Grey’s Anatomy Review: No Time For Despair (Season 17 Episode 6)

Grey’s Anatomy isn’t exactly what one might call “easy viewing” these days. This season is topical in a way that feels personal and raw, tackling Coronavirus not just with patients but with the doctors themselves.

At this point, it’s hard to even say if Meredith Grey will survive. That’s an odd sentence to type, but Grey’s Anatomy Season 17 Episode 6, “No Time For Despair,” has me feeling like anything could happen. And we have learned that no one is safe on this show, after all.  

It seems like she’s going to be okay. She wakes up and has plenty to discuss. She’s even laughing and having long talks with Tom Koracick, which is a lot of fun to watch.

Of course, now that she’s feeling better, she gets up to head across the hall when another patient is in need. It’s the badass Meredith Grey we’ve come to know and love, and it’s cathartic to see her working on a patient again in this way. For just a moment, she seems strong and it all feels a little too good to be true. That’s because it is.

Meredith Grey has looked death in the face so many times it’s comical, but watching her be put on a ventilator feels different.

Again, this is personal. It’s a character we’ve known for seventeen seasons, dying of an illness that is all around us in real life. It’s almost too much to bear, and that’s either great for the story or completely detrimental — it’s tough to decide. 

What it shows is that this virus can affect anyone, and the stakes are certainly high with Meredith suffering. This isn’t a freak accident where she’s knocked into the water and nearly drowns or where a helicopter crashes. This is what most everyone is in fear of right now. 

I do think seeing her back on the beach, knowing maybe she’ll be there a little longer, is a good thing considering the setup. I mentioned in an earlier review that at this point, it seems like more people from Meredith’s past will have to show up on that beach.

Namely, that’s Lexie, because it doesn’t track that George would appear but her own sister wouldn’t. This painful end to the episode means there’s still that possibility.

Elsewhere on the episode, a previous storyline continues with the kidnapping of two young girls and the reappearance of the woman DeLuca knew was part of a sex trafficking operation last season.

That such a major storyline that I’m glad it’s found its way back, even within the chaos of the pandemic. It’s incorporated well because she arrives along with a surge of cases at Seattle Grace, making it harder for her to be spotted.

She’s there to get information on the kidnapper and the girls who were resourceful enough to get themselves out of a dangerous situation by setting his house on fire. DeLuca, now proving he’s of sound mind because he’s making a point to take his medicine and set boundaries for himself, spots her and refuses to let her get away. That’s another cliffhanger we’ll be waiting until 2021 to see resolved.

This sex trafficking storyline tackles something else as well, because the girls involved this time are young Black girls, and race becomes central in more ways than one. Grey’s Anatomy is truly holding nothing back this season, and I appreciate how Maggie is at the center to break this down.

It’s often the case that she opens up like this to her sisters, and she’s brutally honest with Amelia about how she feels — noting how often it’s Black girls who are victimized, and bringing it back to the pandemic, how much more the virus is affecting Black people.

The emotion behind everything she says is palpable. It’s a scene that will stick with you — at least that’s true for me.

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

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Grey’s Anatomy returns in March of 2021 to ABC.

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