The Remote Island : Shonda Rhimes

Shades of "Grey's Anatomy": Like Rain on Your Wedding Day

Lindy Parker — Fri, 08 May 2009 17:00:00 GMT

It's Friday, and there's a wedding happening. Here's our highs and lows...

Lindy-High: The wedding switch. Yeah, we said it. We don't care what you say. When Izzie couldn't quite make it down the aisle, and suddenly George was there, with his "take my hand." Dude, we teared up. Just a little. And then Alex used the dead valedictorian's speech from the ER as his vows. Also, P.Demp pushing the boundaries of modern medicine yet again to pinpoint Izzie's hallucinations -- we were loving it. Then again, maybe we're just happy to say goodbye to Dr. Mcpouty, self-doubting, tequila-drinker.

Olivia-High: Gotta agree with Remote Lindy. We got all choked up during that damned wedding scene. And the wedding dress. It turned out well, no? One might argue that Katherine Heigl and Ellen Pompeo are not the same size, but we're willing to suspend our disbelief and pretend that Seattle Grace has a tailor on staff specifically for these kinds of alteration emergencies.

Lindy-Low: We're more than a little uncomfortable with Izzie's wedding obsession, but that's not really our low. No, for that we go to Arizona Robbins. OMG, Kate Capshaw. How we despise you. There are people arriving in the ER cut in half, and you're whining and distracting Callie from, you know, saving lives. And once again, why are we acting like Callie doesn't have a paycheck? Is she a pro bono surgeon? No, right? She doesn't have med school debt because, presumably, her father paid for it. She's out of debt and she's been getting a SURGEON'S paycheck for years. Granted, when you lose your trust fund, you probably adjust your lifestyle a bit, but we never got the impression that Callie was all prada bags and private jets anyway. And she lives in Seattle, not Tokoyo -- we're guessing she can still afford a hundred dollar dinner or two. Just saying.

Olivia-Low: For this low, we need to have a heart to heart moment with Dr. Owen Hunt.

Dear O,

Can we call you O? We thought so. Listen, O, we still like you. We still like you even though you tried to kill Christina in a PTSD-induced shit-fit. We appreciate the fact that you are going to therapy. You're trying to get better and make up for your wrong doing. Kudos to you. Hip-hip-hooray, buddy. That said, we do not appreciate you touching Christina, trying to hold her hand, approaching her in any way. PTSD or not, you tried to choke her out. If she wants to hold your throat-throttling hands, she'll let you know. For now, back off mister. We'll be watching.

Love,

Remote O

Previously:

Shades of Grey's Anatomy: Don't Tell Mama

Friday Shades Of "Grey's Anatomy": Death Doesn't Become Her

Friday Shades of Grey's Anatomy: Wake Me Up Before You Kill Me

Friday Shades of Grey's Anatomy: Sometimes You Just Need an Enema

"Grey's Anatomy": This Fake Wedding Got Us All Really Crazy

Jake Kalish — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 17:28:00 GMT

There's a wedding website for the Meredith Grey/Derek Shepherd nuptials - and an invitation to RSVP for the fictional event got 1,400 replies in the first 24 hours.

The website is the brainchild of series creator Shonda Rhimes and written by the Grey's writers, although the credit for creating and maintaining it goes to cancer-y Izzie Stevens - who is, of course, also a made-up person. Is RSVP-ing to a fake wedding invitation made by a fake TV character the new screaming at your television? There's even a gift registry page - but in lieu of buying gifts for the fake couple, you can donate to three very real charities: The American Academy Of Neurology Foundation, The American Skin Association, and the Alzheimer's Association.

PREVIOUSLY:

Shades Of "Grey's Anatomy": Death Doesn't Become Her

"Grey's Anatomy" SPOILERS: T.R. Knight Finally Gets A Plotline [VIDEO]

"Grey's Anatomy" Finale Gets A "Big Bang" From Kaley Cuoco

Congratulations Ellen Pompeo!

"Grey's Anatomy" SPOILERS: It's Happening

Lindy Parker — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 22:45:00 GMT

What's happening, you ask? Good question...

According to TV Guide Canada, Justin Chambers (who plays Izzie's boyfriend and fellow doctor Alex Karev) said, "Izzie has cancer, so I'm there to support her...I would expect Alex to shut down a little bit if something awful happens to Izzie, but these are opportunities to see his chivalrous side and his true love for her, so there should be some interesting stuff coming up." (E! Online)

First of all, this isn't really news is it? Is there anyone out there who believed Shonda Rhimes when she vowed that Izzie didn't have a brain tumor? We assume she'll get around her blatant lies (ABC is a network of liars!) by moving Izzie's cancer to another region of her body -- ideally one that concerns a Seattle Grace surgeon's non-neuro specialty. Then again, maybe Justin Chambers is just speaking out of turn like Chief Jim Pickens or Greg Grunberg, and we can expect a full renegue of his statements tomorrow. We won't hold our breath.

Sidenote: When did TV Guide Canada become so in the know?

Previously:

Grey's Anatomy Creator Speaks Out About Offing Izzie

ABC President Defends Grey's Anatomy Ghost Sex

"Rome" Star Teams Up With Shonda Rhimes For Newsroom Drama

Lindy Parker — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 18:30:00 GMT

Show of hands: who's excited about Shonda Rhimes' new drama, Inisde the Box, about power women in a newsroom? We're still largely on the fence. On the one hand, we love a powerful women (Addison Montgomery, Callie Torres, holla!); on the other hand, Shonda Rhimes has a history of sometimes missing that mark (Meredith Grey, anyone?).

Whatever your feelings, there's been a bit of anticipation over who will play the central character of Inside the Box, "an ambitious news reporter...fast-talking, whip-smart and wound a little too tight for her own good." (TV Guide) Wonder no more, because Brit actress Indira Varma is slated for the role. We can only assume she'll be doing slightly less tragic scenes than the ones she did for a little HBO show called Rome...

Previously:

Another Lipstick Jungle Star Jumps Ship For a New Show

We're Considering Crushing On Martin Henderson

Olivia Purnell — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 22:00:00 GMT

Yesterday we spontaneously grew a crush. Today we’ve begun to sprout another. The latest crush popped up after a little THR.com birdie told us that Martin Henderson, the pretty man above, was recently summoned by ABC to be a part of the new Shonda Rhimes produced series Inside the Box. Box is about:

An ambitious female news producer, and her colleagues pursuing "the story" at all costs while juggling their personal animosities and crises of conscience [ . . .] Henderson will play that male heartthrob on "Box," named Jake (thr.com).

And this news got us to thinking, what might Martin look like in, say . . . a wet t-shirt? Wanna see?

Crushworthy, right? We thought so too.

But he starred in Torque, aka The Fast and Furious with motorcycles and colorful leather jackets. Do not pass go. Automatically deduct 27 crush points.

On the other hand, he is starring in a show called Inside the Box. Cue Double Entendreeeeee.

We’re torn. To crush or not to crush. Thoughts?

Previously:

Crush of the Week: Travis Fimmel

Friday Shades of "Grey's Anatomy": Hug Me Like a Cow

Lindy Parker — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 17:00:00 GMT

So much to discuss on this week's Grey's Anatomy. Let's get right to it...

Lindy-High: Dr. Bailey and Christina hugging it out with zany Dr. Dixon -- a passably funny moment -- and then, watching Christina use the same method on Dr. Hunt to strike a more serious note -- ying and yang (ha.) of hugging scenes. We feel like we could love Dr. Hunt if Shonda Rhimes would ever give him anything to do but get drunk and act crazy.

Olivia-High: Dr. Miranda Bailey’s newly found talent for pediatric surgery is kind of lovely. Miss Lady actually brings out a bedazzler to help a kid. A Bedazzler. And she bedazzles the shit out of that back-pack too. We’re hoping she’ll start rocking bedazzled scrubs.

Lindy-Low: So many this week (see our full list of concerns with the Grey's Anatomy/Private Practice crossover event later today), but we've narrowed it down to two: First, the ridiculous contrivance of the pianoforte music behind Christina and Dr. Hunt's slo-mo hallway meetings presumably designed to illustrate what Christina described previously as "Victorian-era heated glances and loaded interactions." We actually stormed out of the room the second time it happened. Also, this:

Seriously, Shonda Rhimes? This is the best you can do for our gal pal Cal? This weirdly ominous, "I've heard things about you" bit that actually turns out to be a giggly, "He-he, only good things silly." Also, if the kiss is any indication, the Jessica Capshaw/Sara Ramirez chemistry gets a thumbs down from us. Don't you people do screen tests to determine this kind of thing ahead of time?

Olivia-Low: Callie. We love Sara Ramirez. Truly. We want to stroke her hair while she sings us Whitney Houston tunes accapella. Love her. She is gorgeous. Why the Grey’s Anatomy makeup team felt the need to transform her face into Jem, truly outrageous, we will never know. Is that Wet-N-Wild lipstick she’s wearing?

Also, Callie, do we really have to treat singledom as an affliction? Callie tells Lexie she can’t listen to her relationship news because she’s single and talking about your happy relationship to a single person is like bringing a six-pack to an AA meeting. Really? So being single is like having a disease? No, girl, no. Don’t say things like that. And wipe off that rouge, you look like a seventh grade hussy.

"Grey's Anatomy" Spoiler: Necrophilia Justified (Sort Of)

Lindy Parker — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 19:00:00 GMT

Turns out there might be reason for all this crazy between Izzie and the undead Denny, but don't keep reading if you don't want to know...

Here's the deal:

According to multiple sources, Izzie's hallucinations are health-related -- and brain-related. And although the specific name of the ailment is being kept in the safe underneath Rhimes' desk, I'm told it's similar to an aneurysm. And every time it flares up, she sees Denny. And sometimes when it really flares up, she shags him. -- Entertainment Weekly

If we're being honest, we've got to say that Izzie having some sort of brain disorder that's inducing the Denny halucinations kind of does make us feel better. How macabre of us.

Friday Shades of "Grey's Anatomy": Is It Necrophilia If He Used To Be Your Fiancé?

Lindy Parker — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 17:00:00 GMT

It's the Friday before Thanksgiving, y'all -- We've got a couple of things we're thankful for, and a couple things we could do without...

Olivia-Low: We knew this one was coming, and it’s just as awful as we thought it might be: Crazy Izzie and her dead sidekick, the tall attractive ghost-guy. You know, Deceased Denny, the apparition she has sex with. Let’s review the facts: Sex. Deceased. Ghost. Izzie. And Denny (again, dead Denny) watches Izzie slip into Alex’s room (her real live boyfriend’s room) and says, “It’s okay. I’ll be right here.” What? So now we’re caught in a living-dead love triangle? Should we call it necro-polyamory? Ew. Really, all we have to say is: Hell-to-the-naw, Shonda Rhimes. Girl, we want to trust you, but you’re taking things too far. Turn this crazy train around or we’re going to have to jump off.

Lindy-Low: Lexipedia's weird backroom surgery club appendix fiasco. Please. First of all, we know we've said it before, but Sadie creeps us out. Granted, it makes sense that someone as action-packed with issues as Meredith would have a friend that's equally trainwreck-y, but it's just no fun for us. Also, we almost have a physical reaction to Sadie repeatedly calling Meredith "Death" in a professional context. If the sun should rise on a day that we become BFF with the President of the United States, we're not going to use our macabre BFF nicknames in front of the joint chiefs -- it's just common sense. Also, we second everything Olivia said about Denny/Izzie. Nobody loved Denny more than us (JDM, you are HOT), but this is starting to ruin it for us, and we feel betrayed. We can't even speak about it. We agree with Dr. Hunt: sometimes words fail.

Olivia-High: Callie gets some drugs. Listen, it’s been a hard couple of months for homegirl. Callie tells Sloan she’s been “married, betrayed, gay, abandoned, and I have no idea how I got here.” She needs a break. Unforch she gets one in the form of a broken nose. But the new and improved extra-sensitive Dr. Sloan dopes her up real good and at least she’ll get some rest. Hooray for sedatives! Also, how is it that Sara Ramirez still looks stunning in that nose splint thing? How? If we wore a nose splint we’d look like Muhammad Ali after a bad day in the ring. Okay, maybe Layla Ali after a real bad beat down, but still. In other love news, we love Dr Hunt acting like Christina’s redheaded army puppy. How cute is he: Sitting on her doorstep, waiting for her to get off work, then shyly confessing, “I think you’re beautiful.” Adorable. Admittedly, he’s got a little stalker in him, but still adorable.

Lindy-High: We have a few in quick succession: First, Christina finally telling Meredith where to get off her moral high horse. Thank you god, and Christina. We wish we could deliver that exact speech to the Merediths in our world, every day of our lives. Second, Alex getting all macho-protector on that intern who made a crack about Izzie. Izzie may be be taking a stroll through crazytown, but at least we have Alex to light our way through the darkness. Finally, we don't want to jinx it, but we feel like Derek might possibly be on his way out of pouty-ville. Bringing Lexi home and making up a bed for her? That's the Derek we know and want around.

"Grey's Anatomy" Creator Speaks Out About Offing Izzie

Lindy Parker — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 21:00:00 GMT

Hey, remember back in July when Remote Ben gave us the dish on the trouble brewing between Katherine Heigl and GA creator Shonda Rhimes over Izzie's dwindling screen time? Well, it seems that rumor is still alive and well getting people all hot and bothered, and the recent weirdness with a post-mortem Denny is adding more fuel to the fire. Are Katherine Heigl's days numbered on Grey's Anatomy?

Shonda Rhimes decided it's high time to set the record straight...

"I think the love triangle with Denny, Izzie, and Alex is among the most interesting we've ever done. Watching the chemistry between Jeffrey and Katherine again has been really touching. I can't wait for our viewers to see where we're taking it. But what it won't involve is Izzie having a brain tumor." -- Entertainment Weekly

Hmmmm. Guess Izzie will be with us for a while after all. Maybe Alex should fall in love with Denny too and make it a real love triangle. That would be good TV.

Is ABC Playing It Straight?

Olivia Purnell — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 19:23:00 GMT

Yesterday we reported that Brooke Smith, the actress who plays Dr. Erica Hahn, was let go (yes, actually fired, kids) from the cast of Grey’s Anatomy. Brooke was dismissed just as the burgeoning relationship between doctors Erica Hahn and Callie Torres was beginning to flourish. Erica and Callie’s love thang is the first and only gay relationship on the show. Apparently the higher-ups (possibly including Rhimes herself), didn’t like the direction their courtship was taking.

Jezebel’s Dodai echoes our sentiments asking: “doesn't it seem like Grey's Anatomy missed out on an opportunity to make some truly groundbreaking television?”

Why yes, Dodai, yes it does. Even more than missing an opportunity to break barriers, this sudden change in Grey’s lineup seems to speak to an overarching shift . . .

TV Guide suggests that Erica’s abrupt departure is part of a larger trend in the ABC universe:

If one looks at a pattern of recent story "twists" across ABC: Ugly Betty last season introduced with much fanfare Rebecca Romijn as a post-op transgender; now she's gone. Right out of the gate, Dirty Sexy Money lathered things up by pairing aspiring politician Patrick with a great transgender love; last week, she walked out of his life. So Grey's writing out a full-fledged lesbian such as Erica — versus the simply lez-curious Callie — would seem to fit this pattern. Meanwhile, gay males such as Brothers & Sisters' Kevin appear to go unpestered... at least for now.

Is heteronormativity rearing its ugly ugly head in ABC land? In the case of Grey's Anatomy, the answer from TV critics and bloggers is a resounding yes. Entertainment Weekly's Michael Slezak says:

Brooke Smith's Grey's Anatomy ouster is not right and not okay… Was it the lesbianism they objected to, or the fact that Dr. Hahn didn't bake muffins or decorate lockers or act generally flighty-flaky-cutesy or hook up with hot male colleagues to help her sort out her sexual orientation? Yeah, you could say I'm outraged.

Although outrage may seem a little strong, Dr. Hahn was one of the secondary characters keeping the Grey's Anatomy ship afloat. In addition to being ground-breaking, the storyline between Callie and Erica was interesting and engaging (moreso than most of the hetero-storylines the show has to offer this season). So, in addition to being unfair and arguably bigoted, Dr. Hahn's write-off was flat-out silly, and, we'll say it, outrageous.

Previously:

Dr. Erica Hahn Gets Booted From "Grey's Anatomy"

"Grey's Anatomy" Marriage???

Olivia Purnell — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 20:20:00 GMT

Remember when Grey’s Anatomy was huge? We still like the show (mostly). We definitely still watch the show. But back in the day, it was a phenomenon. Dr. Mc-this, Dr. Mc-that, all that “Seriously!?!” talk, VaJayJays, etcetera. They put an actual word in the actual dictionary (we prefer the term Vajine. It’s prettier, and somehow more . . . French, but that’s neither here nor there).

Back in the day, Shonda Rhimes had to keep everything and everybody on lockdown so that no plot secrets were leaked to the twitterpatted public. Scripts were delivered in envelopes that would self-destruct, 007-style after being read and memorized by nervous and sweating cast members (or so we imagine). They were on Oprah for gosh sakes.

But now, Shonda and Dr. McDreamy Dempsey are just giving away company secrets.

Here’s the latest:

"Rumor has it something might be happening," added Dempsey coyly. "I think they have to. It's time for them to get together!"

[ . . . ]

"My goal is to get Meredith and Derek together for good, and let them try to figure out what it is to be in a relationship in the future," Shonda Rhimes told EW.com. (Usmagazine.com)

Shouldn’t that kind of information be kept on the hush? Or is the crew simply stirring gossip anyway they know how. Listen, if you need some press, kids, get another scandal going. Oprah’s probably not going to take you back til you’ve got something to talk about. You need an affair between two cast members. Or a fight. We found all that weird homophobic bullshit kind of horrific, but we would take a good catfight. Katherine Heigl and Sandra Oh, perhaps? You two ladies seem ready to rumble. How bout it girls, take one for the team?

One More Way To Kill Off Izzie (This Time, Maybe, for Real)

Ben Kallen — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 20:24:00 GMT

Earlier this week, we helpfully suggested 10 ways in which Grey's Anatomy could kill off troublesome actress Katherine Heigl's character Dr. Isobel Stevens. The beautiful star of Knocked Up and 27 Dresses annoyed the show's staff by withdrawing from Emmy consideration last month, later saying she hadn't been given the "material" to warrant a nomination. And while the show's producers denied it, there were whispers that Izzie's end might soon be near.

Of course, we were kind of joking about the whole thing. But now there's word that creator Shonda Rhimes may have actually decided on a method of (possibly) getting rid of the perky underwear model-turned-surgeon. And it's... a brain tumor. (We know -- that's nowhere near as funny as our suggestions.)

According to US Weekly, the show may write the illness into next season's plot line, leaving it up in the air whether or not Izzie survives. "Shonda and the writers are pissed at her,” the source tells US. “It’s their way of screwing with her. She won’t know whether she’s going to live or die.”

Best of all, this will allow the show to bring back actor Jeffrey Dean Morgan in the role of Denny Duquette, the heart patient Izzie fell for -- and whose demise she may have hastened in an attempt to move him up on the transplant list, making her the worst doctor in the world. Izzie will interact with Denny in tumor-induced visions, kind of the same way the guy on Eli Stone keeps running into George Michael. The magazine says that ABC has confirmed that Morgan will be returning to the show.

We did get one thing right.... Another source tells the magazine that if this storyline happens, Heigl will finally have some Emmy-worthy material. Hope she remembers to submit her name this time around!

Photo: ABC

Previously:
Top 10 Ways Grey's Anatomy Should Kill Off Izzie

Top 10 Ways "Grey's Anatomy" Should Kill Off Izzie

Ben Kallen — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 13:33:00 GMT

Actress Katherine Heigl has been such a thorn in the side of Grey's Anatomy lately -- most recently, by taking herself out of the running for an Emmy because she felt the writers hadn't given her the "material" to warrant such an honor -- that it wouldn't be surprising if the show's producers had begun plotting to get rid of her. And now, according to EOnline.com, that's exactly what creator Shonda Rhimes may be considering.

"It's not good there," the site quotes a source as saying. "Shonda is pissed. They're thinking of killing her off. They want Izzie dead."

Of course, it's not impossible that Heigl wants that too. Since her breakout role in Knocked Up, she's certainly ready for a film career -- although it remains to be seen whether the future will find her becoming the next Julia Roberts, or making endless sequels to 27 Dresses for the Lifetime channel.

But the really interesting question is this: If they do kill off Dr. Isobel Stevens, how should it happen? The history of TV is full of good demises -- whether falling down an elevator shaft, being crushed by a helicopter, or just disappearing without a trace, like Richie Cunningham's older brother. Naturally, we've got some suggestions. (These are free of charge, Shonda -- though we'll take a story editor credit if you have one lying around.)

1. The guy who lost out on his heart transplant when she stole one for her boyfriend Denny comes back with a scalpel, chanting "An eye for an eye."

2. She jumps out of a moving car to keep from hearing Meredith whine about McDreamy one more time.

3. She has a threesome with Callie and Erica Hahn, then expires from exhaustion.

4. She's George's first victim after stress and failure inevitably turn him into an axe murderer.

5. She takes an accidental drug overdose and has no idea what to do about it, because while dealing with all her personal issues she completely forgot to study medicine.

6. The same thing happens to her as happened to Dr. Greene on E.R. (By the way, what did happen to Dr. Greene on E.R.? For that matter, what ever happened to Anthony Edwards?)

7. She gets a dramatic, drawn-out three-episode death scene like Jimmy Smits on NYPD Blue, then really regrets offending the Emmy people.

8. She's karate-chopped in half by Isaiah Washington, who's still in character from The Bionic Woman.

9. She catches the flu while visiting Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital in New Jersey, where House tries to cure her by inducing complete organ failure.

10. She's sent off to that Santa Monica clinic from Private Practice. (Okay, that might be a fate worse than death.)

Can you give Izzie a better sendoff? Let us know.

Photo: ABC

Previously:
Katherine Heigl Is Sick of Grey's Anatomy

Katherine Heigl Drops Out of the Emmy Race?

The Remote Island : Shonda Rhimes

Shades of "Grey's Anatomy": Like Rain on Your Wedding Day

"Grey's Anatomy": This Fake Wedding Got Us All Really Crazy

"Grey's Anatomy" SPOILERS: It's Happening

"Rome" Star Teams Up With Shonda Rhimes For Newsroom Drama

We're Considering Crushing On Martin Henderson

Friday Shades of "Grey's Anatomy": Hug Me Like a Cow

Top 10 Posts of 2008 -- #3: A Grey's Anatomy Two-fer

"Grey's Anatomy" Spoiler: Necrophilia Justified (Sort Of)

Friday Shades of "Grey's Anatomy": Is It Necrophilia If He Used To Be Your Fiancé?

"Grey's Anatomy" Creator Speaks Out About Offing Izzie

Is ABC Playing It Straight?

"Grey's Anatomy" Marriage???

One More Way To Kill Off Izzie (This Time, Maybe, for Real)

Top 10 Ways "Grey's Anatomy" Should Kill Off Izzie