Before we learned that real surgeons don’t wear salmon scrubs and when someone says Code Black we should run in the other direction immediately, there were nine whole salacious episodes in the first season of Grey’s Anatomy filled with sex, lies and, oh yeah, surgeries. Last year’s mid-season replacement about the trials and tribulations of five surgical interns at Seattle Grace Hospital has become this season’s favorite Monday morning conversation starter.
Equal parts drama, comedy and romance, Grey’s is “really about competition,” says Shonda Rhimes, the show’s creator and executive producer, while introducing the segment “Under the Knife: Behind the Scenes of Grey’s Anatomy,” on the the just-released two-disc DVD of the show’s first season. Speaking of which, remember “Where’s Waldo?” Well, on one of the better bonus segments, set decorator Linda Sutton-Doll revealed that an Eskimo doll is hidden somewhere in each of the show’s episodes. That’s right. His name is Ipacac, which she thought sounded like an Inuit name and is actually close to the medical term, ipecac, for a preparation used to induce vomiting. Try to be the first of your friends to spot him this week.
Other special features include insightful interviews with writers and cast members. Instead of writing all the complex medical jargon into the scrpits, on first read the characters just say “MEDICAL.” The complex diagnoses such as “Spiral CT. VQ scan. Provide O2. Dose with heparin and consult for an IVC filter,” are added in later.
The interviews also revealed that the character of Dr. Alex Karev, SGH’s resident bad boy, was added at the last minute. In fact, all of Justin Chambers’ scenes were added in to the pilot during re-shoots, which is why he is rarely seen directly interacting with the other interns.
Appropriately, the series’ clever and charming pilot episode was the focus of two of the disc’s other special features. “Anatomy of a Pilot” showcases 15 scenes that were cut from the show’s televised premiere, most of which were obvious throwaways or revealed too much exposition early on, but one scene with George, Meredith, Izzie and Cristina subtly exuded the insecurity, comedy, competitiveness and heart that make the show so special.
The episode also features commentary from Katherine Heigl (Izzie), among others, who makes self-deprecating comments as well as gushing remarks about Patrick Dempsey (Derek Shepherd), a.k.a. Dr. McDreamy, throughout the 43-minute episode. Dr. Shepherd’s hair does look fantastic, but it’s not half as good as Grey’s Season One. Grade: A
