My Way Home
Encyclopedia
"My Way Home" is the 7th episode of season five and the 100th episode of the American
comedy-drama
Scrubs
. It originally aired on January 24, 2006 on NBC
.
The episode's references to The Wizard of Oz
were called a "sly, circuitous homage" when Scrubs received a Peabody Award in 2006 for "fearlessly smashing traditional comic formulas, all the while respecting the deepest emotional and moral issues of its life-and-death setting."
is basking in the warmth of being seen as an endocrinology
expert to her interns. In reality, however, she is hiding notes, books, and pages around the hospital with the answers on them. Turk attempts to convince a family to take their brain-dead
son off life support
so the hospital can perform its first on-site heart transplant, in which Turk will be allowed to assist if he is successful in persuading the family. Meanwhile, Carla
jumps at the opportunity to look after Dr. Cox's young son Jack.
However, the crew finds challenges awaiting them. J.D. just wants to head home and is constantly waylaid by requests for assistance; Elliot is forced to conduct a seminar with several Endocrinology specialists; Turk's dishonesty with the coma
patient's family damages his credibility; and Carla can't stand having Jack around. Eventually, Elliot gains her "brains" to go to the meeting; Turk convinces the coma patient's parents to pull the plug after being completely honest with them ; Carla (Lion) discovers courage to be a good parent; and J.D. gets to go home.
to the 1939 MGM
musical film
The Wizard of Oz
. Some references are obvious, such as: The Worthless Peons singing both "We're Off to See the Wizard
" and "Over the Rainbow
"; the "yellow brick road
" painted on the hospital floor; J.D.'s red shoes; Jack being painted green; Several memorable lines from the film are echoed, such as: Dr. Cox saying to Elliot that her endocrinology answers are "falling from the sky"; Dr. Cox telling Carla to "pay no attention to the man behind the curtain" while cleaning his son; Dr. Cox calling Jordan the "Wicked Witch of the East Wing"; the Janitor mumbling "oil can"; Todd talking about the zoo's "lions and tigers and bears — oh my!" Also, J.D. simply wants to go home (the yellow line leading to the exit), and when he does get to leave, there is a rainbow in the sky. From the point where the yellow line on the hospital floor is visualized as a yellow brick road, the rest of the episode is shot in bright, highly saturated colors, similar to the Technicolor
in which The Wizard of Oz was filmed (with the Kansas scenes shot in black and white). In addition, Elliot seeks brains in the form of studying for a Q&A session with other doctors where she'll be the purported expert on endocrinology, but she fears she's not well-versed on the subject matter; Turk is seeking a heart, in this case a heart donor for a patient in need of a transplant; and Carla seeks the courage to be a parent, as she's afraid of that day when she and Turk have a child of their own.
The episode also makes some less obvious references, including various character names:
Other references include:
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
comedy-drama
Comedy-drama
Comedy-drama is a genre of theatre, film and television programs which combines humorous and serious content.-Theatre:Traditional western theatre, beginning with the ancient Greeks, was divided into comedy and tragedy...
Scrubs
Scrubs (TV series)
Scrubs is an American medical comedy-drama television series created in 2001 by Bill Lawrence and produced by ABC Studios. The show follows the lives of several employees of the fictional Sacred Heart, a teaching hospital. It features fast-paced screenplay, slapstick, and surreal vignettes...
. It originally aired on January 24, 2006 on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
.
The episode's references to The Wizard of Oz
The Wizard of Oz (1939 film)
The Wizard of Oz is a 1939 American musical fantasy film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was directed primarily by Victor Fleming. Noel Langley, Florence Ryerson and Edgar Allan Woolf received credit for the screenplay, but there were uncredited contributions by others. The lyrics for the songs...
were called a "sly, circuitous homage" when Scrubs received a Peabody Award in 2006 for "fearlessly smashing traditional comic formulas, all the while respecting the deepest emotional and moral issues of its life-and-death setting."
Plot
On his day off, J.D. gets called into work by Keith. It turns out that Dr. Cox told Keith to call J.D. to let him see what it's like to be pestered over little things, as J.D had done to Cox as an intern. Laverne's gospel choir is also present, singing a song called "Payback is a Bitch". ElliotElliot Reid
Dr. Elliot Reid is a fictional character played by Sarah Chalke in the American comedy-drama Scrubs. She has appeared in every episode during the first eight seasons except two Season 8 episodes, "My Last Words" and "My Lawyer's in Love"....
is basking in the warmth of being seen as an endocrinology
Endocrinology
Endocrinology is a branch of biology and medicine dealing with the endocrine system, its diseases, and its specific secretions called hormones, the integration of developmental events such as proliferation, growth, and differentiation and the coordination of...
expert to her interns. In reality, however, she is hiding notes, books, and pages around the hospital with the answers on them. Turk attempts to convince a family to take their brain-dead
Brain death
Brain death is the irreversible end of all brain activity due to total necrosis of the cerebral neurons following loss of brain oxygenation. It should not be confused with a persistent vegetative state...
son off life support
Life support
Life support, in medicine is a broad term that applies to any therapy used to sustain a patient's life while they are critically ill or injured. There are many therapies and techniques that may be used by clinicians to achieve the goal of sustaining life...
so the hospital can perform its first on-site heart transplant, in which Turk will be allowed to assist if he is successful in persuading the family. Meanwhile, Carla
Carla Espinosa
Carla Espinosa, RN is a fictional character in the American comedy-drama Scrubs, portrayed by Judy Reyes.Carla has appeared in every episode during the first eight seasons except three Season 8 episodes, "My Happy Place", "My Cookie Pants" and "My Full Moon"...
jumps at the opportunity to look after Dr. Cox's young son Jack.
However, the crew finds challenges awaiting them. J.D. just wants to head home and is constantly waylaid by requests for assistance; Elliot is forced to conduct a seminar with several Endocrinology specialists; Turk's dishonesty with the coma
Coma
In medicine, a coma is a state of unconsciousness, lasting more than 6 hours in which a person cannot be awakened, fails to respond normally to painful stimuli, light or sound, lacks a normal sleep-wake cycle and does not initiate voluntary actions. A person in a state of coma is described as...
patient's family damages his credibility; and Carla can't stand having Jack around. Eventually, Elliot gains her "brains" to go to the meeting; Turk convinces the coma patient's parents to pull the plug after being completely honest with them ; Carla (Lion) discovers courage to be a good parent; and J.D. gets to go home.
Homage
The episode is a homageHomage
Homage is a show or demonstration of respect or dedication to someone or something, sometimes by simple declaration but often by some more oblique reference, artistic or poetic....
to the 1939 MGM
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. is an American media company, involved primarily in the production and distribution of films and television programs. MGM was founded in 1924 when the entertainment entrepreneur Marcus Loew gained control of Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures Corporation and Louis B. Mayer...
musical film
Musical film
The musical film is a film genre in which songs sung by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, though in some cases they serve merely as breaks in the storyline, often as elaborate...
The Wizard of Oz
The Wizard of Oz (1939 film)
The Wizard of Oz is a 1939 American musical fantasy film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was directed primarily by Victor Fleming. Noel Langley, Florence Ryerson and Edgar Allan Woolf received credit for the screenplay, but there were uncredited contributions by others. The lyrics for the songs...
. Some references are obvious, such as: The Worthless Peons singing both "We're Off to See the Wizard
We're Off to See the Wizard
"We're Off to See the Wizard" is one of the classic and most memorable songs from the Academy Award-winning film The Wizard of Oz. Composer Harold Arlen described it, along with "The Merry Old Land of Oz" and "Ding-Dong! The Witch is Dead", as one of the "lemon drop" songs of the film.The melody's...
" and "Over the Rainbow
Over the Rainbow
"Over the Rainbow" is a classic Academy Award-winning ballad song with music by Harold Arlen and lyrics by E.Y. Harburg. It was written for the movie The Wizard of Oz, and was sung by Judy Garland in the movie...
"; the "yellow brick road
Yellow brick road
The road of yellow brick is an element in the novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum, with additional such roads appearing in The Marvelous Land of Oz and The Patchwork Girl of Oz...
" painted on the hospital floor; J.D.'s red shoes; Jack being painted green; Several memorable lines from the film are echoed, such as: Dr. Cox saying to Elliot that her endocrinology answers are "falling from the sky"; Dr. Cox telling Carla to "pay no attention to the man behind the curtain" while cleaning his son; Dr. Cox calling Jordan the "Wicked Witch of the East Wing"; the Janitor mumbling "oil can"; Todd talking about the zoo's "lions and tigers and bears — oh my!" Also, J.D. simply wants to go home (the yellow line leading to the exit), and when he does get to leave, there is a rainbow in the sky. From the point where the yellow line on the hospital floor is visualized as a yellow brick road, the rest of the episode is shot in bright, highly saturated colors, similar to the Technicolor
Technicolor
Technicolor is a color motion picture process invented in 1916 and improved over several decades.It was the second major process, after Britain's Kinemacolor, and the most widely used color process in Hollywood from 1922 to 1952...
in which The Wizard of Oz was filmed (with the Kansas scenes shot in black and white). In addition, Elliot seeks brains in the form of studying for a Q&A session with other doctors where she'll be the purported expert on endocrinology, but she fears she's not well-versed on the subject matter; Turk is seeking a heart, in this case a heart donor for a patient in need of a transplant; and Carla seeks the courage to be a parent, as she's afraid of that day when she and Turk have a child of their own.
The episode also makes some less obvious references, including various character names:
- Mr. Fleming is the first patient mentioned; Victor Fleming directed the original movie.
- One patient is Mr. Baum; the book "The Wizard of Oz" was written by L. Frank Baum.
- Another patient is Mr. Langley. Noel Langley wrote the screenplay for the movie.
- The potential heart donor's name is Ray Bolger, which is based on the late actor with the same nameRay BolgerRaymond Wallace "Ray" Bolger was an American entertainer of stage and screen, best known for his portrayal of the Scarecrow and Kansas farmworker Hank in The Wizard of Oz.-Early life:...
, who played the Scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz. - The psychologist who killed himself was Dr. Burke. Billie Burke played Glinda.
Other references include:
- J.D. listening to 'TotoToto (band)Toto is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1977. The group currently consists of Joseph Williams , David Paich , Steve Porcaro , Steve Lukather , Mike Porcaro , and Simon Phillips . Toto is known for a musical style that combines elements of pop, rock, soul, funk, progressive rock, hard...
' on his iPod, and Dr. Cox's referring to Elliot's straw-colored hair, and *Dr. Cox's nom du jour for J.D. is "Dorothy." The Janitor, while painting the hallway lines around the hospital, spray paints J.D.'s sneakers red (symbolizing the ruby slippers). - Laverne's choir appears wearing yellow and singing a song, much like the munchkins did for Dorothy.
- Dr. Kelso mentions that he played baseball in Altoona, PA. They have a community theatre that dates back to the early 1900's and has had productions of Wizard of Oz.
- Dr. Cox tells the interns to "flee - now!" The wicked witch of the west told the monkeys to "fly - now!"
- Dr. Cox tells Elliot she has a "straw colored scarecrow head" and says her answers are "falling from the sky."
- Turk and the nurses "pop up" like the munchkins do.
- Jordan is stuck in a hot room and seems to be "melting" like the witch does when she gets doused with water.
- Carla mentions, "I'm supposed to be the brave one," just like the "king of the forest" is supposed to be.
- It's specifically mentioned that Elliot is looking for brains, Turk a heart and Carla courage. J.D. mentions that he just wants to get home.
- The four of them are walking while the Peons are singing "We're Off to See the Wizard."
- The Todd mentions "lions and tigers and bears" at the zoo, then sees a female and says, "oh my!"
- J.D. tells Turk he's on his own and just wants to take Toto and go home. Turk is disappointed so J.D. agrees to help.
- Jack is painted emerald.
- Dr. Cox says with an echo, "pay no attention to the man behind the curtain."
- Dr. Kelso mentions that the depressed staff psychologist had hanged himself. This is a reference to an urban legend about a depressed munchkin actor hanging himself on the set of the Wizard of Oz.
- The Peons are singing "Somewhere Over the Rainbow."
- Dr. Cox calls J.D. Dorothy one last time as he's going home.
- Camera pans to a rainbow at the end.
DVD version
- An extended version of the episode is featured on the DVD box set for Season 5. It contains new scenes as well as different takes of existing scenes, and a commentary by director Zach BraffZach BraffZachary Israel "Zach" Braff is an American actor, screenwriter, producer, comedian, and director. Braff first became known in 2001 for his role as Dr. John Dorian on the television series Scrubs, for which he was nominated for an Emmy Award and three Golden Globe Awards.In 2004, Braff made his...
.
Featured music
- AfricaAfrica (Toto song)"Africa" is a song by rock band Toto, and one of the band's most recognizable songs. It was included on their 1982 album Toto IV, and reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in February 1983 and number three on the UK Singles Chart the same month...
by TotoToto (band)Toto is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1977. The group currently consists of Joseph Williams , David Paich , Steve Porcaro , Steve Lukather , Mike Porcaro , and Simon Phillips . Toto is known for a musical style that combines elements of pop, rock, soul, funk, progressive rock, hard... - ManiacManiac (song)"Maniac" is a synthpop song performed by Michael Sembello. The song was used in the 1983 film Flashdance and was inspired by the 1980 horror film Maniac.The film Maniac was about a serial killer who stalks his victims in New York City...
by Michael SembelloMichael SembelloMichael Sembello is an American musician and songwriter from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.-Career:Sembello was born and raised in Philadelphia. He studied with jazz great Pat Martino and began his career as a professional musician by becoming a session musician, working increasingly with...
(performed by The Worthless Peons) - We're Off to See the WizardWe're Off to See the Wizard"We're Off to See the Wizard" is one of the classic and most memorable songs from the Academy Award-winning film The Wizard of Oz. Composer Harold Arlen described it, along with "The Merry Old Land of Oz" and "Ding-Dong! The Witch is Dead", as one of the "lemon drop" songs of the film.The melody's...
by Harold Arlen (performed by The Worthless Peons) - Over the RainbowOver the Rainbow"Over the Rainbow" is a classic Academy Award-winning ballad song with music by Harold Arlen and lyrics by E.Y. Harburg. It was written for the movie The Wizard of Oz, and was sung by Judy Garland in the movie...
by Harold Arlen and Yip Harburg, arrangement by Israel Kamakawiwo'ole (performed by The Worthless Peons)