Cristina Yang, bartender. Bet you never saw that coming a year ago, did you? Yep, after Owen told Cristina to get off the couch and get a job (he meant in a lab) she threw on a weird fringed top and horrid, horrid denim vest and got herself a job at Joe’s. Where all the attendings were drinking their faces off to celebrate Derek’s grant while the residents worked the night shift.
After Hours
It was actually really nice to see so many of the lead characters in a new light. I mean, how often do we get to see Bailey drunk? Never! And drunk from Cristina’s own disgusting concoction that was the color of Windex and named “Early Onset Alzheimer’s” because you won’t remember anything after you drink it. In bad taste in more than one way. Nice. Most people at the bar, though, were self-medicating. Callie was still glum about Arizona. Teddy was frustrated with the pitfalls of online dating. Bailey was fed up with fistulas. And then everyone was totally weirded out by the fact that their bartender was Cristina Yang.
Meanwhile, the residents were stuck working the night shift at Seattle Grace. There was a nice little moment between Alex and Meredith where they reminisced about how on the first day of work the Chief had said only two of them would make it through the program. They both said “I thought it would be me and Cristina” and I was sadly reminded of the fact that with Cristina off dealing with her PTSD, they are the only two left. George is dead, Izzie is gone. Cristina will be back, though. I’m sure of it.
Luckily, two of those pesky Mercy West docs that I hated on so much last season have become two of my favorite characters. Yep, I’m putting this out there. I totally love April now. I think she’s hilarious. I’m glad she’s on the show. And besides Avery’s incredible good looks, he’s had an awesome storyline this season. I’m even warming to Teddy and Owen a little. Overall, I’m feeling happy with the cast.
Once I had love, but it was a gas
Meredith was in peds for the night and had a hard time getting Dr. Jerk to take her case seriously. He chalked a kid’s stomach pain up to gas and complained about missing the tiramisu at dinner, but the problems were actually much worse. The kid would need surgery.
Meanwhile, poor little April had to deal with some lovesick teens who’d superglued their arms together, and thought she’d be able to get some advice from Bailey…until she realized that Bailey was “indisposed”. She ended up getting different advice – Bailey told her not to waste her maiden voyage on a boy like Karev. Then Bailey decided she should give Ben a call and talk to him about her needs. It was all very hilarious, and it was even more hilarious when afterward April thought the intimate conversation with drunk Bailey meant they were friends, and Bailey made her say it had never happened. Poor April. Oh, and she used acetone mixed with warm soap and water to pry the teen lovebirds apart.
Lexie and Avery were working together this week, and the connection between them continues to grow. She knows he wakes up screaming at night, but he won’t talk about it. They, along with Hunt, worked on two teen brothers who’d tried to beat a train in their car (never ever do that) and got seriously injured. The younger brother died in the ER, but the older one was saved thanks to some fantastic work from Avery. Lexie had to deliver the bad news to the parents (that was a heartbreaking scene, and Chyler Leigh was great in it) and Avery finally opened up a little, in telling her what to tell the parents. “Every time he feels glad to be alive, he’ll hate himself for it. Just tell him to look out for that. He won’t want to talk about it, but he’ll be glad they know.”
Still Standing
While all this was going on, Meredith and Alex were prepping the kid they were taking care of for surgery. Meredith had already been yelled at by Dr. Jerk for calling him in when he said it was gas. The Chief had already yelled at both Mer and Alex for not being able to get test results from the lab fast enough (that scene was awesome) and now they knew the kid needed surgery but Dr. Jerk wasn’t answering his phone. So they did what they were trained to do. They operated. They saved the kid’s life. I loved the scene at the end where Dr. Jerk is yelling at them for operating without him, but the Chief stands in the window and nods.
The biggest disaster of the night was Cristina’s career as a bartender. She got fired for drinking on the job (and being generally awful at it) but continued to party with the bachelor party she’d been serving, even giving one guy a lap dance. As Derek put it, she was acting like a stripper. Owen showed up, calmly thanked Derek for taking care of her, lifted her over his shoulder and then held her hair back while she vomited at home. I wonder what Cristina will try next? Being a housewife? Working in a lab? At Banana Republic?
Also, Callie slept with Mark. To cleanse her pallet. Mistake? Totally hot? I don’t mind them together, but I hope it won’t prevent her from reuniting with Arizona. I’m not giving up on that relationship yet.
What did you think of the episode? Perfect mix of funny and dramatic? Have you come around on April and Avery, or are there other cast members you’re still not feeling?
