What's it about?
When Derek receives an unexpected and unwelcome visit from his estranged sister, Amelia, issues between the siblings -- both past and present -- come to the surface; the Chief tries to help Alex when he notices that he's refusing to use the elevators after his near-fatal shooting; and Meredith and Derek continue their efforts to ease Cristina back into surgery after her post-traumatic stress.
Review
This week it's time for our first cross over with the guys and gals of 'Private Practice' and you could be forgiven for thinking it a nice subtle crossover until the final moments of the episode (see above image for a clue!).
Amelia's visit to Seattle is one of several plot lines that take place in this episode and although it takes up very little screen time it is clearly going to have an impact for the foreseeable future. Despite the heartbreaking ending this episode feels different to the others we've so far seen in this season, there's a little more hope and a little less despair at Seattle Grace.
The biggest complaint I've heard from fans over recent weeks has been the changes to the character of Yang. It's true that she is barely recogniseable to her character of the last six years but amongst all the complaints about her losing her bite the viewing public seem to have forgotten that even those who seem invincible are subject to human behavior. The writers have taken a big gamble in breaking down one of their strongest characters and hopefully it will be a compelling story to watch as she builds herself back up again. If this show has one aspect (outside of the medical world) that is does best it's knocking down and rebuilding characters as they learn and grow.
The affect of Yang's self-doubt continues to throw up interesting character moments which don't necessarily put a downer on events in the show, for instance her three-in-a-bed moments with Derek and Meredith are some of the more touching moments of the episode rather than a visual representation of her gloomy mood.
There's now a war for the most compelling will-they-won't-they couple between Callie/Arizona, Teddy/Andrew and Mark/Lexie. All three are great to watch but for the time being I think the writers are persuading us to pull for Mark and Lexie the most as they seem to be able to provide the most heartbreak on the road to happiness a la Mer and Der in past seasons.
It's always good to see Dr Bailey get some comedic moments, no matter what you throw at her she will be able to deal with it with amazing depth and feeling but when you get a Bailey laugh you know you're watching some classic 'Grey's Anatomy' and the really quite disturbing moment (for arachnophobes of the world) does also provide some good laughs.
We're taking baby steps on the road to recovery and although I've prefer strides to steps you can't fault this episode for it's character development.
Next week...
Things are hostile on all fronts when a visit to the obstetrician results in some disturbing news for Meredith and Derek, and Lexie loses it when she notices Meredith and April getting closer. Meanwhile a car crash brings in multiple traumas and Jackson tries using his physical attributes to get ahead in the operating room, while Cristina's self-doubt carries outside of the hospital and into her house hunting with Owen.
Overall
Story 4.0
Character 4.0
Medical content 4.0
Overall 4.0
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