Grey's Anatomy: The Last Supper (16x12)

Okay, this episode was interesting. I want to get into the specifics right away.

Cons:

Say it with me: I don't like Catherine Fox. I find her story-line with Richard to be beyond tedious. I also find Maggie and Jackson at their absolute worst when they're in a story together. So the main plot thread of this episode was destined to piss me off. Honestly, if you look at it in a vacuum, there were plenty of solid acting moments and even a few genuinely moving parts. But that's only the case if I look at it like a one-act play, divorced from the context of season upon season of bullshit leading up to this moment. Let's look at the situation, here:

Richard and Catherine are falling apart, and have been for a long time. Richard is acting like a sanctimonious prick, practically gas-lighting Catherine about his relationship with his friend, who has a stated romantic interest in him. And Catherine is being pig-headed and jaded, refusing to take Richard at his word. If Richard were honest, and says that there are maybe feelings there but nothing happened, and if Catherine would choose to believe him... but no.

And then there's the fact that Catherine allowed Bailey to fire Richard. Richard is crushed and hurt by this, fair enough, but he's forgiven Miranda for it, and can't forgive Catherine? Apparently he's just waiting for a sincere apology. But come on, dude, is he seriously not going to admit his own fault, here? He covered up insurance fraud! He put the reputation of the entire hospital at risk. Sure, I agree morally with what Richard, Meredith, and Alex decided to do... but can Richard really sit there and act like it's that cut and dry?

Catherine allowed Richard to be fired, didn't stand by his side, and then has the audacity to be pissed off at him for getting another job and doing well at it? Richard is a prick for demanding an apology without offering one of his own, and Catherine is... unhinged for threatening to buy PacWest Hospital just to spite her husband. The long and short of it is, that these two apparently bring out the very worst in each other. Richard is a character I like in some contexts, but he and Catherine make no sense to me, and they never have.

So then we turn to Jackson and Maggie. You know, Jackson and Vic are kind of cute, and I have no problem with them. Maggie's story-line about her career and her cousin who died on the table... I'm on board with all of that complicated, devastating angst. But then you put Maggie and Jackson in a room together and it's just... untenable and awful. The way Maggie talks about Jackson's privilege is just a big yikes. She clearly never, ever respected him at all. And Jackson can be condescending as fuck to Maggie right back. When they were "happy" together, their worst sin from a narrative standpoint was being boring. Now, they become whiny little babies around each other, the kind of people who contradict one another just because they can't stand for the other one to be right. It's unbearable to watch.

I'm also not a fan of the entire scenario here, where Richard and Catherine want to have Jackson and Maggie over for dinner to announce their separation, but Jackson invites Vic, who invites her friend Dean for some reason, thus making the whole evening incredibly awkward. I've been a fan of awkward Grey's dinner parties in the past. I'll always remember the one where Penny showed up at Meredith's house. But this whole scenario, with Maggie and Jackson reminiscing about Catherine's proposal to Richard, and Jackson giving a sincere toast dripping with dramatic irony... meh. I just wasn't feeling it.

Pros:

Before I talk about Levi's plot thread of the night, I will go in to the one or two things that I didn't hate about the dinner party plot thread.

For one, hopefully that's the actual end of Richard and Catherine's relationship, and we can let this story die quietly.

Also, I like Dean and Vic just being awkwardly thrust into the middle of things, and actually doing their best to prevent awkwardness and get to know their hosts. I liked the moment of genuine sweetness when Catherine invited Vic into the kitchen to eat dessert, a silent apology for her hot and cold behavior all evening. And I liked Maggie and Richard spending a quiet moment together too, as Maggie accepts a job at Richard's hospital.

I especially enjoyed Maggie admitting to Vic that she's been taking out her anger towards Jackson on her. She apologizes and promises to stop doing it, which was a rare moment of emotional maturity from Maggie. Let's keep that going, and get her and Jackson to stop being at each other's throats for no good reason!

The other plot thread was a total success, in my opinion. Levi goes to visit his dying uncle, a man who was apparently awful to everyone, but always kind to Levi. Just as Levi introduces Nico to his uncle as his boyfriend, his uncle dies. Levi thinks he might have killed him with the shock, but then... his uncle's partner shows up! Turns out, he was gay too, and shamed into staying in the closet his whole life. He was married, but he and his wife had an arrangement. The whole experience teaches Levi that he doesn't have time to waste hiding who he is. He tells his mother that her refusal to share the truth with the rest of the family means she doesn't really accept him, and decides to move out.

If I had to complain about this plot thread I'd say I could have used more Nico. But honestly, that's not even quite true. He was there to support Levi, and this was clearly Levi's moment to shine. I just hope that we can have some moments to shine on Nico this season, and focus on their strengthening relationship. They really are quite cute. Nico hovering over Levi while he's supposed to be resting was just the sweetest thing!

There was something so moving and tragic in watching Levi prepare his uncle's body, along with his uncle's long-term partner and love of his life. Levi is culturally Jewish but didn't know a lot of the specifics, so had to be taught. I thought that was very lovely and somewhat realistic, to have him learning about his cultural heritage and his heritage as a gay person, all in this one deeply potent moment, with a man he's never met, connected by their shared love for a recently deceased man.

And I like the complexity of Levi's relationship to his mother. She loves him and wants to shelter him, but she doesn't realize that she's actually hurting him with her seemingly conditional support. Levi has been through so much recently, coming to terms with his sexuality, gaining confidence in his profession, falling in love and making friends... and he's a brave person, one who is ready to take on the next step of his life and live his truth. I don't know, I just think it's so beautiful to watch this journey, and to see him taking it on with Nico there to support him... it's something really special.

That's where I'll stop! I used this episode as an excuse to rant about two of my least favorite ever couples on Grey's Anatomy (topped only by Owen/Teddy at this point, I think...), so I'm sorry if it felt a bit rambly. But truthfully - Richard, Maggie, and Jackson all deserve better than to be embroiled in these kinds of story-lines. And Catherine... well, I may have never liked her, but hell, she deserves better too.

6/10