Grey’s Anatomy Sucks
Posted by Ray @ 8:42 pmWhen Meredith Grey drowned last week, I thought: Yay!
Then this week, in what is basically an hour-long CPR scene (you know - person’s heart stops, doctors proclaim electric shocks are needed, people shout “clear!”, the heart stays stopped, the doctors all give up, but after the music crescendoes into absolute silence the familiar BEEP… BEEP… of the monitor tells the audience that yes, the patient is indeed alive, oh my god it’s a miracle), she came back to life.
I wonder, am I the only one who doesn’t like Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo)? Everyone eats up Grey’s Anatomy like it’s the best thing since sex. But the main character is so unlikeable and unbelievable that I wonder if viewers aren’t tuning in to watch Isobel Stevens (Katherine Heigl) instead.
Meredith is maladjusted, self-loathing, insecure, annoying, incompetent… and a slut. I’m sorry, but if you sleep around with more than one man and self-righteously proclaim that you’re not a slut, then you definitely are one (if you embrace your promiscuity, you ain’t a slut - just confident).
In contrast, Isobel is hardworking, beautiful (sorry Ellen), competent-yet-vulnerable, an all-round likeable gal. Why can’t she be the main character? I was heartbroken when Izzie lost Denny. On the other hand, I cackle like a maniac whenever Meredith gets screwed, because she usually has it coming. But it’s getting old, fast.
Should’ve killed Grey off and called it Isobel’s Anatomy. Mmm, tasty.
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I think it’s House. We’re spoilt.
Comment by Johnny Malkavian — Sunday, February 25 2007 @ 11:57 pm
I think the problem is Meredith is flawed… she’s human and she’s flawed and we don’t like to see flawed on TV. She represents the issues we all struggle with whether we sleep around or struggle out loud, we all struggle. She can be whiny and annoying - but so can every other person on this planet. I respect the writers for writing a lead character as flawed as she is - I respect that, because we’ve all been there in one form or another.
Izzie? Izzie is mean. Izzie is insecure. Izzie is more annoying to me than Meredith could ever be. Izzie is not rational. But I just don’t like Izzie.
People either love or hate Meredith… and even bad press is good press… so the show will go on - continue to hate Mer… but you will continue to watch.
Comment by jennifer — Tuesday, February 27 2007 @ 4:26 am
For someone who thinks Greys Anamoty SUCKS, you sure know all about it. If you don’t like it don’t watch it. I would love to see some one go through everything that Meredith has gone through and be perfect. People have problems and deal with thier own way. Okay, shes a characher on a t.v. show but thier are most likely people just like meredith and trying to deal with the hardships of life. So when the world is perfect then you can bag on the kind of person Meredith Grey is.
Comment by Britt — Tuesday, February 27 2007 @ 7:30 am
jennifer: I agree that Meredith is flawed. I disagree that we don’t like seeing flawed characters on TV; we do. We like seeing them when we can relate to them. I cannot relate myself to Meredith at all; she is badly written and not a credible or believable doctor or person. On the other hand, I can relate to Izzie, whose interactions are much more believable (save for muffin-making psychosis).
Britt: What did she “go through”, exactly? The only thing that’s stressful is having to take care of her Alzheimer’s-ridden mother. The rest is either normal human experience (tough childhood, parents don’t think you’re good enough parents separated, with no daddy figure, trying to live in the shadow of a great parent), or completely her “fault” (should I go with hot guy A, or hot guy B, or hot guy C, oh what the hell lets sleep with them all and screw myself up further).
The former is a common experience that everyone goes through; the latter is just bad writing.
Comment by Ray — Tuesday, February 27 2007 @ 9:21 pm
oh so taking care of her mother is soo easy. My great-grandmother has Alzheimer’s and my grandmother take care of her the way Mer takes care of her mom. The only diffrence is my grandmother is a lot older than Mer. It is very hard for my grandma and she has her moments where she is very overwhelmed, and she is retired, Mer on the other hand is an intern working countless hours and her work is stressful. so don’t act like taking care of her mother is easy I know through my own family’s experience it’s very hard. Do you know what it’s like seeing some one you know and love and have many memories with and they look at you and don’t even know who you are. I do.
And her childhood that you call normal, I call heartbreaking. My parents seperated a couple of years ago and it’s hard but I keep tellling myself I still have two parents that love me. Mer only had a mother that she never saw because her work was more important than her family. ( her daughter) My parents also never told my I was’nt good enough. I have two kids of my own and would never in my life tell thenm they were’t Good enough. For those parents who do thell thier kids thier not good enough shame on you.
Your “should I go with hot guy A, Hot guy B, or hot Guy C, Oh what the hell lets sleep with them all and screw myself op further”. comment she sleeps with McDreamy, the guy from the bar, And George ( which I think was wrong ) to set the record straight she never slept with Finn. So tell me you never had sex with 3 people. think about it 3 people she can still count on 1 hand. Not a slut in my book.
Bad writing, when you have a tv show with excellent ratings let me know. If youo think Greys SUCKS why do you watch it.
Comment by Britt — Wednesday, February 28 2007 @ 2:38 am
(I must say it’s very surreal talking so heatedly about a fictional character, and a badly written one at that. But here goes…)
I’m sorry to hear about your great-grandmother. Notice I did acknowledge that it’s stressful. What’s important to note is that it’s the only meritorious stress factor for Meredith; the rest of it either normal or self-inflicted.
We all like to think we had a tough time growing up; it’s natural. Some parents set too high a standard and are disappointed when their children fall short. Some parents spoil their kids. Some parents are too busy with work to be with you. But I’m sure as you talked to your friends and grew up, you realized you’ve all had tough times. And I’m sure it doesn’t get you down as much as it does Meredith.
Sleeping around is perfectly fine in my book. But the way she did it exhibits slutty behaviour… at the very least, unpleasant-person behaviour. McDreamy started out as a one night stand. George… well… we both agree that one was wrong. I don’t remember the guy from the bar, must have been a while back… but I presume it was a one night stand. That’s 3 for 3. And then she gets all pissy and in denial when McDreamy suggests that she’s a slut. That, for me, sealed the deal.
The show is written rather badly, at least vis-a-vis the main character. I don’t need to write a TV show to know when one is badly written. I have great difficulty suspending disbelief as two men (and every girl I know thinks they’re completely droolworthy) fawn over the mess that is Meredith.
Perhaps it strikes a chord somewhere, giving hope to girls who wish that despite all their shortcomings, hot dudes and sweet dudes will all flock towards her. The problem is I don’t see what Meredith has done to deserve that respect or attention. All the other characters have something. Cristina is your bloodthirsty competitive (and therefore bound to be highly competent) surgeon. Kerev appears to have, strangely and sweetly, an aptitude and liking for babies. George, despite being an insecure mess himself, performed a cool operation in an elevator. Izzie is white trash who paid her own way through medical school. Don’t you see? The writers need to give Meredith something she can anchor herself to in her professional life. (And that bomb episode doesn’t count - that was scary and respectable, but the accomplishment wasn’t medical in nature).
As for why I watched it for so long, well, many reasons. I abandoned it in the middle of season 2 because I couldn’t stand Meredith. I picked it up again almost a year later because of the Golden Globe win. I must say that the overall arcs of the story are well-paced and well-written. It’s the characterization of Meredith that I have a problem with; and since she’s the main character, it distorts my whole perspective of the show. I enjoy watching Miranda, and The Chief, and McDreamy when he’s being cool neurosurgeon man, and Burke, and Cristina… basically the medical drama is, I think, well written, a nice counterpoint to the incredibly character-centric House.
But the main character is badly written, and that’s a fundamental flaw.
Comment by Ray — Wednesday, February 28 2007 @ 3:45 pm
I didn’t like Meredith as much as the rest of the cast. It’s the rest of the cast that makes up for the chemistry of the show.
Comment by Parka — Thursday, March 8 2007 @ 10:55 am