First things first. Not to brag, but I totally called it last week when I speculated that the Owen Hunt/Nathan Riggs tension was not war-related, as we were clearly being led to assume, but some sort of family/childhood/personal thing. Told ya. More on that later. In the meantime, let us tally the cliffhangers in the Grey’s Anatomy Winter Finale, “Things We Lost In The Fire”. By my count, there are at least four, if you’ll pardon the pun, burning questions left unanswered, along with a slew of other developments. On your mark. Get set. GO!!!
Rumor Has It
As the episode opens, three days have passed since Meredith spoke with Owen in the ambulance bay. According to Amelia, Owen is still not giving any specifics about what the history is between him and Nathan Riggs. We soon find out, however, that the hospital rumor mill has gone into overdrive regarding the two men. Did Riggs have a torrid affair with Kepner in Jordan? Did Riggs and Hunt have a romantic history? Were the docs embroiled in a top-secret government mission about which they could not speak? Or did the conflict revolve, as Karev insisted sagely, around some “chick?”
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Things came to a head (and quickly) when the hospital was flooded with injured firefighters who were battling a terrible wildfire. Meredith and Nathan clashed over the care of a patient who turned out to be John, the much younger boyfriend of Owen’s mom, Evelyn Hunt. John had a close call but survived, though Owen was not happy that Nathan was a doctor on the case, saying, “I just don’t want him near my family.” While I suspected that Evelyn might turn up in this episode, I was shocked when she greeted Nathan with a surprised yet warm embrace. And when Nathan told Owen that he had seen and spoken with “Ma?” Jaw meet floor.
What happened next has been building since Riggs turned up in Seattle. Owen told Nathan to “stay the hell away from my family.” Nathan insisted, “It’s my family, too” whereupon Owen punched Nathan in the face and said, before stalking off, “No, it’s not. It’s not your family. It’s mine” Holy cow. And the cherry on top? In the closing moments of the show, Meredith said to Owen, “You never told me you had a sister.” WHAT? It’s going to be a long three months.
I Want You Out of My House
I know that what I am about to say will likely lead to a riot from the Omelia and Amelia Shepherd fans, but I don’t care. Here is the brutal truth. I find Amelia Shepherd to be absolutely insufferable. Her latest go ’round with Meredith absolutely solidified my view that Amelia is one of the least likable characters in the history of this show. And, let’s be honest, that’s saying something, I know. Murdered father. Dead boyfriend. Infant son died. Drug addict. Brother killed. I am not arguing that Amelia hasn’t been dealt a crappy hand. That said, she is being utterly unreasonable, petty, nosy, and, yes, acting like a petulant child. This thing with Owen is not any of her business until Owen decides it is and Meredith is in the right to be respecting Owen’s privacy while still looking out for his well being. I never thought I’d be on Team Meredith, but I am. There it is. As for the disparaging remarks Amelia made about Cristina, Cristina/Owen, Cristina/Meredith, and – wait for it – Derek/Meredith? Please. Show some respect and realize that the world doesn’t revolve around you. (Okay. Rant over. But, for the record, I’d kick Amelia out of my house, too.)
As For Everyone Else…
*Penny is still exclusively on Meredith’s service. Callie doesn’t approve. Whatever.
*Japril haven’t talked post-breakup sex. Or is it makeup sex? What does Jackson want to say to April?
*Jo and Stephanie mended fences, which is timely because Jo called a timeout in her relationship with Alex, whom she feels always prioritizes Meredith over her. Then Alex proposed to Jo, saying that his and Meredith’s secret dealings all day long revolved around Mer trying to pass the engagement ring (which she’s been hiding for him) back to Alex. Will Jo say “yes” or “no”? Is Jolex engaged or kaput?
*Arizona flirted with a patient but crashed and burned when it turned out the woman was in a relationship already. Regardless, Richard is still acting as her “wingman.”
*Bailey handled her first crisis as Chief.
*Andrew and Maggie admitted they had feelings for each other! Woo-hoo!
*Amelia and Nathan both turned up at Joe’s Bar. Amelia let Nathan order her a drink and had a crazy, reckless look in her eyes. Uh, oh. I smell trouble.
*Just in case you missed it the first time…Owen has/had a SISTER???
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MEMORABLE MOMENTS AND QUOTES
Amelia (commenting on Owen and Nathan): “They just keep circling each other. I keep thinking one of them’s gonna pull out a switchblade.”
Maggie: “You don’t have a problem working under me, right?”
Andrew (with an impish grin): “Well, I think we’ve established that.”
Penny: “I’m a nun, basically. I worship at the altar of Our Lady of General Surgery.”
Richard (to Arizona, sarcastically refusing to “wing man” a patient for her): “Why don’t you write her a little note? You know, one with all the boxes you can check. And I’ll pass it along.”
Alex (to Jo about Meredith): “She stood by me for years when everybody else left.”
Arizona: “I just tried to segue from a wound closure to a first-date invite.”
Richard: “Now that’s just clumsy.”
Arizona: “Over her exposed butt.”
Richard: “That’s creepy!!!”
Jo (to Stephanie): “You can’t just ignore me forever. You don’t have to like me or be my friend or even be polite to me. But at least acknowledge that I exist. Acknowledge that I am a person standing in front of you saying words.”
Amelia: “We don’t think that Riggs and Owen’s mom…you don’t think that’s the thing.”
Meredith: “No! But do you think Owen’s mom is Riggs’ mom? Because that has happened to me before.”
Meredith: “Mrs. Hunt, it’s none of my business. And I’m not asking. But Owen is my friend and I’m worried about him. How worried do I need to be?”
Evelyn: “Close the door, dear.”
Amelia: “Why are you shutting me out of this?”
Meredith: “Because this does not concern you.”
Maggie (to Andrew): “I have feelings too. Unprofessional ones. A lot of them.”
Meredith(to Amelia):
“You are not my sister. Cristina is my sister. You are Derek’s sister. And Derek is gone.”
Meredith: “You have to pull it together. You’re getting yourself in trouble.”
Owen: “I know…”
Meredith: “You never told me you had a sister.” [fade to black]
Grey’s Anatomy returns on February 11, 2016 on ABC.
(image courtesy of ABC)
Contributing Writer, BuddyTV
