It begs the question, did we need a ninth season of Scrubs? Season Eight was, for all intents and purposes, meant to be the end of Scrubs. And I mean the real end, as opposed to the constant whispers of cancelation that stalked the previous seasons. The last episode of season 8, "My Finale", had it all - goodbyes, memories and hopes for the future. And it was done so well, with J.D. seeing his hopes and dreams played out on the "Goodbye J.D." banner, and Peter Gabriel's cover of "The Book Of Love" playing in the background.

There were a few things Season Nine did right. Not showing us J.D. and Elliot's wedding and the announcement of her pregnancy, for one; shaking everything up (new location, old characters giving way to new ones). But there were times Season Nine just seemed to drift by. New narrator Lucy (Kelly Bishè) is far too similar to J.D. for her to stand alone as a lead character in her own right. Drew Suffin (Michael Mosley) seemed to exist just to help Eliza Coupe's character (Denise Mahoney) grow. Not the worst thing in the world, since Denise does such a great job at being misanthropic that even Dr. Cox stays away from her, but Drew melts into the background  the rest of the time. Cole Aaronson (Dave Franco) never had the epiphany we thought we'd have - he's still the same arrogant, conceited, lazy, selfish, childish "douche" that he was when the season started - but he found his niche in surgery. If Scrubs is renewed for a tenth season, it will be interesting to see Cole be given room to grow as a surgeon, and see how he deals with the challenges and responsibilities the role brings.

That's a big "if", though. The declining ratings of Season Nine, and the universally celebrated high note that Season Eight ended on, make a tenth year of Scrubs unlikely. The fan debate will rage on, whether Season Nine should be considered part of Scrubs, or the first season of a spin-off show on its own right. Season Nine definitely had its moments, but after eight years of Scrubs culminated with a wonderful finale, anything that followed would have been left wanting, no matter the quality. I give showrunner Bill Lawrence serious kudos for not taking the easy way out, and for trying something bold and risky. It's too early to say whether or not the move paid off, but the initial impression after the end of Season Nine is that Scrubs didn't quit while it was ahead.