Grey's Anatomy Finally Gets Good Again

No question about it -- the Writer's Strike sucked. However, there is some good that came out of it, namely a chance for some shows that had gotten a bit tired to find their creative juices again. Grey's Anatomy was definitely one of those shows.

If you had asked me a few months ago if I cared whether Meredith and Derek got back together or separated permanently, I probably would have told you I couldn't care less. Cut to me bawling last night as the tortured lovebirds shared a passionate kiss on the piece of land Derek had bought with the intention of building his dream house for the two of them to live. Meredith is working through her crap. Derek can't let go of the woman he loves.

I cared. I really cared.

I also cared that Callie finally owned up to the complicated feelings she was having for Haun; that an over-worked Bailey handed over the reins of her beloved clinic to a still-floundering Izzie; that Alex let himself break down on Izzie's shoulder; that George and Christina both re-found their mojo; and that the Chief has been accepted back into his home. I really cared.

Kudos to Ellen Pompeo, Patrick Dempsey, Sara Ramirez, Brooke Smith, Justin Chambers, TR Knight, and Katherine Heigl for their phenomenal work on last night's episode. A special shout-out must go to Chandra Wilson, who once again showed that she is one of this show's strongest weapons. That Stars Wars speech was genius! I can't wait for the fall to see how the developments continue to play out.

TV Thoughts on Grey's Anatomy: Here We Are Again

I haven't had a chance to watch Private Practice yet (one week into the season and I'm already desperately behind!), but I did finally catch the Grey's Anatomy season premiere last night, and I'm left thinking...here we are again.

As Meredith pontificated at the end of the episode, sometimes the more things change, the more they stay the same. And while that is probably true in real life, it doesn't always make for super compelling television. Like, are we seriously watching Meredith and Derek dance around each other again? Seriously? I can't tell if they are broken up or together, and to be honest, I'm starting not to care.

Izzie and the deer? Katherine Heigl is a big movie star now and she just won an Emmy Award, people, and she's stuck with a subplot that has her "making the impossible come true"? Ugh, gag me.

And I'm not feeling all the new interns -- it just seems like a group of extras standing around. When Meredith, Izzie, Christina and company started as interns they were a compelling, interested, ambitious bunch. These people just stand there. I'm already over them.

That's not to say the episode didn't have it's moments. Among the highlights:

-Sandra Oh's brilliant reaction when Derek informed her Burke had left the hospital. This woman can do no wrong. And while having the accident victim's children weep over their Burke-lookalike father was a bit heavy handed, it did give Ms. Oh the chance to do some fine dramatic work, so I'll let it slide. And that moment with Alex at the end, where she admits "I miss Burke"? Heartbreaking.

-TR Knight, TR Knight, TR Knight! Hands down the best part of the episode for me was watching George grapple with being a completely different person in exactly the same position he was in a year ago. I teared up when George delivered the baby, and found my eyes misty again when Lexie (Chyler Leigh) boosted him up by repeating "on his very first day" as the other interns were in awe over his accomplishments. My gosh, I love TR.

-Speaking of Lexie, I thought this character was going to be DOA when she decided to introduce herself to Meredith in the ER, but she more than redeemed herself with her chats with George. I won't write her off just yet.

So, not the best Grey's episode ever, but not the total dud I'm hearing Private Practice was. Let's see what happens to the gang from Seattle Grace next week...

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TR Knight Will Return to Grey's Anatomy

Entertainment Weekly is reporting that TR Knight, who plays lovable intern George on Grey's Anatomy, will return to the show next season, despite the fact that his character failed his intern test in the season finale.

There had been rumors circulating that either TR or Isaiah Washington (who plays Dr. Burke) might not return, but EW claims that not only will TR be back on our screens come fall, he will also receive a sizable pay bump. Supposedly he will now be earning 125K an episode and will receive a share of the show's profits, a deal similar to the ones made by Sandra Oh, Patrick Dempsey, and Ellen Pompeo. It apparently has not been decided whether Washington will return.

There is also no word on Katherine Heigl's salary negotiations, which have gotten a ton of press coverage in the past week since Knocked Up made almost $30 million at the box office this past weekend (by the way I saw it and loved it!) ABC released a statement a couple of months ago, however, saying that Heigl would definitely return to the hit series.

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Idol Thoughts on Grey's Anatomy Season Finale

For a show that has kept me on the edge of my seat for the past three years, last night's season finale of Grey's Anatomy was a bit of a disappointment.

Don't get me wrong, there were still some spectacular and surprising moments. I didn't predict, for example, that George wouldn't pass his intern test -- that's an unexpected twist that will certainly have big repercussions next season, as George has to decide whether to repeat his intern year or simply leave the program (in addition, of course, to figuring out how to sort out his love for two very different women). I don't know how that one is going to pan out, but I'm eager and interested to find out. And I loved his answer when Lexie asked him if had any advice -- simply "No."

And the way the Burke/Christina wedding played out was compelling and complex, raising interesting questions about whether we want the person we are in a relationship with to change who they are for us, or if we love them for who they really are. After her momentary freak-out at the wedding chapel, Christina really did seem ready to walk down the aisle, which made her exclamation of "I'm free" after Burke had left her all the more powerful. Did she want to give herself over to the "happy ending," or was that "happy ending" designed for someone Christina thought she was supposed to be? Throughout the episode Sandra Oh played every moment perfectly, and her final breakdown even left me a bit misty.

In fact, all of the acting was excellent throughout the episode -- TR Knight's quiet realization that his whole life was crumbling around him was heartbreaking; Chandra Wilson's devastation at being passed over for the chief residency was palpable; and Ellen Pompeo's confusion over whether or not she was able to commit to Derek was utterly believable. Patrick Dempsey, Justin Chambers, and Katherine Heigl also had incredibly powerful moments throughout the show.

So what are my complaints? Well, there's a few.

First of all, for weeks we've been waiting for the George & Izzie affair to hit the fan, for Callie to find out, for something other than longing looks between the two and stolen elevator kisses. Instead, we get talk of Callie and George trying to have a baby? I buy that Callie is trying to hold on as she feels George slipping away, but I was hoping for more of an explosion -- but I guess we'll have to wait until next season to see how that all plays out.

Then there's the whole search-for-the-chief thing. This storyline has been going on for months, and what do we get for a resolution -- the chief is staying? Boring! Yeah, yeah, I get that we'll get to see how he will do things differently "the second time around," but I still feel like I've been a bit manipulated.

The Alex-running-to-Ava's-room-but-he's-too-late moment was also a bit annoying -- after months of watching Alex's bad-boy persona start to thaw, he figure's out he really does want to be with her, but just a moment too late? Come on! I have loved much of this storyline throughout the season (and enjoyed watching Justin Chambers reveal different layers to his character), but this ending feels a bit trite to me.

And what about Addison? We know she's leaving (Private Practice was picked up for the fall, after all), and we got a hint as to what the straw-that-broke-the-camel's-back was (the Chief's comment that she should "find a new job or find a new life"), but we never actually saw Addison quit and we never got to see her say goodbye to anyone. What's going to happen in the fall -- she'll just show up in LA? Considering the history she has with Derek and Mark (not to mention the friendships she's developed with Callie and Alex, and her complex relationships with Meredith), it would have been nice to see Addison actually depart Seattle Grace before setting off on her new life. Ah well.

Speaking of leaving -- is Burke gone? As in off the show gone?

And finally, there's the little issue of Meredith's sister showing up as a new intern. Aren't there any other hospitals in Seattle? And won't Meredith's father have an issue with Lexie working at the hospital where his wife (and Lexie's mother) just died? I hope Shonda Rhimes and company can resist the urge to have Lexie start hooking up with Derek -- if Meredith's half-sister has Meredith's father, her job, and her McDreamy, it may be too much for our little waif to handle. Hopefully there is a different reason the writers have in mind for Lexie's arrival.

Despite these reservations, I still love the show, and I, like millions of other fans, will wait patiently until the fall so we can see how everything pans out. I'm rootin' for these folks.

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