The January 22 episode of “Grey’s Anatomy” welcomed back the show’s titular doctor, last seen leaving for Boston in October, though we wish we could say her return was a pleasant one.
Sure, lounging in a gorgeous mansion with Scott Speedman would be anyone’s idea of a good time, but Meredith and Nick’s bliss was shattered by the arrival of his troubled younger sister and (surprise!) the infant son he didn’t know existed. She had mostly good news to share, explaining that she’s two years sober and gainfully employed, but Nick wasn’t in the mood to celebrate. He still had his doubts, especially because this isn’t the first time she’s appeared to turn her life around.
No longer hungry for lunch — nor the extra helping of judgment being served by her older brother — Nick’s sister decided to go for a drive to clear her head. The only problem? She left baby Miles behind, leading Nick to assume the worst. Meredith assured Nick that they could handle raising Miles if his sister didn’t return, but she also encouraged him to be more open-minded. People can change.
Nick’s sister returned two hours later, leading to another emotional blowout. This time, however, Nick took Meredith’s words to heart, and despite ending the hour on a somewhat awkward note, his relationship with his sister is (at least) on the mend.
The whole experience also got the wheels turning in Nick’s head, specifically how willing Meredith was to raise Miles if things had gone south. “Are you asking me if I want to have another baby?” Mer replied to his inquiry, assuring him that she meant what she said: “Whatever happens, we’re in this together.” (Friends, were we the only ones half-expecting a proposal in that moment? “Grey’s,” don’t scare us like that!)
Meanwhile at Grey Sloan Memorial…
While Meredith and Nick endured a very real family reunion, Richard experienced one of his own, albeit in the form of a dream during his cancer surgery. In his dream, Richard reunited with his father, who died of the exact same disease his son is currently fighting. Their conversation covered a wide range of topics, including Richard’s own guilt over not recognizing his father’s symptoms earlier, but it ultimately ended on a positive note. As Richard’s father died (again!), he reminded his son of the Serenity Prayer, repeating “the wisdom to know the difference” as his final words. When he awoke from surgery, Richard was thrilled to see Catherine — who spent the hour complaining to Bailey that Richard wanted to be buried next to Adele — and even more thrilled by what she told him: “You’re cancer free!”
Elsewhere, Lucas and Jules took pity on a tennis instructor with a benign tumor in his arm; it could take months to schedule an operation, and he wouldn’t be able to afford taking time off work. Her bright idea was for the patient to readmit himself, this time exaggerating the pain of the tumor to guarantee he could have it removed faster. Unfortunately, Simone grabbed him before Lucas and Jules had a chance, so she became unknowingly involved in their little scheme. Ditto for Kwan, who pretended not to know what they were up to anything. Winston, on the other hand, smelled a rat. During surgery, he could tell that the patient was misrepresenting his pain level, but when he asked Jules about it afterward, she denied knowing anything. (In case Nurse Iris wasn’t enough of an obstacle on their road to romance, this definitely did the trick.)
OK, let’s talk: Were you also half-expecting a proposal from Nick to Meredith? And do you think Jules’ little scheme will come back to bite her? Drop a comment with your thoughts on the episode below.
