The long-running series Grey’s Anatomy has concluded its 18th season and is heading into its 19th season. If you’ve been around this long, you’re probably just going to accept the wacky things going on at Gray Sloan Hospital. But if we stop and think about it, it’s pretty crazy that Meredith is now related to almost everyone in the hospital is.
Grey’s Anatomys Family Tree: In Season 1, everything was so easy for Meredith
Do you remember the very early Grey’s Anatomy? Admittedly, it’s been more than 17 years since the start of series production, which is why the memory of those who were there from the beginning is perhaps as hazy as the field of vision just before the surgical anesthetic. But I’m sure you remember that everything was relatively simple back then was.
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Meredith family tree in Season 1/2 of Grey’s Anatomy
Meredith (Ellen Pompeo) arrived at (then) Seattle Grace Hospital as a young medical student. As an only child, she had “normal” colleagues in the first two seasons only two parents: Ellis Gray (Kate Burton) and Thatcher (Jeff Perry). So far, so manageable.
Grey’s Anatomy’s Sudden Sisters: Meredith’s Family Grows Horizontally
But the longer a full-staff show like Grey’s Anatomy goes on, the more its characters bond. Friendships alone are suddenly no longer enough to drive up the drama. Kinship increases sympathy, was the motto. And that wasn’t just referring to Meredith’s eventually solidified relationship with Post-It husband Derek Shepherd (Patrick Dempsey).
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Grey’s Anatomys middle seasons: Meredith’s relatives grow horizontally
Instead, the same three new sisters pulled out of a hat into Meredith’s life to enrich her Grey’s Anatomy existence. Lexie (Chyler Leigh) owed the doctor as a half-sister from season 3 to her mostly absent father and his new family. Amelia (Caterina Scorsone) appeared in Season 7/8 as a “sister by marriage” (ie Derek’s sibling). And child prodigy Maggie (Kelly McCreary) turned out to be the available-for-adoption affair product of mentor Richard and Meredith’s mother. Yes, it was getting weird. And here we sweep the other siblings of the new sisters (who didn’t play a major role in the series) under the carpet.
Kinship meltdown: Meredith’s hospital family tree explodes (including temporary inbreeding)
Meredith and Derek adopting a child (Zola) and having two (Bailey and Ellis) themselves was the most natural thing to do afterwards family growthwhen it came to expanding the Grey’s Anatomy family tree, which was rampant in the hospital.
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Grey’s Anatomy: The overview is lost
Because the other couples were constantly separating and looking for new partners, a Meredith relationship could soon be traced to almost every person in a white coat.
Through such amalgamations, it could sometimes close Grey’s Anatomy internal “Incest” come: when long-dating Maggie and Jackson (Jesse Williams) were suddenly “siblings” through their romantically linked parents Richard (James Pickens Jr.) and Catherine (Debbie Allen). Did that make Meredith an accomplice? Was she secretly her own grandmother through time travel? Not quite. But at this point, no one would have been surprised.
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Extended after Derek’s death in Season 11 changing love interests Meredith’s romantic spectrum. She could only have one goal: to achieve world domination through relationships. And it was all supposed to start at Gray Sloan Hospital. Those who could not be made compliant by marriage had to grovel before her as a mentor. For the hospital offspring, the unattainable Dr. Gray nicknamed “Medusa” therefore monster and mother at the same time.
The Grey’s Anatomy conspiracy: The current marital status in season 18 gives food for thought
Was that why those who didn’t have family ties to Meredith were written off the show? We do not know it. Even if Ellen Pompeo once bare threats announced: “Anyone who misbehaves will be murdered.”
When looking at the main characters of Grey’s Anatomy at the end of season 18 seems now really the whole staff with Meredith Grey related (or subject to it) – be it by marriage, divorced, cheated on or otherwise attached. Most of Meredith’s older blood relatives have now died out. Which makes Meredith the matriarch. Your name is already on the hospital anyway. And on the series. Coincidence? Has Meredith’s Anatomy always worked towards this?
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Grey’s Anatomy: Meredith’s diabolical plans under the microscope
Some Grey’s Anatomy relationships are easier to spot than others as things stand, but we’ve deduced them for you:
Jo Wilson (Camilla Luddington) and Levi Schmitt (Jake Borelli) appear to be the only remaining characters in the main cast of Grey’s Anatomy in Season 18, to whom Meredith has always been a mentor but never a relative. Are you already on the hit list? Or will there be a rethink?
One thing is certain: In season 19, four new young doctors (Niko Terho, Midori Francis, Adelaide Kane and Harry Shum Jr.) will come to the hospital. Meredith, in turn, wants to reduce her hours (to 8 episodes). So is the star of the Grey’s family dynasty fading? Or will she continue to pull the strings off-screen?
Grey’s Anatomy Podcast: Where Does Success Come From? In the Grey’s Anatomy Browsing Stream podcast, we check the long-running hit series for its vitals:
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What do we love about Grey’s Anatomy, what are the highlights from over 16 years, what annoys us now and why can’t we just keep our hands off it?
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What are your thoughts on the Meredith Grey’s Family Tree Conspiracy Big Family Hospital?