Episode Report Card Lauren S: B+ | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT Oh Henry!
By Lauren S | Season 8 | Episode 9 | Aired on 11.10.2011
Callie walks in on all of the chaos surrounding Laura and demands to know what happened, but a very angry Owen turns the question back to her. She's totally bewildered to hear that Laura's pericardium is full of blood, and can't believe it when she goes into cardiac arrest and Owen and April prepare to open her chest. She protests, but Owen just yells at her that her patient is dying.
Alex and Meredith are the Morose Twins in the back of the ambulance, and Meredith stares at the empty incubator just like she (and we) has stared so many times at the empty crib in her room. Alex starts to say that it must be a mistake but she cuts him off, fed up, to say that it's all over and what's more, everyone saw that coming and no one wanted to say it. Alex persists that she can't just give up on having a family and suggests Cristina as a surrogate, making a comment about her impressive ability to get pregnant. This is decidedly the wrong approach and Mere threatens to throw him out of the moving vehicle if he doesn't shut up.
While Owen and April work, Callie tries desperately to figure out what's going on. Teddy comes in -- this is the consult Owen needed -- and is shocked to hear that whatever is happening is following spine surgery. The doctors are literally just scooping blood out of her chest with their hands and Teddy orders them up to the OR immediately. Callie tries to go along but Teddy stops her in her tracks and informs Callie that this is her patient now. As they leave, she yells for someone to let Richard know where she is and then they are gone, leaving a sad and confused Callie standing amongst a mass of bloody towels.
Richard catches up to all of them as they get Laura into the elevator and as they go up, Teddy looks at the scans and sees that Henry has a tumor in his lung. Richard tells her he's going to go in and take it out with Lexie's help, but when Teddy asks if he's going to use a laser, he says he was going to open Henry up, take out the tumor, and then put his lung back in and close him up. Teddy thinks that's too invasive and wants him to use a laser so that he will heal faster. As someone who has had that exact surgery (minus tumor), I will attest to the fact that one doesn't just jump out of bed the next day. Richard tells her calmly that he hasn't done it before, and everyone in the elevator looks at him like he just said he just said he's drinking again. He explains, still calm, that he hasn't done this particular procedure with a laser before and doesn't want his first time to be on her husband, which I find thoughtful. She's still speechless but finally gathers her thoughts and says slowly that she thinks they should get another surgeon. I think my notes on this episode describe everyone's reaction best: "April looks uncomfortable, Owen too -- Sacrilege!" Seriously, it's as if no one has ever asked for another surgeon with more experience on a particular procedure before. Richard is honestly the most calm about this suggestion.