TV

“Grey’s Anatomy” recap (12.3): Rise

Previously on Grey’s Anatomy, Bailey became chief, had a rotten day, but learned from her hubris. Callie and Arizona tried to be friends, sort of, and Callie was crazy about a new, mystery woman. Meredith was asked to be Bailey’s right hand woman, which she happily accepted.

This week’s episode finally pays due to, in my opinion, the show’s best male doctor, Alex Karev. Alex has grown so much over the years, and all too often he takes a back seat to the other drama happening around him.

Alex and the impossible decision

Alex is a hell of a good doctor-it’s just that sometimes, he doesn’t realize how good he is. Arizona and Ben are dealing with a pregnant mom and dad who are having twins. They are more concerned about not knowing the sex of the babies, but as Arizona looks at the scans, she pages Alex 911. Not-Sloan is on Alex’s service that day, but he’s not really interested in being on a PEDs rotation. Alex assumes it’s because he hates kids, but of course, there is something more we will discover about Not-Sloan that may even want me to learn his name. Time will tell.

As soon as the twins are born, it’s evident that something is very wrong. They are extremely jaundiced (I, too, was a jaundice baby!) and in respiratory distress. Arizona tries to keep the parents calm as the babies head up to NICU.

As they feared, the scans come back and show that both babies have tumors in their livers, and they are invasive. These babies don’t have much time-they both need liver transplants.

The devastated parents asked to be tested to see if they are matches. Alex runs into Jo in the elevator, and she asks him if he wants kids. He’s kind of taken aback and mumbles that he’s not sure. You see, earlier, Jo and Steph had a vague conversation that is supposed to make us think that Jo is preggers. She doesn’t like Alex’s response and leaves him as she often does, with him furrowing his brows, confused about women.

Alex mentions this conversation to Arizona, who suggests that maybe Jo is actually pregnant and trying to see what Alex’s reaction would be. Before he can freak out too much, the tests come back about the parents. Dad is a potential donor, but mom isn’t. Unfortunately, he can only donate to one child, and the other will have to go on the UNOS list. Naturally, the parents freak out, thinking they have to choose what child gets the organ, but Alex tells them that it’s his decision to make. He will figure out who has a better change to thrive, and that a decision like this should never have to be a parent’s responsibility. Arizona watches proudly as her protege makes all the right moves.

Ben comes home that night and climbs into bed with Bailey, but he can’t get Alex and those babies out of his head. Bailey goes through the steps that Alex will take to determine who gets the liver, and Ben decides he needs to be there too. Alex, Arizona, Ben and Not-Sloan have been meticulous, but the babies are pretty much identical in their changes for survival. Arizona sends Alex back home for a bit to get some rest and food, and when Alex gets there, Jo wants to talk. She’s not pregnant but she found the paperwork from Izzie and Alex’s frozen embryos. Alex doesn’t think it’s a big deal, but Jo sees it as Alex being sure about wanting to have a life with Izzie back then, but not her now. She’s not sure if Alex thinks about their future like she does.

Alex returns to the hospital and asks Meredith’s advice about how to make the impossible decision about the twins. She tells him to trust his instincts, but he’s more worried about a future outcome that he can never predict. Arizona rushes in to tell him that he has no more time to debate and has to make a decision. He wants to pawn it off on Bailey but Arizona shuts that down. She tells him how proud of she is of him, and the doctor he has become. He can make this decision. She even gets teary telling him how much he’s grown. It’s enough to push Alex into action.

Alex decides to operate on both babies and decide from there. The parents give their babies names, and send them off into the OR. While they are scrubbing in, Not-Sloan explains to Alex why he doesn’t want to be in PEDs. He witnessed the pain of a parent who held her dead child in her arms when he was an EMT. He couldn’t bear it and now he knows he doesn’t want to be in that position time and time again. Alex gets it. they head into surgery and it becomes clear that the little girl has a better chance. Arizona gives her the transplant while Alex tries to save the little boy. Unfortunately, he’s too far gone and all Alex can do is offer him some comfort as he leaves this world. Jeez, there aren’t enough tissues in this world.

When Alex returns home, he promises Jo that he’s not going anywhere and she’s his forever girl. In fact, he’s ready to make babies right then and there.

Jo tells him hell no, that she has to get through her residency and she wants to travel before they have kids. But, at least they are on the same page and Alex’s commitment to her is stronger than it ever was. I loved getting to see all these sides of Alex. He’s such a complex character that is too easily written off as gruff or dismissive. He’s a man of multitudes.Meredith’s less-than-ideal contract

Everyone at Meredith’s is excited about her promotion, which makes their house full of LadyChiefs. While Amelia gets naked in the backseat (yes!), Maggie looks over Meredith’s contract (uh oh) and makes a face. Meredith notices, but Maggie won’t tell her why she grimaced.

The same thing happens when Callie looks over the contract, but Callie doesn’t mince words. The salary Meredith is being offered is crazy low. Way lower than her own. Richard overhears, because he is everywhere.

Later, the LadyDocs gather for wine, and they all discuss how Meredith is being low-balled. Amelia tells her that men demand what they are worth all the time. Thank god for the LadyDocs.

Later on, Richard confronts Bailey about offering Meredith less than she deserves, but before he starts mansplaining, she cuts him right off. She knows what she’s doing, and she has been nothing but an advocate for the women at this hospital. Hell, she knows what it is like to be overlooked and underestimated her whole career. She trusts that Meredith learned from her, and she knows that Meredith will come to her and ask for what she deserves. She wants Meredith to rise. Not gonna lie, this Bailey speech gave me a bit of an emotional lady boner. This episode was classic Grey’s in so many ways, full of amazing speeches and surprising character moments.

Meredith does exactly that. She goes into Bailey’s office and tells her that she’s earned this position and she deserves more than what was offered. Bailey asks her for a figure and agrees to it. She’s also proud as hell of Meredith for advocating for herself. Meredith may have lost so much when Derek died, but this season will be about new growth for her.

Japril and the D-Word

Things at the Avery-Kepner house are frosty to say the least. Well, they are frosty on Jackson’s end, but April is trying to say their marriage in the only way she knows how: to be relentlessly positive. Things for Jackson are so broken though, he tells April that she needs to move out, and in fact, he’ll help her pack. I think that Jackson sounds pretty serious about this. While I don’t want to see Japril split, it might be the kind of dose of reality that we have come to expect from Grey’s.

Jackson grumbles through his day, and finds a sympathetic ear in Ben. Ben even offers to let him crash on their couch. Oh, Bailey is going to love this. He politely declines, but when Jackson comes home expecting April to be gone, she’s there cooking dinner. The man had a burrito, April. Please don’t take this away from him. He mentions the D-word. Not that one, the other one: Divorce. He takes his burrito and hides away in the bedroom, but not before telling April that he will change the locks. I did that once. It’s kind of the ultimate way of saying, “I’m so done with you.”

When April comes home the next night and finds the locks unchanged, she thinks it’s a sign that Jackson’s ready to talk. However, Jackson is gone and so are all of his clothes. April realizes her all out war to win back Jackson’s heart may have failed. Jackson crashes with Ben and Bailey, and this very well might be the end for April and Jackson.

Maggiestar Galactica

Oh Maggie, dear sweet, adorable Maggie. The girl just can’t cut a break. Remember Ethan, that guy from radiology she dated? Well, apparently that lasted six months before Maggie got bored and moved on. Well, Ethan’s getting married to the girl he met after Maggie, and somehow Maggie got an invite to the wedding.

At first she acts like it’s no big deal, but while wining it up with the LadyDocs, it all comes spilling out. She feels totally alone. The world of comfort she left behind with her parents is completely gone, and she keeps making the same mistakes in this new world she’s trying to fit herself into.

Maggie feels like an alien without a planet to phone home. The thing is, many of us have felt like that at one point or another, but Maggie thinks she’s alone in this. Naw, girl. We’ve been there. So what does she do to drown her sorrows? She smashes her face into intern Not-Sloan, which in one respect, get it. But in another, this is going to be a world of trouble for Dr. Pierce. Just ask Arizona.

Here are our favorite #GreysGays tweets from last night’s episode.

Lesbian Apparel and Accessories Gay All Day sweatshirt -- AE exclusive

Related Articles

Leave a Reply

Back to top button