Grey's Anatomy Season 13 Episode 10 Review: Let's Make a Deal?
Jasmine Blu
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If you were hoping to see what happened with Alex at the D.A.'s office, then you were probably disappointed on Thursday night.
If you wanted to delve into a case that put a spotlight on the abysmal medical conditions of a correctional facility, then well, you'll still be disappointed, in humanity and society.
Nevertheless, Grey's Anatomy Season 13 Episode 10 was the episode for you.
It wasn't the hour the majority of us hoped for, but it was still a decent installment.
"You Can Look ( But You'd Better Not...)" was a thoughtful hour. It was slow paced and took us away from the hustle and bustle of Grey-Sloan and narrowed the episode's cast down to Jo, Bailey and Arizona.
Slower-paced episodes that are case specific can be fun, sometimes.
The problem is, I had my heart set on finding out whether or not a beloved character would be sent away after taking a deal.
Or even, whether or not Omelia are in a good place after a pregnancy scare and differing opinions on bringing a child in the world. Or, whether Owen's sister is alive somewhere.
I can't lie, I probably would have had the same reactions that Bailey had throughout this entire episode. She was not a fan of going into the prison, and she didn't want to stay there long.
She found the inmates to be terrifying, the process of checking in and getting searched barbaric, and the conditions absolutely deplorable.
She came across privileged, a tad judgmental, but relatable too. If you never had to experience those conditions or a lifestyle that would land you behind bars, it's easy to have a similar reaction.
Eldridge: You might want to stay in your lane, Dr. Bailey.
Miranda: It's Chief Bailey, and I'm driving in yours today.
But, Bailey adapts well enough. She has this innate ability to cut right through the heart of people or a situation and connect. In no time she was assisting other inmates, comforting and coaching Kristen, and advocating for sick inmates.
Jo was able to adapt easier, because she could relate to the women who find themselves in the system. Which is perhaps why she took it upon herself to connect and bond with Kristen, even though the teen was angry, violent, and often times insufferable.
It's interesting that we're finding out more and more about Jo and her background.
She brought up bouncing around foster homes again, and even mentioned that she helped a boyfriend rob a convenience store. At this point, I fully expect to see her past coming back to haunt her sooner rather than later.
Kristen:Do you wanna know what I'm going to name her
Jo: Sure
Kristen: Ellie
Jo: Ellie? I love that.
Kristen: If you tell anyone I said all that crap, I'll kill you.
Kristen may have been a pregnant teenager, but she was absolutely terrifying. She was violent, nasty, and lashed out. When she broke Eldridge's finger, I winced. I give the ladies credit, because oath or not, I probably would've hauled ass out of there in that moment.
What I found interesting about her case, was that they didn't play into the whole "she had a rough childhood" trope. Jo, like most of us probably, assumed the worse and tried to relate to her with all of the awful things she endured growing up.
Kristen didn't have any of that. It was jarring, listening to her reminisce on her privileged life, with her perfect mom, and her happy childhood. The question quickly turns to "What happened? Where did it all go wrong?"
I'm so sorry Kristen, your mom's downstairs but she doesn't want to see you.
Jo
Kristen's mother just added to my curiosity on Kristen's situation. Mrs. Rochester was completely done with her daughter. She didn't want to talk to her, see her, help her through the pre-term delivery or anything else.
All the woman wanted was the baby to take care of as her own. She didn't even want Kristen to ever see her own child again.
Her strong opinions rubbed everyone, Jo and Arizona especially, the wrong way. Arizona's strong reaction probably had a lot to do with having a daughter living on the other side of the country. And God only knows just how deeply the situation might hit home for someone like Jo.
Arizona: If this one makes a mistake, will you leave her too?
Mrs. Rochester: Excuse me?!
I understood their strong reactions and I didn't fault them for them, but I couldn't bring myself to vilify Mrs. Rochester either.
After all, we have no idea what Kristen did or what their relationship is like. Prior to the glimpses of Kristen being an angry and hurt young woman, she was absolutely terrifying, vicious, and not a great person.
Kristen is serving at least twenty years in prison, whatever she did had to be pretty damn serious. Not to mention she's locked away with some of the most violent offenders. Maybe it's wrong to judge Mrs. Rochester on her behavior if we don't know why she feels as strongly as she does.
Tell me she's okay. Tell me I didn't mess her up. Please.
Kristen
Part of me cheered for Arizona when she said what she said to Mrs. Rochester, but the other part of me felt like she was out of line, given the fact that she knows virtually nothing about their situation.
As for Jo, bear with me, as I mentioned, I'm not the biggest Jo fan, so perhaps this might come across nitpicky. It truly frustrates me that someone who tells so many lies and keeps so many secrets, can be so vocal and self-righteous about other people being honest.
The others were trying to keep Kristen's stress levels down and made a reasonable call to keep the fact that Mrs. Rochester didn't want to see her own daughter under wraps. Jo just had to tell her, consequences be damned.
Dr. Eldridge may have called Bailey out on not staying in her own lane, but Jo is the poster child of this and it's annoying, even when her intentions are pure.
I want there to be something good. I want the world to be good. For once, I want to see sun and be happy. For once, I want to be wrong.
Jo
Jo wants to live in a happy world. She wants good things. But a lot of her issues as of late could have been avoided if she were more honest.
Which brings me to the end of the hour. After such an emotional case, on a quiet drive back to Seattle, Bailey finally breaks the news about Alex.
He took the deal and he's going to be serving prison time. She had to hold that in the entire time they were on their assignment.
Seeing as she was with Alex's ex-girlfriend, and his mentor and close friend, I can understand why she held that in so that the other two could stay focused.
Alex went to the DA. He took a plea bargain. He's going to prison.
Miranda
We're left with this Alex bombshell, and it's at the end of the hour. Now we'll most likely have to wait at least another week before we find out more. As I said, it led to some frustration.
I will say, one of the highlights of the episode was Dr. Aldridge.
Her attitude was less than desirable at first, but once we learned about the conditions she was forced to work with, it made sense why she was the way she was.
I really enjoyed her, from the second she realigned her own finger, to the moment Bailey offered her a job if she ever need a change of pace. I hope she takes her up on it. I wouldn't mind seeing her at GSM.
So what did you guys think of the episode?
Were you disappointed that it detoured from the Alex situation? Are you surprised that he took the plea deal? Would you like to see Eldridge at GMS? Was I too hard on this episode?
Hit up the comments below!
Don't forget, you can watch Grey's Anatomy online to catch up any time!
Check out the preview for Grey's Anatomy Season 13 Episode 11 below.
Jasmine Blu is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. She is an insomniac who spends late nights and early mornings binge-watching way too many shows and binge-drinking way too much tea. Her eclectic taste makes her an unpredictable viewer with an appreciation for complex characters, diverse representation, dynamic duos, compelling stories, and guilty pleasures. You'll definitely find her obsessively live-tweeting, waxing poetic, and chatting up fellow Fanatics and readers. Follow her on X.
