mortalplague

So is anyone still watching this? I really enjoyed the first season and then season 2 and 3 were getting worse every episode but then season 4 was phenomenal. Loved every episode of season 4. In case you didn't know it was renewed for a Fifth season. Does anyone know why season 4 was only 10 episodes instead of the usual 12?

Gunde

Yes season 4 was damn close to being quite fantastic. Seems like consequences for Jackie was what it needed.

conscience

I thought this season was okay. An easy way to kill 27 minutes but the show is quickly dropping off my radar. Even at 27 minutes my mind drifts to something else.

MikahC

I still watch but in some ways, the story has let me down a bit. I found the whole story of a medical professional addicted to drugs and engaged in destructive behavior (affairs, lies, etc.) while still being professionally functional highly on point. That's a true slice of life in hospitals. Grey's Anatomy, which I watch, deals with the "romantic" aspect of things, but not really the rest. Grey's is a Disney version of hospital life. The characters on Grey's are just varying degrees of likeable, and do even bad things for mostly noble reasons. Nurse Jackie was the show where people sometimes did bad things because that's what people do (selfishness). It helps that a model isn't cast as the lead.

I'm in until the end, but what used to be compelling is now just slightly interesting. I feel like they've gone from a show that had something to say to one that's trying to come up with things to say to fill the episode quota and make some money. I think it's past its prime.

I don't like rehab for Jackie. It's nice, but not terribly realistic. Most would be terrified of anyone finding out and the associated loss of "esteem" that'd be associated with it. I don't like the neutering of Dr. O'Hara. She's much better as a priviledged aloof doctor with no responsibilities. Zoey's still gold. I miss Mohammed 'Mo-Mo' De La Cruz from the first season. Eddie and Gloria are literally props at this point.

For those of us looking forward to next season, can we point to anything specific we're looking forward to seeing? How Jackie gets her job back? The humanization or comeuppance of Dr. Cruz? Eddie and Gloria back in the fold? Jackie clean, or Jackie relapse? Or just more time hanging out with characters we like?

Coral

I enjoyed this season more than the past. I liked that everything blew up in her face - the secrets and running around covering her tracks was getting tired, so it's good to see everything in the open.

I just don't know what they'll do for Season 5 storyline wise. I guess getting Gloria and Eddie back to work will be one thing... going through with her divorce or reconciling with her husband... she may even get a promotion (once hired back).

Incidentally, I found myself losing interest in The Big C. It feels like it's gotten repetitive in the way that Nurse Jackie was.

bluesix

I really like where they went this season and was glad to finally see her in rehab but I didn't like the fact that she left rehab halfway through and seems to be doing fine on her own. This is very unrealistic especially given that she is supposedly fighting for custody of her kids and needs to show herself in the best light. Unless the writers plan on her relapsing which at this point would be a worse direction than where the show is going now.

I agree that Accalitus (sp?) and Eddie are pretty much sideshow characters now who don't even seem like the same people from previous seasons. Hopefully they don't come back since they are no longer needed. Zooey Eleanor storylines served their purpose and frankly it's nice to see them showing some growth, altho yet, it is fun to watch O'Hara play the entitled super bitch doctor like shes American royalty.

The Dr. Cruz storyline was fantastic if only to see more of Bobby Cannavale, an incredibly underused actor who is crying out for the right movie/series to make him a star. The episode where Jackie takes his son home and they find out Jackie is his sponsor and Dr. Cruz is his father made me fall off my couch! Too bad they followed it up by making Dr. Cruz a super-asshole. I don't think Cannavale is signed on to come back next season so it's too bad to see his storyline end on that note. And kudos to his real life son who was playing his on screen son, not bad kid.

It was great to finally see Jackie connect with her daughter by giving her what she wanted too. Their relationship has been so tortured and it was great to see Jackie admit she was wrong and go in the opposite direction. Hopefully next season bring more of this.

bluesix

I think I read something about the shows creators wanting to wrap things up because they are sick of working on the east coast. I guess they are based in LA and Edie Falco won't film the show anywhere but in NYC so they were stuck.

Now they are supposedly passing the show on to someone else to run it but I think the show is supposed to wrap up either next season or the one after anyway.

I wouldn't mind seeing it end next season. They don't need more then 10 or 13 more episodes to wrap everything up.

dex14

Yea lets not have this turn into Weeds and run 5 seasons past its prime.

Gunde

No supposing about it
Former Dexter showrunner Clyde Phillips takes over next season.

MikahC

The problem is while this might satisfy the "shake things up" urge, it kills the realism and core of what the show was about. Seriously. Drug abuse amongst medical professionals is... well, I don't have statistics so I'm not going to say it's an epidemic, but let's just say I'm exposed to it and it's not rare. But this show did a realistic job of showing that while going to nursing (or medical) school doesn't suddenly make you a saint, you CAN still have faults and still generally be professional competent. I really liked that about the show.

There is so much they could have still mined from the basic premise.

The whole blow up, out in the open, rehab, blah blah blah, thing just isn't very representative of what really happens on a daily basis in the medical field. It has taken an entertainment show with a lot of realism and turned it into an entertainment show only tangentially attached to realism. It's certainly their right as showrunners, but I'll think it's an unfortunate misstep.

One of the things that makes my excitement for next season muted is that there's nothing in particular I antipate seeing next season.

A couple of quick articles from google... ("Drug abuse amongst medical professionals")

Healthcare professionals face unique addiction challenges

Drug abuse among health care providers is a rising concern

bluesix

Great reply and interesting articles.

You nailed what initially appealed to me about this show. It's about watching characters who most people think are omnipotent perfect people who have God-like power and seeing what a complete disaster their personal lives can be.

It wasn't until my family started getting older and needed medical care and hospital visits that I finally realized that medicine isn't an exact science at all but mostly just a bunch of super highly educated people shooting fish in a barrel at what might be causing a given set of symptoms. Sure most of the time they get it right but the rest of the time I think its just luck.

bunkaroo

OK I basically didn't bother to watch this season based on what last season was like, but based on the comments here I'll check it out On Demand.