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Post by kaz on Sept 23, 2010 23:19:40 GMT -5
Thread reserved for the writers' blog and other recaps and reviews you find on entertainment sites etc on the net.
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Post by kaz on Sept 24, 2010 0:15:09 GMT -5
Krista Vernoff on "With You I'm Born Again"...My favorite scene in this episode is the Chief dancing it out in his office. I just love it. I love Jim Pickens and I love what I know to be true – that life, even its darkest hours, has moments of great joy, great lightness. While my Dad lay in the hospital dying, I cried harder than I ever have before or since. But I laughed harder too. Darkness requires light. And the human spirit will always find its way to the surface. Rebirth. That was the theme of this episode. How does one recover from the worst day of their lives? How does one go on? I know a little something about rebirth because about a little more than a year ago, I made the excruciating decision to leave my marriage. In the early years of Grey’s Anatomy, I waxed poetic on this blog about my marriage – I was a newlywed with all the love and hope and joy that that entails. And then things changed. This year was the darkest and hardest of my life. There were days that Shonda Rhimes was my life raft and there were days when even she couldn’t hold me up… (In case you were wondering? The non-judgemental loyalty that Cristina and Meredith give each other? Where they let each other be as dark and twisty as they want to be and they never ever judge? That’s Shonda. She’s the friend you call to help you bury the body.) Recently, I came through the darkness. Emerged from the tunnel. Remembered what unadulterated joy feels like. Re-emerged into the light… And last night I was looking at pictures from this past year, and in some of them, I barely recognize myself. In some of them, I look like the saddest person I’ve ever seen, even though I’m smiling. And that’s what I tried to put into this episode. All of that. I can’t relate to people who’ve survived a shooting. I’ve never experienced the kind of trauma our characters went through. But I can relate to the concept of Rebirth. I can relate to the idea that in life, stuff happens that we never could have imagined and that somehow, unimaginably, we survive. Our people survived, but they will never be the same. The highs will be higher. The lows will be lower. Life will be sweeter. Love will be, as Callie might put it, even more awesome. I love the Chief dancing. I love the look on Owen's face when Cristina says, "I do." I love that out of darkness comes light. And I also know that sometimes when we think it’s as dark as it could possibly get, it gets darker before the light comes in… I know some of you are going to hate on me for writing about me and not our characters but the thing is, I am our characters and so are you. And the other thing is, I can’t say much more about our characters without spoiling stuff that’s coming up. Because we are still telling this story. Traumas aren’t over a month later. Derek still doesn’t even know about Meredith’s miscarriage, for God’s sake! There’s more story here. A lot more. So tune in next week. And kiss all the people you love in the meantime. www.greyswriters.com
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Post by Leanne on Sept 24, 2010 15:26:52 GMT -5
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Post by kaz on Sept 26, 2010 20:55:49 GMT -5
Grey’s Anatomy Review: Picking up the Pieces September 25, 2010 by Tanya Lane It’s that familiar time again of year again, when I must keep the Kleenex close at hand. A new season of Grey’s Anatomy begins in the aftermath of a shooting rampage that left several people dead. Everyone is hanging by a thread. Each doctor must be cleared by a psychiatrist before they are allowed to return to surgery. Most of these type A personalities are trying to give off an air of normalcy, especially Alex and Meredith – but they are all suffering mightily. Tragedy affects people differently, and everyone has a unique coping mechanism. Derek’s near-death experience has left him filled with zest and adrenaline, almost as if he has a new lease on life. They are all experiencing some form of Post-Traumatic Stress, especially the great Dr. Bailey, who looks as if she’s one second away from a break down. Her blossoming relationship with Ben comes to a screeching halt because she unfairly blames him for not enduring the tragedy with everyone else. He had the day off and was playing golf while Bailey cradled a dying Dr. Percy in her arms. It’s not his fault that he wasn’t there, but our emotions don’t always make sense. Bailey is broken and wounded, and the tragedy she endured brought her closer to her co-workers. Ben was not there, so he can’t understand her pain, nor does she have the energy or ability to give him what a relationship requires. Alex has been cleared for surgery, even keeping the bullets in his body as a badge of honor. And because chicks like stuff like that. Arizona thinks Callie is going to start pressing her about children, but it turns out that Callie just wants to move in together. This relieves Arizona, because even though she relented on the issue of kids, she’d still like to take things slowly. Meredith hasn’t told Derek about her miscarriage, and she is lying to the psychiatrist about what happened. He can tell that she’s holding back, and that’s why she has not been cleared for surgery. Cristina has not been cleared either. Everyone who hasn’t been cleared must meet for group therapy sessions to work through their issues, and I suspect that this shrink will be around for several more episodes as everyone tries to put their lives back together. Perhaps the most significant new development of the season is Owen and Cristina’s marriage. Their union was clearly impulsively borne out of tragedy, so maybe that is why Meredith opposes it initially. She finally comes around after looking at the big picture. Owen is a good man and Cristina can still find happiness, even though she had to be cut out of her last wedding dress. They have a simple ceremony at Meredith and Derek’s home. “Death-wish” Derek has been racking up speeding tickets, because he’s turned into an adrenaline junkie after surviving the shooting. His reckless driving lands him in a jail cell (again), so Meredith leaves him there to teach him a lesson. I thought that was kind of messed up, since he was the best man. She could have made her point another way. This was a great first episode that sets us up for what’s to come. I hope the season isn’t all gloom and doom while everyone tries to recover from what happened. Such a character study would be fascinating, but a bit of a downer for a series already known for its tear-jerking abilities. There was at least one very funny moment of the last episode, when Derek’s newfound impulsivity causes him to step down as Chief, returning the position to Richard. Webber was so excited that he danced for about five minutes in his office: his own private victory dance. The kind you do when no one is looking; it was cute. I’m excited for a new season of one of the best shows on television. Get your Kleenex ready! Season 7, Episode 1: With You I’m Born Again (originally aired September 23, 2010) poptimal.com/2010/09/greys-anatomy-review-picking-up-the-pieces/
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shylin
Roman Collegiate
Posts: 69
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Post by shylin on Sept 27, 2010 4:00:40 GMT -5
'Grey's Anatomy' Fan Columnist: A Show is Born Again Janalen Samson Writer, BuddyTV Television shows are like relationships. In the beginning there's the blush of first love, fraught with passion and brimming with excitement. Everything is all shiny and new and the possibilities for the future seem endless. Then, over time, that burning intensity necessarily morphs into something different, something either reassuringly comfortable, steadfast and true or into something empty and hollow, a shadow of its former self. On the rarest of occasions, however, deep into a relationship, one falls in love all over again. In a bold turn of events, unusual for a show seven years into its run, the creators of Grey's Anatomy dared to burn the house down in the stunning season six finale and the show has risen like a phoenix from the ashes in a crackling season seven premiere that has turned everything we thought we knew on its ear. I'm excited about the show and all of its characters in a way that I haven't been in years. Life is a Highway One of the fascinating observations in this episode is how everyone reacts differently to trauma. Derek Shepherd was arguably the closest to death of all the survivors. He responds by living in the moment, whether impulsively resigning his position as Chief (a good decision) or speeding recklessly down the highway (a bad one). He's living life fast and loose, pumped with adrenaline and feeling invincible. But there's one key piece of information Derek does not yet possess. On the day of the shooting Meredith both found out she was pregnant and lost the baby. This secret is eating Meredith from the inside out and although she is taking care of everyone around her, she's not taking care of herself and she remains one of two surgeons not yet cleared for surgery. Here Comes the Bride The other is Cristina Yang who saved Derek's life in the finale while a gun was literally pressed to her head. It turns out that Cristina's response to the tragedy is to quietly lose her bearings. She's paralyzed by fear and hides behind the plans for her upcoming wedding to Owen. In contrast the shooting seems to have given Owen complete clarity and focus. He wants a life with Cristina and proposes to her in a way that I found very typical of this couple. It wasn't showy. It wasn't traditional. Instead, Owen recognized something in Cristina and provided her with total love and security in the moment that she needed it the most. Some will argue that they have rushed into marriage too quickly. I would counter that while the timeline for the wedding (beautiful, low-key, and very romantic by the way) may have been accelerated by the actions of a crazed gunman, Owen and Cristina would have moved forward in their relationship regardless. The way they looked at each other during the ceremony confirms to me their deep and abiding love for each other. Everything is Topsy Turvy What about everyone else? Well, that's a mixed bag. Newly-reinstated Chief Richard is dancing in his office. The normally no-nonsense Miranda Bailey is barely keeping herself together. Callie and Arizona are together, but living in a "pink bubble" that may burst at any moment. Mark has manned up and behaved like an adult while Alex has reverted to being a hardened jerk in an effort of self-preservation. Lexie suffered a breakdown but found a steely resolve beneath her Little Grey exterior. Teddy's got a new guy and Avery and April are recovering from the deaths of their friends. www.buddytv.com/articles/greys-anatomy/greys-anatomy-fan-columnist-a-38173.aspx
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Post by Leanne on Sept 27, 2010 13:13:45 GMT -5
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Post by kaz on Sept 27, 2010 17:30:05 GMT -5
'Grey's Anatomy' Fan Columnist: A Show is Born Again Janalen Samson Writer, BuddyTV ... Here Comes the Bride The other is Cristina Yang who saved Derek's life in the finale while a gun was literally pressed to her head. It turns out that Cristina's response to the tragedy is to quietly lose her bearings. She's paralyzed by fear and hides behind the plans for her upcoming wedding to Owen. In contrast the shooting seems to have given Owen complete clarity and focus. He wants a life with Cristina and proposes to her in a way that I found very typical of this couple. It wasn't showy. It wasn't traditional. Instead, Owen recognized something in Cristina and provided her with total love and security in the moment that she needed it the most. Some will argue that they have rushed into marriage too quickly. I would counter that while the timeline for the wedding (beautiful, low-key, and very romantic by the way) may have been accelerated by the actions of a crazed gunman, Owen and Cristina would have moved forward in their relationship regardless. The way they looked at each other during the ceremony confirms to me their deep and abiding love for each other. ... www.buddytv.com/articles/greys-anatomy/greys-anatomy-fan-columnist-a-38173.aspxI think this is a really astute review. Thanks for posting it, shylin. I agree with the writer's assessment of the Owen and Cristina relationship.
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Post by kaz on Sept 27, 2010 18:50:05 GMT -5
History RepeatingThe episode title for the seventh season premiere of Grey’s Anatomy, which aired 23 September, is “With You I’m Born Again.” Ever faithful to the show’s structure, Meredith Grey’s (Ellen Pompeo) opening narrative voiceover explained, “Every cell in the human body regenerates, on average, every seven years. Like snakes, we shed out skin. Biologically, we’re brand new people.” It was a fitting, if heavy-handed, analogy for a show beginning its seventh season. Physical regeneration may be an empirical fact, and one that Meredith wanted to focus on, but psychologically, things at Seattle Grace remain impossibly and predictably messy. This premiere had a lot to live up to. After several lackluster seasons, Grey’s wrapped up last season with a bloody and extremely stressful finale titled “Death and All His Friends” (second only, in my experience, to the Six Feet Under episode when David is abducted and almost burned alive). Seattle Grace was terrorized by a grief-stricken Mr. Clark (Michael O’Neill), who set out to shoot and kill all those surgeons who carried out his late wife’s AMD. Derek was shot in the chest in front of Meredith, but was saved by Christina (Sandra Oh), who continued to operate despite a gun to her head and her love interest, Dr. Hunt (Kevin McKidd), being shot. Meredith begged Clark to shoot her instead (he didn’t) then miscarried the baby she never got a chance to tell Derek they were expecting. Alex (Justin Chambers) nearly bled to death and several of the Mercy West-ers were killed before Chief Webber (James Pickens, Jr.) talked the gunman into committing suicide. Phew. The season opener focused on how the survivors were, well, surviving. As expected, none was doing particularly well. Derek had been arrested multiple times for driving over 100mph. Meredith scolded and enabled. She ridiculously refused to tell Derek about the miscarriage and swore all witnesses to secrecy. Christina agreed to marry Dr. Hunt for all the wrong reasons, and Alex reverted to trolling for “tail.” All were ordered into therapy before they can be cleared for surgery again. Being cleared for surgery was the sole focus of each doctor, save for Meredith’s sister, Lexi (Chyler Leigh), who has always been more than happy to dig into her own psyche and anyone else’s within reach. This common focus united the group, as did their lack of self-awareness: each doctor ignored the fact that he or she was suffering from PTSD, but was eager to point out the others’ symptoms. This is familiar territory: shooting or no, such myopic observations have always plagued this group. Of the many banal defense mechanisms on display here, Meredith’s miscarriage offers the most hope for any sort of insight. As much as she’s tried to distinguish herself from her legendary mother, Ellis Grey (Kate Burton), her denial of the miscarriage and determination to get back to surgery mimicked Ellis’ bad behavior, when she treated her daughter as an impediment to her career. And yes, Ellis denied Meredith’s father access to her, as Meredith was denying Derek access to the knowledge of their pregnancy. So much for progress. Unfortunately, the best bits of the premiere were the flashbacks to the finale, though their impact was watered down considerably in the context of an action-less storyline, filled with Grey’s usual rambling pontifications. Grey’s made a big deal in this episode about rebirth and renewal (the cells again), and Lexi even explained that it’s common for people to “up and change their lives” because of a trauma. But most of these characters were merely changing back to what they were several seasons ago. This is not a good thing and it’s not meant to be, for them, at least. Frankly, it’s even worse for us. Before getting to the relative mental good health and growth of last season, we trudged through seasons of waffling and dysfunction, and put up with things like ghost sex and Post-it weddings. No one wants to go back there. So far, “change” here is just another flashback, less a rebirth than a reincarnation. www.popmatters.com/pm/review/131481-greys-anatomy/
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