#greys s19 finale

[thegirlwithataser]

HARRY SHUM JR IN FORMAL WEAR SAVING THE LIFE OF A KID GOOD LORD

[popchoc]

Station 19 - Series Finale

Picking up where we left them, we found Maya surrounded by fire (that looked small enough to me to run through, esp in gear, but what do I know). I liked that the entire team came to her rescue, how they got that helicopter shower and how they didn't waste any time after, with Maya getting back to business straight away. Isn't she the toughest!? 💪

Carina suiting up was such a fan favor! 😆 With the detailed shots and slo-mo only making it "worse". 😂 I bet it's highly appreciated though, and that's what matters! 🫶 (And more of this: that tongue thing Maya did was def Danielle saying hi to the fans. 🤭)

The yellow filter reminded me of the worst FTWD season ever, but other than that they managed to create quite the atmosphere, esp with that fire twister thingy (okay the cgi wasn't great, but at least they tried).

The thinking about the future parts didn't all work for me. Sure, in a case like Maya's it helped her to hold on, but Travis please don't picture yourself strolling through a museum when you can't waste a second saving lives!! I liked seeing Dean again, though.

Of course even in dream sequences, Ben got to marry some folks again 😂

That lying down/shelter part was seriously scary! The thought alone to be in that situation...

What a f*cked up version of Somewhere Only We Know was that?! Also that song belongs to Greys, so no.

The scene with Maya and Carina was cute, seeing them all happy, but of course they had to ruin it with a spinning camera (🤢 lol).

I knew they were gonna go full circle with Andy being captain and possibly getting back with Jack, and Ben getting back to the hospital. Which are all fine conclusions for me. But my fav part was Travis joining Vic. They were the Grey and Yang from this show and to me their friendship trumps every romantic relationship!

I didn't need that future flash forward to know Maya would become captain again, with Andy being chief, and not showing would have saved us from those hair cuts, but oh well, good for them! Seems like we left them all in a pretty good place and isn't that all we could ask for?

Thank you cast, crew and characters of S19. It's sure been a ride. Now onto the next!! 🚒

[ironboobs]

Trying to find all the easter eggs from 7x09... Did I miss any?

Natasha reaching for her phone worrying it's about work instead of enjoying sexy time with Sullivan => Maya did the same when she went on vacation with Carina (3x11)

Andy voiceover => First two seasons!

Maya's outfit in the kitchen => the same she wore the day she met her future wife at Joe's bar (3x05)

"Hey, I love you" in the kitchen before leaving to work => Same moment in the old apartment (4x04)

"Jack are you sitting at home monitoring the wildfire?" => Her father too was unable to stop firefighting after he had to retire

"Why aren't we dancing for joy?" => Houseboat dancing, Andy was the only one who didn't want to dance (3x16)

"I'd like to tell Travis first" => (maybe farfetched) Ross asking Andy and Maya not to tell Sullivan about their relation being leaked. (6x16)

Talking about a potential future on the station's rooftop => Travic were the only duo who hadn't done that yet, so many moments and discussions happened at this spot.

"Oh crap" => Signature quote from Montgomery, he says it all the time : hockey rink, snowstorm

Wildfire => Season 2 finale

Yellow fire engine is back and lined up neatly with the other ones! => It's the one S19 temporary had when their engine was totalled (5x02)

"You know I don't like the woods" / Glamping site => The couple who gets attacked by a bear : the lady is not happy that her husband brought her to a glam-camping trip instead of a hotel (3x05)

"Chief, you feel confident in that plan?" => Andy vs Jack when she does't want to open more ventilation in the roof but he does and they wait (1x03)

Theo being bothered having to sit around to attend some rich dude's ugly building instead of fighting the wildfire => Sullivan when he enrolled a private company, as he heard Andy calling her team (4x01)

"My mom smoke when she was pregnant with me", "Yeah, exactly" => Sounds like Jack and Maya's smack talk in season one

"Didn't work for us, that doesn't mean it won't work for you and Carina" => Andy tells Maya her marrying super fast didn't work for her and Sullivan, but that her situation with Carina is different (4x14)

"I don't think we're there yet" => Again, callback to Jack and Andy battling for Captain waiting too long for that ventilation (1x03)

"Are you doing a quick and dirty courthouse wedding" => Andy and Sully married in a quick and dirty courthouse wedding (3x12)

"We're happy for her, right?" => In the pilot, when they're in the rig, Maya learns that Jack proposed and says "Oh we are not happy" (1x01)

"Everyone's leaving home" => Andy feels like her father felt when she moved out? (2x02)

"We were raised in this station by your dad" => Pruitt told Maya he handpicked the entire team because he knew they'd fit as a family (4x01)

"Have each other's backs" => Herreras' tag line circa season one

"You can't leave, Vic" => Vic asking Dean not to leave on their way to fight a fire (5x05)

Vic referring to Travis as her person => Grey and Yang coded, he also said that to her two episodes prior when she had her meltdown (7x06)

Probies flirting with each other => Gibson and Herrera (1x01)

Bishop and Herrera looking at the fire => wildfire episode throwback (Season 2 finale)

Whistle lady => Molly had a whistle in the skyscraper fire (Season 1 finale)

Hiker fell down the hill => When Andy and Maya rappelled down to rescue a hiker who had fallen (2x06)

Sullivan connects to the victim because they're both marine vets => Sullivan helps with a hostage situation, bonding over being a veteran (3x09)

Vic and Travis fighting while cleaning branches => Same way they were fighting when Travis discovered she was with Theo (4x09)

"We cannot wait for the aid car" => Maya's demotion (4x16)

"We're gonna have to carry him, the medical tent is about a mile away" => Emmet tells Travis they can carry Vic to the Aid Car that's a mile away (5x05)

"Have fun getting fired" => again callback to when Sullivan chose to go help with the fire instead of staying put (4x01)

"Dibs on the puppy" => Shoutout to Dean in the series pilot (1x01)

Ben jumping into Doctor mode, saying "This can't wait" => During the california wildfire Ben had to cut the man's hand for him to survive (Season 2 finale)

"That Richards guy reminds me of Gibson" => Self explanatory, Season 1

"Being in the field is a different game. I bet you won't do it wrong again" => Travis said something similar to Ben as he almost killed Pruitt wanting to do a medical procedure on the Aid Car (1x01)

"Swollen ankles, pickles, chocolate ice cream" => JJ hated her pregnant state and had ice cream cravings (3x06)

"That is how childbirth works, my friend" => Maya and Carina face timing during the snowstorm episode "Babies don't fly out they slowly slide out" (3x06)

"Monogamy is for the weak, or the very very dedicated" => front porch drinking session between Maya, Andy and Vic (1x02)

Getting retired firefighters to help out => Pruitt and friends would be proud

"She told Theo before me?" => Travis already said that before

Rambling " and - Oh my god she was right" => another signature quote from Travis

"We're 19. Family forever." => Tagline of the show, had to be mentioned

"New Guy" => Ben was called that when started as a probie

"Thanks, Hughie" => Dean was the one who called Vic that <3

Mentions of Lasagna, "Ti amo, Bella" => Marina core

Top of the truck => Same as after Lucas Ripley died

"Come with me" => Dean offered Vic to come with him to Oakland

"You don't have to know right now" => Vic's proposal to Ripley

"Dad!" => Ben's nickname at the Station

"Wet stuff on the red stuff" => Dean, season one, Travis, season four

"Use my name, I know a guy" => Isn't that what Vic says to Theo when he goes to order Pierogies ?

"Boy Scout" => Kate called Theo that (7x04)

Theo jumps to save Travis => He couldn't do it for Michael

"We roll him on my count 3,2,1" => Reverse situation when they all rolled Hughes in season 5 in The things we lost in the fire

"We're not talking like you're dying because you're not dying" => I feel like I've heard that from Vic before, but can't pinpoint the episode

Camera moving around Carina and Maya => Carina's proposal scene (4x14), yet another moment that's supposed to be happy but comes with some devastating news, like the proposal/visa, the wedding/demotion etc.

[emily-prentits]

thoughts on the greys s19 finales? s19 kinda underwhelmed me (marina is cute but the baby thing bores me to no end which in turns makes them as a ship dull to me sacrilege i know lol but it’s the truth) and i never got super into yasuda/helm but im kinda loving the possibility of yasuda/jules? idk what’s going on there but the chemistry>>>

ohh boy. so i have a lot of thoughts on the finales LOL. it got really really long and it only aired yesterday so spoilers are under the cut for those that haven't seen!

grey's:

sooo. i hated it. as a writer, as a viewer, i fucking hated it. honestly, i should have come into the fandom earlier because this season being my first to watch live sucked ASS and was more losing than winning. narratively speaking, the vast majority of the writing choices made ZERO sense. not winston/monica (AFTER ALL THE MONMELIA BUILD UP??), not julesmika (sorry, i love them, but they make no narrative sense. unless they're trying for a mertina type relationship which im not sure i entirely like either), and not whatever bullshit was going on with catherine. i know she has played big bad boss lady in the past but honestly this season the writing for her was very... flat? one dimensional? it was almost like she could ONLY be the antagonist and she wasn't allowed to have any other role in this season. i don't think we saw her outside of the hospital at all in the whole 10 episodes. while i DO understand they had to make some necessary cuts because of the shortened length of the season... was it really worth keeping catherine fox in this season if they were going to ruin her?? because i do NOT think so. and what was UP with her firing half the hospital in one episode??? fuck that??

to be completely honest lol, i'm tired of this show and the way they hate their gays. helmika breakup, no monmelia ANYTHING -- making monica hook up with winston after zero build up?? if you want to write a bisexual character this is NOT the way to do it -- schmitt leaving next season, trying to build up the julesmika relationship when midori is leaving in the next season?? i admit they're cute, but there's no way the relationship is sustainable. and it makes me so sad.

and... oh my god don't get me started on mernick. to preface everything i say about them: i think they're cute! genuinely i do! i don't hate them at all, which makes it so much harder when i have to say that they make no sense together long term. meredith is very clearly not as in love with him as he is with her (he said he wanted to marry her, walked out, and she had. zero reaction. to any of it. if anything she kind of treats him like a child?😭) and she only really fights for him when it looks like he's going to leave. she'll only fight for her stability if there's a real threat of losing it. in a way, i suppose it's not surprising. they mirror merder but only in all the bad ways, the way that merder was starry eyed intern x dreamy neurosurgeon turns into the way that mernick is essentially idol x fan. there's no way either of those relationships could have lasted in the long run -- BECAUSE of their foundations. and it makes me so sad bc why is meredith doing the same fucking things after 20 SEASONS. she of ALL the characters deserves to have some character development after all this time.

station 19:

loved it. cried so many times. the episode ended and i walked around feeling so empty. i will admit i have only seen marina spoilers and have not watched any of the seasons until season 7, so my view might be a bit skewed. cried with the marina family (maya's development from season 1 to season 7? 🥹), cried when travis went with vic (someone finally choosing to put first the Put Everyone Else First Person??? hello tears). the flashes forward and back were so interesting, definitely kept me engaged. i was so scared tho when they kept showing the burning gear when andy was missing 😭 i was like they BETTER NOT have killed her. and then all was well <3 more or less.

overall for station 19, i think they really did the best they possibly could have with how many episodes they were given to wrap up the series if it doesn't end up getting picked up. i liked it a lot more than grey's, for sure :)

[aspecbuddie]

I've finally decided what order I'm watching shows on Friday morning

It's gotta be greys, then station 19, then 911, because otherwise I will spend the entire time I'm watching greys and s19 just thinking about what happened in the 911 ep 😅😅

[horsetailcurlers2]

YET ANOTHER long and obnoxious stream of my thoughts while watching greys anatomy for the first time (S19 bc i’m finally caught up, babey!!!! (phew))

-i hope this new class of residents isn’t as one dimensional as the last one

-“you say please to bhokee!” hell yeah you do schmitt. (i love that she did say please he was just so ready to jump down her throat about it lmoa)

-DEREK’S NEPHEW ?????!!! WHICH SISTER? my money is on nancy bc i always thought she was the oldest so she would have the son old enough to be out of med school

-okay i’m too curious (for some reason i’ve always just been curious about the shepherds) so i’ve gone back to S15E21 (good shepherd) to see if i could get a better look at nancy’s wall of family photos. i see one of nancy with a young curly haired girl, kathleen with a light haired child, and two photos that are just groups of kids. my assumption is that these two are all of nancy’s kids because if she had photos of her nieces and nephews i feel like they would include their parents. both photos show two boys and two girls. it looks like the same four kids just at two different ages. the oldest (or at least the tallest) in both photos is a boy with dark hair. this may support my theory that nancy is lucas’s mother. the rest of the photos aren’t very clear. the only thing is that all of the kids look very fair and lucas is not. they also clearly wrote this episode way after they shot the scene with amelia looking at the photos so they may have not even bothered with details that were meant to be sort of irrelevant at the time.

-okay this is a very tragic story with (griffin??? griffith??) and makes her lateness and weirdness understandable but am i the only one who thinks it’s insanely bizarre to be sharing your tragic life story to your superior on your first day?

-idk about this season yet. i feel them trying to sort of mirror season one in some ways, focusing more on the interns (which i think i like), trying to connect back to old characters, but it feels a *little* forced so far

-i like mean and snappy teddy

-have we ever seen this library before?

-“i tried to implement similar changes at various times and was always met with resistance” ???? when did bailey try to implement those changes to the residency program? she implemented changes but they for sure weren’t these ones

-why is it better for them to think he’s sleeping with her????? jfc lucas

-ADDISON LOOKS SO HOT. i like this costuming for her. very reminiscent of her private practice wardrobe

-i really like baileys braids this season btw. and i like that she has a special scrub cap that can cover them all

-lucas’s dad is from barbados. idk what to do with that but it is another clue lmao. if nothing else, i’m hooked on this season just to find out who his mother is

-no comment on the dancing

-helm looks really cute as a bartender

-owen when teddy isn’t super happy and content with him after he fucked them over and put their children’s well-beings at risk: 😯

-addison and tom should have met

-oh my god just tell them you’re a nepo baby!! they think you’re fucking your aunt!

-it made complete sense to bring addison back for this storyline. i hope they explore it a little more and keep bringing her back.

-i’m so confused about lucas’s whole complex. wouldn’t he have grown up with his dad’s last name anyway? why has this been an issue “all his life”??? and until he went to med school i doubt anybody even knew the significance of him being a shepherd

-what planet is owen living on where he thinks they would let him be chief again rn

-i can see myself shipping mike chang and mary queen of scots once they develop their characters a bit more. simone and lucas i like in theory but idk about the chemistry

-“i am not going to beg you to love me” good meredith bc that didn’t work out so well the first time u did it

-intern house is back!!! i really like that actually

-a full time administrative assistant is completely reasonable. richard had patricia when he was chief

-looking very hot for having just been hit by a car

-winston definitely had a point at first but at this point he’s pissing me off. it’s reminding me of that big meredith and cristina fight in the sense that it feels like he’s deliberately taking everything she’s doing and saying in the worst possible way.

-richard and addison’s dynamic is so underrated

-this is incredibly random but it just popped into my head. it’s so weird that amelia has never brought up her friend michelle on greys. you know, her friend from pp that committed suicide bc she had huntingtons which ultimately kickstarted amelia’s relapse. i feel like it could have been relevant to a few cases

-pru is so fucking cute

-so many people keep leaving i don’t really have a reaction to it anymore. but i will very much miss maggie. ik a lot of people don’t like maggie (prob bc they thought she was trying to fill the spaces that lexi and cristina left behind) but i really liked her. i think i found her very relatable in a lot of ways. even/especially when she was a little annoying lol

-why is this guy specifically requesting bailey? (not that she’s not great at her job it just has suspicious vibes) is he one of the anti choice harassers? nervous for that especially since addison is here so i feel like it will be about that storyline

-jesus christ i knew it. bc it’s so “pro life” to threaten a child!!!!!! go kwan though. and teddy!

-JUJU!!!

-yasuda x helm <3

-cristina mention !!!!

-i really like that there’s no intern/attending relationships lately

-i’m doubling down on thinking lucas is nancy’s bc i think if he has adhd, kathleen likely would have noticed bc she’s a psychologist. obviously it’s possible she wouldn’t have, everyone has blind spots but i think this makes the most sense still. and ik he could still be liz’s but i’m still unsure on if the ages work out and i think they were banking on which actress would be more likely to make an appearance later on and neve campbell is less likely to come back than the others.

-uggh why do i HATE simone’s wedding dress.

-omg i’m a terrible person i didn’t realize it was her late mother’s. i’m so sorry the fit of it just looks off

-i wonder how they’re going to ruin/derail this wedding? they’ve already done leaving at the altar, objections, elopements. maybe the twist is that she actually goes through with it?? or they’ll just be boring and so the same thing they’ve done before

-i like that they still call it “joe’s” even though we never see joe anymore

-winston is getting on my nerves. he always starts off having a point and then he gets all immature and petty about it

-dude that is not how a DNR works

-aww yay for bailey

-side note amelia looks great

-TEDDY!!!

[trashhmuffinn]

Okaaaaay, just finished watching Greys Anatomy S19 finale and I cried after a long time while watching Greys

Here are a few thoughts I had -

-This season is DEFINITELY an upgrade from the last 2-3 seasons. I love these new interns, they give me OG MAGIC vibes

-Simone running away from her wedding reminded me of my OTP Japril, no where near as iconic but I do see the resemblance. Even in their relationship dynamic to some extent.

-not a fan of Link and Jo getting together because I just want one simple boy-girl friendship because after Mer and Alex I don’t think we really saw it, feel free to correct me if I’m wrong

-can the writers please just be creative and give Webber a diff storyline than just relapsing again and again. (Having said that I understand addiction is an everyday battle and it’s not so simple but I’m only speaking from a storyline point of view, like I feel we have explored this aspect of Webbers life, give us something else)

-BAILEY WINNING THE CATHERINE FOX AWARD WAS EVERYTHING!!! I ugly cried with her

-It was so good to see Mer 🥹🥹🥹 specially in that Dartmouth hoddie

I felt like I was seeing an old friend :’)

-the plan ride almost gave me a heart attack because I cannot handle another crash on GA

-I don’t want to say much about Mers Alzheimer’s theory because I guess you can find out new things but what she is proposing is HUUUUUGE and I just want to understand that this could be overlooked by people working in the field for years and years

Ps- just let Amelia be happy please

[englishstrawbie]

Home (1/1)

Fandom: Station 19, Grey’s Anatomy

Characters: Maya Bishop, Carina DeLuca 

Summary: After such a heartbreaking day at the Elena Bailey Memorial Clinic for Reproductive Health, all Carina wants to do is go home.

a.k.a. a post-S19 6x12 & GA 19x12 Carina introspective.

* * * * * * * * * *

It is late by the time Carina finishes work. After Tia’s emergency c-section was Jackie, who gave birth to a baby boy she named Dylan; then Natalie, whose daughter weighed in at a healthy eight pounds six ounces; and finally Katherine, whose son entered the world screaming, as if he knew what kind of day it had been. Carina smiles at each happy set of parents, congratulates them and wishes their family well, but the joy she usually feels is missing.  

She is numb as she walks through the hospital towards her office. She hasn’t allowed herself to remember the image of the car purposefully driving towards her colleagues, or Tia being flipped through the air and landing on the hard concrete ground. She hasn’t allowed herself to feel the hatred that the man behind the wheel so clearly had for all of them, not just Addison, for simply doing their jobs. She hasn’t allowed the anger to build or fear to creep in or tears to fall, because Tia and Jackie and Natalie and Katherine needed her today and they came first.

Read more @ AO3

[easilyentertained99]

Grey's anatomy s19 finale

Spoilers

Christ alive, what was that?? Meredith presenting Bailey with the award!! Awesome! Maxine actually lived! Yay! I am in love with the new couples, Jules/Benson, Simone/Lucas, Mika/Helm. Dude, Mika and Helm!! Meredith is still doing things her way and I love that. She will not be told to be quiet. Catherine was iconic the whole time, no fs given.

Now for the rest... I don't give a shit about Jo and Link. I'm sorry. They do nothing for me. Them co-parenting is cute but I can't not find Link annoying. I don't really care about Jo and Sam but that's cause this show has a history with patient/doctor relationships.

Speaking of, did Teddy just fucking die? Hello? Girlie had a toothache. What?

[selfdestructive-selfobserver]

Okay. So they’re setting up Bobby’s storylines as “final” like they’ve done with characters on other shows (greys, s19, scandal to name a few). And those characters all D I E D. If Bobby dies, I don’t know how 118 will go on

[mayasdeluca]

TVLine just released a ranking of all the network TV’s finales and I find it both hilarious and sad that Grey’s was second to last (34) at being the worst, then 9-1-1 was at 25, and Station was ranked at 18. I’m probably never getting over how badly ABC shafted us.

I'm surprised Station 19 was that high but I guess because it was also the series finale..(I'm still a little bitter how they just glossed over the Marina cliffhanger lol) but as someone who watches all 3 shows, the finales were very underwhelming and it was a letdown of a night lol

It's also F ABC though for the way they treated us and S19. Hopefully karma will get them someday.

[hime1993]

WIP ask game

RULES: Make a new post with the names of all the files in your WIP folder, regardless of how non-descriptive or ridiculous. Let people send you an ask with the title that most intrigues them, and then post a little snippet or tell them something about it! And then tag as many people as you have WIPs.

@thenightmaredrowns, here ya go!

Grey's Anatomy WIPs

Multi-Chapters If I Went Missing CURRENT PROJECT Between Love and Hate The Ties that Bind How to Save a Life Sins of the Father If/Then AU

One-Shots When in Boston (S19 finale rewrite) Meddison/Swan Queen Crossover MerDer Fight AU (it's Meddison, I swear) Pokémon Go Meddison fic Play Date fic Meddison Meet Cute Meddison Accidental Marriage Meddison Arranged Marriage One Bed NCIS WIPs

Multi-Chapters Secrets CURRENT PROJECT 60 Hours Taken One-Shots Five Times Tony and Abby Go Out for Drinks + The One Time They Don’t (Tabby Friendship +GJA OT3) Tabby Friendship fic Theirs The ABCs of the OT3 Caffeine Fallacy Jethro the Dog Nightmare

Tagging: @niceminipotato @thecolouryellowandacupoftea @lordoflezzies. You don't have to do it if you don't want to :)

[popchoc]

Grey's Anatomy - 20x10

I'm sorry Greys, but this was the least impressive finale in 20 seasons (though truth be told I don't really recall any of them since about season 10). It was barely enough for a regular ep. Mer got kinda fired again. Richard retired again. Someone is pregnant again. Bailey worried about Ben again. Enough already.

The only thing that interests me in Mer's story is the fact that Amelia is involved in it, someone who's just entertaining whatever crap she has to sell. Catherine will never stop sucking though. (Also doesn't Mer own part of the hospital? Shouldn't that give her some rights - even when she works in Boston?)

I lost all my care for Adams this season, but even besides that, he should go to Chicago. Maggie's offer is too good. Which imo made the final scene, besides extremely cliché, totally unnecessary.

So nothing good than huh? No, that's not true. Yasuda and Millin had a very nice moment that actually felt natural instead of forced (but damn I hate to see Yasuda go!). And Blue's story with the ex-fiance could get interesting, esp since she seems fun. It might be only 2 out of 42 good minutes, but hey if that helps me to check in again...

Alright, enough whining, let's just find out if S19 did better. I've got my hopes up (and my tissues ready)!

[lover-of-mine]

Anna!!! Is it just me or has greys been completely underwhelming this season?? Maybe it's just in comparison to 911 (which I'm way more invested in in general) and station 19 (which I think you don't watch but I've been crying every episode and it's the final season) but I finish every episode and go 'okay, that was definitely.... an episode?' and then move onto s19 and 911 without thinking about it anymore 😅😅

Honestly the most exciting thing about this season has been deciding which things could relate to 911 so I can come yell about them in your inbox 😅

Sam, baby, yeah, I feel you, it's definitely just been a season. But honestly, it's good, nothing happened yet that makes me say I will never watch this show again and that's a win considering some of the stuff that happened in previous season because it was almost a ritual kaoskoskspsksw it's been entertaining to watch but it's nothing mind-blowing, it's just there. I'm feeling very neutral about everything about it. It's mostly just stuff to imagine for other characters.

[polniaczek]

grey's anatomy s19 liveblogging eps 19-20

taryn is kissing a lady!!! who likes her back! and it only took 6 seasons!

HOW does grey sloan memorial not have a policy to keep its most prominent doctors from flying together. THE HOSPITAL IS NAMED AFTER WHY THAT SHOULDNT HAPPEN AGAIN

when kwan said "what do i do with the rage?" owen should have walked him to the hot vents. are we ushering in a new era or not?

they don't pay these nurses enough to deal with all the vigilante crimes the doctors at this hospital commit

mer on the floor at the beginning of 19x20 like

oh come on. simone's ex fiance immediately gets in a car wreck so that he can have one final conflict with simone and lucas? he couldn't just show up at the hospital and wait to see her for closure?

maggie 🥺

"what you're hypothesizing insults derek's work" GOOD. she is the sun.

miranda finally getting the narrative love praise and accolades from the show that meredeth always gets T-T

"your vodka tonic" nooooooooooooooooo

can they just. keep mer and maggie and addison routinely popping in. just to keep me sane and the show grounded.

everyone is literally dying and jo and link are having their notebook kissing in the rain moment jaskddfl

[metabolizemotions]

S19 s6 & characters

(forgot about spoiler feature. edited to shorten)

I think in a way, the show had incorporated Andy as the protagonist better this season. The bunch at 23 was hard to root for. The disastrous 5b set a low bar, but I think it's improved considerably in s6, all things considered. We would never know what really happened bts and how much of what we were are results of the decisions were made by network execs. This season, at least they are building towards Andy’s captaincy at 19, and incorporating it into the storylines of the other main characters, in ways that address who they have been for 5 seasons. 

Many of the storylines were hard to watch as they unfold in terms of the discomfort level of the scenes and how well they were written and executed. The pacing of b/w and within episodes were a little off. Some episodes had too many loose ends that needed to be tied up, while some episodes were uneventful. Sometimes the scenes caused a tonal whiplash, and the editing made the episode itself even more jarring. It was a good season overall and there were some excellent scenes but imo I felt if some scenes were shuffled around, the season would flow more smoothly.  

The overarching storyline of mental health crisis was done well. Stefania's performance was always intuitive and conveyed so much w/o words. Danielle performed Maya’s spiral into a mental breakdown and her healing process brilliantly. Jack’s storyline was actually not bad, though I felt that it was carried by his scene partners. (I have nothing against Grey but his acting really didn’t move me…) I liked Vic’s storyline - the girls’ camp and her taking over Crisis One - a leadership position that focused on mental health. Barrett was great in expressing the gamut of emotions she experienced throughout the season, culminating in 617, when she finally broke down.

The mayoral race was ok as a tangential storyline. Dixon has been built up since s3 as the big bad, the SPD feud since s4 and Ross was introduced to fight the corruption within SFD and as Dixon's adversary since s5. Also what with the station being overcrowded with lieutenants and the boring clinic scenes. But it was not interesting. Seeing as S19 loves to create smoke w/o fire - Dean's lawsuit against PD, Pru's custody battle, Andy's SA lawsuit... the resolution seemed expected. I like not seeing Dixon again tho seeing justice served would have been more satisfying.

I hope Robel winning would mean a change next season. At least have good people in leadership positions and make the show more positive and aspirational instead of the constant depictions of trauma and the uphill battles against the Dixons. Give more screen time to show what a better world could look like, and show good people fighting the good fight having a happier life - at the least, having a life. 

I hope they flash out the storylines of the existing main characters instead of bringing on new characters and creating overarching themes and drama w/o satisfying resolutions (and glaring plot holes as plot devices).  Esp Carina's backstory, Maya's continued healing, Marina's domestic life, Vic's Crisis One leadership. I'm curious to see how the careers of Maya, Andy and Ross would evolve as leaders. Just want all the women to be badass at their jobs. Jack's found and bio family storyline with Marsha, Lila and Brooke could be interesting. (I don't mind him when he's not being weird and inappropriate or put into other people's relationships cos they don't know what to do with him.)

Some thoughts on the characters this season:

These characters are complicated, walking contradictions. I try to view it from each person’s perspective as much as I could - about a bunch of flawed humans with different traumas using coping mechanisms that have varying degrees of success or the lack thereof.  

It’s like everyone has been shrouded in their own fog, in their own versions of reality. 

I think ambition/ captaincy also somehow “unleashes the beast” and triggers the traumas. It is used to create drama and also bring out the underlying issues of the characters. Somehow, it seems to bring out their worst selves, the parts intricately linked to their sense of self-worth, their unresolved trauma and their unhealthy and ineffective coping mechanisms.  

Ben

Ben has always been struggling with juggling his passion and his supportive role in his family.  He was just realizing how he appeared to the others when he went rogue all those times. He was lecturing Carina about not following medical protocol, Maya about her projection of her personal issues on the Dixons, telling Travis n Vic to abide by HIPAA and later during the “mutiny”, he was the only one against it at first when he would usually be the one jumping in headfirst. Sometimes the irony was still lost on him as he thought Bailey was reckless in going undercover in the fake clinic while he always justified his breaking of rules cos he thought he was doing the right thing. I think it might be his mental health crisis arc after having to leave someone behind when he made it his mission to save lives after his friend’s accident. Is he re-evaluating what makes a hero?  

Travis

(In s3, a kid actually told him he should run for office cos he gave him an impassioned speech.) Travis being conflicted the whole time and dropping out and endorsing the other candidate is expected. He is an Asian American gay man who grew up in a Christian household with a homophobic dad who turned out to be gay. (Probably also in a tight knit and conservative Asian American church community.) His indecisiveness seems to stem from his conflicting sense of justice and inability to own up to his courage. And his lack of entitlement as seen from his minimizing the prejudice and abuse his community faced esp during Covid, in light of the murder of George Floyd. I think he needs to be pushed constantly out of his comfort zone for him to discover what he really wants and who he really is and also start to move on from Michael and seek happiness. He also confirmed that leadership positions did not suit him and he could not play the political game like Ross and Eli urge him to. 

409 was an excellent insight into Travis and Vic, and their friendship (and why this is my fav dynamic after Marina.) Travis calling Vic reckless, selfish, inconsiderate and lack of boundaries while Vic calling Travis judgmental, controlling and expecting people to behave a certain way. The irony of Travis finding it hard to move on while Vic wanting to move on quickly to avoid feeling the grief. But both cos they feel too much but cope differently. Yet they both fear the end when they are still in the thick of it.  

Vic

I think Vic was having a bit of an existential crisis regarding her work and she projected her own fears about her own relationship with Theo onto Maya and Carina. Their locker room talk was a foreshadowing of the other shoe dropping. Vic couldn’t believe how perfect Theo was… and the shoe dropped… we see the other side of him. She has always been using humor and gossip to distract herself from her own issues. She tended to stuff her feelings down, since she was a kid, her fears as a young black woman, and the grief of her losses - her grandmother, her drama teacher, Ripley, Dean... Until they explode - like her smashing tiles or snatching a baby during a Crisis One call.

I think this rough patch in her relationship would also be a part of her personal growth as this is her first relationship past the honeymoon phase. She has been trying to help Theo who has been supportive but was in a bad place mentally. It seemed that as the season progressed, she developed more empathy and became more in tune with the feelings of others. (In s4, she expressed interest in psychology when talking to Diane.) Going thru her psychology classes and being around Diane also equipped her with skills to help herself and others. She had shown her unique combination of skills in Crisis One work - her empathy, her quick thinking, her improvisation skills perhaps developed as a theater kid. But she would still need support as she dealt with her unresolved trauma and the emotional exhaustion from her work.        

Jack

Jack was abandoned and had and lost a foster family. He confused lust for love, like Andy said they both did. Each time he thought he fell in love and wanted to settle down, he was actually wanting to fill a void. The other party always knew he was not in love with them but in love with the idea of love and family. I think growing up, he learned to be needed as he took care of his foster siblings. He is kind, empathetic and helpful but he never learned boundaries and confused caring with interfering and often overstepped when it came to people in his life. Ironically, he lacked self efficacy and often succumbed to self pity and learned helplessness. He was never held accountable for his actions and never developed emotional maturity and better coping mechanisms.

His conversation with Travis seemed to show his self-awareness of the changes in himself - the loss of ambition and confidence. As I mentioned, it is interesting to see Brooke, a sort of nature/ nurture comparison to Jack. Similar DNA, dissimilar upbringing. Brooke seems more emotionally mature. He told Marsha that hanging out with Brooke made him miss his foster siblings more. I think it’s his lack of a constant in his life, of the time when he first had a family. So meeting Lila is very significant for him and seems like an anchor for him to grow and heal. (I don’t hate him, I just hate that the writers need to have him hijack the storylines of others and make him the hero and when he makes mistakes, he is somehow the victim when he tends to put the blame on others instead of owning up.)

Maya, Andy and Jack

Going back to the captaincy drama in s3 involving Maya, Andy and Jack (which is another long discussion but all three were at fault then, others too…) Having gone thru their mental health crisis recently, Maya and Jack are taking a step back in their ambition and focusing on their mental health and the relationships in their lives. Andy is back in the game, this time against different players.

Maya and Theo

To me, there seemed to be some // drawn b/w Maya and Theo. Theo as a POC and his burden of carrying his dad’s legacy. Maya as a queer woman in firefighting and her strict conditioning by her abusive dad. They both have a chip on their shoulders following their stints as captains. Maya was right about Theo projecting his experience on hers cos he would not understand the misogyny. Just like Maya wouldn’t understand the racial prejudice he must have faced. But their demotions were different in nature. Maya cared about her team and tried her best when she was captain. Just like Theo. Maya’s start was rocky and she didn’t really have the guidance of her superiors nor the team’s support, esp. Andy’s. Theo had both but he was stuck in his own head a lot with his unresolved trauma over Michael’s death and his doubt about his ability as a captain. 

Theo

When Beckett was captain, Theo was constantly insubordinate and challenging him. When Andy was trying to help, he saw it as her being insubordinate and the team’s actions as sabotage. To make up for his insecurities as an outsider and his imposter syndrome as captain, he overcompensated. In wanting to be the opposite of Beckett, he micromanaged and overcompensated to an extent that made him a bad captain in another way. 

I think as we are seeing the other side of Theo, Vic is too. He also has this side that is judgmental, self-righteous and lacks self-awareness and empathy. He has a tendency to jump to conclusions and stick to them vehemently. He defied a direct order, pulled a cowboy move and forgot about Vic - after his angry lecturing of Maya and Beckett. He accepted the captain’s position despite reiterating that he didn’t want it. But he did not give Vic credit for the fire investigation despite her substantial role in it. He could be condescending, sexist and dismissive, as evident at the barber shop. He complained that Vic wasn’t understanding and compassionate but was dismissive of her feelings and was defensive when she tried to understand. He shut her down and called her “Diane” as an insult and avoided her in fear that she would psychoanalyze him and he had to face his issues. 

I think he has been compartmentalizing the parts of his identity - his heritage, the way he behaved around his old neighbors and the way he presented himself to the wider world. Code-switching, as Vic pointed out. He seemed to want to keep his private persona “Theo” separate from his work persona “Ruiz”. But he was also micromanaging his relationship with Vic. He wanted to control their interactions and made everything about him. He interpreted her support of him as interfering and her support of Andy as betrayal. (I love Ripley and Dean but he kinda grew on me and I really want to root for him for Vic's sake, but it got harder and harder. Sometimes he was worse than Sullivan. The finale seemed to set up a redemption arc for him in s7.)

Andy

Andy’s support of Theo was as much about her being reciprocal as it was about her own growth. She has always been good with people - starting with dealing with Pruitt and being surrounded by a large family than the uncles at S19 as she was growing up. It doesn't seem like she has stepped out of Pruitt’s shadow entirely. Growing up with Pruitt, an overbearing dad w/o respect for boundaries, she is used to resisting and rebelling. She is still constantly challenging rules and her leaders. But she used to bring her personal affairs and emotions into work and could be rash and reckless. She was often jumping into situations without much consideration cos she was eager to save people. She did it when Sullivan was captain and during Maya’s initial captaincy. She pinned Rigo’s accident entirely on Maya but after Cooper’s accident, she told Theo not to immediately throw Beckett under the bus. In her marriage to Sullivan, she learnt to support others as well as learning to stand up for herself more, against his controlling and patronizing ways. After honing her skills at 23, she is increasingly able to keep her own emotions in check at work while handling all the big egos and personalities around her and rally people to take action. 

Andy, Theo, Beckett

But since her return to 19, she had been going about things her way - to make 19 the way it used to be to her. In a way that Maya fights hard not to be like Lane, Andy wants to be like Pruitt and continue his legacy. When Beckett and Theo were captains, she often challenged them and was insubordinate. Beckett was too careless, apathetic and slow to react and sloppy in execution. Theo was too careful to the extent of micromanaging, closed off and too afraid to take action. Andy and Theo seem to be two sides of the same coin, both being legacy kids with something to prove. They are both not fully confident in their leadership. While Andy is more flexible and open to other perspectives in her decision-making while Theo is the opposite. Andy often reacts before she thinks, which sometimes situations do call for and she has good intuition in fast-evolving situations. All their styles could put both the rescuers and the rescuees in danger. All three are not ideal captains in different ways. 

For the sake of comparison, in Maya’s later captaincy, she was level-headed, was open to her experienced team’s input to make more informed decisions and could see the bigger picture and did what was right and for the greater good. She cared for her team and the people she was helping, unlike Beckett. She was fast on her feet and intuitive like Andy. She was careful like Theo.   

I want Andy to be captain. I want her to have the chance to grow into it. She has earned it. (Also it has been her storyline since the very first episode and I wish the captaincy drama would finally be put to rest.) I think Andy not accepting the interim captain position could in part be her self-sabotage as women tended to do when they were not convinced they were fully qualified. While men often thought they were qualified when that was not the case. Like Sullivan, who had no qualms applying for battalion chief when he was still a lieutenant or to step forward for captaincy again despite his history. 

Ross

Ross is a complex character. As a chief who has a relationship with her subordinate, a parallel can be drawn with Ripley. As a WOC, parallels can be drawn with Herrera and Hughes. She is also where Bishop wants to be in future, a female chief. To me, she is a good chief. Not a great one yet. I think the intention is to make her meet 19, have them challenge her existing beliefs and grow into a great chief. She is still straddling her entrenched mindset as part of the problematic system and her growing desire to challenge the system. I love her whenever she went toe to toe with Dixon. But I’m less a fan when she let her personal life affect her work and became hypocritical, biased and self-serving. I think the last episodes attempted to show that she has changed, but imo I’m not totally convinced with the framing about her challenge of the system as a feminist act w/o also addressing the injustice Maya faced from the system, and from Ross herself.