Full Show Summary: Edie Falco won an Emmy for her portrayal of Nurse Jackie Peyton in this half-hour dark comedy that runs on Showtime and debuted in 2009. Peyton is a tough-love nurse in an inner-city New York hospital emergency room with a unique bedside manner and a weakness vicodin and adderall to deal with the stresses of working in such a high-pressure situation. As in every good medical drama, the lead is flawed (she’s neglectful of her two daughters and her husband in addition to being difficult for her superiors), smarter than everyone around her, and passionate about what she does. The show also boasts a rich group of supporting characters including English friend Dr. Elanor O’Hara (Eve Best), her suitor and coincidentally her drug supplier Eddie Walzer (Paul Schulze), and Jackie’s protégé Zoey Barkow (Emmy-nominated Merritt Wever). Zoey is a trainee nurse under Jackie. While the show’s characters have engaged in a workplace love affair here and there, the show is more well-known for its gritty and realistic take on hospital life than as a soap opera.
