Debora Cahn on "Brave New World"...

Original Airdate: 10-16-08

To the dermatologists of the world:  We love you.  We really do.  We think you do fine work.  Important, difficult work.  Life saving work.  We all love you here at Grey’s Anatomy, and we’re a little concerned that you might not take tonight’s episode in the spirit it was intended.  Light-hearted!  No lack of respect!  We kid, and we kid from love!  I thought it was all going to be fine, and then I heard, one by one, that every Grey’s writer had made an appointment with their dermatologist this week, BEFORE the episode aired.  Everybody wanted everything checked before we pissed off every dermatologist in the land. When one writer did it, I thought it was cute, and a little paranoid.  But when the emails started pouring in… “Going to be 10 minutes late this morning, have appt with my dermatologist,” well, then I started getting worried.  We love you, dermatologists.  Please don’t hurt us.  See, it’s Cristina that thinks surgery is harder.  Not us.  CRISTINA.  When the writers of “The Shield” portray junkies calling police officers “f-ing pigs,” it’s not the writers who think they’re f-ing pigs, it’s just the junkies.  Right?  Cristina.  Yang.  Don’t hate us.

A word about diaries.  When you find your mother’s diary, don’t read it.  DON’T READ IT.  I tell you this from experience.  I found my mother’s diary.  Not really a diary, a suitcase full of stuff she wrote for a writing class, but one of the assignments was to keep a journal, and my sister said DON’T READ IT and I read it, and I’m telling you.  DO NOT READ THE DIARY.  If they thought you should know, they’d have told you.  And so I say to Meredith:  Good on you for not reading it for a whole episode.  And I say to Cristina:  Lay off.  She doesn’t want to read it, don’t tell her to read it.  And I say to Derek:  When you find the mother’s diary in the back of the closet under a pile of magazines, LEAVE IT UNDER THE PILE OF MAGAZINES.  But even more importantly, I say this to the diary keepers of the world:  What the hell are you thinking?  You really think nobody’s gonna find that thing?  You really think that the box in the back of the closet is a secure location?  That an old sweater and a pair of long underwear’ll throw everyone off the trail?  You’re dead, and your poor child/spouse/best friend is tasked with going through your stuff, and they see the box with the sweater and the long underwear, and they think, I’m not going to touch that pair of long underwear, it’s clearly a box of old winter clothing, let’s just close it up again and bring it right over to Goodwill.  No, people.  Anyone who hasn’t had a lobotomy is going to move the long underwear aside, and find the diary, and read it.  And let me tell you, that little tiny lock can be picked with a bobby pin.  If you feel you must put your feelings on paper, destroy those pages once a year.  If you feel you must have a way to reconnect with your younger self, run the bonfire once a decade.  And when you find yourself visiting an oncologist or cardiologist with some regularity, take it as a sign to THROW OUT THE DIARIES. 

Ellis Grey.  What were you thinking?

I know, you wish I were talking more about the episode.  And the characters.  Problem is, I’m in the middle of writing episode 511, and my head is totally in the middle of the season, so if I started talking about the characters, I’d inevitably wander into what’s going on with them in the middle of the season, and that’s the kind of thing that REALLY pisses Shonda off.  So I’m gonna stop.  Sorry.  That’s it.  Dermatologists and diaries.   

Comments

[S.Cali]

This episode was funny, warm, and not contrived. I know other posters have showered you with endless praise this and last season, but for me, THIS was finally the episode I'd been waiting for ever since the end of the second season.

Well done.

[PamelaJaye]

Loved the episode to death! Honestly I was sitting here *cheering.* More than once!

Since it ended, I've seen ER and Life on Mars, and forget what I was cheering about, so I'm watching it again right now.
And as soon as I see my brother, i'm going to force him to watch it too.

Go, writers!!
Great job Debora
(and hey! no graphic scenes warnings? House has em every week and rarely needs them!)
sorry about all the exclamation marks, but really - season 5 is so much better than 3 and 4! how can it be season 5 already??

[Andrew]

ok i loved the relationship with the little boy and george! It would be awesome if the boy was in a few more episodes to have them develop a better relationship.

[Jessica]

Thanks for the quality 35 seconds of Mer/Der time this episode. Can't wait to see another 25 seconds next episode..oh wait a minute, I want to see more. Why are you not showing these two? Why?

[ali]

Great episode. I love that its the fifth season, and there is still new territory to explore (the dermatology area, Callie and Erica's maiden journey to the motherland, Meredith and Derek's developing relationship); and that, five seasons in, it's still so very much Grey's (Bailey is still giving advice on...everything, friends are still coming together and fumbling as they also work to take care of themselves, I will still be running the Meredith and Derek moments through my head for the next week).

Looking forward to next Thursday!

[kitty]

Give cristina a storyline away from meredith for several weeks.

Can we see her deal with her issues this season please, I fear she will end up like Erica if she doesn't!

[PamelaJaye]

okay, lame blog, but good episode.
And we wouldn't want to piss Shonda off. But really...

I cannot keep a diary, much as i wish i could remember my life, i cannot do it.
So I save all my email. Cause I'm usually telling one friend or another something that's going on with me that I'm never going to remember later.

Debora? next time you have to blog an ep ? Write the blog right after the ep and just save it for us. Okay?
Thanks.

And while i cheered Izzie on, I don't like who she has to be and hope she doesn't stay that person.
(and I really thought i was going to find Mer in Derek's trailer parked in Mer's backyard. (does she have a backyard?))

Poor Lexie! The one thing about happily ever after that I NEVER thought of was that George would get his old friends back and abandon her (Lex is going for Mer's old abandonment *record*)

and btw, I want to see more of Mer and Lex, post jealousy. And I'd like to see Thatch again, too, please.

I vaguely recall Alex actually telling the truth to the right person at the end of the ep.
Go, Alex!

[Yen]

I like that Izzie finally stood up to Alex. Loved it! Thank you!

[Ericka]

Please, I beg you... stop making the characters so self-centered. We like the old fun characters...don't get me wrong, I think the empowering people, I just think they are a little too focused on them selves right now. They are so blind to each other and it's very hard to watch. I just wish one person would call them out on it in an episode - that would be a glorious day.

Otherwise, I love Derek and Meredith's story. It's making sense and I think represents a lot of relationships that have had rough patches.

[Canadian Grey's Fan]

Debora you're hilarious!!!
I was thinking the same thing when I was watching the episode. It's Cristina, of course. For people that know the characters and that know Cristina, they are gonna get it that Cristina is the one thinking that, but if somebody that just turned on the T.V. and happens to be a dermatologist... you're in big trouble miss/mrs (I dont know) hahahaha!!!
Funny episode, great job!
But the guy with no face...gross but still kinda cool!
Keep up the good work, I can't wait til next week!

[Mary from Washington]

Hi Debora,
Thanks for another amazing episode. And thank you for finally putting in a little sexy/romantic MerDer. We definitely needed that kiss more than you'll know. It's 1:21 and I have class tomorrow, so I'm going to keep this one short. Thank you for being a writer and taking less money and less fame, because it's your words that make it on the screen and it's those words that I love repeating and memorizing and playing over and over and over again in my head. I know you are creating those words and I thank you for it.
---Mary

[Carrie McCabe]

I just wanted to leave a comment about this episode. I love Grey's Anatomy and appreciate the topics the show explores. I am hooked week after week! Working as a Child Life Specialist in a pediatric hospital, I was thrilled to see a child facing impending cardiac surgery featured on the show. I was excited to see that George's character showed him so much understanding and compassion as well, taking time to help him and his parents cope. I was, however, dissapointed that the show involved the child going into the O.R. While honest and appropriate explanation along with coping techniques are what my career is built on, this OR visit would have been wildly inappropriate and frightening for a child facing surgery. Child Life Specialists do prepare children for surgery using real medical eqiupment, dolls, age appropriate explanation, as well as spend a lot of time listening and supporting patient's and families. We also often give pre-surgical tours for children and families (when no one is on the operating table) to help alleviate these fears. It would be great to see a Child Life Specialist featured on your show in cases like this (The show "E.R." did actually feature a CCLS on an episode some time ago) to provide a realistic example of patient and family centered care. We are now recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics and are a growing field across the U.S. and internationally. Please check out www.childlife.org Ok...I am off my soap box :) I love Grey's. Keep up the great work!

[Jen]

This was an OK episode, I didn't enjoy it as much as last weeks. It did have some of the old magic.

I'm afraid I'm really not into the Hahn/Callie thing. I get where you're trying to go but it was too much for me. I hope you tone them down in the following episodes and perhaps give some of that screen time to Mer/Der. We've never seen them dressed up and out for dinner. I'm so disappointed that Meredith and Derek seem to have become bookends, I expected more from you guys this season. How about you turn things up a notch. Please. I guess it would be too much to ask huh? Considering there are now...what? Is it 15 or more characters to squeeze in to 40 minutes? I now hear a rumbling that you are looking to add more. If this is the case, I sincerely hope you are going to cut some. The individual stories are getting so choppy and hard to follow.

Still watching and waiting for something interesting to happen. I could get bored though.

[Happy]

Thank you. From the bottom of my heart ... thank you for Callie/Erica.

My daughter was 24 years old when the pressures of trying to be accepted for who she was (a lesbian) got the better of her and she took her life. She said to me once that there would never be acceptance or realism for her. I wish with all my heart that she could have lived to see what you're doing with Callie and Erica. Please keep it up. She would have been proud. And today ... I am proud for her and for YOU. Thank you for doing this and please stay the course. It may get bumpy and you may get backlash, but the fact remains that there are people out there just like Callie and Erica. And it's high time that they were allowed to shine.

Thank you.

[McSteamy]

Loved the Izzie/Alex story!! they are the best...

[Ephraim]

As usual, Der-Mer had the weakest story line, which is a very good thing. I suspect it was deliberate this time; that you wanted to let the rest shine.

It's about frickin' time you got George's test results back. Not letting him retake the exam was absolutely ridiculous given how ready everyone was to let The Mer retake hers. George shined with the kid. It's a shame he doesn't get or perhaps appreciate how much Lexie is and wants to stay in his corner.

I'm actually starting to like Izzie. That crawling tragedy of the past few years appears that have crawled away. Let's hope it doesn't return. It looks as though the person who replaced that tragedy can will try to walk.

Nice with Hahn's "I'll cut yours out with a steak knife." I like steak. Baked potatoes are good, too, but with butter - please no sour cream.

Please open the gates of Korev a little and soon. The tears behind that wall are so pent up that you won't be able to justice his demons once that dam breaks. I'm serious.

The flood throughout an entire hospital just wasn't credible. Yes, I got the metaphor, but come on. Metaphor needs something believable to describe and point to.

Ditto on the prom story. I got the metaphor, but the prom was just too much.

The metaphor of cement boy was not overdone. So-called friends turning on one another or not really caring happens all the time. Look at the residents and attendings. That's what they're doing half the time. Then they get the make-up sex, hugs, and muffins and things settle back down.

You'll need some darn good muffins to realistically sop up Alex's tears.

Yang, a general medicine? Nah, but it was fun to watch.

Callie and Erica? South of the Mason-Dixon line? What a gas!

One of your better episodes. See you next week. I like my steak rare but very hot - no steak sauce at all. Remember, please, no sour cream on the spuds. Just butter, salt and pepper.

[Liz]

Mmmmmmhhh...

Good episode. Bad, very bad blog.

I love the movement between Meredith and Derek, but I just wish for once, Meredith would cofide in Derek, and stop depending so much on Cristina.

[Barbie]

Tonight's episode was really great! I'm so tired of Meredith and Derek's little tiffs though. Can't they just have smooth sailing now? I think we all like seeing them happily together - leave the drama to the other characters!!

[crushdew]

this episode is awesome!!!
love the dermatologists part!!

[no comment]

Thanks Shonda! Now I'm a BIG Meredith/Cristina hater! Meredith should grow and Cristina should go away!

Where are MerDer. After 4 episodes it's always the same story. I'm sick and tired!

[Tara (San Francisco)]

Please just always keep George working with kids. I love George when he works with kids. The George that hurt Callie and slept with Izzy, not so much.

I just have to say how much I loved Sandra Oh in this episode... the shoes/socks/couch thing was awesome. She is always phenomenal, but I just realized that there are so many tiny ways in which the scenes with her in them are just so much better.

I LOVED what you did with Meredith and Hahn; Meredith running to Cristina for help on surgeries, and Hahn finding her out and calling her on it. Awesome.

I really love the friendship between Callie and Cristina--it is so odd, but really kind of wonderful. I was so happy to see them moving into their new place--each of them with their "person" helping them. Erica's interaction with Cristina in this context?--priceless. More, please!

Speaking of Erica and Callie--omg, so sweet. I'm not sure if you are doing this intentionally, but I do keep getting this feeling that Erica is not so much a 'virgin' as she is claiming to be. She is obviously into Callie (which I totally buy), but she is really the one who is moving things forward, and we aren't seeing her thought processes about it. If she's freaking out, I'd like to see it. If she's not freaking out, I'd like to see that too and understand why. Maybe some therapy time? I know that Erica Hahn is a pretty private person, but you have two awesome people that she can talk to (Callie and Dr. Wyatt), so please, let us see what is going on with her! Brooke Smith has the most amazing range as an actress (Vanya on 42nd Street, anyone?), please utilize her amazing talent! I absolutely love every moment she is on screen; I just feel like there is so much more I want to know about Erica. I know that this is kind of a real-time slow-reveal, which I appreciate, but let us get a little deeper soon please!

Poor Lexie...

Bailey seemed SO proud of herself after her little "Africa" speech to Callie. So cute.

My DVR cut off the end credits, so I don't know what was going on with the music for this episode, but the music just didn't seem to fit as well, and actually distracted me at points. Normally Grey's is so spot-on with music I found it to be slightly jarring.

Overall, a great episode; thank you! But please, give more details/character insight in your posts so that I don't wind up running to the spoiler boards...

Thank you!

[T&T fan]

I totally loved the scenes when Callie tells Bailey that she's going on a date with Hahn, and Bailey's attempt to explain the 'va-jay-jay'..... Absolutely hilarious!!!!!!
Thanks Grey's writers :)

[Big Grey's fan]

George passed!!... poor Lexie :(
Cool surgery with the peeling off of the man's face.... a la Face/Off

[JessicaK]

Thank you!!!!!!!! Grey's is back in full force and its fabulous!!!

Keep up the good work!

[Britts.]

Loved this epi of Greys!
The dermatology trailer. awesome!