Grey’s Anatomy Review: Whistlin’ Past the Graveyard (Season 16 Episode 6)

While there are a lot of really nice moments on Grey’s Anatomy Season 16 Episode 6, “Whistlin’ Past the Graveyard,” it’s hard to get past some of the episode’s odd and illogical choices.

Teddy, for example, is feeling pressure to be a supermom and create Halloween costumes for her children because she thinks it’s what Owen wants. Granted, feeling that pressure, especially in the culture of Facebook and Instagram, is entirely relatable and certainly rings true for a working mother.

But Teddy’s concerns when it comes to Owen’s thoughts specifically are a stretch. Of course Owen brings her the costumes his mother made so that she can put them on the children and NOT because he wanted her to see examples of homemade costumes and imply that she should do the same. 

It’s a bit of a stretch to make a point about Teddy’s concerns as a working mother, and it’s even a stretch to show an example of how she and Owen still have plenty to learn about one another. All of this could have been done in a way that isn’t so unbelievable.

I’m also not sure what to make of Jo’s plans for her day off. Covering her wedding dress in fake blood with plans of sitting around all day eating candy and scaring children seems unlikely.

Then showing up to Alex’s work and staying in costume — it’s just over the top. It’s done for humor and also for effect at the end of the episode when the two get married, officially, but it all feels very contrived.

The way the two do get married is sweet, though, and it’s fitting for their characters — that is if you forget all about Jo’s claim that she’s pregnant during the vows.

That moment also feels odd to me, and I think it may suggest issues moving forward. Either she is pregnant and decided to walk it back after blurting it out (I mean, everyone else is pregnant on this show), or it’s foreshadowing of some conflict over whether or not the couple will decide to have children. 

Oh, there’s also a mass grave on this episode, which winds up being much less important than you’d think. I’m rolling my eyes a bit over here, but I do like seeing Alex do so well in handling in a crisis. 

One of the better threads in this episode revolves around Meredith. She’s in a jail cell for most of the episode, itching to get out since it’s her last day and it also happens to be Halloween.

But as she complains to her cellmate, she learns a lesson. The woman in that cell has a lot more to be concerned about than she does, and this is yet another system that is entirely broken. 

The thing that’s working well in all of this is that Meredith seems to be so open to learning from other people. She’s had that experience with community service, and now she’s having it here as well. She’s remaining open-minded and she’s listening, all while trying to decide what she can do to help. 

It’s a big undertaking, but I like this for her character, particularly if you trace her all the way back to Season 1.

While Meredith is in jail, her sisters and DeLuca are juggling taking care of her kids, which leads to a sweet moment between DeLuca and Zola. Zola has anger toward him that’s a result of missing her dad, and she admits, concern that she might forget him one day.

DeLuca’s response is perfect as he starts telling Zola a story he knows about her dad, who he never met himself, but who he knows plenty about because he’s such a legend.

It’s endearing and respectful, but it’s also a reminder of how different DeLuca is from Derek. Something about hearing him talk about Derek makes me imagine the two men side by side, and doing that makes DeLuca seem much less suited for Meredith — and for her family. 

I’m saying that as a fan of this coupling, too. Heck, I think DeLuca could be better for Meredith than Derek ever was. But somehow this tender moment makes me question if we’re about to see a change, especially since on Grey’s Anatomy Season 16 Episode 5, Meredith questioned whether DeLuca could be anything more to her than he already is.

Meanwhile, in one of the stronger points of the episode, Amelia meets Link’s parents. There is a complicated history there that Link explains beforehand. The dinner is a tradition to celebrate when Link found out he was cancer-free, but his parents are divorced and the dinners are usually quite uncomfortable.

Only this time, there’s news — and his parents share that news before Link and Amelia have the chance to share theirs. They are getting remarried. 

I’ve said several times that I think Link is good for Amelia, but this situation shows why Amelia is good for Link. She’s able to offer him some much-needed perspective about his own feelings and why he’s actually so upset.

The dinner is still disastrous, but I think it offers both of them, and us as viewers, more confidence that they will be able to raise a child together. 

What did you think of this episode of Grey’s Anatomy? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

Critic Rating:

User Rating:

 

Grey’s Anatomy airs Thursdays at 8/7c on ABC.

 Follow us on Twitter and on Instagram!

Want more from Tell-Tale TV? Subscribe to our newsletter here!

33 Female TV Characters Killing it in S.T.E.M.