Warning: Contains MAJOR spoilers from Grey’s Anatomy S19 premiere on 10/6/2022
If you have the same opinions on Grey’s Anatomy as me, you will agree that the past two to three seasons have not been the greatest. You continue to watch through the just-okay seasons, because you have already put endless hours of frustration, tears, love, maybe a tad bit of hate, and dedication into this show. However, in my honest opinion, season 19’s premiere entitled “Everything Has Changed” really proved its namesake. First, let’s just bask in the glory of her not-so-surprising role of Interim Chief of Surgery, Meredith Grey. It was even mocked that while the title is “interim” she has held the position for six months, and it seems permanent. Let’s be honest, no one in that hospital deserves it more if Bailey is stepping down. I was pretty disappointed to see Bailey’s appearance be so limited – but whenever we see Bailey in braids and gel nail polish means she is emotionally thriving. So, good for Bailey.
The season 19 premiere did not perfectly mirror the series premiere, of course, but it had very close similarities. The first similarity was the run-in between Link and a new intern, Jules Millin (played by Adelaide Kane). It gave a memorable reminder of Meredith and Derek’s run-in on her first day at the hospital, which was the morning after their bar hook-up. Meredith even joked to Link, that while HR can assist him, he should steer clear of elevators – a.k.a the unofficial-official Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital surgeon makeout spot. Another similarity was Meredith’s speech on the intern’s first day. It may not have been as harsh as Bailey’s but telling the interns how beautiful the OR is, just to tell them they will eventually kill people in there – definitely gave off Bailey vibes. The interns themselves were giving some major series premiere flashbacks. Benson “Blue” Kwan (Harry Shum Jr.) reminds me much of the ambitious Christina Yang. He even told a false, emotional story to a grieving family member, to convince her to donate her son’s organs. I could 100% see Yang doing something like this if she hadn’t already (please don’t come at me if she did… it’s been a long 18 seasons). Lucas Adams (Nick Terho) is kind of a jerk for most of the episode, reminding me of young Alex Karev. He mentions he comes from a family of surgeons* (*remember that), so his attitude is stuck up. He really screws up on his first day, but when Nick Marsh, the transplant surgeon from Minnesota (and Meredith’s love interest) agrees to do a major transplant surgery at Grey Sloan, he takes Adams under his wing. Nick is an underdog surgeon after all – which is one of the reasons why Meredith is eager for him to join the hospital staff. I’m sure her yearning for him, and having him back in Seattle would just be a plus because let’s be honest, Grey always puts her career before her love.
Lucas’ storyline was the most exciting part of the episode for me. Grey’s Anatomy is a drama after all, and nothing screams drama more than a surgical intern telling the wrong mother their child is brain dead. He did get somewhat lucky since the mother he told actually did have a brain-dead child since there were numerous cases of brain death secondary to a tornado accident. However, he never told the right mother he was assigned to and she found out after her son was admitted to the ICU for organ donation. After the living patient was already promised the organs, the time crunch was on, as the mother requested all tests be reperformed to declare him brain dead. The issue was, only so much time can pass before the organs would be considered no longer viable. Luckily, Amelia Shepard, along with Adams and another new intern Simone Griffith (Alexis Floyd) were able to complete the job, and get the organ donation approval – with Kwan’s lies. Kwan, Griffith, and Adams assisted Marsh in the major triple transplant surgery. It wouldn’t be a major surgery on the show without the viewing room and its commentary. This is the part that made me jump out of bed. If you have been reading and didn’t mind minor spoilers, but don’t want to hear the “OMG” moment Grey’s always stop here. Amelia and Meredith are observing the transplant. Right before the surgery, Marsh tells the surgeons, if they are the “praying type” now is the time to do it. Adams doesn’t pray – but he says seven words. The seven words that Grey’s Anatomy fans absolutely love to hear in an OR: “It’s a beautiful day to save lives.” YEP. Lucas Adams doesn’t just come from any family of surgeons. He comes from the Shepard family of surgeons. Amelia tells Meredith that her NEPHEW really screwed up for the day, and is arrogant. Merideth tells her to give him time. I have to say, this premiere was one of my favorites in a long time. The nostalgia was great. I already felt like most of the interns had a storyline forming for them and it was only 43 minutes. Honestly, Shonda Rhimes – THANK YOU. This is the Grey’s Anatomy redemption we need, and I hope it continues. I look forward to more nostalgic scenes of the interns sitting on the broken hospital beds in the hallway, recapping their day with passive-aggressive banter. The only thing that would make this better would be Christina, George, and Karev – not Izzy.