Review: Grey’s Anatomy Season Premiere
Gettysburgian TV critic Jackie McMahon
By Jacqueline McMahon, Staff Writer
Grey’s Anatomy is back in more ways than one after its two-part season premiere on September 28th. After a disastrous thirteenth season, the show recaptured some of its signature spirit with two new episodes, entitled “Break Down the House” and “Get Off on the Pain”. What made Grey’s Anatomy such an amazing show for its first ten or so seasons was how it depicted serious drama alongside relatable characters, authentic friendships and occasional humor. Season thirteen was all over the place in terms of storylines and many of the characters behaved in ways that contradicted their personalities. If the premiere was any indication, this is something that will be remedied in season fourteen, thanks to the return of veteran Grey’s writer Krista Vernoff.
The premiere addressed many of the loose ends that needed to be tied up from the previous season. Abigail Spencer made her debut as Megan Hunt, the sister of Owen who was previously presumed deceased after being held captive in Iraq. Though Owen was overjoyed at her return, it caused trouble for Meredith and Nathan’s burgeoning relationship, as Nathan still harbors feelings for his former fiancée. Owen’s old wartime friend Teddy also made a reappearance and a conflicted Owen kissed her, cheating on estranged wife Amelia and calling the future of their already fractured marriage into question.
Another sister also came to Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital – Andrew DeLuca’s sister Carina, who Arizona hooked up with after meeting her at the bar, unaware that Carina was related to her roommate. The DeLucas bickering in Italian was funny and lighthearted, emphasized by Arizona’s confused expression throughout the entire exchange. Speaking of Andrew, the resident’s unrequited feelings for Jo were finally addressed, with Jo telling DeLuca that she still was still in love with ex-boyfriend Alex. Hopefully DeLuca will finally get the hint and go back to being just friends with Jo, because their platonic relationship was delightful until the writers decided to ruin it with a one-sided crush.
The Jo-Alex storyline was a major plot point that was ignored in season thirteen, so it was refreshing to see their relationship take center stage in the premiere. In an effort to get over her ex, Jo slept with a geeky intern, only to regret it as she snuck out of his mother’s basement the next morning. This funny anecdote was reminiscent of Meredith’s ill-fated season two hookup with George back in the show’s glory days. Jo confessed to Ben that Alex’s punching of DeLuca – which occurred way back in the season twelve finale – triggered painful memories of her past abuse at the hands of her husband. Ben gave Jo an empowering pep talk in which he assured her that the domestic violence she endured wasn’t her fault, and that Alex only beat up DeLuca due to the mistaken belief that Jo was in danger. At the episode’s end, Alex reaffirmed his love for Jo and told her that he would never hurt her (having experienced abuse himself from his late father), and the couple reconciled with a steamy kiss. Now that “Jolex” are happy again, it seems inevitable that Jo’s husband will show up sooner or later to wreak havoc on their lives –Because that’s just the way it works in Grey’s Anatomy, isn’t it?
The premiere also introduced another serious and potentially deadly new storyline –while participating in Carina’s research study, Amelia discovered that she has a brain tumor, which has been secretly altering her personality for years. Vernoff clarified in an interview that she introduced the storyline to explain away Amelia’s notoriously erratic behavior in season thirteen. Hopefully the shocking reveal will be able to mend her tenuous relationship with husband Owen, but news of his infidelity might be the nail in their marriage’s coffin.
Grey’s Anatomy’s premiere has already planted seeds for future storyline possibilities, so keep watching season fourteen to see what fates will befall our favorite surgeons. As the theme song says, nobody knows where he or she might end up.
