Scrubs, Thursday 9pm, E4

Posted by Helen Jennings

Our rating:
“If you are so stupid as to confront the Chief of Medicine over some quasi-offensive term, then you've just got to go ahead and replace the captain of your brain ship, because he's drunk at the wheel.”

This quotation is a perfect example of why I love Dr Cox. He’s the best thing about Scrubs by a country mile. Why? I’ll tell you why. He’s sarcastic and bitter. He rants and he raves. He’s incapable of emotional intimacy. He shoots hoops. He drinks heavily. Basically, he’s my kinda guy.

Although technically the US medical comedy, now in its sixth season on E4, is focused on Zach Braff’s good-natured character JD, quite frankly his big, hapless face can be annoying sometimes, as can his moralising message at the end of each episode. Conversely, Dr Cox, played by seasoned actor John C McGinley (Platoon, Point Break, Se7en), is on a one-man mission to keep his feminine side and good nature well and truly buried where they belong – while he gets on with the business of being right all the time.

When he’s not calling JD girl and pet names (Bambi, Britney, Scooby etc.), he’s coming out with tirades like this, to his nemesis Dr Kelso: “They hate you, Bob. They hate you from the bottom of your hooves to the top of your pitchfork. They hate you, dear God, they hate you good.”

Or this, to JD: “Do you at least remember what you were doing the day they were passing out common sense? Oh gosh, maybe you were running late that day ‘cause you just couldn't find the right thong for those low-rider jeans that you just love so much, or maybe you were busy bopping along to whatever boy band really makes your heart race nowadays and you just drove on by.”

If only real life afforded such opportunities to be maniacally mean to your co-workers and get away with it. But real life isn’t like Sacred Heart hospital, where daydreams get acted out in absurd vignettes. So I’ll have to stick to getting my thrills through watching Dr Cox on Scrubs instead.

Comments

[Chantal Shaw]

I just love the show, full stop. All the characters are hiiilarious! Maybe with the exception of Carla, she's become funnier lately but she still doesn't compare with Elliot, Janitor, JD, Turk or Cox. One of my favourite shows!

[Phil]

I was hooked from the first episode i saw by chance and take my hat off to Bill Lawrence and the rest of the production team for making these characters work so well together. Dr Cox is a great man, rude, respected and witty! How about Ted the lawyer - his short appearances deserve a mention too i feel!

[jps]

Good article, but disagree with you about Dr. Cox being the best. As awsome as he is, the janitor makes the show. His 2 minutes worth of screen time in most episodes are usually the highlight for me, especially knowing most of his stuff is improvised. He is closely followed by Dr. Cox though!

[gohan_unleashed]

Scrubs has been great from the start and yes it is highly underated. All the characters are great, from JD's internal voice narration to Elliotts molten crazy rambling. Dr. Cox does have some of the best lines including: that moment was so great I'd cheat on the last moment marry this one and raise a family of little moments/ when the moonlight hits you like that I can just make out the venom glistening on your fangs

[total beach]

it's really the whole gammet of characters that make scrubs work so well even when the're all being bad to each other there in some way helping one another, the script is so sharply written that it holds up if you see the same episode over and over again and I have , and the development of each character from elliot's shy crying intern to her more powerful private practise doctor that is just one example, it is all just a treat to be savoured on a daily repeated basis

[Nicci]

From the first series till the sixth they r showin now Dr Cox has always been the best reason the watch scrubs.
His the Best.

[Tom Bartlet]

Here here! Scrubs is one is still one of the best things on television, and severely underrated. Dr Cox of course is a big part of that, a voice of reason in a world gone mad!

[Jason Orange]

The guy's a legend.