Grey’s Anatomy season 16 episode 12 review: Catherine apologizes to Richard (sort of)

In a short-lived heartfelt moment between Richard and Catherine on this week’s Grey’s Anatomy, the words “I’m sorry” did make a brief appearance.

Whenever Grey’s Anatomy takes its main characters out of a hospital setting and places them around a dinner table, it’s obvious things are going to fall apart. And this week’s episode was no exception.

It was a doomed dinner before the hosts and their guests sat down to eat, since its disguise as an anniversary celebration had to stick the moment Jackson announced he had invited a plus one … who also invited her own plus one.

It’s pretty unconventional to use your anniversary dinner to announce that you’re separating, but in many ways, Richard and Catherine have never done things in a traditional fashion.

Some things never do change, though. After reminiscing about the night the two got engaged, Catherine approaches Richard to announce she’s having second thoughts about splitting up. He prompts her to apologize, which she almost — ALMOST — does without fault.

“I am sorry,” she says. “But …”

And that’s it. That’s when we all knew it was over. Because Catherine, never one to utter the absolute minimum, couldn’t stop herself at “I’m sorry.” And honestly? Good on Richard for not accepting the “but.”

It’s his rejection of her apology — no matter how sincere it may have been, at least at first — that brings the “real” Catherine back out into the open. Complete with an overly dramatic exit preceded only by — because what else? — a threat.

At this point, fans can’t help but question whether or not Catherine’s cancer storyline still holds any weight. It could have been a major turning point for her, a driving force for positive character development.

Instead, all viewers got was a brief mention of her scans coming back “clean” and her controlling personality overshadowing just about everyone and everything else around her, the exact same way it always has.

Where is all this drama going to lead? We already have a never-ending rivalry going between Jackson and Maggie; do we really need another between their parents?

There are plenty of predictable storylines that could end up with Catherine and Richard reconciling for good, and it’s impossible to tell which way Grey’s will go with it.

But since it’s rare the show keeps a couple truly happy for the long-term, it wouldn’t be surprising if this really was the end for them. As long as Richard and Gemma don’t become an item — it could technically still happen — it’s not enough of an upset to cause too much trouble. Yet.

One couple featured in this episode did get a happy ending of sorts. After learning that his uncle hid his true sexuality for his entire life, Levi finally decides to move out of his mother’s basement — and out from under her shame of his true identity.

This was a heartwarming step forward for one of our favorite interns, and a much-needed contrast to the Richard-Catherine drama. How it will fit in to his story moving forward is still up in the air. But a more confident Levi, especially in the operating room, is always a good sight to see.

Do you think Catherine and Richard are really over? Were you ever rooting for them? Did you see this disaster coming?