Feels like old times, watching “ER,” waiting for the next ambulance to burst into flames, the next helicopter to crash through the ceiling or sniper to shoot up the waiting room.
Like a lot of fans who drifted from the hospital drama in the middle years, I was an early addict, never missing an episode in the years when Thursday night meant NBC. In those days, a 17 rating was not unusual. (Last week’s hour got a 4.9 rating, about average these days.)
Long before “Grey’s Anatomy” started acting like it invented the hunky doctor hero, “ER” was the buzz-worthy hospital melodrama with Dr. Doug Ross (George Clooney) in the McDreamy role.
Like a lot of fans, I got exasperated with the nonstop, over-the-top hyper-tragedy and convoluted romance that drove the stories. We knew what to expect from a long-running soap opera, but other options drew us away.
Counting down to the April 2 finale after 15 years, loyal fans will be rewarded, and those who drifted are being called back. An amazing caseload of old favorites is parading through County General. Noah Wyle, Clooney, Julianna Margulies and Anthony Edwards are among those who have been on the set recently. The Wyle character’s story line is a heartbreaking one, extending Dr. Carter’s life and filling in what may have occurred while he was out of sight.
The NBC website has a great collection of pictures, episode recaps and more celebrating the 15 seasons. Dr. Greene’s mugging, Dr. Carter’s youthful innocence, the Hathaway- Ross romance.
From regulars Ming Na, Maura Tierney, Goran Visnjic, Laura Innes and Paul McCrane to uncounted guest stars (including Susan Sarandon in the finale), the show has been a great revolving door or repertory company for actors.
Recently, when Wyle returned as John Carter, the wave of nostalgia was overwhelming. At the conclusion of that episode, “The Beginning of the End,” a brief scene wordlessly sketched what had happened in Carter’s life since he left Chicago and went to Africa.
“I don’t know how long I’ll be in Chicago,” Carter had told everyone in the ER. After he sat for a time looking out over his beloved city by the lake, Carter returned to the hospital. The camera worked its way down a row of patients hooked up to dialysis machines. There, looking pale and resigned, was Carter. Had he contracted malaria while working in Darfur?
If you thought that was a sentimental grabber, just wait.
NBC is selling spots in the two-hour finale for $425,000 per 30 seconds. (Note the usual February sweeps were bumped to March this year to avoid the expected chaos of the switch to digital, which the FCC has now pushed to June). So March is full of stunt casting, nowhere more apparent than on “ER.”
The series that pioneered talking over viewers’ heads in medical jargon is going out with more medical melodramas, plus long-awaited romantic resolutions.
The series’ creator and producer, Cherry Creek High School alum John Wells, wrote the final episodes and is moving on. His cop drama, “Southland,” will take “ER’s” time slot beginning April 9.
So far, Wells has cleverly tied loose ends the audience may not consciously know need tying. Subtly calling on “ER” viewers’ awareness and sentiment acquired over 15 years, Wells is paying off our attention in ways large and small.
Wells says fans — current and lapsed — won’t want to miss the March 12 episode. Without specifically confirming, he hints that Clooney will appear in that hour. Wells wants the star-crossed romance of Ross and Hathaway “to be very fulfilling in the end.”
And Clooney, who owes a stellar career start to Wells and “ER,” has scrubbed in.
Joanne Ostrow: 303-954-1830 or jostrow@denverpost.com
