SCRUBS

        If you have tears,
      prepare to shed them now.
           
                                                                          -Shakespeare                 
         
                       

In May of 2002, Brendan guest starred

on the popular NBC series, SCRUBS in a two-part episode. The first part was titled "My Occurrence", (written by series creator Bill Lawrence and directed by Lawrence Trilling.) The second part was "My Hero."( written  by Neil Goldman and Garrett Donovan and directed by Michael Spiller). Brendan returned in February 2004 for a third episode titled "My Screw Up" (written by Neil Goldman and Garrett Donovan and directed by Chris Koch).

                                                                               
                                                                                     
  Brendan played Ben Sullivan,

the brother-in-law and best friend of Dr.Cox (John C. McGinley) and brother to Jordan (Christa Miller) and Dani (Tara Reid).

                                                       Reid,  Miller,  McGinley,  Fraser.

Visiting Sacred Heart Hospital after a carpentry accident,(kudos to the Makeup Department for the very realistic nail through the hand with board attached !😱)

Dr.Cox, Ben and J.D. go out to play billiards and drink beer

and during the evening Ben tells them that he cut himself while shaving recently and that he could not staunch the flow, and they exchange a look of concern. Jordan comments on Ben's "paleness".

Ben undergoes tests. While he waits for the results he takes Polaroid photos of the staff, telling J.D. that "Pictures capture moments in time. When they're posed, they're not real."  He is so attached to his cameras that he tells Dr. Cox that he will continue to take his camera with him everywhere "until the day I die."

Brendan's chihuahua Lucy, made an uncredited cameo appearance.

The first test results show that Ben has leukemia but J.D. wants to believe

that the lab made a mistake so he reorders the tests and they show that Ben is fine but J.D. remembers what Ben told him about posed pictures and he realizes that it was only wishful thinking.

The second tests confirm the diagnosis and he breaks the news to Ben and Dr.Cox.

Ben begins chemotherapy and is later released from the hospital.

   Two years pass and Ben returns from his travels in time for his nephew's first birthday. He admits to Dr. Cox that he has not seen a doctor. during his time abroad. Dr.Cox has J.D. run tests on Ben and look after an elderly patient with an irregular heartbeat while he runs an errand. During his absence, a patient dies. Dr. Cox blames J.D. and stays at the hospital for several days looking after his patients. Ben tells Dr. Cox not to blame J.D. or himself.

Everyone gets ready to attend the birthday party but what they are really attending is Ben's funeral

because he is the patient that died and Dr. Cox is overcome with guilt and sadness. He is devastated.

                 

In a nod to The Sixth Sense, Ben continues to interact with Dr.Cox but none of the other characters see him because they know that he has died. Dr. Cox refuses to accept the loss of his best friend.

A clue to Ben's untimely death include the absence of his camera in the scenes following J.D.'s telling Dr.Cox about the patient's cardiac arrest.

The episodes were not without the show's quirky humor. One storyline featured series writer and regular Sam Lloyd (Ted Buckland) and his acapella singing group  "The Worthless Peons" made up of himself and three other Sacred Heart employees performing their versions of cartoon theme songs including Speed Racer and Underdog. Classic.

Some scenes had to be reshot because the background extras were looking at Brendan (who wasn't supposed to be there).

  The final episode "My Screw Up" was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award in the category Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series.

The song "Winter" by Joshua Radin became popular after the episode.

                           
                                                           Ben's (Brendan's) photographs.

A SCRUBS VIDEO: