Great stories make audiences feel things, and few shows made audiences feel more than Scrubs. Through fantasy and near-infinite optimism, JD balanced his need for joy with the often brutal reality of working in a hospital. And amidst all that, he even found time to date.
Not all dates are created equal, though. Whether it’s drunkenly making out with his best friend’s future wife, going on a date with a comatose patient’s wife, or eventually succumbing to the one his heart truly wants, JD has had ups and downs on the road to romance.
BEST: S1E12 “My Blind Date”
Every good romance deserves a good meet-cute, and “My Blind Date” gives one in spades. When an MRI machine breaks, trapping the patient inside, JD keeps her company. They talk, they bond, and they flirt, but until she’s let out, JD can’t see her face.
After failing to dig any revealing clues from his friends and colleagues, JD takes a chance and asks the patient out. Her name is Alex, and she’s played by memorable actress Elizabeth Bogush of The Adventures of Pete & Pete and Felicity fame. Safe to say, JD made the right decision.
WORST: S1E13 “My Balancing Act”
In true JD fashion, romance blossomed in the weirdest situation when he met Alex. And yet JD can never seem to find the time to go out with her. According to him, he’s too burdened with work.
JD spends a lot of his time in fantasy, but this was one lie meant to disguise the truth. He deliberately stays late at work in order to be like Dr. Cox. The date is sad not just because it doesn’t happen, but because Dr. Cox crumples when he realizes JD wants to be like him. In Cox’s own words, “Do you understand that I just barely want to be like me?” Cue the emotions.
BEST: S2E18 “My T.C.W.”
MRI machines don’t have anything on the strange place JD finds his next date. Though heartbreaking enough to make you reach for sad tissues, the episode delivers one of JD’s finest moments. When the wife of a long-term comatose patient asks JD out, he faces shocking backlash.
His friends insist he’s an awful person for dating the wife of a still-living patient, but JD delivers one scathing truth bomb after another to his friends. He reveals their hypocrisy and faces his real fear–letting them down.
WORST: S4E16 “My Quarantine”
As fun as a good “lie turned upside down” can be for audiences, it led to more drama than a medical show during sweeps week. One lie after another from JD spirals out of control, sabotaging his first date with a girl named Kylie. But it gets worse.
Kylie dumped her last boyfriend when she discovered he was cheating on her. JD can be forgiven for wanting to impress Kylie, but lying doesn’t only mean this episode has no chance of turning into a musical. It’s also just cruel in light of what the last guy did.
BEST: S3E2 “My Journey”
At this point, the bromance between JD and Turk is a cliché. Then again, there’s a reason it has become the template for platonic life partners in medical comedy shows starring Zach Braff.
In this episode, JD worries that his relationship with Turk will change now that he’s getting married to Carla. What the two need is a way to honor their friendship and Turk’s future. The answer is a last date of sorts, even if it’s technically a man-date. Heck, technically? Definitely, and it’s one of the best dates of the series.
WORST: S5E9 “My Half-Acre”
Every now and then, the real world looks so much like the fake one that it may as well be a Darren Aronofsky movie. Zach Braff was dating Mandy Moore, who plays his paramour Julie for this date. The chemistry was real, but ultimately, so was their fate.
JD has a bad habit of rushing forward too fast in relationships. There’s a time component to intimacy that no one can bypass, but that doesn’t stop JD from trying. Unfortunately, this great date ended with a broken heart, just like their real life romance.
BEST: S8E10 “My Comedy Show”
“My Comedy Show” is just one of many episodes of Scrubs focused on true love between two platonic life partners. If JD and Turk started a new show on YouTube, they could do nothing but hug and watch movies and it would generate a million views.
Just so, the rest of the hospital sees Turk and JD as a couple in love. And in the end, they kind of are. It’s a love as true and pure as Dr. Cox’s baritone singing voice, which is why the two share a spontaneous man-date when Turk discovers he’s getting a paper published. Everyone deserves a friend who celebrates each other.
WORST: S5E24 “My Transition”
As difficult as it can be for former lovers to be friends, it can be done. Just ask Mindy Kaling and BJ Novak. But when two people try to be friends with each other and their new lovers, cue the fantasy monologue explaining why that’s a bad idea.
JD’s date with Kim actually goes quite well despite a few hiccups, but it turns sour when Elliot won’t leave well enough alone. She wants to be friends with Kim, but more than that, she can’t let go of JD. Unless they want to give an honest shot at being a poly triad, these three need to negotiate some real boundaries.
BEST: S8E6 “My Cookie Pants”
Just because JD and Elliot finally got together didn’t mean their relationship troubles ended. But as obvious as that sounds, no one could have predicted their answer for the best date ever would come dressed in cookie pants.
Elliot is pregnant, JD is stressed, and the two haven’t been intimate in at least a week. Elliot stresses over how to please JD, but Turk gives her insight into how he and Carla stay connected. They don’t worry about doing anything in particular. They focus on simply being there with each other. Forget the fetish, grab the unbaked log. Cookie pants has never looked better.
WORST: S6E20 “My Conventional Wisdom”
Good dates can come out of nowhere, but so can bad ones. This deep into the series, the tension between JD and Elliot was palpable. With Elliot on the verge of getting married, audiences crossed their fingers, hoping that the incoming season finale would feature JD going full The Graduate to interrupt Elliot’s wedding and steal the bride.
Instead, JD ran into his ex-girlfriend Kim and discovered their prior tryst had left a bun in Kim’s oven. Baking is serious business, so the two jump into a spontaneous date to discuss the future of Kim’s pregnancy.
