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Jackson Avery was back at Grey Sloan Memorial, and it also marked the return of the Plastics Posse 2.0. Or is it 3.0 now?

Much of Grey’s Anatomy Season 22 Episode 4 had many of our doctors either unsettled in their personal or professional lives or having some epiphanies about both.

The hour also set up Mer’s exit for now, as she makes her way back to Boston, recharged and determined to resume her Alzheimer’s study that Koracick has derailed.

Mer & Jackson Are So Sibling-Coded

It isn’t until Jackson returns that one realizes just how endearing it is to have them onscreen together. They have always been a dynamic duo.

But they are always so heavily sibiling-coded. It’s always hilarious. When they’re at odds with one another, they go for blood, but they always come around to each other in the end.

And this episode was nothing if not revolving around people lashing out at their loved ones and then making amends with each other, too.

Jackson had all the snark and smoke for Mer over her abandoning the lab in Boston, “hiding out for the summer” at Grey Sloan, and not following through with her research.

And he didn’t care if he got under her skin by prodding at her over that and allowing Koracick to proceed with his work off the back of Mer and Amelia.

Meanwhile, Mer was not letting up on Jackson because it did come across as if he didn’t understand the significance of her study and why she needed to focus on the female mice. It was a larger issue in how healthcare and all its facets tend to bend to the will of men.

Grey’s Nods as the Inadvertent Sexism

So much of healthcare, studies, and research are based on what affects men, and then they apply that to everyone without considering the differences.

Mer did a great job of prodding Jackson about that and trying to ensure that he understood her point, even wanting him to examine his own thought processes regarding it.

Ironically, while Jackson was working toward performing a breast reconstruction surgery on his amazing patient, and he deemed himself well-versed in the gender disparities in medicine, he was being so dismissive toward Kavita at every turn.

Anyone with eyes could see that she wanted to learn from him, and he kept brushing her aside, just as he had with Mer the whole hour, or similarly, not listening to his female patient about what she wanted.

Kwan and Kavita are the Newest Ship, Right?

It just goes to show you that even the best and most well-intentioned doctors and men can be guilty of dismissing the concerns and sentiments of their female counterparts.

All of this at least inspired Mer to return to Boston, so she’ll be away for a while, but it’s a natural progression for her at the moment.

And this also seemed to put Kwan and Kavita in a better place after he faked being sick to get her into the surgery. She was fantastic in there, and she impressed Jackson so much that he welcomed her into the Plastics Posse. It’s a high honor that she cannot even begin to process.

It seems like they’re laying the groundwork for a possible romance with Kwan and Kavita. A nice little enemies-to-lovers action is going on there. When Kwan isn’t being a total tool, he’s a nice enough character. They rarely know what to do with him, but Kwan and Kavita could be interesting.

Maybe this time, he’ll have a compelling romance that actually sticks, even if it does already remind me a tad of him and Jules from many moons ago.

Simone and Jules’ Friendship Moments Are Endearing (But We Need More)

Speaking of Jules, I desperately want Grey’s Anatomy to get back to prioritizing female friendships the way it used to in the early days. Simone and Jules are supposed to be that, but sometimes they’re so inconsistent that it’s hard to invest in their dynamic and where they’re in it.

Nevertheless, it was cute to see Jules finally tell Simone the real reason that she didn’t want to move in with Simone. Jules hasn’t had the best history with friendships, and she’s pushed people away and scared them off.

She doesn’t want to risk losing Simone because she’s a terrible roommate. And it’s endearing that Jules shares this vulnerability, but it also makes me crave more about her unconventional background, which has her so guarded and insecure at times. She has a genuine fear of losing people and being left behind, and sadly, that fear keeps coming true for her even now.

There’s a bit of fascinating buzziness happening with Lucas and Katie, too. I don’t know what we’re supposed to do with that.

Is Lucas Getting Too Close to His Patient?

Do you think that he’ll grow too attached to her? And is that attachment something that could potentially turn romantic, or is it just in that indefiniable, tethethred through this experience sort of ordeal that, to me, would be far more compelling to explore?

Grey’s has done both before and could pull off either, even though the romance would be unethical. Whatever the case, via Katie, we get another glimpse of how well Lucas does with patients.

It’s his compassion, his ability to connect, rule with sympathy, and actually listen and hear them that has always made him a stellar doctor who often stood out from the others in his own very Lucas way.

Cases like this are when his best qualities as a doctor truly shine, and after everything he endured, nearly losing it all, I love seeing how he’s coming back into his own as a doctor.

It’s a reprieve from all the messiness of his relationship with Simone and the love triangle. I also enjoy the fact that Bailey has become his mentor, and when Bailey finds a duckling, it’s always a special thing.

The Many Adventures of Ben Warren

Bailey was on a roll during the hour because she also got to see how passionate Ben was, and she encouraged him in the way he needed to pursue Plastics again, even if it meant he’d have another three years as a resident.

Ben and Bailey are forever the couple goals on this show, and their final scene together made me smile so hard my cheeks hurt.

I don’t have the mental capacity to fully understand what they’re doing with Ben. He changes his career more than a teenage boy changes his underwear, and he always goes from one extreme to the next.

Somehow, we’ve circled all the way back around to Ben pursuing Plastics like he did, what? A decade ago? Sometimes it’s wild how it feels like Station 19 never even happened.

But it’s Ben’s world. We just try to keep up with what he’s doing in it.

Owen and Teddy continued to make their divorce everyone else’s problem, but despite some frustrating moments, they have been sympathetic in this venture.

Owen Struggles with Divorce but May Start Anew

As ridiculous as the whole hobby riding case seemed, I respected that Owen shut down the jokes and laughter at the patient’s expense. He knows what it’s like to lose something you love, and that hit too close to home for him.

But he was wrong for snapping at Link so much. The Owen/Link dynamic is definitely one of those underrated bromances on this show, and Link was particularly in peak “bro” form during this hour. But I loved it.

He could see that Owen was hurting, and he tried to do whatever he could to help him. I’m glad Owen apologized to him in the end. And he’s right that Link has been the only person who has actually checked in with Owen to see if he’s okay.

The truth is that he was in a particular tizzy after seeing Teddy and Cass show up together after their hot roll in the hay earlier that morning. And that was difficult for him. But it seems that he may move on with Nora after all.

Single, Struggling Teddy is Actually Compelling (Even with Nora)

Teddy and Nora’s conversation was surprisingly vulnerable and real, and I love that despite the history these two have had, Teddy has literally fought for Nora to save her and doesn’t hold anything against her. They were able to connect as divorcees and moms just trying to figure things out.

It was such a genuine moment between women — I’d even say a bit of unspoken sisterhood solidarity in that.

These are the little nuggets that I love. Unfortunately, I wish I felt half as much interest in Cass and Teddy.

My issue is that Cass is just … there. During this hour, she was randomly walking around the hospital with nothing else to do. She has NOTHING else to do except Teddy, and nothing else to offer except steamy moments.

Can Grey’s Do SOMETHING with Cass?

There’s no real depth there, which makes it hard to care about them and what’s to come. I could understand Teddy’s frustration when Cass showed up — because it did feel like she was just in the way and distracting.

But I did enjoy Teddy’s vulnerable moment with Cass, as she expressed how she’s always had her life and everything in order, with control, and now she’s untethered, unbalanced, and off-kilter. Teddy captured that stage of being a darn near middle-aged woman with a family and career who still feels like she doesn’t have control over her life.

These are the messy, raw, real things that one appreciates about Grey’s and the complexity of its female characters over the years. At no point do any of us ever really have it all fully together or life figured out, and there’s something comforting about seeing that screen.

Cass is okay with that and Teddy’s current state. And it seems sweet enough for a fling, but I still wish we saw something more between them than their physical connection.