Grey’s Anatomy Season 20 Episode 3 Review: Walk the Ocean

Competition and complicated cases make Grey’s Anatomy Season 20 Episode 3, “Walk the Ocean,” another solid episode that’s reminiscent of everything that made the medical drama a hit in the first place. 

Truly, Grey’s Anatomy is as good as it has ever been. 

The interns remain at the center of the story. Bailey still has them working on procedure logs that they must complete before they can return to the OR. That leads them to be more competitive with one another.

The friction between all of them that’s caused by romantic troubles, as well as blame for everything that went down that night with Sam, adds an entire other layer of complexity. 

It feels like the early days of Grey’s, with the same kinds of drama and competition we saw with the original interns (Meredith, Cristina, Izzie, George, and Alex), but it’s also not repetitive. The storylines aren’t the same; they just capture a similar tone and similar types of conflict with a few clever parallels.

The part that stands out most among the interns is the way Lucas betrays Yasuda. 

Despite Yasuda staying by Dorian’s side and monitoring him for the full day as instructed, and despite her being the one to determine the problem, bad timing makes for a misunderstanding that Lucas uses to his advantage. 

It’s cringeworthy, really, to watch how this unfolds. It’s perfectly written and perfectly acted. Midori Francis conveys every feeling of shock of betrayal on her face, making the scene that much more powerful.

Yet Lucas isn’t a villain here, either. Knowing his struggles makes it almost understandable that he’d take an opportunity when he had it. Almost. 

What’s surprising to me, though, is that when Yasuda reveals what happened to the other interns in the locker room, no one backs her up.

Because as Simone points out, she was just as much a part of the situation that got them all in trouble in the first place. They were all there, and her attitude that the others are pulling her down isn’t fair. 

Kwan learns the most significant lesson on this episode, though. He’s on Monica Beltran’s service, the new peds attending who immediately clashes with Amelia.

Beltran is tough right out of the gate, and he first problem with Kwan is how he treats the mother of their patient. So rather than letting him watch the surgery, he’s tasked with sitting with the girl’s mother and waiting with her. 

She clearly sees that Kwan is teachable, though, because she’s asked for him to be on her service again.  

I have to say, I like Monica Beltran already. While her first few moments and her attitude toward Amelia paint her as a foe at first, she’s right about everything — including Amelia’s ability to come up with an alternate procedure for their patient.

It’s unexpected since, at this point, we expect Amelia to be right about most everything, especially with a new doctor coming into the hospital. But instead, Beltran makes the better points, and that makes for a refreshing dynamic. 

Natalie Morales brings a great new energy to the cast in this role, too. She’s a perfect addition.

Meanwhile, Meredith is in town while she and Amelia continue to work on getting funding for their research. It’s an obvious problem — any lead they have on funding is thwarted because Meredith needs to keep this all a secret from Catherine.

Teddy’s enthusasiam with Meredith reveals everything that they’re working on is hilarious, especially as she likens the whole thing to a medical mystery novel. It’s also Teddy who has the solution — Grey-Sloan has money that she can allow them to use.

Is that too easy of a fix? Maybe. I worry that this storyline has become a bit too convaluted, even though it’s a perfect way arc for Meredith and works well as a way to have her coming back to the hospital without being there full time.

It also feels murky, considering that Meredith is presumably still part owner of the Grey-Sloan Memorial. Some of those details really need to be revisited.

Other thoughts:

• Levi’s run-in with Nico feels so heartbreaking, yet Jo really does make good points about Levi’s reaction. It’s nice to see Nico again, too.
• The patient who comes in with the crush injuries feels awfully similar to Sam Sutton, doesn’t he? I’m also surprised this particular case didn’t span more than one episode. 
• Simone’s hair! Not only does the new hairstyle feel entirely relatable because of her relationship changes, but it also makes her seem more confident. It’s a great detail. 

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 airs Thursdays at 9/8c on ABC.

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