cycworker

I like Teddy & Owen, if I'm honest. They should've been the couple from the get-go. I don't think they are going to pair Jo & Linc romantically. I think he'll get involved with Megan, who is going to be around a while. And I'm not convinced Linc & Amelia are done for good.

She left early in Season 7. I have always suspected she had a disagreement with Shonda about the direction a few stories were going to go in. And specifically, I think, despite the line about Cristina in last night's episode, she didn't like the Crowen relationship, and ultimately wanted Owen with Teddy. And if I am right about that, I admit I agree with her. Cristina & Owen never made sense together.

I don't think it's about her being her true love. It's survivor guilt. Despite the show having Teddy stay for breakfast, and Allison die anyway from exposure to the ash/debris from the towers' collapse, Teddy's version is likely closer to the truth. In fact, had Teddy just stayed for the pancakes, Allison wouldn't have gotten close enough to the area to be exposed to anything. She'd have heard about the attacks before she left, and she'd have stayed home, so she would still be alive today... whether she & Teddy would've stayed together isn't the point, to Teddy. The point is, as far as Teddy is concerned, she is responsible for Allison's death, just as she sees herself as responsible for DeLuca's. There are numerous stories of people who have struggled with guilt since 9/11 because they were supposed to be there and because of a fluke, they weren't. This is the opposite... in Teddy's mind, Allison was NOT supposed to be there. In her head, Allison's idea to have pancakes was some kind of intuition to not be down there, and had Teddy just gone with it, Allison would've survived.

And to top it off, how much better would it have been to have Teddy be bisexual back in when she was first on the show? Maybe if they had given Kim Raver this storyline in the context of grieving Henry's deatha, and done something with her, Arizona & Callie, the whole amputation story would've worked better! I'm not suggesting that Teddy & Arizona should've slept together. Just that the revelation would've added a layer to those friendships & she would've had built in story. I always wondered why Teddy was so invested in Calzona. The potential was there & they blew it. Grr.

@BaseOps - agree overall with your assessment. The one thing I struggle with is where to put the firings of Sarah Drew & Jessica Capshaw in that context. Neither strike me as people who contributed to a toxic culture. I am on the fence re: Sara Ramirez on that topic.

I have multiple, contradictory thoughts about it all. I absolutely get that Alex can’t abandon his kids. It’s 100% in keeping with his growth. The problem for me is his supposed love for Izzie. If he was staying despite the fact that he admits to everyone that he does NOT love Izzie, it makes sense to me. The really bad, unnecessary part is that Alex sought her out, supposedly to help Meredith. There is not a darn thing Izzie, after all this time, could say that would have helped Mer. So really, he just wanted an excuse to look her up… THAT is the part that doesn’t work. If they had written it that Izzie contacted HIM, because she thought her cancer was back, and she swore him to secrecy, THAT would’ve made sense. If it turned out that Izzie’s cancer was back, and at that point he realized he had to stay with her for the kids, to help her either get through it again, or to die with dignity, that would also make sense. To be noble, he still can send Jo divorce papers, so that Jo is free to be paired with someone else. That said – Izzie was always his kryptonite. She acted like she was too good for him. Or at least he thought she was too good for him. So seeing her again, even in my scenario – I could see him deciding to stay even if they realized Izzie wasn’t going to die. The concept was actually right. The execution was wrong. I do understand why the didn’t want to kill him off. If they go that route, you’ve got the problem that the Jo/Alex fans don’t want her to date, because she’s mourning. Now she can be angry and it’s ok to move on from him. Also - I do NOT want Linc & Jo to become a couple. It isn't just because I love him with Amelia (although I do). The thing for me is that now, with Alex gone, we've lost a great male/female friendship. I know we still have Bailey & Richard, but it's different, because they didn't start out as peers. I love the relationship - don't get me wrong. The dynamic just isn't the same, though.

The weird thing is that the one character on this show who makes Delilah tolerable to me is Gary. I honestly wonder if that's where he'll end up. They've managed to make a lot of fans root for Eddie & Katherine. And Gary/Delilah have a nice chemistry. Plus, the kids like him. Maggie is definitely annoying. Only character I find worse is Delilah. I am shocked how much I've grown to love Katherine Still, I love this show.

I am in the minority. I always felt like Owen should've been with Teddy back in season 6. He and Cristina never made sense to me. She adamantly did not want kids. So the notion that he went the more torturous route rather than seeing who was right in front of him because he felt like he deserved to be in a relationship that ultimately was unfulfilling makes sense to me.

@abc123 - don't forget; Callie & Arizona slept together the night before Callie walked out on her in the counsellor's office. Arizona thought Callie had forgiven her for the cheating (and to be fair, I think she had). Arizona was completely blindsided with Callie ended things in that office. So I think that's what they were hinting at, without going there directly.

Youtube. Just search Arizona & the season # and Episode #. I think it was #22. Actually, search for The JCappers, too... they're a group of AZ/JCap fans who post just her scenes on Youtube. If you have trouble finding it, DM me & I'll get it. I have it saved somewhere.

Overall, I agree with you. My two biggest complaints are as follows; As finales go, there weren't enough unanswered questions or cliffhangers to leave me on the edge of my seat & counting the days until the show returns in the fall. On some level, I think that was a mistake, especially this year, given how much fan anger there is regarding the firing of Jessica Capshaw & Sarah Drew. Angry fans need a reason to return, and I don't see Teddy doing that. In fact, there's a fair bit of anger about Teddy's return, because people are suggesting Vernoff chose her over Capshaw & Drew. Were this just a regular episode of Grey's it would've been pretty much perfect. Loved the pacing. Loved the humour. Loved the acting from everyone. It was an all around entertaining hour of TV, a few flaws not withstanding. I'm thrilled that it looks like Calzona are going to try again. The frustration for me is not knowing if Sara Ramirez wasn't on the episode because she said no, or because they didn't ask. i think it's a big plot hole that they didn't address why Calzona need to live in NY (as opposed to Seattle), given that Penny & Callie are over. It would've been easy, and it would've fleshed out the April/Webber/Arizona scene... have Arizona both say what she did about Callie, and also elaborate on how supportive Callie's being... that Callie might've returned to Seattle, but the project with Herman is now set to be in New York, so it's best for Arizona to be in New York. As Arizona's ambition always scared Callie, that kind of thing would show growth & strengthen the audience's hopes for Calzona's offscreen future. I can't get over how much Alex & Jo have grown on me, individually & as a couple. The bit with Bailey was predictable, but I'll take it. I'm unsure what to think about Teddy being pregnant. It is just so damned cliched. I'm in the minority in that I don't love JApril & I did love April/Matthew. It worked for me because I did think they laid groundwork for it earlier in the season.. like April telling the one girl she needs to accept the guy's prom proposal. I could see then they were going to imply that April took Matthew for granted.

I want to add one more thing about the Arizona/Sofia story. I think I may have said that the difficulty with this story is that Sofia's actually not on the show much, because she's a child character, and the show isn't about the children. The show is about the adult characters & the children only matter to the extent that they figure in to the adult's stories. So you aren't going to actually SEE Sofia acting out at school, or even necessarily talking to Zola about this situation (though I do think it was a bit of a missed opportunity that we never got a Sofia/Zola scene). What they didn't do, which they could've done & which might've helped make the story seem less rushed, is have someone - April, Bailey... I don't care who - suggest a professional Arizona could go to for advice on the situation. A consult, as it were. ;) I wouldn't have needed to actually see a scene of her actually talking to said counsellor/child psychologist. Just a reference that she was considering it would've been sufficient.

@moonorchid - would you elaborate please? I'm not sure what you mean by outgrown in this context. I'm not disagreeing with you - I'm genuinely unsure I understand your point. I just saw @LaughingOne's post and I get it now. I only half agree. I think that if the point, though, was for April & Matthew to end up together, they made some mistakes in the execution of it. I would argue that Matthew can't still be the same dorky, insecure, sweet guy you describe & we remember. In both JB's two episodes this season - where Karen dies & then when he brings Ruby to the hospital - I saw a bit more edge to the character, for sure. And certainly this season April's kept her snark/edginess that he developed after her time in the Middle East with Owen. If they do go the route of an April/Matthew reconciliation, for me the problem will be too much of it will have been off-screen If, when they knew that at the end of April's crisis of faith the plan was ultimately to have her with Matthew, they needed to bring Bruening into the show. And I completely agree that the Arizona departure has been written far too quickly. It makes me wonder when the decision really was made. At first I suspected the process of the decision around not renewing SD & JCap's contract was a bit longer & KV had been pondering it for a decent amount of time before she told them. Now I'm thinking the gap between when the decision was made & when the two were told was shorter than I suspected, resulting in these tacked on endings. As tacked on & quick as Arizona's is, at least the groundwork for it was laid in the 200th episode, with Sofia's "I miss Mama," and Arizona's response of "I miss Mama too." At the time I think they were still working to convince Sara to return for Season 15, though.

I really hope April doesn't die. I have also reached the point where I hope the person she's been seeing is Matthew. While I know it will drive JApril fans to even more anger than they already have, at this point they may as well go with the idea I tried to express elsewhere - I can't remember which thread it was but probably this one - that April's realizing that she made a mistake marrying Jackson/leaving Matthew. They've hinted at that in various scenes for a while anyway. I'm likening April & Matthew to this old Collin Raye song... Not That Different She said we're much too different We're from two separate worlds And he admitted she was partly right But in his heart's defense he told her What they had in common Was strong enough to bond them for life He said look behind your own soul And the person that you'll see Just might remind you of me She could hardly argue With his pure and simple logic But logic never could convince a heart She had always dreamed of loving someone more exotic And he just didn't seem to fit the part So she searched for greener pastures But never could forget What he whispered when she left I laugh, I love, I hope, I try I hurt, I need, I fear, I cry And I know you do the same things, too So we're really not that different, me and you Was it time or was it truth Maybe both lead her back to his door As her tears fell at his feet She didn't say "I love you" What she said meant even more I laugh, I love, I hope, I try I hurt, I need, I fear, I cry And I know you do the same things, too So we're really not that different, me and you ======= Now, I know the first verse doesn't really work; in fact it almost describes Jackson more. The thing is, though, I really do think what made April choose Jackson was the sheer romance of being swept away by this big declaration from him. There is something about Jackson that is so much more exotic & exciting than reliable, predictable, slightly dull yet sweet, earnest Matthew. That's not to say Jackson's not a good guy - he is. Just not necessarily the right good guy for April.

The difficulty I have with this take on the story is that I don't buy the notion that Carina & Arizona have actually fallen in love. What they have is really good sex and not much else. Carina's only marginally more likeable that Eliza, so I can't muster up a lot of empathy for her in this situation. The one I feel badly for is Sofia, because she's 7, and it sucks to feel like you basically have to pick one parent over the other when you want to have both. I give Arizona credit for realizing that regardless of whether she & Callie actually end up together eventually, for Sofia's welfare they have to figure out a way to be living close enough for them to co-parent/have as close to joint custody as possible, because right now, when Sofia is with one, she misses they other, and at 7, she's not emotionally equipped to sort through all that.