It really feels like after Grey's Anatomy got the business of the premiere out of the way — they obviously had to advance some storylines/the timeline fairly quickly — episode 2 is quite the fresh start.
For starters, thanks to the three fired doctors, some of the OG Grey's Anatomy characters are embarking on exciting new adventures outside the hospital they’ve worked at for so many years. Karev (Justin Chambers) and Webber (James Pickens Jr.) start at Pacific Northwest General Hospital and it's a dumpster fire compared to Grey Sloane. But as Karev points out to the Chief at the end of the episode, this is their chance to build a new legacy and really help some people out by turning that hospital around. It'll be exciting to watch, though probably also a little heartbreaking, since you know there are going to be struggles and lost patients in the process.
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Speaking of struggles in the healthcare field, Meredith (Ellen Pompeo) starts diagnosing people on her work crew, including the supervisor. In a lovely bit of levity, she enlists Schmitt (Jake Borelli) and Jackson (Jesse Williams) to help her — and those two Gryffindors are not afraid to do so.
It actually turns out that Meredith's supervisor has thyroid cancer, which is very treatable, but her work/insurance situation is not great — she'll probably have to choose between bankruptcy and death. It spurs Meredith to write a paper about her experience with the work crew people, which is the exact opposite of keeping her head down while she awaits her medical board hearing in three months.
What do you want to bet Meredith figures out a way to open a free clinic or something? That feels like a very real possibility for her storyline this season.
Back at Grey Sloane, Bailey (Chandra Wilson) decides to take out her frustration at Tom's (Greg Germann) promotion by being extra tough on her batch of interns, including DeLuca (Giacomo Gianniotti). He thinks her rough attitude is because she's mad at Meredith, so she basically has to tell him to get over himself and focus on his career.
Focusing on one's career is also what Jo (Camilla Luddington) is doing as she attempts to come back to work. Karev offers her a really sweet deal to come to Pac North, but Jo takes that deal to Bailey to get Bailey to make her general surgery attending at Grey Sloane. Good for you, Jo.
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Finally, in easily the best storyline of the week, Amelia (Caterina Scorsone) has to tell Link (Chris Carmack) about the pregnancy, and with that comes her revealing to him what happened with her baby during her time on Private Practice. Baby Christopher was diagnosed in the womb with anencephaly, which is the absence of a major portion of the brain. Babies born that way usually only survive for a very short amount of time; Amelia got to hold her baby and name him and then she donated his organs to help other babies in need.
It was devastating on Private Practice and it's almost as devastating here just hearing her talk about it. Link is so moved and concerned that he basically says the exact right thing — if you want to keep the baby, let's do this. And if you don't, I will help you every step of the way. He's so great.
Of course, that makes things harder for Amelia because it seems like she had kind of made up her mind not to go through with the pregnancy — until Link reminded her how amazing he is. When she is finally completely honest with him, she tells him that she kind of loves him and she wants to meet the incredible kid they are bound to have. He says he kind of does too and that's how they leave things. It's incredibly sweet. Love those two.
Odds and Ends
A couple of storylines don't quite fit with the general narrative this week, but they bear mentioning.
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1. Maggie (Kelly McCreary) gets hit by a guy on a scooter while she's sitting in her car. The doctors manage to save him, but you have to wonder if there is some kind of lawsuit in her future.
2. While saving said scooter guy, Owen (Kevin McKidd) accidentally shocks Tom's genitals with the heart paddles. That was... a choice on the part of the writers. It wasn't particularly funny and now Tom has a restraining order against Owen, which seems A) totally out of character and B) like some really contrived drama. Thumbs down to this whole deal.
3. Something that gets a big thumbs up is the dialog this episode, because it was nothing short of great.
There was this gem:
Amelia: "Hey, remember how careful we were? Not careful enough, daddy!"
And this exchange:
Schmitt: "Am I gonna get arrested? I feel like I'm going to get arrested ... I just stole from the hospital!"
Meredith: "I own the hospital! That's my stuff! You just brought me my stuff!"
Oh and this whole thing:
Tom: "I don't trust bottom-feeders to touch patients. That's why I don't teach."
Jackson: "...this is a teaching hospital."
And lastly, one for the Harry Potter fans in the house:
Schmitt: "I'm a Gryffindor, I'm brave. I'm scared all the time, but I'm brave."