Finale Fever: The Finale
Chandra Wilson in Grey's Anatomy by Michael Desmond/ABC
How much do I love Miranda Bailey? Now and forever my favorite
Grey's Anatomy character, she (and by she, I mean Chandra Wilson) gave me a great new catchphrase in Thursday night's
Grey's finale. Next time someone asks me what I'm looking at or what I'm thinking about, I might just say, "The bigger picture." Her approach seemed to inspire just about everyone in the show to get out of their funks, and by the end of the busy two hours, there were quite a few happy (or at least happier than usual) endings.
Mer and Der were back together again, at last, having finally saved someone in their clinical trial: "We can be extraordinary together instead of ordinary apart," said a "whole and healed" Meredith. McDreamy grins again, and all is right with the world. How corny and over-the-top-McSwoony was Meredith's candlelit hilltop landing strip marking out Derek's blueprint on Dream House Acres. And also how appropriate to the tone of TV's finest medical romantic comedy.
Meanwhile, a newly re-assertive George got the Chief to give him a second crack at the test (which he had failed by a mere point). Cristina also spoke up, at last, regaining her mojo (thanks, sparkle pager), telling Hahn to shut up during surgery and discovering the joys of teaching. Speaking of Hahn (who got a deserved dressing-down by the Chief), Callie kissed her and meant it. I think. (Sloan gave her the push, but not before some hot sex spiced with dirty Hahn innuendo.) The Chief went back to Adele, telling everyone within earshot he's not really such a bad guy, and I believe him. Good for them. Alex finally woke up and sent the dreary Rebecca to a nut house, revealing he had been his mother's caretaker and ultimately crying on Izzie's shoulder (some mighty fine work by Justin Chambers in that moment). Izzie got the keys to the clinic, courtesy of Bailey, who finally realized, "I can't do everything and still have everything." Home she goes with her bambino, and hopefully, eventually, to a reconciled husband.
And can I just say: That
Star Wars/Han Solo soliloquy Bailey recited to Concrete Boy was one for the ages. Wouldn't she be a hit at Comic Con?
All in all,
Grey's was a terrific way to close out the season, a night later than usual, thanks to the strike. (Yes, I know the two-hour
Lost is yet to come, but I'll be away by then, having made plans long before I knew ABC was going to extend the show's run PAST MEMORIAL DAY! Stupid strike.)
Thursday's other big finale:
Ugly Betty. Thank God for Hilda and the hunky (if not exactly unattached) coach. I needed something to go right for someone in that frantic hour, besides the resplendently villainous Wilhelmina, that is. Although if Betty is on her way to Rome, as she oughta be (I'm all about the travel these days), I guess I can get past such unfortunate twists as Daniel's surprise
fils, Alexis tiresomely suspending Daniel (again?), and Henry's inexplicably impulsive surprise proposal to Betty, which makes no narrative sense. Like Tucson is in Betty's future. Arrivederci, Hank. Funny bits: Everyone ducking when Naomi Campbell pulled out her cell phone at the softball game, Justin calling the sweat-free coach "Lizard Man," Betty as a dodge-ball "human shield" back in high school. (Which provided a blink-and-you'd-miss-it-preview of Lindsay Lohan's guest role for next season.)
And now, catching up with a few other finales that got lost in the season-ending madness of
Dancing With the Stars and
American Idol:
Law & Order. Fine end to a terrific rebuilding season. Nice job of taking the usual ripped-off-from-the-headlines gimmick (in this case, a murder involving a high-class prostitution ring that counts the state's governor- think Spitzer- as a regular client) and using it to ensnare Jack McCoy in an ethical and political dilemma. By episode's end, as the governor gets away with his naughty malfeasance (unlike real life) by paying off the defendant and even the feds, self-righteous Jack now has a mortal and well-connected enemy as he faces a big hurdle to his re-election campaign for the top DA spot. As Cutter bluntly put it: "I'm glad I'm not the one getting my n--s squeezed."
Reaper. The little show that could. Could get renewed (for midseason), and could keep getting better, as it did throughout these finale weeks. So is Sam actually "the heir to the Devil's domain," as demon Tony and others seem to believe, or is there something else his supernatural "dad" (who survived being buried alive) is keeping from him? Personally, I think we'll eventually learn that Sam has something closer to angel blood in him, but I'm a little rusty on my theology. Favorite part of the episode: Sock's unnatural high upon being kissed by a soul-sucking succubus. Of course he couldn't help trying to pimp her to Benji. What a goofy jerk.
How I Met Your Mother. Capping a terrific comeback season as Barney and Ted make up, Barney makes significant doe eyes at Robin, and Ted makes a significant proposal to Stella. Funny bits I'm still laughing about: Robin describing Springsteen as "the American Bryan Adams," and Marshall suffering with head lice at his job interview.
And to recap (I covered some of this in more length in earlier Dispatches this week):
The wrenching
House finale, featuring the death of Amber and a powerhouse performance by Robert Sean Leonard, was hands-down the episode of the week.
But poor
Bones. There's just no excuse for the clumsy way they wrote Zack out of that show, revealing him as the confused lackey of a puzzlingly anonymous serial killer.
Desperate Housewives flash-forward? I'm for it. The Katherine back story left me cold and was preposterous even by this show's standards, although Dana Delany can do no wrong and I hope she stays on Wisteria Lane to the end.
Loved seeing two brats get their comeuppance this week:
Housewives' bad seed Kayla hoodwinked by Lynette and sent off to make her grandparents' lives miserable, and
Gossip Girl's malicious Georgina sandbagged by Blair and Dan, sent off to reform boot camp by her scary parents. As Gossip Girl herself eloquently put it: "Bitches don't just happen, they're made- by parents even more wicked than their offspring."
How I'll miss that snarky voice, and so many of my favorite shows, this summer. But summer TV beckons, and when I get back in the saddle mid-June, let's catch up with the best and the worst of the off-season.
XOXO
