Grey's Anatomy: Undo (13x01)

Things are picking up right where we left off in last season's finale, which is kind of cool. Lots of drama, most of it pretty interesting. Let's jump in. This show is the hardest one to talk about succinctly...

Cons:

The Meredith/Riggs/Maggie love triangle isn't grabbing me. I was ready to give it a chance last season, but this week it fell flat. It's just that there are a lot of more important things going on, so listening to Maggie whine about Riggs vs. DeLuca when other people's lives are being ruined... well, let's just say that I love Maggie a lot, but I wasn't thrilled with her this week. I especially thought it was annoying that she kept talking about her past with DeLuca while he was in the operating room potentially about to lose the use of his eye. I mean, get a grip Maggie. This is so not about you.

And Riggs went around being the nice guy, checking in on Meredith every step of the way. This little thread felt like a distraction from everything else that was going on. I don't need to know about Meredith's confusing relationships right now. I need to know about Alex. Meredith herself seemed a bit fed up with Riggs popping in to ask her how she was all the time.

Pros:

Luckily, the main plot thread with Alex was excellent. In short, Alex beats DeLuca up, and it's bad. Alex brings DeLuca into the hospital, but hides the truth of what happened. Meredith covers for him for a while. Alex is under the impression that DeLuca forced himself on a drunk Jo, but when Jo tries to clear that impression up, things go from bad to worse. Alex now thinks that Jo brought DeLuca back to their place so she could sleep with him. Stephanie talks to Jo, who tells Meredith, who tells Alex, that this wasn't the case. DeLuca was trying to keep her safe. Meredith encourages Alex to come forward and tell the truth, but Alex wants to try talking to DeLuca first. That goes horribly, as DeLuca freaks out when he sees Alex. Meredith tells Bailey the truth. Alex turns himself in.

There were lots of great relationships being explored in this plot thread.

Richard and Jo had some great moments, as Richard tries to calm Jo down while she's still drunk. He knows what it's like to get drunk and let things get out of control, after all. Richard is also the one to stop Jo from running away, which I thought was very sweet. I'm all about Richard Webber being the eternal father figure to all these messed up young doctors.

Jo and Stephanie had a brief scene. I love Stephanie and want more of her. Hopefully we can give her a better plot thread of her own this season

Ben gets a gold star for treating the whole situation with logic and calm. He suspects Alex from the beginning, but doesn't come forward and cause a bigger mess. He lets the situation work itself out, because he knows he has no proof. Good job, Ben. I think you're learning. I also loved the moment when Bailey asked Ben if he knew, and Ben says that even though he had strong suspicions, he couldn't share them with Bailey while at the hospital. Separation of Church and State.

Meredith and Maggie. I mentioned how annoying I found Maggie in this episode. However, I did like the part at the end when she told Meredith what being a sister meant to her. She is upset about the situation, obviously, but she's specifically upset that Meredith lied to her. I'd like to see that play out more, especially since Meredith is also lying to her about the Riggs situation.

Jo and DeLuca have a nice little scene when DeLuca first wakes up. Things seem to be going okay. DeLuca seems like a real sweetheart, asking Jo if she's okay even as he lies there with his face bashed to bits. But then when Jo asks him to keep the secret about her being married, DeLuca gets a little pissed. He thinks that Jo only came to the hospital to ensure her secret, not to check on her badly injured friend. DeLuca really does seem like a good enough guy, and he definitely deserves every bit of his anger towards Jo and Alex both.

Jo and Alex's relationship hurts my heart. I made no secret of the fact that Jo annoyed me last season. I kept waiting for things to come together for them. In a weird way, having Alex mess up this badly puts them on more equal footing. Instead of Alex being the enduring and patient and well-behaved boyfriend, while Jo is the screw-up, now we see that both of these people are deeply damaged. I guess I hope that they can work things out. Now the only question is, when will Jo's husband show up to cause more soap opera-y drama?

Meredith and Alex. Their relationship might be the best thing this show has going for it. I love the fact that Meredith was willing to lie for Alex to a point, but she still did the right thing. That seems to show a lot of maturity. Then there's Alex, who is scared and angry, understandably, but who ultimately decides on his own that he needs to turn himself in. Both Ellen Pompeo and Justin Chambers gave masterful performances here. The way Mer's voice cracked after she admits the truth to Bailey? Ouch. The look of resignation and defeat on Alex's face as he is placed under arrest and taken away? Double ouch. Meredith goes to visit Alex behind bars, and the two have a conversation wherein they lament that Alex's life is pretty much definitely ruined. Still, Meredith knows that Alex did the right thing in turning himself in. It just breaks my heart that Alex, a guy who came from such troublesome beginnings, could end up here after all the work he's done to change. I can't wait to see where they go from here. All I can say is, Alex better not be leaving the show. I'll be devastated.

In subplot news, April is recovering after her intense birth, but her and the baby are both healthy. Catherine comes in and starts being commandeering as always. She holds the baby and won't let April hold her, and she guesses that the baby is going to be named Catherine, after herself. April corrects her, and tells her that the baby's name is Harriet. Catherine then assumes the baby's last name will be Avery, which April takes strong objection to. Eventually, Jackson comes in and reveals to his beleaguered mother that they are hyphenating. Harriet Kepner-Avery. I liked this plot thread because April got a chance to stand up to Catherine, which I always love to see. That woman needs to keep her nose out of other people's business. Also, this little story afforded the chance for some comedy. April declares that where she comes from, the name Kepner means something: "good people... tireless work ethic... a fair and honest price for quality pork." Also, the fact that April stubbornly did not tell Catherine that the baby would also have the name Avery was hilarious. Honestly, Catherine deserved to squirm a little bit.

That's where I'll stop - I managed to keep this at a reasonable length, thank you very much! All I can say is... poor everybody. I mean Alex was wrong. But not evil. And DeLuca didn't deserve any of this crap. And poor Riggs, left out in the cold by Meredith. Sigh... when are these crazy kids going to work out their issues? Not until the show ends, I'm guessing!

8/10