All Episodes Talk: What's Up Doc?

[justduckey]

Not reading the most recent replies because I want to be surprised by what comes next. Even though it was over 8 years ago, no spoilers here! 

 

But I did just watch Old Times and I loved it! I did watch back in 2009 and I didn’t like it, care or understand what was happening enough to appreciate it then as I had given up on the show a couple of years prior. I tuned in simply for the Doug and Carol reunion. I was left unfulfilled then. 

 

Loved seeing Carol and Doug and knowing they got their happily ever after always made me happy but I loved it so much more this time around.  I liked how Doug asked about the old County staff.  I had always wished Doug and Carol got to know the kidney was for Carter but I get why they didn’t go that route. 

Carter and Benton were also terrific.  

I never liked Susan Sarandon the first go round but was completely unplussed by her this time. I think I thought she ate up too much airtime during the original airing when all I wanted to see were Doug and Carol. Now that I’ve seen the episodes through I have a more well-rounded appreciation for all that was happening in this episode.

Ariel Winter was also great in her role through her arc. 

Looking forward to the remaining episodes and will actually read this thread when I’m done.

Cant believe it’s over you guys! I’m sad.  

[ch1]

3 hours ago, Bastet said:

Watching these old-school actors and their characters say hello, again and goodbye to each other is totally doing it for me. 

Not to mention the show that started with Carter learning from Mark ending with Carter teaching Mark's daughter.

I don't regret quitting the show the first time around, because this show became a shadow of its former self, but I'm also glad I saw it through this time.  I got a little choked up when the music started playing for the last time.

Nice ending.

I always loved Carter teaching Rachel.  It was the closest she got to learning from her father.  

[MinorL]

I’ve been a faithful watcher of every episode on Pop. I’m not sure what I’m going to do with my life now! 

I watched the original when they first aired but I didn’t remember anything about season 15. It wasn’t great, but I enjoyed the old cast coming back. My favorite moment of “And In The End ... “ was when Benton hugged Carter and put his hand on the back of his head the same way he did when Carter went to rehab. I have always loved their relationship. I liked seeing Benton and Corday together again, too. 

[roundtheworld]

I noticed at the beginning of the finale that Lydia was waking up Morris - that's how the series started with her waking up Mark. I wouldn't have remembered that without seeing it a few months ago. It was nice to see her even though they tried to pretend she had been around and just working nights.

Edited January 16, 2018 by roundtheworld

[Bastet]

2 hours ago, MinorL said:

My favorite moment of “And In The End ... “ was when Benton hugged Carter and put his hand on the back of his head the same way he did when Carter went to rehab. I have always loved their relationship. I liked seeing Benton and Corday together again, too. 

Yes, and yes.  Re. Carter and Benton, I liked their moment after Carter's speech, too, when Benton tells him he did well, and Carter asks, "I didn't embarrass myself?"  Benton, of course, says, "I wouldn't go that far."  I just wouldn't change a thing about their relationship, my favorite of the series.

44 minutes ago, roundtheworld said:

I noticed at the beginning of the finale that Lydia was waking up Morris - that's how the series started with her waking up Mark.

I couldn't remember if it was her or Haleh in the pilot, but was pretty sure it was her, and either way it was completely reminiscent of the "Dr. Greene ... Dr. Greene!" wake the fuck up scene that started it all.  Nice touch.

I really like that in the end, 15 years later, a lot of people are gone, but many are still there, one is coming back in some capacity, and one, though gone, will come back through his daughter.  Life goes on, but there are links to the past.

And those who've left will always hold their time there, and with each other, in high regard.  It's why I like even a pairing like Kerry and Elizabeth hugging goodbye after enjoying that great little night together after the Carter Center's opening; they had a lot of issues along the way, but they've moved on, and that shared time in their lives is special, and they honor that.  They aren't buddy buddy, they won't keep in touch other than hearing through other people, but when circumstances put them back together for a moment, they'll be glad of it.

It was a lovely finale.  A lot of so-so seasons to get to it (although, admittedly, better than many shows would have been had they even had the opportunity to go that long), but a nice low-key yet moving way of saying, "You won't see life at County General anymore, but it will carry on in perpetuity," which, with a few exceptions, is my preferred way of ending a show.  We left them on another mass-casualty trauma, and we'd seen another heartbreaking case in the mom of five little kids who'll now grow up without her, but it was just another day at work, and there will be others -- a tank didn't plow into (or a helicopter fall on) the admit desk and curtain area wiping out a big chunk of the characters, the county didn't cut funding in half, or anything drastic like that. 

[absnow54]

Starting off with the in between episodes. I'd like to say that had someone not mentioned it last week, I would have noticed by these episodes how obviously pregnant Parminder Nagra was. At one point in her last episode, she was behind the nurse's station and turned around and they didn't even try to hide the top half of her bump (But in all honesty, I totally wouldn't have noticed if someone hadn't pointed it out...) Anyway, the melodramatic Simon running off to catch Neela at the airport to say goodbye was really dumb. First off, Neela didn't seem to give a shit that Simon wasn't at her goodbye party (she only seemed to care that Debanko was there) and also, they dated for, like, two months. The whole Neela/Brenner arc was a waste of time, and as mentioned, took away from her reunion with Ray, which sort of came out of nowhere. Choosing to work at a hospital to be near a guy is a pretty big deal, and that decision process seemed kind of glossed over.

Onto the important episodes... Old Times and And in the End were just head and shoulders above any other episode in the last few seasons. Even the scenes without the original cast were a huge step up. Everyone was obviously on their game for those reunion episodes. Some things to point out, when Doug was asking Neela and Sam about who still worked at County, I can't believe neither mentioned that Carter had just came back, since he was the only character still around (besides Anspaugh and some of the nurses) who bridged together both casts. It also would have been nice to see Sam pass on a message to Haleh, Chuny, Lilly, and Malik that "Carol says hi."

I never considered Benton to be my favorite character, but every one of his scenes was a complete highlight for me. Carter and Benton will forever be my favorite ER relationship, and him looking after Carter during his transplant surgery was a really nice scene (especially when he pulled out a gross protein bar and started eating it, while Carter had to fast.) And then to see Benton and Reese together again! With the original actor no less. And then Benton and Corday... I know Eriq LaSalle torpedoed that relationship, but I think even he forgot why, because he just seemed so enamored by her. Even Reese was hoping she'd be his new step mom (haha, what was that scene when Carter mentioned that Corday was coming out for drinks, and Reese was like "oooo who's that?") I was waiting for Peter to admit that he and Cleo had broken up and he'd dropped Reese off with Jackie the way he kept on changing the subject whenever Cleo's name came up. I'm just saying. Corday and Benton had IT, so I'll take their flirtatious goodbye as a happily ever after.

I'm at least going to watch the Pilot again, because of all the callbacks in the finale. There was a lot of nice symmetry and callbacks to past cases (Love's Labor Lost, Ruby, how prominent AIDs was through the first few years of the series.)

Well, it's been fun everyone!

[doodlebug]

2 hours ago, absnow54 said:

Starting off with the in between episodes. I'd like to say that had someone not mentioned it last week, I would have noticed by these episodes how obviously pregnant Parminder Nagra was. At one point in her last episode, she was behind the nurse's station and turned around and they didn't even try to hide the top half of her bump (But in all honesty, I totally wouldn't have noticed if someone hadn't pointed it out...) Anyway, the melodramatic Simon running off to catch Neela at the airport to say goodbye was really dumb. First off, Neela didn't seem to give a shit that Simon wasn't at her goodbye party (she only seemed to care that Debanko was there) and also, they dated for, like, two months. The whole Neela/Brenner arc was a waste of time, and as mentioned, took away from her reunion with Ray, which sort of came out of nowhere. Choosing to work at a hospital to be near a guy is a pretty big deal, and that decision process seemed kind of glossed over.

 

I think TPTB threw the Simon thing in there to try to 'surprise' us with the Neela/Ray reunion.  Instead, it was confusing and Simon came off kind of stalkerish while Neela looked like an indecisive mess.  She's a general surgeon, she needs to be assertive.  I chalk it up to bad/lazy writing.  In the early years, they could've pulled off a switcheroo like this and made it work; but, at this point in the series, it didn't work at all.  It would've made far more sense if Neela had been torn between Dubenko and Ray.  However, since Dubenko had already had creepy fixations on Elizabeth and Abby, I guess they felt they needed to get away from that with the character.  I found his mentorship and encouragement of Neela to be far more interesting than anything that ever happened between her and Simon.

 

2 hours ago, absnow54 said:

Onto the important episodes... Old Times and And in the End were just head and shoulders above any other episode in the last few seasons. Even the scenes without the original cast were a huge step up. Everyone was obviously on their game for those reunion episodes. Some things to point out, when Doug was asking Neela and Sam about who still worked at County, I can't believe neither mentioned that Carter had just came back, since he was the only character still around (besides Anspaugh and some of the nurses) who bridged together both casts. It also would have been nice to see Sam pass on a message to Haleh, Chuny, Lilly, and Malik that "Carol says hi."

 

I guess since Doug was a physician, he naturally thought about the docs he worked with.  However, considering his wife was former Nurse Manager at County ER, you'd think he would've mentioned to Carol that Sam worked there and that would've lead to Carol wanting to talk to her about the nurses.  Of course, since both Haleh and Chuny were close enough friends that Carol had them in her first (non) wedding, they're probably keeping in touch.  In an earlier episode in Season 15, Haleh mentioned the twins were in third grade, so she must have some contact with Carol.

[doodlebug]

17 hours ago, casey65 said:

 

The Benton/Carter scenes were great. Theirs was probably the best relationship of the series. Doug and Carol kind of boring. Kind of weird that she went from being a nurse to a transplant coordinator...

Most transplant coordinators that I have known got their start as nurses.  Carol, well into her 40's with a husband making a good income, is exactly at the point where a lot of nurses leave bedside nursing behind.  She probably got her Master's in nursing or public health and segued into a desk job where she doesn't have to commit to full shifts nights, weekends, and holidays.  She probably shares call with other nurse administrators and doesn't need to go into the hospital very often even if she gets a call.  Bedside hospital based nursing is physically very demanding and many, if not most, nurses are ready to give it up by the time they reach her age.

The only wrong note in Carol's career change is the fact that she was wearing stilettoes with her pantsuit.  Hospitals have poured concrete floors with almost no 'give', as coordinator she is bouncing between her office, the transplant unit, the ER, the ICU, the OR and the helicopter pad all day.  No nurse is going to be wearing high heels in that job.  Maybe a wedge or a stacked heel, but not a stiletto, only in Hollywood.

Edited January 16, 2018 by doodlebug

[Earl Is Dead]

21 hours ago, doodlebug said:

For medical errors:  First, Carter says he doesn't have any drug allergies, but we know he had a dyskinetic reaction to Compazine back in Season 3.  Second, we see his belly being prepped and there is no scar on it when he would've been cut from stem to stern when they fixed the damage after the stabbing, not to mention the colostomy and reversal.  Huge, big scars from that and all the drains, etc postop.

I was also a little put off when he woke up post-surgery and Benton pointed out the little self medicating button for Fentanyl with no callback to Carter being an addict, but I guess that is a position many addicts find themselves in if they require major surgery so I'll let it go.

I also thought it was a little odd that when they learned that the kidney went to "some doctor in Chicago" neither Doug nor Carol would have wondered if they knew the doctor, but again, very minor complaints on a very well done episode.    

[doodlebug]

10 minutes ago, Earl Is Dead said:

I was also a little put off when he woke up post-surgery and Benton pointed out the little self medicating button for Fentanyl with no callback to Carter being an addict, but I guess that is a position many addicts find themselves in if they require major surgery so I'll let it go.

I also thought it was a little odd that when they learned that the kidney went to "some doctor in Chicago" neither Doug nor Carol would have wondered if they knew the doctor, but again, very minor complaints on a very well done episode.    

Since it's been 9 years for Carol and 10 for Doug; I don't think its all that strange that they wouldn't have thought they knew the doctor involved.  There are literally thousands of doctors in Chicago, and transplant recipients often travel from far away, even other states.  Given that and the length of time they'd been gone from Chicago (and presuming they knew nothing about Carter needing a kidney), it would've been weird, IMO, if they'd even considered that it might be someone they knew.  It also points out that those working in the transplant field are blinded to the identity of recipients of the organs they procure.  Had the show continued another year or two, we could've had Carol telling the grandmother about the recipients of her grandson's organs and being surprised to see Carter's name.

Addicts who need major surgery do get pain meds.  I would expect that Carter would be in close contact with his sponsor and would've told the staff about his issues.  Every effort would be made to minimize his narcotic dosage and he might well have been sent home on non-narcotic pain meds.

Edited January 16, 2018 by doodlebug

[absnow54]

I think TPTB threw the Simon thing in there to try to 'surprise' us with the Neela/Ray reunion. Instead, it was confusing and Simon came off kind of stalkerish while Neela looked like an indecisive mess.

Word. Especially Brenner's stalkerish behavior. Like when Neela had an interview in North Carolina, and Brenner started looking for a position, and they'd been together for one episode. ER is awful at sappy romances (see Carter/Kem.)

For medical errors: First, Carter says he doesn't have any drug allergies, but we know he had a dyskinetic reaction to Compazine back in Season 3. Second, we see his belly being prepped and there is no scar on it when he would've been cut from stem to stern when they fixed the damage after the stabbing, not to mention the colostomy and reversal. Huge, big scars from that and all the drains, etc postop.

I was also a little put off when he woke up post-surgery and Benton pointed out the little self medicating button for Fentanyl with no callback to Carter being an addict, but I guess that is a position many addicts find themselves in if they require major surgery so I'll let it go.

At least they remembered he was O-neg. When they pointed out the mother who needed a heart transplant's blood type as being O, I was like "looks like we know who's sharing a donor!"

[cpcathy]

Sooo, I gather Doug and Carol were in the episode prior to the finale??? I recorded the finale and was wondering when they were going to show up!

[doodlebug]

24 minutes ago, cpcathy said:

Sooo, I gather Doug and Carol were in the episode prior to the finale??? I recorded the finale and was wondering when they were going to show up!

They were in the episode 3 episodes prior to the finale, # 19, Old Times. 

Edited January 16, 2018 by doodlebug
I can't count

[desertflower]

Still slogging through season 13. I was tempted to jump ahead and watch the finale yesterday but I'm trying to watch in order. (With some fast forwarding as needed!) 

Anyway I spotted an obscure guest star bingo....there is a patient who dies from his medication and Pratt realizes he got it from the church where he's been handing out medicine. Anyway, his widow is played by the woman who played Olivia on Sesame Street. I guess since that show was part of the fabric of my childhood I will always recognize those people! 

[Madge65]

I loved it all. - the only bummer to me was poor Carter still seemed so unhappy - man that KEM did not dangle much hope for him - "she's just not that into him!" .... His best partners were Benton and Gamma ... He was crazy for Abby & Kem - both too withholding. -!He had fun with the first Dr Abby (Glenn Headley) - but he was distant with Madchen Amick and Julie Bowen. I think we were supposed to feel like ER medicine was his true love. He never seemed happy after he was stabbed and Lucy was killed ... These people linger in my mind .....

[Zoe]

It totally felt like Corday was probing Benton to see if he'd be down, if you know what I mean *wink wink*

[desertflower]

I've been seeing this male nurse in the trauma room, he's a bigger guy with a goatee and graying hair, and it dawned on me it might be Mullet Nurse from the early seasons! He's the same build and although the mullet is gone it looks like it could be him. I get excited about the little things. Lol!

[justduckey]

Finished And in the end.. this morning. I’m not even sure I watched  it back in 2009. Nothing was familiar. 

 

I loved it. Mostly the old cast but overall I loved it. Still can’t believe how much time has a actually passed bc it’s been on at warped speed. It was hard to reconcile how old Reese was (and how awesome that they got Matthew back for that role!) and just how long Doug and Carol have been gone for, or that Joshua would be 5 years old!  I love that Rachel was back and will be a doctor. Loved that Carter was back.  And we get to imagine where things go from there.  Oh and I still hate Kem. My god. For 5 years the two of them made no progress  in staying together or leaving each other??  And did anyone ask how Carter was doing post transplant? Did Susan know? Kerry? 

Im really sad it’s finished and I have no more “new” ones to look forward to. Even at its worst it was still a better show than most.

 

This has been a fun place to hang and discuss. Not sure I’m up for another round of it, we’ll see...

Edited January 16, 2018 by justduckey

[slasherboy]

On 1/12/2018 at 9:14 PM, pieinmyeye said:

 

I don't know how to get rid of the quote box, so just ignore.

Ok, first of all, THANK YOU TO EVERYONE for making it so worthwhile slogging through the later seasons. Like most, if not all of you, I loved the early days but not so much the last 10-ish or so seasons.  But I watched and am glad I did because it was really fun.  Granted, there are lots of storylines I totally ignored (Simon, Neela, Ray, blah blah blah) but it was worth it to get to the end.  That said, I'm going to miss you guys and am hoping some of you, if not all, will do it again from start to finish.

I'd just be repeating what others have said, but YAY! to Benton/Carter and Doug/Carol.  It was also good to see Corday, Kerry, Jerry, Lydia and others who showed up.  I was never a fan of Susan, even in the early years, but it was also good to see her familiar face.

BTW, someone questioned Carter having enough money to fund and maintain the new hospital for a while. Yeah, it could be done if the family was in the billionaire category, and this tells me that they were.  Notice I said were.  And are we to believe his parents got back together since they were in the Bahamas together? Who cares, although I wouldn't mind seeing Michael Gross again.

I have lots more to say but if this is too long, nobody will read it.  But I want to end with this and it regards Guest Star Bingo.  No one has mentioned him, and considering him a star is questionable, but the winner and final star is .....

TOM ARNOLD!!!!!  (unfuckingbelievable!)

Ok guys, Season 1, Episode 1 starts in 1-1/2 hours here in Nashville so, see ya in the ER!!

[Madge65]

I have my Subway tuna and finished errands here in LA. - waiting for the west coast feed to start all over again. - glad to know others have been touched by this show again after so many years!

[kittykat]

All episodes are now on Hulu so...there's the next couple of months of my life.  I can't wait to revisit the series as I had pretty much checked out when the OG cast was gone (Romano turning into helicopter mush didn't help either).  

[slasherboy]

Here we go ........ !

George Clooney plays a very realistic drunk.

[mattie0808]

Weren't we going to go to separate season threads? Did a mod do a poll before, or am I mixing up shows? I don't know if mods have to start those, but I'm thinking now would be a good time for it, not only because Pop is starting over from the beginning, but because of the show going to Hulu, meaning people can now en masse watch whatever they want in whatever order/time they want (in addition to those backlogged or jumping around with their DVR), which may make this thread a little unwieldy. :) 

[absnow54]

I agree, separate season threads would be nice. I guess we could create them ourselves? I couldn't take the pressure of creating a snappy thread title though.

[doodlebug]

2 hours ago, slasherboy said:

I don't know how to get rid of the quote box, so just ignore.

Ok, first of all, THANK YOU TO EVERYONE for making it so worthwhile slogging through the later seasons. Like most, if not all of you, I loved the early days but not so much the last 10-ish or so seasons.  But I watched and am glad I did because it was really fun.  Granted, there are lots of storylines I totally ignored (Simon, Neela, Ray, blah blah blah) but it was worth it to get to the end.  That said, I'm going to miss you guys and am hoping some of you, if not all, will do it again from start to finish.

I'd just be repeating what others have said, but YAY! to Benton/Carter and Doug/Carol.  It was also good to see Corday, Kerry, Jerry, Lydia and others who showed up.  I was never a fan of Susan, even in the early years, but it was also good to see her familiar face.

BTW, someone questioned Carter having enough money to fund and maintain the new hospital for a while. Yeah, it could be done if the family was in the billionaire category, and this tells me that they were.  Notice I said were.  And are we to believe his parents got back together since they were in the Bahamas together? Who cares, although I wouldn't mind seeing Michael Gross again.

 

In Season 1, when Jerry and the rest of the gang find out Carter's family is rich (I think it was in Love Among the Ruins because I remember weird stuff about this show), he says that Carter's father (who was named Roland back then) was worth something like $360 million according to a magazine article about Chicago's wealthiest citizens.  We know that Carter's father had at least one brother since his cousin Chase was also named Carter.  And, of course, Carter's grandparents seemed to be far wealthier than his father based on how upset Daddy Carter was that John was named executor of the estate and put in charge of the foundation.  Presuming his uncle was worth as much as his dad and that Gamma and Grandpa were worth more than that; it seems like the Carter family as a whole was worth at least a billion. 

Remember, too, Carter got rid of the mansion and presumably sold off a lot of his grandparents' possessions.  Based on the lifestyle his grandparents had (Carter playing Weebles with Faberge eggs, the garage filled with classic autos); there was no small amount of assets there.  I think he could easily have afforded to build the clinic and endow it with various sustaining trusts and keep it running for a good long time.

I noticed Carter mentioned both of his parents wintering in the Bahamas.  They were pretty dysfunctional and it has been around 5 years since we last saw either of them, so maybe they have reconciled.  Then again, maybe there is a huge family compound in the Bahamas and Eleanor got access to one of the houses in the divorce and Jack is staying in another one.

Edited January 16, 2018 by doodlebug

[Earl Is Dead]

6 hours ago, doodlebug said:

Addicts who need major surgery do get pain meds.  I would expect that Carter would be in close contact with his sponsor and would've told the staff about his issues.  Every effort would be made to minimize his narcotic dosage and he might well have been sent home on non-narcotic pain meds.

Oh definitely.  It just felt like for the show not to acknowledge it at all was, if not inaccurate, at worst a continuity error.   

[doodlebug]

8 hours ago, justduckey said:

  And did anyone ask how Carter was doing post transplant? Did Susan know? Kerry? 

 

I doubt Kerry or Susan knew.  After all, Benton only found out because he saw Carter's name on a patient list at Northwestern and Carter didn't even know he was working there.  Haleh and Frank asked how he was doing, so they knew.  Of course, we know Kem knew, but apparently, she wasn't concerned enough to come to Chicago to see him postop and, when she finally does get around to visiting, she only stays about a day.  I'm not sure what we're supposed to think about Carter's continued pursuit of the marriage, but it was kinda pathetic, IMO.  I personally was hoping Carter's personal life would've been happier than what we saw at the end.  

Edited January 17, 2018 by doodlebug

[casey65]

17 minutes ago, doodlebug said:

I doubt Kerry or Susan knew.  After all, Benton only found out because he saw Carter's name on a patient list at Northwestern and Carter didn't even know he was working there.  Haleh and Frank asked how he was doing, so they knew.  Of course, we know Kem knew, but apparently, she wasn't concerned enough to come to Chicago to see him postop and, when she finally does get around to visiting, she only stays about a day.  I'm not sure what we're supposed to think about Carter's continued pursuit of the marriage, but it was kinda pathetic, IMO.  I personally was hoping Carter's personal life would've been happier than what we saw at the end.  

I would have rather they had Carter, alone but happy opening his clinic and practicing medicine, than seeing him so lonely and pining after a woman who doesn’t care enough to be with him.  I still don’t get what her reason was - was the mere sight of Caretr such a reminder of the baby that she couldn’t stand being with him? In that case it would have been kinder to just cut all ties with him than string him along for five years. Sorry, I can’t stand Kem. 

[CrashTextDummie]

I saw the news about ER on Hulu and was compelled to check in here, only to discover a lively discussion of the later seasons of the show. Yay! ER is my favorite show of all time and it's hard to believe it ended 9 years ago. Even though I haven't rewatched it since then, I have incredibly vivid memories of almost everything that people discussed in here.

Someone wondered up-thread if the producers of the show knew the 15th season was going to be the last before they made it and I think I can give some (hopefully not completely inaccurate) insight, as I was a faithful follower and kept up with online chatter at the time : During the 14th season, ER seemed to be on its last legs and expectations were that it wouldn't be picked up for a 15th. At least there were several online publications speculating to that effect. Then the writer's strike happened and like everything else on TV, ER was impacted and the 14th season was cut short. Either because they felt a truncated final season was too ignominious an end for such a decorated and long-running show (what I believe was reported at the time) or because they decided to stick with a known quantity in tumultuous times (what I believe to be more likely in hindsight), NBC decided to extend the show's run for one last time. When the news broke that ER was getting a 15th season after all, it was made clear that it would be its last.

So season 15 was planned and designed start-to-finish as a farewell tour and last goodbye for ER. I suspect it is this fact that not only compelled the writers to rise to something resembling their old form, but also got all the alumns on board for a final appearance. It's hard to imagine a Clooney caliber star taking the time out of his schedule to appear on a show slumming so badly it's constantly on the bubble, much as he may have liked his time on it. It's another thing when the show is definitively ending and you have an entire season's worth of episodes to do it right. I really enjoyed the fondness many people rediscovered they had for ER as that final season aired (both people who hate-watched and people who tuned out a decade earlier and were lured back by the parade of former stars). And for myself, who stuck with the show through all the years without ever truly falling out of love, it was thrilling for ER to turn back from something that was just kind of part of my schedule into something I was legitimately excited for week-to-week again.

[desertflower]

14 hours ago, absnow54 said:

Some things to point out, when Doug was asking Neela and Sam about who still worked at County, I can't believe neither mentioned that Carter had just came back, since he was the only character still around (besides Anspaugh and some of the nurses) who bridged together both casts. It also would have been nice to see Sam pass on a message to Haleh, Chuny, Lilly, and Malik that "Carol says hi."

Yeah, I think that scene could've been done a little better. I remember the first time I saw it I was disappointed that Doug didn't mention Mark. I think it could've been a nice gift to the fans and maybe make up for him not being present or even mentioned at Mark's funeral. He could've asked how long the ladies had been working at County and if they ever worked with Mark. But don't get me wrong, despite my criticism of the scene I was still thrilled that Clooney made an appearance. He's a great example of someone who made it big but didn't forget what got him there. I loved that Doug and Carol were still together. And I loved that they played a teensy bit of their piano theme, just enough for the old fans to appreciate.

[doodlebug]

3 minutes ago, desertflower said:

Yeah, I think that scene could've been done a little better. I remember the first time I saw it I was disappointed that Doug didn't mention Mark. I think it could've been a nice gift to the fans and maybe make up for him not being present or even mentioned at Mark's funeral. He could've asked how long the ladies had been working at County and if they ever worked with Mark. But don't get me wrong, despite my criticism of the scene I was still thrilled that Clooney made an appearance. He's a great example of someone who made it big but didn't forget what got him there. I loved that Doug and Carol were still together. And I loved that they played a teensy bit of their piano theme, just enough for the old fans to appreciate.

Clooney was loyal and grateful to ER for giving him the opportunity and he never forgot it.  Like most actors, his iniital contract for the show was for 5 seasons, and, even though his movie career took off well before the end of it, he never asked to be released from it, never demanded more money or screentime.  He was clear from the start that he would fulfill the contract and wasn't interested in an extension; but he never played the diva, never tried to take advantage of his position.  Clooney's always had the reputation of being a class act and he certainly proved it in his relationship with the show and its fans.

[starri]

21 hours ago, Bastet said:

"You won't see life at County General anymore, but it will carry on in perpetuity," which, with a few exceptions, is my preferred way of ending a show. 

As I think was best expressed with Carter's "Doctor Greene, you coming?"

2 minutes ago, doodlebug said:

Clooney was loyal and grateful to ER for giving him the opportunity and he never forgot it. 

I'm reminded of Julianna Marguiles saying that she'd only do a cameo at the end of the show's run if Clooney agreed to it, figuring he'd say no.  And then he was happy to.

I get a day off after my grueling ICU month AND all of ER is streaming on Hulu ad-free?  It's not even my birthday.

[jewel21]

I'm watching season 3 but I missed a few episodes and I'm confused on some things.

When did Carol get held hostage at the convenience store? Before or after Gant died? Because they just showed a clip of it before tonight's episode aired and I must have somehow missed that whole episode.

What happened to Kirsten Dunst's character? Last I saw she brought the baby in for surgery, the baby's mother was pissed, and she went running after her. Then she showed up at Doug's place and he brought her to Carol's house.  Did she just disappear? And what happened to the baby after the surgery?

[doodlebug]

17 minutes ago, jewel21 said:

I'm watching season 3 but I missed a few episodes and I'm confused on some things.

When did Carol get held hostage at the convenience store? Before or after Gant died? Because they just showed a clip of it before tonight's episode aired and I must have somehow missed that whole episode.

What happened to Kirsten Dunst's character? Last I saw she brought the baby in for surgery, the baby's mother was pissed, and she went running after her. Then she showed up at Doug's place and he brought her to Carol's house.  Did she just disappear? And what happened to the baby after the surgery?

Gant died in episode 11, Night Shift. Carol was held hostage in episode 15, The Long Way Around.

I don’t think we ever heard what happened to the baby; ER often dropped the follow up on patients which is true to real life where ER docs often don’t ever hear the outcome for their patients.

Charlie, Kirsten Dunst’s character, appears in the season finale, One More for the Road.  She’s brought in after being beaten.

[jewel21]

1 minute ago, doodlebug said:

Gant died in episode 11, Night Shift. Carol was held hostage in episode 15, The Long Way Around.

I don’t think we ever heard what happened to the baby; ER often dropped the follow up on patients which is true to real life where ER docs often don’t ever hear the outcome for their patients.

Charlie, Kirsten Dunst’s character, appears in the season finale, One More for the Road.  She’s brought in after being beaten.

Thanks! I don't understand how I missed episode 15 unless Peachtree isn't airing all the episodes in order...

[absnow54]

Yeah, I think that scene could've been done a little better. I remember the first time I saw it I was disappointed that Doug didn't mention Mark. I think it could've been a nice gift to the fans and maybe make up for him not being present or even mentioned at Mark's funeral. He could've asked how long the ladies had been working at County and if they ever worked with Mark. But don't get me wrong, despite my criticism of the scene I was still thrilled that Clooney made an appearance.

I get that he was prodding for people who still worked there (for example, both Neela and Sam worked with Susan and Weaver... and Corday and Carter who weren't mentioned, so there were a lot of people that they all knew) and Doug obviously knows that Mark doesn't work there anymore. But then Sam got to throw in the Greg Pratt mention, which I think should have gone to Mark. All it would have taken was "How long have you been there? You ever work with Mark Greene?" "No." "That's too bad."

[starri]

God, did I hate the relationship between Susan and Carter.

I think the last time I completely liked Mark was when he sat down with the kid with the favored half-brother who drowned.  Just the overwhelming kindness he showed...

[desertflower]

Hey, mini NewsRadio reunion with Maura Tierney and Andy Dick. (Season 13.) I don't like what I've heard about Andy Dick in real life but I loved NewsRadio and his character Matthew so it's fun to see him and MT together. 

@absnow54, Yes! Would've been SO easy to throw in a Mark reference there. Of course if I was writing it I'd have Doug launch into a side story about how Mark was his best friend but he had to travel overseas and couldn't make it in time for the funeral, but he sent a nice letter to Elizabeth and he thinks about Mark all the time and even made a special visit to his grave and left a basketball there. :)

[roundtheworld]

It's Frank! In the pilot episode!

[WendyCR72]

5 hours ago, starri said:

God, did I hate the relationship between Susan and Carter.

Really? I loved it. I really did. Shrug. S8 was handled poorly and I think it was to service Carter/Abby (UGH), but I always liked Susan and Carter's friendship. I guess that old saying really is true, of "one's trash is another's treasure".

ETA: Unless you strictly mean the S8 flirtation? In that case, that seemed to be a popular opinion, hence their split!

[Bastet]

I liked their friendship both times, but Carter's crush the first time around and especially whatever the hell they were going for beyond friendship the second time around left me cold.

[pieinmyeye]

Thanks for pointing that out slasherboy. Not that I wasn’t already embarrassed.

That being said, I loved the last few episodes. They made sitting through the last couple of seasons totally worth it. IMO, it was a fantastic ending to what, with a few exceptions, was an excellent show.

[starri]

One of the things that bugs me about S9 is that after spending its early years coming down against the scuzzier, unethical side of medicine, there's product placement everywhere.  Every available surface is covered with ads for Zofran, which I guess was new at the time.  And I think we see people drinking from coffee mugs that say Zoloft on them.

To the show's moderate credit, I haven't noticed them actually USING any of that.  When Paul Sobricki makes his return, Susan gives him Compazine, not Zofran, for nausea.

Speaking of, if Susan wouldn't transfer him until she'd ruled out him having a brain bleed by getting a CT, there's no way he wouldn't have been first in line for one.

Man, Michael Michelle isn't much of an actress, but she just lights up when she has a scene with Reese.

[RedbirdNelly]

On ‎11‎/‎29‎/‎2017 at 4:40 PM, Bastet said:

I like Sam in general, but I especially like her today, completely exasperated with Luka and asking, "Are you in all seriousness, for the second time today, telling me that I'm not really mad about what I'm mad about?"

I wish there'd been a little more to the scene between Kerry and Susan about being women in positions of authority, but what's there was nice.

still going through season 11 here. I recently caught this episode. This part cracked me up. It was a nice back and forth between the characters. Luka responds with "I have no idea what you're upset about" or similar words, which was true.

I think I'm calling an uncalled BINGO square, patient that Luka and Dubanko argue over (he had gone into his bosses office and shot in the air; boss shot him; patient ends up calling boss' wife and telling her she's being cheated on) is now the annoying, short ER lead-doctor on ChicagoMed--a show I started watching solely because I missed ER and it's not near as good as ER was, even season 11 ER.

Pratt and Social working missing the abuse on the little boy who comes back dead was rough.

Sara Gilbert's character is annoying but I kind of like how she's pretty much consistently annoying.

Medical student (Jake?) who wants to date Abby gives off creepy vibes somehow. I don't remember him at all. I wish someone would do a storyline where when one character says "I cant' date you; I'm your supervisor" the other person reasonably responds "got it" and then drops the topic until the supervision piece is over. Then it's fair to say, "hey, would you like to go out."

Others have mentioned it but I always wonder why they choose to make the lighting so dark. I get not making it super bright but it's distracting because it creates the impression people are constantly working in a room with barely any light in it, and who does that? I end up focusing on 'why doesn't someone hit the light switch?" rather than what is going on.

[absnow54]

I only dropped in briefly yesterday during the episode where the guy couldn't find the heart (and every line he uttered screamed "EMMY REEL") and it was interesting to contrast it against the storyline we saw at the end of season 15, where the woman was able to go on a bypass machine for upto a month while she waited for a heart to become available. Was the technology not available yet in the 90's? Or was there something else precluding him from that treatment? For the woman, they had actually removed her heart to prep her for the failed transplant, which seems worse than his deteriorating muscle.

[doodlebug]

23 minutes ago, absnow54 said:

I only dropped in briefly yesterday during the episode where the guy couldn't find the heart (and every line he uttered screamed "EMMY REEL") and it was interesting to contrast it against the storyline we saw at the end of season 15, where the woman was able to go on a bypass machine for upto a month while she waited for a heart to become available. Was the technology not available yet in the 90's? Or was there something else precluding him from that treatment? For the woman, they had actually removed her heart to prep her for the failed transplant, which seems worse than his deteriorating muscle.

Remember that guy came in 15(!) years before the woman did, so it is quite possible that long term bypass wasn’t a ‘thing’ when the guy came in.

However, here’s the real reason: most people who need a heart transplant never get one because a suitable heart never comes available.  The guy had already been on the list for months or maybe years; what were the odds that keeping him alive another month would’ve gotten him a heart?  Very unlikely. 

There’s also the very unpleasant truth about high tech medical care which is that it is horrendously expensive.  I don’t know the exact costs, but there’s no way that keeping someone on bypass for a month doesn’t cost a million bucks or more.  Who pays for that?  Remember that, in the end, the transplant didn’t work anyway.  Millions of dollars spent to keep someone alive so they can maybe get a very expensive second treatment that has a fairly high mortality rate doesn’t make sense.

Finally, there are long term effects from cardiac bypass that the show ignored.  No way she’s awake and extubated and chatting less than an hour after transplant.  Bypass requires blood thinners which carry a high risk of stroke or hemorrhage in the gut or half a dozen other places.  It also causes organ damage to liver and kidneys over time.  There are also cognitive problems associated with it (‘bypass brain’ is a well known  phenomenon).  She also would have  a tracheostomy because ET tubes erode through the trachea if left in place more than a couple weeks.

The only reason they kept her on bypass was because it was a medical error that got her there in the first place.  It was probably based on a real life case, but exaggerated.

Edited January 18, 2018 by doodlebug

[absnow54]

Remember that guy came in 15(!) years before the woman did, so it is quite possible that long term bypass wasn’t a ‘thing’ when the guy came in.

Yeah, that was my first thought. The progression of all the background technology (even just the monitors they use) is really interesting. I knew at least that LVAD wasn't a thing yet, because it wasn't until season 6 that Lucy was buzzing about it.

[justduckey]

Was it mentioned that when Carter was teaching Rachel how to put in an IV it was the exact same dialogue Peter used in Carter’s first day when teaching him?

 

The last episode is fresh in my head and I have on the pilot and am mostly listening and the dialogue came right back to me.

I love little callbacks like that.

[desertflower]

Watched the episode when Sam drops Alex off at the school for at risk kids. It's sad for Sam but all I keep thinking is "I hope they give him a haircut!" Kid's starting to look like Dudley Moore. 

In the next episode, I like Pratt's quick impression of Gates. "You can't miss him, kinda swarthy guy, always walking around with his hands in his pockets."

Annabella Sciorra as a photographer.

[desertflower]

Oh my goodness, this old man with Alzheimer's who keeps forgetting his son died is killing me. So sad. (S13)