Once a fan, always a fan...?

It's been several years since I hung up my "er fan club" tee and stopped watching what *was* one of the best shows on television. As original characters left (I don't think I'm the only one who skipped a day of high school after George Clooney's final episode?) and plot lines became more and more difficult to swallow (cue "Somewhere Over the Rainbow") and tolerate (Chen, I hated every word you ever uttered), I did the unthinkable and turned to Grey's in my hour of need. Despite missing the entire first season, I caught on pretty quickly and have happily given up my Thursday night DVR space (it becomes a tight race during spring sweeps) to Meredith and McDreamy. Over the years, I have tried to stop by County and catch up on what the staff is up to, but I missed a lot and couldn't work out most of the deets on my own. Abby's alcoholism, Pratt's position as CHIEF, and the fact that Morris hasn't killed over 100 people yet? None of these are things that I quite understood.

When I read that ER was embarking on its 15th and final season, I knew I had to recommit. Regardless of our breakup, the final season promises returns from old cast members (I will watched a million bloody surgeries for the chance to see Carter's face again) and explanations for lots of questions. Here's some discoveries that I made during this week's episode, which I finally viewed yesterday:

-- ER is way, way more bloody and gory than Grey's. In addition, there is about 5 minutes of plot advancement to every 45 minutes of impaled skulls, infected broken legs, or erupting neck tumors. Grey's has a much more 50/50 approach.
-- I have missed more than I thought. Pratt's storylines were always the most difficult for me to endure, so I was amiss to see that his BROTHER is now an ambulance driver/EMT and I would have to deal with 2 of them. Luckily (SPOILER ALERT), Pratt kicked it in episode one of this final season. Thank you, writers! You have me for another week!
-- There are lots of allusions to Abby and Kovac, but no actual Luka spotting as of yet. I thought they were getting married? I missed a *big* story here, so a fill-in would be much appreciated.
-- Neela is still the most. annoying. doctor. ever. I thought she left? I cannot look at her without thinking of Bend it Like Beckham.
-- Frank's still around, which I was happy about, but he was hitting the sauce harder than anyone else at Pratt's "remembrance" at Ike's. Potential future drinking problem?

And while we're talking about Uncle Jesse in scrubs , it reminds me that I haven't yet blogged about Aunt Becky's new show -- the new 90210. Or, as I've taken to calling it, "9021 -- OC". This show is more like the smash phenomenon that its original predecessor. In the pilot, there is a bonfire by the beach (just like the OC's pilot), where one kid yells "Welcome to Beverly Hills!", just like Luke spat "Welcome to the OC, bitch" when he first beat Ryan's ass to the ground. After the pilot, I found myself seriously readdressing my weight and wondering if I was a lot older than I feel (taking away "coffee money" is an actual punishment?). I was also a little disappointed at the INSANE number of references to the original show. I get it -- it's still West Beverly, the Peach Pit is still around (will always love Nat), but the adult plotlines need to diminish. I want more teenage sex and drug abuse, less reminiscing about Dylan (though am excited about a potential return) and Brandon. Did anyone catch that Andrea and Jesse's daughter Hannah was the news anchor of the school's news program? It's too much to comprehend! All in all, though, I am a slave to the CW, and I am loving this program. It might warrant its own blog, someday... when it runs 15 seasons like ER. Who's with me in re-watching the first 14 seasons before the May series finale? I'll bring the snacks!