Grey’s Anatomy Round Table: Did Arizona’s Big Return Underwhelm?Did They Drop the Ball with Calzona?
Arizona Robbins made her grand return.
But did her reappearance on Grey’s Anatomy Season 20 Episode 4 live up to the hype? Elsewhere, Lucas moves in with Amelia, and Jules deals with her brother in a pretty uneventful episode.
Join Haley Whitmire White, Sara Trimble, and Lucy Peel as they discuss the hour.
What are your thoughts on Arizona’s big return? Do you feel like there were some missed opportunities?
Haley: I love Arizona, and I’ve missed her. It was great to see her back, especially in the capacity of a world-renowned fetal surgeon.
It’s amazing to see how far her career has come. But yes, I definitely think there were some missed opportunities. Why didn’t anyone ask about how Callie and Sofia were doing?
It seems weird that none of that would get brought up. Are Callie and Arizona together? Come on, now. I need answers.
Related: Grey’s Anatomy How Arizona’s Return Sparks Hope for Calzona Endgame
Sara: I had such high hopes when I learned my queen was returning to Grey-Sloan. I kept expecting to glimpse her life, at least since she left GS.
How are you NOT going to tell us if she and Callie ever worked things out? I have my fingers crossed that this episode isn’t Arizona’s only appearance, so we can get some closure. Otherwise, that’s just cruelty!
Lucy: So happy to see Arizona back at Grey Sloan! Amazingly, she took what she learned from Herman and became a world-renowned fetal surgeon.
I fully agree with Haley. Why not say that she came from New York? Why not talk about Callie and Sophia? There have been so many excellent call-backs this season, so why not here? And there were so many openings too. Robbins even mentioned Herman, so why not Callie?
Why do you think the interns are so disinterested and struggling so much this season?
Haley: I don’t know, but it really burns my biscuits. The scene in the OR where literal history is being made, and Miranda Bailey is tearing up about the magic would have been so perfect — except then we pan over to the interns, and they’re yawning or checking their phones. HELLO?!
Why are they even here if they aren’t inspired and awed by what was happening in that room? And everyone is treating Bailey like she’s being too hard on the interns, but I don’t think she’s being hard enough at this point.
The way they act is so disrespectful of their teachers, their patients, and frankly, me for having to watch it.
Related: Grey’s Anatomy Review: Baby Can I Hold You?
Sara: When I saw how the interns acted after the baby’s surgery, I wanted to see every one of them get fired. You are all medical professionals. That means that you should find all medical situations interesting. Not just the ones you actually do.
I’ve said it a million times, but I’ll repeat it. I miss the original interns. From their career drive to how close they were, nothing about this year’s group impresses me. I would be fine if they got rid of every one of them and introduced an entirely new class.
Lucy: I don’t think Yasuda is struggling, but she may be the only one. Lucas and Griffith need to get over it. Kwan is struggling because he has no confidence after Maxine.
They are struggling because there is too much personal drama. It would be great if the drama came from their competition for surgeries. But because there are no surgeries, they have nothing to compete for, so they are mired in their own stupid drama.
Bailey is coming at the interns from the wrong angle. She’s nervous about getting it wrong this time, and rather than putting the interns in their place, she’s sidelining them.
I understand why they weren’t paying attention. They were stuck against the wall and probably couldn’t hear or see anything. So, I think I feel for them.
What are your thoughts on Amelia and Lucas living together and his insecurities about living in the Shepherd’s shadow?
Haley: Obviously, Amelia Shepherd wouldn’t turn Lucas away, so that’s no surprise there. I might have thrown him out if he drank all my coffee.
I love Amelia and always have, so it thrills me that she’s casting the Shepherd’s shadow now! She’s always been brilliant; seeing her thriving is healing my soul. I’m curious how Lucas will handle living with Scout on Amelia’s nights with the kiddo, though!
Lucy: I am so happy to have been right! I love that Lucas is living with Amelia! I hope it will help him understand that she went through a lot to get where she is.
She was the black sheep, living in Derek’s shadow, and now she’s the rock star, and Lucas is living in hers. He’ll learn a lot from her; maybe she’ll get him to focus. Did he ever do anything about the ADHD that Marsh diagnosed?
Sara: It was a given when we saw the empty bedroom last week that Lucas left the intern house and moved in with his aunt.
He’s acting like an entitled brat who takes advantage of the situation without considering if it’s acceptable. I get that he has some huge shoes to fill.
But he’s never going to if he doesn’t grow the hell up. I hope he might mature while living with Amelia if she puts him in his place and makes him accountable for his actions.
Did meeting Doug Millins help you understand Jules and her position on family better?
Haley: Doug was so silly. Poor Jules. It totally makes sense why she struggles with family baggage. I struggle with seeing unqualified influencers who peddle dangerous medical advice to their huge audiences — I can’t imagine if it was my relative doing it.
Lucy: It was not my favorite part of the episode. I, too, can’t stand the whole influencer culture and what it has done to science and truth. I did like Yasuda and Millin’s dynamic.
Seeing the two of them getting along gave me Izzy/George vibes. They aren’t twisty enough to be Mer and Christina. And I thoroughly enjoyed seeing Owen Hunt put Doug in his place.
Sara: Absolutely! I give props to Jules for remaining so level-headed. I would not have been so gracious if I were in the same situation.
Doug was a complete joke and could be a major risk for his patients who looked to him for medical assistance. I’m not a fan of Hunt’s, but I enjoyed seeing him put the fraud in his place.
I would have threatened legal action, as he was technically breaking the law. I enjoyed seeing Jules stand up to her brother, but she needs to be more assertive so he gets the point.
Kwan’s hesitancy is due to his experience with Maxine. What did you make of Levi’s advice to him?
Haley: Kwan puts up such a front. He pretends to be super confident, but he really struggles with feelings of inadequacy.
I liked seeing him show vulnerability in this episode. If we think back to Grey’s Anatomy Season 18 Episode 10, when Levi screwed up during a solo surgery and accidentally killed a patient, we get some good context to his advice to Kwan.
After that incident, Levi went through a pretty serious mental health crisis, and I really think he wants to use his experience to help prevent that for Kwan. His advice was gentle but firm, and it was what Kwan needed to hear.
Lucy: I would have liked Levi to say that those good or bad outcomes help make them better doctors, which was underlying his advice, but it would have been nice to have him say that.
I hope Kwan takes the advice and uses the experience with Maxine to grow. But there could be more hesitancy until he can, which might cause some problems.
Sara: I love Levi and have enjoyed seeing his progression throughout the series. He has come such a long way and is great for the interns.
I understand why Kwan did what he did with Maxine, and I can’t say I would have done it differently if I had been in his place. I can understand his hesitancy, but he needs to get over it to be the good doctor he will become. I agree with Levi’s advice and hope it hits home for Kwan.
What was your favorite moment from this episode, if any?
Haley: I liked seeing Beltran and Amelia soften a little toward each other. Here’s hoping there’s more of those two coming down the pike. Amelia’s guard is still up, but I can tell she’s intrigued by Beltran.
Lucy: I enjoyed Teddy Altman’s “scrimmage” in the mock OR with Link and Richard. And then knowing that Teddy has Richard’s back makes me hope he’ll stick around.
Also, this episode was light on the male docs and heavy on the female attendings. That was quite a powerhouse team in the OR: Wilson. Shepherd, Bailey, and Robbins. Girl Power!
Sara: I loved seeing the excitement on Bailey’s face when she saw the first-ever surgery Arizona performed. That wonderment and drive to try something never achieved made me so invested in the original intern class.
These new doctors don’t have that drive, that passion for medicine. So I was really here for the nostalgic flashback to better times.
I hope that seeing the interns’ complete disinterest in a miracle surgery is enough to bring back The Nazi cause these kids need a harsh reality. It would be totally awesome to see a reunion show where Bailey brings back several of the OG cast to lecture and haze the students into their full potential.
There are several former members I’d love to see back, even for one episode. And I think they could learn a lot from the old class’s screwups. Cause boy, there was a lot!
Do you have any additional thoughts you’d like to add?
Haley: I’m worried that we will see a retirement arc soon with Richard.
He’s losing his confidence, and with his sobriety feeling shaky right now, I can see him wanting to retire and spend time focusing on that. If he does retire, I hope he’ll stick around in some capacity. The show wouldn’t be the same without him.
Lucy: I’ve never loved the whole Station 19/Grey’s overlap. Miranda’s concern for Ben is understandable, and we know about her anxiety, but it felt a little out of left field at the beginning of the episode.
There wasn’t much movement in this episode. It seems like we’re treading water, waiting for something to happen to push all of these plotlines in some direction.
Related: Station 19 Review: Trouble Man
Sara: I’m not sure what the writers are trying to do with this new group of students, but I am not here for it. If they can’t make these characters more interesting and professional, this might be my last season of watching.
I always hate to leave a show before it’s over, but I can’t stand watching shows I don’t connect to. And it’s been a few seasons since I’ve really felt anything but frustration from Grey’s. Not cool, folks!
Over to you, Grey’s Fanatics.
Do you agree with our Round Table? Do you disagree? Sound off below!
Grey’s’ Anatomy airs on ABC on Thursdays at 9/8c. You can stream the following day on Hulu.
Jasmine Blu is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. She is an insomniac who spends late nights and early mornings binge-watching way too many shows and binge-drinking way too much tea. Her eclectic taste makes her an unpredictable viewer with an appreciation for complex characters, diverse representation, dynamic duos, compelling stories, and guilty pleasures. You’ll definitely find her obsessively live-tweeting, waxing poetic, and chatting up fellow Fanatics and readers. Follow her on X.
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