ariaadagio: Episode Commentary: Where the Wild Things Are

ariaadagio (

ariaadagio) wrote,
@ 2008-04-27 13:46:00

Current mood:	sick
Entry tags:	episode commentary, grey's anatomy, musing

Episode Commentary: Where the Wild Things Are
I just realized I never posted my reaction! Honestly, I liked it.

I enjoyed a lot of the humor and thought the show found a nice balance between patients and doctors. I love it when the interns actually interact. I loved that Meredith is getting her surgeon-self on ;p A lot of the contest humor had me in hysterics. I definitely enjoyed watching it.

Things I didn't like?
1. Mark/Derek... that was just too pals-y for me, particularly when Mark brought up Addison. Hello, you slept with his wife. SHUT UP. And Derek didn't even look miffed.

2. Derek worship. Rose loves Derek. Meredith thinks Derek is perfect. Addison in the promos is blaming Meredith for letting Derek get away. W.T.F. Unless this is setting up for Derek to take a huge fall, I'm a little uncomfortable with it. The man is far from perfect, and I wish Shonda would fricken ADMIT it.

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a_blackpanther
2008-04-27 05:59 pm UTC (link)

Great ep. I love it when they show that they are actually learning something. Also, Meredith channeling her mom was awesome. And then Jason O'Mara guest starred, so i would have loved this episode even if it was the worst possible episode. That man could give PD a serious run for his money.

1. I actually liked the Mark/Derek. Derek's over Addison and he seems to be starting to forgive Mark. And i liked Mark telling McDreamy that he doesn't like Rose, and that it's really not worth it.

2. Yeah, can we have less of that.

Also this is the first ep in which Rose REALLY annoyed me. She seemed nice before, but now she's bland and boring.

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ariaadagio
2008-04-28 06:57 pm UTC (link)

My problem with Mark/Derek was that Derek never did start to forgive Mark. It's just BOOM. Forgiven. There was no starting. No gradual healing. Just, BAM, as soon as Burke was out of the picture, Mark stepped in. I love the Derek/Mark scenes because they usually make me laugh. From a realism stand-point, though, they throw me entirely off-kilter.

Rose is just a dumb plot device. She doesn't annoy me and hasn't ever done so, really. I hate to see Derek's character further ruined, and I hate that Shonda is insulting the viewers' intelligence by including her at all.

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	a_blackpanther 2008-04-28 07:00 pm UTC (link)
	Yeah. And did she have to be 'in love' with Derek? It's going to be season 2 all over again with Meredith as Adisson. Derek is going to say 'I have to try with her' blah blah... (Reply to this)(Parent)

darkandtwisty02
2008-04-27 07:55 pm UTC (link)

I too so agree with you on Derek. He needs to own up to his actions.
Meredith is dealing with her issues. Do we see Derek doing anything to deal with his, no? I have a feeling we won't either, which makes me kinda pissed.
This isn't all Mer's fault, and I wish they would focus some of their time and energy on Derek owning up to his faults for once.

Yeh, Mark and Derek, that's just kinda wierd. Yeh, I'm glad they're friends, but too be that chumy, sorry the guy slept with your wife...

Meredith rocked this eppy!

Rose is just messed up and I'm so glad she's going to be gone soon.....

I thought the contest was a brilliant idea!

(Reply to this)

	(Anonymous) 2008-04-27 07:58 pm UTC (link)
	all I know is that I miss your fic and we all wonder if you'll ever post the last chapter :( (Reply to this)(Thread)

SSBR says "Patience is a virtue"
(Anonymous)
2008-04-28 10:37 am UTC (link)

Like every product worth anything, LST will be finished when it's finished and not before. She'd be letting us all down, more than anyone herself, if she simply forced something out under pressure. She needs space to get it done with everything else in her life right now, and can we just give it to her and be thankful for all that she's given us already, please?

Thank you,
-SSBR

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hiddenxharmony
2008-04-27 09:53 pm UTC (link)

I liked the episode too, surprisingly.

The Derek Worship WAS annoying. But that look he gave her at the end was filled with a lot of things, and I couldn't help but love him a little bit. But yeah. Shonda needs to see her own characters a bit more clearly (what do you think the chances are of that happening?)

Really happy about Mer getting therapy though, no matter what the influence may be. She's needed it for a while now.

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	(Anonymous) 2008-04-27 09:53 pm UTC (link)
	Meredith rocked this whole episode! :D And I think you're right about this whole thing with Derek. Loved the contest and I'm glad Meredith won! (Reply to this)

	So, what does LST Derek think? : ) (Anonymous) 2008-04-28 04:07 am UTC (link)
	Not that I am in serious withdrawal from LST Derek...or anything... Just you know, I'm over here...thinking about LST Derek and LST Meredith...who I still love infinitely more than TV Derek and just a bit more than TV Meredith... No pressure. Sigh. (leaning around in elevators...sighing...) Sigh. (Reply to this)(Thread)

	Re: So, what does LST Derek think? : ) ariaadagio 2008-04-28 06:53 pm UTC (link)
	Well, I have been actively working on it. Seattle sort of revved me up. If I hadn't been sick all weekend I probably would have gotten more done, but as it is, I finally have a usable intro sequence and some other fun flashback-y stuff. That's all I'm saying. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

Re: So, what does LST Derek think? : )
(Anonymous)
2008-04-28 09:25 pm UTC (link)

Well, we'll all wait forever for LST if need be...no hurry! ; )

I actually watched this episode and liked it. I didn't see 4.08-4.11, so maybe I am in really different place than a lot of people...

I'll watch missing episodes after the SF with a lot of tequila. I think that we are going to get some remorseful TV Derek soon though. Just a feeling.

And you are right, Derek-worship has got to stop. We love him because he is a little bit dreamy and a little bit flawed...not because he is a gorgeous asshole, right? God, there has to be a difference.

I just re-read AYATM, and I still think you got it right on the reunion. Could have been done in one show and it would have been awesome. Grrr.

Happy viewing and writing!

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from New Yorker
(Anonymous)
2008-04-28 12:58 pm UTC (link)

I didn't think it was Derek worship at all, I thought the whole point of him being with Rose was to show that he isn't perfect.

I've posted this thought on TWoP (where I am posting again because I got PM's that people really like my posts so I am back in the jungle and once again trying to be a voice of reason)

I think the Shonda and company will never set Derek up for a huge fall because the vast majority of the general viewers tune in to see McDreamy and these are the viewers the network is desperate to hold onto. I also have thought that the original plan wasn't for Derek to be almost perfect, but the McDreamy persona has taken off, becoming iconic, and the network and the advertisers are fundamentally aware of that. Right now, their main goal is to get viewers who have left the show back on board, and the quickest and most public way for them to do it is to return Derek to McDreamy status. I think they started to show this with Derek agreeing immediately to help Meredith with the clinical trial - it was to show how much he still loves her, but also how much he respects her for trying to do the trial.

This does make it a little unalanced for Meredith, in the sense that since they can't take him too far down without the general audience deserting the show, so the issues end up being on her side. However, I also strongly feel that they will delve more into Derek in S5, but do it as a couple, which I can't wait to see.

As far as LST goes, I will happily wait for it to be finished, no matter how long it takes.

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	Re: from New Yorker ariaadagio 2008-04-28 06:52 pm UTC (link)
	He doesn't need to have a huge fall. Somebody just has to admit the man isn't Patrick Sue Perfect. I think I've managed to show many ways to humanize and elaborate on Derek's character without resorting to making him god-like or perfect. People in the Grey's-verse are allowed to dislike him. He's allowed to make mistakes and grow from them. That's all I want. (Reply to this)(Parent)

tracyhodgkins
2008-04-28 02:36 pm UTC (link)

I couldn't help wondering what you thought of the episode.

It felt a lot like season 1 to me, with the interaction between the residents. Izzie had to go far too far with her patient, but that is typical of her. I just can't stand Izzie, but then, you know that.

I see what you mean about Mark and Derek, but it sort of feels to me as if they've moved on, certainly the fact that Derek didn't go ballistic when Mark said he didn't like Rose suggested to me that Mark felt secure enough to say that, oh, and also that Derek is none too keen on the woman himself. I suppose, now Addison isn't around anymore, with either one of them, it takes some of the sting out of it. It makes me wonder what will happen when Addison turns up again.

The one time I was really angry with Derek this episode was when he wouldn't look Meredith in the eye when he was with Mark, examining a patient - the skin flap woman, I think it was. Still, it wouldn't be Derek if he didn't indulge in a bit of self-righteous sulking.

I was worried that Meredith would go through the motions with the therapy. I'm still in two minds as to whether she will actually talk. I hope she does, not for Derek, but for herself. I still think that while Derek is the issue that has brought everything to a head for Meredith, he isn't the only demon she is fighting. It seems to me that Meredith needs to deal with all her baggage if she is to have any sort of meaningful relationship with anyone, not just Derek.

I'm hoping that Meredith's therapist will help her to see that Derek is human and therefore flawed. What I feel Meredith has done is make Derek into the McDreamy figure in her head, which, after all, in the beginning, if memory serves me right, Cristina was being ironic about. I think Meredith feels completely inadequate, just not good enough, for him and she makes him into the perfect figure she thinks he is, or rather, the perfect figure she wants him to be, which he isn't.

To be honest, until that scene when they were talking about the clinical trial, both Meredith and Derek seemed like the walking wounded to me. It felt much easier to take than all that early season 2 melodrama Meredith (justifiably, I might add) was doing.

Did you think Rose was just weird in this episode? I did. To me it just seems farcical that she would 'love him' after six weeks, or whatever it's supposed to be. She seemed like Izzie, much more hyper than she seemed before. The thing is, she knows really, I think, that Derek is just kidding himself. That look towards the end, when she saw Derek and Meredith talking about the clinical trial, said it all.

I never put much importance on the promos. I think sometimes they are cut to make things appear a certain way. If Addison does have a go at Meredith, I hope she either does the same to Derek, or that Meredith tells her to keep her nose out. As much as it would be ironic, I don't want Addison to be a catalyst for bringing Meredith and Derek back together. I want them to see that they have BOTH made the mess they are in and I want them to fix it together.

No pressure from me for the end of LST. It will be done when it is done. I don't see why people need to rush to the end of such a great story. Not being critical of anyone, but sometimes I think people don't see how much work and thought goes in to writing something. Sure, when a writer is good, it looks easy, but it isn't. Sometimes, for the sake of your sanity, you do need to just put it away for a while. It makes it a pleasure then, not a drag, when you come back and do more. It is supposed to be fanfiction after all, fun, not the end of civilisation as we know it.

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ariaadagio
2008-04-28 06:50 pm UTC (link)

While I enjoy most of the Mark/Derek stuff from an entertainment perspective, it's been bugging me for a while how glossed over their past seems to be. I guess it was just that scene that really solidified the feeling. The Addison thing is a HUGE thing to be swept under the rug like that. I would find it more believable if they'd had some sort of... gradual reconciliation instead of, "Well, season 4 is beginning, Dr. Burke is gone, let's have Mark step in suddenly."

I was never angry with Derek in this episode. I still love him as a character. I just wish Shonda would cool it with the "Derek is so perfect!" anvils left and right and center.

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greysaddict522
2008-04-29 12:13 am UTC (link)

Hey stranger! Sorry you've been sick. Yuck.

I hear what you're saying about Mark and Derek. I think they'll always have some fundamental trust issues when it comes to women, but I do think they've done a lot to repair the relationship. I think Derek has had enough distance from the situation to accept it, and in some ways, I think it's easier for them to get along about it because Addison's not around anymore. The wound would be much fresher if she and Mark were still together. Plus, they were friends for so long that falling back into their comfortable routine of banter is probably the best way for them to cope with their current situations. If they weren't so desperate for companionship right now, the Addison ordeal might be a bigger deal. I suspect that it will come up again eventually, but for now, it makes sense to me why it doesn't. I think Derek realized in Love/Addiction that he needed Mark's friendship more than he needed to hold on to the anger. It's arguably the most mature thing Derek's done all year. :)

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from New Yorker
(Anonymous)
2008-04-29 01:25 pm UTC (link)

I just want to add that I have never thought of Derek being perfect, and that may be because I started watching Grey's late, and only saw season 1 after the fact on DVD. So by the time I saw the S1 episodes, I already knew about Addie and that he intially didn't tell Meredith about her, so when I watched the DVD I already thought of him as less than perfect, but not awful, just human.

I think something the show has struggled with for a long time is that since the McDreamy persona took off, when they tried to "humanize" him, they have done it in such terrible ways that Derek ends up looking like a complete ass, rather than human. My best example of this is the I want to marry you, but what if someone else comes along speech. He starts out as McDreamy, they tried to make him "human" but they did it in a way that made people really dislike him, which I don't think was their intent. Also, bringing in Rose to show the less than perfect side of Derek is a complete fiasco because it just makes him look bad, not human. They never seem to be able to strike a balance between McDreamy and McAss, he's either one or the other. This is something I really hope they can correct in S5.

The thing I love most about your writing Aria is that you have been able to strike that balance, for Derek and Meredith, and you have done it in such a humane way. You have been able to show all sides of both of them, in ways that are completely realistic.

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tracyhodgkins
2008-04-29 01:56 pm UTC (link)

It strikes me, certainly at the moment, that both men are on their own. Addison is gone. Derek is 'with' Rose, but isn't really, or he's in this mixed up mess with Meredith (admittedly, a mess he helped to create). Mark is alone. I think both men are actually quite needy, they need to feel connected to someone, and at the moment that is each other. However, I think the relationship has changed. Mark said something this episode about thinking that when it was over with Meredith (or words to that effect) he thought it would be just him and Derek, which clearly, it isn't. Something has fundamentally changed in their relationship. They made light of it, but I think it shows that though they have come through what has happened, it hasn't entirely gone away, and probably never will.

I do sometimes think that the flaw Greys has though, is that you don't always see issues being resolved. Whether it be Meredith and Derek, or Derek and Mark, we often wait for things to be said and they aren't. Then, maybe in conversation, or in a fight, someone will say something and it will become obvious that they have talked about things. It's like when Meredith and Derek were fighting and she said he didn't tell her about his wife. His immediate reaction was 'so now we're going to have that fight again.' To all intents and purposes, that suggests that he and Meredith had talked, or more likely, fought, about it at some point, but we had never seen it. I think sometimes if we saw things being resolved, or dealt with, the way the characters move on would make more sense. But then again, if we did, Shonda wouldn't be able to keep bringing things back up. It makes me wonder if the trust issue with Mark and Derek is likely to come up again, like it has between Meredith and Derek.

I know this isn't relevant, but the thing I wish they would deal with with Derek is his need to have everything now. Why is he in such a hurry? He wanted Meredith to go at a speed she couldn't deal with. I wonder if he did the same with Addison, i.e. wanted something she wasn't ready for so he lost interest (children???) which led to what happened with Addison and Mark). It seems weird to me. It isn't as if time is running out for him, he's still young. I'm wondering if it is something to do with his father.

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