Scrubs

DVD Review: Season Sets For ‘Dirty Sexy Money,’ ‘Scrubs,’ ‘Samantha Who’

BrianTT — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 11:53:18 -0600

CHICAGO – Buena Vista Home Video is releasing three sets next week that would be a trio of final season sets if not for the last-minute and surprising renewal of “Scrubs,” despite a beautiful series finale. That finale is included on “Scrubs: The Complete Eighth Season,” which joins “Dirty Sexy Money: The Complete And Final Second Season” and “Samantha Who?: The Complete Second And Final Season” on store shelves this week. (Don’t argue with us about the placement of the words “And Final” on the “DSM” case. That’s where it’s placed on the package.)

DVD Rating: 3.5/5.0

This week’s TV on DVD includes one show that never quite found an audience, another that had one and lost it, and a third that has been on for most of the decade, crossed over from one network to another, and survived several cancellation axe swings. At least one will make a nice addition to your collection and all three include special features of interest to their fans.

Dirty Sexy Money will be released on DVD on August 25th, 2009.
Photo credit: Buena Vista Home Video

With one of the most accomplished casts and talented creators, “Dirty Sexy Money” was among the most anticipated shows of the 2007 fall season. The show struggled to find an audience and became a victim of ABC’s horrendous post-strike strategy, which left most of their dramas off the air for almost a year. By the time that “DSM” came back almost a year after the last episode of the first season, it was too late and the ratings fell from 7.4 million viewers for the premiere to 3.4 million viewers for the last pre-cancellation episode. When ABC decided to burn off the final episodes of the series this summer with almost no advertising, less than 2 million viewers tuned in.

Now, all 13 episodes of the second season are available in one set and presented in widescreen with a 1.78:1 aspect ratio that has been enhanced for 16x9 televisions and presented with a Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound track. Special features include “Directing the Darlings,” “A Total Knockout,” “Dirty Sexy Crafty,” “Faux Pas - Bloopers From Season 2,” and deleted scenes.

“Samantha Who?” was something of a hit its first season, earning praise and awards for its talented stars Christina Applegate and Jean Smart. The sometimes-clever sitcom really faltered in season two, both creatively and in the ratings, after losing its “Dancing With the Stars” lead-in, and was cancelled.

Scrubs will be released on DVD on August 25th, 2009.
Photo credit: Buena Vista Home Video

Season two includes all twenty episodes of the sophomore year of “Samantha Who?” in widescreen with a 1.78:1 aspect ratio that has been enhanced for 16x9 televisions and presented with a Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound track. Special features include bloopers, deleted scenes, “Tour the Set With Christina Applegate,” and “Christina Dance Moment”.

Finally, the beloved “Scrubs” continues with season eight of the show available on DVD. After seven years on NBC, “Scrubs” switched networks and focus for its eighth (and we all presumed final) season. Despite too often focusing on new characters that the creators clearly hoped to develop for potential future seasons of the show, the eighth season of “Scrubs” was consistent enough that fans of the show should definitely take a look if they didn’t already make the transition from NBC to ABC.

Season eight includes all nineteen episodes of “Scrubs” in full frame with a 1.33:1 aspect ratio and presented with a Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound track. Special features include bloopers, deleted scenes, “My Bahamas Vacation,” and “Scrubs Intern Webisodes”.

‘Dirty Sexy Money: The Complete And Final Second Season’ is released by Buena Vista Home Video and stars Donald Sutherland, Peter Krause, William Baldwin, Blair Underwood, Jill Clayburgh, and Lucy Liu. It was created by Craig Wright. It will be released on August 25th, 2009. It is not rated.

‘Samantha Who?: The Complete Second And Final Season’ is released by Buena Vista Home Video and stars Christina Applegate, Jean Smart, Jennifer Esposito, Kevin Dunn, Melissa McCarthy, and Barry Watson. It was created by Cecelia Ahern and Don Todd. It will be released on August 25th, 2009. It is not rated.

‘Scrubs: The Complete Eighth Season’ is released by Buena Vista Home Video and stars Zach Braff, Sarah Chalke, Judy Reyes, Donald Faison, Neil Flynn, Ken Jenkins, and John C. McGinley. It was created by Bill Lawrence. It will be released on August 25th, 2009. It is not rated.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

ABC Renews ‘Castle,’ ‘Scrubs’; Cancels ‘The Unusuals,’ ‘Cupid’

BrianTT — Tue, 19 May 2009 13:04:48 -0600

CHICAGO – ABC is still struggling to find the next big hit to stand next to monsters like “Lost,” “Desperate Housewives,” and “Grey’s Anatomy,” and they decided to give Nathan Fillion & Stana Katic’s “Castle” a shot at hit status, but cancelled several other new shows, including “The Unusuals” and “Cupid”.

ABC announced their fall schedule today and made a few surprise choices, bringing back the increasingly interesting “Castle” and giving another chance to “Better Off Ted” and “True Beauty”.

Perhaps the most surprising move, especially considering the show’s poignant and excellent series finale, has to be the return of “Scrubs,” which will be back for midseason. They also announced 11 new series for fall and midseason.

Castle
Photo credit: ABC

Previously announced returning shows include “America’s Funniest Home Videos,” “The Bachelor,” “Brothers & Sisters,” “Dancing With the Stars,” “Desperate Housewives,” “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition,” “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Lost,” “Private Practice,” “Supernanny,” “Ugly Betty,” “Wife Swap,” and “20/20”.

Not on the fall schedule? “Surviving Suburbia,” “The Unusuals,” “Cupid,” “Pushing Daisies,” or “Samantha Who?”

Stephen McPherson, president, ABC Entertainment group said today, “Our focus is always on delivering the best stories with the most memorable characters on TV, whether that’s established audience favorites or innovative new shows. This year we’ve got the best of both. We’re headed into the season with a strong slate of returning series as well as great new shows from one of our best development seasons ever.”

Premiere dates will be announced later but “Dancing With the Stars” and “Castle” will still start the week on Mondays.

The results show for “Dancing With the Stars” will be the meat in the middle of the new show sandwich on Tuesday nights with “Shark Tank” and “The Forgotten”.

Eastwick
Photo credit: ABC

Wednesday nights will feature five new shows, a risky move for the network - “Hank,” “The Middle,” “Modern Family,” “Cougar Town,” and “Eastwick”.

Thursday nights is still anchored by “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Private Practice” with “Flash Forward” providing the new show lead-in to start the night.

Fridays consist of “Supernanny,” the relocated “Ugly Betty,” and “20/20” with “Saturday Night College Football” the next night.

Sundays remain unchanged with “America’s Funniest Home Videos,” “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition,” “Desperate Housewives,” and “Brothers & Sisters”.

Fall show descriptions courtesy of ABC:

“EASTWICK”
Three very different women find themselves drawn together by a mysterious man who unleashes unique powers in each of them, and this small New England town will never be the same. The series is based on the popular movie “The Witches of Eastwick” and on the novel of the same title by John Updike.

“Eastwick” stars Rebecca Romijn as Roxie Torcoletti, Lindsay Price as Joanna Frankel, Jamie Ray Newman as Kat Gardener, Paul Gross as Darryl Van Horne, Sara Rue as Penny, Veronica Cartwright as Bun, Johann Urb as Will, Jon Bernthal as Raymond and Ashley Benson as Mia.

The series is produced by Warner Bros. Television. Maggie Friedman is executive producer/writer. The pilot was directed by David Nutter.

“FLASH FORWARD”
When a mysterious event causes the entire world to black out, humanity is given a glimpse into its near future, and every man, woman and child is forced to come to grips with whether their destinies can be avoided or fulfilled.

Adapting award-winning author Robert J. Sawyer’s revolutionary novel, executive producers David S. Goyer (visionary co-writer of “Batman Begins” and “The Dark Knight”) and Brannon Braga (“24,” “Star Trek: Enterprise”) invite you to embark on a journey to answer the question, “if you knew what your future held, what would you do?”

“Flash Forward” stars Joseph Fiennes as Mark Benford, John Cho as Demetri Noh, Jack Davenport as Lloyd Simcoe, Sonya Walger as Olivia Benford, Courtney B. Vance as Stan Wedeck, Brian O’Byrne as Aaron Stark, Christine Woods as Janis Hawk, Zachary Knighton as Bryce Varley and Peyton List as Nicole.

The series is from ABC Studios. David S. Goyer is executive producer/writer/director. Brannon Braga is executive producer and co-wrote the pilot. Other executive producers are Marc Guggenheim, Jessika Goyer, Vince Gerardis and Ralph Vicinanza. Guggenheim will be the showrunner, along with Goyer.

“THE FORGOTTEN”
From executive producer Jerry Bruckheimer comes a crime show in which a team of dedicated amateurs work on cases involving unidentified victims. After the police have given up, this group must first solve the puzzle of the victim’s identity in order to then help catch the killer. They work to give the deceased back their names, lest they become — The Forgotten.

“The Forgotten” stars Rupert Penry-Jones as Alex, Reiko Aylesworth as Linda, Michelle Borth as Candace, Bob Stephenson as Walter, Anthony Carrigan as Tyler and Rochelle Aytes as Detective Grace Russell.

The series is produced by Bonanza Productions Inc. in association with Jerry Bruckheimer Television and Warner Bros. Television. Mark Friedman is executive producer/writer, Jerry Bruckheimer and Jonathan Littman are executive producers, KristieAnne Reed is co-executive producer and Danny Cannon is executive producer/director.

“COUGAR TOWN”
Courteney Cox stars as a recently divorced single mother exploring the honest truths about dating and aging in our beauty and youth obsessed culture.

“Cougar Town” stars Courteney Cox as Jules, Christa Miller as Elle, Busy Philipps as Laurie, Dan Byrd as Travis, Brian Van Holt as Bobby, Josh Hopkins as Grayson and Ian Gomez as Andy.

The series is from ABC Studios. Bill Lawrence is executive producer/writer/director, Kevin Biegel is writer/co-executive producer, and Courteney Cox and David Arquette are executive producers.

Hank
Photo credit: ABC

“HANK”
Kelsey Grammer stars in this timely comedy as Hank Pryor, a titan of industry who suddenly finds himself out of work, almost out of money and around a wife and kids for whom he’s never made much time. Despite his recent setbacks, however, Hank is confident he’s on the road back to the top. He knows he is destined to return to greatness. And he is — just not the greatness he imagines.

“Hank” stars Kelsey Grammer as Hank, Melinda McGraw as Tilly, David Koechner as Grady, Macey Cruthird as Maddie and Ryan Wynott as Henry.

The series is produced by Bonanza Productions Inc. in association with McMonkey Inc., Grammnet Productions, Werner Entertainment and Warner Bros. Television. It is written by Tucker Cawley. Tom Werner, Tucker Cawley, Kelsey Grammer and Mike Clements serve as executive producers. The pilot was directed by James Burrows.

“THE MIDDLE”
The Hecks are a middle class family living in the middle of Indiana, just trying to keep their heads above water. Emmy-winner Patricia Heaton stars as a wife and mother of three in a comedy about raising a family and lowering your expectations.

“The Middle” stars Patricia Heaton as Frankie, Neil Flynn as Mike, Eden Sher as Sue, Atticus Shaffer as Brick and Charlie McDermott as Axel.

The series is produced by Warner Bros. Television. Eileen Heisler and DeAnn Heline are executive producers/writers and Werner Walian is producer. The pilot was directed by Julie Anne Robinson.

The Middle
Photo credit: ABC

“MODERN FAMILY”
Today’s American families come in all shapes and sizes. Shot from the perspective of an unseen documentary filmmaker, this comedy takes a modern look at the complications that come with being a family in 2009.

“Modern Family” stars Ed O’Neill as Jay, Sofía Vergara as Gloria, Jesse Tyler Ferguson as Mitchell, Eric Stonestreet as Cameron, Ty Burrell as Phil, Julie Bowen as Claire, Sarah Hyland as Haley, Rico Rodriguez as Manny, Nolan Gould as Luke and Ariel Winter as Alex.

The series is produced by Twentieth Century Fox Television. Steven Levitan and Christopher Lloyd are executive producers. The pilot was directed by Jason Winer.

“SHARK TANK”
From Mark Burnett, executive producer of “Survivor” and “The Apprentice,” and Sony Pictures Television comes “Shark Tank,” an exciting new reality show that gives budding entrepreneurs the chance to make their dreams come true and become successful – and possibly wealthy – business people. But the entrepreneurs must first try to convince five tough, multi-millionaire tycoons to part with their own hard-earned cash and give them the funding they need to jumpstart their ideas.

In these trying economic times, it’s difficult for an individual possessing a dream or even a working small business poised for growth to get a loan for a risky venture. Whether it be an imaginative enhancement for an existing product, a family recipe that has all the ingredients to become a profitable culinary treat, or the latest technological gadget that could take the world by storm, most of these dreams die an early death because no one dared take a financial chance on someone with an unproven and oftentimes outrageous proposal. Many of these people now see “Shark Tank” as their last chance at success. Some have been laboring on their ideas for years or even decades, have invested large amounts of money, and are being pressured to throw in the towel by friends and family. Others have simply never had access to the means to live out their dreams, until now.

Enter the Sharks of “Shark Tank” – Barbara Corcoran (Manhattan real estate titan), Kevin Harrington (king of infomercials), Robert Herjavec (technology tycoon), Daymond John (fashion mogul) and Kevin O’Leary (venture capitalist) – five multi-millionaires who lifted themselves up by their bootstraps to make their own entrepreneurial dreams come true and turned their ideas into empires.

Each week ambitious entrepreneurs from across the country will present their breakthrough business concepts, products, properties and services to the panel of ruthless investors. Their goal is to convince these merciless moguls to invest their own dollars in the concept. Convincing real-life millionaires to part with their own money is no easy task, because when the idea is poor, the Sharks will tear into the ill-prepared presenters and pass on the idea with a simple, “I’m out!” — sending them running for the exit.

But these Sharks aren’t just out for blood, they too have a goal: to own a piece of the next big idea. Entrepreneurs will be asked to give up a percentage of their companies’ equity to the Sharks in order to get the investment they need. But when the Sharks hear a really top-notch idea, and more than one of them wants to sink their teeth into it, a war between them will erupt. Then the once-desperate entrepreneur can rejoice when the Sharks reveal their true interest in the product and bid up the price of the investment.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

Hookup: 20 Admit-Two VIP Passes to Chicago Premiere of TNT Series ‘Trust Me’ With Tom Cavanagh

HollywoodChicago.com — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 20:13:35 -0700

CHICAGO – In a special edition of HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: TV, we have 20 admit-two VIP passes up for grabs to the exclusive Chicago premiere of the new TNT drama “Trust Me” about a Chicago advertising agency. The series stars Eric McCormack (“Will & Grace”), Tom Cavanagh (“Scrubs,” “Ed”) and Monica Potter (“Boston Legal,” “Saw,” “Along Came a Spider,” “Patch Adams,” “Con Air”) from the producers of “Nip/Tuck” and “The Closer”.

Potter will be in attendance. You will also be treated to a special advance screening of “Trust Me,” complimentary hors d’oeuvres, soft drinks and prizes. To win your free pass to the VIP “Trust Me” event in Chicago courtesy of HollywoodChicago.com, all you need to do is be one of the first 20 people to submit a comment in this HollywoodChicago.com Hookup. That’s it!

The premiere will be held on Jan. 22, 2008 at 7 p.m. in downtown Chicago. Directions to enter this Hookup and immediately win can be found beneath the “Trust Me” poster below.

“Trust Me” on TNT stars Eric McCormack, Tom Cavanagh and Monica Potter.
Image credit: TNT

Here is the “Trust Me” plot description:

Set against the backdrop of the high-pressure world of advertising, “Trust Me” focuses on Mason (Eric McCormack) and Conner (Tom Cavanagh): a pair of advertising men whose strong creative partnership has served the firm of Rothman Greene & Mohr extremely well over the years.

Mason (an art director) is a responsible, workaholic family man with a beautiful wife, Erin (Sarah Clarke, “24”), two children and an undying loyalty to the brands he helps sell.

By contrast, his writing partner, Conner, is a single, impulsive copywriter with the attention span of a teenager. Their yin-yang relationship is put to the test when Mason is named a creative director of the agency. He becomes Conner’s boss.

The series follows the changing dynamics between the two friends who are better together than they are apart.

To secure your free pass now to the “Trust Me” premiere in Chicago, make sure you’re logged into your HollywoodChicago.com account. If you don’t yet have one, you can quickly register here. Having an account with a valid e-mail address is required.

Then, add a new comment in the form below. In your comment, include an answer to this question:

What do you do at work and in life to sell yourself and get ahead?

Like all Hookups here, this HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: TV is simple: The first 20 people to comment below win! We will be in touch with the 20 winners via e-mail to distribute your passes. “Trust me” premieres on TNT on Jan. 26, 2009 at 9 p.m. CST.

By ADAM FENDELMAN
Editor-in-Chief
HollywoodChicago.com
adam@hollywoodchicago.com

Health of ‘Scrubs’ Improves With Transition to ABC

BrianTT — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 13:15:50 -0700

CHICAGO – The medical staff at Sacred Heart have picked up their surgical tools and switched networks from NBC to ABC with the eighth season premiere of “Scrubs” as two episodes of the Zach Braff comedy air back-to-back on Tuesday, January 6th, 2009 at 8pm CST.

The cast of “Scrubs,” including Zach Braff, Donald Faison, Sarah Chalke, Neil Flynn, John C. McGinley, Judy Reyes, Ken Jenkins, and Christa Miller, have made the move for what is reportedly the final season of the show on ABC and they brought TV superstar Courtney Cox along for the first few episodes, the first two of which are two of the best that the show has ever produced.

Sarah Chalke and Courtney Cox star in the season premiere of Scrubs on ABC on January 6th, 2009.
Photo credit: Scott Garfield

What separated the early years of “Scrubs” was creator Bill Lawrence’s deft juggling of varying tones, from the zany inner monologue of J.D.(Zach Braff) to the more serious themes that naturally arose in a hospital setting. “Scrubs” remained quality television for at least a few years with a very delicate balance of unpredictability and believability from scene to scene. The writing was still above-par and Chalke, Reyes, and Faison have never gotten the credit they deserve as supporting actors but the show lost a bit of its consistency in the last few seasons, too often choosing the zany over the human.

Zach Braff stars in the season premiere of Scrubs on ABC on January 6th, 2009.
Photo credit: Scott Garfield.

“Scrubs” was still quality television (and it’s shocking to think that anyone at NBC thought the abysmal “Kath and Kim” was a worthwhile replacement) but, with only a few exceptional episodes, it didn’t generally live up to the standard set by its early years.

The first two episodes of the eighth season of “Scrubs” feels like the problems of the last few years never happened. They are well-balanced, character-driven, laugh-out-loud funny, and genuinely moving without hitting the moral message too bluntly on the head, as the writers had been prone to do recently.

One has to assume that ABC has not only given Bill Lawrence and his writing staff more creative freedom but that the idea of being on a network that actually promotes and supports the show appears to have fired everyone up. The only concern would be that the new energy at ABC might wear off by mid-season and that they can’t keep up this creatively rewarding tone through out the final season.

The first episode of the eighth season of “Scrubs” - “My Jerks” - brings the show full circle as J.D. now has his own group of interns to drive him as crazy as he once made Dr. Cox (John C. McGinley). The new supporting cast is fun but the main addition to the first episode is Dr. Maddox (Courtney Cox), the replacement for the now-retired (but unwilling to leave the hospital) Dr. Kelso (Ken Jenkins) as chief of Sacred Heart.

Almost immediately, the show feels different. Maddox is introduced with a fantasy, slo-mo sequence that, like a lot of recent “Scrubs” bits, goes on too long, but the show comments on the zany device, almost as if Lawrence and his team are telling the audience that things are going to be a little bit different in this last season on a new network.

Zach Braff and Courtney Cox star in the season premiere of Scrubs on ABC on January 6th, 2009.
Photo credit: Scott Garfield.

Everyone loves the sexy and clever new boss, but Dr. Cox suspects something sinister underneath the surface. Of course, as he would be prone to tell you, Cox is never wrong.

Without going into any detail to avoid spoilers, the second episode of the new season features some of the strongest emotional writing and acting that “Scrubs” has seen in years as J.D. and Turk comfort a dying patient. It’s an incredible half-hour of television that brings a lump to the throat more than this show has in years.

It feels like the transition from NBC to ABC has brought “Scrubs” back down to Earth and grounded its characters in a reality that has been missing for the last few seasons. Lawrence and Braff have made it clear that they are definitely leaving Sacred Heart after this season with the show only getting a one-season order from ABC.

Of course, it’s too early to say for sure that the quality level will stay at this height for the entirety of what will likely be the show’s final season, but it’s incredibly satisfying to think that “Scrubs” could go out at the top of its game on a network that is supporting its end run instead of just counting the days until it leaves.

Honestly, if it keeps up at this rate creatively, don’t be surprised if ABC does their best to bring it back for another year - a possibility that Lawrence hinted at in a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly - even without Mr. Braff and the show’s creator. It would be TV justice for “Scrubs” to become the massive hit on ABC that it never was supported enough to blossom into on its original network.

‘Scrubs,’ which airs on ABC, stars Zach Braff, Donald Faison, Sarah Chalke, Neil Flynn, John C. McGinley, Judy Reyes, Ken Jenkins, and Christa Miller from creator Bill Lawrence. The first two episodes of season eight air on January 6th, 2009 at 8PM CST.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

Exclusive: Tara Reid Photos Behind Velvet Ropes For Bikini Beach 2008 at Chicago’s Crobar Nightclub

HollywoodChicago.com — Sat, 28 Jun 2008 20:36:06 -0600

CHICAGO – Tara Reid, who for this Chicago appearance was branded as the “wildest girl in Hollywood,” appeared in the Windy City at Crobar Nightclub on Saturday for 103.5 KISS FM’s Bikini Beach 2008 party. We have exclusive, candid photos of the “American Pie” actress behind the velvet ropes.

Reid, who was also featured in “The Big Lebowski,” “Urban Legend,” “Cruel Intentions,” “American Pie 2,” “Josie and the Pussycats,” “Van Wilder” and several episodes of TV’s “Scrubs,” was photographed for HollywoodChicago.com by photographer Joe Arce while sitting at her table.

Tara Reid in Chicago on June 27, 2008 at Crobar Nightclub for 103.5 KISS FM’s Bikini Beach 2008 party.
Photo credit: Joe Arce of Starstruck Foto for HollywoodChicago.com

Image credit: 103.5 KISS FM

By ADAM FENDELMAN
Editor-in-Chief
HollywoodChicago.com
adam@hollywoodchicago.com