15 Episodes Of Grey's Anatomy That Aged Poorly

Grey’s Anatomy might be considered one of the most progressive shows on TV today, but not all the episodes hold up as well today, with the Grey’s Anatomy musical episode as a good example. The hit medical drama premiered on ABC in 2004, so, understandably, some of the earlier episodes are quite dated, but there were even some in the later years that had some fans shaking their heads. An impressive aspect of Grey’s Anatomy is the fact that it always tried to be progressive, even when falling short.

Of course, times have changed since the early 2000s and older Grey’s episodes don’t look quite as innovative and forward-thinking as they once did. The show has been ahead of its time since the beginning, but nevertheless, it still has some episodes that simply did not get better with age. In some cases, it is because the jokes or innuendos are no longer acceptable, and, in other cases, characters just do something that looks terrible and doesn’t fit in, thanks to the hindsight of time.

15 Owen Tells Cristina She Killed His Baby

Hope For The Hopeless (Season 8, Episode 12)

One of Owen’s most controversial moments on Grey’s Anatomy was the episode “Hope for the Hopeless,” which aired in season 8. This is the episode where Cristina tells Owen that she chose to end her pregnancy and have an abortion. He knew all along that Cristina didn’t want to have children, and he seemed fine with that until he saw her around kids and decided he might know better. However, his exact words when she tells him the news make this an episode that does not hold up well at all.

When Owen learns the truth, he gets upset and tells Cristina that she “killed our baby.” This was the moment that many fans started hating Owen, as these words to Cristina were something that he could never come back from. This is clearly an argument that will happen in many situations concerning abortion, but in this case, it was a way to villainize Owen in the eyes of many viewers.

14 Alex Leaves His Wife With A Letter

Leave A Light On (Season 16, Episode 16)

In the season 16 episode “Leave a Light On,” Alex does the unthinkable. He leaves his wife and the hospital to go back to Izzie. The big problem with this episode isn’t Alex leaving his wife, it’s how he did it. Yes, Alex was in love with Izzie, but then she left him without much of a word and moved away with a letter to explain her exit. He was left heartbroken and finally was able to move on and find love again, getting married and building a new life.

When he learned that he had a child with Izzie, which she never told him about, he realized he still loved her and decided to return and try again with her. That is all fine, but the fact that he did it with letters made him seem like a complete hypocrite. He was left heartbroken when Izzie left him with a letter, and now he was leaving Jo the same way, which shows that he has no problem hurting someone else the same way that someone hurt him.

13 The Episode With Derek’s Death

How To Save A Life (Season 11, Episode 21)

In season 11, Grey’s Anatomy did the unthinkable. Patrick Dempsey was leaving the show, and instead of having Dr. Shepherd leave and keeping the door open for a possible return, it did what it does best – it killed him to put the other characters through hell. Dr. Shepherd, last known as McDreamy, had been a major part of the cast since the first episode, and he was married to Meredith Grey in one of television’s most beloved relationships. It makes sense the show would throw all that away.

The way Derek died in this episode was not fitting for a character of his stature. What makes it almost impossible to rewatch all these years later is that most of the episode was shown from Derek’s point of view. Derek’s thoughts actually narrate the events of the episode, and the viewers realize at the end that they are narrating his actual death, as he knows everything the team trying to save him is missing. It is heartbreaking that Meredith never got to say goodbye, which is hard to take to this day.

12 Bailey OCD Diagnosis

Somebody That I Used to Know (Season 10, Episode 10)

When it comes to television shows dealing with mental health issues, things can be hit and miss. Things are much better than they used to be when most mental health issues were played for comedy in older-era sitcoms and TV shows. However, in recent years, it is important that shows focus on the facts when it comes to afflictions and diagnosis of these issues and treat them and the characters dealing with them with the utmost respect. Grey’s Anatomy is usually good at that.

However, the way the show handled the diagnosis made it look like OCD was hurting Bailey rather than showing her strength in making herself better and moving on to be strong.

The one time the show slightly dropped the ball was in the season 10 episode, “Somebody That I Used to Know.” This was when Bailey received her OCD diagnosis. Bailey has always been shown to be a strong woman and someone who will not let anything undermine that. However, the way the show handled the diagnosis made it look like OCD was hurting Bailey rather than showing her strength in making herself better and moving on to be strong. The fact the show brought it up and dropped it was a mistake.

11 The Grey’s Anatomy Musical Episode

Song Beneath The Song (Season 7; Episode 18)

There was a trend for a time where television shows all tried to have a special musical episode. This has been done very well at times, with the Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode, “One More Time, With Feeling” as a perfect example. There was even a great musical episode on a medical show, albeit it was the comedy medical series Scrubs. With that in mind, when Grey’s Anatomy tried to have its musical episode, things just didn’t feel right then, and it still doesn’t feel right looking back on it.

Not only was this not an episode that many fans gravitated to, but it was also one that stars Ellen Pompeo and Patrick Dempsey actually hated. After Callie and Arizona are involved in a car accident, Callie sees her spirit standing next to the car and that hallucination is what kickstarts the musical episode as the doctors sing throughout the hour. Dempsey and Pompeo refused to sing in the episode, and it ended up silly at times, which was out of place for the dramatic series.

10 The Premiere Failed To Hold Up

A Hard Day’s Night (Season 1, Episode 1)

Season 1 of Grey’s Anatomy is enjoyable to rewatch purely based on the fact that it is nostalgia-evoking for several long-time fans. A significant contributing factor to the series’ massive success is the fact that it was so relatable and contemporary back when it first premiered. Nowadays, it looks really dated. That is especially true for Grey’s series premiere, “A Hard Day’s Night.” The episode was innovated back in the day, but now, over a decade later, it feels pretty cheesy.

The first episode of Grey’s Anatomy shows Meredith Grey as one of the new surgical interns and she immediately is shocked to learn the man she had a one-nighty-stand with the night before is Derek Shepherd, the Chief of Neurosurgery. This episode introduces all the characters and lets them start to get to know each other and develop relationships, but it is like many other series premieres, and it doesn’t have the same magic since these characters are still forming.

9 Homophobic Jokes At George’s Expense

Shake Your Groove Thing (Season 1, Episode 5)

“Shake Your Groove Thing” is mainly remembered for the storyline where Meredith believes she has made an error during assisting a surgery and frets that she may be sued for this. That part of the episode was very intriguing and well-written, but that’s not all there is to “Shake Your Groove Thing.”

Throughout season 1—before George begins dating Callie and hardcore crushing on Meredith—Izzie and pretty much everyone else is constantly speculating that George is gay. What makes this entire recurring “joke” all the more insensitive is the fact that T.R. Knight, the actor who portrayed George, was closeted at this time, so the whole thing couldn’t have been very fun for him. Making jokes about someone’s sexuality wouldn’t happen in later years, making this stand out even more for its poor taste.

8 Poor Treatment Of Addison Montgomery

Who’s Zoomin’ Who? (Season 1, Episode 9)

This episode again puts George O’Malley at the butt of an embarrassing joke when a syphilis outbreak spreads throughout Seattle Grace. George is one of the first victims of the disease, along with Alex and a few other unfortunate nurses and doctors. But this episode’s subject matter isn’t even what makes this episode show its age—in fact, the whole syphilis storyline is still actually pretty funny.

What makes this episode look pretty bad now, however, is the introduction and treatment of Addison. She did a bad thing, and the way she’s treated in this episode and many to follow will not let viewers forget it. A lot of things happen to the characters throughout the series, and while Addison becomes a strong and dominating character over time, seeing how the series treats her in this episode often feels very uncomfortable.

7 Patrick’s Sexist Treatment Of Meredith

Damage Case (Season 2, Episode 24)

The majority of the Grey’s fanbase swooned over Meredith and Derek’s famous romance and still to this day regards the relationship as one of the best on TV. McDreamy could not have been more dreamy when he was first introduced in Grey’s Anatomy. But as time went on, the charm of this character slowly began to wane.

Season 2 was a turbulent one for Meredith and her relationship with Derek, as, early on, Derek chooses to be with Addison instead of Meredith. In an attempt to move on from her rather heartbreaking break-up with Derek, Meredith does sleep around a bit, but with good reason to. Derek doesn’t see it that way, though, and in “Damage Cas,” he shows a less-than-dreamy and frankly completely ugly side when belittling Meredith for her methods of moving on.

6 Transgender Surgery Treated Well, But With Problematic Dialogue

Where The Boys Are (Season 3, Episode 7)

This episode appears dated now on account of two of the major storylines it featured. “Where The Boys Are” features several of the men from Seattle Grace as they go on a camping trip in the woods. Joe—the guy from Joe’s bar—attends, and he brings along his boyfriend, Walter. This is handled fairly well, for the most part, aside from a few insensitive comments that make the episode show its age.

The second major storyline featured Meredith and Mark working together on a gender reassignment surgery. To deal with what was then considered a controversial topic is one of the things we love about Grey’s Anatomy. Keeping in mind that this episode aired back in 2006, they handled a transgender character with a good amount of respect, but some of the lines just prove to be victims of the early 2000s mindset.

5 Izzy’s Ghost Relations With Denny

The Midnight Hour (Season 5, Episode 9)

“The Midnight Hour” is known today as one of the most controversial episodes of Grey’s Anatomy. It has garnered this status not because of any cultural, social, or political insensitivity, but because of one particular scene that sparked a significant backlash. In season 5, Izzie had begun to suffer symptoms of what she would later discover was malignant melanoma.

In this episode, Izzie didn’t know what was happening to her yet, so, when she started seeing Denny’s ghost everywhere, she kind of just went along with it. And then she proceeded to have some extremely cringeworthy ghost sex with him. This episode was so badly received that some fans even stopped watching because it all felt so wrong. While she was hallucinating and was lonely and failing in health, the scenes with Denny just felt wrong then and now.

4 Derek & Meredith Spar Over Treating A Death Row Inmate

Sympathy For The Devil (Season 5, Episode 12)

“Sympathy For The Devil” deals with some pretty heavy topics, such as the death sentence in prison. A patient who’s in a critical state is admitted to Seattle Grace, and it’s revealed that he’s actually a prisoner who’s currently on death row. Eric Stoltz stars as the inmate, who was attacked in prison and is brought to the hospital for treatment. Meredith, Derek, and Cristina clash over what to do with him, and the storyline presents a rift between Meredith and Derek.

The episode is another prime example of how the MerDer relationship wasn’t perfect all the time, and Derek could definitely be anything but dreamy sometimes. Hew could be excused since Derek’s father was murdered and the people who did it were never caught, but his comments and actions in the situation were not up to par for a doctor in his position. The episode ended with them saving the inmate, but then it showed his execution, with Meredith in attendance to show her support.

3 George’s Death Episode

Now or Never (Season 5, Episode 24)

“Now Or Never” is one of the series’ more well-known episodes, mostly due to the fact that it was one of the series’ most tragic and heartbreaking episodes. Actor T.R. Knight decided to leave Grey’s Anatomy in season 5, so this finale heralded his death. George was a beloved character, and seeing him go was very difficult for several fans. Nevertheless, Grey’s did not hold back from giving sweet George O’Malley one of the most brutal deaths on the show.

George infamously gets hit—or rather mauled—by a bus, and by the time he’s brought to Seattle Grace, he’s so mutilated that no one even recognizes him until he’s dead. This just seemed disrespectful to such a well-loved character, and having George’s closest friends treat him as “John Doe who got hit by a bus” for the better part of the episode just felt wrong.

2 Izzie Leaves The Show

I Like You So Much Better When You’re Naked (Season 6, Episode 12)

Grey’s Anatomy’s original beloved cast of characters had begun to dwindle by the time season 6 rolled around. After a very public fight with showrunner Shonda Rhimes, Katherine Heigl left the show and took Izzie Stevens with her. “I Like You So Much Better When You’re Naked” marked Izzie’s last appearance, and many fans believe that the quality of Grey’s has seriously decreased since this beloved doctor’s departure.

Unlike other episodes that don’t hold up as well today as they did when they aired, this one was more about how the show wrote out a beloved character in a way that didn’t seem fitting for them. Having her leave the way she did was a little hard to accept, especially when looking back on it later and realizing everything she was hiding after she left. Izzie did some terrible things thanks to her departure, but it would be years before viewers realized the extent of it.

1 The Introduction Of Sloan’s Teenage Daughter

Holidaze (Season 6, Episode 10)

This episode covers Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s. That’s a lot to cover in one episode, so understandably, there’s quite a bit going on in “Holidaze.” Season 6 was already widely disliked for Izzie Stevens-related issues, but to make everything worse, this episode introduces Sloan Riley, Mark’s estranged teenage daughter. A lot of unfortunate stuff happens in this episode, and Sloan creating a rift in Mark and Lexie’s relationship is just one example.

There was also a lot of unnecessary drama, including Bailey having a huge fight with her dad, which just adds to the problems from Mark allowing his daughter he just met to move in with him. This was seemingly only set up to bring bad things into the lives of the beloved cast in what should have been a festive holiday episode. Understandably, “Holidaze” is not considered a fan favorite today and is a hard one to go back to watch.