My Bright Idea
Encyclopedia
"My Bright Idea" is the 16th episode of season five and the 109th episode of the American
situation comedy
Scrubs
. It originally aired on March 28, 2006 on NBC
.
performs yet another home pregnancy test
and to her dismay, it comes up negative. After she leaves, Turk
realizes the result time for the test is longer than they expected and the test turns out to be positive. J.D. convinces Turk to take advantage of this unique situation and round up all of Carla's friends and have them surprise her with the news, becoming the first husband to ever tell his wife she is pregnant. When Carla reveals to Turk her greatest joy will be when she can tell her friends and family one by one that she is pregnant, Turk hastily scraps the plan.
With the help of their close friends, J.D. and Turk are able to keep the failed surprise under wraps and hint at Carla to take another test. Everything is going according to plan until J.D. accidentally lets it slip that Turk already told him. However, Carla explains she doesn't really care about being the one to spread the news - she's happy just to be pregnant with Turk.
Meanwhile, J.D. accuses Janitor
of telling another lie. With Janitor seeming more vindictive than ever before, J.D. and Turk trick him into eating a penny
, which is actually a GPS
beacon
, thus enabling them to evade him using a GPS receiver. Janitor is finally able to tackle J.D by hurdling 100 meters
in less than 10 seconds while J.D is changing the batteries in the GPS receiver. While Janitor claims he easily outran world class speed (12.21 seconds), there is no guarantee the obstacles he hurdled
match the official track.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
situation comedy
Situation comedy
A situation comedy, often shortened to sitcom, is a genre of comedy that features characters sharing the same common environment, such as a home or workplace, accompanied with jokes as part of the dialogue...
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 March 28, 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...
.
Plot
CarlaCarla 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"...
performs yet another home pregnancy test
Pregnancy test
A pregnancy test attempts to determine whether or not a woman is pregnant.These markers are found in urine and blood, and pregnancy tests require sampling one of these substances. The first of these markers to be discovered, human chorionic gonadotropin , was discovered in 1930 to be produced by...
and to her dismay, it comes up negative. After she leaves, Turk
Christopher Turk
Christopher Duncan Turk, M.D., is a fictional character played by Donald Faison on the American comedy-drama Scrubs. Turk has appeared in every episode except three Season 8 episodes, "My Saving Grace", "My New Role" and "My Lawyer's in Love". Donald Faison is the only original cast member,...
realizes the result time for the test is longer than they expected and the test turns out to be positive. J.D. convinces Turk to take advantage of this unique situation and round up all of Carla's friends and have them surprise her with the news, becoming the first husband to ever tell his wife she is pregnant. When Carla reveals to Turk her greatest joy will be when she can tell her friends and family one by one that she is pregnant, Turk hastily scraps the plan.
With the help of their close friends, J.D. and Turk are able to keep the failed surprise under wraps and hint at Carla to take another test. Everything is going according to plan until J.D. accidentally lets it slip that Turk already told him. However, Carla explains she doesn't really care about being the one to spread the news - she's happy just to be pregnant with Turk.
Meanwhile, J.D. accuses Janitor
Janitor (Scrubs)
The Janitor is a fictional character, played by actor Neil Flynn in the American comedy-drama Scrubs.Neil Flynn was originally billed as a recurring guest star throughout Season 1, although he appeared in all 24 episodes of that season. He was promoted to a series regular beginning with Season 2...
of telling another lie. With Janitor seeming more vindictive than ever before, J.D. and Turk trick him into eating a penny
Penny
A penny is a coin or a type of currency used in several English-speaking countries. It is often the smallest denomination within a currency system.-Etymology:...
, which is actually a GPS
Global Positioning System
The Global Positioning System is a space-based global navigation satellite system that provides location and time information in all weather, anywhere on or near the Earth, where there is an unobstructed line of sight to four or more GPS satellites...
beacon
Beacon
A beacon is an intentionally conspicuous device designed to attract attention to a specific location.Beacons can also be combined with semaphoric or other indicators to provide important information, such as the status of an airport, by the colour and rotational pattern of its airport beacon, or of...
, thus enabling them to evade him using a GPS receiver. Janitor is finally able to tackle J.D by hurdling 100 meters
100 metres hurdles
The 100 m hurdles are an Olympic track and field athletics discipline run by women . For the race ten hurdles of a height of 83.8 cm are placed evenly spaced along a straight course of 100 meters. They are positioned so that they will fall over if bumped into by the runner...
in less than 10 seconds while J.D is changing the batteries in the GPS receiver. While Janitor claims he easily outran world class speed (12.21 seconds), there is no guarantee the obstacles he hurdled
Hurdling
Hurdling is a type of track and field race.- Distances :There are sprint hurdle races and long hurdle races. The standard sprint hurdle race is 110 meters for men and 100 meters for women. The standard long hurdle race is 400 meters for both men and women...
match the official track.
Cultural references
- Despite fan belief, it has been confirmed that Dr. Cox's conversation with a red stapler is not a reference to the movie Office SpaceOffice SpaceOffice Space is a 1999 American comedy film satirizing work life in a typical 1990s software company. Written and directed by Mike Judge, it focuses on a handful of individuals fed up with their jobs portrayed by Ron Livingston, Jennifer Aniston, Gary Cole, David Herman, Ajay Naidu, and Diedrich...
, in which John C. McGinleyJohn C. McGinleyJohn Christopher McGinley is an American actor, most notable for his roles as Perry Cox in Scrubs, Bob Slydell in Office Space, Sergeant Red O'Neill in Oliver Stone's Platoon and Marv in Stone's Wall Street. He has also written and produced for television and film...
had a supporting role.
- The slow motion sequence with Janitor tackling J.D. is a reference to the GermanGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
action film Run Lola RunRun Lola RunRun Lola Run is a 1998 German crime thriller film written and directed by Tom Tykwer and starring Franka Potente as Lola and Moritz Bleibtreu as Manni. The story follows a woman who needs to obtain 100,000 German marks in 20 minutes to save her boyfriend's life...
by Tom TykwerTom TykwerTom Tykwer is a German film director, screenwriter, and composer. He is best known internationally for directing Run Lola Run , Heaven , Perfume: The Story of a Murderer , and The International ....
. The scene even features the film's original score.
Featured music
- "All the Words" by KutlessKutlessKutless is a Christian rock band from Portland, Oregon formed in 1999. Since their formation, they have released six studio albums including their latest, It Is Well. The band has also released a live album, Live from Portland. Currently, they have sold almost 2 million records.-Biography:Formed in...
- "Running One" by Tom TykwerTom TykwerTom Tykwer is a German film director, screenwriter, and composer. He is best known internationally for directing Run Lola Run , Heaven , Perfume: The Story of a Murderer , and The International ....
, Johnny KlimekJohnny KlimekJohnny Klimek is an Australian film and television composer, currently based in Los Angeles. He is known by association with German filmmaker Tom Tykwer, with whom he and longtime partner Reinhold Heil have collaborated on seven films, including Run, Lola, Run and Perfume: The Story of a Murderer...
, and Reinhold HeilReinhold HeilReinhold Heil is a composer and former member of Spliff and the Nina Hagen Band who has largely worked on film music but has produced pop music for Kim Wilde, Rosemarie Precht , and Nena... - "Sink to the Bottom" by Fountains of WayneFountains of WayneFountains of Wayne is an American power pop band that formed in New York City in 1996. The band consists of members Chris Collingwood, Adam Schlesinger, Jody Porter and Brian Young.-Early years:...