Marni

I found this chart, it does appear Callie and Maggie would be making much more than Meredith. But hey this is also a world where Arizona can't afford rent on an apartment by herself when earning upwards of 200K as head of a surgical department at a major metropolitan hospital. I'm waiting for Arizona's secret gambling problem to be revealed. Source

I also find the complete absence of children this season distracting. Beyond the practicality argument thematically it's strange. Considering that starting from the first episode and still twelve seasons later the show has consistently and sometimes tediously (S11 flashbacks) explored how deeply Ellis's choices and Meredith's relationship with her has affected Meredith. It's been both an explanatory backstory and an active force driving Meredith's story (neglected child, dark and twisty personality, becoming a surgeon, living in Ellis's shadow, relationship with Derek, Richard and Adele, medical trials, appearance of Maggie, moving back to Ellis's house etc). I don't care so much about the kids personalities but if feels incongruous to minimise Meredith's role as a mother and to not address that aspect of her life, especially considering all the recent hype about the show being Meredith story. I'd like to have some sense of that part of her life.

Just the main characters in one place interacting sounds awesome. I could see Callie talking about her new girlfriend with the others and the audience, but not Mer, seeing her in the first 4 episodes. Then Callie unknowingly bringing her over causing a tension filled dinner with Mer and Amelia freaking out. JCap said they were filming at the same location for 7 days so hopefully most of it is them at Mer's with a minor hospital storyline. The set visitor said Kelly McCreary was not on set at Mer's that day and also James Pickens Jr. and Jason George were not in the photos she posted so maybe Maggie, Richard and Ben are at the hospital working with the interns. Regarding Catherine's role Debbie Allen has done some interviews recently. http://variety.com/2015/tv/features/debbie-allen-greys-director-anatomy-executive-producer-season-12-1201585698/ http://variety.com/2015/tv/news/greys-anatomy-season-12-spoilers-relationships-meredith-1201582424/ So I think Catherine will drop by when she's relevant to the story- Chief stuff, Richard and Jackson's marital problems.

A set visitor posted two photos on twitter. She said they were filming one big group scene today with lots of drama and also comedy. Sara and Kevin were also on set just not pictured. Arizona was drunk in the scene and April is wearing an apron. They are filming 12x05, the 250th episode at the moment. Seems like there is a dinner party at Mer's.

New tweet from set decorator Nicole Cramer We know about Alex and Jo's loft, an guesses on the others? I'm still hoping for April and Arizona together but the new Owen scoop makes that seem less likely.

Very interesting discussion, so many good points. Even early on I don't think Meredith was ever truly the lead in the traditional sense. At the start the core of the show was the five young interns entering the competitive world of surgery, their triumphs and failures, their romantic lives and the friendship between them. That was where the show was best creatively and the bond between the group was what kept the show grounded with the crazy disasters and melodrama. The screen time and stories was pretty evenly shared between the five of them. If you take the voice over away from season 1 it’s hard to see Meredith as the clear lead. I think the structure of the show that tied everything together was less based on Meredith alone but more the hierarchy in the hospital (interns, residents, attendings, chief). That put everyone in a group and made their relationships with each other clear (peers, student/teacher etc). Now everyone is on the same level resulting in the already discussed lack of cohesion. I totally agree, nothing against Meredith or EP but the other characters and performances were so compelling they quickly overshadowed Meredith. I mean Cristina alone with Sandra's performance was aways so much more fascinating to me. I don't think Meredith's story alone was interesting enough to sustain the show and keep the audience watching. I think the decline in the quality of the show can be attributed more to the constantly increasing cast then to Meredith’s role. At the start Grey's did an amazing job of establishing each character and giving them each a distinct voice and personality. They had the time to do it and give them all engaging stories every episode, as the cast has gotten larger that has become impossible. MAGIC were better established in the 9 episodes in season 1 then Stephanie and Jo have been in the 3 24 episode seasons they have been on the show. I don't get why they added more characters for next season. It's like the writers are self conscious with their abilities so they load up the cast to distract us. I just want to yell at them no, 11 seasons in but we actually like the characters we have, the main complaint is we want more of them not less (with a few exceptions).

I remember that tvline article, here is a link.

I agree, I don't think he will be tainted either and I could see those situations working if written well. I just meant because they are already facing such an uphill battle with so many people looking for any reason to hate him and his possible pairing with Meredith I thought the writers might be less inclined to try it. In terms of how much is planned out I get the impression Shonda's style has always been very fly by the seed of your pants by the way she talks, with some obvious exceptions. She has this way of talking about the characters as if she is an observer and not the one controlling them. Her comments about liking April and Jackson together and not knowing how it's going to turn out sound similar to what she has said about Callie and Arizona. I also remember during season 9 she tweeted she had decided to throw everything they had out for the finale and to change everything late in the game. The 24 episode season probably contributes to this style of working as well with the workload and time constraints it creates.

I wondered about that possibility to. It would make sense if he left earlier in the season but Charles Michael Davis's last episode was 9x23. It was always obvious that Jason was a temporary roadblock before Jo and Alex got together so I don't think think they intended to keep Jason around in the next season. Thanks for the clarification regarding the altercation, my mistake. They have sent a lot of mixed signals about it since, with all the vague references to Jo having anger problems. I remember when Jo was working with Callie and talking about her anger issues Jo tells her she's put guys in the hospital before including Jason and two guys before that.

Grey's does indeed love a triangle, but I think they are very aware of the pressure and are going to be super careful with any potential love interest for Meredith. If he is for Meredith they will probably take it slow and build goodwill. I don't see them 'tainting' him in any way in the audiences eyes by involving him with any one else before her, it would be more of Grey's style to have him and another guy be involved in a triangle with Meredith.

I hate the way they handled the Jason story with a passion. It just felt so unnecessary and cheap to make Jason into an abuser in five seconds flat so Jo could run to Alex to protect her and show what a great guy Alex is in comparison. If the writers wanted to tell a domestic abuse storyline (which they did better in S5 with the little girl who shot her father) do it properly- tell the victims story, acknowledge the trauma and explore the emotional aftermath. Don't use violence against a woman to further a romantic plot and then drop it, that is so gross. I also thought it ended super weird with Jo beating him so badly he needed brain surgery and Alex threatening him.

These theories make sense, she probably returns at the start of the season and is transitioning back to work, so not in scrubs and group scenes. It's a big decision to leave given Jackson's ultimatum so I hope there is a proper explanation for it and it doesn't all happen in offscreenville. I really want to see April and Jackson work through their issues and stay together but in the mean time if they are separated I was thinking maybe Arizona and April could be roommates. If Arizona was still living with Alex she would need somewhere to go now. April and Arizona drunk in the supply closet in S10 was hilarious and they never really used that potential. Both characters have had serious storylines lately and very isolated from friendship scenes. I would like to see them both have some fun and be their cheerful old selves. Plus JCap and Sarah Drew are both so great with comedy. Realistically they probably wouldn't build a new set for this so chances are low.

Could be an attending's meeting instead of a board meeting. That would explain why Maggie, Amelia, Alex and the unknown man in attending scrubs are there. Not sure about the thing on the left, I though it was just lighting equipment. I'm curious why Sarah Drew hasn't been in any of the group BTS photos.

New Calle and Arizona scoop from EW http://www.ew.com/article/2015/08/07/spoiler-room-greys-castle-flash-spoilers?hootPostID=9f14fc25830230a1aa9e2e6c1e40ef85

No official word yet. I hope they make the mid season break later this season with it being 25 episodes. Ideally they air the first 12 without breaks and have the mid season finale be on December 10th. Breaking the season up into more even halves helps the writers creatively to pace the story arcs better. I though they ran out of stream in the back half of season 12 and it dragged with all the filler episodes *cough* Owen giving a girl medical advice on the phone. For reference this is a breakdown of when the mid season break was for previous seasons: S2: E12 DEC 11-JAN 15 S3: E10 NOV 30-JAN 11 S4: E10 DEC 6-JAN 10 S5: E10 DEC 4-JAN 8 S6: 10 NOV 19-JAN 14 S7: E10 DEC 2-JAN 6 8 S8: E9 NOV 10- JAN 5 S9: E9 DEC 13- JAN 10 S10: E12 DEC 12-FEB 27 S11: E8 NOV 20-JAN 29 Realistically it's going to depend on how ABC want to schedule the other TGIT shows. They have been trying to keep them in a block to create buzz and encourage live viewing. Last season they structured TGIT over 25 weeks. Besides the mid season break they aired Grey's with only one off week (24 episodes over 25 weeks), Scandal with 3 off weeks (22 episodes over 25 weeks), HTGAWM straight with a double episode finale (15 episodes over 14 weeks) and then American Crime starting mid season straight (11 episodes over 11 weeks). That way either Grey's or Scandal was always on the same night as the new shows and they had three shows with the same mid season and season finale. This year ABC ordered 21 episodes of Scandal, 15 of HTGAWM and 13 of the new Shondaland show The Catch. I'm thinking they will structure TGIT over 26 or 27 weeks by giving HTGAWM and/or The Catch double episode finales. So Grey's could have between 1 and 3 off weeks. Yes I think thats right. They did it in season 7 when Alex, April and Mer/Der had rooms upstairs, Jackson was in the study and Lexie in the attic. I think the hostility exists because the cast is so big everyone is fighting for their favourites to get screen time and stories in the limited time available. If one character gets screen time it's time that another character could have had. In the past they have taken it somewhat slower with newbies, gradually giving them stories. Amelia and Maggie both had centric episodes and did the voice over in their first season, when older characters haven't. I think people just feel jibbed and resentful the two newbies are getting all the focus and being framed as central to the reboot, along with Meredith, when they haven't 'earned it'. The competitiveness sounds silly but I think that's on the writers for not making viewers feel like there is space for everyone. The dating thing sounds interesting in theory but I have concerns it will exasperate the already discussed overinflated cast problem. There aren't that many possibilities for existing characters to date each other and if it is guest stars it's difficult. If they take the time to introduce them everyone will be annoyed they are taking screen time away from others (as with Dan last season), but if they don't no one will be invested in them. From what I've observed shows with a few main leads can do dating well (e.g. Charmed had the three leads dating many guest stars), while ensembles are better off doing relationship storylines and giving the limited screen time to one person. I guess we will see how it plays out, I hope they make it work.

In terms of Izzie's likability, most of my frustrations stem from her storylines always being focused on her love life. After the brief hockey player boyfriend she went from Alex to Denny to George to Alex, and the problem was they were all written to be these intense, complicated, 'MFEO' epic love affairs. If became quite exhausting and repetitive. When she was working with patients and hanging out with the rest of MAGIC she was really great and fun. Also I thought there was a lot of potential with Addison mentoring her in season 2, but they dropped that story completely.

I also thought season 6 was really great. With Katherine and TR gone, as well as Ellen being less available I think the writers were forced to be more creative and mix things up. Overall it was a very consistent season, but also had some great stand alone episodes- 'I Saw What I Saw', 'Invest in Love', 'Sanctuary' and 'Death and All His Friends' The worst part for me was Mark's daughter. S5 was inconsistent. The beginning is good and quite funny and then it becomes overloaded with so many melodramatic storylines. I didn't like: - Ghost Denny - Overly emotional Bailey in Peds - Private Practice crossover episode with Addison's brother having brain parasites. I found the group scenes with Sam, Naomi, Derek, Mark and Addison so forced. - George disappearing randomly - Cristina floundering with not much to do work wise - Owen's fiancé showing up Derek making a mistake on the expecting women was interesting. The scene with him comparing the stacks of files with his successful and unsuccessful cases was a nice acknowledgement of how risky surgery is, especially neurosurgery. I like it better when the show takes a more down to earth view of surgery and the realities of being a doctor.

So true, this was the biggest issue with this season for me. It seems the writers realised they had a huge cast and decided giving each character short arcs would give more depth then trying to juggle them all, but it made the season so disjointed for me. I found it really unsatisfying to miss the aftermath. So many storylines felt unfinished as only half the story was told. The story doesn't end after the decision to get a divorce or after a child or husband passes, there is also seeing how the characters deal with it. Even Alex and the board seat and Arizona's time with Herman. The time jump compounds this even further, now this stuff happened ages ago for the characters. I was reading a post Shonda wrote on the old Grey's writers blog before the season 3 premiere that pretty much sums up why time jumps are so frustrating. http://blogs.abc.com/greymatter/page/12/

I really hope that if Bailey becomes chief there is a return of her Nazi persona, more of her being tough and direct. It feels like the writers haven't really known what to do with Bailey for a while now and I think she worked best in the early years. Also I think the show feels like a more realistic hospital when there is a clear hierarchy and actual consequences for mistakes. Having half the characters on the board and in charge also effectively makes it so no one is in charge. I miss the tension created from worrying about getting in trouble. I think of Izzie cutting Denny's LVAD wire and some of the tension came from worrying about Denny's health but it also comes from the audience and the interns stressing about the consequences of what they are doing. It currently doesn't feel like there is any real threat of getting in trouble so it immediately defuses the tension from storyline (e.g. Bailey injecting the HIV virus, Owen putting the patient in suspended animation, Herman keeping her tumour a secret). I don't know if it is possible considering the board, but I hope Bailey can bring back the fear.

There were nearly three seasons of them before that when Jackson had a kiss with Cristina, a relationship with Lexie and a hook up with Mara Keaton. They explored April with Stark and Alex a little. Also I do think Stephanie and Matthew were more substantial relationships then Rose or Finn. I definitely get your point but they have so little screen time, personally for those characters medical storylines feel fresher than another romantic relationship. They have been on the show for six seasons now and neither has had a big case of their own. Jackson is more of a board member then a doctor and April seems like an administrator that is often treated like an underling by her colleagues. I really enjoyed seeing her take charge in the finale. I want more of that next season, also possibly mentoring someone.

Jerrika Hinton says Stephanie is going to be chief resident next season in this interview. http://www.vibe.com/2015/05/jerrika-hinton-greys-anatomy-interview/

Very interesting observations. I agree Grey's characters don't really date casually, they go from zero to MFEO in thirty seconds. It was refreshing to see Callie and Maggie awkwardly dating this season. I think it was a good choice to not put Maggie in a serious relationship quickly and instead develop her personality and friendships first. However I disagree this is the case for April and Jackson, they have been apart more than together. They were on the show for nearly three seasons and dated other people before getting together. Jackson and Stephanie were seeing each other for 27 episodes (9x10-10x12) and April and Matthew for 25 (9x12-10x12). Although there were hints they had feelings for each other through out, I think they were both substantial relationships and effectively explored them in relationships with people who were better suited for them on paper. I find Grey's exhausting because the stakes in fights between couples is always breaking up and most of their problems could be solved by communicating. April and Jackson are in their thirties, married and had a child. They are grownups who love each other and made a commitment. Relationships are hard but people don't just bail, it would be unrealistic if they didn't try everything to save their marriage, especially considering April's religious beliefs. I think we have seen them dating other people and fighting enough. Next season I want to see new things for them. I would like to see: - April and Jackson communicating and working out their issues - Less Jackson on the board and more of him as a doctor - Both of them as teachers/mentors - Newly confident April being more assertive with her coworkers and taking charge - Both of them to have a big case of their own

I think the show often uses tragic childhoods as an easy and quick trick to try to add depth to a character and create sympathy. Sometimes backstories have been effective, for example I thought Cristina's father's death worked well. We could see how it shaped her but wasn't some pathology used to to define her entire character. I think it was effective because they revealed it slowly and after they had already established her to the audience first, so it added nuance to an already interesting character. The first time I remember her really talking about it was in season 3 to George in that beautiful scene after his dad died when she tells him she's sorry he has to join the dead dads club (link). Then season 5 is the first time she tells the story of the car accident that killed him to Owen (link). In comparison with Jo the writers used it as an alternative to actually taking the time to establish her to the audience. To me it never felt genuine. More like lazy writing- insert sad backstory here, look how deep and complicated this character is. Anyone can do that sort of writing, there is no skill in it. They clumsily dropped her backstory with over expository dialogue very early on as a cheap and quick way to make her likeable and show she is compatible with Alex (link). It has mostly been used as a tool for the purpose of furthering her and Alex's romantic relationship rather then a sincere attempt to tell her story (link, link). The references have become very random, for example the stealing cars conversation with Alex and the comment about having no kitchen in her car to Maggie. It's becoming more of a running joke at this point rather than an actual believable story, similar to Phoebe's childhood and mother's suicide on Friends. Her childhood and her relationship with Alex really define her as a character right now since the writers haven't develop her much since. This probably has to do with the amount of characters they are trying to juggle at the moment.

I agree the hospital used to feel like a big place that we were just seeing a part of. There was even occasional people from other departments like that psych intern and nurses like Olivia. It gave to more nuance to see how the different groups in the hospital coexisted and the tension between them like the surgeons and nurses. It was a good way to highlight how arrogant the surgeons could be and call them out on it a bit. Now it seems like the entire hospital is just this group of surgeons and surgeons are treating non surgical cases. i think it makes it feel less realistic this way because the world the show exists in feels so small, sort of soap opera like.

I agree Derek handled the Addison situation terribly. I don't feel like that was ever acknowledged enough on the show, everyone kept going on about what a good guy he was. Alex also was extremely nasty. I especially don't like how he always picked on the weakest people, mainly George and April. That scene in the locker room with George and some of his attacks on April in season 8 are really brutal. I know he has come a long way now but I don't think he was called out on it enough, they often used his past to excuse his behaviour.