Grey's Anatomy Season 12 Episode 17 Review: I Wear the Face
Elizabeth Harlow
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Holy moly.
Grey's Anatomy Season 12 Episode 17 was full of holes. It was like Swiss cheese. But if you could look past that (a glass of wine certainly helped), it wasn't an altogether unenjoyable experience.
Sometimes you just have to go with the flow.
On the upside, while it wasn't outstanding, most of the story arcs showed forward momentum. The exception being the Owen/Riggs conflict, which at this point feels like water torture. Can't they just punch each other and get over it already? Megan better show up soon or Owen's face is going to freeze like that.
The heretofore unmentioned but apparently extremely prestigious Preminger grant competition was absolutely ludicrous. Just to start, how does one win a research grant without a thoroughly planned out project proposal?
And yet, I still enjoyed it.
It gave Jo something to do that wasn't whining about Mer and Alex or how unfair everything is. And there were a lot of great lines between the girls. It gave some more depth to Edwards, whose career drive is fueled in part by her lack of a romantic life.
Why are all the doctors in this hospital so hot? Seriously. It's like a -- it's like a condition of employment.
Kyle
The blow of losing the grant may be softened by Wimer Valderrama Kyle Diaz. I really hope Stephanie can at least get her freak on, unethical as it may be to sleep with a patient. Her dry spell has gone on far too long; she could really stand to have her guitar strummed with his agile fingers.
I'm betting Penny's win is going to set up some serious drama on the Penny/Callie(/Arizona) front. With I love yous exchanged, and Penny meeting Sofia, will Callie be willing to let her love go for a year plus? While I'm not invested in the this relationship, Dr. Torres seems to be all in.
I just got to Grey-Sloan. I can barely find the bathrooms.
Penny
Then there was the case with April and Arizona's pregnant teenager. If you bought that the power-suit-wearing woman playing Jenny's mother was a 28-year-old teen mom, I have a bridge I'd like to sell you. And for everyone accusing Arizona of violating HIPAA, April's offense was a million times more serious.
But it did serve to repair April and Arizona's friendship. I'm so glad their breach wasn't drawn out. Arizona has Webber as her wing man, and Owen is April's surrogate brother, but their friendship is something special.
While they both seem on good terms with the other docs, they're not particularly close with them. They've really become each other's "person." There's also the practical aspect of it being really hard to progress the baby storyline if April has nobody to talk to about it.
April: Sorry. I know, I'm ranting. But I don't have anyone to talk to, and I need to talk to someone. And I've been treating you like crap --
Arizona: No. No, no, no, no, no, no, no. You can talk to me, it's fine. I'm here -- for whatever you need, 'cause...we're friends.
As predicted, Catherine Avery managed to escalate the situation between Jackson and April. It's hard to believe that such a successful surgeon and savvy business woman would do what she did without getting an impartial lay of the land first, but then again, this is Grey's.
I just hope that Jackson takes his anger about the restraining order out on Catherine and not April and that April is smart enough to send Jackson a fast text explaining what happened. Everything that's happened with this story arc is a stellar example of how important it is to think before you act or risk making things ten times worse.
Some men would send flowers. Nasty-ass necrotic bowel resection is nice, too.
Catherine
One thing that was interesting about Catherine's machinations was watching Richard try and talk her down. Their romance has always seemed to be based mostly on the fact that they were the same age and kind of these legendary figures. It's felt like an afterthought.
I mean, with her gone most of the time, I actually couldn't remember for a second if they had gone through with the wedding or not. So to see them fight and make up was fascinating. It still didn't really convince me they should be a couple – her behavior just makes me think about how much better he could do.
Richard: You are a meddler, a busybody, a helicopter mama, a nosy Nellie, a buttinsky!
Catherine: That is trash talk!
Richard: All up in the bug juice. You don't know the flavor, woman!
There's going to be a double header on April 14th! Grey's Anatomy Season 12 Episode 18 ("There's a Thin, Thin Line") and Grey's Anatomy Season 12 Episode 19 ("It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding)") will air back to back, which means we'll get some immediate resolution on what looks like a massive mistake for Ben.
And while Ben and Miranda are sure to dominate the two hour block, there's also every possibility that parents-to-be Jackson and April will stop torturing us and get their ish together for Baby Kepner-Avery's sake. Also, something might be brewing between Arizona and Callie – unresolved feelings or co-parenting issues, it's anybody's guess.
We'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments section! If you missed the broadcast (or just want to take a second or third pass), you can watch Grey's Anatomy online.
Get your first look at the double header with the preview below!
Elizabeth Harlow was a staff writer for TV Fanatic. She left the organization in October 2018.
