As a fan of Josh Jackson’s projects going back to Mighty Ducks, I wasn’t expecting the Dawson’s Creek vibes of ABC’s Doctor Odyssey

Spoilers ahead for the series premiere of Doctor Odyssey on ABC.

One of ABC’s most hyped new shows of 2024 has been Doctor Odysseywhat brings Josh Jackson back to a regular role on a network TV series for the first time since then Zoom. In the new medical drama, Jackson plays the overqualified one Dr. Max Bankman after he becomes the on-board doctor of a glamorous cruise ship. While this isn’t the first time Jackson has played a doctor, Doctor Odyssey certainly not Dr. Dead. It’s someone who has enjoyed the actor’s various projects that he returns to The mighty ducks on VHS in the ’90s I was expecting a totally new character with the ABC drama…and I certainly wasn’t going to get that Dawson’s Creek mood.

To be clear – Doctor Odyssey is not one Dawson’s Creek: high seas continued, Dr. Max Bankman is not Paceyand I’m not suggesting that Joshua Jackson can only play one type of role. But two elements of the series premiere made me think back to his Pacey days, and the first was when he confided in the nurse. Avery (Filipa Soo) about where he learned to dance:

You know, as a kid I always wanted to take dance classes, but where I grew up, that’s not really something boys do. And then one day I was tapped on the shoulder and gently reminded that life is fleeting and incredibly fragile.

Max then told an emotional story about being the first person in Connecticut to be diagnosed with COVID in early 2020 and how his experience made him want to pursue joy at all costs… which his “very, very long-winded” story. way of saying I finally took a dance class.”

Granted, the closest I can think of Pacey wanting to pursue joy at all costs was when he paid the price for neglecting his schoolwork, but his comment about the dance class reminded me of the Dawson’s Creek episode where Pacey agreed to help Joey (Katie Holmes) by secretly being her partner during a dance class.

And then there’s the fact that there’s already a love triangle developing between the three main characters of Doctor Odysseywith nurse Tristan (Sean Teale) harbor feelings for Avery, but Avery quickly takes a liking to Max (and Max looks back). When it comes to playing out complicated love triangles on TV, Joshua Jackson has more experience than most Dawson’s Creek days where Pacey came out of nowhere to become the title character’s romantic rival in the best way possible.

It was a long, bumpy and sometimes ugly road between the sparks flying and Joey and Pacey – spoiler warning ahead Dawson’s Creek – the show’s endgame couple, though, so I don’t think I can be blamed for flashing back to it at the slightest first suggestion of a love triangle Doctor Odyssey.

All in all, I enjoyed the pilot of Doctor Odysseyand not because it reminded me of it Dawson’s Creek. There were just a few parallels that stood out to me as a viewer of the teen drama at the time. My favorite line from the new show might be the very last line from the pilot, when Max asked, “Is every week a theme?” after Avery announced that next week would be singles week.

I thought it was a fun setup for what the show has in store and a solid hook for the rest of the season. If you are curious about what the singles week on board entails The OdysseyCheck out the promo for the next episode:

Doctor Odyssey 1×02 Promo “Singles Week” (HD) Joshua Jackson Medical Drama Series – YouTube
Doctor Odyssey 1x02 promo

Look

Stay tuned to ABC on Thursdays at 9pm ET for new episodes of Doctor Odyssey. The network gave the freshman show a strong timeslot by shifting fellow medical drama Grey’s anatomy to 10:00 PM ET and beyond 9-1-1 at 8 p.m. If you prefer streaming TV to watching live, you can find Josh Jackson’s latest show on Hulu.