March 13: What's Jen Clicking on Between Casts?

Did you see it?

It was as if George Clooney's Dr. Doug Ross never left the ER, when he came back last night for one of the show's final episodes.

The LA Times recounts my favorite scene from last night's show, part of which was set at at the Seattle hospital where Dr. Ross works now: 

"...in one small but lovely segment, Doug wanders into the room where all the doctors are awaiting the organs and after discovering that some of them are from County, grills Neela (Parminder Nagra) about who's still there.

As Neela and Samantha (Linda Cardellini) do a roll call of the more recent seasons of "ER," Doug grins that famous grin and ruefully shakes his handsome but now graying head -- there is no stopping time and tide and the seemingly inexhaustible talent of one of the best television shows we have ever seen."

You can watch the scene here.

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It's hard to believe that Dr. Ross never overlapped with nurse-turned-doctor Abby (Maura Tierney) and others who seem like they were on the show forever.  If you missed it, you can check out the whole episode here as well.

I really liked how they wove the whole thing together with the guest appearances and the intersecting storylines without going for the obvious.

A reviewer from the New Jersey Star Ledger put it well: 

"What I really appreciated about the organ donation storyline was how little the various characters knew anything of the larger picture. Nobody knew that the kidney was going to Carter -- not even Sam, who dropped it off at Northwestern -- and during the brief scene where Doug tried to find common ground with Sam and Neela, it worked that most of the people he knew were long gone from County.

"I think it would have rang false if they sat around and swapped Kerry Weaver stories, or if Carol came in and bonded with Sam (who has assumed the role Carol used to play on the show, like it or not). The only way the coincidence of Doug and Carol saving Carter's life works is if it's a total coincidence, and if nobody finds out about it, and it felt less cheesey and more natural for Doug to come across to Neela and Sam as some guy who worked at County so long ago that they barely know any of the same doctors."

All in all, a very satisfying ending to the Ross/Hathaway storyline, where they end up in bed, a happy couple with two daughters, ten years later. Indulge me yet one more video clip (since I just learned how to put these video boxes in here!)

I liked it.  And, so did a lot of people.  At least here in LA, it was the most-watched program in its time slot.

See what else Jen is clicking on ...

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