Shepherd's speech at the end was one of the more amazing parts of this episode. What a way to recap the past two-three episodes in 2min. And yes, the Chief is driving me bananas as well. I almost think he should be one to get fired.

@Punstressak: "PS Katherine, a good actor can overcome bad writing."

This is true. However, no matter how talented an actor can be, no matter how well they manage to make gold out of hideously written lines, crappy writing is still crappy writing. Eventually, even the best of actors cannot overcome a lousy storyline. And it's disappointing to viewers at the same time, especially when you see a show (one that you used to enjoy) faltering. At some point, the actor is entitled to demand better quality writing, and so is the viewer. Otherwise, you lose the actor, and you lose the viewer.

Case in point. I stopped watching Grey's a couple seasons ago. I genuinely like all these actors and their characters, but the stories were getting too ridiculous. I wasn't enjoying it anymore. Reading this blog by Angel makes me curious to watch again, but I can't say whether or not I will. A handful of decently written episodes may not be enough to sway me after all the other stuff. We'll see. ;)

I like that Meredith has actually grown as a character. She's not as morose anymore. Healthy relationships with Lexie and Derek have made her less depressed and I like that. And I'm actually not hating Lexie these days.

Yes, the chief is annoying, but what else can he do? He's in an incredibly difficult, impossible situation where he has to be the villain and can't get around that. I feel so sorry for him because I've always liked him but he's stuck as the a-hole this season.

I liked April, but she reminded me of one of the interns on Scrubs. I like that they've got interesting medical cases again, which are what I always kept tuning in for.

I also love Arizona. She's been so awesome. Strong and smart but good with patients too. Of all women for your daughter to date, Callie's dad should be happy it's Arizona.

The Chief needs to resign, be killed off or replaced by the Board for Derek, or even Bailey (whose role in te show is decreasing rapidly, what happened to 'the nazi' that demanded not to be woken and tortured interns on her 60 hour shifts?)

It's not even the writing or the plotlines of his character. It's just him. He's just annoying as all fuck. Dear James Pickens Jr; leave.
This whole 'who will he hand Chief over to?' debacle and 'will he/won't he' retiring situation is all his character has and it has lasted almost 6 YEARS. I swear to God, if Adele shows up and says 'either you retire or I'm leaving you' one more time, I will never watch this show again.

I hope he screws up the Merger, gets fired, goes back to Adele and is never seen again. Honestly, THE WORST character the show has ever seen.

First of all, LAUREN, you missed the BEST season yet (S5). So GO RENT IT!
I'm enjoying S6, but I really miss Meredith, Izzie not so much. I love Arizona ( not as much as Mer ), she's talented and gorgeous, the Chief... oh my god, retire already! The rest is good. Cristina is hilarious as always and I hope she'll make it with Hunt. And last but not least McDreamy... he never lets me down!
In other words, keep up the good work, end this merger soon (too many people) and bring back our Meredith! :)

I agree the show is much better without having to hear Izzie. I don't miss Meredith much, but I prefer her to so much Lexie (she is so dull).
I can not stand Arizona, the perfect woman and doctor who never does mistakes. And this actress and the one who plays Sloan are the most mediacre actors in the show. They never make me feel for their characters, it's incredible...
Just give Callie a better girlfriend.
The rest is ok, I just hope the other new girl is fired too. The boys are not so bad, they can become likable.

Great episode. Great writing, great directing, great acting - I'd even name it the show's best.

Sad that Izzie wasn't on it, missed her. And Lexie was great, the actress (Chyler Leigh) has been brilliant so far this season, hope to see more acting chops from her.

Pretty pointless end, but whatever, I guess. The rest of the episode made up for it.

OH, and Justin Chambers was well, too. He, Chyler Leigh, and Sandra Oh.

I do not like Nora Zehetner. Something about her makes me angry.
I miss Mer.

I feel exactly the same way. Last season I only watched randomly and even then I often found myself zapping away in favour of The Office. Now I'm actually interested again. I see great potential in the Mercy West characters, love Sloan and Lexie, Carrie and Arizona, Hunt and Cristina and don't mind Meredith and Derek as much when they are stable and the Derek-centred episode was refreshing.

The Chief is a pain in the ass but not nearly as painful to watch as Emotional Retard Bailey. She went from favourite character to the one I zap away from. She seems totally stuck in her crazy emotional responses to patients and complete blockage when dealing with personal problems. It's become unbearable and I sincerely hope she'll cross over to Private Practice for a fresh start, she'll fit right in with the other idiots there. Allyson used to be a favourite in the house too.

I also think it's good that Izzy and Meredith are on hiatus, it's giving the other characters some room to breath and flourish. I hope Alex will get over Izzy sooner rather than later and come to life again.

I'm sorry Pun, but the greatest sets, directors, actors, locations, or all the money in the world CANNOT overcome bad writing! But KH doesn't fall in to the category of a "good actor" so it's a moot point anyway, I guess.

I have to say, while Justin Chambers has always been good, he's been nothing short of amazing this season and last spring. I started watching for Sandra Oh, but JC has really caught my eye.

I agree. I was so ready to give up on this show, but I decided to stick it out for a while longer and I'm glad I did. I've really been enjoying it. The "fresh blood" helps, but I'm sorry that Sarah Drew was gone so quickly. I hope they keep Nora Zehetner.

I agree, it's getting better. Season 5 was fantastic, and made me seriously consider purchasing it on dvd; for as much as I've enjoyed Grey's since the beginning, the only episodes outside of season 5 to make me feel that way were the prom sex ep and the bomb.

I haven't always enjoyed the new characters, but eventually they do win me over. I absolutely adore Mark and Lexie as a couple, and for me they sparked new life in the show. I totally agree the show is more fun to watch with stable couples dealing with realistic problems, and that the romantic permutations should stay in earlier seasons. The Chief needs to be removed, but I wouldn't mind seeing him stay as a surgeon. Bailey needs to stop having crazy reactions for her 2 minutes of screen time, Alex & Cristina have always been way too mean for me, and I could do with fewer speeches from Izzie and Arizona (much as I like them). But hey, no show is perfect, and after so many years, it's still good enough to stick with.