Grey's Anatomy: No Time To Die (18x09)

Wow oh my god I'm so annoyed.

Cons:

The thing is, I'm just so not here for most of the romances we've got going for us. The biggest No for me is Link and Jo. I want them to be our Alex and Meredith, have a strong male/female friendship without an attraction or romance there. Honestly cannot stand the sight of the two of them kissing, and they got a whole drawn out love scene with the dramatic music over the top. Gag me. Ugh. It's just narratively unsatisfying to me, and it this point it really feels like throwing spaghetti at the wall, seeing what romances stick.

I also could not care less about Meredith's beau. At this point I'm stubbornly refusing to learn his name. It's a clever protest against the existence of a character so bland that my eyes slide off his face whenever he starts to talk. See, the thing is, I want Meredith to have a stable, nice relationship with a good man, and that is technically what we're seeing here. You know who else is stable and nice and a good man? Cormac Hayes. Instead of seeing that relationship develop, we get to hear how it was a nonstarter in between seasons, and now Hayes is leaving? One of the last good men this show has to offer? I'm very annoyed.

Also Owen... I feel like the drug theft and mercy killing drama is somewhat manufactured. Washington State has a death with dignity act, so Owen didn't have to break the rules to actually help out the guy he gave the drugs to. He could have gone through the process, and then stolen drugs for the other men who didn't qualify, I guess. Instead it's like he committed an extra crime for no good goddamn reason, just to cause angst for everyone involved. Owen is an angst producing machine and not in a way that I enjoy watching. I will also lodge my familiar complaint that Owen and Teddy are both insufferable characters so I want to be with them on this journey where Teddy is so scared for Owen and they have their lovely little reunion but I'm just... meh about the whole thing.

Pros:

Honestly, the whole Webber Method plot thread this season has been the one that's the most interesting to me. I love that we're seeing the absolutely horrific crash and burn for Schmitt after a whole season where he was on top of the world. It's the good kind of angst, and a story I'm excited to explore. I want Levi to be okay. I want to go on this journey with him while he heals. I like that Jo and Helm and Nico all helped him out during his crash and burn, but it wasn't a situation where anyone was able to just say the right thing and bring him out of it. The image of him scrubbing his hands raw and bleeding is a haunting one, and exactly the kind of overwrought metaphor that only a show like Grey's could pull off well. That final image of Levi sitting by himself on the curb outside, and Nico dropping to the ground next to him, tells me that we're at the start of a long journey for him until he's better. Levi tried to be there for Nico when he went through something similar and killed someone on the table, but that nearly broke them. Now we'll have to see if Nico is able to be there for Levi!

And then you've got Webber, furious and heartbroken about Levi specifically and the whole Webber Method in general. He talks to Meredith about it, and she says she would have done the same thing, gone ahead without attending support, if this was the way surgeries were taught back when she first started. It's a fair point, and one that Richard really doesn't want to hear right now. Bailey suspends the Webber Method immediately and indefinitely, and I can't blame her for that either. It's a good juicy drama with just the right about of stakes to it, and I can't wait to see where it goes from here.

So, to talk about Owen again, as I said, I don't care about him. Honestly I think the show would be better if he were gone, and we could keep Hayes instead. But he is one of the longest-lasting characters on Grey's at this point, and he has a lasting history with so many of the characters. So of course there is something meaningful and powerful about everyone gathering together to make sure his surgery goes well. The stakes are high: he's going to live, but if they're not perfect with the surgery, he might never walk again. Again, this felt like a good balance to me, where we're not left in suspense about Owen's life, but there's still something awful that could happen if they're not really careful.

I thought Owen and Hayes' conversation was good, even if the whole drama seems manufactured to me. There was an interesting tension between these two men. They don't know each other particularly well, but Owen basically sacrificed his life to save Hayes, and both actors do a good job of portraying the intensity of that.

Farouk gets a working heart! They add in some drama here with the heart being bruised, but Winston decides to go for it and he ends up being right in taking that risk. I'm happy for Megan and Farouk, although I still feel like their presence here isn't seamlessly integrated. I keep forgetting that Megan is Owen's sister, and I'm still annoyed that in writing Megan back into the story, we've left poor Riggs out in the cold. Looks like Hayes isn't destined as a new love interest for her either, as he's leaving, which is such a huge bummer.

I like Maggie and Winston a lot. They have a little debate here about believing in miracles, and I hope this isn't going to mean discord for them any time soon... I like that Maggie doesn't believe in that kind of thing the way Winston does, but she's still supportive of him and they save a life together. They make a good team!

And finally... the only newer romance that I feel invested in, Amelia and Kai! God, Link was such an ass in this episode, I like the way Amelia told him off, and I hate that he got to be all self-righteous at her. She ended things with him, she didn't cheat on him, and he's asking like she's committed some terrible betrayal. Really annoying. Love that Amelia corrected Link on Kai's gender identity, loved the dinner scene at the end where Amelia explains the messiness of her life, and Kai just offers one of their fries. I really hope these two can make a real go of it. Link is sort of dead to me right now for the way he spoke to Amelia, and also for hooking up with Jo. Yuck.

Okay, that's all I've got. I guess it's fine that Owen didn't die from falling off a cliff or whatever. I'm bummed about Hayes. I'm grossed out by Link and Jo. I'm grieving for Levi. Can't wait to see what's next!

7.5/10