AN OPEN LETTER TO SHONDA RHIMES
While the SAG-AFTRA strike goes on and McDreamy finally gets his SMA props, there's time to consider the future of Grey's Anatomy, aka "my story"
Dear Shonda, my Shero,
Let me preface this by saying I know I have no place making suggestions to the most successful showrunner on TV, but I hope you receive this with love.
McDreamy was in the news today, because Patrick Dempsey is finally PEOPLE’s Sexiest Man Alive, and that brought back those major early-2000s vibes when life was easier and everybody from the first season was also still alive.
But now that our person--Ellen Pompeo--is leaving Grey’s Anatomy, longtime viewers such as myself are wondering what possible future the nearly 20-year-old show can have without any remaining characters named Grey actually left at Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital.
Grey’s is “my story” and I’m sticking with it. I’ve been there since the very first episode. I’m that person who scrolls through all kinds of new streaming content and ends up bingeing Season Three yet again.
In the most recent season, which set up Meredith’s departure from Grey Sloan, a new class of interns has been introduced to tug at the long-timers’ heartstrings with memories. Each of them is meant to be a substitute for the OG lineup of Grey, Yang, Karev, Stevens, and O’Malley (RIP), yet none of them stands out. There’s not a Jackson Avery (sigh) or April Kepner in sight.
As far as the established couples, Teddy and Owen are BORING (although Teddy’s tooth-related collapse in the season finale might mix things up a bit for them). And trying to make Jo and Linc the new “Mer and Der” of the next gen “Grey’s” isn’t going to cut it for a lot of us, as the first Meredith-free episodes proved with precisely zero interesting storylines.
While it’s been teased that Pompeo--who seemed ready to leave for years--might come back for stunt cameos in the future to keep us longtimers hooked through the (leaking IV) bag, they’re not giving us a strong enough prognosis to keep us hopeful.
And while I have never abandoned the staff of Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital no matter how ridiculous the plotlines got or how many times the main characters either almost or actually died, that sendoff for Meredith really bugged me.
I mean, seriously? It was more like MEH-redith. No McDreamy montages? No dancing it out? It was just a sad attempt to keep us watching until the end to see if Nick would make it to the airport on time (yawnnnn). And then there was that meh season finale where they reunited and ended with a kiss, and they both deserve better, and so do we.
But our fearless leader Dr. Miranda Bailey wouldn’t accept anyone’s foolishness or whining, would she? Hell no! She’d demand solutions! And I’m unemployed with plenty of time to come up with cool ideas!
So I say to you Shonda, my Shero, with all of the respect, please take this pitch into consideration, as all of this comes from a place of pure love for the Grey’s canon and what it means to millions.
FALL BACK. Everyone loves an origin story, so keep giving us Grey’s Anatomy--but make it Ellis Grey’s. She was once a first-year intern, so let’s see her transformation from terrified newb into the legendary surgical powerhouse who terrorized her co-workers, destroyed marriages, and gave her daughter hella self-esteem issues for years. We had some teases with flashbacks over the last two decades, but it’s time to bring this story back to the forefront. Plus, think of all the cool period clothes, hair, and music along with the on-call room hookups in the pre-AIDS years! A young hot Richard Webber? YES PLEASE!
SPRING FORWARD. Jump ahead in the timeline to Zola at age 20, who returns to her parents’ and grandmother’s hospital to be the youngest first-year surgical intern at Grey-Sloan since her late great Aunt Lexie. Legacy characters like Dr. Bailey, Dr. Webber, and others are still there as Zola navigates carrying the combined legacies of Ellis, Meredith, and Derek. Expect jealousy from her fellow interns and high expectations from her attendings thanks to her family, issues due to her age (she can’t go to Joe’s for drinks! Attendings better not hit on her!), and of course, the potential for visits from her mom should be able to keep the series running.
SHIFT THE FOCUS. If we’re staying in this current timeline, I’d rather see Amelia (Caterina Scorsone) and Kai (E.R. Fightmaster, one of my favorite names for a human EVER) as the main couple at the center of the Grey-Sloan orbit. The chemistry between the two actors is scorching--we’re talking Izzie and Denny levels of heat, but with actual sex--and their interactions are always the most interesting, yet they’re relegated to the B- or C- plotlines. Move them up to the A-team and explore what putting an LGBTQIA+ couple at the center of the Grey-Sloan universe could look like.
Just as Izzie clung to Denny Duquette, my deep and abiding love for “Grey’s” will keep me holding on until either Shonda or ABC pulls the plug. Without the proper care, who knows how long it might be before someone will be blasting “Chasing Cars” as we enjoy the last call at Joe’s. SERIOUSLY!
Love,
Tara