TV Series World

The medical drama's second season could be diagnosed as bipolar; in other words, it got much worse and much better at the same time. Whiny, self-involved surgical intern Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo), arguably the weakest spot in the otherwise likeable ensemble, had already left viewers annoyed. But season two, in which Meredith coped with being dumped by her married McDreamy (a.k.a. neurosurgeon Derek, a.k.a. Patrick Dempsey) by excessive drinking, sleeping around, gazing like a sad puppy and--unforgivable!--breaking the heart of longtime admirer/friend George (the cuddly T.R. Knight), could have alienated audiences for good. (Seriously, sometimes you want to shake the girl and feed her some cookies.) Thankfully, what Meredith's storyline threatened to derail was held together by some emotional episodes, including "Into You Like a Train," in which a pair of strangers are impaled together on a metal pole, and "Much Too Much," featuring a mother's quintuplets in critical condition. But the standout show that turned Grey's Anatomy into a television force came with the January 2006 post-Super Bowl episode, a two-parter involving a "code black" lockdown when a live bomb is housed inside a patient.

Romance also remained key to the staff at Seattle Grace: Steely Cristina (Golden Globe winner Sandra Oh) softens, to her great dismay, as her relationship with Dr. Burke (Isaiah Washington) gets serious; Izzie (Katherine Heigl) pairs up, then breaks up, with Alex (Justin Chambers, the villain of the cast if you had to name one) before falling in love with flirty, tender heart patient Denny (Jeffrey Dean Morgan). Derek and estranged wife Addison (Kate Walsh, who somehow managed to win over Meredith-McDreamy fans despite being the Other Woman) make attempts at fixing their marriage, and Dr. Bailey (Chandra Wilson, easily a standout) tries to balance a medical career with mommyhood. Even George finds a new love with orthopedic surgeon Callie (Sara Ramirez). The season wraps up with a weeper of a two-part finale, set at the hospital during a "prom" (it's complicated). But with the fancy gowns and tuxes, tears and romantic tension, leading to a crossroads for Meredith and Derek, you can bet the episodes are a delight for any Grey's fan. The show also continues to rely heavily on narration (not a good thing) and soundtracks (a good thing), using tracks from artists before they hit it big (KT Tunstall, Brandi Carlisle, Snow Patrol).