If you’re a Grey’s Anatomy fan and have even glimpsed any bit of news of what to expect in the upcoming midseason premiere, odds are that you have not missed the fact that Meredith is going to be the victim of a brutal attack. It has been the focal point of promos ever since it was revealed. But what comes next?
There have been a few teases about the aftermath of this Grey’s Anatomy Season 12 attack on Meredith by a patient, but that talk has been more so about what happens in the future, as in the following episodes. Until now. Entertainment Weekly has posted a sneak peek from the midseason premiere , “The Sound of Silence,” showing what happens immediately after, as in as soon as she is found.
As the sneak peek (above) shows, Penny finds her and calls for help, but she’s not the only doctor with Meredith for long. Richard, Owen, April, and Ben are all working on her. As they go over her injuries, Richard makes it clear that the Chief is not to be paged.
“This is one patient,” he says. “We can do this one, okay? She has to handle everything else.”
As for the patient who attacked Meredith, Ben insists he was stable and not a threat. He left for five minutes. However, Owen points out that hyper-aggression can happen after a seizure, with Richard adding that if he was in a temporary fugue state, and he won’t even remember what he did. He’s restrained and being treated next door. As the video ends, Alex joins them.
Furthermore, Giacomo Gianniotti told E! News that this Grey’s Anatomy episode is going to cover Meredith’s recovery, which means that it’s going to be a bit different from what fans are used to seeing.
“Usually an episode is covering a day or two at most, we’re seeing weeks and months go by, and different stages of her recovery. So you really get to see a lot of passage of time and the changing of a lot of relationships throughout that time while waiting for Meredith to heal.”
With the midseason premiere therefore focused on Meredith, her attack, and her subsequent recovery, it makes sense that some of the unanswered questions from before the winter break – Owen’s history with Nathan, Alex proposing to Jo, April and Jackson’s relationship – are going to have to wait to be addressed. However, there is a date for when fans will find out if Jackson and April are going to make things work: February 25, according to Entertainment Weekly .
That episode, “Unbreak My Heart,” is all about their relationship, from the beginning to the present, and it will include flashbacks, including to their first meeting. In fact, Robert Baker is returning to play Dr. Charles Percy as part of those flashbacks. April and Jackson’s relationship won’t be the only thing tying the past and present together in that Grey’s Anatomy episode, as Maya Stojan will be appearing as a patient of Jackson’s, whom he has been treating for years. (Unsurprisingly, Debbie Allen is also going to be in the episode; did you really think they could do this kind of episode without Jackson’s mother?)
Now, just because it’s not until this episode that fans find out where April and Jackson stand in the present doesn’t mean that there won’t be any mentions of them in the two episodes before. Sarah Drew told EW that “you get little snippets in 9 and 10” and teased “some big stuff coming up for April.” She also offered some hope for fans of the couple, even if they’re not back together.
“As long as they’re alive, there is always hope. No matter what, they really, desperately love each other. Circumstances have torn them to pieces and they have not been able to, thus far, help one another through those things. They’re in a really rough spot, but there is always hope.”
Grey’s Anatomy Season 12 airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. on ABC.
[Image via ABC]