(S05E15) "I need you to be a God." - Addison to Derek
The Private Practice/Grey's Anatomy crossover reached its peak this week with a two-hour event. Both episodes were so action packed, thanks to patients Jen and Archer who were part of the two episodes, that this week you not only get a review for the Grey's Anatomy installment but also one for the Private Practice episode.
So let's get to it, shall we?
Before we get down to the crossover action, I want to comment on the Izzie, Sadie, and Owen storylines.
- I know the interns have not showed much skills lately, but I was a bit surprised that the Chief allowed Izzie to have all the interns play her little games. Yes, the games allowed the staff to test and teach interns, but it prevented them from actually treating real patients and helping the doctors out. This is surprising, especially at a time where most doctors are busy either in surgery or watching a surgery. In any case, it was nice to see a happy Izzie, even if her happiness may be partially due to her condition. It also gave George a chance to be on screen for longer than 30 seconds!
- Even if most of us knew that Melissa George, who plays Sadie, was set to leave the show at the end of this episode, I must admit that I was a bit surprise to see her go that way. I always thought that Sadie wasn't too bad of an intern. Yes, she was a bit unorthodox and borderline crazy, but she seemed to know what she was doing until last week, no? I am not sad to see her go however, as I never really connected with the character and could care less what happened to her. It'll be interesting though to see if she did mix up the blood tests last week as some of you speculated. If so, Sadie's actions will have major repercussions in upcoming episodes.
- Looks like I was right about Beth: she and Owen did date. Even more, they were engaged, and he broke things off in a two-liner email! That is almost as bad as being dumped on a post-it note, no? I didn't care much for the storyline, as it didn't change who Owen is to Cristina. I'm sure the two of them will resume their love affair next week.
In case you are trying to keep tabs on who's who:
- Addison's brother is Archer.
- Addison, Archer, Derek, Naomi, Sam, and Mark have known each other since school/medical studies.
- Addison married/divorced Derek.
- Addison dated Mark.
- Archer is now dating Naomi, who used to be married to Sam.
- Archer and Derek hate one another.
- Addison and Naomi are BFFs.
Most surgery scenes are usually impressive on Grey's but I must admit that the production team did fantastic work with Archer's surgery, especially with the camera images where we saw Derek use the pen-like tool to remove the parasites from Archer's brain.
I fell for Jen who had to wait hours for her surgery. It must be excruciating to be waiting for such a surgery when pregnant. As soon as Jen convinced Derek to operate asap instead of the next morning, I knew something would happen post-operation... my gut was right and I'm sure yours was as well.
After a few minutes of partying, Derek "God" Shepard was called back down to Earth to deal with the harsh reality: Jen was having difficulties breathing. Would he be able to save her? Was Archer out of the woods? Only the Private Practice episode had answers....
Click here to read my review of Private Practice's "Ex-Life".
Grey's Anatomy' Photos
Actress Chandra Wilson attends the screening of her new public service announcement produced by OTCSafety.org at Edelman headquarters on September 24, 2008 in New York City.
Joe Corrigan/WireImage.com
Actress Chandra Wilson attends the screening of her new public service announcement produced by OTCSafety.org at Edelman headquarters on September 24, 2008 in New York City.
Joe Corrigan/WireImage.com
NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 24: Actress Chandra Wilson attends the screening of a new public service announcement for OTCsafety.org at the Edelman headquarters on September 24, 2008 in New York City. (Photo by Neilson Barnard/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Chandra Wilson
Getty Images
NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 24: Actress Chandra Wilson attends the screening of a new public service announcement for OTCsafety.org at the Edelman headquarters on September 24, 2008 in New York City. (Photo by Neilson Barnard/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Chandra Wilson
Getty Images
NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 24: Actress Chandra Wilson attends the screening of a new public service announcement for OTCsafety.org at the Edelman headquarters on September 24, 2008 in New York City. (Photo by Neilson Barnard/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Chandra Wilson
Getty Images
Actor Patrick Dempsey (R) and wife Jillian Dempsey arrive at the 60th Primetime Emmy Awards at the Nokia Theater on September 21, 2008 in Los Angeles, California.
Dan MacMedan/WireImage.com
Chandra Wilson and Debra Birnbaum, Editor-in-Chief of TV Guide Magazine, arrive at TV Guide
Chris Weeks/WireImage.com
Actress Chandra Wilson arrives at the 60th Primetime Emmy Awards at the Nokia Theater on September 21, 2008 in Los Angeles, California.
Steve Granitz/WireImage.com
Actor Patrick Dempsey poss in the press room during the 60th Primetime Emmy Awards at the Nokia Theatre on September 21, 2008 in Los Angeles, California.
Dan MacMedan/WireImage.com
(L-R) Actors Sandra Oh and Patrick Dempsey pose in the press room during the 60th Primetime Emmy Awards at the Nokia Theatre on September 21, 2008 in Los Angeles, California.
Dan MacMedan/WireImage.com
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
2-13-2009 @ 3:21AM
xnifex said...
i just started watching the ep but i just wanted to say this - so thats where bernard has been the last few eps of lost. he's off the island & at seattle grace. lol. now where is rose?
Reply
2-13-2009 @ 11:44AM
Matthew Fleigle said...
Shes been on a few episodes of The Secret Life of the American Teenager, lol
2-13-2009 @ 2:30PM
xnifex said...
That's right, she is that one kids foster mother.
2-13-2009 @ 3:35AM
Val said...
I don't watch Private Practice at all so when i heard they were doing this crossover i was pretty much screwed.. i was lost on everything private practice in this episode.. not only that didn't even DVR the second hour... i don't understand why they didn't just make this a huge 2 hour block on the guide.. damn i screwed up Thursday big time...
Reply
2-13-2009 @ 8:26AM
Isabelle Carreau said...
Yeah, when they do crossovers, people who don't watch one of the shows are lost a bit as they don't know the characters, etc.
You can watch the second hour online or on Saturday at 10 p.m. on ABC (according to The Futon Critic's schedule)
2-13-2009 @ 10:44AM
Clayton said...
It is just a stunt by the producers to try and raise the ratings for both shows. They are looking for people exactly like you, who watch only one show. Then if you give the other show a chance, they don't pull any punches, and hope to get you hooked before they continue down their road of mediocrity.
I don't think it worked very well. I doubt the shows saw much of a ratings boost, and they'll both be off the air soon.
http://makeasitcom.com
2-13-2009 @ 3:38AM
collin said...
What a train wreck of an idea. This novelty concept (which ABC stupidly bought) combines a soap opera taking place in a hospital with a touchy-feely man-bashing show targeted at postpartum mothers. What the hell?
So irritating and so pointless.
You have the five former friends "singing" Derek and Addison's marriage song in a bar. Lame.
You have the ever-irritating Owen and Cristina relationship getting ever-so-complicated with Owen's clingy ex-fiance entering the picture. Lame.
You have a poor attempt by the writers to add some storyline for Katherine Heigl so she doesn't throw anymore hissy fits since she's a MOVIE star. And that is? Breaking out the construction paper and creating a GAME for the interns. Which Lexie wins (of course). LAME.
I almost threw up when the Private Practice episode started, because the show sucked the testosterone out of me. Just like the male characters on PP... about as feminine as the females.
Shonda Rhimes should be fired and her shows cancelled. Who enjoys this crap?
Now go ahead and flame me. It'll be better writing than the crap that Shonda dished out tonight.
Reply
2-13-2009 @ 8:31AM
Isabelle Carreau said...
The singing was lame and I agree that someone other than Lexie should have won the content.
If you hate GA's storylines so much why do you watch?
Personally, I have pondered many times not watching the show anymore because of the too wacky storylines or whining Meredith Grey and I always decide to give it another chance mostly for characters like Bailey, Mark, Callie and Cristina. And because the show has gripping storylines here and there.
2-13-2009 @ 12:29PM
collin said...
To be fair, let's just say that I'm forced to watch this show because of someone else in the household...
I used to enjoy GA at first, and I thought the first two seasons of GA were some of the best TV out there (especially the "Code Black" SuperBowl episode in the second (or was it the third?) season).
But personally, I think Shonda really has screwed the show up. My two favorite characters are Bailey and Addison, and even these two are not of the same level as they once were (especially with that vile Private Practice show).
With the shows on pay-cable getting much better with their storylines and acting (e.g. Dexter, BSG), I find that most network tv shows start off great and then trail off after a while (e.g. Lost, GA).
There were so many scenes that could be pointed out as lame last night, that I thought that this crossover show should've been avoided in the first place. I have the greatest hatred of "Private Practice," and Shonda Rhimes basically neutered GA down to PP's level.
2-13-2009 @ 6:36PM
tvtalker said...
I have never witnessed a show taking as big a nosedive as Greys has this past season. I used to really love watching. Now, I'm mostly annoyed and wonder what happened to all the great dialogue and relationships that seemed pretty realistic. The whole Little Grey thing is a joke. No chemistry whatsoever with Mark. Derek is turning into a 1-dimensional hard ass; I didn't get the Christina/Meredith fight, but now I'm annoyed by that relationship which I thought was key; Don't think a couple of the key docs are attractive enough to generate the amount of action they seem to always generate. And the one with the best personality is treated like she's a-sexual. That cross-over episode was horrible. I don't want those people in my show. I don't care about their lives. Can't somebody please make them go away? I don't want to trash the actors in Private Practice. I love many of them, but the writing on that show is just terrible. For shame. I am shocked the actors could keep straight faces sprewing all that terrible dialogue. Greys writers, please watch your old episodes and get back on track. You are seriously losing me.
2-13-2009 @ 11:48AM
Matthew Fleigle said...
I thought Sadie's exit was extremely weak. Just like Hahns was. Although it does make it a little hard for her character to come back, since it seems she cannot "Doctor." Havent we seen her diagnos and treat before?
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2-13-2009 @ 2:18PM
Anita said...
I actually liked this ep due to its fast pace and I thought that Sam and Bailey had a great bond. However, Archer, the patient, and Naomi, the patient's girlfriend, were just window-dressing, so I felt the x-over wasn't all too necessary other than showing Kate Walsh's emote-ability.
Side note: the appearance of Derek's old friends reminded me of a problem I had with Grey's: Derek doesn't have anyone to relate to. While he's buried the shovel with Mark, and in the past Rhimes tried to make a trio with Derek, Burke & the Chief, I think his lack of people to confide in (compared with Meredith) makes the relationship uneven.
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2-13-2009 @ 5:22PM
tv junkie said...
that line, "i need you to be god" made me cringed, who talks like that? like he wasn't under enough pressure already.
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2-13-2009 @ 6:02PM
Brent McKee said...
Saying that Addison dated Mark is kind of like saying that Brad is dating Angelina. Derek found Addison having sex with Mark in Derek and Addison's bed while Derek and Addison were married. That's more than dating.
As for Lexie winning the competition, it was entirely predictable given her idetic (photographic) memory.
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2-14-2009 @ 12:30AM
Kate said...
I have a few comments and questions...
I'm pretty sure Mark has said he was in love with Addison. So that makes the affair he had with her a little more deep than dating (like Isabelle said) or sleeping together (like a commenter said).
Also, if those doctors were drinking all night (it was morning when they left the bar), how did nobody smell the alcohol on their breaths? They were acting pretty tipsy at the bar. I was thinking the pregnant lady would smell it on Derek and accuse him of negligence even though he wasn't drunk at the time of the surgery. Even if that didn't happen, he & Addison went straight from the bar to the hospital, so chances are they were a little intoxicated as they helped the pregnat woman.
So with Sadie gone, will we never find out what happened in Amsterdam that caused Sadie & Meredith's friendship to never be the same? They used to be like Cristina & Meredith. Speaking of Mer & Cristina, I miss them. I didn't like dark & twisty Meredith and her constant whining, but I loved the comic relief between Mer & Cristina when they danced it out or displayed one of their other quirky bonds.
I don't have a problem with the show. It's silly. I hope to god real hospitals aren't that incestuous with doctors sleeping together in the on-call room. I don't mind suspending reality while I watch an entertaining tv program. I don't even mind when the writers undo a storyline (like in Heroes). But the celebration at the bar seemed to be a big part of the episode, so I was surprised it didn't tie into anything else. Did anyone else notice that?
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2-16-2009 @ 7:16AM
Sherry said...
I've never watched an episode of GA (only PP) before until I heard about this crossover so I did a very quick rundown of the first two seasons to get me prepared for it. And in doing so, I've realized that Addison is my favorite character and that there was no point in following GA after she leaves (I stuck around and watched the third season) because it kinda makes you hate every character on that show eventually...
Anyway, it was an amazing episode! If I had watched GA when it first originally aired, I think I would have been a bit pissed off because you find out more about Addison and Derek's relationship in those two episodes than you do in the two years Addison was at SGH. But the singing and the old friends reconnecting, I loved that.
Someone above me said they didn't like the god comment Addison made to Derek but personally, I loved it. It totally referenced an older episode where Addison told Derek he wasn't a god and I found the parallels wonderful.
And I do hope PP will stay around for at least another season because I'm not ready to let go of the character of Addison yet so I hope it did see a nice ratings boost from this crossover. Here's to hopes!
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