Spoiler alert! This story discusses the Station 19 episode “Started from the Bottom” and Grey’s Anatomy’s “No Time to Die” from the winter premiere crossover.
The Grey’s Anatomy winter finale left multiple lives hanging in the balance, with Owen Hunt stuck in a vehicle that fell down a cliff, Megan Hunt’s son Farouk waiting on a donor heart, and David Montgomery failing to disclose an illness ahead of surgery. In the end, the longtime ABC medical drama did lose one of its series regulars, but it was surprisingly Cormac Hayes, played by Richard Flood, who announced his exit from the show, when he gave Miranda Bailey his notice during the most recent episode, “No Time to Die.”
Richard Flood joined the cast of Grey’s Anatomy in Season 16, with Cormac being a potential love interest for Meredith Grey. Now, Deadline reports that next week will be his final episode. Let’s take a look at why Cormac is leaving Grey-Sloan and some other plot points from the eventful winter premiere.
Cormac Quit Amid Moral Dilemma Over Doctor-Assisted Suicide
When Cormac told Miranda that he was leaving the hospital, he said it was because his children weren’t happy and they were moving back to Ireland. Really, though, it was Owen’s admission that he’d promised to help some fatally ill war veterans die with dignity that put Cormac in a morally compromising position. He told Owen that if he didn’t report it, he would become an accessory to a crime. When Owen said he still planned to go through with it, Cormac quit amid fear of the consequences he’d face for not reporting Owen.
Owen Hunt, Farouk Hunt, And David Montgomery All Survived
The three characters whose lives were in danger at the end of the winter finale all survived “No Time to Die.” Owen Hunt was in danger of losing his leg and/or paralysis, but the Station 19 crew did their jobs well in the first half of the crossover, and the surgeons took over from there. Despite Farouk’s donor heart being bruised in the car crash, Winston Ndugu and Maggie Pierce were able to complete the transplant successfully. And Meredith saved David’s life, though she and Kai Bartley gave him a stern talking to when he regained consciousness about how close he came to ruining their Parkinson’s research.
Levi Schmitt Was Traumatized After Losing His Patient In Winter Finale
Possibly the character to suffer the most trauma from the winter finale fallout was Levi Schmitt. After losing a patient on the table when he failed to call an attending during a solo surgery, Levi started scrubbing his hands … and didn’t stop. Multiple people came in to try to comfort him, but it wasn’t until Jo Wilson saw his bloody hands that she realized the severity of the situation. Miranda shut down the Webber Method of training, much to the dismay of Richard Webber, and it’ll be interesting to see how Levi comes back from this.
Jo Wilson And Link Took Their Relationship Out Of The Friend Zone
Speaking of Jo, she swooped right in after Link realized that Amelia Shepherd was moving on with Kai. Jo said Link had already mourned that relationship, and he should try to save himself from any unnecessary pain. You know what they say about the best way to get over somebody … Yeah, JoLink are firmly out of the friend zone now.
A lot was set up in the winter premiere for what’s to come on the back end of Season 18. Tune in next week to see how this all plays out. Station 19 airs at 8 p.m. ET Thursdays on ABC, followed by Grey’s Anatomy at 9 p.m. ET. Check out our 2022 TV Schedule to see what new and returning shows are premiering soon.
