everyone's had their face sliced open before, am i right?

Last Thursday, the surgeons of Seattle Grace returned to work (and Grey's Anatomy returned to our television sets) and it was obvious that the hospital was still in recovery mode from the mass murder that occurred in last year's season finale. To refresh your memories, an angry, sad, and armed widower entered the hospital with intentions of killing Derek, the Chief of Surgery responsible for his wife's death (he pulled the plug). All of the surgeons of Seattle Grace were traumatized that day; some physically, some emotionally. Weeks later, we see that the principles (season regulars) involved in the incident are all going through counseling, in order to be cleared for surgery.

Since the shooting, people have changed. Derek, having had a very close brush with death, is now an adrenaline junkie, getting off on speeding on the freeway, and crazy surgeries--the latter of which he can now perform after quitting as Chief of Surgery and returning to Achieves the Impossible Neurosurgeon. Cristina's getting married to Owen. Yes, they went from an intentionally violent relationship (he strangled her in his sleep), to a so-so relationship (he still had feelings for Teddy), to nearly breaking up, to being engaged. Oh, what a rollercoaster their relationship is. Then again, I do believe every relationship on Grey's Anatomy has issues, but if I start going into that, this post may never end. Let's get back to the task at hand. Derek's a speed-demon, Cristina's getting married, Alex thinks the bullet inside him makes him look like a bad ass, Miranda's just a bundle of nerves (I'd be too if I had had a gun pointed at my head), Lexie's recovering from a very bad case of PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder), Callie is super-duper in love with Arizona, Teddy's with a new man, and Meredith--having had a miscarriage--is doing surprisingly well, though she never told Derek about the incident.

So everyone's in the process of getting cleared for surgery, and it seems that Cristina and Meredith (much to Cristina's indifference and Meredith's dismay) have yet to be cleared. And it's a great time to get cleared for surgery because there's a boy with a brain tumor and the only way to get it out involves his face being sliced in half. Yep. You gotta love the surgeries that come into this hospital; what'll those writers think of next? The boy's jaw will literally be sawed in half--yuck. And while Derek was feeling all confident that everything will all work out for the best, I was on Meredith's side when she stepped in and gave a very blunt rundown of the risks and affects of the surgery. If I was the boy's mother--as painful as it'd be--I'd want to hear the complete truth too. But of course, it wouldn't be good television without showing the crazy surgery (or would it?) so they go ahead with the surgery. And, I've been watchig this show for years. I was also a huge fan of ER and I'll go back even further and say I watched Chicago Hope when it was on Lifetime. And since I'm here, I'll go further than that and say that I made a big habit of getting up early on summer mornings (no school) and watching Rescue 911 reruns. So, with all of that, I'm pretty OK around graphic surgeries and injuries. But, when I saw Dr. Sloane (oh, Mark, I'll confess you are nice to look at) literally saw that boy's face in half, I do believe I cringed. But don't worry, all went well. Sure, the boy at one point--face insanely swollen--woke up in ravaging pain, but after a nice little pep talk from Derek, he powers through in hopes of recovering.

I guess that's what this episode was about: recovery. The surgeons involved in the shooting experienced a trauma that, sure, could emotionally be compared to getting your face sawed in half. And they each had their own way of of recovering from it. Cristina married Owen. They did it. The episode ended with their wedding at Meredith's house, and it was simple and lovely. Meredith doubted that Cristina truly wanted to marry Owen, and I can understand that. To go from wanting to break up, to getting a gun to your head, to wanting to get married, is a bit unusual. But, whatever. I loved Cristina's monologue to the counselor ("I think you're either born simple, or you're born...me.") I mean, you give Sandra Oh a monologue, and she knocks it out of the park everytime. She's half of the reason why I stay loyal to this show--because, it does tend to get sudsy, if you know what I mean. But back to Cristina. I understood her. It was simple. She's spent most of her life one way, but in the end, she realized that she wants what everyone else wants--to be loved. And with Owen, she is that. And it was quite convenient when Owen walked in on Cristina crying, saying she doesn't want to be alone, and out pops an engagement ring. He was planning on it. They thought the same way. And if years down the line, they realize they rushed into things, then so be it. But right now, they are happy, and in love, and that's what matters. Lexie, after a stint in psych (as a patient) has gone back to brunette and is seeing things clearly again. So much so that she ably puts Alex in his place by reminding him that while he was close to death, he cried out for Izzy, the one who left him. I really do hope these two are truly broken up so that Lexie and Mark can be together again. Derek, even after being in jail, speeds again, and yes, is put in jail again. Meredith, being the assertive one she is (except for the whole "not telling Derek about the miscarriage" thing) made sure he stayed there, even if it mean him missing the wedding. Let's face it, Meredith wasn't in full recovery mode, but as we've seen from past experience, this character takes longer than others to get past anything. Callie asked Arizona to move in with her. Just to move in with her. Not to marry her. Not to have a baby with her. To move in with her. And Arizona was more than happy to oblige. Miranda, going the "i need to be alone" route, told Dr. Anasthesiologist that she, well, needs to be alone for now. And if you're a fan of Grey's Anatomy, while watching this scene, you knew Miranda was about to have a monologue (being held together by only bits of tape and glue). Cue the other half of the reason why I still watch this show: Chandra Wilson. While I feel like after so many season, it's really expected to give her a big speech--she practically has one each week--she kills them everytime, so...yeah I don't know why I'm complaining.

In case it hasn't become apparent already, I tend to not take this show very seriously. It's really changed over the years. It can at times be overdramatic. In each episode, I find myself annoyed with at least one aspect of it, whether it be in character or plot. But I think with this show, you either watch it or you don't. And I watch it. Yes, I still watch it. So I will stay true to it and in exchange for my loyalty, I will recap it the way I see fit.

But really, I'm a fan, and I look forward to watching it. So you keep doing what you're doing, Shonda. See you next week.