‘Scrubs’ Is A Workplace Comedy That Holds Up After the #MeToo Movement

Rewatching a comedy is always a gamble. More than dramas, the success of comedies is dictated by the times. When it was on the air, Chandler’s (Matthew Perry) treatment of his drag queen dad may have been questionable, but Friends wasn’t met with the accusations of homophobia and transphobia it’s received today. In Saved by the Bell, Zach’s (Mark-Paul Gosselaar) plot to sell a girls-only swimsuit calendar without getting permission from any of these teenage girls wasn’t viewed as exploitative or grossly sexist. It was just another zany sitcom plot. And few other comedy subgenres from the past are more of a current minefield than the workplace comedy.

This was something that was recently and heartbreakingly brought to the internet’s attention through The Office. For years Jim Halbert (John Krasinski) stood as the sweet, romantic hero of the series, while Michael Scott was the show’s bumbling, beloved idiot. However, the classic and widely successful comedy has been facing some backlash from its viewers who are rewatching the series now. As Buzzfeed’s Hilary Mitchell explains, Jim is less of a paper-selling knight in shining armor and more of a selfish partner who often does things without consulting Pam (Jenna Fisher). And speaking of Pam, Michael’s constant comments about her appearance and sexual innuendos about every woman he works with have become less forgivable and more horrific, especially in the wake of the #MeToo and Time’s Up movements. The comedy certainly isn’t unwatchable or unfunny. However, in a climate more aware of the widespread effects of workplace sexual harassment, Dunder-Mifflin isn’t blameless either. It’s during this confusing time when so many entertainment writers and fans have been forced to reflect on their favorites and finally see their flaws that I decided to rewatch Scrubs. And you know what? The Bill Lawrence show holds up.

Sacred Heart Hospital isn’t a workplace that’s devoid of sexism and sexual harassment. However, it’s the confrontational and open way the series approaches these problems that makes it remarkable. Throughout Elliot’s (Sarah Chalke) time as an intern and later resident of the hospital, she’s forced to fight with Kelso (Ken Jenkins), her father, and her patients to maintain her place in general practice. With everyone around her pressuring her to specialize in the traditionally women-led fields of obstetrics and gynecology, the ever-flustered Elliot has to fight for her place as a female general doctor and work twice as hard as J.D (Zach Braff) to get their respect. There’s sexism connected to every moment of that fight. Her male colleagues consistently call her “Barbie” and make derogatory comments about her appearance, but rather than accepting these jabs at face value, both Elliot and the show fight back against them. In these moments, whoever is insulting Elliot is the bad guy. Viewers are supposed to be on Elliot’s side and be just as outraged as she is with these consistent displays of sexism J.D. pointedly never has to endure.

The series even handles race and intersectionality remarkably well. In several episodes, like in “My Fifteen Minutes,” J.D. is forced to realize that his best friend is consistently treated differently than he is because Turk (Donald Faison) is black. There’s never a happy answer to this problem. J.D. never fully understands the problems Turk faces because of society’s treatment of his race, and on a few occasions, J.D. is pointedly part of the problem. However, the most interesting and revolutionary plots of this great comedy almost consistently go to Carla (Judy Reyes).

Throughout the series, Carla faces challenges connected to her gender like Elliot and challenges connected to her race like Turk. But these obstacles aren’t covered during “very special episodes,” an approach other shows may have taken. They’re baked into her character. Despite being one of the most consistently interesting characters on the series, Carla lets her often whiney friends take center stage with their problems, which is exactly what this maternal figure to the interns would do. It’s only later that we learn that she’s so domineering and stubborn because she’s had to work three time as hard as everyone else around her. Carla’s one of the strongest female characters in this show dominated by strong female characters, and the few times she’s insulted or objectified because of her gender or race, she never fails to immediately put her attacker in their place.

And then there’s perhaps the most interesting part of the series — the sex. There’s a surprising amount of sex in Scrubs, whether it’s between Turk and Carla, Dr. Cox (John C. McGinley) and Jordan (Christa Miller), or whoever J.D. and Elliot are hooking up with that week. What’s remarkable about how the show’s hookups is how female-focused they are. It’s the women who have complete control over almost all the sex in the series. J.D. may pine over a new nurse or swoon over a private practice doctor, but those relationships don’t move forward without that woman’s enthusiastic consent. It may seem like a small detail, but during a comedy time that also featured How I Met Your Mother, a series that often featured its women going on so-so dates from desperate-to-the-point-of-being-unhinged and possibly dangerous men (i.e. Ted and Barney), it feels important. Also, Elliot is a refreshingly an overtly sexual character. When she’s slut-shamed for that, both she and the show are quick to call out the sexist hypocrisy in that complaint. If she was a male doctor, she would be getting high-fives not dirty looks.

Of course, Scrubs isn’t a perfect show. A lot of the series’ quips are sexist or at least sexual, and Todd (Robert Maschio) is a consistent problem. Also, because of its status as a network sitcom, there’s a lot more sex and mischief than any real hospital probably experiences. However, as with Scrubs‘ jokes about death and uninsured patients, there’s a pointed feeling of discomfort to these jokes. These things feel wrong because they’re supposed to feel wrong, and yet they still exist. Unfortunately, that’s the surprisingly realistic world this hospital lives in. Scrubs doesn’t pretend the workplace doesn’t have sexual politics problems nor does it try to solve those problems. It merely portrays them, but that constant portrayal does something good. It shows that there are in fact problems connected to sexism and racism in the average workplace, and this is what they look like.

Stream Scrubs on Hulu before it expires February 7