The medical drama television series Grey’s Anatomy has been running for 15 seasons and has been renewed for several more seasons. It’s one of the highest rated television shows and boasts some of the highest paid TV actors. With the over the top drama and its pursuit to be racially diverse, what’s not to love?
As the titular character on the popular show Grey’s Anatomy, Meredith Grey gets a lot of love and recognition. Rightfully so since the show is literally about her life. Being the main character means that she can do no wrong in the eyes of most fans. And she has definitely made some questionable decisions that have been overlooked in the past. Let’s talk about the 20 things we all choose to ignore about Meredith Grey.
20 She Follows In Her Mom's Footsteps
Throughout the entire show we constantly hear Meredith talking about how messed up she is and that she’s “dark and twisty” inside. She places the blame on her mother for being obsessed with work or never thinking Meredith is good enough. But then Meredith goes and follows in her mother’s footsteps as if she wants to emulate her mother that she blames.
19 She Fails Her Intern Exam And Is Allowed To Retake It
In season 3, Meredith doesn’t answer a single question on her intern exam and obviously fails. George fails his exam by only two points, which means he has to retake his intern year. On the other hand, Meredith is given another chance to retake the exam and passes the second time. Why was Meredith given that chance and not George?
18 She Is Continually Making Impulsive Decisions
We can look at any season of Grey’s Anatomy and will see Meredith making impulsive decisions. There was the time she put her hand on a bomb…willingly. She also interfered with an Alzheimers trial that could have saved a ton of lives because she was thinking of only one person.
17 She Uses George
George was a beloved character on the show so Meredith definitely had fans upset when she used and tossed him away carelessly. George expressed to Meredith that he had feelings for her while she was vulnerable and still loved Derek. She ends up getting together with him and crying which ultimately humiliates him.
16 She Has A Sense Of Entitlement
Even as an intern, Meredith always thought that she was better. After all, her mother was the famous Ellis Grey. It only got worse as her career progressed. Sure, she works hard. But she always thinks that her way is better, and even got herself and patients into bad situations because of her entitlement.
15 She Still Has A Medical License
How in the world does Meredith still have a medical license? We all know about her interfering in the Alzheimers trial. Spoiler alert for those who haven’t watched season 15, but she also commits insurance fraud. I guess if anyone could get away with it, it would be Meredith Grey.
14 She Drinks…A Lot
As a doctor at a busy hospital, Meredith is either working or on-call almost all the time. But it seems like she's drinking at the bar or at home whenever she's not at the hospital. When does she sleep, eat, or clean her house? And how is she not hungover whenever she goes to work?
13 She Gives Her Father Part Of Her Liver
While Meredith puts most of the blame on her mother for her awful childhood, she blames her father, Thatcher, for the rest. Instead of sticking around for Meredith, Thatcher leaves Meredith and her mother. Yet she just decides to go through a painful surgery to give him part of her liver. Also, how does Meredith have a functioning liver with all her drinking?
12 She Is Still Alive
Meredith simply being alive is a miracle in itself. She has been through a bombing, almost drowning, a shooting, a plane crash, a storm while giving birth, and being beaten up by a patient. She has to be the luckiest person alive to have endured that many tragedies and still come out unscathed.
11 She Is Always Sad...
It’s not that it’s surprising that she's sad. She’s has had a rough life between the abandonment issues and almost getting killed…a lot. But after a while it just gets old. You can not have a father and be happy, and you can go through a bombing and be happy. It’s almost as if she enjoys being sad.
10 …Yet Loves Talking About How Miserable She Is
For someone who is sad all the time, she sure loves talking about it a lot. What makes it worse is that Cristina also enjoyed being miserable and they were able to share in that together. She even said, “I'm not happy and bubbly, I'm dark and cloudy.” We get it, okay?
9 What Happened To Her Fertility Issues?
Derek and Meredith struggled to conceive a child. Meredith experienced a miscarriage in season in 6, and they even adopted a child. This led Meredith to take fertility drugs in hopes that she could get pregnant. She did eventually get pregnant, but then got pregnant several times without any other fertility drugs.
8 She Sabotages Everything When Life Is Going Well
Meredith loves being miserable so much that she can’t help but sabotage things when life is going well. When her relationship with Derek is going well she pulls back from the relationship or does something stupid. When work is going well she makes a selfish decision that puts her whole career at risk!
7 She Keeps Discovering New Family Members
Obviously not everyone can have a perfect cookie cutter family. But it’s getting a little ridiculous how many sisters Meredith is collecting. She found one half-sister from her dad and another secret half-sister that her mom hid from everyone. What’s even more unlikely is that they all decided to become doctors and work at the same hospital.
6 She Cries All The Time
You would think that someone who talks about how miserable they are would be a little less emotional since they claim to not have those emotions. But for a dark and twisty person, Meredith sure does cry a lot. I would really just like her to decide if she has emotions or not and stick with that decision.
5 She Doesn’t Compromise In Her Marriage
Meredith and Derek were very entitled people and doctors. They were both amazing at their jobs and had lofty aspirations. That doesn’t translate very well to a marriage. A marriage takes compromise and a little give and take from both parties. But even when Derek had the opportunity of a lifetime, to work for the President of the United States, Meredith wouldn’t compromise.
4 When Does She See Her Children?
Between working, dating, and drinking, when does Meredith actually see her children? Oh and that’s not even mentioning the little sleep she would need. We see little clips on Grey’s Anatomy of them all getting ready in the morning but that’s about it. I just don’t see how she fits everything into a 24-hour day.
3 She Doesn't Tell Derek’s Family When He’s Dying
Arguably one of the saddest moments during the 15 seasons of Grey’s Anatomy was when Derek died. Meredith was called to the hospital and needed to make the decision to remove him from life support. Before removing him from life support, she doesn’t think that maybe his mother and four sisters would like the opportunity to see him before he dies.
2 She Ran Away For An Entire Year
I absolutely understand needing to get some time away after a traumatic event such as your husband’s passing. Especially when you live together and work together—you can’t escape the memories. But leaving without telling a single soul where you’re going and letting them worry and think the worst is an awful thing to do.
1 She Is Still Working At Seattle Grace/Grey Sloan Memorial
If I had experienced as much trauma in a single place as Meredith Grey, I probably wouldn’t still be there. Everyone she loved died at that hospital, or worked at that hospital. Not to mention that there were enough violent events at the hospital to severely traumatize any person. Yet she is still working there like it’s not a big deal.