CS Weekly Archive > DVD > 09/14/07

Routine Procedures

by jason davis

Grey's Anatomy: The Complete Third Season

Eric Buchman, Debora Cahn, Zoanne Clack, Allan Heinberg, Kip Koenig, Stacy McKee, Marti Noxon, Carolina Paiz, Tony Phelan, Shonda Rhimes, Joan Rater, Gabrielle Stanton, Chris Van Dusen, Krista Vernhoff, Harry Werksman, and Mark Wilding
Created by Shonda Rhimes

As Grey's Anatomy enters its third season, the hormonal medical drama seems to vacillate between the melodramatic excesses of General Hospital and the sweeps-bait spectacle of ER while taking time out to launch another entry into the television medical fraternity. Though the love triangle that fueled the first two seasons has petered out, surgical intern Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo) still heads the dysfunctional cast as she gets to know her estranged father (Jeff Perry) and continues to deal with her mother's Alzheimer's. Meanwhile, Izzie Stephens (Katherine Heigl) deals with her fiancé's death as Dr. Preston Burke (Isaiah Washington) tries to cover up a hand tremor that could kill his surgical patients. Creator Shonda Rhimes pens the two-part sweeps spectacular that finds a ferry colliding with a cargo ship, which launches the year's best ongoing narrative—the story of a disfigured amnesiac (Elizabeth Reasor) mirroring the regular cast's desire for a place to fit in. The year grinds to a halt with the double-length, and none-too-subtle, pilot for spin-off Peak Practice that will find Dr. Addison Montgomery (Kate Walsh) going to work with a cadre of Californian physicians with the same penchant for melodrama that pervades her Washington colleagues. The commentaries and featurettes are more sparsely equipped this year, but several episodes enjoy more breathing room with extended editions.

Scott Castle is one thesis shy of a master’s degree in film.  He’s written two short films, four television scripts, and a handful of short stories. He lives in Los Angeles.

Grey's Anatomy: The Complete Third Season courtesy Buena Vista Home Entertainment/Touchstone

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