I recently finished rewatching all six seasons of Ryan Murphy's groundbreaking and spectacularly over-the-top medical drama, Nip/Tuck, which aired from 2003 to 2010. I was reminded of (a) how completely unlikeable the main characters were (from the two egomaniacal leads, Sean and Christian, who never failed to make the worst possible decisions and whose flaws never made them any more likeable, to their neurotic and waify love interest, Julia, to their obnoxious asshole of a son, Matt, who is arguably one of the worst characters in TV history with absolutely no redeeming qualities), (b) how many iconic cameos the show had (c) how camp it was and (d) that it was ahead of its time in terms of the social, sexual and psychological issues it addressed.
Despite my aversion to the main characters (I preferred the cameo appearances, even though some of them were downright deranged and/or diabolical), the show certainly entertained me: it made me laugh, grossed me out, raised questions and internal debates and kept me wanting more. The show was also popular among critics throughout its six season run. The show earned 18 Emmy nominations (winning one for Outstanding Makeup for a Series, Miniseries, Movie or a Special (Prosthetic) - the plastic surgery scenes were certainly disturbingly realistic) and 5 Golden Globe nominations (winning one for Best Television Series (Drama)).
Here are some of my highlights from each of the seasons:
Season 1
Christian's boat, The Boatox
Mrs Grubman, the ageing widowed socialite with an obsession with plastic surgery
Sophia Lopez, the transgender woman who convinces the surgeons to repair the botched surgery on her throat
Julia's studly study buddy, Jude, who turns out to be a male prostitute
The swinger's club
The revelation of the paternity of Gina's baby
Season 2
How Christian breaks his nose
Joan Rivers - as herself
Famke Janssen as the dangerously devious Ava Moore
Allegra Calderello, who needs surgery to fix her lips, which were burnt off in a kitchen accident
Kimber's sex doll
Julia's manipulative mother, Erica (played by Vanessa Redgrave)
Season 3
The fraternity hazing ritual gone awry
De La Mer Spa's signature product's secret ingredient
The Carver's slashing binge
The revelation of the Carver's identity
Season 4
Kathleen Turner as phone sex operator, Cindy Plumb, who wants the surgeons to make her voice sound younger and sexier
Brooke Shields as psycho psychiatrist Dr Faith Wolper
Rosie O'Donnell as Dawn Budge
Mario Lopez as Christian's shower buddy, Dr Mike Hamoui
Dawn's ear being torn off by thieves attempting to steal her jewelry
Season 5
The meta medical soap opera, Hearts 'n Scalpels
An eagle attacking Dawn while she is hangliding (the bird's shadow above the glider followed by its talons ripping the fabric before it attacks Dawn's face is the highest level of camp that had me laughing out loud)
Oliver Platt as Dawn's closeted husband and director, Freddy Prune
Freddy and Dawn's matching tracksuits
Dawn getting run over by a lesbian on a motorcycle at the gay pride parade (in which Freddy is riding on the Hearts 'n Scalpels float)
Jennifer Coolidge as Candy Richards
Sharon Gless as Sean's obsessed agent, Colleen Rose
When Colleen murders a rival agent by turning him into a human Build-a-Bear
Season 6
Melanie Griffith as Kimber's mother, Brandie Henry
Matt's arrest after his crime spree catches up with him (too bad it doesn't stick and he eventually gets out)
The body positive nudists
Christian's anesthesia-induced dream world in which he encounters past patients
Liz's deserved happy ending
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