Grey's Anatomy: Hoping for a Giant Talking Rabbit

I wasn't going to do a Grey's Anatomy post this week; I figured this was a TV blog, not a Grey's blog. However, it doesn't feel right to watch an episode without blogging these days.

Truth be told, I missed the beginning of the episode. I'm one of those strange creatures without either cable or satellite and relying on the ancient technology of a rabbit-ear antenna and a digital-TV converter box. So, last night, just as Grey's began, my formerly clear picture decided to turn into a series of strange, digital blotches that sounded like a robot was trying to take over Grey's Anatomy. I spent ten minutes fiddling with the stupid antenna only to settle for a picture that, while interrupted by digital static, was, at least viewable. Thus, I missed much of the stuff at the beginning with Callie, Arizona and Callie's father. I missed the part where Izzie decided to become a maniacal wedding planner. I finally managed to get my picture back when Callie was ranting in Spanish to Arizona. Which reads rather strangely unless you know Arizona is a person.
So, static aside, I quite liked this episode. I love that Meredith and Lexie are finally acting like sisters. I've mentioned it several times, but I adore how Meredith has grown. She allows herself to be happy now, even for short spells. I love that. I like that I saw Lexie when my static settled and I was shocked that she seemed to have gained weight and looked much heavier. I remembered that the actress who plays her, Chyler Lee, is pregnant in real life and I enjoyed the fact they covered this up by making Lexie into a stress-eater. It worked nicely.

I am sad that Bailey's marriage is likely to be over because her dedication to her job is taking her from her family. Yes, she should have been at home with her little boy instead of at the hospital on her day off but watching her cradle that little dying girl was heartbreaking and sad and it reminded me that one of the reasons I love Bailey is because she's more than just a doctor. She's a person with a heart and though it gets her in trouble, it's also one of the best things about the show. The only thing that worries me is that she's TOO close to her patients and she has the danger of becoming The New Izzie. I confess, as touching as some of her scenes are, I do miss the smart-mouthed Bailey who used to be called "The Nazi" and kept her interns in line.

I loved the scene with Alex and George in the bar. I love Alex because in spite of his cockiness, smart mouth and meanness to others, it's all a mask for the fact that he's vulnerable and scared. It's taken a few seasons but we're getting to see the real Alex and it's hard to watch. The way he treated George was wrong and...yet...the scene in the bar explained it all. Alex is terrified. He knows he might lose the one thing that is making him human, the one thing that makes him brave enough to show his vulnerability. Ironically, it's also the one thing that is going to break him because of this vulnerability. Watching him admit he wasn't sure he could handle Izzie's sickness was hard to watch because it was so believable.

Owen and Christina...well...there's not much to say about that except Hunt is broken and he needs to be fixed before he's safe for Christina. They're good together but his moments of rage and disorientation, caused by his PTSD...not good for her. I'm glad he's getting help.

I saved Izzie for last because it's Izzie and you know how I feel about Izzie. I AM sad that she's sick. I am sad that, finally, last night, she had to face the fact that she was sick and she can't be the same annoying, perky person she used to be. I'm glad for that because I wanted to smack her a couple of times. Her faking symptoms and medical crises to get what she wanted was too Typical Izzie. Typical Izzie is the one I don't like because she doesn't think about others, just herself. I know she has cancer and that it's understandable to think of herself but we all knew she was going to be the Girl Who Cried Wolf and so when she collapsed dramatically on the wedding dresses, it wasn't a shock.

I stand by my original hope: I want Izzie to die. I'm not some cruel, unfeeling human who goes around typically wanting cancer victims to die, trust me. I just don't think the show will be the same if Izzie beats the odds and somewhat miraculously recovers. It's time for her to go while we still care. Also, I'm hearing rumours that Dead Denny will be back in which case, you know I'm going to say much harsher things in the future. I get that he's a symptom of her illness but can't the writers do something a little more tolerable like...I don't know...have her hallucinate a giant talking rabbit? It worked for Donnie Darko and that was an AWESOME film.

So...I'm hoping Izzie follows through and dies. I think the show would be new and fresh again and give it room to grow. It's improved over the past few episodes but it still has a long way to go to be as exciting and interesting as Season 2. Yet...it's better. At the very least, there's no Dead Denny.

For now.

Sympathy for the not-so Devil...

So...tonight, I went into Grey's Anatomy with a new attitude. I decided that I wasn't being fair on Izzie, that just because if I knew her in life, she'd drive me to the edge, it wasn't fair to be so harsh on her. She is, after all, dying.

Mostly, I went into it with the attitude that her impending health decline was going to affect her friends and I do care about them. George, for example. He and Izzie have been best friends, soul mates in compassion and caring. Yes, they had the ill fortune to have an affair but, in all honesty, in real life...that happens. Friends mistake friendship for...something more. It's a nice bond; sex is just the sealant on an already strong relationship. But it also becomes a corrosive, wearing away at the bonds of friendship; perhaps it wasn't good sex, perhaps the deep feeling of connection didn't last beyond the last passionate embrace. Whatever it was, their friendship suffered because of their attempt to take it further. He's hurting because he feels as though he's lost touch with Izzie. Only Callie, once the victim of George/Izzie's ill-fated relationship, could make George see how much Izzie really meant...to both of them.

I care about Christina's reaction to Izzie. Christina "the Robot" as Izzie dubbed her. Christina is a strong, amazing doctor but she's used to detaching from a patient so that she can be a better doctor. Try as she might, she can't do that with Izzie, for better or for worse. Izzie and Christina have always been polar opposites, one feeling too much, one feeling too little. Now, at last, they're finding a way to balance each other out which is, in my opinion, a reason to not hate Izzie. Christina is strong, so strong she's allowed Owen to hurt her, to strangle her and still she forgives him. Yet, alone in the dark with him, she realizes that even she, as strong as she is, is afraid. So she does the only thing she has the power to do, she lets go. It hurts...but she lets go.

Then there's Meredith who struggles to be a better, stronger person, a strong, smart doctor and a girlfriend who isn't imprisoned by her past mistakes. She's always tried to extend the hand of friendship to Izzie but has never understood her; Izzie found light in darkness, Meredith absorbed the darkness and let it become her. Yet tonight, Derek finally proposed the right way, the only way that he could possibly have done in order to get Meredith to say yes. I admit, I knew it was coming but...yet...I can't help but be ecstatic. The elevator non-proposal, the recap of their amazing moments together in surgery...everything about that was right and so I look to these two in the future to guide the show, to continue to make us care.

And Alex...poor Alex. He's opened himself up, fought his natural instincts to let Izzie into his heart. He fell for her, completely and utterly. He's never had anything to hold onto; his family was abusive and cruel, providing little foundation for healthy romantic relationships. Yet Izzie provided the stability he needed and, at last, Alex found sure footing on which to build hopes and dreams. I love how he struggled tonight; he wanted to run but he couldn't. He cares too much. He knows Izzie is the best woman he's ever had and so, rather than cut and run, he's there, sitting by her bedside, ensuring a future life will be made of their union. He's trying...and Izzie is the reason.

So, you see, I can't hate Izzie, no matter how irritating she can be. Her character has had an influence on everyone, good and bad. Yes, mostly, I want to make her stop talking, even before she had cancer that affected her brain, I wanted someone to take away her medical license so she couldn't hurt anyone else. I always though Izzie would make a fine social worker, her do-good nature perfectly placed to help others without the risk of killing them accidentally.

Yet that's not going to happen. I don't know what will happen to Izzie, whether Derek's skills as a brain surgeon will truly give her more time or if, as I suspect, they just postpone the inevitable. Last week, I pleaded for Izzie to die. I've had a change of heart. I do want Katherine Heigl to leave the show because I think it needs changes and I think she's bringing it down. I don't know if I want Izzie to die; it would make sense but it might not be right. The odds are against her, whether or not Derek gave her more time to live her life and, perhaps, say goodbye.

Here's what I suspect...Izzie will have a new lease on life. She will seize the day with Alex; I wouldn't be surprised if a wedding is in their future. Yet I also suspect the happiness will be brief. We may not be witness to Izzie's sad death but, then again, I don't rule anything out. I do think Alex will be crushed and have to rise out of the ashes to regain his grasp on life. I hope he does. I hope all of my troubled yet brilliant residents at Seattle Grace can deal with Izzie's illness properly...by appreciating that which she gave them but knowing that they have to carry on, no matter what the outcome.

So, you see, for once, I'm not rooting against Izzie Stevens. Instead, I'm rooting for her. I did feel sorry for her tonight, she sat alone in her hospital room, terrified but trying to be brave. Bailey was there for her, reassuring her through science, comforting her with facts. Her friends were too scared, too afraid of what Izzie's illness means to them. Yet, in the end, they were there, terrified with her, hoping that she would be ok, proving that they are truly the 'people' that Izzie needs.

It took a while but I might be finally jumping on the bandwagon. Don't get me wrong, it still doesn't excuse Dead Denny but it does, at last, make me care about Izzie. It took long enough and it's scary but...it's happening. I just hope it lasts.

Depressed Derek, Soft Bailey...What's Happening to Grey's Anatomy?

So, it seems that unless I'm blogging about Grey's Anatomy, I don't blog much on Captain TV. Sad, really. It's not like I'm not watching any TV. Currently, my roster of shows is down to: 24, Lost, Grey's Anatomy, The Office and Dollhouse. This is a rather shocking thing to realize. I usually watch much more TV than that. Of course, I'm not admitting that I do, occasionally, get horribly and reluctantly sucked into The Ghost Whisperer but I promise you, afterwards I feel guilty, as though I should take a shower or something.

However, Grey's was back this week and, naturally, I have to blog about it. It used to be my favourite evening of TV. I won't say that I don't enjoy it anymore but it feels a little more like work and a little less like a way to unwind.

I don't like angry Derek. From the moment he sat on the sofa eating Alex's cereal, I wanted to smack him. I'm sure that killing that pregnant woman accidentally in the last episode had to have been hard but you'd think his high level of self-righteousness that surrounds him like a cloud would at least assist him in accepting his mistake. After all, when Meredith was trying to be a good human being and give the benefit-of-the-doubt to Eric Stoltz's serial killer character a few weeks ago, Derek was quite happy to condemn the prisoner and satisfy his own ego instead of doing what would have been the best action for the greater good. Machiavelli has been coming up a lot in my life lately and whether the end truly justifies the means. It does in TV shows, I can tell you that. Just watch 24 sometime. Jack Bauer's rather brutal torture methods are effective and usually assist in saving the U.S. from a rather nasty attack of some kind or another.

I think Derek is feeling sorry for himself. He has a right to, I suppose. His death toll is greater than the lives he's saved. He gets to wallow for one week, in my book. This has been his week. Next week, he better suck it up and start acting decently again or I'm going to dislike him even more than I ever have before. As I've said, I have a soft spot for Meredith. I'm not as dark and twisty but there are aspects of Meredith I can relate to just because I get her. I don't like Derek treating her badly. I was angry when he threw away that ring but I'm proud of her for not leaving him. I just hope they find that ring. When I was a little kid, I used to like to play hide and seek with objects. I once had a Snoopy ring that I loved. I thought it'd be fun to 'lose' it and then find it again so I tossed it into the long grass of our backyard. I never did find that damn ring and to this day, I kick myself for being so stupid that I threw it in the first place. Maybe I'm a little too invested in that ring of Derek's but not because I want him to propose; rather, I just want him to find the damn thing before it's lost because he'll wake up 20 years later and still wonder where the heck it went to.

But I digress. I haven't even begun to talk about Izzie yet. For a few moments, I actually felt sorry for her. She has cancer. She wasn't supposed to have cancer, if you believe the early spoilers for the show but I'm guessing that it was the only diagnosis that made sense. It's fine with me just as long as she doesn't start hallucinating about Dead Denny* again.

(*side note: Dead Denny, aka Jeffrey Dean Morgan, was in "The Watchmen" which I saw this weekend. I wasn't sure if I'd be able to deal with him given how much you know I adored him when he was haunting Izzie (yes, sarcasm intended). I will say he was excellent and not, for one moment, did he act like Dead Denny. I like him again now. Just as long as he doesn't come back to Grey's Anatomy.)

Anyway, I feel a little bad for Izzie. I get that she's not ready to tell Alex that she's sick. He's finally getting respect as a doctor and it suits him. She doesn't want to bring him back down again when he's finally getting to move up. I even get why she's not ready to tell George; he's her best friend. Telling him makes it real. So she told Christina. I get that, I suppose. Christina will digest the news and process it but she won't let it get in the way of her being a good doctor. Everyone else would be too emotional. It makes sense.

Yet there was still a little part of me that wondered why she was going through such drama with the interns. Did she know her diagnosis or did their discovery of her disease provide the answer that she sought? If so, honestly, did she really trust those interns and their accuracy? Seriously? They're the lamest, most generic group of characters on any show since Season 7 of Buffy when the Slayerettes invaded Sunnydale.

I wanted her to tell Lexie. I used to think Lexie was a stupid plot device yet somehow over the course of a season, she's become a real character and I like her. She's the new George O'Malley only, you know, smarter. George is pretty useless these days. He pops up, interjects a few lines of dialogue and then he's gone.

I would have liked to have seen Izzie be honest with someone who would have probably had an emotional reaction in the beginning but would have been able to pull it together enough to figure out what Izzie's best course of action should be. I think Lexie could have been that person. I was ok with it being Christina until I saw the previews for next week. It looks like Izzie is going to swear Christina to secrecy which is going to annoy the crap out of me. We had to endure weeks of Dead Denny, can we not move Izzie's plot along any faster? If Katherine Heigl is leaving, I say just get rid of her now. Let her go forth and make more generic romantic comedies like "27 Dresses" that are entertaining but would be the exact same movie if she were replaced by Reese Witherspoon, Kate Hudson, Anne Hathaway or even Anna Faris.

I know it sounds mean but I really hope they follow through and kill Izzie. There's rumours that Shonda Rhimes is going to pull a bait-and-switch and kill George and let Izzie live. That would annoy me a lot. Kill Izzie. Seriously. Really. She's annoying. She's a terrible doctor. She's kind of stupid. Mostly, I just don't like Izzie and I think it'd be a more interesting show without her.

The rest of the characters were a little bland tonight. I normally like Bailey but I hate that she had to enlist the aid of the Chief's wife to get him to listen to her. The old Bailey, the one who hadn't suddenly decided she wanted to be a pediatric surgeon even though she crumbles at the thought of a child dying, the old Bailey would have made the Chief respect her decision. She wouldn't have needed help in getting him to listen to her. I don't like that she's softening up. I love Miranda Bailey because she doesn't take crap from anyone. Or, at least, she didn't used to.

I can't say I don't like the show anymore because if I didn't, I wouldn't still watch it or spend the time blogging about it. What I will say is that I recently rewatched Seasons 1 and 2. I wish Shonda and her team of writers would do the same thing. Those seasons were excellent. Season 3 wasn't bad but it had a few mistakes. Since then, the characters have evolved but not in the way you want them to evolve. The only character change I like is Meredith because hers has been a natural growth, a move from being isolated to being part of something. Sometimes it's best to stick with a good thing. Shonda, you don't need to make crazy things happen. The best moments of the show are when the doctors are being good doctors and they have good patients. There are fewer and fewer of those. I live in hope that we'll have more again but I'm starting to lose my faith again.

But, as I remind myself, there's no more Denny and that, at least, scores some points with me.

There is NO Denny, There is NO Denny (Say it with me now)

I've figured out how to make Grey's Anatomy good again. I simply ignore all contact and conversation between Izzie and Denny. It's that simple. It's actually getting easier each week; I think I've mysteriously trained my brain to ignore it and so tuning them out is rather simple.

That being said, I have to confess: I liked Grey's this week. Seriously.

Ignoring the Izzie breaking up with Dead Denny storyline (although, seriously, didn't you for just one moment wish, at the end of the episode, that Alex could see Denny too so that maybe he'd punch his lights out and send him back from whence he came?) I have to say, I'm liking the drama of the serial killer played by Eric Stoltz. I can't remember the serial killer's name so I'm just going to call him SK for now, ok?

Yes, it's farfetched and overly dramatic but it's working for me. I love that Meredith is continuing her journey from being dark and twisty to being a multifacited individual who can seperate herself from her boyfriend's wants and needs. I love that she's so torn about doing a kind thing for SK and knowing that he probably doesn't deserve it. I think that's a natural reaction; I mean, honestly, isn't wanting a serial killer to die still wanting to take a life, no matter how much the killer deserves it? That's a heavy issue and I'm not going to start a debate about the death penalty. Yet I think SK was right when he told Derek that they were two sides of the same coin. SK wanted to take the victim's life because it made him feel better, regardless of how twisted that is. He took his victim's freedom of choice away. Derek wants to save SK's life so that he can die by capital punishment, taking away SK's freedom of choice. It's different...but it's not.

I like that the show is making me think. What would I do? Would I be compassionate, like Meredith, treating SK like he's any patient or would I be like Derek, bitter and slightly self-righteous because of a personal tragedy that occured because of someone like SK?

I don't like that Sadie is trying to be sympathetic. She's going away though, thank goodness, according to several TV spoiler sites. Thank goodness; maybe we can get Meredith and Christina back on track.

Because, let's face it, they need each other. Tonight, Meredith had the terrifying task of meeting Derek's mother, even though she's 'not good with parents'. Christina got asked out on a date by Dr. Hunt. Normally, there would be scenes of angsty discussion where they snarkily exchange information that shows the deep bond that holds their friendship together. Instead, they had to turn to Izzie, which is NEVER a good idea. Izzie has terrible judgment. She falls in love with dying patients, cuts their LVAD wires, saves a deer in the parking lot instead of being inside the hospital, she breaks up marriages and declares herself to be in love with George when the only chemistry they really have is the momentum of the wrongness of their being together. Now she has Alex hooked, poor, emotionally stunted Alex who is trying harder than he's ever tried to be right for Izzie. She's trying, I'll give her that. She tried to kick Denny to the curb but he didn't go.

Yet she is no substitute as a friend for Christina or Meredith. Izzie is too perky, too sunshiny to be helpful to Meredith and too fluffy to help with Christina's romantic issues. Meredith and Christina need each other and I'm hoping that they realize that sooner than later because it's hard to watch them skate around one another, the tension so thick it's visible.

So, overall, it was a good episode, ignoring that Dead Denny stuff. I can't wait until next week, which is definitely a forgotten feeling with Grey's as of late. I want to see if SK really does save the life of little Jackson, whether even a serial killer can find redemption by saving a life. We'll have to see, I suppose.