| My Review of 6.22 - "Shiny Happy People" |
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| Written by Admin |
| Sunday, 16 May 2010 21:22 |
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This week's ratings were around the same as last week, and Grey's won the 18-to-49 demo. Read on for my full review.
Note: Just a reminder to please refrain from making references to specific spoilers in the finale. Thanks.
Overall, the episode was a decent one, but what really made the episode for Calzona fans was the last few minutes of it. Three momentous kisses in three consecutive episodes - now that's just unprecedented. And don't they love to tease us - just when we've given up hope that we'll see anything between them, they completely blow our minds. What a rush. I feel like we've be en spoiled by the substantial Callie and Arizona scenes in the dying moments of the last few episodes. Whatever are we going to do once this conflict is over? I am so pleased that the writers gave Callie and Arizona this storyline. Really, they could've just let them be the happy token lesbian couple for the rest of the season to appease the fan base and keep ABC in the good books in terms of LGBT representation, but they took some risks with the characters, and it turned out to be so incredibly rewarding for us and for Sara and JCap, I'm sure, who got the opportunity to showcase their range.
First, to recap the Callie and Arizona storylines...
The episode begins with the whole gang (and some nameless extras) attending a cocktail party held at Derek and Meredith's place. The exact purpose of this little soiree escapes me (and Alex as well); I suppose Derek is the kind of Chief who likes to bond with his people to foster a positive workplace environment. But I'm not complaining, because we got to witness some highly anticipated pining between Callie and Arizona, not to mention Cristina parking herself at the source of the catering route to get first dibs on the hors d'oeuvres.
Everyone is either standing with their significant other, their buddies, or some random co-workers and engaging in small talk, because Derek prefers his parties lame, but civilized. Amidst the crowd of people who are interacting with each other, Callie is sticking out like a sore thumb, standing alone with a drink and staring at something (or someone) longingly without bothering to try to hide it. Mark goes up to her and tells her that she's staring again. Callie says, "I'm not", but no surprise to us, Callie cannot take her eyes off of Arizona, who is chatting congenially to someone. Mark attempts to snap Callie out of it by boorishly propositioning, "Want to go back to my place and do it in the shower? Teddy's in surgery." But this is the new Callie, who no longer resorts to sleeping with Mark to block out her problems. Instead, Callie gets annoyed and tells Mark that she's not in the mood for his jokes right now and leaves.
It appears that Arizona was only pretending not to notice Callie earlier, because as soon as Callie stalks away in a huff, Arizona's eyes are on her and her face falls upon her exit. They just have very different approaches to pining, non? Callie's quite overt while AZ maintains a facade, but neither hurting less than the other.
I would be remiss if I didn't mention how gorgeous they both looked in their respective dresses. Seeing the other in stunning and sexy cocktail party attire is not the way to get over someone.
The following day at work, Teddy relates to Arizona the threesome proposal disaster with Mark and Reed, a scene straight from a raunchy slapstick romantic comedy:
Teddy: And when Mark proposed a threesome, she looked at me. <AZ looks at her in surprise> <Teddy giggles> She was thinking about it. Arizona: AH-HAAAAA-Ha.. <the single most goofiest, cartoonish laugh I've ever heard in my life> Well, she is cute. Like a brunette, surgical Tinkerbell.
Really? Arizona thinks Elf is cute? I disapprove of her assessment. <shudder> And I can't, for the life of me, get over the laugh that JCap pulled. I guess AZ's overcompensating - the more she is hurting inside, the more outwardly positive she tries to be to mask it. I see no other explanation for that maniacal guffaw. Huntlet and Cristina join in on the conversation, but Arizona's pager goes off and says that she's got to run and tells Teddy that she'll hear the rest later.
Meanwhile, Callie is treating an elderly woman who was involved in a fender bender. The woman, whose name is Betty (played by Marion Ross), is on the phone with his lawyer son and not so subtly tries to set him up with Lexie or Callie. Lexie passes it off to a nearby Reed in an insinuating tone, saying that Reed likes dating older guys. Oh, the hypocrisy, Lexie, the hypocrisy. Shortly after, Callie is transporting Betty in the gurney and passes by an elderly male patient named Henry who is being treated by Webber, Huntlet, Teddy, and Cristina. As fate would have it (or because the writers need a giant anvil for all the relationships on the show this week), Betty and Henry are long-lost lovers, and a melodramatic reunion ensues in the middle of the ER. All the doctors are moved by this scene, except for Cristina, who is immune to this sort of thing and tries to clear the ER area. Callie helpfully points out which room Betty will be in.
It appears that Arizona's urge to throw a brick at Alex whenever she looks at him has faded, because they are again working together on a case. This time, it's a young female patient named Hayley, played by Demi Lovato, who was initially diagnosed with schizophrenia. Derek authorizes a few more tests in case something was missed.
Getting back to the Harlequinesque situation, Callie and Lexie are now in Betty's room listening to her recount her love story with Henry while the others surgeons are listening to Henry before his surgery. Everyone's captivated by their story, particularly Callie. When Betty says that she told herself that there'll be plenty of other Henry's in her life, Callie immediately asks, "Were there?" Betty says that there was never another Henry. Callie is clearly affected by the part about Betty letting him go because it was the right thing to do, only never to find another Henry for 50 years.
In a decidedly less romantic section of the hospital, Arizona is sitting with Derek and Alex while Hayley undergoes a scan:
Alex: You think she's schizophrenic? Arizona: I think she threatened to stab a syringe into her own hearts, so I'm leaning towards crazy...yeah... Alex: Scans are up. Derek: There's nothing in the frontal lobe. Arizona: Or the temporal parietal region. Occipital lobe is clean, too. Alex: Crap! Arizona: Told you. <shrugs> Crazy. <in a spaced-out monotone>
Derek tells Alex that they tried and for him to refer Hayley to psych. Alex is unconvinced because he knows crazy, he grew up with crazy, and he doesn't think that this girl is crazy and wants some time to figure it out. Derek asks if he has a specific diagnosis but Alex doesn't. Arizona chimes in and says that she's suicidal and that he saved her life in the ER, but those parents have been through hell. Alex retorts that Arizona once taught him that it's their job to advocate for the patients, not the parents. Arizona admits that she does say to advocate for the patient, and Derek gives Karev four hours to figure it out.
Was anyone disturbed by the way Arizona said, "Told you. Crazy."? It sounded so icy and robotic, like her heart has suddenly vacated her chest cavity. It was almost chilling to me, uttered in a serial-killer type of tone with those vacant eyes.
After Karev runs some more tests on Hayley, he discovers that all the problems are caused by a small hole that developed in her inner ear. As Derek and Karev perform the surgery, Arizona looks on and notes, "You cover a hole with a bone graft, and this girl gets her whole life back. Wouldn't it be nice if everything in life were that simple?"
Interesting that she only makes reference to how much the breakup is affecting her in the presence of people who are oblivious to what she's talking about. These little moments are like her outlet, and reveal to us really how much the breakup is hurting her.
On an unrelated note, and this has come up in previous discussions on the site, Arizona and Alex's storylines are starting to show a pattern, in which Arizona either wrongly diagnoses or doesn't diagnose (maybe to let Alex figure it out himself) and Alex ends up being the hero who figures out the rare medical issue. I get that they are trying to show Karev's development in Peds and how he's coming into his own as a surgeon, but I don't want it to be at the expense of Arizona all the time. In 5.17 with that band nerd case, AZ was adamant it wasn't what Karev said it was and she was proven wrong. Then in State of Love and Trust, Karev cracks the boy's chest open and saves him, and now Karev diagnoses the problem when AZ thought she was just crazy. It's just that sometimes I wish that they would allow Arizona to showcase some of her own talents instead of being a device for someone else's development. On multiple occasions, Alex has been shown to be a genius while AZ is just ordinary. I mean, they routinely show Mark and Derek and even Teddy's skills, so why not AZ's?
In another OR where Callie and Lexie are operating on Betty, Lexie is denying her feelings for Mark, which is met with skepticism from Callie. In the middle of surgery, Callie processes her breakup with Arizona:
Callie: That's the same thing I keep telling myself about Arizona - that I don't care. And you know what? Sometimes, it works.. for the most part. But then, a patient gets asked to move across the country for a man she barely knows. And all I can think of is how stupid they were to let each other go in the first place. <Sigh> All I want is for her to change her mind and say "yes". <shakes head> I want to believe.
Sigh. She said, "I want to believe", reminiscent of what Arizona said about children "believing" while looking straight at Callie with love in "Invest In Love". I thought that line from Callie sounded familiar, and then it hit me where she got it from. That's sweet (and heartbreaking at the same time) that she is holding out hope, but unless something big happens, I don't think AZ is going to change her stance on having children.
After the surgery and talking to Lexie, Callie rushes in and tells Mark to "talk to her". Mark thinks Callie's referring to Teddy (who just broke it off with him) and says that she refuses to talk to him.
Callie: No, I'm not talking about Teddy. I'm talking about Lexie. You still love Lexie. And sleeping around isn't going to fix that. And the reasons that you broke up - Little Sloan and the baby - they're not reasons anymore. Mark: She's with Karev. Callie: Yeah well, Betty married Mike, but she never got over Henry. Mark: <most confused face imaginable> ....What...? Callie: Look, you don't want fifty years and then realize that you let the love of your life get away. So go! Try! Mark: You going to try again with Robbins? Callie: <sigh> Mark: Why not? Callie: Because... my reasons are still reasons. At that, Mark kisses Callie's forehead and they hug.
Bwahahah! That was one of the highlights of the episode, Callie, all schoolgirlish and dreamy-like, making reference to Prince Henry and Princess Betty as if they were a fairytale. Sara's delivery is genius, because Callie continued without explanation after that without missing a beat. And Mark's expression is the one of the best faces I've seen on the show all season. Congrats, Eric Dane, on your breakthrough. You now have *two* facial expressions! (I know.. I'm being mean, but I can't help it!)
Oh, Callie... she doesn't see a way to salvage her own relationship so she's trying to live through Mark and Lexie's vicariously. Speaking of Mark, I just want to point out how relieved I am that the whole baby storyline stopped evolving around Callie and Mark, because if you recall, the two of them had an inordinate amount of screen time when the whole baby thing came up, to the point that I was worried that we'll see the whole story unfold through their conversations. This here is the right balance. They should keep Mark paired up with someone and let him have separate storylines and then have Mark and Callie check in with each other from time to time.
Arizona, Karev, and Hayley's parents are in Hayley's room waiting for her to come awake after her surgery. Arizona prepares her parents, telling them that there is no guarantee that the surgery worked. Hayley wakes up and realizes that everything's good. Arizona and Alex look on with smiles on their faces as the parents rejoice with their daughter.
At the end of the day, people in relationships are heading home together - Bailey with Ben, Lexie with Alex (well, but not before a proposal from Mark, which is a whole other can of worms that makes my head hurt). At this point, I had given up on seeing anymore pining or interaction between Callie and Arizona, only to be pleasantly - very pleasantly - surprised...
As the elevator doors slide open, we see Arizona waiting to come on the elevator. She smiles cordially at the two people getting off on her floor as she passes them. As soon as Arizona realizes who's in the elevator, her smile fades and she is momentarily transfixed. Callie, who is leaning against the back of the elevator, stares back at Arizona a little stunned and at a loss for words. Arizona gives her a small smile and quietly says, "Hey." Callie reciprocates Arizona's greeting with a "Hey", as Arizona turns away from Callie with a slight wince and stays near the front of the elevator.
With her back to Callie, Arizona's facade disappears and her expression immediately tenses while she tries to breathe calmly. Callie stares at the back of Arizona for a few moments, uncertain what to say and clearly going through an internal struggle. She finally sighs and says in a low and husky voice, "Arizona..." At the sound of her name, Arizona spins around and in the blink of an eye, slams Callie into the elevator wall, kissing her with a need and urgency we've never witnessed before. Callie, whose face is firmly held by Arizona's hands, is kissing her back fervently. As Arizona pulls back, she looks at Callie with hooded eyes, completely mesmerized. Arizona then rubs her nose tenderly against Callie's before leaning forward, intending to kiss Callie again.
Suddenly coming to her senses, however, AZ stops herself and pulls back. Just then, the elevator dings and Arizona, without looking at Callie again, turns around (while Callie almost unconsciously gravitates towards her) and gets off the elevator, leaving behind a stunned Callie. We see that Arizona has quickly regained her sense of control and is strutting down the hallway while Callie continues to look dazed as the elevator door closes.
That scene was just electric. This, my friends, is why we need angsty storylines. This type of interaction cannot be borne from anything but conflict and ensuing tension. The way Arizona gave in to her impulses and lost control was just impossibly hot. The whole sequence was intense, and the number of expressions that flitted across their faces to mirror their thoughts over a span 40 seconds was captivating to watch. Sara and JCap are absolutely meticulous in their work - it's as if they have every microsecond of the scene planned out in terms of facial expressions and tone of voice, yet the delivery is so fluid that we don't feel like they did. Actually, I would say this applies more to Jessica than Sara because having everything thought out is more of an Arizona trait than Callie's, so her every move would be more deliberate.
To start from the beginning, I love Arizona's transition from polite friendliness towards her colleagues to being momentarily stunned by the sight of the person in front of her. Oy, the way she looks at Callie like she is still miraculous is unmistakable. And the soft tone in which her "Hey" was uttered was completely intimate and really reserved for lovers. Kind of like the "between-the-sheets" type of tone. I just cannot get over her greeting to Callie. I also love that AZ tried to steel herself and to hold it together by trying to breathe evenly. Of course, the last vestige of control crumbled when Callie said her name. (Or in cartoon terms, it all went "kablooey"... as my fellow fangirl Bre so aptly put) And really, who could resist it when Callie says your name in that tone?
On Callie's face, you can see a mixture of longing and pain at first, then internal conflict etched all over it after AZ turned the other way. When she said "Arizona", it sounded like she was going to give in; she was this close to surrendering. It was probably not a wise decision in the long-term and probably wouldn't have stuck, but it's a moot point since Arizona cut her off when she threw herself at her.
With Callie, she has been sharing her pain with people, kind of releasing the pressure in a healthy way. Arizona, in her need to exhibit self-control, has been keeping it all in and allowing the pain and tension to build. This ironically makes for a greater loss of control when it all explodes at the breaking point. So I am not surprised that AZ combusted as soon as Callie said something. And what can I really say about the kiss itself, except that it was need and love and desperation and lust all rolled into one. I would say the most intense one between them to date. And the look that AZ gave Callie after the kiss was one of pure, unadulterated love, and one that you only get from someone who is made for you. It's amazing that just as quickly as she had lost control, AZ regained her composure as she realized that her lapse probably didn't help things and put her wall back up.
I wondered after the last episode how AZ was going to cope with the breakup, whether she was going to keep it all in or share with someone else. I guess we found out the answer this episode, which does not surprise me in the least. The ways Callie and Arizona process their breakup are true to their character. Callie doesn't (or cannot) hide her emotions and has no problems sharing her pain with people. AZ, on the other hand, would rather bottle it up and put on a "happy, shiny" face because showing that she is somehow broken or lacking in self-control is weak, which is no doubt in part due to her military upbringing. I just love how different they are, and I embrace both of their personalities equally.
To be honest, I'm surprised that the pining only lasted about 55 minutes before one of them acted on their impulses. Not that I'm complaining about the elevator scene..not at all, but I wouldn't have minded seeing a longer period of longing from afar before that happened. I mean, if they really do reunite in the finale, the whole second half of the storyline just feels a little condensed. Of course, I would rather see them together by season's end rather than feel miserable all summer; it's just that had they started the baby storyline earlier in the second half of the season, or pushed along the first half of the story a little (i.e. started communicating to each other and the ensuing breakup earlier), then they could've taken more time with the pining and building up to the eventual reunion, which would have an even greater impact. Now it feels like it took them forever to get to the breakup stage only to mash them back together because there's only 2 hours left and it's time to tie up loose ends. I get that it's difficult with so many other storylines to juggle that it's like having to fit all the puzzle pieces together that this is how the timing ended up for the Calzona storyline. Anyway, it's not a big deal in the grand scheme of things and I reiterate that in general, the storyline has been well done so far. (Should be interesting to see if my opinion remains the same after the finale, huh?)
Looking forward, I am frankly a little apprehensive about the finale because it sounds like they are going to resolve the baby storyline in the two hours, which is a tall order in such a short timeframe. Nervous about whether the characterization and the reasons for either one changing her mind will be realistic. Now that we all know that there'll be a gunman, I hope that both of them will be in the hospital and that there'll be some hurt/comfort scenario. They don't necessarily have to be physically harmed; I just want to see some angst, because we all know the kind of amazing scenes that angst results in.
I can't emphasize enough what a pleasant surprise it is that we had intimate scenes between Callie and Arizona three episodes in a row. It truly exceeded my expectations; if someone had told me a couple of months ago that we'd be getting all these passionate kisses, I would've thought they were crazy. Remember how frustrated we were by the lack of physical interaction at the beginning of the season when they acted like they had a 3-feet restraining order against each other? And the way we squee-ed, "ZOMG!!! They touched!! They actually touched!!" at this:
And this...
And then in the second half of the season, we started getting this:
And then this...
And then some more of this...
Quietly and steadily, they have effectively injected a physical aspect into their relationship and made them seem more like a couple than good friends. In my review of 6.04 (in which I analyzed the bench scene in detail... yes, we were that desperate back then), I noted that they had to take baby steps to acclimatize the masses. I'd say the acclimatization process is nearly complete now. I'm sure the increasing physical interaction between them has a lot to do with how vocal the fan base has been (and those vocal ones deserve the credit) about the lack of spark between them and the "buddy" vibe, but i can't help but think that it has been Shonda & Co.'s intention to take it slowly all along to avoid the Hahn debacle (I don't care how many times they denied it). And as far as I'm concerned, it's working. They have evolved into a believable lesbian couple in all respects, emotionally and physically.
Of course, I am aware that they are not at the level of The L-word-style kisses and their kissing is not as explicit as some of the other couples' on Grey's. I see what people are saying about them not being 100% equal in that respect, but I am also a realist, and I am of the opinion that if they went too far too quickly, no good will come out of it. This slow and steady approach, to me, is the best way to get into the heads of people how a lesbian relationship is just like any other without them even realizing it. It is certainly preferable to them doing bolder things on TV to give us short-term satisfaction but really shooting ourselves in the foot in the longer-term because it has caused some groups to get up in arms over it. Long story short, I'm perfectly fine with what we are seeing between them physically, because the emotional and intangible aspect of their relationship (which, by the way, far exceeds what the other couples offer on the show) gives me more satisfaction in any case.
Random thoughts:
The similar tops worn by Callie and Arizona are a nice touch. They are almost identical except for the slight difference in their collars. And for some reason, somebody in the wardrobe department decided that Jessica Capshaw looks the best in cobalt blue. Either that, or they've made it Arizona's favorite color.
I never expected it, but Bailey being giddily in love is fun to watch. She just had tooo many good lines in this episode. Chandra Wilson and her delivery, I say... Plus, Ben has charisma. And I enjoy their dynamic. Is there even chance that Ben can be a recurring character next season even though his show got picked up by ABC? Pretty please?
I usually don't pay too much attention to Meredith, but I really enjoyed what she did this episode, with her confronting Owen and then giving Cristina a room in their new house. So sweet.
I hope the writers give Alex and Lexie a chance. I really see potential between them.
Necklace update: Both of them are sans necklace, predictably.
Comments (51)
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!!! But it would have been nice to see a lil bit more angst between them. Im soo obsessed with this couple I'm pretty sure it's not healthy 
. Gees i hope Shonda doesn't break my heart and separate our girls permanently. 
. My own opinion I'd like to see more proper kisses, like every other cast member does, But i must admit. They are gettin better, we have been seeing a lot more intimacy. But it wont ever be enough till they have their own show 
. I get that Arizona's probably hurting and feeling detached but this? I didn't see that coming.
WOW!!! Another great review. I LOVEE how you captured Mark's facial expression so perfectly-the look on his face when he said "what?" was priceless. Also, LOVE the pics that you captured of the elevator kiss
Awesome job!!! thank you thank you thank you.
I always enjoy reading your reviews, i'll probly go read again just cause you have a way with words and such a great way of explaining things