S14.E04: Ain't That a Kick in the Head

[Blonde Gator]

2 hours ago, DearEvette said:

Setting aside the Maggie/Jackson possible romance stuff... I did like the whole at home dinner thing.  Seeing Richard and Catherine at home so casual. Catherine cooking (that seemed like a lot of asparagus for three people). 

Maybe she was going to make quiche with the leftovers?  LOL.  That's what asparagus lovers do (me).  Lost my freezers after Irma, and tossing the gorgeous asparagus hurt worse than tossing the ribeyes.

[BSB]

10 minutes ago, Morksmate said:

See, but if they did that, they'd have to explain how dead Ellis Grey was VP and Thatcher Grey was a political strategist with a husband (I only watched the first season of Scandal, so if that wasn't the situation going forward, forgive me).  I'm not against crossovers in shows, but it becomes tricky when the same smallish pool of actors is used over and over again.

Teddy’s dead husband is on Scandal too.

[BaseOps]

34 minutes ago, Morksmate said:

I agree with this.  Specifically with April and Arizona, they don't behave any differently than Meredith and Cristina did, and I don't recall there ever being the thought that those two should pair up.  Women can be friends with other women (and men with other men, and women with men), without it being sexual.

Yea, I really don't know why people are acting like it's even a possibility based on nothing more than some very typical Grey's friendship scenes. Arizona and April have been close like this for a long time. They also literally just brought in a new love interest for Arizona 2 weeks ago. People tend to assume couples are forming on this show whenever characters interact (Alex / Maggie, Alex / Meredith, DeLuca and Amelia last night, etc.) 

[Blonde Gator]

3 hours ago, DearEvette said:

I see this coming up a lot.  I am in the minority, I guess, in that I really don't think about the minutiae of child care.  I just assume (in the back of my head because I am literally not even thinking about it) that her kids are being well taken care of and she manages their care like any other working person and we just don't see her with them during the time lapses on the show when obvious non-hospital stuff is occurring -- kinda like the time it takes everyday for people to do mundane stuff like eating, sleeping, shopping, dentist appointments, paying bills, shaving etc.  I am totally fine with glimpses of them once in awhile just to let us know they still exist.

Speaking of milk carton children...........what ever happened to little Tuck?  Not a word nor glimpse has been heard or seen in it seems like forever........

[Deanie87]

The fact that two characters can't have a scene together without prompting questions about whether or not they are going to hook up is testament to the past writing on Grey's.  My only disappointment is that nothing has been mentioned about the blatant sexual undertones of Jackson fixing Alex's collar and Alex wondering about silver spoons and trucks being backed up. Not to mention the seductive way that Jackson said limousines.  I mean, its CLEAR that something is going on there and I will have no choice but to root for it wildly.

[Snow Fairy]

4 hours ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

 It was nice to see Jeanine Mason from SYTYCD though!

Was that really her? I thought so, but wasn't sure. I like that too 

[Guest]

Oh, and I hated Meredith and Riggs lying about Farouq's health to get him into the States.  They could both end up in serious trouble for it (not that they will...the plotline will be dropped in the next 3-5 episodes if I were to guess) but instead we're supposed to see it as romantic.

[GalvDuck]

1 hour ago, Blonde Gator said:

Maybe she was going to make quiche with the leftovers?  LOL.  That's what asparagus lovers do (me).  Lost my freezers after Irma, and tossing the gorgeous asparagus hurt worse than tossing the ribeyes.

Spoiler

I feel ya.  Rita killed my freezer supply while Ike pretty much sent everything to the curb.  Wishes for a speedy recovery to ya and Go Gators!

[PamelaMaeSnap]

14 hours ago, Laurie4H said:

And a Trump dig, when Amelia said she wish she didn’t know who the president is.

And my personal favorite moment of the night ... I have been suffering from a condition where I have profound memory loss for several hours at a time and the "test questions" my husband has to ask me to know when I'm "coming to" include "who is the president?" ... In my case, my answer was that I didn't remember but when he told me I immediately responded "you've gotta be f*%king kidding me." And this happened several times with exactly the same response. So I re-ran the scene for him and he thought it was pretty hilarious as well. 

Overall, I absolutely adored this episode. My mother had a similarly-placed brain tumor when I was a teen (unfortunately in her case diagnosed too late to ever completely remove it) and so much of the pre-op, surgery, early recovery was very close to home and I thought very well done. 

I am even on board with almost all the potential shipping (I admit I did NOT see the April-Arizona potential implication, but rather thought they would be uniting as much needed Girl Friends) but DID wonder about Amelia and DeLuca. I also adore Maggie so am in the minority that would actually really like her and Avery as a pair.

[Chick2Chic]

1 minute ago, PamelaMaeSnap said:

I also adore Maggie so am in the minority that would actually really like her and Avery as a pair.

I'm not on that shipper train, but I do like Maggie. She's not any more self-absorbed than the majority of characters on this show who constantly make situations about themselves. 

[PamelaMaeSnap]

9 hours ago, WalrusGirl said:

But the thing is that “who’s the president” is a DEFAULT, top-three neurological/orientation question - heard it every half hour during one of my mom’s episodes

Gotta ask ... does your mom have TGA?

[chitowngirl]

With all the tumor/reset Amy talk-she hasn't talked to Owen about her son and that conversation needs to happen. They can hand wave Amy's behavior about her relationship being because of the tumor, but a lot of it has to do with being afraid to go through another experience like she did.

[iMonrey]

Quote

On a shallow note,  I personally don’t think Maggie is attractive at all, and Jackson is, so speaking by a physical stand point,  I just can’t find any reason he would be into her. 

I think Maggie is pretty enough, but she acts as though she were a small child most of the time. Her behavior is so juvenile it's hard for me to picture her in an adult relationship, frankly. I've always felt the actress was wrong for the role of some brilliantly gifted cardiologist. She'd make a nice wacky nurse or something but I'd never trust her to be my doctor.

Quote

Is it common that a straight woman would go this route?  I’ve never experienced any of this in real life but seems pretty normal on this show. 

No, it's not common and I'm tired of the trope. They did the same thing with Callie - she started out in a relationship with George then suddenly decided she was bi/lesbian. Whatever. You can get away with that once, but not twice and not with the same potential partner. Notice they never do that with any of the guys. Hey, Owen's had terrible luck with women, why doesn't he give men a try?

Quote

And a Trump dig, when Amelia said she wish she didn’t know who the president is....Enough is enough.  Regardless who you support....Hollywood needs to move on.  It’s unoriginal and people are sick of it.  

Asking who the president is is standard practice in any hospital. When my grandmother woke up after surgery they asked her who the president was, and she said "I can't think of his name but I didn't vote for him." (It was Clinton.) Also, I think hoping "Hollywood moves on" and never mentions politics again is unrealistic. 

Edited October 13, 2017 by iMonrey

[RedbirdNelly]

Not an Amelia fan but this was her best episode for me. Her presurgery delegation of duties touched me (though no way she'd pick April to pull the plug unless you want to stay on a machine for a long time). I was not a fan of the superman pose thing when they first did it, but her wanting to do it (even if stupid) in the OR touched me as did the wave to Meredith.

 

Not a fan of Maggie but her getting drunk and the 2 island comment was funny. Otherwise, no. Maggie plus Jackson does not work. And I'm not concerned about incest.

[Efzee]

Just remembered something I would have liked to see: a comparison between the new interns and the current doctors as interns. Considering Richard was chief at the time (and we all know the chief is the boss of the whole hospital in Grey's universe and decides everything, even HR matters) he was probably involved in the selection of interns way back. Sure, some doctors came over from Mercy West and others were already fully qualified surgeons/specialists, but he could've referred to MAGIC and even Bailey. Clips aren't feasible but he or Bailey could have said something along the lines of "yeah, but do you remember how we felt about Kerev?" or "well, that was nothing compared to Yang" etc.

[LaughingOne]

20 minutes ago, Blonde Gator said:

I like that they're playing this season for more lightness, and as others have stated, I hope they are going for more friendships than hook-ups.   That would get us back to the core reason we all loved Grey's in the first place.   The McDreamy & McSteamy escapades were fantastic and fun, but at the core we had the trials and tribulations of five people who became besties, and stood with each other through thick and thin.  The group finger-pointing "TUMOR!" scene reminded me of George's funeral, where they were laughing through their tears.  Classic Grey's.  I really hope they let Arizona & April find a super solid friendship, rather than a romance.  Most of the reason for Japril is that they were besties, even when apart, that the loss of that ability to be friends is what drove them back together as a couple.  We need more of these type of friendships.  Right now the only "I'd kill for you" one is Meredith/Alex. 

Yep. What made early Grey's so great was watching the five interns bond, compete, squabble, learn and grow together. The friendship between the five of them was the core of the show and really gave it its magic (rimshot). And I think that's why this season has felt like a throwback to the earlier seasons - they've gotten rid of the silos that existed for the last few years. April never would've been part of Amelia's scenes and we wouldn't have had that "tumor!" lunch scene if this was last season. Changes like this, plus the lighter tone and faster pace, has made this season so much more watchable.

[only1shoe]

17 hours ago, Blonde Gator said:

Yes, please keep Greg Germann!  Demote Amelia, kill her off, I don't care, but keep the new Ginger, please!  His character is awesome.

 

Pleaaaase! That would make me so happy. I freaking love him already, he's so much better than Amelia!

 

3 hours ago, berwoman said:

Am I the only one who wasn't amused by the string of possible interns?  It was like they played on every bad hipster stereotype...  would you really bring a dog to an interview and let it run all over the table?  Would you really answer your cell phone or ask for a snap during an interview?  Not all 20 somethings are stupid or vapid...  if this was supposed to be humor it fell flat for me.  

No they were pretty much all awful. I didn't mind the one blonde chic with the "attitude" because she reminded me a bit of Cristina and Glasses is funny, but the rest can GTFO. I'm so tired of shows portraying millennials as these vapid, technology-obsessed narcissists... 

16 hours ago, LexieLily said:

Callie and Penny must have broken up already if Sofia wants to come home - though I'm surprised they lasted this long.

Are they setting up something between Amelia and DeLuca?

Thanks to the dialogue of the awkward conversation at Webber and Catherine's, we know that Maggie knows quite well that her biological father is married to Jackson's mom. So someone please explain to me why she wants to date him!

Glad I wasn't the only one that noticed that. From the interactions these 2 have had so far this season, they already have better chemistry than Owen and Amelia. And Greg German's character asked him about sleeping with his teacher for "extra credit". Possible foreshadowing maybe??

This episode was really good except for Owen and Amelia. The end scene was just so random and out of the blue. Owen wasn't with Amelia almost all episode, through her surgery or her recovery, then all of a sudden he shows up at the end of the episode begging her to come home? And I also hate that he is essentially trying to just push everything that happened between them under the rug. I don't care if she had a tumor, he should be at least a little bit pissed at her still! I mean he was *this close* to breaking up with her like a day ago. Him begging her to love him after all the crap she put him through makes him look desperate as hell imo. I actually agreed with Amelia (for the first time in a while) that they should spend some time apart and evaluate what this all means (aka break up because they finally realize they are horrible together).

The amount of time they spent apart in this episode really bugged me. If they are setting them up to be together again, they are doing a horrible job of it because these two are the worst married couple I've ever seen. I know many people didn't like Owen with Cristina, but at least they actually seemed in love with each other. These two don't even seem to like each other, nevermind love. I just wish they'd break up already, they have no chemistry and fighting for this relationship is not worth it!

[-pj-]

Funny thing is this Amelia didn’t seem ‘new’. She seemed like the Amelia who had just been through rehab. But that could be as she’s vulnerable . Still no mention of Addison and Charlotte so was kinda annoyed at that. But other than that. I quite enjoyed all the Amelia stages. 

 

I do wonder what’s happened in nyc with Sofia and why she wants to come back. I’m sure that change things. Carina didn’t seem glad. But Arizona looked very happy! 

 

Also did anyone else notice the moment Jo when British with Ben? That was probably the first time I ever noticed Camilla accent come out. I kinda hope she gets to go back. Maybe she was British and when she left her husband not only changed life and name but also accent. 

Edited October 14, 2017 by -pj-

[HazelEyes4325]

1 hour ago, RedbirdNelly said:

Not a fan of Maggie but her getting drunk and the 2 island comment was funny. Otherwise, no. Maggie plus Jackson does not work. And I'm not concerned about incest.

I've come to accept that every single character on this show is better when they are drunk.  Except Richard.  He can stay sober.

[Sarnia]

20 hours ago, Ohwell said:

No, they're not related but Catherine feels like they are, and Richard (and others) might, too.  

I don't think she feels they are related at all. I think she was just using the "your sister can comfort you" talk only to make their relationship awkward and push them away from one another. That would be very much in keeping with her character.

Jackson and Maggie are not biologically related. They are not even legally related, since (as far as we know) there is no legal bond between her and Richard. They didn't grow up together. In their interactions, we never were lead to think they would consider each other brother and sister. There is nothing that could be considered incest. But I think the characters just don't have chemistry.

Edited October 13, 2017 by Sarnia

[statsgirl]

I know all the interviews were played for laughs, including the guy who watched a lot of MASH when he was a kid but I don't think they should have dismissed the first guy so quickly.  He was anxious about the interview so he was reciting medical facts to calm himself down.  Sounds like a good potential doctor to me.

9 hours ago, Biggie B said:

- As rapidly as both Amelia's tumor and Megan's reunion with her son were handled, I'm afraid that Amelia and Owen's marital status is going to draaaaaag out. Where is Teddy?? She's vanished.

Kim R is supposed to be in the next episode according to IMDB so that's possibly the big Teddy/Owen/Amelia confrontation that I do not want.

[KaveDweller]

7 hours ago, berwoman said:

Am I the only one who wasn't amused by the string of possible interns?  It was like they played on every bad hipster stereotype...  would you really bring a dog to an interview and let it run all over the table?  Would you really answer your cell phone or ask for a snap during an interview?  Not all 20 somethings are stupid or vapid...  if this was supposed to be humor it fell flat for me.  

I was annoyed they didn't show any decent interns. I am sure there are some people who would come off awful in an interview, but there are also some really smart young people out their fighting for jobs. I am not in the medical field, but I've had a chance to interview interns for other jobs and never had anyone as bad as these supposed doctors.

Although the one girl talking about how she was so much better than her peers made me laugh.

4 hours ago, iMonrey said:

No, it's not common and I'm tired of the trope. They did the same thing with Callie - she started out in a relationship with George then suddenly decided she was bi/lesbian. Whatever. You can get away with that once, but not twice and not with the same potential partner. Notice they never do that with any of the guys. Hey, Owen's had terrible luck with women, why doesn't he give men a try?

It would be kind of hard for Owen to get a man pregnant, which seems to be something he really wants. 

Have they ever had a gay male character on this show? I can't think of one.

[PamelaMaeSnap]

18 minutes ago, KaveDweller said:

would you really bring a dog to an interview and let it run all over the table? 

BUT THAT DOG WAS SO CUUUUUUTE!!!!!

[Ohwell]

47 minutes ago, Sarnia said:

I don't think she feels they are related at all. I think she was just using the "your sister can comfort you" talk only to make their relationship awkward and push them away from one another. That would be very much in keeping with her character.

But that's exactly what I'm getting at, that Catherine said what she said to make them feel awkward and push them away from each other.  But I'm saying the reason she said that is because she feels that they're related, even though they biologically aren't.  Obviously, YMMV.

[kingshearte]

10 hours ago, Good Queen Jane said:

And why was Meredith explaining the techniques of brain surgery to the other very competent surgeons around her? The residents maybe, but not to Alex and Maggie.

That didn't really bother me, because she did a lot more neuro than most of the others did (I suppose we don't really know much about Maggie's training, but it doesn't seem unreasonable to believe that she specialized in cardio pretty quickly), and might have specialized there if the whole trial switcheroo thing hadn't happened. So it didn't seem beyond the realm of possibility that she would know more about the specifics of what was happening down there than some of the others would.

11 hours ago, chitowngirl said:

With the timeline of Grey's not always in sync with ours, Amelia could have been referring the the former President! 

Or the next one. Who the hell knows?

7 hours ago, berwoman said:

Am I the only one who wasn't amused by the string of possible interns?  It was like they played on every bad hipster stereotype...  would you really bring a dog to an interview and let it run all over the table?  Would you really answer your cell phone or ask for a snap during an interview?  Not all 20 somethings are stupid or vapid...  if this was supposed to be humor it fell flat for me.  

Yeah, I didn't really dig it either. Especially because, if I'm not mistaken, aren't there interviews involved in getting into med school in the first place? So it's not like this would be any of these people's first exposure to such a thing. Some awkwardness, sure, that's to be expected, and some of them I think were definitely dismissed for trivial reasons. But some of them — like that one who couldn't even speak audibly — I don't see how they could have even made it this far.

7 hours ago, toomuchtv47 said:

If I were Jo, I would have just told Meredith she wasn't getting a photo from me.  It's easy enough to put a little blurb that no photo was available. But then I remember that the rules change every episode.

I thought that too. There's no real danger in putting her name on it, because Hubby doesn't know her name. So it's really only the photo that would be an issue, and it is beyond absurd that that would be a deal-breaker. "Greatest paper ever, amazing surgery, etc. But since you can't provide a photo of all the participants, I'm afraid we can't accept it." No.

That said, if somehow it did get to the point of nomination or winning the Harper Avery, then avoiding the photos would probably become rather harder. But for simple paper publication? Come on.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

9 hours ago, Efzee said:

I don't know about Seattle/the US, but in my country specially trained dogs (like guiding dogs and emotional support dogs) have to be registered or they are simply considered regular pets and therefore wouldn't be allowed in a hospital (and an emotional support dog would be trained not to jump on the table).

 

8 hours ago, NUguy514 said:

Oh, the dog thing is very real.  Maybe it's because I live in LA, but the "emotional support dog" concept has run amok and has been abused by people who don't actually need emotional support animals and who treat their dogs like accessories they must have with them at all times.  I love dogs, but it drives me crazy when people feel like they HAVE to take their dogs everywhere with them.  What they are is codependent with their dogs, and they need a 12-step program for their codependency.

This rant has been brought to you by a judgmental cat owner who doesn't need his two cats with him at all times.

@Efzee the problem here is as @NUguy514 described. Although there are programs to train guide dogs to assist people (as well as certification for therapy dogs), there are no guidelines or oversight for emotional support animals. There are lots of doctors who will gladly write a note saying that you need your dog/cat/horse/pig as an emotional support animal (for a fee, of course) so that you can take it into the grocery store, restaurants, the mall, on planes, etc. It's fucking ridiculous. On top of that, anyone can buy a vest or patch that says "therapy dog" without any documentation. You can buy them on amazon and at other stores and then just put them on your pet. 

7 hours ago, Snow Fairy said:

Was that really her? I thought so, but wasn't sure. I like that too 

Yes, it was definitely Jeanine!

[jschoolgirl]

7 hours ago, PamelaMaeSnap said:

April-Arizona potential implication

There's been non-spoiler press saying that April will have a major challenging journey this season.

[WalrusGirl]

8 hours ago, PamelaMaeSnap said:

Gotta ask ... does your mom have TGA?

YES! Did - one episode in 2009. That was an extremely long day. Nothing started to “stick” through resets until we had *her* write the answers to her immediate questions (always in the same order) on a notepad, and she was so stunned to see the answers to her own unspoken questions written down in her own handwriting. But it was probably within a year of Izzie’s brain mets/surgery on Grey’s back at the end of season five (I think?), and while the TV parallel didn’t click for me (a wee bit preoccupied), everyone *else* realized it in hearing how it went down after the fact.

 

(Ha, and on the political front for that orientation question, since in real life this was within a year after the 2008 elections, when the nurse was asking if she knew who John McCain was, she did - he’d been such a long-time senator, etc - though the name Obama meant nothing to her. So then the nurse asks if she knows who Sarah Palin is, and I guess the name “Sarah” is so common, and she likes to pass tests and have the doctors and nurses approve of her answers, so she was all, “yeah.” But in a suspiciously-neutral, vague tone. (At this point, Palin was sort of like Hillary Clinton during Bill’s presidency - you either loved her or you hated her - so any response devoid of an emotion behind it was suspect. I paused the nurse (who seemed to believe her answer, and these answers were being used to determine her coming out of it - it was fascinating to literally watch her memory catch back up a year or so at a time, in terms of my grandparents’ living/deceased status, the pastor and music director eras at her church, etc) and asked how she FELT about Sarah Palin, her answer confirming that yeah, she had no idea who she was. And incidentally that the nurse had pegged her/us as the opposite political leaning than we actually were, based on her surprise. ?)

Edited October 14, 2017 by WalrusGirl

[statsgirl]

If you need an emotional support dog, should you really be applying for a surgical residency at Grey Sloan Memorial?  S1 Cristina or Meredith would eat you for breakfast.

[WalrusGirl]

16 hours ago, Stacey1014 said:

I didn't feel that with Amelia and DeLuca. I got a Derek vibe from their scene at the end. He was saying the same things that Derek would have told her, and the hugging scenes where his face wasn't shown, but we saw the back of his head.

That was actually the exact vibe I got, too - DeLuca reminded me of old-school Derek. (Which I’m guessing was from old-school writers versus the actor having necessarily watched a lot of the first half of the series.)

 

14 hours ago, Good Queen Jane said:

I knew that Riggs had disappeared to go rescue Meagan's son. I kept yelling at Meredith to answer the phone.

And why was Meredith explaining the techniques of brain surgery to the other very competent surgeons around her? The residents maybe, but not to Alex and Maggie.

I was thinking that he was crazy not to have *texted* “hey, in Baghdad, it’s about Farouk” when she wouldn’t answer. Then he texted from the airport. ? But it made for a much better scene, of course!

Mer’s done a lot more neuro than most residents and specialties, given Derek and that it was pretty much her de-facto specialty until the Alzheimer’s clinical trial made not working together a condition of their marriage. So that didn’t bother me - I actually liked that they were remembering her neuro experience.

 

14 hours ago, Biggie B said:

What struck me about Amelia's president response was that it's not October 2017 on the show, is it?

...

- Riggs' little scruffy, salt-and-pepper beard looked really good, and I don't even like facial hair on most men.

Yeah, the first three seasons (Jan 2005 - May 2007) equaled one year in the show’s timeline, then there were jumps forward during Callie’s post-CVA recovery and Sofia’s time in the NICU, then the big nine-month jump while Mer was pregnant with Ellis (and I still call BS on her ever naming her daughter after her mother - a middle name sure, maybe, sort of the reverse of Derek Bailey Shepard being named after Derek but going by his middle name). Not even sure they got Mark’s year of death correct (in show or real time), but I know a lot of people were excited to get a confirmation of what year it was on the show! The closest we can get now is probably to say that the end of season 8 (board exams) are what, five years after the start of the series in 2005? And count approximately from there, but with the nine-month/one year jump after Derek’s death maybe being factored in. (Or not, given how many episodes can sometimes cover the span of only a week on the show.)

And agreed! I prefer facial hair as an exception rather than as a rule, but definitely really love Riggs with some scruff, versus clean-shaven.

 

9 hours ago, iMonrey said:

Asking who the president is is standard practice in any hospital. When my grandmother woke up after surgery they asked her who the president was, and she said "I can't think of his name but I didn't vote for him." (It was Clinton.)

Ha!

Edited October 14, 2017 by WalrusGirl

[WalrusGirl]

9 hours ago, PamelaMaeSnap said:

In my case, my answer was that I didn't remember but when he told me I immediately responded "you've gotta be f*%king kidding me." And this happened several times with exactly the same response. So I re-ran the scene for him and he thought it was pretty hilarious as well. 

I read this and was thinking YES, exactly how hers was - identical questions and answers (verbatim in words and inflection). Then saw that you’re the same poster who asked about TGA, which is why your experiences are so similar! We went back and watched Izzie’s post-op amnesia episode after everyone reminded us of it, and while it was funny, it was also sort of discomforting. Since with just the one/initial episode, we got to where it was *probably* TGA, but couldn’t confirm until it passed on its own. And we were collectively in deep doo-doo if it didn’t pass. Had we not had that hanging over us, we would have recorded some of it for her and the comedy value after the fact, but it was just too stressful until it was actually passing.

[Cementhead]

Another random intern sighting:  I recognized one of them being Madylin Sweeten; who played Ally Barone on Everybody Loves Raymond.

[LisaM]

I really liked this episode a lot. The lighter tone and the faster pace are definitely a bonus over the prior season. Admit that I teared up when Megan saw Farouk. The intern interviews were hysterical and very true to life. Also liked the "blame the tumor" conversation with the attendings. Meredith is terrific this season. I can't stand Amelia but all of her scenes were wonderful - especially the one in the MRI where Greg Germann's character talked her down. 

[Chas411]

It was refreshing to see Meredith be nice to Jo. I'm so glad they dropped the -Meredith hates Jo- crap that came out of nowhere in season 11-13. This seasons Mer is a lot more likeable like early seasons Meredith was.

[PamelaMaeSnap]

10 hours ago, WalrusGirl said:

I read this and was thinking YES, exactly how hers was - identical questions and answers (verbatim in words and inflection). Then saw that you’re the same poster who asked about TGA, which is why your experiences are so similar! We went back and watched Izzie’s post-op amnesia episode after everyone reminded us of it, and while it was funny, it was also sort of discomforting. Since with just the one/initial episode, we got to where it was *probably* TGA, but couldn’t confirm until it passed on its own. And we were collectively in deep doo-doo if it didn’t pass. Had we not had that hanging over us, we would have recorded some of it for her and the comedy value after the fact, but it was just too stressful until it was actually passing.

The "problem" (hahaha make that one of the problems) -- as I'm SURE you are well aware by now -- is that unlike, say, a stroke there is zero indication of anything in a brain scan, etc., so it's one of those things they can only diagnose by ruling everything else out and then going by the unique symptoms (the perseveration, the same questions and same inflections, etc.) ... I am SO sorry you guys have gone through it ... I got to be one of the lucky lottery winners that have had two (so far) and permanent short/medium-term memory loss. The Trump episode was my second one. Obama was still president during my first but I didn't remember him either though once I heard the name I knew I liked him.

And to stay on topic here LOL ... in fact, TWICE ... a) I've found a Pollyanna bright side to some of it in that I can re-read favorite books with pleasure and re-watch favorite shows where I remember the main characters but have ZERO recollection of the episode-specific storylines, and plan on re-starting Grey's this weekend from Season 1! Yay! (And will keep an eye out for the Izzie episode which, of course, I don't remember!)

Also ... b) am amazed that Grey's has not addressed this in an episode in all these years! It could make for a great episode. A little comic relief ;/ Maybe take them a little time to figure out what's going on (my emergency room doctor had NO CLUE what it was and was convinced I was having a heart attack and wanted to keep me in there for a few days for all sorts of heart tests ... having just paid the bill for my husband's aFib ER adventure, I said no way and left the hospital against their advice). 

ETA: WalrusGirl: "It was fascinating to literally watch her memory catch back up a year or so at a time, in terms of my grandparents’ living/deceased status ..." My great aunt has had THREE TGAs (though she has NO post-episode side effects or memory loss other than the hours of the episodes, lucky her) had said that she kept asking if her parents were alive and every time she was told they were dead she cried all over again like she was hearing it for the first time (she was in her 70s I think when she had the first one). 

Edited October 14, 2017 by PamelaMaeSnap
To add a response to a poster

[Pallas]

19 hours ago, Sarnia said:

I don't think she feels they are related at all. I think she was just using the "your sister can comfort you" talk only to make their relationship awkward and push them away from one another. That would be very much in keeping with her character.

I agree, and think that was the point of giving Catherine the line about "a night for family (does-not-equal-Maggie"), followed the next day by her "sister" act. Catherine doesn't welcome rivals, and she doesn't play fair. As Richard's late-discovered daughter by his great-and-lost love Ellis Grey, Maggie was already in Catherine's sights. Richard's home is also Catherine's, and there's a reason Maggie hadn't yet been invited there.  

Catherine's usual tactic when confronted with a rival is to condescend in a way meant to pass unnoticed by the rival -- almost -- while being very visible to her son or husband. That's the gaze she was passing to Maggie, along with the salad and even before the wine. In Maggie's social awkwardness, Catherine found a wedge, the sort of wedge she once made of April's rural roots and Evangelicalism. But she saw the field of battle shift on her, as Jackson warmed to the challenge and then went beyond: clearly enjoying Maggie's taking sides with him, her tipsy speculations on his behalf, and even, perhaps, her presence by his side.  

Still, Catherine is nothing if not a zesty campaigner. The prospect of waging a two-front war didn't dismay her; she loves the smell of Chanel in the morning. With Maggie, so far, Catherine had held her forces in reserve: she knew that men could be prideful about progeny; she believed Richard was right and did not want to push for a blood test that would only confirm Maggie's status; Maggie had not yet encroached. But the affections of her son, and the protection of her legacy to him, were something else. And for Catherine, to use Maggie's troublesome relation to Richard as a lever to vault another interloper away from Jackson and the position she'd finally earned him over decades of burnishing the reputation of an asshole with half her expertise as a surgeon, let alone, in life? -- child's play. Simple and essential.

[Court]

I enjoyed this episode except the Maggie/Jackson crap. She is such a child. I wanted to say shut up, Maggie during that dinner. There is zero chemistry there despite what the show tries to tell me.

 

Love Gregg Germann. I want him to stay. 

 

When they showed Amelia at the truck in, I envisioned her getting in a car accident and dying that way. That would have made it better. 

[ForeverAlone]

I really wish the writers had never put Amelia and Owen together, because I don't think they make sense as a couple, and the actors have zero romantic chemistry. It just seems so forced. I was hoping that they would split up post brain surgery, but if that is going to happen, it will be down the road. I just don't see any reason why Amelia and Owen would want to stay married to each other.

I am definitely not feeling any sparks between Jackson and Maggie. For me, it has nothing to do with any familial relationship, but rather I just don't see any chemistry there either or any reason why they would couple up. Greys' writers have a bad tendency of putting couples together and then breaking them apart for no reason except "drama", and they also have a bad habit of putting characters in relationships that make no sense. 

Overall I do appreciate the lighter, more fun tone of Grey's this year, though I have to suspend so much disbelief when it comes to the Megan story. In a vacuum, I like the character and her interactions with the main characters, but there is no way she would be like that if she had really been held captive for 10 years. It's just one of those things I have to accept and not obsess over (just like I have to assume that Meredith has SOMEONE looking out for her children when she spends so many hours at work). 

[Black Knight]

I'm glad Vernoff is fixing the screwed-up mess of an ending of the Sofia custody SL, and by giving Arizona her kid back instead of, as I'd feared, a mention eventually dropped in an episode that Sofia was supposed to move back after a year but now she loves NYC so she won't. Like another poster said, I don't think it's been a year yet, so Sofia is asking to move back earlier than scheduled.

And although I like the Carina actress, who has great chemistry with Jessica Capshaw, her character has been so one-note sex-obsessed that I'm already over the Arizona/Carina thing. It looks like Sofia's return will throw a wrench into the works there, and either Carina will get fleshed out or she'll go away. Right now it feels like they took one aspect of Callie, her sex drive, and made that Carina's entire "character." And the result of that was that it also reduced Arizona to just sex, which is another reason I'm happy Sofia is returning. I think that's why people are responding to the possibility of April/Arizona, because in their scene together Arizona was a real person actually doing something other than being sexed up by Carina. Their being able to relate on what it's like to be divorced and not have your child full-time had so much more depth than the quite shallow connection Arizona and Carina have so far. And you know April will get Arizona's happiness at having Sofia home, while Carina looks to be annoyed, so that isn't going to help. I'm not sure if the show is actually thinking about doing A/A or if this episode just unintentionally gave off those vibes because of their scene together being Arizona's best of the season so far and because they cut the scene right when April continued to look at Arizona after AZ had looked away. I don't have a strong preference myself: I've always liked April and Arizona's friendship and I'd be fine with them staying just that and being each other's person, but on the other hand I would find their combination of personalities interesting to watch in a romantic relationship. So really, whichever way they go with those two, I'll be happy. But if they're going to keep Carina around, then please flesh her out.

I've always been a Japril shipper, but yeah, something has been lost there thanks to the endless drama and then the long break of no Japril scenes. It feels over. I guess never say never, because they did basically the same thing with Alex and Jo and now they're back together, but neither of them fell for someone else in the interim. I'm indifferent to Maggie/Jackson; I've only ever liked her with DeLuca and I still don't understand why the show ended that. Why doesn't DeLuca have anyone? He's adorable and kind. Jo's an idiot.

[RollingStone23]

On 10/13/2017 at 6:27 PM, KaveDweller said:

I was annoyed they didn't show any decent interns. I am sure there are some people who would come off awful in an interview, but there are also some really smart young people out their fighting for jobs. I am not in the medical field, but I've had a chance to interview interns for other jobs and never had anyone as bad as these supposed doctors.

Although the one girl talking about how she was so much better than her peers made me laugh.

It would be kind of hard for Owen to get a man pregnant, which seems to be something he really wants. 

Have they ever had a gay male character on this show? I can't think of one.

Joe the bartender from the early years and his husband Walter. 

[Quark]

I must say, I don't like Amelia, but this episode was very good.

I couldn't stop laughing, especially when Amelia woke up fluent in French.

[IrishPirate]

"That damn Bushie," was my mom's response to the president question during the Alzheimer's questioning.

Childcare: April was moping at the hospital that she didn't want to go home because Harriet wasn't there. Same night, Jackson's having dinner with the family and there's no Harriet anywhere. Where's the kid?

[candall]

Good ep.  Who's that new writer speeding up the narrative?  Good job, you!

(Except, have none of these people ever seen a "Photo Not Available" notation?  Sorry, Jo--no pic-y, no credit.)

[KaveDweller]

3 hours ago, IrishPirate said:

"That damn Bushie," was my mom's response to the president question during the Alzheimer's questioning.

Childcare: April was moping at the hospital that she didn't want to go home because Harriet wasn't there. Same night, Jackson's having dinner with the family and there's no Harriet anywhere. Where's the kid?

Maybe Harriet was asleep in another room during the family dinner?

[anna0852]

That is what I would assume. Katherine Avery strikes me as the kind of grandmother who has a whole nursery set up for her grandchild in her own home. And who won't pass up a moment to get her hands on her grandbaby.

[only1shoe]

On 10/13/2017 at 6:27 PM, KaveDweller said:

I was annoyed they didn't show any decent interns. I am sure there are some people who would come off awful in an interview, but there are also some really smart young people out their fighting for jobs. I am not in the medical field, but I've had a chance to interview interns for other jobs and never had anyone as bad as these supposed doctors.

Although the one girl talking about how she was so much better than her peers made me laugh.

I actually think a couple of them wouldn't be so bad as new characters. The blond chick you mentioned that "hated her peers" reminded me of early seasons Cristina a bit, the cocky one on his phone that said GS was his second choice gave me Alex vibes, and I find glasses to be kind of adorable and funny. Also the guy that talked about serving overseas would connect with Owen.

On 10/14/2017 at 1:49 PM, Court said:

When they showed Amelia at the truck in, I envisioned her getting in a car accident and dying that way. That would have made it better. 

 

Ha! That would have made the whole episode even more fantastic. I was kind of waiting for something like that to happen too because its Grey's and everything that could go wrong usually does.

On 10/14/2017 at 3:53 PM, ForeverAlone said:

I really wish the writers had never put Amelia and Owen together, because I don't think they make sense as a couple, and the actors have zero romantic chemistry. It just seems so forced. I was hoping that they would split up post brain surgery, but if that is going to happen, it will be down the road. I just don't see any reason why Amelia and Owen would want to stay married to each other.

Oh my god YES! I just don't understand what they see in each other? It feels like the characters were just forced together so Owen would have something to do post-Cristina but the actors have never had any romantic chemistry. And it is especially obvious because he and Sandra Oh had an insane amount of chemistry, so Owen and Amelia just pale in comparison. At first they seemed more like friends but now I wouldn't even go that far. They spent almost all last season ignoring each other and most of this season as well so far. Its just all anguish and no emotional pay-off at all!

They are both just so much more likeable when they are apart...

[StaceyNotStacie]

I don't mind Amelia and Owen as a couple, but they shouldn't immediately get back together. Since they introduced Meredith's new shrink, maybe he could meet with Owen and Amelia both as a couple and individually since they both probably need therapy after the last year or two. 

[katisha]

On 13/10/2017 at 0:06 PM, gator12 said:

Maggie and Jackson are related by marriage and in some countries that consider incest. 

Incest laws is not only applied to people with blood relation. 

Yes, this is true in Queensland, Australia where I live.  Recently there was a very tragic case where a 12-year-old girl who was a foster child in a family was murdered, allegedly because she had fallen pregnant to her foster brother, who was then 18, and the father wanted to cover this up.  Of all the horrible crimes the foster brother has been charged with, I was very surprised to discover that one was incest, even though he was in no way related to her.  But getting back to Grey's, if this isn't the case where the story is set, then Jackson and Maggie getting together wouldn't be wrong, except that in my opinion the chemistry between them is zilch.

[PradaKitty]

Hopping on the  "Who is the President" wagon - when they were assessing my mother's Alzheimers, the doctor asked her the president question. Her reply?  "Oh, you know.. it's What's His Name...."

[Sooner Smiles]

Did anyone else get the sense that the intern who had served overseas was transgender?

Edited October 16, 2017 by Sooner Smiles