Did the writers forget that this was supposed to be the farewell episode for Meredith Grey?
Were the people who cut together the promo and the writing team who wrote Grey’s Anatomy Season 19 Episode 7 on totally different pages, or, I don’t know, planets?
For an hour teased as a farewell to Meredith, there was very little Mer and even less farewell.
It was nothing remotely special about the hour at all. As far as official farewells go, it was the dullest of the bunch.
We know that Pompeo is stepping back from a series regular role and that she won’t be disappearing from the show altogether. Meredith Grey’s story is a semicolon rather than a period, and that’s fine, but we should’ve had … more.
In many ways, the series has spent the past couple of seasons preparing us for Mer’s departure when it felt like she disappeared from her own show because of jobs across the country or COVID dreamscapes.
But it was more of a reason why this hour should’ve been something special and distinguished itself from any other installment, even if it meant pulling back on some of the run-of-the-mill side plots and character moments.
Outside of a toast, where Bailey showed up for her only scene of the hour and got choked up, and Mer’s closing voiceover, there was very little indication that this would be the end of Meredith for a while.
And that’s disappointing for the titular character who has led this show for nearly two decades.
Understandably, Meredith fans will be sorely dissatisfied with this hour and what it was supposed to represent.
We didn’t get much follow-up on the house other than it still standing and only having a hole in it, which was surprising given how serious that fire appeared.
Mer’s final day consisted of losing endearing writer Tessa when they didn’t have to in a sad albeit drawn-out coding on the operating table.
Bailey: Once upon a time, you were the bane of my existence, but you grew up to be one of my points of pride.
Webber: What Dr. Bailey is trying to say is that this place won’t be the same without you.
Although the bit with Tessa finishing her book and Mer getting it was a nice touch.
And worse yet, the situation with Nick was generally frustrating.
We were supposed to see where Meredith has grown, but when she picked a fight with Nick because he didn’t say “I love you” back when she wanted him to, and she distanced herself and failed to communicate, it felt like the same old behavior that 20-something year-old Mer would’ve done.
The entire time, they treated Nick as if he was the one who was unreasonable or at fault when Mer was incredibly immature for not communicating with him about the move and all of it after she practically begged him to relocate to Seattle to work for the hospital.
Nick was reasonably upset about making all these decisions without even telling him, sometimes with him being the last to know, despite the two supposedly working on their relationship.
Mer: You didn’t say it back.
Nick: I didn’t say what back?
Mer I said, “I love you,” and you didn’t say it back.
And Mer kept turning it into him, not knowing what he wanted or holding against her that she was making the best decisions for her and her children.
They attempted to show that Mer is a self-assured woman who no longer utters things like “Pick me, choose me, love me” to men.
But her statement about how she wouldn’t beg him to be with her felt misplaced and slightly contradictory when she was so angry that he didn’t say he loved her back.
And after all of that, Nick had to hear from Mer-obsessor Helm that he was an idiot for letting her go. It was some amusing commentary, especially when she lamented that Mer “for some reason” liked men, so Helm never stood a chance.
But then, it turned into a Hallmark movie that went wrong. We had Nick running out of the bar and racing to the airport to profess his love for Mer and perhaps follow to another state again because Mer is the Sun, the Moon, the Stars, the Ocean, and the prize.
But in a moment that presumably was supposed to be empowering or something — Mer pretended like she couldn’t hear what he said over the phone and dismissed him with a generic statement about reaching out to him once they got settled.
And the whole thing felt silly and didn’t project the image they were likely angling for with Mer choosing her kids and heading to Boston.
But, goodbye, or whatever, Meredith Grey. And does that mean Nick is gone now, too?
One of Mer’s strongest scenes of the hour was the time she spent having a heart-to-heart with Simone. They’ve had great chemistry since Simone’s introduction, and every time they share the screen, it feels like a passing of the torch.
It was no different as Simone opened up about how her sister hated her and her grandmother’s decline. It was a great scene, and it’s promising with Simone as the new Mer.
She’s a likable character, and they’ve excelled at capturing the nostalgic feeling of the early days with these interns.
It’s even better now that they’ll be living together in the Grey home, coming full circle. The Grey House is now the Intern House 2.0, and that was arguably the most exciting thing about this installment.
Simone and Lucas’ relationship is heating up, and his finding out that she used to be engaged or that she doesn’t want to reduce him to a rebound hasn’t discouraged him.
They’re a good fit and sweet together. Now that they’ll be living together, we can probably anticipate all types of fun, classic sexy Grey’s scenes and moments as their relationship develops.
Mika was amusing, and she and Helm got along well. We have yet to see Helm incorporated into the season as much. Even though she’s no longer a doctor, she’s still good and knows her stuff. And she and Mika hit it off nicely. Is there a possible relationship on the horizon for them?
Blue and Jules’ relationship continues to evolve, and Jules’ background story is trippy, but they don’t have anything interesting happening.
Lucas: Aunt Amy, how do you do it?
Amelia: How do I do what?
Lucas: Stop caring about what other people think?
Amelia’s shining moment was when she sat down with the parents of the baby who needed the partial transplant and explained her experience with Christopher and how she’d give anything to have a shot at saving him the way they did for their kid.
It was a great character moment for Amelia, and Caterina Scorsone’s performance was fantastic during that scene.
With Meredith gone, we can probably expect Maggie and Amelia to be closer than ever, and now that Maggie’s relationship is on the rocks, it may include them living together.
The happy bubble Winston and Maggie were in has burst, and the fog of being newlyweds has officially lifted.
I don’t know how these two can head toward mending fences when they’re this fraught. Maggie loves Winston as a surgeon, but she strips him down to bits as a man and her husband, and there’s only so much he can take.
He has finally reached a point where he hasn’t held back, and he is expressing how he’s losing respect for her too.
And a marriage cannot sustain without mutual respect. That’s the basics, and if they can’t get that down, they’re doomed.
It’s not looking good for Maggie and Winston at all.
Over to you, Grey’s Fanatics. What did you think of Mer’s farewell episode? Are you ready for the Intern House Part Deux? Sound off below.
You can watch Grey’s Anatomy online here via TV Fanatic for the best of the Meredith Grey Era.
Jasmine Blu is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow her on Twitter.