Just two months remain until the Season 6 premiere of Grey's Anatomy, and its creator Shonda Rhimes is already working on a contingency plan in case Ellen Pompeo's pregnancy does not allow the show's title character to return to the set right away.

Or at all.

Pompeo's situation, along with what happened last season with T.R. Knight, have the Grey's Anatomy show-runner wondering how she's going to keep the series intact this year.

One thing she is talking about: "stand-alone" episodes.

Could the show go on without the woman who puts the Grey in Grey's Anatomy? What about the series' leading man, Patrick Dempsey? With contracts up at the end of this season, all possible scenarios are on the table and nothing taken for granted.

What other changes are in store when the show returns for its new season? Follow the link to read more about what Shonda Rhimes calls a "transitional" Grey's Anatomy Season 6 ...

Steve Marsi is the Managing Editor of TV Fanatic. Follow him on Google+ or email him here.