Grey's Anatomy: Sledgehammer (12x01)

Twelve seasons! That's insane. I read in a promo article that things are going to be "lighter" this season, and I think I'm seeing the hints of it already in this premiere. It wasn't a non-stop barrel of laughs, but nobody died, and there was a great deal of hope and humor. I'm a fan. We've jumped forward three months from where we left off, and things are settling back in to a routine at Grey-Sloan. Let's jump in.

Cons:

The only real flaw I found in this episode was a small subplot centered around Arizona and Stephanie. Apparently, Arizona and Callie sold the house, and Arizona needs some help paying the rent on her new place. The only problem is, nobody wants to live with her. Arizona asks Stephanie why, and Stephanie finally admits it's because Arizona is kind of a legend. She survived a plane crash, a car crash, and myriad other disasters. She talks really fast, she sleeps with interns and gets them fired, and people say she's faking having an amputated leg. In the end, the new intern who accidentally impersonated an attending in the season finale last year, opts to move in with Arizona. He says that the other interns have turned on him due to his little stunt. So... this plot thread was trying to be... funny? I think? I don't really know, but I do know that whatever it was going for, it didn't really land it. I guess the only good thing going on here is that it's setting up a promising new dynamic between Arizona and this new intern guy. I'm always interested to see what Grey's is going to do with new characters.

Also, I've got to say that I'm not really all that happy with the direction they're taking April and Jackson. April gets back from the war in this episode, but Jackson wants nothing to do with her. I'm not sure if I can take another round of relationship woes from these two. It gets a little exhausting.

But everything else going on here was pretty strong.

Pros:

It seems that Meredith is having a hard time living with Amelia. Apparently, after a drunken speculation about taking down a wall in the house, Amelia took the idea to heart and took a sledgehammer to the wall. Meredith and Amelia complain about each other, using Maggie as a go-between. Throughout the episode, Maggie gets increasingly annoyed with their bickering, and eventually she tells them off, telling them to get along, and that she lives there too, so she should get a say. Maggie is awesome. Truly, truly, awesome. I loved learning about her past with bullying, and I loved her bad-ass moments in the episode, all culminating in her putting her foot down and telling off Amelia and Meredith. The best part was Meredith telling Amelia that she doesn't even totally like her, but she loves her because she's family.

The main plot thread of this episode was all about two teenage girls who tried to kill themselves lying in front of a train. Turns out, they are in love, but one of the girls' parents are sending her away to a camp to "fix" her. Callie defends this girl, telling off the mother for her behavior. In the end, the fathers of the two girls learn to love and appreciate their daughters, while the mother gets told off for her homophobia. Maggie actually punches her, which was awesome. While I don't think it's all that common for people in the liberal bastion of Seattle to send their daughters away to camps like that, I do know that it still happens, no matter where in the world you live, and it's important to examine these types of things in media. I love that Callie told the girl that she liked men and women, and asked her if she liked girls, too. It was so wonderful to see everybody being so supportive.

The sweetest part was when the father of one of the two girls read a note from the other girl to his daughter. In the note, she called her "beautiful," and the dad said "I like her already." There's something so endearing about clueless fathers trying to relate to their teenage daughters, and getting it so wonderfully right.

One of my favorite moments in the episode came at the very end, when Alex talked to Jo about his past. Alex was still smarting from being called a bully earlier, and he confides in Jo that he used to be the fat kid. He was bullied a lot when he was younger. It was a brief little moment, but it was an excellent moment for Alex to shine, and to show their relationship off a little bit. These two are so sweet.

Another winning plot thread was the competition between Bailey and another woman, Tracy McConnell, for the position of chief of surgery. Bailey is discouraged by how accomplished Tracy is, and she nearly backs out of the race. Ben encourages Bailey to remember who she is, and Bailey steps up and gives a powerful speech in the middle of surgery. She gets to be chief! I'm all about plot threads that celebrate Miranda Bailey in all her gloriousness. And this one was especially awesome, because we got to see Ben being the supportive husband. Last season, Bailey supported Ben as he dealt with the news that his sibling was trans. Now, we see Ben supporting Bailey through a crisis of confidence. Their marriage is really solid.

Amelia and Owen got a tiny bit of screen time. I love the fact that even though they are two seriously damaged people, their relationship has become this really sweet, simple, lovely part of their lives. They really need that.

Ultimately, this season is shaping up to be a good one. The promo for next week looks hilarious, what with Bailey terrorizing everybody with her new position as chief of surgery. She's going to be fantastic! And I can't wait to see more of Maggie, Meredith, and Amelia's crazy adventures living together.

9/10