After 17 seasons, most people think Grey’s Anatomy has aired for far too long. In my opinion, those people could not be more wrong!
Although Grey’s Anatomy premiered over 15 years ago (2005 to be exact,) it remains one of the most progressive shows on TV today. From topics ranging from sexual assault, to racial injustice, to COVID-19, the show covers it all.
Although most of the original cast has left, the writers manage to subtly introduce new characters to the show in a way that doesn’t feel forced. Each character is written in a way that the audience becomes emotionally attached to them, which isn’t a great idea since they also kill off most of them (don’t worry, I won’t say who!)
Some worry for shows that have aired for as long as Grey’s it will be hard for show writers to create fresh storylines that are still interesting and haven’t been done before. While that is a fair concern, it’s something you don’t need to worry about here. Grey’s Anatomy still finds ways to genuinely shock you after all of this time.
As a Grey’s fanatic that has been watching since the premiere, I can assure you the show never gets old. I have watched the entire series at least six times all the way through, and it is so worth it! In a recent episode, I genuinely gasped at something that happened. Each episode keeps me on my toes!
The pandemic has given the writers of Grey’s Anatomy a whole new storyline. Most viewers don’t want to relive the traumas of COVID-19 through a tv show, especially one that focuses on hospitals. But trust me, you should see this. They show how doctors truly feel during these times and how hard it has been for them. It really shows you another side to the pandemic and why you should appreciate the dedication and resilience of healthcare workers during these trying times for us all.
That’s also a reason that the show cannot end after this season. There have been rumors that this could be the last season, which cannot happen. This show that viewers have been completely invested in can’t just end with a pandemic. We need more! We need to see happy endings or characters come back to say bye. We need closure.
This season, four fan-favorite characters were brought back after being killed off in previous seasons. Writers kept this a complete secret to fans which made this even more amazing! (I also gasped for each one of them. And cried.)
While my fan opinion may not convince you completely, take the word of real doctors. In the Spring 2020 issue of “The Pharos”—a quarterly journal from the Alpha Omega Alpha medical honor society—there was an article called “Hope and Perseverance: Grey’s Anatomy Television Series” by Therese Jones, Ph.D., and Lester D. Friedman, Ph.D.
The article mentioned three reasons why the show is “remarkable”—and it’s not for the medical procedures. The first reason was the female relationships on the show, from immature interns to “extraordinary” women, mothers, doctors, and people. The second reason is that the men went from egotistical jerks who wanted to sleep with a bunch of women, to men who genuinely care about more than just their reputation and care about others. The third reason is that they show that medicine can only ever be a practice.
“For all the celebration of science in Grey’s, the recurring themes are the fallibility of medicine, the limits of technology, the hope for better treatment, the need for better trained physicians, and the compulsion to combine humanity with science to save more lives more quickly, and to know when we have lost,” Jones and Friedman said.
Grey’s Anatomy is one of the best shows of our generation. It can make you laugh, think, hope, and ugly cry all in one episode. If you haven’t watched it yet, this is your sign to go watch immediately. Let’s hope that the power of Shonda Rhimes will keep Grey’s on a little longer.