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'Grey's Anatomy' Season 17 Episode 5: Bailey letting her dying mother go reminds tearful fans of Derek's death

Fans drew parallels between Derek's death and Bailey's mother's death.

It's a heartbreaking episode on 'Grey's Anatomy' as Miranda Bailey's (Chandra Wilson) mother is dying and Bailey is bidding her a painful goodbye. It's never easy to see Bailey break down and cry and fans are not able to take this. Bailey tells an unconscious Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo) that her mother had Alzheimer's too, but she didn't want to share it with others because they had similar problems too. Meredith sees Bailey at her beach-like limbo, but obviously, she cannot respond and give her any sort of comfort.

Bailey's mother is going to die and this isn't going to be an easy watch. Bailey has already had a rough year as she miscarried her baby as well. However, Bailey's mother isn't ready to go, and she has a few moments of lucidity. "This goodbye between bailey and her mom is hitting hard #greysanatomy," a fan tweeted. "WHY ARE Y’ALL GIVING BAILEY ALL THIS UNNECESSARY TRAUMA?!? #greysanatomy," a fan wrote reminding others of the terrible year the doctor has had.

Fans also requested the writers to not kill Bailey's mother as a plot device. "Why are they bringing bailey’s parents in just to kill them? please don’t kill her mom as a plot device. we don’t want that. #greysanatomy," one tweeted.

Others were are reminded of the scene where Meredith had to tell her Derek Shepherd (Patrick Dempsey)  'that it was okay to go', as he lay dying in the hospital. "Anybody else have a sense of nostalgia for this scene when bailey tells her mom it’s ok to let go #GreysAnatomy," a fan asked. "It’s kinda nostalgic. Bailey saying to her mom what Meredith said to Derek when he passed. #GreysAnatomy," another tweeted.

In an interview to ET, Wilson opened up about the rumors of Season 17 being the final season of the medical drama. "I know from a creative standpoint there have been many 'This is how the season would end' conversations and then they all end up [not happening] because of a myriad of reasons. Because the network's not ready, the studio's not ready, the fanbase isn't ready, the numbers are too good, all of those things," Wilson said. "Collectively, they've decided we're not going to put an end on it. We're just going to wait and see."

'Grey's Anatomy' airs on Thursdays, 9 pm on ABC.