I’m wishing and hoping that the rest of the season stays as good as this episode was. Unbefreakinlievable. This is the best tv show on tv now. Nothing gets my juices flowing as much as Grey’s Anatomy does. This episode was no different. The suspense, the comedy, the action…I loved it. One of the best episodes ever.

          Back when I saw the previews for this episode a week ago, I knew this was going to be insane. I’m always right. Yeah sure. But I loved the idea how there wasn’t any separation between the attendings and the interns: all of them were heroes. Everyone was in the same boat and everyone was trying to save Marina Wagner. I just loved the whole thing. Marina comes in and almost kills all our doctors. That would not be good. The story was great to emphasize the importance of passing on the torch: Webber passed the torch to Burke, Derek, Addison, and Mark and they passed the torch to Meredith, Cristina and Izzie. Very nice.

          So, it’s been eight days since the last episode. A lot has happened. Let’s first talk about the cliffhanger. Callie and George got married. Like Alex says, “dude she’s Callie O’Malley.” I nearly died laughing. What a smart move on the writers’ part. They weren’t going to have two full-blown weddings in one season; they made one spontaneous and they made one more-or-less traditional. George’s marriage to Callie is assumed to be a bad thing. Everyone thinks they’re getting sick because of sick. What is wrong with Callie? Seriously. I love Callie. Who doesn’t love Callie? I nearly died laughing when Izzie commented on the ring: no one will steal it because they are small diamonds. What a bitch. I loved watching George think that he was getting sick because of their marriage.

          I really felt bad for Callie. The whole hospital hates her. Spending time in her hotel room in Vegas with George was paradise. She comes back to Seattle and she has to be around his judgy friends. I can understand her frustration. I’m just glad George finally stood up for her; if his friends push her away, they are pushing him away. Atta boy Georgie. His father would be proud. But Callie is a great friend to have. I love her friendship with Addison. Describing Addison as a bear hunting for delicious prey, Callie shows her the ring. Addison was really the only one who acknowledged her. I think that’s why I just love Addison.

          Could this woman have been any more of a hero this week? Addison just walked into the OR room without a hazmat suit and just saved Marina’s life. I respect her. And for that, she had the right to jump back in bed with Sloane. Yes, I have forgiven her. No, but seriously, why did she go back to Mark? Why couldn’t she just satisfy her appetite and go for Alex?

          The second beautiful story of the episode was obviously Ellis’ gift; she was lucid for a whole day. What a beautiful idea. And it makes perfect sense to have her wake up now. This is where Meredith is the happiest she’s ever been. This disappoints Ellis. But what a great idea this story was. Meredith isn’t the force of nature she once was; she’s human now. She’s in love. Ellis doesn’t know how to react when she sees the daughter she doesn’t know. Ellis didn’t want to have surgery. She didn’t want it because she didn’t want to give up the thing that defined her. Meredith in turn wanted her to have the surgery because she’s hoping that someone will come up with a cure of Alzheimer’s. Sadly, Meredith never got the chance to talk with her mother. The second Meredith finally decided to open up, the gift is gone. Beautiful moment. By the way, Ellen Pompeo stunned me; she was amazing.

          I furthermore loved the interaction between Cristina and Ellis. Cristina is the mini version of Ellis: motivated, passionate, hardcore, the best. And they clicked on every level. I like how Cristina couldn’t understand why Meredith didn’t like her mom. She and her mother are polar opposites; Cristina and Ellis are alike. In a bad way too: they’re both cold, hard-headed, and sometimes mean. But I’m glad Cristina decided to marry Burke. Let’s see how long this will last.

          It was also the opening day of the Denny Duquette Memorial Clinic. Eight days and eight million dollars. It had different effects on two different people. Izzie felt angry that no one was coming in and using the facilities; the money went to waste. She was unable to watch the clinic empty. Bailey on the other hand sat patiently waiting for the first patient. The Kelley storyline was great; a 12-13 year-old girl had sex even before she got her first period. Excellent story for Bailey to get involved in.

Dear Diary

Meredith: I had this one day to interact with my mother. She woke up this morning and she was fully lucid. She remembered everything except for the past five years. Everyone was telling me that this was a gift. I didn’t do anything about the gift. She told me I was ordinary and scolded me, asking me what was wrong with me. She was angry at me because I was happy. This is the best my life has been in a while. I just wanted her to know the real me. I’m never going to get that chance though. I just won’t. And it’s killing me inside. I had the gift and I took away the gift. Can I be any more idiotic?

Izzie: I realized that it doesn’t matter how many people we treat…8 million for one. I felt bad for leaving Bailey alone in the clinic. I know what she was talking about now: it doesn’t matter how many people we help, it’s that we do. That’s how Denny’s memory stays alive. He would want to help anyone he could; that’s what I’m going to do. This is the Denny Duquette Memorial Clinic. I’m here until the end.

Today’s Baileyisms

-          “I swear on my life if I hear you say 8 million dollars one more time.”

Quotable Quotes

-          Mark: “Aren't you gonna get in there? If you wanna be chief, you gotta fight with the big boys.”

Addison: “Oh, I intend to fight like a girl. I'll let them kill each other and then I'll be the only one left standing.”

-          Meredith: “If refusing treatment is what you wanna do—”

Ellis: “Apparently, what I want doesn't matter! It isn't even legally binding! So it's really about what you want, Meredith. You're in charge!”

-          Ellis: “Then let me refuse the heart surgery.”

Meredith: “No!”

Ellis: “Why not?!”

Meredith: “Because killing my mother is not gonna be another thing that happens to me.” Another good one.

-          Alex: “Dude, now she's Callie O'Malley.” Classic.

-          Callie: “You know those cartoons, where there's a bear or whatever, and it's starving and it looks at the table, and the table turns into this delicious cooked turkey, with like lines of deliciousness coming off it?” Just about right.

-          Cristina: “I don't do rings. Don't expect me to suddenly change. I'm a surgeon, just like you. And we'll have money, we can hire a wife.” This girl is smart.

-          Ellis: “You remind me of my daughter.” This was big.

Some Final Notes

-          How did they make the clinic in eight days?

-          I loved the competition for Chief. Mark has a few moves. He was smart to say he was going to congratulate Bailey on a job well done with the clinic. Derek saying “nicely done” was fun.

-          The last time Meredith and Ellis had spoken was when they got in a fight five years before. Meredith moved to Europe for two months.

-          Marina Wagner had comlications from the radiation treatment.

-          Cristina decided to not wear the ring. She’s getting married though.

-          Izzie and Alex stealing patients from the ER was classic.

-          Ellis says the heart surgeons are the know-it-alls, the ones that are the focused and the motivated.

-          Kelley’s story was great. What a real-life story. Everything that was shown was true. It’s so easy for a girl to lose her way after she loses her mother. Just beautiful.

-          I loved the moment when George says something’s contagious and Olivia says it’s Callie. I hate Olivia though.

-          I liked Ellis telling Cristina to do carotid massage on her. This woman is great.

-          Callie’s full name is hysterical: Calliope Iphegynia Torres.

-          I loved the twenty second time limit each intern had. Very intense.

-          I loved watching Burke and Cristina laugh and hug in the end.

-          “Wishin’ and Hopin’” is a song by Dutsy Springfield.

Excellent episode. One of the best ever. 5 stars

-          Next episode

-          Grey’s Anatomy season 3

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