Oh, no she didn’t!
Seriously?
Seriously!
“Grey’s Anatomy” creator Shonda Rhimes ended this season with the cliff-hanger to challenge all cliff-hangers. Something she’d promised never to do. A few years back, Rhimes said as a viewer, she understood how frustrating cliff-hangers could be for fans. She said she’d never do that to those who watched the show.
But, oh, yeah, she has done it now.
The fates of George and Izzie are up in the air. Faithful fans will be deliberating until the fall season who’s going to die. George? Izzie? Both? Neither one?
The alter ego of T.R. Knight is circling the drain because it’s unknown yet whether Knight can get out of his contract. He’s not been happy with Rhimes since she mishandled an incident involving former cast member Isaiah Washington in October 2006.
Washington and Patrick Dempsey had gotten into an altercation after Washington called Knight a three-letter, homophobic word (which rhymes with hag). A highly offensive term on its own, it is especially offensive to someone who is gay, which Knight happens to be.
Shortly afterward, Rhimes reported there hadn’t been a problem. The entire cast even appeared on Oprah to convince everybody else there wasn’t a problem (methinks they protested too much).
If memory (as well as a search on Google) serves me right, Rhimes didn’t apologize publicly until August 2007.
Rhimes’ statement, which can be found at greysanatomyonline.com, read, in part:
“I speak for all the executive producers here at ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ when I say that Isaiah Washington’s use of such a disturbing word was a shocking and dismaying event that insulted not only gays and lesbians everywhere but anyone who has ever struggled for respect in a world that is not always accepting of difference.”
Washington eventually was fired, despite an earlier statement by Rhimes that he would not be, that the news was nothing but rumors. And Knight seemed to remain bitter, upset that it had taken Rhimes so long to address the public truthfully.
Rhimes, it also has been reported, says neither Knight nor Heigl are leaving the show. And yet, here both their characters are at death’s door. Sure, they could pull out of it. But what are the odds?
It’s not like Rhimes has been honest in some of her comments to the media pertaining certain cast members.
This season hasn’t been one of the show’s best, either. The dead Denny arc stretched out way too long and was a bit far-fetched, although I have never had Izzie’s health problem, and I have never hallucinated. Honestly.
The sudden, somewhat bizarre departure of Brooke Smith’s Dr. Erica Hahn wasn’t one of my favorite episodes. Granted, I never liked the character — too abrasive for my tastes — but the way the whole thing went down seems wrong.
And what was up with that Sadie character? Would interns actually cut on themselves and each other? Then there was the episode, “The Midnight Hour,” in which this woman undergoes a procedure called a fecal transplant. It was absolutely the grossest plot in the show’s history. Disgusting, actually.
Even the music selections were a letdown.
I also wasn’t thrilled with the Mer-Der Post-it Wedding.
There were some high points, however. Adding Kevin McKidd and Jessica Capshaw to the cast was a good thing. McKidd plays Dr. Owen Hunt while Capshaw plays Dr. Arizona Robbins. The relationship between Hunt and Cristina Yang (Sandra Oh) has been compelling as well as that of Robbins and Callie Torres (Sara Ramirez).
And giving George the chance to not only re-take but pass his intern exam was another high point.
And I had to hand it to Rhimes when it came to the season finale. It was a cliff-hanger to challenge all cliff-hangers. I think I spent the entire episode crying.
There was some serious hugging going on — even between Cristina and Meredith. There was George enlisting in the service. There was Bailey crying and telling the chief, “We’re all scared.” There was Izzie losing her short-term memory. There was the discovery of John Doe’s identity. And there was Izzie, coding in Alex’s arms.
Sometimes, shows end the season with a bang but start the next season with somewhat of a whimper. The finale turns out to be nothing more than a manipulation of the audience to get them to watch the next season.
But I have a feeling Grey’s Anatomy will start the way it ended — with a bang.
• Deb Saine is a columnist for the Pharos-Tribune. She can be reached through the newspaper at ptnews@pharostribune.com
