Grey's Anatomy: Hotter Than Hell (18x03)

Well... awww. That was kind of adorable.

Cons:

There was a moment when Link and Teddy were together and Link was lamenting all this bullshit with Amelia, and Teddy was like "trust me, I've been there" and like... bitch, what?!?! Sorry, but Teddy cheated on Owen, meanwhile Link has done nothing wrong and also Amelia was the one who was manipulative and difficult in their relationship. Not to be an Atticus Lincoln stan or anything, but Teddy, these two things are not the same. Jeez.

I found Hayes' subplot about his kid not talking to him... well, it's not that it's a problem in and of itself, but I found it to be a little one dimensional. See, there's a sixteen year old girl who ran off to meet an internet friend and got injured, and she refuses to call her parents. The guy she's with says she really hates them. Now, I know teenage angst is a thing, but if you're that seriously injured and in that much pain, surely you'd still want your parents with you. Unless, of course, your parents are seriously bad news: neglectful or abusive or in some way otherwise unsuited to parent you. The whole time this subplot was going on, I expected there to be a reveal/twist that the patient had good reason for wanting to avoid her parents, and that Hayes was allowing his own situation to cloud his judgment. But... nope! I don't know, maybe I'm being overly sensitive to this, but I feel as if this whole idea lacked nuance.

I wish I felt differently, but honestly I found the gimmick of the younger doctors gossiping about Addison and what her past was with Meredith kind of sloppy and lame. It's not as if it was a secret that Addison and Derek were once married, or that later Meredith and Derek were married. I get not knowing about your boss's personal lives, but it was weird that they knew so much and cared so much about the drama without actually having any of the correct details.

Pros:

While I'm still annoyed about Link and Amelia, the seem to be setting up a romantic potential between Amelia and the Minnesota doctor that she talked to briefly online. I wouldn't be mad about it, honestly, especially if maybe Amelia is exiting the show and that's why they needed to extricate her from Link? I don't know. We'll see where it goes, but I'm keeping my eye on these developments.

Still a fan of Winston, I love how hard he fights for his patients, and I loved that Owen and Ben both got in on the action. I think there might be consequences for this, and I'd be curious for the subplot to continue a bit. It's really working for me in terms of giving Winston time to shine so we get to know him on his own terms.

And in main plot news... Addison Montgomery! Honestly, it was a delight to see her and I thought she was a wonderful breath of fresh air the whole dang time she was on screen. Other characters in the story, Amelia included, tried to set up this rivalry or awkwardness between Meredith and Addison that just honestly... wasn't there? I mean, of course there's a weighty history between them, but Derek is dead, people! I loved their badass surgery, the way they worked together on it, and then Addison breaking down in the aftermath, grieving for the absence of someone who had meant so much to her.

I got a little weepy when Addison met Meredith and Derek's kids. I loved the way they asked her if she was a friend of their dad's. I'm just honestly happy they get to have this, get to meet Derek's first wife, a person who, despite everything, is a really kind and amazing woman who they are lucky to know. It was fun to have this sort of subverted expectation, all the buildup to potential drama, and instead it's two women who are too old and too smart and too busy to revert back into earlier life drama, and instead treat each other with respect and consideration. I love later-seasons Meredith Grey, I love that she has her shit together, to be quite honest!

Schmitt continues to be on the rise, getting paired with Addison during this groundbreaking surgery. Poor Jo is on the outside looking in, but I'm excited to see her getting excited about surgeries and work again. I also love seeing Richard so pumped about teaching the residents. This was a great place to put him in the show these days, as they needed a reason to keep him included and involved in the hospital while explaining his presence after a time of life when he should be retired.

This was my favorite of the first three episodes, I loved seeing Addison, I loved the focus on the medicine but also on the deep emotional weight of Derek's loss, still impacting these people all these years later. If we could just stay away from Teddy, and get the heck over this whole Link and Amelia drama, that would be great!

8/10