S15.E21: Good Shepherd

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Quote

Amelia and Link travel to New York to operate on a patient with a severe spinal deformity, but they're in for more than they bargained for when Nancy Shepherd invites them to dinner at her home.

Promo:

Original Canadian air date: 4/10/19
Original U.S. air date: 4/11/19

[maasa]

I'm looking forward to this episode. I always wanted Amelia scenes with Amelia, Derek & the rest of their family. 

[DEL901]

I liked this ep and I like Amelia and Linc as a couple.    Nice to see her and her mom work some things out although her sisters are both pills. 

[Lady Calypso]

That was a decent episode. I'm not even sure why, since the Shepherd Sisters annoyed the crap out of me (my god, Kathleen is a special kind of awful). 

The Amelia/Link stuff was fun enough. A lot of grievances were aired out at Nancy's house, but at least Amelia got to have some fun, as did Link. 

The moment of Amelia talking to Mama Shepherd at the end was well done. 

I guess, overall, it could have been worse. I've grown to love Amelia as a character, and she definitely beats 80% of the main characters so far so....I'm alright with this episode. 

[statsgirl]

I really, really liked this episode.

The first third was fun and light.  Amelia and Linc are a good couple, it's amazing how much fun she can be when Owen isn't dragging her down (and I say that as an Amelia/Owen shipper for years).

The dinner with the sisters was painful. Both the sisters were bitches but Kathleen was so awful, I wanted to punch her, and then report her to the APA. I wanted Linc to point out how awful they were and how they were contributing to Amelia's behaviour.

The talk with Mama Shepherd was nice. Tyne Daly killed it even though the material was thin. Amelia reminding her of her late husband is an explanation but no excuse for letting her other kids bully the youngest.

I hope Amelia hasn't blown it with Linc. Let Teddy take Owen away, far away.

The final scene, where Amelia comes home to the "sisters" who are warm and supportive was a nice contrast to Amelia's birth sisters, the witches.

[Lady Calypso]

10 hours ago, statsgirl said:

The dinner with the sisters was painful. Both the sisters were bitches but Kathleen was so awful, I wanted to punch her, and then report her to the APA. I wanted Linc to point out how awful they were and how they were contributing to Amelia's behaviour.

Sadly, that wouldn't have gotten through their heads. Both sisters were throwing heinous accusations while Link was trying to defend Amelia.

10 hours ago, statsgirl said:

The final scene, where Amelia comes home to the "sisters" who are warm and supportive was a nice contrast to Amelia's birth sisters, the witches.

It definitely was an interesting contrast, one that worked well. In a split moment, I liked the whole sister bond between the three. Damn you, show!

[funnygirl]

I miss Derek Shepherd. 

[BaseOps]

You can dig up TONS of posts of me going on and on just a few years ago about how badly I wanted Amelia off the show. For a while, she was by far my least favorite character (seasons 11 - 13). Krista really did wonders with that brain tumor, because Amelia has been one of my favorite parts of this season and I really enjoyed this episode. 

First off, Link is great. I hope they up him to a series regular next year. I like that they haven't forced him down our throats by making him a prominent character right away, but rather have slowly developed his relationships with Jo, Amelia, etc.

Also, keep Owen away from Amelia forever. Her and Link have great, fun chemistry, and I like that they aren't rushing it or glossing over important things. It's been nice to see a relationship develop over the course of several episodes, rather than just HAPPEN and then suddenly the characters are in love. It's also just so great to see Amelia happy with Link rather than the constant doom & gloom with Owen. 

I appreciated the lighter tone, as the last few weeks have been a bit heavy and I'm sure the rest of the season will be too. They still managed to be very effective + include some great character moments. Amelia and her mom's final scene together was fantastic - Tyne Daly is amazing. It was nice that, unlike when episodes have to fit in 5 or 6 storylines, that scene got to really breathe and not feel cut short.

I would love if they got Tyne to come back for an episode or two next year. As the doctors get older, I think it's been really interesting to see the writers explore their parental relationships and how those have affected their lives as adults. It's definitely been a huge theme this season between Catherine being ill, Jo finally meeting her mom, Alex having normal, healthy interactions with his mother, Meredith reuniting with Thatcher on his deathbed, and now Amelia and her mom reconnecting here. 

Edited April 11, 2019 by BaseOps

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I loved Amelia's reaction to breakfast pizza (as well as her later comment "You mean we could have had donuts?").

I don't mind Amelia and Linc having casual sex in a specifically non-committed relationship because they're both adults and they're allowed to do whatever they want (and it was clear that neither of them was totally in love with a person who had no interest in them outside of sex so they were on a pretty level playing field). Also hopeful: neither one of them is an intern so thanks for that, GA.

But I also enjoyed them getting to know each other a little bit better because that's what people do when they work together, eat together, travel together, etc. I would be fine with them keeping their relationship this way or with getting a little more serious. Bonus: I know Owen likes to mark every woman he's ever been with as his territory so knowing that he will get jealous just makes the possibility of Amelia/Linc going public with their relationship at work even more appealing to me.

Even though we only saw Owen for about two minutes this week, he was still annoying. Seriously, you have to call your ex while she's out of town because you can't find your son's toy? Ugh.

I liked that as an outsider, Linc was the one being rational about how CRAZY it was for Amelia to want him to pretend to be Owen for dinner at her sister's house and then sympathetically trying to stay longer in the hopes of painting a better picture of her to them. - especially because Kathleen is THE WORST. Good lord, what a pill. No wonder Amelia didn't tell them she was in town! Even after finding out that her sister had a brain tumor, Kathleen would not lay off even the tiniest bit.

[GSMHvisitor]

1 hour ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

I liked that as an outsider, Linc was the one being rational about how CRAZY it was for Amelia to want him to pretend to be Owen for dinner at her sister's house and then sympathetically trying to stay longer in the hopes of painting a better picture of her to them. - especially because Kathleen is THE WORST. Good lord, what a pill. No wonder Amelia didn't tell them she was in town! Even after finding out that her sister had a brain tumor, Kathleen would not lay off even the tiniest bit.

I kept thinking, they brought Amy Acker in for THIS? She only got a few scenes and was nothing but a mean bitch.

The writers still managed to write Owen into this episode and devote a minute of screentime to him, even though the scene was completely useless and unnecessary. The writers must really love him, huh? And I just can't understand it and never will.

Link is awesome. He's the best addition in years. I used to be fond of Koracick too, but then they had to pair him with Teddy who is so bland and boring to me, so now I've kinda had enough of him. Link can stay, though. But I still don't need him to become a regular.

Amelia used to be annoying, but now she is fine as a character. But I'm petty and dislike her solely on the fact that she's always been on the forefront of the narrative, pretty much from the moment she joined the show. And this season is practically Amelia's Anatomy. Except for the centrics that didn't include her, she's had a story in practically every episode. Meanwhile Alex couldn't score one real storyline the entire season. The writers' lack of interest in his character is also something I will never ever understand.

[DEL901]

48 minutes ago, GSMHvisitor said:

I kept thinking, they brought Amy Acker in for THIS? She only got a few scenes and was nothing but a mean bitch.

The writers still managed to write Owen into this episode and devote a minute of screentime to him, even though the scene was completely useless and unnecessary. The writers must really love him, huh? And I just can't understand it and never will.

Re:  Amy Acker... I thought the same thing.  She's great and this is all she was brought in for?  (I guess it was like Eric Roberts as Jackson's dad... I was sure he'd be in multiple episodes).

And yes, Owen is annoying... and having him for those two minutes underscored how much better Linc is.  She doesn't even live with Owen for goodness sake.  How was she supposed to know where his kid's toy was... although she did which, so she's still the better parent even if she isn't around.

I am looking forward to Owen's head explode when he realizes both his first choice (Amelia) and fall back plan (Teddy) are both in solid relationships.  🙂

[statsgirl]

5 hours ago, Lady Calypso said:

Sadly, that wouldn't have gotten through their heads. Both sisters were throwing heinous accusations while Link was trying to defend Amelia.

While they were still in the headspace of "Amelia's sisters", yeah. But while Nancy was just being thoughtless, Kathleen was deliberately cruel and throwing out diagnoses that had nothing to do with Amelia. As a psychiatrist, she needed to be called on it.

It's something that Ma and Pa Shepherd should have put a stop to as soon as it started.

[fakesnakesablaze]

This definitely wasn't enough time to unpack Amelia's character, but they did a decent job of keeping to one centralized theme. Amelia is a risk taker and embraces failure. Other things touched on was her relationship to Derek, whom she feels she followed, and her mom who seems to struggle with her similarities to her father. 

I noticed when Maggie's bully was brought in that they left nuance at the door, and I feel like that's exactly what happened with her sisters. Based on the exposition surrounding Amelia's past, there is certainly some room for them to feel some kind anger, resentment, and/or frustration with Amelia, but I think they build an incredibly poor case that Amelia's behavior has ever truly affected them here. Amelia left NYC for LA almost ten years ago, so I have to assume their contact has been minimal and any transgressions against them would have most likely occurred before then, and definitely before she got sober in Private Practice (unless something happened with them after Derek's death). Nancy was obviously pretty bitchy in her last appearance, but I got the sense that she actually wanted what was best for Derek in her judgment, where here with Amelia she seems downright cruel. And Kathleen was so much worse. I think they mention at some point that she is a therapist? I know family is different, but I doubt anyone who has practiced mental health (not sure on the phrasing for that) would throw dismissive diagnoses at a person unless they are a sociopath. I think it would have been better if Kathleen was softer, but was still unintentionally rude, and then Nancy was the mean/bitter one because she took the hit financially or something.

Rather than faulting the writers for lacking nuance in their characterization of this family, I suppose we could conclude that they are just that awful, but that's not only the lazy way to write this, it's also one that heavily colors Derek's mother and maybe even Derek for feeling any kind of good feelings to his sisters. Mama Shepherd's reactions at the dinner really soured me on her, and while I liked most of the talk on the bench, it still pretty awful that she couldn't be a good mother just because she reminded her of her husband. I honestly don't know if anything could have really made up for Mama Shepherd's refusal to come to Amelia's wedding after a hysterical plea on the phone. 

I did really love the bit about Amelia insisting on doing things on her own even if it's harder, because that's 100% how I grew up, but I don't know how well that tracks with the girl that moved in with her brother and took his job and still lives with her sister in law.

Stray Observations

• I miss when most of the patients on Grey's were good. This patient's dialogue was so telegraphed.
• I know the show always had the surgeons do things that they would never do IRL, but I died when the brother asked Link to hold the fries so he could have a moment with his brother. 
• The most questionable choice Amelia has ever made is getting a dozen plain glazed doughnuts.
• Can we get a new setting for parent-adult child heart-to-hearts?
• I didn't care for the rom-com fake husband trope and the direction and music cues around it made it worse. I was surprised they kept the premise through the whole first half of the episode. 
• I love the way they are handling casual sex between them, even if we know it won't be just casual for much longer
• I really hope they drop the "pain medicine" and "blue light" like metaphors with Amelia and Link
• Did Owen actually seem annoyed with Amelia that he couldn't find a toy in his house for the baby he has primary custody of? Not to mention does he really need to call her over this? 

[statsgirl]

All five Shepherd kids became doctors: Derek and Amelia became neurosurgeons, Nancy is an gynecologist, Kathleen is a psychiatrist (and I forget what the other sister does). That Kathleen is at the top of the ladder in terms of mental health professionals makes it all the worse.

The sisters' callousness when they found out that Amelia had had a brain tumor, and then blaming her for the fact that she couldn't be honest with them turned my stomach. Maggie had a bully in med school but she also had loving and support parents. Amelia's family were her bullies and no wonder she stayed away from them.

1 hour ago, fakesnakesablaze said:

•  
• The most questionable choice Amelia has ever made is getting a dozen plain glazed doughnuts.

LOL.  Definitely not the risk-taker she's been shown to be.

I liked Amelia's talk with the brother at the end of the episode, telling him to let his kid brother be free to find out who he is outside of big bro's shadow. It touched upon Amelia's own experience but in a much subtler way than the dinner, and show that she was understanding rather than bitter.

[LexieLily]

31 minutes ago, statsgirl said:

All five Shepherd kids became doctors: Derek and Amelia became neurosurgeons, Nancy is an gynecologist, Kathleen is a psychiatrist (and I forget what the other sister does). That Kathleen is at the top of the ladder in terms of mental health professionals makes it all the worse.

The sisters' callousness when they found out that Amelia had had a brain tumor, and then blaming her for the fact that she couldn't be honest with them turned my stomach. Maggie had a bully in med school but she also had loving and support parents. Amelia's family were her bullies and no wonder she stayed away from them.

If nothing else the fact that their younger sister didn't feel safe enough/comfortable enough to tell them that she had a brain tumor should have told Nancy and Kathleen and Mama Shepherd something. 

Edited April 11, 2019 by LexieLily

[DEL901]

I also got the impression they were doubting the tumour and suggesting she made it up for attention.... especially when faux Owen was revealed.  

Poor Amelia to grow up in that family. 

[Joana]

First off, "more Amelia" is definitely not the answer to the question about what this season lacked or needed. Still, as far as those -centric episode go, there have been worse. This one had some fun moments, at least.

Was the outrageous awfulness of Amelia's family ever addressed on Private Practice? It was kinda weird to watch those characters I'd never seen before act like total, unabashed assholes, and my God, they were terrible. Especially that Kathleen person, who was basically a sad trope of a psychiatrist judgmentally diagnosing everyone in their sight. On the other hand, Amelia DID try to pretend she's still married AND present her fuck buddy as her husband (and a completely different person), so I can't totally blame them for thinking she's cray-cray? I dunno. I also wouldn't have blamed Link had he run away as far as he could right there and then. Good for Amelia that he didn't. They could be fine together. 

I liked Amelia's conversation with her mother in the park, even though it had a bit too much of a "This is Us" vibe. Still, she has a long way to go before she redeems herself (in my eyes) for not attending Amelia's wedding. Amelia crying on the telephone and pleading with her mother begging her to come broke my heart back then. That was not cool, lady. 

I figured the kid would be just fine, because if he wasn't, Amelia would be shattered and there's room for just one Big Hot Mess on the show, and that position is currently being occupied by Jo. 

Edited April 11, 2019 by Joana

[dmc]

A whole episode of Amelia and Linc = NOPE

see you next week 

[funnygirl]

Nancy isn't wrong: Amelia only got the head of neuro job in Seattle because Derek was going to move to DC. 

Callie Torres lives in New York City. She could've done this surgery. 

Edited April 12, 2019 by funnygirl

[Guest]

Amelia was awful to her family for years. She really gets no sympathy from me. What are they supposed to think after she lied to them for years and shows up faking a husband, and then in one moment they find out that isn’t really her husband, she has/had a brain tumor, and a baby/teenager with her ex husband who she was having Linc pretend to be. 

Actions have consequences. She made her messed up bed and now is mad that they think she messed up the bed. She thinks it says something about them that she didn’t tell them about her brain tumor; it says more about her that they would assume she was lying about the tumor.

[chitowngirl]

6 hours ago, statsgirl said:

It's something that Ma and Pa Shepherd should have put a stop to as soon as it started.

Pa Shepard was killed in front of Amy and Derek when she was 5(?). Ma basically left the raising of Amy to Derek, which was just wrong. 

[Joana]

12 minutes ago, deaja said:

Amelia was awful to her family for years. She really gets no sympathy from me. What are they supposed to think after she lied to them for years and shows up faking a husband, and then in one moment they find out that isn’t really her husband, she has/had a brain tumor, and a baby/teenager with her ex husband who she was having Linc pretend to be. 

Actions have consequences. She made her messed up bed and now is mad that they think she messed up the bed. She thinks it says something about them that she didn’t tell them about her brain tumor; it says more about her that they would assume she was lying about the tumor.

I understand that they're not close and that she's a made a huge mess a couple of times too many for them to care about her any longer, and that's fine, but in that case - why invite her over for dinner, insist that she should come and then proceed to treat her like garbage? It was borderline sadistic. Of course, she could have simply refused to come no matter what, but then again, she once spent a whole season sucking up to Meredith who actively hated her guts, so desperately seeking approval is not out of character for her. 

"Do you see Meredith?" was such a strange thing to ask. Of course she does, they work together. I guess it was supposed to highlight some more how out of touch they are, not knowing Meredith and Amelia live together, but you'd think they'd show at least some interest in their nieces and nephew and ask how they're doing, and instead they just left it at that. 

[preeya]

Tyne Daly, (MaryBeth Lacey of Cagney & Lacey) really looked great. She aged well.

Edited April 12, 2019 by preeya

[Guest]

8 minutes ago, Joana said:

why invite her over for dinner, insist that she should come and then proceed to treat her like garbage? It

I think the invitation was sincere and Nanci was making an effort, but then when there was the revelation about Linc pretending to be Owen it just made her think Amelia was up to her old tricks. 

Kathleen was fairly passive aggressive from the start.

[Joana]

7 minutes ago, deaja said:

I think the invitation was sincere and Nanci was making an effort, but then when there was the revelation about Linc pretending to be Owen it just made her think Amelia was up to her old tricks. 

Kathleen was fairly passive aggressive from the start.

I don't blame them for judging Amelia when they realized she had faked a husband - that was really absurd and I guess totally something "the old Amelia" would do.

But still, I have some doubts about how sincere Nancy's intentions were. IMO, she wanted to think she was making a real effort, but a part of her was secretly hoping Amelia would somehow slip and embarrass herself, like she had done so often in the past. Had she truly wanted to spend some quality time with "the kiddo" and catch up with her, she wouldn't have invited Kathleen as well, knowing how complicated her relationship with Amelia is.

[preeya]

9 minutes ago, Joana said:

I don't blame them for judging Amelia when they realized she had faked a husband - that was really absurd and I guess totally something "the old Amelia" would do.

But still, I have some doubts about how sincere Nancy's intentions were. IMO, she wanted to think she was making a real effort, but a part of her was secretly hoping Amelia would somehow slip and embarrass herself, like she had done so often in the past. Had she truly wanted to spend some quality time with "the kiddo" and catch up with her, she wouldn't have invited Kathleen as well, knowing how complicated her relationship with Amelia is.

↑↑

[LexieLily]

7 hours ago, fakesnakesablaze said:

Rather than faulting the writers for lacking nuance in their characterization of this family, I suppose we could conclude that they are just that awful, but that's not only the lazy way to write this, it's also one that heavily colors Derek's mother and maybe even Derek for feeling any kind of good feelings to his sisters. Mama Shepherd's reactions at the dinner really soured me on her, and while I liked most of the talk on the bench, it still pretty awful that she couldn't be a good mother just because she reminded her of her husband. I honestly don't know if anything could have really made up for Mama Shepherd's refusal to come to Amelia's wedding after a hysterical plea on the phone. 

I actually wasn't a fan of the conversation on the bench with Amelia and her mother. Dad Shepherd was killed when Amy was very young (five?) and if Mama Shepherd relinquished the raising of her youngest daughter to Derek even when Amelia was significantly older it still wasn't fair, to Amelia or to Derek. And I really didn't like when Mama Shepherd said "then that's on you" to Amelia when Amelia asked what if she couldn't get past everything her mother had done. It seems like the three sisters plus Mama Shepherd are still using Young Amelia's drug use/wild days as validation for how awful a person they think she is and why the sisters treat her the way they do. Mama S. accepted it and didn't immediately press Kathleen/Nancy to apologize at dinner. And Mama was all butthurt Amelia never told her anything. Gee, I wonder why.

45 minutes ago, Joana said:

"Do you see Meredith?" was such a strange thing to ask. Of course she does, they work together. I guess it was supposed to highlight some more how out of touch they are, not knowing Meredith and Amelia live together, but you'd think they'd show at least some interest in their nieces and nephew and ask how they're doing, and instead they just left it at that. 

Also, Meredith's reaction when Amelia came home and told them she had dinner with Kathleen and Nancy. "Your sisters?" Um, yes, Meredith, they were your in-laws and the aunts/grandmother of your children. You know who they are. It makes me sad that Zola, Bailey and Ellis obviously have no relationship with their aunts/grandmother/cousins and neither Meredith or the Shepherd side have made any effort to maintain one after Derek died.

[Madding crowd]

I was thinking that a family full of accomplished doctors thinking a neuro-surgeon was beneath them have never been around real people. Sometimes you just can’t be around your family.

I think almost every parent has at least one incident of calling the other to track down a lost lovey. That felt very real to me. With my son it was a stuffed gorilla!

[izabella]

54 minutes ago, LexieLily said:

Also, Meredith's reaction when Amelia came home and told them she had dinner with Kathleen and Nancy. "Your sisters?" Um, yes, Meredith, they were your in-laws and the aunts/grandmother of your children. You know who they are. It makes me sad that Zola, Bailey and Ellis obviously have no relationship with their aunts/grandmother/cousins and neither Meredith or the Shepherd side have made any effort to maintain one after Derek died.

Considering how heinous they all are, I wouldn't blame Meredith for forgetting to stay in touch.  They clearly didn't bother, either, or they'd have known that they lived together.

[statsgirl]

3 hours ago, funnygirl said:

Nancy isn't wrong: Amelia only got the head of neuro job in Seattle because Derek was going to move to DC.

Amelia got the head of neuro job because she's a good neurosurgeon* and a decent administrator. The position opened up at Seattle Grace because Derek was moving. If he hadn't, there are other hospitals she could have gone to. I found that remark very typical of how in some families, the scapegoat can never do anything right.

Callie could have done the Linc part of the surgery but not the Amelia part.

3 hours ago, deaja said:

Amelia was awful to her family for years. She really gets no sympathy from me. What are they supposed to think after she lied to them for years and shows up faking a husband, and then in one moment they find out that isn’t really her husband, she has/had a brain tumor, and a baby/teenager with her ex husband who she was having Linc pretend to be. 

Actions have consequences. She made her messed up bed and now is mad that they think she messed up the bed. She thinks it says something about them that she didn’t tell them about her brain tumor; it says more about her that they would assume she was lying about the tumor.

I don't remember Amelia treating her family badly although I admit that I was an off-and-on viewer of Private Practice. I don't recall her lying to them for years although she may have; she was a messed up kid who saw her father shot in front of her, her mother step away from parenting and expect her older brother to do it, and was bullied by her older sisters.

When Meredith said "Your sisters?", I took it to mean 'Why would you even contact them?'

I think it says more about her family than it does about Amelia that they assumed that she was lying to them, there is not an ounce of empathy or forgiveness there.  (It reminds me of some members of my extended family for whom I only matter in terms of the status of my husband.)  They weren't around to help her when her baby died if they even know what was going on with her at that time, they refused to come to her wedding. Why would she tell them about her brain tumor? They would be more likely to berate her for being so weak as to grow a tumor and they knew she would mess up than help her through it.

* or a great one considering they flew her to New York from Seattle to do it

Edited April 12, 2019 by statsgirl

[PrincessTT]

6 hours ago, LexieLily said:

Also, Meredith's reaction when Amelia came home and told them she had dinner with Kathleen and Nancy. "Your sisters?" Um, yes, Meredith, they were your in-laws and the aunts/grandmother of your children. You know who they are. It makes me sad that Zola, Bailey and Ellis obviously have no relationship with their aunts/grandmother/cousins and neither Meredith or the Shepherd side have made any effort to maintain one after Derek died.

It makes me particularly sad given that Ma Shepherd knows first-hand how hard it is raising kids on your own after your husband dies.

[llewis823]

I have never been a big Amelia fan. And Linc was just okay. But for some reason, pairing them together - I actually like both of them...somewhat anyway. They may grow on me as they end up being a real couple, which we know will happen. 

My least favorite character on the show these days is Owen. Never really cared much for him anyway, but the past few years, I could actually say that I can't stand his character.

Jo. She's a tough cookie. Her mother explained how it all played out and why she gave her up. She needs to put on her big girl panties and snap out of it. She has a great career, lots of friends and a husband who adores her. And if you can't snap out of it on your own, go see someone who can help you.

[sadie]

Loved it. I have a massive crush on Chris Carmac so I could admitatedly watch him just walk around NYC for an hour. I like Linc and Amelia, I like that Linc isn’t another screwed up character, he seems fun, relaxed and competent. How about a Greys spinoff with Amelia and Linc traveling the world performing surgeries.

The only thing that confused me at the end was the private jet? 

And TPTB please ship Owen off to another country, he literally drags this show down with his whole persona. 

[Sarnia]

10 hours ago, LexieLily said:

Also, Meredith's reaction when Amelia came home and told them she had dinner with Kathleen and Nancy. "Your sisters?" Um, yes, Meredith, they were your in-laws and the aunts/grandmother of your children. You know who they are. It makes me sad that Zola, Bailey and Ellis obviously have no relationship with their aunts/grandmother/cousins and neither Meredith or the Shepherd side have made any effort to maintain one after Derek died.

Well, for all we know maybe the grandmother is the one looking for them when Meredith is busy doing something else (which used to be 99% of the time). Someone has to, right? To be fair, this season the writers seem to do a better job remembering Meredith actually has children at home.

I actually don't remember how Meredith was getting on with the Shepherd family prior to Derek's death? It's sad indeed that the children are cut from half of their family. I would have expected the grandmother at least wanting to keep in touch with the children of her dead son.

[PamelaMaeSnap]

I think my favorite part of this episode was Linc and Amelia eating that pizza. I fess up to being REALLY judgy-judgy when TV shows have people eating "New York pizza" when it is CLEAR that the pizza is nothing of the sort. But in this case, that looked like legit NYP and I loved it and hated it (hated it because I grew up and grew fat on Mimi's Pizza and now, in DC, it's a black pizza hole ... and SO MANY PLACES advertise as having "New York-style pizza" and don't. I can't ask for my money back but it pisses me off. The ONLY place I've ever gone outside of NY/NJ that lived up to the claim was a tiny hole in the wall in Bethany Beach called Pomodoro's (just named the best pizza in Delaware by eatthis so they may not be as obscure soon). 

On a similar note, I'm totally on the Amelia train for plain glazed donuts. That's on my short list (along, of course, with NYP) as one of five things I'd eat if I could ONLY eat five things for the rest of my life and never get fat or clog my arteries. No sprinkles, no chocolate, nothing else. Just perfect hot plain glazed donuts that melt in your mouth (hence the ability to stuff the whole thing in there). 

Loved the last scene with her "real" sisters. Wish she'd brought them a box of donuts. 

[TVForever]

34 minutes ago, sadie said:

Loved it. I have a massive crush on Chris Carmac so I could admitatedly watch him just walk around NYC for an hour. I like Linc and Amelia, I like that Linc isn’t another screwed up character, he seems fun, relaxed and competent. How about a Greys spinoff with Amelia and Linc traveling the world performing surgeries.

The only thing that confused me at the end was the private jet? 

And TPTB please ship Owen off to another country, he literally drags this show down with his whole persona. 

Me too, on the private jet. I finally assumed it was a perk of working for Catherine Fox. I think the NY hospital  was also named Fox something.

[transitfan]

37 minutes ago, sadie said:

The only thing that confused me at the end was the private jet? 

. 

Maybe the Catherine Fox Foundation owns a jet?  They were traveling from one Fox hospital to another.  Sure beats a 5 hour SEA-JFK flight on Delta!

[Laurie4H]

I just find Amelia’s speaking style very annoying.  She is good when talking to patients but otherwise always has to have a sarcastic cutesy way of emphasizing certain words.  Not sure if I’m explaining it correctly.   It’s also sometimes hard to believe she could be such s screw up, alcoholic, drug addict but now be a top neurosurgeon?  That would take years and years of school and dedication.  And she is still supposed to be pretty young?   I can’t remember if they ever explained her background of how she went to medical school?

Edited April 12, 2019 by Laurie4H

[Guest]

Also, I find the whole “Derek had to raise Amelia” to be retcon to justify Amelia’s actions. When Derek describes his family in the early years, it was about them being close knit, how they would drop everything if he was having surgery, etc. They practically took Mark in because his parents were neglectful emotionally. Now that the series has gone on for long enough that they feel out of plot lines, they were all awful except Derek and the woman who took in an extra “son” who needed love pushed her daughter away.

I always want to ignore the inconsistencies to just enjoy the show, but I can’t when it seems so obvious that the writers are changing things to suit whatever their storyline of the week is. It’s been especially bad this season- Jo’s backstory, Meredith’s log surgery, etc.

[Joana]

3 minutes ago, Laurie4H said:

It’s also sometimes hard to believe she could be such s screw up, alcoholic, drug addict but now be a top neurosurgeon?  That would take years and years of school and dedication.  And she is still supposed to be pretty young?   I can’t remember if they ever explained her background of how she went to medical school?

I totally agree, it takes me out of her story as well. I generally like Amelia's character as such, especially over the last couple of seasons, but whenever they start beating us over the head with what a mess she is/was, I just can't relate. Perhaps it was explained better on Private Practice, I don't know, but on Grey's it just looks like a huge amount of info dump that doesn't necessarily align with the character's actual behaviour. I feel they've been doing it a lot lately and it's starting to annoy me - much like the seemingly neverending line of revelations about Jo's horrible, horrible, HORRIBLE life. 

[bunnyface]

I thought she got the glazed donuts because Linc said they were the best glazed donuts he ever had.  But yeah, I would have gotten a few others as well. 

That family as presented?  No wonder Amelia avoids them like the plague.  And Meredith is doing well to keep her kids far, far away from them.  Although since Meredith is never home, between actual work and romantic dinners with boy-toy (can't remember name)  I'm surprised those kids aren't completely feral by now. 

[BaseOps]

1 hour ago, deaja said:

Also, I find the whole “Derek had to raise Amelia” to be retcon to justify Amelia’s actions. When Derek describes his family in the early years, it was about them being close knit, how they would drop everything if he was having surgery, etc. They practically took Mark in because his parents were neglectful emotionally. Now that the series has gone on for long enough that they feel out of plot lines, they were all awful except Derek and the woman who took in an extra “son” who needed love pushed her daughter away.

I always want to ignore the inconsistencies to just enjoy the show, but I can’t when it seems so obvious that the writers are changing things to suit whatever their storyline of the week is. It’s been especially bad this season- Jo’s backstory, Meredith’s log surgery, etc.

She pushed Amelia away for a very specific reason - because she reminded her of their father. That makes sense to me. And it's not like they're suddenly saying that Amelia was forced out, just that emotionally her mother was probably cold to her when she needed her the most. That doesn't really have anything to do with them letting Mark in (if anything, it adds to it - Amelia saw her mother embracing even Derek's friend, meanwhile she didn't get the love/understanding that she needed). 

[readster]

55 minutes ago, Joana said:

I totally agree, it takes me out of her story as well. I generally like Amelia's character as such, especially over the last couple of seasons, but whenever they start beating us over the head with what a mess she is/was, I just can't relate. Perhaps it was explained better on Private Practice, I don't know, but on Grey's it just looks like a huge amount of info dump that doesn't necessarily align with the character's actual behaviour. I feel they've been doing it a lot lately and it's starting to annoy me - much like the seemingly neverending line of revelations about Jo's horrible, horrible, HORRIBLE life. 

Yes, it's too much. It's one thing if it was gradually brought up, but it also shows how the show doesn't plan things out with logical situations like weddings or funerals. I mean, when all of Amelia's sisters are going on how they didn't come to her wedding or the brain tumor. Then add in that Amelia didn't tell them about one thing. It just sparks: "Oh come on!" We get it show, actors were busy, but it reminds me of a classic situation on the TV show Everwood. They planned on killing off one of the characters since the season started. HOWEVER! They only told two of the actors (one was the character dying) who was going to die off. They told everyone else that one person would not be coming back. They finally introduced the character's daughter and explained why they had a falling out. However, when the character died two episodes later. They made the excuse: "Well, her baby had an ear infection and can't come to her own father's funeral." There was an out cry on how stupid that was and it was due to the actress's schedule. HOWEVER, she revealed she didn't know they were killing off her father's character at the time of filming or she would have made changes to work it. 

  When shows make up some excuse because the actor isn't free or something, it just paints it as stupid, especially in episodes like this where you want to go: "That's just a plain stupid excuse!"

[Guest]

17 minutes ago, BaseOps said:

She pushed Amelia away for a very specific reason - because she reminded her of their father. That makes sense to me. And it's not like they're suddenly saying that Amelia was forced out, just that emotionally her mother was probably cold to her when she needed her the most. That doesn't really have anything to do with them letting Mark in (if anything, it adds to it - Amelia saw her mother embracing even Derek's friend, meanwhile she didn't get the love/understanding that she needed). 

I just don’t think it is plausible- like much of the show though. Like you have this warm supportive family, but the mom pushes away the youngest child during trauma because she reminds her of her father. I think it contradicts what we’ve seen and heard of the character prior to this point. 

[chitowngirl]

12 hours ago, LexieLily said:

And I really didn't like when Mama Shepherd said "then that's on you" to Amelia when Amelia asked what if she couldn't get past everything her mother had done.

I took it to mean that Ma Shepard owned up to her part in failing Amy while she was growing up, but if Amy is going to wallow in it and everything is “poor me, my family ignored me”, that’s on Amy. At some point you have to move beyond your upbringing and who you become from it is on you.

[readster]

6 minutes ago, chitowngirl said:

I took it to mean that Ma Shepard owned up to her part in failing Amy while she was growing up, but if Amy is going to wallow in it and everything is “poor me, my family ignored me”, that’s on Amy. At some point you have to move beyond your upbringing and who you become from it is on you.

How I got it too. There comes a point, especially if a parent owns up to it and wants to make amends. Verses a grown child still going: "it's all my parents fault I'm like this." At some point, YOU are in charge of your decisions." Like with Owen who said it was his father's upbringing why he was so focus on "the perfect home life". When the man has been dead for YEARS!

[Jillybean]

I have nothing to add about the great dysfunction that is the Shepherd family. I'll just say that Linc can add another impressive accomplishment to his list of Amazing Things About Amelia: she apparently can walk 14 blocks around NYC in very skinny stiletto heels -- managing to wear them for the entire episode (presumably she changed for surgery?).

I like Linc...I've always liked Linc...Meredith was dumb to pass up a chance at him for Deluca. 

[Lady Calypso]

12 hours ago, izabella said:

Considering how heinous they all are, I wouldn't blame Meredith for forgetting to stay in touch.  They clearly didn't bother, either, or they'd have known that they lived together.

I bet Meredith only stays in touch with Liz. She was the best Shepherd sister, as it turns out. 

The entire Shepherd family is awful and narcissistic and judgemental. None of them are better than the others. 

[iMonrey]

Have we ever seen either of these sisters before? It seems strange that we'd just now be meeting two of Derek's sisters 15 seasons in.

I also thought it was strange that Linc didn't seem to know who Derek Shepard was (or, that he was Amelia's brother, or that he died). Wasn't Derek supposed to be one of the most famous neurosurgeons in the country? Seems like everyone at that hospital knows everyone else's business.

[Shellie]

I like Linc and Amelia together because the relationship has evolved naturally instead of feeling forced. To me, Jackson and Maggie, and Meredith and DeLuca, seem like forced couples. So do Contacts and HAOG. So did Callie and Penny (ugh).  This relationship is believable. At first they get together for sex, and Linc is sweet on Amelia but she doesn't reciprocate. He's confident enough that he isn't too bothered and he continues gently pursuing her. By now, they are close friends. Perhaps the relationship will evolve into romance.