What I'm Watching: Scrubs

Scrubs: Season 7, Episode 6 "My #1 Doctor" (C+)

Special all-Janitor post, because nothing else was interesting or memorable enough.

I read a while back that Neil Flynn had wanted the janitor to get both a name and a girlfriend before the show was over. While I certainly respect the considerable and hilarious talents of Mr. Flynn, I feel that such a request does possibly irreperable damage to the show. To this point, the Janitor has been basically friendless and certainly womanless character, who hung out with other despised hospital employees. He was originally written as a one-shot guest for the pilot, but his "did you put that penny in there?" bit earned him a permanent spot on the serries. His purpose was to torment J.D. and they even managed to insert him into continous and compelling plotlines with Elliot (a.k.a. Blonde Doctor), Carla, and Dr. Cox. But by turning another one-shot joke, his girlfriend's name being Lady, into a drawn-out story in itself which encompasses more than a third of the episode, he is losing his purpose. Dramatic storylines were not what the Janitor was meant for - he was supposed to be doing stuff like going to his son's elementary school class and introducing himself as Dr. Jan I. Tor. I want to see more of that, and if that requires less screentime for the Janitor, I think it is worth it, as long as all this girlfriend nonsense stops pronto. And we better not find out his time. Unless it is, in fact, Jan I. Tor.