"Scrubs" is the brainchild of Bill Lawrence. The story follows the progress of a group of medical interns and is told via the inner monologue of the main character, John 'J.D.' Dorian (Zach Braff). JD is a doctor while his room-mate and best friend Christopher Turk (Donald Faison) is a surgical intern who has his gaze firmly set on two things: becoming the best surgeon at Sacred Heart hospital, and nurse Carla Espinoza (Judy Reyes). J.D. gets by with the begrudged help of his 'Mentor', the very wise but equally rebellious, Dr. Perry Cox (John C. McGinley) while fellow intern Dr. Elliot Reid (Sarah Chalke) plays the love interest. J.D. and Elliot quickly develop a friendship with J.D. while this leaves the latter pining to be more than just friends. This develops into the familiar 'will-they-won't-they' pattern perfected by Ross and Rachel in "Friends". Dr. Cox's continuous attempts to undermine Dr. Kelso only succeeds in putting a halt in his own progress up the career ladder, something J.D. notices and vows not to do himself. Elliot's fickle nature and the fact she seems constantly overwhelmed at work makes us wonder if she is going to be able to make it as a doctor, but her determination to succeed and prove a point to her parents keeps her going. Carla is an independent woman, now looking for a defining relationship, and marriage. Turk is a cocky guy, typical surgeon according to J.D.. He has a childish sense of humour and can act irresponsibly, but when pushed his deep-down maturity shimmers through. J.D. is simple. He just wants to be loved. He wants to be loved by Elliot, wants to be loved by Dr. Cox and wants to be loved by his patients. He strives for acceptance from everyone inside (and outside) the hospital.

The humour in Scrubs comes from the way the story is told - through the mind of J.D. The viewer is often offered JD's thoughts on various subjects as a series of literal interpretations of metaphors and such, with the end result being highly enjoyable comedy. Bit part players such as The Todd (Rebort Maschio) and The Janitor (Neil Flynn) provide us with their fair share of comedic moments. The Todd's embarrassingly constant sexual innuendo gets me very time, but may not be to some viewers tastes. The Janitors cynical take on the World, and J.D. in particular, creates an on running feud between the two in which some excellent moments are produced. Dr. Cox gets some of the best lines I have ever heard, and his elongated pronunciation of syllables, flamboyant speeches and unrelenting put-downs become trademark.

The show isn't all comedy though but with it being set in a hospital you shouldn't be surprised. What is surprising though is just how good the serious stuff can be. It has remarkably touching moments of drama that could rival even the greatest of hospital dramas (or maybe even dramas in general?). It seems that in most, if not all, episodes there is an underlying moral. The characters learn valuable lessons for both work and life throughout the series and this allows the characters to develop and grow which is the foundation to becoming such a hit show.

Here's an episode-by-episode synopsis of the whole series:

1. My First Day - J.D. gears up for his first day as an intern at Sacred Heart Hospital but soon realises that after four years of Med school, he is completely clueless and ill-prepared for the real thing

2. My Mentor - J.D. turns to Dr. Cox for help with a patient, Turk tries his luck with Carla and Elliot manages to annoy the nurses.

3. My Best Friend's Mistake - J.D. feels Turk is neglecting him after beginning a relationship with Carla.

4. My Old Lady - J.D. teaches Turk to communicate with his patients, and is then tought a lesson in life by a patient of his own.

5. My Two Dads - Turk proves his maturity to Carla by getting her a thoughtful gift. Unbeknown to her is where the gift is from, while J.D. gets the impression both Dr. Kelso and Dr. Cox are fighting over him during a round of golf.

6. My Bad - Elliot gets some advice from a patient of hers who happens to be a psychologist. Turk meets Carla's mother and J.D. fears Dr. Cox could lose his job.

7. My Super Ego - J.D. feels the challenge of a rival intern who seems to be a better doctor than him. Dr. Cox expresses a romantic interest in Carla.

8. My Fifteen Minutes - Dr. Cox leaves J.D. to evaluate himself while Dr Kelso tries to exploit Turk's brief brush with fame.

9. My Day Off - Roles are reversed when J.D. is admitted to the hospital with appendicitis but is unhappy to learn that his best friend Turk will be performing the surgery.

10. My Nickname - Elliot bonds with a workaholic patient that stands up to Dr. Cox while the Janitor tries out a new nickname on J.D.

11. My Own Personal Jesus - As Christmas approaches Elliot searches for a runaway patient who is about to give birth meanwhile Turk begins to question his religious beliefs.

12. My Blind Date - Dr. Cox sets the interns the challenge of getting through a 24 hour period without any deaths and J.D. is told to befriend a patient in order to stop a potential lawsuit.

13. My Balancing Act - Turk and Carla have problems in the bedroom and J.D. tries to juggle work and a relationship at the same time.

14. My Drug Buddy - Carla and Dr. Kelso strike a friendship when he offers her a lift to work, J.D.'s friendship with Elliot suffers a bump.

15. My Bed Banter & Beyond - This episode skips from future to past to present when showing J.D. and Elliot as a couple.

16. My Heavy Meddle - Turk chooses Elliot to work together with on a project because he thinks she's a geek. Dr. Cox's volatile mood confuses J.D.

17. My Student - Each intern is given their own med student to watch over. Elliot's takes advantage of her good nature, Dr. Cox develops a liking for Turk's while J.D.'s seems awfully similar to himself.

18. My Tuscaloosa Heart - Turk and Elliot wonder if they've found a song sung by Dr. Kelso. Dr. Cox can't decide if it's Carla, his ex-wife Jordan or Turk's surgical student Kristen he desires.

19. My Old Man - It seems that everyone's parents have decided to vist. Turk's, J.D.'s, Elliot's and even the Janitor's dad shows up.

20. My Way or the Highway - Elliot tries to gain the attention of an attractive patient, meanwhile Dr. Cox's feud with Dr. Kelso leads to a nurse being fired.

21. My Sacrificial Clam - After accidentally being struck by a needle, J.D. fears he may have caught Hepatitis B, but the Janitor is still as unsympathetic as ever to him. Carla makes a fat joke to Turk and this leaves him obsessed with getting fit.

22. My Occurrence - Dr. Cox's best friend Ben is admitted to the hospital and J.D. learns that he has leukemia, but after a series of mishaps in the hospital J.D. feels that the test results are wrong.

23. My Hero - Turk is upset that The Todd is rated as a better surgeon than him and Elliot can't cope with Dr. Kelso abusing her during rounds.

24. My Last Day - The interns group together to help a patient have surgery despite not having the insurance, while Dr Cox's ex wife returns with some surprises for everyone.

Along with all 24 episodes of the show's groundbreaking debut series, there are a whole host of bonus features provided on the 4-disc DVD including 'Newbies' - a feature examining the cast before they joined the show, and some deleted scenes and outtakes. Scrubs can be bought at most retail outlets for £25. It's definitely worth the money as Scrubs is, in my opinion, the best thing on TV at the present time. I have the first three seasons on DVD and, despite numerous viewings, they still provide laughter at all the right times. Thoroughly recommendable and enjoyable.