MDs

Watching the premiere of this show, I couldn't help but get a feeling of déja vu. Although it's set in a modern city hospital, MDs borrows liberally from the spirit of "M*A*S*H" (1972).

Drs. Kellerman and Dalgety are skilled doctors--among the best in their fields--employed by a hospital that is being squeezed by the HMOs. It is this clash which most strongly recalls M*A*S*H; instead of fighting the Army, these doctors are fighting the administrators and insurance auditors. The pilot wasn't nearly as irreverant as M*A*S*H got (especially not the movie), although it did feature such hilarious touches as an autopsy performed on a live patient, and a hospital director who can't stand the sight of blood.

Walking the line between the melodrama of "ER" (1994) and the inanity of "Scrubs" (2001), MDs has a lot of promise--and big shoes to fill.

This show so far has been totally great. The vibe between Doctors Kellerman and Dalgetty reminds me very much of the vibe between Doctors Pierce and Hunnicut from M*A*S*H*. The show had characters like Doctor Kellerman, a man who is divorced and tries to see his kid as much as he can. He's good at what he does and always tries his hardest. Then there's Dalgetty, with that sexy Scottish accent, he's the Hawkeye Pierce of the show. He's the one who is always charming women and has never had a relationship last longer than 3 weeks. Nurse Doctor Pool is a woman who has a Doctor in nursing and takes her job very seriously. Mr. Donge (pronounce the 'e') is the representative from the hospital's HMO, there to make sure money is only spent on necessary things and not on things such as reattaching a pinkie. The cast has worked together beautifully from the start and I think that this show has real staying power, if only it could be moved into a better time slot.

In the biggest sense, this was just another failed dysfunctional-hospital drama. It could never gain any traction on distinguishing itself from other medical dramas. There wasn't a McDreamy, or a bitter Brit know-it-all. However it did have some good actors. William Fichter is solid as usual. You got Jane Lynch, Robert Joy, John Hannah, and Michaela Conlin as the naive rookie Dr Yang that we're supposed to root for.

These are all stock characters. There wasn't anything wrong with the show. The central premise is a continuous battle between the doctors trying to treat patients and the bureaucratic administrators working the numbers. It's just that there wasn't anything original to make it stand out and it did not get the numbers that the network wanted.

I think that MDs could become a great show as the season goes on. There are some great characters and situations, interesting dialogue and the classic suspense of a medical drama with a touch of comedy. The only draw back I see is the strong similarity to M*A*S*H. I am a huge M*A*S*H fan and was constantly noting small (and sometimes not so small) parallels. I hope that this fact isn't intentional and that it doesn't hinder the potential of this new show.

The "MDs" show was canceled because of the TV network's error: they put it against two other medical shows at the same time/day and so it couldn't withstand the competition. However, watching the series I found one more flaw: the first 3-4 episodes were really good. Then, it became really boring and disconnected. I guess that had something to do with the viewership and the consequent cancellation too...

William Fichtner is very attractive in the series, playing a divorced heart surgeon with a... Harley Davindson.

In a not so nice note though, I felt sick more than once with that series. They would simulate heart transplant operations and I was that close from throwing up.