Grey’s Anatomy: The Complete Second Season

Whoever advised not to mix business with pleasure clearly never met the surgical interns of Grey's Anatomy. If they did, they would realize that it's absolutely fine to mix the two. In fact, it's a deliciously winning combination and the hit show's titillating second season is proof.

Once a mid-season replacement on ABC without a lick of expectations, Grey's Anatomy has become a ratings phenomenon, out-ranking Desperate Housewives and even spawning its own special lingo (if you've seen the show, you'll know the significance of "McDreamy," "va-jay-jay" and "seriously"). This season the doctors at Seattle Grace Hospital continue walking the fine line between balancing their high pressure medical careers with their ever-changing romantic entanglements. When they're not saving lives in the O.R., they're hooking up in the on-call room. And it seems that everyone gets their share of on-call steaminess this season. But that doesn't mean there are not enough heartbreak and drama to go around.

The show's narrator and self-absorbed intern Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo) has a lot to deal with this season. She's left reeling from the news that her brain surgeon boyfriend Derek "Dr. McDreamy" Shepherd (Patrick Dempsey) is married and his estranged obstetrics surgeon wife Addison (cheers to Kate Walsh for turning what might have otherwise been a dislikable role into a character we genuinely care about) has come to work at the hospital full-time. Derek's choice on who he ultimately decides to stay with propels the rest of the season. But Meredith's angst-filled love life is just one of the many problems she must face. She has to deal with parental issues (she finds out her Alzheimer's-afflicted mother once had an affair with Dr. Webber (James Pickens Jr.), the chief of Seattle Grace), trysts with inappropriate men (sleeping with a lovesick friend=very bad idea), and almost getting blown to smithereens by a bomb lodged in a body cavity.

Ambitious intern Christina Yang (Sandra Oh) and renowned heart surgeon Preston Burke (the distinguished Isaiah Washington) continue their casual relationship from last season. But as things get more serious they struggle to get along. Ironically, for all of their differences"”she's messy and pushy, he's neat and polite"”their relationship evolves into one of the core aspects of the show. Oh and Washington deserve all the praise for making these characters so lovable, even when they bicker.

The flirtation between kind-hearted model-turned-doctor Izzie Stevens (Katherine Heigl) and insensitive hottie Alex Karev (played with alternating layers of cockiness and insecurity by Justin Chambers) leads to their inevitable hookup this season. Even though their passion burns out quickly (Alex sleeps with a nurse, Izzie falls for a patient), here's hoping for a reunion in season three. These two are just too pretty not to be together.

No-nonsense resident Miranda "The Nazi" Bailey (the fiesty Chandra Wilson) shows her softer side this season while pregnant with

her first child. Meanwhile, child-like intern George O'Malley (played with puppy-dog eyes and a touch of humor by T.R. Knight) has some growing up to do when he must perform heart surgery on a patient in a busted elevator, and later in the season when he finds out that his long-time crush on Meredith isn't mutual.

The romances may be frothy fun, but the medical cases are equally as compelling. They range from the bizarre, like the guy who thinks he's pregnant, to the heartbreaking, the mother with the sickly newborn quintuplets. When it comes to the patients, Grey's Anatomy has excellent and diverse guest casting. Each new patient is as engaging to watch as the main characters.

The two-part episode It's the End of the World (As We Know it) is an intense, nail-biter"”a second season stand-out. With great guest performance work by Christina Ricci and Kyle Chandler, the episodes revolve around an explosive situation in the O.R. If these two episodes don't make you a fan, nothing will. Other season highlights include Into You Like a Train where the surgeons must deal with the aftermath of a devastating train wreck and the 3-part season finale, a fabulously done epic event packed with every twist and turn possible and ending with a tantalizing love-triangle cliffhanger.

Creator and writer Shonda Rhimes is fearless when it comes to storylines and character decisions. She is not afraid to make her characters flawed and fallible. Sometimes you may love the doctors, other times you may scream at your T.V., but they are always worth watching. Rhimes knows exactly where to find humor in life and where to place a dramatic turn. She is also instrumental in infusing Grey's Anatomy with a soundtrack worthy of any iPod playlist.

The Season 2 DVD Set, as it turns out, is worthy of any DVD collection. It contains all 27 heart-stopping episodes, four of which are extended and uncut with never-before-seen footage. There are commentaries for all the milestone episodes of the season (although not for the season finale, oddly enough), unaired scenes, a set tour of Seattle Grace Hospital, interviews with the cast where they answer fans' burning questions, a candid look Chandra Wilson off-camera and a feature explaining how they created an explosive (albeit kind of gross) special effect. There's also a strange clip from Jimmy Kimmel Live. I'm still not completely sure how this was chosen as an extra feature, as opposed to other things. I would have liked to see a feature dedicated to the special effects required to make the surgeries look authentic and perhaps explaining some of the more bizarre medical cases covered on the show. It also would have been nice for a feature dedicated to the music of Grey's Anatomy. The music becomes such an integral part of the show, so why not showcase some of the artists

providing the soundtrack to these surgeons' lives?

After watching the complete second season of Grey's Anatomy, check your symptoms because there's a good chance you'll end up addicted. It's hard to resist these charming docs. That's just how they operate.

Show Grade: A+
DVD Grade: B+
Overall Grade: A