Cinerant

Bye Dr. Carter

ER jumped the shark years ago. I'd argue that when Julianna Marguilles left the show, it was gone. There are definitely some good episodes here and there, but for the most part, when I watch the show, it's out of a sense of obligation, rather than desire. The show has gone through multiple cast changes and numerous recycled storylines over the years, so there's no question that the show is in some ways like Law & Order--the cast just really is less important than the framework (blood and guts.)

Yet as I watched Noah Wyle and Thandie Newton on Wyle's next to last episode and tearful farewell (as NBC would like us to believe), for a moment, I wondered if the show would be able to survive without Dr. Carter. I know that's a rhetorical comment. ER will continue on next year. It will lose more viewers to Without a Trace, but it will still be one of the bright spots in NBC's prime-time line-up.

However, I don't think the show will be the same. For eleven years, John Carter served as the cast member that was the audience. In the first season, he was as confused and amazed at what happened in an emergency room as the audience was. As he started to mature and become more confident in his surroundings and his profession, so did we as an audience. As he became cynical and detached during the last couple of seasons, placing other priorities before Cook County Hospital, so did we as an audience. ER was no longer the must-see program it once was, and for some reason Carter's attitude seemed to reflect that.

Throughout the years, Wyle tried to bring as much to Carter as he possibly could. Sometimes the writing failed him, sometimes he failed to push the writing further. However, he was always solid, could always perform, and sometimes could amaze. (If you doubt it, check out the episode called "Carter's Choice" and you'll see what I mean.) It's one of those curses and blessings for an actor--television has made Noah Wyle such a familiar face in all our lives that he seems like part of the family. He will be missed.

posted by cinegod @ 4:33 PM