'Grey's Anatomy' Season 17 Episode 2 Review: Is it time to bid adieu to Meredith? Derek's return raises questions
'Grey's Anatomy' Season 17 returned folks, and what a shocking, thrilling premiere it was — a step up from what we had to go through in Season 16, where most of the episodes were a big dull dud. The doctors of Grey-Sloane memorial are faced with the worst from 2020: the Covid-19 pandemic. The frustration is etched on their faces, as they are unable to save most of their patients. The exhaustion is real, and the actors did a swell job of showing what most of the world has been feeling throughout this year.
The relationship dramas were easier to bear this time around. Meredith (Ellen Pompeo) and Andrew DeLuca finally seem to make headway, or so it seems at first. There's Cormac Hayes (Richard Flood) in the wings too, but for all the rooting that we've been doing, Meredith just might not end up with either of them. At the end of the episode her fate hangs in the balance...and we see her in limbo. Her limbo is the beach, nd she isn't alone. It's a heartbreaking moment for all, as we see Derek Shepherd (Patrick Dempsey), at long last. He's a sight for sore eyes, indeed. The question remains: Is Meredith dead? Or is she dying? Is this Ellen Pompeo's way of saying goodbye to us?
While we pontificate over that possibility, we had to go through Owen Hunt (Kevin McKidd) and Teddy Altman (Kim Raver) confronting their real feelings at long last. When we left off, Owen found out that Teddy had cheated on him with Tom Koracick (Greg Germann)..because she left a voicemail by accident. An angry Owen lashes out at her, and she begs, cries, pleads, but he won't have any of it. He brings up the fact that he once cheated on Cristina (Sandra Oh), only because he had been filled with revenge. Jeez, stop talking Owen, Cristina fans aren't still pleased with that. Tom Koracick isn't having a great time as everyone knows about his sexual endeavours with Teddy, so he goes around thrashing boxes to sooth himself.
The forgettable parts of the episode were Jackson (Jesse Williams) and Jo (Camilla Luddington) trying to have sex to get over the void in their lives. Guys, you really don't have to have sex with your best friend when you feel low. Read a book or something or get a puppy to play with. Amelia Shepherd (Caterina Scorsone) and Link (Chris Carmack) did exactly what their fans wanted: They named their son Derek Lincoln Shepherd, though for some reason Amelia brought up the name Mark in the beginning. Richard Webber (James Pickens Jr) and Catherine Fox sort out their issues and decide not to be petty.
It was an exciting premiere, and hopefully the show maintains this momentum for the upcoming episodes. 'Grey's Anatomy' airs on ABC on Thursdays at 9 pm.