Past Seasons Talk: From Seattle Grace to Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital

[maraleia]

A place to discuss particular episodes, arcs and moments from the show's past seasons. Please remember this isn't a complete catch-all topic -- check out the forum for character topics and other places for show-related talk.

[Meow25]

Seeing Burke was a stab in the gut.  Seeing some of the earlier shows...WOW.  Grey's was once a very special show, and I'm so glad that I tuned in for the first episode...by accident as I was curious about Desperate Housewives before it. 

In watching a few early episodes on Netflix, I saw two piviotal moments: 

Izzie should have been fired and stayed fired after the LVAD incident.  Bringing her back to the hospital was the first incomprehensible, ridiculous thing which led to many others.  I think THAT was the moment the show started going down...the moment Izzie was re-hired. 

If that wasn't obvious enough....Meredith dies and goes into limbo, sees dead Ellis, and comes back.  From then on Shonda had NO boundaries, no sense of reality. 

I wish I would have shut off the TV when Mere flatlined and pretended that she died and that the series ended.

[choclatechip45]

I have also been rewatching Grey's. I forgot how much of an ass Alex was to Izzie in the early seasons. I personally like Alex more than Izzie, but I have no idea why  I was such a fan of the couple first time I watched. Going through each season a couple of weeks at a time its hard to see Izzie declare 3 different men "the love of her life." I feel like Alex and Izzie were together based on physcial appearences.

[Guest]

I remember when Season 3 aired, I thought it was so bad.  But now, looking back, it was so much better than recent seasons that it's still a "good" season to me.  Season 4 was bad, but still lightyears ahead of the current show.

 

I remember thinking the show went downhill pretty quickly when they had George's father die. Not necessarily because of that, but the way so many things played out at that same time. Callie and George's rushed marriage and even more rushed break-up. Dr. Hahn and all of her weirdness. So many bad plotlines started around that time, and I don't think the show ever really bounced back from it.

[upperco]

I definitely thought the drowning marked the first drop in quality. And I felt like the first half of Season Four was largely an extension of the last third of Season Three -- some really great moments, still engaging, but very flawed and lacking a sense of guidance. Then the Writer's Strike happened and the Post-Strike Season Four episodes were, in my opinion, the best the series had seen in about a year-and-a-half. Focused, funny, dramatic; just great. 

 

However, Season Five was another drop in quality -- specifically with the messy departure of Hahn, the inexplicable phasing out of George, the cliched start of Mark and Lexie (to replace Meredith and Derek as the on-again/off-again couple), and the introduction of the Dead Denny storyline all within a two-episode span. All the storytelling got sloppy that season. (What was the purpose of Sadie, exactly?) 

 

But Season Six for me was the real drop. The Heigl drama was depressing, the Mercy Westers were introduced so shoddily, and most importantly, Pompeo's pregnancy pushed Meredith to the sidelines. (She's never fully returned to the center, and that's my principal problem with the show's storytelling. The writers have no idea -- not a single clue -- how to continue to make her character interesting.) The impressive finale couldn't overcome the lackluster season. 

 

Season Seven was like Five -- engaging, but very flawed. Season Eight was comparatively dull, but had some fine moments. Awful finale, however, which foreshadowed the dreadful Ninth Season -- boring. The jury's still out on Season Ten, but the quality hasn't improved, in my opinion, even though the stories are slightly more original and compelling.

 

I will say however, that the actual dialogue of the show has been better these past few seasons than it was in the middle years -- where every single character sounded the same. 

 

Though there are moments here and there, every season is a drop in quality of some sort, I think. 

Edited May 3, 2014 by upperco

[choclatechip45]

I feel like the drop of quality for me happened when they made George repeat his intern year. He was never my favorite character, but  the way TR potrayed him was unwatachble. His acting was so bad in season 4 I was happy when they started phasing him out in season 5. Of course his  acting improved in the second half of season 5. Another thing, rewatching the show they really have ruined Arizona's character the last couple of seasons. In season 5 and 6 she is so likeable and dare I say professional? The Callie/Arizona/Mark might of been the second drop in quality for me after making George repeating his intern year.

Edited May 3, 2014 by choclatechip45

[Tukahar]

Not sure this is the right place to post this observation, but here goes.

I am watching House on netflix, and am noticing a startling number of Greys qepisodes that are almost exact copies...plot points as well. For example:

House turned to cooking after rehab / Izzy turned to baking after Denny died

House episode featured a child born with male and female gentalia, much parental drama / Greys did it almost verbatim.

Chase murdered a brutal leader of another country / Greys allowed them to die

Almost 3/4 of the House episodes have really close doppelgängers in Greys universe. I just thought it was interesting. Some of them I wasn't even sure what I was watching! While I only listed 3 examples, aficionados of both shows will find many many more. I guess there just aren't that many true mysteries in medicine!

[Lillybee]

Tukahar, Izzy has been baking ever since she moved into Merideth's house, so I don't think that is a new thing for her. She may have become a bit more intense about it after Denny died but that is just the way Izzy is.

 

My biggest problem with this show was the character of Denny, for some reason I disliked him from the second that he showed up and he seemed to drag down the series for a long time. I loved Izzy until she hooked up with Denny. He almost ruined the show for me.

[Tukahar]

@Lillybee, yep, I know Izzy was baking before Denny died, but she seemed to be manic about it afterwards.

My main point was that in many cases it seemed like the writers picked up the House scripts and changed the names.

[choclatechip45]

I've entered the later seasons in my re-watch. I think a huge problem with the show is that in the beginning seasons it was dramedy. In the later, seasons it looses the comedy. I think part of that iis the fact it looses Izzie, George and then tries to give Mark more serious story lines. It really brings down the show. 

[Lillybee]

I am rewatching Season 5 when Owen came on at this gonzo surgeon. I liked him then but what happened to him in later seasons.

[upperco]

I am rewatching Season 5 when Owen came on at this gonzo surgeon. I liked him then but what happened to him in later seasons.

 

The writers made him so unlikable (the Teddy triangle in S6, marrying PTSD-ridden Cristina in S7, and the abortion fight in S8) that they had to back peddle and make him a namby-pamby bore. Also happened to George and more importantly, to Meredith. 

Edited June 7, 2014 by upperco

[PrincessTT]

Not sure this is the right place to post this observation, but here goes.

I am watching House on netflix, and am noticing a startling number of Greys qepisodes that are almost exact copies...plot points as well. For example:

House turned to cooking after rehab / Izzy turned to baking after Denny died

House episode featured a child born with male and female gentalia, much parental drama / Greys did it almost verbatim.

Chase murdered a brutal leader of another country / Greys allowed them to die

Almost 3/4 of the House episodes have really close doppelgängers in Greys universe. I just thought it was interesting. Some of them I wasn't even sure what I was watching! While I only listed 3 examples, aficionados of both shows will find many many more. I guess there just aren't that many true mysteries in medicine!

 

Following on from that we have a hospital drama called Holby City which seems to copy Grey's storylines... Almost everytime I watch it I end up thinking, I've seen that before in Grey's.

 

The writers made him so unlikable (the Teddy triangle in S6, marrying PTSD-ridden Cristina in S7, and the abortion fight in S8) that they had to back peddle and make him a namby-pamby bore. Also happened to George and more importantly, to Meredith. 

 

The difference between Owen, George and Meredith for me is that Meredith was never likable whereas the other two were, very much so.

[choclatechip45]

I never liked Owen, I don't know if it is  Keven McKidd's acting, but he has always been way to intense for me to enjoy. I do feel the witters ruined Arizona and Izzie. I also figured out why I don't like Callie, it is the reason I did not like Izzie seasons 2-4. They put Callie in almost every storyline.

Edited June 9, 2014 by choclatechip45

[Lillybee]

Now I am not a Katherine Hegel fan, I do think that she is a decent actress. But after watching Season 5 and 6 I have to agree with her, the writing for a character was awful. The Denny ghost storyline and her cancer did her nothing for her.  It must have been awful having to act out those scenes.

[choclatechip45]

I think she rocked the second half of the cancer storyline. I think she should have been given an Emmy just for the ghost sex and the stupid deer episode.  I cannot stand Heigl, but I think she brought a lot to Grey's with her perfect comic timing. I really wish they had Addison mentor Izzie after the Quint case. I think both actresses really play well off each other. I really wished Heigl came back for the end of season 6.

Edited June 11, 2014 by choclatechip45

[Tooch]

Watching all the reruns on Lifetime, I hate sooo much about the show after season 3 or so--basically once they finished their intern year and became residents. Truly hated of them acting so superior over their interns, constantly verbally abusing them just felt SO unearned. They had only ONE year of experience on the interns. What made them so special? They also refused to teach them anything and never even improved on that even after their lack of teaching resulted in the stupid Sadie appendectomy disaster.

Then there was the entire Gizzie "relationship" that never made a single ounce of sense. Someone mentioned up thread how Izzie had three different "loves of her life" in what was basically less than two calendar years in the Greys timeline. It seemed like her "great love" with George must have happened only three months or so after Denny's death? Then a couple weeks after her and George end things, she's suddenly all swooning over Alex? Nonsensical, and would have made so much more sense if they'd never gone down that path with her and George to begin with.

I also despised how Izzie bullied Callie, even long before she realized she "loved" George. It made me uncomfortable, to have the leggy blonde supermodel constantly putting down the bigger Latina girl. Just didn't sit right, and I didn't even love Callie much back then.

[scarynikki12]

 

They also refused to teach them anything

I can't believe there wasn't any fallout from that.  Cristina wasn't allowed to do the first solo surgery but that was punishment for knowing that the interns were practicing medicine on themselves, not for being a shitty teacher.  They all should have been punished for not teaching anything.  The interns were rightly banned from the OR, but the Chief should have sat down with them and figured out exactly how much they knew from their residents and how much they knew from their attempts at being self taught.  From there he should have come up with some way of monitoring the residents to make sure they were doing their jobs, though it would have been hilarious if every intern except Lexie (due to that photographic memory) failed their exams and had to repeat the year like George.  That would have been a serious wake up call for the hospital.  

 

Also, I think the appropriate punishment would have been for the first solo surgery to be pushed back as far as possible.  I assume that it's awarded when it is due to where they are in their training so that the hospital can free up more hands for basic procedures, so it probably couldn't be pushed back a full year, but going as long as possible, with the caveat that it still won't be Cristina (as additional punishment for keeping her mouth shut), would be fine.  

 

And I really hate Izzie's exit story.  If they wanted to kill the character, fine, as they established how advanced her cancer was as well as the odds but, if they wanted her to live, they could have her decide she wanted to be closer to her mother and moved to a hospital that would allow her to do that.  There was no reason to build up her relationship with Alex, get them married, and her to leave him with her massive medical bills months later.  The show did a very good job of establishing that Alex never quite got over Izzie, but he was willing to move on as they also did a good job of establishing that she'd never love him as much as he loved her, so why even go back there?  It also drove me crazy that we never really saw Izzie show an interest for a specialty.  George showed an interest in both cardio (under Burke) and trauma (under Owen), Cristina was the cardio woman, Alex went from plastics to pediatrics, and Meredith went from neuro to general, but Izzie barely saw the inside of an OR.  Addison said that Izzie was one of the best potential neo-natal surgeons with the quints, but Izzie seemed to lose interest after the one died.  The Denny stupidity made her seem interested in cardio but she, again, seemed to lose interest after he died.  The only place Izzie seemed to have any interest in was the clinic, so I'm wondering if we should even assume she's still a surgeon and not raising funds to open free clinics in areas of need.  It'd be nice to learn something about Izzie and how she's doing.  Maybe Pompeo takes an episode off and we learn that Meredith was out of town to attend Izzie's wedding (to someone with zero connection to medicine or a hospital), or Jo finds a picture from when Izzie and Alex got married, asks about her, and Alex gives us the update while revealing they keep in touch a couple of times a year.  

 

I also hated the exit stories for George, Lexie, and Mark.  It really comes across as Shonda punishing the viewers because the actors decide to move on.  George was already set to leave a be a trauma surgeon in the military so there was no need to kill him.  It would be great to get the occasional update on George kicking ass in that specialty and it would allow the character to come back.  Since the actors left at the same time, Lexie and Mark could have just moved to New York together.  It wouldn't have been hard to set up as Mark had established himself there for years, so the show could just give him a super amazing job offer that Seattle can't match, he asks Lexie to come with him, she agrees, they move and she finishes her residency in New York.  Then we could get periodic updates from Callie, Meredith, and Derek instead of that stupid plane crash.  There was no need for these characters to die other than pissing off viewers.

 

It's amazing Cristina's still alive.

[choclatechip45]

The only issue with Mark moving to New York is that he would have been across the country from Sofia. Granted the whole Sofia storyline is my least favorite ever tied with ghost sex! But after he spent a whole season wanting a child it would not have made sense to see him move back to New York with Lexie.

I think the hardest part about watching the reruns is how Izzie and Alex would of been endgame if Heigl stayed on the show.  After seeing Alex with Jo it really shows how wrong Izzie and Alex were as a couple.Also, I don't understand the Izzie and Jo comparisons if anything Jo sort of reminds me of a combo of Meredith/Cristina.   If any of the interns remind me of Izzie it is Stephanie.

 

Does Jo know that Alex was married?

 

I really wish Cristina and Jackson had been a couple they were hot together!

 

 

[scarynikki12]

I agree that Mark leaving Sofia after wanting to raise a kid wouldn't make much sense, but it makes far more sense than him dying in that plane crash, so I could have lived with that happening and Callie referencing him skyping with Sofia on a regular basis.

 

I don't think Jo knows about Alex's history with Izzie, so that could be interesting.  At the very least, it would give her insight as to why he's eager to remarry: he wants to get it right this time (not unlike the insight Izzie gained during the Rebecca period when she learned about his mother).  Her learning about Izzie and their relationship could make for some really interesting scenes between them, and give Alex much needed screentime, so it won't happen.  At best, she'd learn he was once married and get angry that she didn't know and we'd have a silly "obstacle" for them to deal with.

[Tooch]

I couldn't agree more about the unnecessary killing off of mark and Lexie. Having them move away together and be happy would have been great, and it would have been incredibly easy to have Callie reference Sofia going to visit Mark frequently.

Better yet, they could have killed off Sofia and had that been Mark's impetus to leave. Don't get me wrong, I love cute kids, but the storyline would have been a) realistic for a super preemie born at 23 weeks (preemies that young almost always have chronic health problems, my best friend has a 4 year old born at 26 weeks and he has nearly died a couple different times due to his susceptibility to flus and his compromised immune system). And b) it would have been an incredible storyline for Callie, Mark and Arizona.

But no, instead we got the worlds stupidest plane crash and the resulting 1.5 years of hearing Az moan and whine that she'd rather be dead than legless. Ugh!

[choclatechip45]

True or if Heigl and Shonda work threw their issues we will have with that special episode of Izzie showing up at the house looking for Meredith and Jo answering the door. I do wonder though if Izzie would have been given a better exit if Heigl had decided to return to her slated episodes.

 

I feel that the only reason Cristina made it out alive is because Shonda had to prove to the TV critics she can actually write out a character without killing them on Grey's. Does anyone else find it strange all of Derek's students he has mentored have died? I mean he is this hotshot neurosurgeon and every other attending has mentored someone even Sloan! The only students he has really mentored are Meredith ( I don't consider it a mentor/mentee relationship because if him and Meredith hadn't been together I don't think she would of gone into Neuro. Both Lexie/Brooks both died. I think they should of kept April in Neuro I have always felt her and Hunt's relationship was forced.  

 

Better yet, they could have killed off Sofia and had that been Mark's impetus to leave. Don't get me wrong, I love cute kids, but the storyline would have been a) realistic for a super preemie born at 23 weeks (preemies that young almost always have chronic health problems, my best friend has a 4 year old born at 26 weeks and he has nearly died a couple different times due to his susceptibility to flus and his compromised immune system). And b) it would have been an incredible storyline for Callie, Mark and Arizona.

But no, instead we got the worlds stupidest plane crash and the resulting 1.5 years of hearing Az moan and whine that she'd rather be dead than legless. Ugh!

I completely agree with this  they should of killed Sofia off and have Sloan leave because of that. The plane crash in my opinion, is what made this show downhill. Season 9 was so depressing and heavy not light and dramatic which is why I enjoy Grey's. They pretty much ruined every character in that storyline. The only thing I enjoyed was Avery growing some balls and Lizzie visiting.

Edited June 12, 2014 by choclatechip45

[Tooch]

Well, I imagine killing off Sofia would have been pretty depressing too...but the melodrama of it all would have been so good. Like on General Hospital when they killed off Tony and Bobbi's daughter, and donated her heart to Felicia's daughter. That shit was 20 years ago and I still remember crying my eyes out! Oh, it would have been so good. Oh well, instead we get more dead doctors.

[Lillybee]

I decided that I love Lexie and hated that Mer was so mean to her at the beginning. Lexie was bright, adorable and should have stayed. I wanted to see her mature as a surgeon and a person.

[choclatechip45]

Lexie is one of the few characters on television who I liked all the people they paired her up with romantically all for different reasons.

I liked her with Karev because he brought out the outspoken side of Lexie and actually called him on his crap. I knew they wouldn't last for obvious reasons, but I love outspoken Lexie. I thought her and Jackson had great chemistry. I liked the side she brought out of Mark when they were together. I hated how mean Mark after he found out she slept with Karev and I hated how he would act as if she were his property at the end of season 7.

[Guest]

About them not being good teachers, of course not!  When they were interns, Bailey was a 5th year resident. She was in her last year before fellowship. They were 2nd years. Why the show decided they should have interns is beyond me.  If you need some fresh blood, have the new interns working with them some but assigned to a senior resident like Callie or Bailey. 

[PrincessTT]

About them not being good teachers, of course not!  When they were interns, Bailey was a 5th year resident. She was in her last year before fellowship. They were 2nd years. Why the show decided they should have interns is beyond me.  If you need some fresh blood, have the new interns working with them some but assigned to a senior resident like Callie or Bailey. 

 

Exactly it made no sense for them to have interns when they were just 2nd year residents... And Shane, Jo, Leah & Stephanie were 2nd year residents this season but they didn't have interns assigned to them, in fact they were treated as if they were still interns themselves.

 

Leading on from that Shane, Jo, Stephanie, Leah & Heather were seemingly interns who weren't assigned to a resident. Season 9 had attendings and interns but no residents in between

[tinderbox]

In the last two days I watched reruns of the three episode arc of George's death.  The only time I saw them was when they were originally broadcast.  (I don't even remember how many years/seasons ago it was!)

 

Anyway, I can't get over how moved I was by the storytelling.  I seriously cried my eyes out.  I don't care that Shonda killed off the character (I do...but you know what I mean) because I was completely taken in by what happened. 

 

Is the Grey's of today as "good" as it once was?  Heck, no!  (I don't even recognize Bailey anymore.)  Watching this three episode repeat brought me back to the days when I called this show outstanding....because it was.

[Guest]

In the last two days I watched reruns of the three episode arc of George's death.  The only time I saw them was when they were originally broadcast.  (I don't even remember how many years/seasons ago it was!)

 

Anyway, I can't get over how moved I was by the storytelling.  I seriously cried my eyes out.  I don't care that Shonda killed off the character (I do...but you know what I mean) because I was completely taken in by what happened. 

 

Is the Grey's of today as "good" as it once was?  Heck, no!  (I don't even recognize Bailey anymore.)  Watching this three episode repeat brought me back to the days when I called this show outstanding....because it was.

I've always thought Season 5 went back to the quality of Seasons 1-2, or at least a lot closer than the more recent seasons (or awful Season4).

[Lillybee]

I am rewatching due to the magic of Netflix. One thing I find disturbing is the male surgeons are hitting golf balls off the roof of the hospital. I wonder if it is safe. After all, those balls have to come down somewhere. I hope that they don't land on someone's head or windshield.

[KatWay]

Season 3 really was the beginning of the end in my opinion. The stupid Gizzie storyline, which was just awful on so many levels and I plainly don't get why the writers thought having Izzie act that way around a married man whose wife she had bullied after just losing the "love of her life" made any sense or did her character any favours. Neither did the wishy-washiness help George.

 

My other problem was Mark. I was all ready to love Mark, he was hot, he had great chemistry with the cast, but they almost made him seem sociopathic in the first half of the season. Instead of showing any signs whatsoever that he felt bad for hurting his best friend and subsequently the woman he proclaimed to love and left said friend for him, he only seemed arrogant, cocky and entitled. Not to mention he got a kick out of making things more difficult for Derek and he hit on Meredith, the woman with whom his friend, who he'd hurt so much, had finally found love again. How low can you go? They redeemed him somewhat in S4, but I never quite forgot just how incredibly selfish Mark Sloan was.

 

The less said about the drowning, the better.

[choclatechip45]

The ending of Season 5 will always make me choke up between the perfect V/O, perfect song  and George/Izzie with the elevator.

[thewhiteowl]

One thing this show has done well over the seasons, is manipulate my feelings about most of the characters. I hated Alex for the first few seasons but now I care about him. I hated and loved Webber. Liked then hated Izzie, Bailey and Arizona. I liked then hated April but now, I'm rooting for her and Jackson. While at times I have wanted to slap both of them, I always enjoyed Meredith and Cristina's relationship, it had a real depth.

I never thought I would miss Mark or Lexie but I do. Didn't care for Amelia on PP, I wonder if that will change. I guess I'm just fickle. lol

[taanja]

I own the first three seasons of Grey's Anatomy. After that the show slowly began to lose it's "charm" and by season 6? or maybe it was season 7? I stopped watching all together. All the new interns... all the weird story arcs...just too much.

 

I kind of like the drowning eps --- but I will agree they are kind of ridiculous and Meredith being dead for like 3 eps (Or what feels like days and days when watched back to back) is rather unrealistic to say the least. But when I first saw them I was riveted to the TV. Oh man and prom sex? wow! that was hot!

 

But then there was the "sex and mockery" which made me lose respect for Meredith (I was never a Derek fan but Meredith loves/loved him so I endured him)

 

Izzy and dead Denny? say it ain't so! It hurts me to type that shit! and besides. Those eps are completely unwatchable IMO.

 

Lexie was annoying so I didn't care that they killed her off but the plane crash was over the top and we find out that she was eaten by wild animals? seriously? what did that actress DO to Shonda?

 

Never liked Hunt -- never liked any of the new interns. and I agree with whoever said that after Pompeo had her baby she became less of a focus and that is certainly when the charm went right out the window and the drudgery seemed to take over.

 

I couldn't stomach a single ep from last season (they stuck poor Alex with that annoying child) and they separated Mer and Cris with some stupid fight. The damn soulmates of the show for crying out loud! -- separated for half the season. I couldn't even watch my beloved Cris 's last days for fear she would die in some horrible accident.

 

Anyway. The first 3 seasons still remain the best IMO. After that? Downhill baby! all the way!

[choclatechip45]

 

Lexie was annoying so I didn't care that they killed her off but the plane crash was over the top and we find out that she was eaten by wild animals? seriously? what did that actress DO to Shonda?

I've always wondered the real reason behind Chyler leaving. She was pretty much known to be a show killer before Grey's so it seemed strange she wanted off after 5 seasons.

 

I like the way the show handled Pompeo's pregnancy. I really enjoyed I Saw What I Saw, Arizona-centric episode and Derrick's tumor episode. I would not mind if they character-centric episode. I guess they did that with the Callie episode this past season, it's too bad they decided to retcon Callie/Arizona's past.

[scarynikki12]

I wish baby Bailey's first name was Alexander.  It's such a little thing but it would have been a nice nod to Lexie and shown that Meredith did still mourn her death despite not having as many scenes as Derek did when Mark died.  It could also have led to a nice scene where a few characters think it's in honor of Meredith's friendship with Alex and he and Cristina correct them by pointing out that it's in honor of Lexie.  It would have been a nice understated way of demonstrating the strength of her relationships with the two of them if they got it right away and, in Alex's case, found no confusion over the name similarities.  But, alas, we're supposed to forget all about Lexie and the horrible way she died.

[candall]

Lifetime Channel is messing up my world by running three hours of Grey's every afternoon.  I keep thinking I'll quit after Meredith drowns, after George dies, before Sloan's idiot daughter shows up.  And let me just add right here:

 

Wow, that Season 6 two-parter finale was terrific television.  Riveting.

 

I'm surprised, more than anything, by how unlikeable many of the characters were.  Meredith was a child-woman whose default mode was throwing tantrums.  Yang's empathy never extended a molecule outside self-interest.  Alex was a jerk, Izzie was a bauble.

 

And yet. . .every story arc, even the ones that annoy, feels like bumping into an old friend I haven't seen for a long time.  Right now I'm watching Teddy Altman fall in love with her insurance patient/husband.  Why, hello there!  I remember you.

 

So my new cut-off point is the plane crash.  Better I should get a head start on medical school myself rather than watching Arizona bitch about her leg for three years.

[choclatechip45]

I liked Denny 2.0 a lot better than the original i think its because I have a huge crush on Scott Foley.

[walnutqueen]

Lifetime Channel is messing up my world by running three hours of Grey's every afternoon.

 

 

Mine, too, candall!  Once I get started, I just can't seem to stop myself from watching all over again.  In my case, it is a sickness.  :-)

[Lovecat]

Lifetime Channel is messing up my world by running three hours of Grey's every afternoon. I keep thinking I'll quit after Meredith drowns, after George dies, before Sloan's idiot daughter shows up.

Same :/ I currently have a 25-episode backlog on my DVR, because a girl's gotta make a living...

Good idea to stop at the plane crash. I think I'll follow your lead!!

[choclatechip45]

Looking back, I think the plane crash is when the show jumped the shark.  Season 9 is so depressing.

[Lnmop]

Right now I'm watching Teddy Altman fall in love with her insurance patient/husband. Why, hello there! I remember you!

I hated everything about Teddy. Her back story in Iraq with Hunt, the way she treated Cristina, her (well known) insurance fraud with Henry, and her overall meanness when she felt slighted by anyone. To top that off, I couldn't stand to watch Kim Raver's mouth. Her bottom teeth never showed, her upper teeth were at a weird angle, and she moved her mouth like she was chewing. She wasn't so much a badass as she was an ass.

[candall]

I hated everything about Teddy. Her back story in Iraq with Hunt, the way she treated Cristina, her (well known) insurance fraud with Henry, and her overall meanness when she felt slighted by anyone. To top that off, I couldn't stand to watch Kim Raver's mouth. Her bottom teeth never showed, her upper teeth were at a weird angle, and she moved her mouth like she was chewing. She wasn't so much a badass as she was an ass.

But she has those huge doe eyes--she's always the prettiest one in the O.R. when they're all wearing masks. (After Addison left.)

And that long graceful neck! I'm pretty sure she got an extra inch and a half of neck that was supposed to be mine.

I agree with you that she isn't the most endearing character. : )

Edited to add: Binge-watching this show from the beginning for the first time, I'm struck by the level of disregard and downright betrayal among these friends/lovers/colleagues. In tv world, they take it all with a grain of salt and move on, except Teddy--she's a grudgeholder. (Also Derek.) It's kind of a realistic character flaw.

Edited July 21, 2014 by candall

[Lnmop]

But she has those huge doe eyes--she's always the prettiest one in the O.R. when they're all wearing masks. (After Addison left.)

And that long graceful neck! I'm pretty sure she got an extra inch and a half of neck that was supposed to be mine.

I agree with you that she isn't the most endearing character. : )

LOL! Yeah, I forgot about her oh-so-preeeettttyyyy eyes.

I never cared much for Addison either. I think it was mostly the voice.

Yeah, I'm shallow.

[choclatechip45]

I really love the Derek/Lexie scenes at the end of season 8. I really wished they had explored them as a mentor/mentee relationship earlier. It was really nice seeing Derek be a supportive Brother-in-law to her at the end of season 8. Too bad they didn't really explore it at all in season 7.

[candall]

Oh, no!  The plane crashed and the aftermath episodes eroded my resolve to leave.

 

Very clever of them to sneak those new interns in when I have to stick around for Mark's surge and, to a lesser extent, Derek's mangled paw.

 

Plus, I forgot all about Yang's psychotic break and her arc with William Daniels--good stuff.  Was Sandra Oh sweeping up Emmys?

Edited August 7, 2014 by candall

[walnutqueen]

I don't know about Emmys, but I adored Oh and Daniels together.

 

I'm still stuck on the Lifetime rerun hamster wheel, but at least during these hot & humid days I can siesta in front of the fan and GA.  :-)

[choclatechip45]

After watching the last few episodes of season 8 and the first few episodes of season 9. I don't think Arizona's outburst on Karev choosing Hopkins was really a big deal and the outburst in her hospital room. She was going through a hard time both times and took it out on Karev. He has taken out plenty of stuff on people over the years for far less. I think finding out your dead brothers best friend is going to die and suffering from an infection that causes your leg to be amputated gives her a pass on her outbursts on Karev. Now her outbursts on Callie on the other hand I do think were out of line, but it is hard for me to feel bad for Callie because she really did act like she knew what Arizona went through when she really didn't. Not to say Callie did not go through anything because she did loose Mark and her wife went through something life-changing, but I felt like she could of been a little more sensitive to the fact Arizona did loose her leg.

Edited August 7, 2014 by choclatechip45

[candall]

I'm not sure.  I think the show had the occasional misstep.  ("Booty Call Bailey"?  Mmm, seems unlikely.)

 

Arizona had zero chance for recovery--they made it clear the alternatives to a prosthetic were a permanently mangled limb, or death.  She needed an objective ear and a safe place to vent her bitterness.  They ALL should have been putting in serious hours with the staff trauma counselor, including Survivor Guilt Alex and Callie. 

 

I wonder why the show didn't go that route?  Amy Madigan was terrific as the house shrink in an earlier season.

[choclatechip45]

Yeah, I have no idea why Callie was not in therapy. To be honest I think she needs therapy just as much as Arizona for different reasons. To go through loosing your best friend/child's father and your wife having her leg amputated all in a month  is too much for anyone to take. Plus I have always thought Callie was extremely co-dependent and needs to work on those issues. I think I have a hard time sympathizing with Callie for two reasons I hate her line in the episode where Bailey gets married pretty much mocking Arizona for making a big deal about her leg. I know it was supposed to be funny, but it bothered me. Also, this past season telling the donors Arizona died I know she had every right to be hurt that Arizona cheated, but the fact it was the plane crash that killed your best friend/baby father was really messed up. Maybe that's why I didn't mind Arizona hooking up with Leah after that because if your spouse who your separated from is telling people you are actually dead it's time to try to move on.

Edited August 7, 2014 by choclatechip45