Farewell ER

I’ve been watching ER since it first sprang onto Channel 4 some 15 years ago, and somewhat worringly that’s just over half of my life. But last week it all came to a dribble of an ending with the final ever episode. And whilst the last series was good in parts, and not so good in others,  it still remained head, shoulders and sternum above all the medical-based TV tripe that we churn out here.

I remember watching Casualty as a kid and being bored senseless by Charlie – the blandest man in history – and the rest of the tedious cast, week after soul-draining week. The only highlight was playing the ‘dead game’ during the opening credits, when you guessed which one of the rent-an-extras would cop it first in a freak canal boat accident. And then came Holby City, which at least employed a few good looking people (mainly ex-Hollyoaks) to try and stifle the gaping yawnfest.

In contrast, ER was a cauldron of volcanic intensity. The camerawork was swift, the dialogue snappy and the medical jargon knee-deep. The cast were better-looking, had better storylines, and could act better than their Blighty counterparts. In short, it was simply far, far, better. And when most of the old stalwarts (i.e. the ones that weren’t killed off) reappeared for wallet-bulging cameos in the final series, it was like being reunited with old friends. Hey, there goes John Carter…look, it’s Doctor Ross…Dr Green? Didn’t you die? Oh, it’s a flashback…etc.

So thank you ER for all that you have done. Before, good American drama was hard to find. But since you, we’ve had The West Wing, The Sopranos, The Wire, CSI and 24. You were the pioneer, and shall never be forgotten. Probably.