Grey's Anatomy

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This article is about the television series. For other spellings and uses, see Gray's Anatomy (disambiguation).
Grey's Anatomy

The title screen.
Genre Drama
Picture format 480i (SDTV), 720p (HDTV)
Audio format Stereo, Dolby Digital 5.1
Running time 60 minutes (approx. 42 min)
Creator(s) Shonda Rhimes
Starring Ellen Pompeo
Sandra Oh
Katherine Heigl
Justin Chambers
T.R. Knight
Chandra Wilson
Kate Walsh
James Pickens, Jr.
Sara Ramírez
Eric Dane
Isaiah Washington
Patrick Dempsey
Narrated by Ellen Pompeo as Meredith
Country of origin Flag of United States United States
Original channel ABC
Original run March 27, 2005–Present
No. of episodes 46
Official website
IMDb profile
TV.com summary

Grey's Anatomy is a Golden Globe and Emmy Award-winning American primetime television medical drama. It debuted on ABC as a midseason replacement on Easter Sunday, March 27, 2005, immediately following the immensely popular Desperate Housewives. The story revolves around Dr. Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo), a surgical intern at the fictional Seattle Grace Hospital in Seattle, Washington. The show features an ensemble cast, though Meredith is featured as the central character, providing voice-over narration at the beginning and end of most episodes.

The title of the show is a reference to the famous anatomy textbook Gray's Anatomy.

Contents

[edit] Cast and characters

Main article: List of characters from Grey's Anatomy

The characters of the series include a group of surgical interns, the various physicians who serve as mentors to the interns, and additional people in their professional and personal lives.

Surgical Interns:

Residents:

Attendings:

The show has been lauded for its non-traditional cast. The show's producers pride themselves on the fact that they used a "blind-casting" technique. The writers carefully chose the specialty of each of doctor as an important analogy to their character and forshadowing of their development, which adds an interesting layer of complexity to the show.

[edit] Criticism, praise, and media coverage

Grey's Anatomy, despite its popularity, has its share of detractors. The show has been widely criticized by various groups, many of them medical, for inaccurately presenting medical situations and greatly exaggerating the degree to which doctors and medical professionals fraternize with one another.[2] In particular, the show was initially targeted as showing a disrespect for nurses (several lines of dialogue had doctors referring to nurses in sarcastic or belittling ways; in the pilot episode, Meredith is offended when Alex thinks she is "just" a nurse). The creator defended this line saying that it shows what would be offensive to a surgeon and that in the scenes after it is shown that the nurses know more than the new interns. Second season episodes seem to address this, as a nurses' strike shows how lost the hospital is without them.

However, supporters of the show have defended its lack of realism, claiming that a dry, precise medical show would lack the charms[3] that make Grey's Anatomy so popular with its wide audience and pointing out that very few TV programs, including ones purporting to be far more serious, hew strictly to realism.

In 2005, ABC gave the hit show a vote of confidence by announcing that Grey's Anatomy would receive the coveted post-Super Bowl time slot which aired on February 5, 2006.[4] The special episode got a record-high 38.1 rating. The network's faith in the show was proven further when it removed it from its comfortable post-Desperate Housewives berth and scheduled it opposite the CBS ratings blockbuster CSI: Crime Scene Investigation in fall 2006. The gamble paid off dramatically, with the season premiere drawing 3 million more viewers than its formidable crime drama competition.

The series has twice been featured as a subject of special episodes of the ABC News program 20/20, including one 2006 episode on the realism of the sometimes outlandish medical stories of Grey's Anatomy, and real cases similar to them.[5][6] Additionally, a 2005 broadcast of ABC News Nightline more specifically covered Grey's Anatomy's multiracial cast and race relations depiction in entertainment.

[edit] Seasons

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.
See also: List of Grey's Anatomy episodes

[edit] Season 1: 2005

Nielsen Ranking (2004-05 U.S. TV season; based on average total viewers per episode): #9 (18.5 million viewers)[7]
The season 1 cast of Grey's Anatomy
Enlarge
The season 1 cast of Grey's Anatomy

Season one began airing March 27, 2005 and ended on May 22, 2005. The first season was shortened by the network to nine episodes instead of 14. (The original season finale was "Bring the Pain."). Meredith Grey, daughter of the once-renowned surgeon Ellis Grey, becomes an intern at the Seattle Grace Hospital. She meets fellow interns Cristina Yang, Isobel "Izzie" Stevens, and George O'Malley who will be her closest friends during the intern program. Other characters include Dr. Miranda Bailey, who is nicknamed "The Nazi" due to her "tough love" capability; Alex Karev, another intern who is not very popular with the other interns (especially Izzie); and renowned surgeons Dr. Derek Shepherd and Dr. Preston Burke. The chief of surgery is Richard Webber, who was once more than close friends with Meredith's mother. The season chronicles the first few months of the intern program and the day-to-day life of a surgical intern. Recurring plots include Meredith's battle to keep her mother's Alzheimer's disease a secret and her relationship with Dr. Shepherd. Others include George's infatuation with Meredith and a power struggle between Dr. Burke and Dr. Shepherd in the hospital. The season's end introduces Kate Walsh as Dr. Addison Montgomery-Shepherd, Derek's estranged wife.

[edit] Season 2: 2005-2006

Nielsen Ranking (2005-06 U.S. TV season; based on average total viewers per episode): #5 (19.9 million viewers)[8]
The season 2 cast of Grey's Anatomy
Enlarge
The season 2 cast of Grey's Anatomy

The second season began airing September 25, 2005, and ended on May 14 and May 15, 2006 with a three-hour finale spanning both nights. The first season originally contained 14 episodes, representing ABC's original midseason order for the show. However, it was decided to end the season early because ABC executives wished for the show's first season to end with ABC's Desperate Housewives (which had the timeslot before Grey's Anatomy for the first two seasons). Rather than condensing or throwing out plotlines, Grey's Anatomy producers chose to end the season with the ninth episode and save the following episodes for the second season. Episodes 10-14 were then held and broadcast as the first five episodes of Season 2. ABC ordered 22 episodes in addition to the five being carried over, bringing the total number of episodes for the second season to 27. The count apparently does not include the recap specials "Straight From The Heart" and "Under Pressure"; however, a 27th original episode was eventually added to the season. "Bring the Pain," which aired as the series' 14th episode, has been cited in series creator Shonda Rhimes' blog as having been originally intended as the first season finale. The second season focuses on Meredith and Dr. Derek Shepherd's relationship, which was destroyed when it was revealed that Dr. Shepherd is married to the surgeon Addison Montgomery-Shepherd. Izzie Stevens and Alex Karev embark on a relationship of their own, as do Christina Yang and Dr. Preston Burke. Dr. Miranda Bailey becomes pregnant and more about Meredith's family is revealed. On some of the weeks airing after its highly-watched February 5, 2006 post-Super Bowl episode, the program attracted more viewers than its lead-in, Desperate Housewives.

[edit] Season 3: 2006-2007

The season 3 cast of Grey's Anatomy(Without Eric Dane)
Enlarge
The season 3 cast of Grey's Anatomy(Without Eric Dane)

On May 16, 2006, the morning following the close of the second season, ABC announced plans for a third season of Grey's Anatomy to anchor the network's Thursday evening programming,[9] set to air at 9 p.m. EST. As Thursday has historically been the most competitive programming night among American broadcast networks, the announced schedule change for the series has been viewed by media analysts as another vote of confidence in the series from ABC. By extension, the move of the series has been cited as one potential factor for competing network NBC's decision to move its own Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, originally intended to air Thursdays at 9 p.m. EST. ABC announced on July 18, 2006 that the third season would premiere on September 21, 2006.

ABC first tested the series' potential for Thursday audiences on February 9, 2006, as it aired an encore of the Super Bowl XL-leadout episode titled "It's the End of the World." The following Thursday, February 16, 2006, the network repeated the second part of the story arc, "(As We Know It)." Both airings began at 9:30 p.m. EST, and thus positioned Grey's Anatomy against CBS' CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and Without A Trace also Survivor and NBC's long-running medical drama ER. Solid performance on these nights, with the repeat airings maintaining a strong second-place finish, may have been influential in the fall scheduling decision.

The series assumed its new Thursday slot on July 6, 2006, as part of a two-hour event featuring a repeat of the pilot episode, "A Hard Day's Night." Throughout July and August, the series aired twice weekly — once in the new Thursday time period, and once in its previous Sunday time period. Grey's Anatomy performed strongly in the show's new timeslot in its season premiere. It was able to snatch away the #1 position from CSI: Crime Scene Investigation during the 9 p.m. hour, bringing in an impressive 25.14 million viewers throughout the hour and a strong 10.9 rating in the vital 18-49 demographic. In comparison, CSI's season premiere earned a competitive 22.04 million total viewership and a 7.5 rating in the 18-49 demo. [10]

Two actors, the previously recurring Sara Ramirez and Eric Dane, join the regular cast as Callie Torres and Mark Sloan. The series continues to center on Dr. Derek Shepherd and Meredith Grey, bringing in Meredith's other boyfriend, the veterinarian Finn Dandridge (Chris O'Donnell). Finn Dandridge was on the show for the first four episodes of the third season, until his departure when Meredith chose Derek. Callie Torres and George O'Malley experience problems in their relationship. Izzie Stevens deals with the death of her fiancé Denny Duquette and her decision to leave the surgical program, as well as the $8.7 million check that her fiancé left for her upon his passing. Cristina Yang and Dr. Preston Burke try to heal his injured hand. Addison Montgomery and Derek Shepherd end their marriage, and plastic surgeon Mark Sloan joins the Seattle Grace hospital staff, much to the chagrin of Derek.

[edit] Awards

[edit] Wins

Golden Globes:

  • Best TV Supporting Actress: Sandra Oh (2006)

Screen Actors Guild:

  • Best Female Actor in a Drama Series: Sandra Oh (2006)

TV Land Awards:

  • Future Classic (2006)

NAACP Image Awards:

  • Outstanding Drama Series (2006)
  • Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series: Isaiah Washington (2006)

Television Critics Awards:

  • Program of the Year (2006)

Emmy Awards:

  • Outstanding Casting for a Drama Series: Linda Lowy, John Brace (2006)

[edit] Nominations

Emmy Awards:

  • Outstanding Drama Series (2006)
  • Outstanding Makeup For A Series (Non-Prosthetic)
  • Outstanding Prosthetic Makeup For A Series, Miniseries, Movie Or A Special
  • Outstanding Direction in a Drama Series: Peter Horton (A Hard Day's Night) (2005)
  • Outstanding Casting for a Drama Series: Linda Lowy, John Brace (2005, 2006)
  • Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series: Sandra Oh (2005, 2006)
  • Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series: Chandra Wilson (2006)
  • Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series: Kate Burton (Ellis Grey) (2006)
  • Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series: Christina Ricci (Hannah the paramedic) (2006)
  • Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series: Kyle Chandler (Dylan Young) (2006)
  • Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series: Shonda Rhimes (It’s the End Of The World, As We Know It ) (2006)
  • Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series: Krista Vernoff (Into You Like A Train) (2006)

Golden Globes:

Screen Actors Guild:

  • Ensemble in a Drama Series (2006)
  • Best Male Actor in a Drama Series: Patrick Dempsey (2006)

[edit] DVD releases

Season releases

DVD Name Release Date Ep # Discs Additional Information
Season 1 February 14, 2006 9 2 Alternate title sequence, audio commentaries, an extended pilot episode and a making-of featurette, Easter Egg (disc 2).
Season 2 September 12, 2006 27 6 The Doctors Are In and The Softer Side of Dr. Bailey featurette, Exclusive set tour, deleted scenes, audio commentaries, Extended episodes for Thanks for the Memories, It's The End of the World, What Have I Done To Deserve This? and Losing My Religion.

[edit] Music

See also: Grey's Anatomy (soundtrack)

The show's main title theme is a snippet of "Cosy in the Rocket", by British artists Psapp. It is featured in the soundtrack album released via ABC corporate cousin Hollywood Records on September 27, 2005. A list of all the songs aired for each episode can be found on the program's official website. [11] Grey's Anatomy has been instrumental to the success of Snow Patrol's "Chasing Cars" and The Fray's "How to Save a Life", both of which became top 5 hits after appearing in the show. "How to Save a Life" was the song used for all Grey's Anatomy previews, as well as being the music for the show's music video.

A second soundtrack, featuring songs from Season Two, was released September 12, 2006.

[edit] Catchphrases

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

The characters on Grey's Anatomy speak in a very contemporary way, resulting in unique dialogue. As a result, the show has spawned several catchphrases.

  • A trend began of "McLabeling" characters or adding "Mc" to other terms
  1. McDreamy (S01E02): the first of this trend is the nickname given to Derek Shepherd by Cristina Yang
  2. McMarried (S02E01): said by George O'Malley following the arrival of Addison Shepherd and the revelation that McDreamy is, in fact, married.
  3. McBastard (S02E01): said by Izzie after she found out McDreamy was McMarried
  4. McDog (S02E16): the dog shared by McDreamy and Meredith
  5. McLife (S02E16): according to Meredith, this is what Addison stole from her along with her McDreamy and her McDog.
  6. McSteamy (S02E18): Mark Sloan is given this nickname by the female interns. Meredith, Izzie and Cristina discuss possibilities such as McSexy and McYummy before settling on McSteamy. [But this "Mc" was also used in 2x06 referring to McDreamy by Taylor]
  7. McVomit (S02E18): Said by George O'Malley after Mark Sloan is given the name 'McSteamy'
  8. McHot (S02E18): Addison Shepherd is given this nickname by Alex Karev following a conversation with Christina about what McDreamy and McSteamy might see in Addison. George agrees with Alex's assertion that "She's McHot" saying, "McYeah she is!"
  9. McYeah (SO2E18): George agrees with Alex's assertion that "She's McHot" (above) saying, "McYeah she is!"
  10. McVet (S02E23): given to veterinarian Finn Dandridge
  11. McGuilty (S03E01): what Cristina calls Derek following his extramarital exam room sex with Meredith at Prom.
  12. McBaby (S03E04): what Cristina calls Meredith's suspected pregnancy.
  13. McNasty (S03E06): George describes what Derek has allegedly done with "McHottie".
  14. McHottie (S03E06): George refers to the unknown woman (who turns out to be Derek's sister, Nancy) seen with a half-naked, fresh-out-of-shower Derek in his trailer.
  15. McBastard (S03E06): George referring to Derek in an attempt to be a Cristina to Meredith.
  16. McBitchy (S03E06): Izzie refers to Derek's sister, Nancy, after she insinuates that Meredith is the reason for the Shepherds' divorce.
  17. McFrickin Code of Silence (S03E09): Callie yells at Meredith about keeping secret her affair with Sloan
  18. McSex (S03E09): Callie's reference to catching Meredith and Derek in the act.
  • Euphemisms for female genitalia or other sexually-related terms
  1. Va-jay-jay: Dr. Bailey's euphemism for vagina: during the season 2 episode "(As We Know It)", George was assisting Addison Shepherd in Dr. Bailey's childbirth, and Bailey told him to "stop looking at my va-jay-jay!" On the "Frequently Asked Questions" page of the show's official website, Shonda Rhimes credits assistant Blythe Robe as her source for the phrase. The network tries to limit the use of the word "vagina."
  2. My good girl: A supporting character called her genitalia "my good girl" in the episode Damage Case.
  3. V-card: Chief Webber's wife Adele (Loretta Devine) used the phrase "cashing in her V-card" to describe her niece losing her virginity in the second-season finale.
  • The characters often say "seriously", usually at the end of a sentence, as a question or as a pronouncement. On the "Frequently Asked Questions" page on the show's website at ABC.com and the audio commentaries, creator Shonda Rhimes explains that one of the writers, Krista Vernoff, used the saying all the time and it spread to the writing staff, and eventually, to the dialogue.
  • Just in the 3rd season, a new catchphrase has caught on with the phrases "Dark and Twisty", as well as "Scary and Damaged", both having been used to describe Dr. Meredith Grey. Meredith also recently attempted to become "Bright and Shiny", but that didn't work out very well, so she settles for being "Dull and Lifeless" with Derek Shepherd.
Spoilers end here.

[edit] Networks

[edit] First run

Grey's Anatomy is broadcast on the following channels around the world:

[edit] Syndication

Grey's Anatomy will air in syndication in the USA on Lifetime Television beginning in January 2007. Initially, the show will air once a week beginning with the first season. In Fall 2009, Lifetime can begin airing the show daily. Lifetime will pay $1.2 million per episode, for up to 200 episodes.[10]

[edit] Trivia

  • Every episode title comes from the title of a song. Episode 1.07 "The Self Destruct Button," though widely said to be an exception to this rule, is named for an AC/DC song.[11]
  • Some countries, such as the United Kingdom, air the first season as 14 episodes. This includes all of the episodes filmed originally for Season 1 (up until Season 2, Episode 4), and one more episode, aired in the USA as Season 2, Episode 5. This is also reflected by the Region 2 United Kingdom DVD boxset, which also contains 14 episodes for the first season.
  • On Oprah, Isaiah Washington said that he originally auditioned to play the role of Dr. Shepherd.
  • In Canada, CTV failed to air the Season 3 premiere as scheduled, inadvertently broadcasting Episode 2 instead. When this was realized, they announced that Episode 1 would be shown before Episode 2 the following week.[12]
  • Sandra Oh was originally looking to audition for the part of Dr. Bailey.
  • Fisher Plaza, which houses Seattle's ABC affiliate KOMO-TV, is used for some exterior shots of Seattle Grace Hospital. This puts Seattle Grace conveniently close to the Space Needle, the Seattle Monorail, and other local landmarks.
  • In "It's the End of the World", Dr. Burke and Dylan Young (aka "the bomb squad guy") stand in front of x-rays talking of their situation. The dialogue is dubbed over the footage as this scene was added when the network agreed to make it a special two-hour show. (Notice how you can't see their lips moving.) [Admitted by Shonda Rhimes in commentary for this episode.]
  • In the third episode of season 4 on The O.C., Dr. Neil Roberts is offered a new job. He tells his daughter the offer is from a hospital known for being "wonderfully quirky", he says the name of the hospital is Seattle Grace Hospital. On the following episode, Kaitlin Cooper asks her mother Julie Cooper if Neil is still being bossed around by a short, sassy lady (hinting towards Miranda Bailey)
  • The actors in the show were chosen by blind casting. The creator did not consider the races of the cast before offering them the job.

[edit] References

  1. ^ http://abcmedianet.com/pressrel/dispDNR.html?id=092906_03
  2. ^ [1] A Resident's Review, May 9, 2005, Chronicles of a Medical Mad House
  3. ^ [2] TV Squad Review: "Into You Like a Train", October 30, 2005, TV Squad
  4. ^ [3] "'Anatomy' Lesson Follows on Super Bowl" Zap2It, October 31, 2005.
  5. ^ [4] When a Broken Heart Feels Like a Heart Attack, June 22, 2006, ABCNews.com
  6. ^ [5] Thriving on Half a Brain, May 12, 2006, ABCNews.com
  7. ^ "2004-05 Final audience and ratings figures", Hollywood Reporter, May 27, 2005.
  8. ^ "2005-06 primetime wrap", Hollywood Reporter, May 26, 2006.
  9. ^ [6] ABC Fall 2006 Schedule, July 11, 2006, Zap2It.com
  10. ^ [7] "Lifetime snatches "Grey's Anatomy" reruns", July 24, 2006, Reuters
  11. ^ [8] "May 19 episode show creator Shonda Rhimes confirms that every show title is named after a song", May 19, 2006, ABC
  12. ^ [9] "CTV airs wrong episode of 'Grey's Anatomy'", September 22, 2006, Canadian Press

[edit] External links

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Grey's Anatomy
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Episode Guide
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Preceded by
American Dad!
2005		 Super Bowl
lead-out program
2006		 Succeeded by
Criminal Minds
2007
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