Scrubs Gets a Snub from NBC

NBC announced a while ago that it was no longer going to pick up new episodes of Scrubs for another season, although rumors have abounded that ABC might take over the show. For Scrubs, a move to another network could only increase its chances of newer seasons since it is getting no help from its NBC time slot.

Now Scrubs may suffer in the ratings even if it is placed on another network and time slot. However, I do not think this would be the initial case. Scrubs just suffers from first of all being placed on a night in which it is surrounded by NBC's monster hits. Scrubs, which airs on Thursday nights at 9:30, is surrounded by hits like My Name is Earl, 30 Rock, and The Office. Scrubs is the last of all of these shows. What this means is that there will already be an hour and a half of popular programming on the network before Scrubs comes on. Perhaps viewers tune in to see their favorite shows like My Name is Earl or The Office and have seen enough network television for the night. By doing this, Scrubs is left in the dark for viewers.

Scrubs Thursday night time slot is also not very favorable compared to other networks. NBC is almost wasting the show by placing it in this time slot because Scrubs cannot compete with other networks' ratings like CBS's Survivor Micronesia and CSI. The Thursday night slot also means Scrubs has to, at times, compete with ABC's Desperate Housewives and Grey's Anatomy.

It just seems like NBC is putting all its eggs in one basket by placing all its younger comedy shows on one night. Its like they are trying to lure people into watching Scrubs, but it would make more sense to spread Scrubs out to a different night. Scrubs is already in its last NBC season so what is the harm in trying this. If the ratings decrease, which I don't think would happen, then the show is getting cancelled anyway and there is no real harm. But by taking it off Thursday night, NBC might get it in a slot with less competition among its shows and other networks and it would help to get people to turn into NBC on another night then just Thursday night. For example, a couple of weeks ago NBC's Monday show My Dad is Better than Your Dad only received a 2.6/4 average rating. Before the writer's strike, Scrubs was consistently in the low 3.0/5 to 3.8/6 range in average ratings. It only seems like the smart thing to do to put the higher rated NBC show in this Monday night slot.