Case Study: Sitcom Analysis of Scrubs

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Scrubs

IMDB Rating: 8.4/10
Creator: Bill Lawrence  
Brief Synopsis: In the unreal world or Sacred Heart Hospital, intern J.D. learns the ways of medicine, friendship and life.


How are characters introduced (Pilot Episode)?
The main character is introduced through voice over from JD who is seen lying in bed nervous for his first day as an intern. We are then introduced to Turk who is JD's best friend and is the 'cool' guy. Next is Elliot who is the sexy blonde intern and Carla who is a nurse at the hospital and helps the interns adjust. We see a relationship forming between Turk and Carla. Next is Dr Perry who is the doctor assigned to JD. Todd is introduced as Turk's surgical friend and is portrayed as your typical jok with cut sleeves and muscles.  and seems like and evil man but in reality he is nice but has doesn't like to show it and lastly is Dr Bob Kelso who in the beginning is seen as a nice kind caring doctor but is revealed to be an evil man, corrupted by money. 

 What is the style of humour? 
Unlike most sitcoms, characters are multidimensional and not always who they appear to be.  Through voice over, fantasy scenes and lack of laugh track, you find more humour and more heart in each story. It helps Scrubs reveal the humanity and universal truths that distinguish the very best sitcoms from all the rest. 

 The show has both the "very special episode" tone of the 80s sitcoms and the joke a minute style that dominates the single camera era. It mixed elements of old tv (such as catchphrases, wacky characters, will they/wont they romances) and modern additions of cutaway scenes for fantasy and dream sequences. 

 How many stories in an episode? 
One main character is followed, JD, and his experience and life making it as a doctor. Along the way we also learn about other characters on the show but it is all done from JD's perception. 

What is the layout of the sitcom? 

It embraces the new conventions of comedy, including voiceovers, fantasy scenes and the absence of a laughing track. 

 Scrubs is a workplace sitcom with a hangout vibe. Locations used was the hospital and JD's apartment. Borrowed "lesson learned through patients", young residents, and unsparingness towards patients from Doogie Howser, St Elsewhere, combining them with a Simpsons-style deep bench of broad comic types. 

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