Grey's Anatomy: Strip That Down (22x10)

I liked this episode just fine! Gonna try to keep it short.

Cons:

I think maybe part of the Jo and Link issue for me is just that I find stories about having babies to be kind of dull, so on top of not liking them as a couple, seeing them deal with new parenthood is also just like... not that gripping? Jo has taken on almost a comic relief role here, which I wasn't expecting. She's so frazzled and stressed but it's in a light, funny way, and Link is indulgent... I don't know. It's not like it makes me angry, it just makes me feel.... blah.

Look, I never saw Private Practice so I don't have a ton of skin in this game, but doing a breakup story-line for Addison off-screen feels so unnecessary. Unless they're setting up Addison's return to the show on a more permanent basis, which could be cool. Otherwise, why mess with her marriage like that? It's kind of like Maggie's pregnancy. I guess it's cool to show that life goes on for all these characters that are only occasionally on the show, but doing this to Addison just feels majorly unnecessary. I wish it could have been more that marriage stuff was a little rocky because Addison was on the road so much, and that's causing some stress, rather than full-on "he's leaving me."

Pros:

I'm pretty invested in Bailey and Lucas's cancer patient. The trial was actually working to shrink her tumors, but now the funding has been pulled, and her life is again in peril. The sight of her sobbing her eyes out in Bailey's arms was really moving and sad! I can't wait for Lucas to do something insane next episode to try and protect her. His investment in her is really sweet, whether or not they're going for a romance element there. I could be into it.

I also really liked Bailey and Owen and Kwan going on the ride-along. Kwan just minded his business and was professional and tried to do what he was told, and I was oddly proud of him. He's really not the engine for a lot of drama these days, he's growing up. Owen trying to campaign for the program and Bailey withholding her approval was a fun little examination of their power dynamic. I really saw them as like... professional colleagues rather than people twisted up in the same weird codependent found family together like so many of these characters seem to be.

Despite what I said above, it was nice to see Addison, and also Amelia of course! I missed her so much. These two have such a long history, and their relationship feels fully lived-in and mature and complex. Addison snapping at Amelia in the operating room, and Amelia staying calm and gently instructing her to leave, was really well done. It shows how much Amelia has grown and stabilized over the years. Also, they didn't make it a giant PSA or anything, but they did touch on how the work Addison is doing trying to provide health care is being undermined by social and political systems in this country, and how that has worn on her personally as a result. I liked that this was addressed. It feels like there are so many things to talk about every day that the things that were once urgent and in the news all the time have fallen by the wayside. But abortion access is still really really challenging for a lot of people and that fight continues on.

I laughed out loud when Simone tried to describe her patient's job as "male erotic movement professional." Movement professional? lol? The guy is just like "you can say stripper, it's fine." All the stuff here with Simone, Link, and Wes was a fun comic little story-line. The guy ends up okay after his fall off of a slippery pole, and Link gives a pep talk like he would to an injured athlete. Simone and Wes have a touch of drama because Wes seems to be having a hard time with Simone being his boss, but honestly it was more about him wanting to get in good with Link and then feeling like he missed his shot. He comes to the house later to apologize to Simone and do a little stripping of his own to win her back. I kind of love this couple, I've got to be honest. Simone laughing, full-throated and giddy, at Wes's antics was a real delight. Did we ever see her laugh like that with Lucas? I doubt it.

Also in romance news, we've got Kwan and Mohanty continuing their casual sex thing. Kwan learns about Mohanty's other sexual partners, his friends tease him about it a bit, but then by the end of the episode Mohanty lets him know that she's actually not sleeping with anybody else at the moment either, and they agree to keep it to just the two of them. I don't know why I like this low-drama situation so much, I just think it's sweet that they're having fun having sex, clearly some feelings are developing, they don't let resentment or misunderstanding fester between them... I'm sure at some point some drama will show up to disrupt this vibe, but for now I'm super enjoying it.

That's all for now! We've got a few weeks off before the show is back in late February. More then!

8/10