What is it about the eps with Brendan that is just so, well, moving? Both of the eps I remember seeing, the one where he was first diagnosed and last nights, were so incredibly well done, but certainly not in the traditional sitcom method.
Of course, they are also sad eps, really tugging you in right in the last minute of the show. I know I was very nearly left mouth hanging open last night.
Anyone else appreciate these “very special Scrubs” shows?
Frankly, I love every episode, but last night’s was my all-time favorite one. We didn’t know it was on, though, and found it halfway through. Since we knew the ending, we couldn’t remember when exactly he had died. He does interact with people in the beginning of the ep, right, so does he die when JD’s ‘patient’ does? Brendan’s the patient, right?
jeevwoman. Right. There’s a set-up at the very beginning where JD is worried about another older male patient. When Dr. Cox has JD check out Ben (Brendan’s character) for tests, we have no idea that’s who JD is referring to as who has died, esp. since Ben’s ghost appears (only to Cox) immediately after. It’s sort of obvious upon repeat viewing, tho.
Best joke: Elliot as Ben’s hand puppet, and Cox’s comment, “Way to commit!”
This is a great episode and I really wanted a chance to see it again. I didn’t realize that it was on last night. 
We were Tivo-ing it as we watched, and it’s a darned good thing! We had to go back and figure out what happened when.
Very good episode.
Well, I had seen the thread the day after it originally aired, titled “Last night’s Scrubs (sob)”. I didn’t read the thread, as I wanted to remain unspoiled, but I knew something sad had happened. When JD said “I’m sorry, he coded,” my first thought was Ben, but then he kept showing up. I decided it must have been the old guy who died, after all, and so the ending was a real sucker punch for me. (Actually, I didn’t see it last night; we got it on video. I work Tuesday nights, so I pretty much never get to see the show when it originally airs.)
Part of the reason these episodes are so affecting is that the central characters are emotionally involved with Ben. He’s shown not just as a patient, but as a person. And Ben’s a great guy. He’s warm and funny, and he really helped humanize both Dr. Cox and Jordan. So his storylines (his diagnosis with a disease that will probably kill him, and his death) hit us in two ways; we’re saddened at these things happening to Ben because he’s such a great guy, and we feel for the characters suffering such a devastating loss because we know how much Ben means to them.
Scrubs does these sorts of episodes very well, I think in large part because they don’t treat them like VSE. They’re just episodes like any other. I think every episode of this show has elements of a VSE, where something very affecting or life-changing happens, just because of the nature and content of the show. I mean, it’s a show about people learning to function as doctors, with all the psychological and emotional challenges that involves. There’s enough human drama in any hospital’s patient population for this show to be nothing but VSE’s, like the medical version of Blossom. But they don’t do that, because that’s not how doctors live. Instead, they treat the human drama the way most medical personnel do–they walk a tightrope between compassion and callousness, being affected by the patients without getting too attached to them.
Wow, CCL! I think you’ve captured it perfectly. It’s not played for melodrama, like VSEs. It’s just showing what the doctors deal with every day.
I was kind of wondering why JD was in the front row of the funeral with Jordan, Cox and Danni, and then I figured that if you sleep with both of the dead person’s sisters, you automatically count as family. 
And as a note, I just found out that Turk and Danni (Donald and Tara, that is) both went to school together (HS of Performing Arts, I think) IRL. Too bad they don’t have more scenes together. I actually think Tara Reid is really good in her episodes.
You know, I never even thought about JD being in the front row. I guess I just figured that since he was there with Dani, he’d sit with her in the front row, the same way Dr.J would have sat in the front row with me if my brother had died while we were dating.
I think they kind of tried to advertise a few of the early episodes like VSE’s, especially the one where JD loses a patient for the first time. (Like he would have gotten through his clinicals in school without losing anybody. Not very realistic, that, but still a terribly good episode.) I remember hoping they weren’t going to keep that sort of advertising up, since every episode was likely to be “special” or “emotional” or whatever smarmy catchword they wanted to use. TPTB must have caught on to that pretty quickly, because I only saw a handful of those sorts of promos.
[tangent]
Fraser might be one of the most underrated actors in Hollywood right now. Good looking and well built, he can be credible when doing action (The Mummy), slapstick (George of the Jungle), modern screwball (Blast From the Past), drama (The Quiet American and Gods and Monsters). I hope he gets a project where he can show if he has any really serious acting abilities (think Academy Award drama, like what they gave Charlize Theron).
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tangent]
Fraser might be one of the most underrated actors in Hollywood right now. Good looking and well built, he can be credible when doing action (The Mummy), slapstick (George of the Jungle), modern screwball (Blast From the Past), drama (The Quiet American and Gods and Monsters). I hope he gets a project where he can show if he has any really serious acting abilities (think Academy Award drama, like what they gave Charlize Theron)
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originally posted by Gaspode
To me, Fraser makes so-so movies watchable. I like the remake of “Bedazzled” because of him. I thought he did an excellent job playing all those different characters.
End Tangent
I saw this episode before and it’s also my favorite. The first time I watched it, I didn’t see the end coming either. They “Sixth Sensed” me!