order to make up to Carla, Turk gives her a pen that, unbeknownst to him, was previously removed from a patient's rectum. Dr. Cox's actions to help an uninsured patient earn him a suspension. Louie Anderson has a cameo appearance.
Dr. Cox's suspension puts his future at the hospital in doubt. Elliot discovers her patient, Dr. Greenberg, is a psychiatrist, and begins to act like his patient. J.D. has a beautiful but self-absorbed board member as a patient, and he winds up having sex with her after standing up to her. Unfortunately, he finds out that she is Dr. Cox's ex-wife, Jordan (Christa Miller, in her first appearance in the series). J.D. tries to convince Jordan to help Dr. Cox.
J.D. relishes being the best intern, but then has to face competition from fellow intern Nick Murdoch (Sean Hayes). Turk confronts his fear of making a mistake in surgery after thinking he has accidentally nicked a patient's colon.
Features Cody Estes in his first of six appearances as Young/Child J.D., ending with "My Boss's Free Haircut".
J.D. and Turk save the life of a TV cameraman, which makes them celebrities. Dr. Kelso decides to take advantage of this by using Turk in advertisements for the hospital aimed at the African-American community, with slogans such as "Our MD's have Mad Skills" and "Time to Get an EKG, G". Cox is supposed to write J.D.'s intern evaluation but tells J.D. to do it himself. When J.D. refuses, Dr. Cox reveals that he wanted J.D. to do it so that he could discover his own shortcomings and judge himself.
J.D. and Carla's relationship changes when he starts to have more medical knowledge than she has, and takes offense at her nickname for him ("Bambi"). Elliot treats Jill (Nicole Sullivan), a patient who is just as nervous and neurotic as she is. The Janitor comes up with a new nickname for J.D.
Turk loses his faith in a just God after spending a night on call on Christmas Eve, but regains it after finding the missing pregnant girl Elliot has been searching for. Dr. Cox assigns J.D. to videotape the childbirth of one of Dr. Cox's friends.
J.D. must look after a social worker, Alex Hanson (Elizabeth Bogush), who slipped in the hospital and winds up stuck in an MRI machine. They flirt, but J.D. is reluctant to ask her out without knowing what she looks like. Elliot tries to gain Dr. Cox's favor the way J.D. has. Turk is angry at Carla and she cannot figure out why. Dr. Cox is trying for a zero deaths "perfect game" on his 24-hour ICU shift.
When drugs go missing, Elliot suspects a patient who is a former drug addict, but Alex defends him. Elliot tells J.D. that she thinks Alex will hurt him and J.D. accuses her of being jealous. He later tries to confront her about her accusation of the patient. Alex turns out to be the one who took the drugs. She and J.D. part on uncertain terms, and J.D. apologizes to Elliot. They end up in bed. Carla gets a ride from Dr. Kelso. Dr. Cox realizes he has feelings for Carla.
The episode switches between Elliot and J.D. spending a sex-filled day in bed and the ensuing weeks, where their new relationship breaks down. The hospital staff reveals their feelings to a psychologist.
J.D. and Elliot are not talking to each other after breaking up, but with Turk's help they resolve some of their issues and get back to better terms. Dr. Cox goes on a destructive rampage and Carla enlists Ted's help on fulfilling a coma patient's wishes. The death of someone close to J.D. prompts even more personal distress amidst the bad breakup with Elliot, and he attempts to play the death off as though it has not hurt him.
17
17
"My Student"
Matthew Diamond
Story by : Mark Stegemann Teleplay by : Janae Bakken & Debra Fordham
The interns receive their first medical students. J.D.'s is very much like he was at the beginning, Elliot's is a jerk but the son of the CEO of the corporation that owns the hospital, and Turk's is a smart, confident woman (Kelli Williams) to whom Dr. Cox is attracted.
18
18
"My Tuscaloosa Heart"
Lawrence Trilling
Story by : Janae Bakken Teleplay by : Debra Fordham & Mark Stegemann
J.D. feels guilty when a rude patient, whom he ignored, dies. Carla assures him that it was the patient's terminal cancer, but J.D. is unable to sleep. Dr. Cox is unable to decide between the three women he likes. Elliot and Turk discover a possible new side to Dr. Kelso. The episode title is taken from the song "My Tuscaloosa Heart" performed by Ken Jenkins (Dr. Kelso), which features in the episode.
Due to Turk's competitiveness, Turk convinces J.D.'s patient to decide upon surgery instead of medicine, which angers J.D. Elliot falls for a patient, Sean (Scott Foley). Dr. Kelso fires two nurses and after Dr. Cox confronts him, he fires "Coffee Nurse".
21
21
"My Sacrificial Clam"
Marc Buckland
Story by : Debra Fordham Teleplay by : Janae Bakken & Mark Stegemann
J.D. is struck by a needle full of blood contaminated with Hepatitis B. Cleared from infection, he becomes scared of getting sick. Elliot chooses the hospital over her new boyfriend Sean.
Jordan's brother and Dr. Cox's best friend Ben (Brendan Fraser) comes into the hospital after piercing his hand with a nail gun; however, Dr. Cox and J.D. later become worried when his hand will not stop bleeding, with J.D. going into denial about the results of Ben's tests. A series of paperwork bungles nearly has Turk operate on the wrong patient, and has Elliot incorrectly informs Jill (Nicole Sullivan) that she is pregnant.
Ben begins treatment for leukemia, but Dr. Cox has a hard time being supportive because he cares about Ben too much. Turk's ego takes a hit from the attending surgeon Dr. Wen, and Carla and Elliot scathe Dr. Kelso in a personal review. J.D. is very spooked to discover that the Janitor knows far too much about him.
The interns realize they have become jaded after working at the hospital for a year, and they decide to treat a patient aggressively. After Dr. Cox chides Jordan for her predictability, she reveals all the main characters' secrets to each other.
Notes
† denotes a "supersized" episode, running an extended length of 25–28 minutes.
Reception
On Rotten Tomatoes, the season has an approval rating of 96% with an average score of 8.3 out of 10 based on 25 reviews. The website's critical consensus reads, "Scrubs is a worthy spiritual successor to M*A*S*H thanks in part to its seamless blend of cheeky comedy and poignant, heartfelt moments."[25]
