Grey’s Anatomy should get messier with Ellen Pompeo’s Meredith gone

The “Grey” in Grey’s Anatomy She officially gave up her scrubs. After 19 seasons, Ellen Pompeo exited the series that shot her to stardom and made her one of the highest-paid TV actresses, where she played the titular “dark and twisty” surgical intern turned Chief of Surgery Meredith Grey. Pompeo’s Meredith has anchored the long-running ABC drama through love triangles, major catastrophes, and a revolving door of cast members. Meredith is literally the voice of the show, with a voice-over that guides viewers through the week’s themes, and her character has grown up alongside the audience for the almost two-decade run of the show. It begs the question, “Where can Meredith go?” Grey’s Anatomy Go from here

Many will call for the show to end (or have already), and there’s certainly an argument that the series has overstayed its welcome and produced more bad seasons than good as of late. But here’s the thing: When Grey’s Anatomy Hits, it It is reallyThe show has had many hits and continues to play a crucial role in society, covering current stories with grace and humanity. This season is the last. Grey’s Anatomy We tackled the reverse of Roe V. Wade with a devastating story about a woman’s ectopic pregnancy that required a lifesaving medical abortion, for which she had to cross state lines when doctors in her home state wouldn’t perform the procedure. A beautiful COVID-19 segment was produced by the series two seasons ago. It honored all those who died in the Pandemic of 2020. The series had commented before on domestic violence, homosexual marriage, addiction to drugs, and other topics. There’s a place for anything under the Grey’s umbrella, and there’s still a need for its storytelling — but there need to be major shifts in the show’s primary focus to keep it fresh.

The easy answer (and the one that the writers room seems to be exploring via season 19’s new cast members) is to take the show back to its roots and put the spotlight back on the interns. The series was about misfits that all love surgery. It first aired on TV in 2005. With them came baggage, from Meredith’s fraught relationship with her mother, Ellis Grey, to Izzie Stevens’ past work as a lingerie model that paid for her medical school bills, to Cristina Yang’s abrasive personality and “no new friends” outlook. George O’Malley was too nice for the job, and Alex Karev had no bedside manner. It felt like the characters were real people. Their backstories, developed personalities and other details added depth and intrigue in an otherwise boring network procedural.

Image: ABC

The current season has tried getting back to the show’s essence by introducing a new bunch of interns vying for attention and chasing perfection, but it’s lacking in its execution. Because it’s Grey’s Anatomy, one of them has to be related to a beloved character — this time, Niko Terho steps in as Dr. Lucas Adams, who happens to be Derek and Amelia Shepherd’s nephew, a fact he is trying desperately to keep a secret. In his cohort are Mika Yasuda (Midori Francis), who lives in her van; Benson “Blue” Kwan (Harry Shum Jr.), an older, mouthy intern; Simone Griffith (Alexis Floyd), a transfer trying to hide her past failures; and Jules Millin (Adelaide Kane), another bossy perfectionist.

This is a problem because these little blurbs really are all that we know about these characters. (Truthfully, I struggled to come up with a description for Jules because I don’t feel like I know anything about her, despite her being present in seven hourlong episodes so far.) Lucas is poised to become a central figure as the newest character with previous ties to the hospital — much like Meredith was when she arrived as an intern trying to prove herself as someone other than Ellis Grey’s daughter — but aside from his successful lineage, what else do we know about him? There’s been very little character development to match the highs of season 1’s intern class, despite that being in the DNA of the show.

The current show is full. It is currently struggling to find a balance between the old and the new classes. Grey’s Anatomy Although the ensemble has been an ensemble for years, stories from past characters that were not related have had little stakes or interest in a long time. Nobody I know watches it anymore. Grey’s Anatomy Yes, I know some! Owen Hunt (Kevin McKidd), and Teddy Altman (Kim Raver), stories. They are exhausting because of their dysfunctional marriages. For a will-they-won’t-they couple, they have never been that interesting. Maggie Pierce’s (Kelly McCreary) neuroticism can be grating especially as it is destroying her marriage, Richard Webber’s (James Pickens Jr.) only role is to keep the hospital lights on, and while Miranda Bailey (Chandra Wilson) is always a welcome presence, her recent narratives (like experiencing burnout) were only half-explored.

Image from ABC

Image Credit: ABC

This does not mean that these characters need to be written off. It is necessary to reduce their screen time in order to give room for fresher and better ideas. Having a younger cast in the show’s A-plots will bring back the playfulness of the earlier seasons, which seems to have been stifled by a main cast dealing with very real adult issues like childcare and work-life balance. Stable relationships and growing families are great for character development but do not always make for interesting TV — especially this far into a show’s run.

As the hospital sought to restore a reputation which had taken a tumble along the way, recentering the intern class was a priority for them over the past several seasons. Top of mind for Webber and Bailey is reinstating Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital as a premier teaching hospital with a world-class internship and residency program — but while the new faces at the hospital are as cutthroat and high-achieving as the ones we began this journey with in 2005, there’s room for little else in their narratives, and that level of perfection lacks intrigue.

In the early days of Grey’s wouldn’t be the same without George’s nearly botched surgery that earns him the nickname “007”; Izzie wouldn’t be the legendary character she is without her cutting Denny’s LVAD wire in the name of love; Meredith’s ill-advised entanglement with her boss, Derek Shepherd (Patrick Dempsey), launched one of the greatest love stories ever. Seeing tomorrow’s world-class surgeons making relatable, human mistakes grounded the show. Today’s interns are so laser-focused on reaching the pinnacle of their careers, there’s no room for the messy and sexy drama that made the show buzzy in the first place.

Bring back the on-call flirtations, the OR flirtations, and the complicated and challenging operations that make the interns the next great surgeons. Love triangles, illicit affairs and decision-making that is fueled only by emotion and immaturity are what we want. Without Meredith, it’s time to get messy again.