Grey’s Anatomy Season 20 Episode 8 Review: Blood, Sweat and Tears

While this season of Grey’s Anatomy started out strong, there’s a disconnect that’s making it less interesting as we move toward the end of the season.

On Grey’s Anatomy Season 20 Episode 8, “Blood, Sweat and Tears,”there’s less interaction between characters, and the pacing is a bit too slow. That is an odd thing to say when the interns are bustling around between surgery and studying, but it’s true nevertheless. 

That’s not to say there aren’t plenty of good moments and entertaining storylines, but this isn’t Grey’s Anatomy at its best. Not even close.  

Jo spends the majority of the episode fretting over how to tell Teddy she wants to quit general surgery, Levi is just generally annoyed, Helm is uncharacteristically mean to the interns because of Mika, and just about everyone is freaking out over this upcoming ABSITE exam. 

Yet there isn’t much interaction beyond simple pairings of characters. Putting all the interns in the hallway to study together or bringing everyone together more often in cafeteria scenes would be a simple way to solve this. 

Fighting for Dorian

What does work well is the focus on patients we can become invested in. Dorian has been a long-term patient for several episodes now, and his likability, combined with his tragic circumstances, makes us want to root for him that much more.

Add to that, he’s been fighting for his life, beating the odds time after time. And it seems like he’s getting good news rather than bad on this episode until he’s open on the operating table.

Bailey doesn’t want to give up, even when it looks like they could do more harm than good even though Richard is over here questioning her. Simone, having been cramming for this exam, pulls out some textbook knowledge that could change the game.

It’s a bit ridiculous that Richard tells her it’s no time to be studying for her exam when she starts spouting out info, because obviously, she’s trying to solve their problem. At least Bailey gets it, and she’s willing to take the risk, performing a procedure that would typically only be done on a child.

Along the way, though, Dorian flatlines, and Lucas essentially has a meltdown trying to save him, becoming stuck on doing compressions even when he’s told to clear.  

Lucas has had a connection with Dorian all along, and at this point, I’ll be more worried about him than anyone else if Dorian doesn’t make it.

This, of course, leads to a later conversation between Simone and Lucas, during which they’re both vulnerable and Simone tells Lucas he inspired her. From there, the two reconnect, and we get a steamy moment between them that rekindles their romance. 

Pediatric patients and Monica Beltran

Monica Beltran remains an excellent addition to the cast, and the fact that she’s moved from Texas adds some interesting layers when it comes to her patients. She has one patient, Emmy, who she’s worked with for a long time and seems problematic, but really, she just needs attention in a way that Monica understands. 

There is also Caroline, a trans girl who has just arrived and who’s had bad experiences with doctors in the past.

Having been judged one too many times, she and her mother have traveled to see Monica for surgery, and they hesitate when Monica says she needs to bring Amelia on board due to the nature of the surgery.

The most heartening part of all of this is how easily Amelia is able to win over her trust and how she and Monica are both able to put Caroline at ease by taking turns sharing things they’re afraid of.  

There’s also the fact that the two girls, who share a room at this point because the peds wing is full, become friends and plan to stay in touch.  It’s a satisfying, happy ending, at least for this particular episode.

Monica and Amelia working together also offers another chance to explore their dynamic. Amelia has had so much bad luck with love, so seeing her open up and be vulnerable again and again is satisfying and a little terrifying. She’s become a generally more positive person, and especially for those who watched her on Private Practice, it’s amazing to see how much her character has evolved over the years. 

Amelia walks things back real quick after Monica hesitates when Amelia asks her out, but Monica says she’s in the middle of a nasty divorce. They’re cut off, but I can’t help but think that we’re just scratching the surface of who Monica is at this point.

Owen and Teddy’s “Day Off”

Meanwhile, Owen and Teddy try to take a relaxing day off and spend time rescuing a couple of hikers instead. 

This could have all gone differently, and I’m glad it didn’t. Owen chooses not to slide down into a cave but rather to focus on talking a daughter through saving her father by stopping his bleeding.

That’s after the father goes down after his daughter — a move that’s almost unbeliavable, but we’ll assume it’s based on his panic.

Owen talks the daughter through packing her father’s wound and creating a tourneqet, buying them time before the ambulances arrive. 

Teddy and Owen then each arrive with the patients, providing a bit of a comedic moment as Link watches them both jump out with patients on their days off.

For Owen and Teddy, it was all pretty much the perfect date. Owen even thanks Teddy for such a good day, noting how it felt like old times.

It leads Owen to a realization, too. In talking with the daughter after everything is said and done, she thanks Owen profusely for his help. He says he only talked her through it, and she did all the work, but she says she wouldn’t have known what to do even though it was ultimately pretty simple.

For moment, it seems like Owen might want to make a career change in the way he’s romanticizing trauma surgery and being out in the woods like that, but instead, he tells Teddy he has an idea. He wants to create a program to teach people those types of skills, just like people are often taught CPR.

And will she fund it?

There’s the conflict — and maybe the most clever writing of the episode. Owen assumes there must be funding available, but he doesn’t know that Teddy has been secretly funding Meredith and Amelia’s Alzheimer’s research. 

And because Owen wants to avoid things being awkward, and he goes to Catherine about the funding so as to not put Teddy in a weird place about it. He has the best of intentions, but he’s also going over her head, and it means Catherine is going to see that Teddy’s been using those funds. 

Who knew that Teddy and Owen’s day off would lead to Catherine potentially finding out Meredith’s secret? It’s the perfect way to bring that conflict back to the table — and Meredith isn’t even there right now.

Final thoughts:

• Link helping Blue with his lucky sock is such an endearing scene. He fully understands the superstition, but he also ultimately makes Blue realize how prepared he actually is. It’s really sweet.
• Jules has a breakdown studying for her exam, and Mika, after just convincing Helm to give her an assignment in the OR, drops everything to help her. It’s one of the smallest moments of the episode but also one of the best. Luckily, even though they fall asleep together with their note cards, they aren’t late for the exam.   

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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