Grey’s Anatomy Gaining Speed

The writers finally started eating their wheaties again and it showed. The show’s idiosyncratic parallel plotlines with underlining themes was back in this episode. Although Grey’s did not invent this method of having a narrator who ties each plot line together, they did do it eloquently and with their own twist. For instance, Carrie Bradshaw did this in Sex and the City long before Meredith came to Seatle Grace Hospital. The reason it works in Grey’s anatomy is because of the eclectic cast. No one really cares about Meredith all that much. This is one reason why this episode was better than recent ones with bad ratings. The writers finally stopped focusing on Meredith so much. The show may be named after her, but she’s no Carrie Bradshaw. The writers were smart to focus on other characters this time.

Furthermore, viewers weren’t so much mad that the show was focusing on Meredith during the “limbo” episodes but because of the content, lengthiness, and the shift in style of the episodes. No one wants to watch Meredith die and come back to life. Yes, Grey’s is a Medical drama, but viewers tune in for the social drama. It is important, just like any other show, to proliferate other story lines through the characters. However, the thing that sets Grey’s apart from other medical dramas is the social drama. In other words, viewers of Grey’s are more likely to go to the bathroom during the action scene than the sex scene between Meredith and McDreamy. Every other aspect of the show should remain secondary to the social drama and they shouldn’t experiment so much. I’m glad that the writers finally realized this with last weeks episode because after all.. if it ain’t broke don’t fix it.

They did, however, fix the the show making it more like the “old Greys.” The rhythm, characters, and tone were the same again. The main focus was on Izzy and George which are characters that audiences usually respond well to. Callie is a character that people either love or hate, but I think most people do not see her and George’s relationship being realistic. So, I think viewers probably like it that their marriage is not working. At first when George and Izzy got together it seemed absurd, but after seeing “Time After Time” it was aparent that maybe there are true feelings there. I think this was a bold move for Greys to do. It seems too easy to set up two friends and people probably want to see more characters develope. However, the Izzy and George thing actually seems real. I could see them having a “Chandler and Monica” relationship.

I am finally happy again with the way the show is going, but only with one episode. If the writers continue to keep the same style and stick with the juicy plotlines, they should end up being marathon runners. So, while Greys is gaining speed..I just hope that they can continue to do that time after time.

Grey’s Anatomy: Sprinter or Marathon Runner?

Prior to this season of Grey’s Anatomy I never missed an episode, and when they went on a two week hiatus in Season two I was having withdrawels. Season three has been different. There hasn’t been a new episode in three weeks, and frankly, I don’t care all that much. Apparently, I’m not alone. Until recently, Grey’s dominated their time slot. Last episode, CSI followed shortly behind Grey’s by only 611,000 viewers, according to the Nelson ratings. CSI was also voted the number one program of the night among key men. So, I can’t help but wonder what has caused Grey’s Anatomy to lose it’s steam?

The easiest thing to blame for Grey’s sudden decrease in ratings would be the recent media frenzy among the cast and crew. Just weeks after T.R. Knight (George) announced that he was a homosexual, his cast mate and “friend” Isaiah Washington (Dr. Burke) called Knight an anti-gay slur. After denying the comments at first, Washington finally apologized and remained on the show. This is an easy out for the producers to blame on the shows decreasing ratings. However, we all know that there is no such thing as bad press. If anything, the controversy should have sparked more interest in the show. After all, did viewers stop watching Sex and the City when there was a rumored feud between Kim Cattrall and Sarah Jessica Parker? Absolutely not. The loyal fans kept watching because it was still a good show and more people tuned in to see the chemistry between the women. If anything, Washington and Knight’s spat should have helped the ratings, but it did not. So, perhaps there’s more to it.

It seems that recently hit shows have become popular extremely fast. For instance, The O.C. raked in impressive ratings from the get-go having 9.7 million viewers the first season and 7 million in the second. Then, something happened when the third and fourth seasons began to dwindle with 5.6 and 4 million viewers. After the O.C. began, other shows like Desperate Housewives and LOST followed with great ratings in their first seasons. Both Desperate Housewives and LOST’s ratings have gone down since the their first seasons.

These immediacies that the networks place on shows seem to be taking away from their longevity. So, while it may seem great to have high ratings in the first couple of seasons, the show might not last as long. Nowadays new shows and seasons seem to be stuffed too full. They are crammed with so much information and drama that there’s nothing left to write about in the following seasons. It is hard to know whether this is a product of our “fast food” culture or if the Networks simply don’t have faith in their shows.

Seinfeld and Cheers had horrible ratings in their first seasons and they are two of the most popular shows of all time. The networks believed in them and they had staying power. In other words, they were “marathon runners.” They stayed constant throughout their run. They started off a little slow, but they lasted longer. Shows like the O.C. are “sprinters.” They blow out all their energy too fast. I can’t help but wonder..Will Grey’s Anatomy be a “sprinter” or a “marathon runner?”