Tonight's episode of Grey's Anatomy -- presumably centered around the long-awaited wedding between Jo and Link -- brings back the usual anxieties and curiosities about yet another ceremony with the potential to end in disaster. Not all Grey's Anatomy weddings themselves are over-the-top dramatic, but when they are, they're as memorable as ever.
Take April and Matthew's first wedding ceremony, which ended with April and Jackson running off together instead. Who could ever forget that one? Bailey and Warren's wedding, however, required some quick refreshing before I sat down to write this post. It's not quite as memorable. Not because their love story isn't iconic, but because -- despite Bailey taking a minute to actually get there -- they're one of the few couples on the show who are still together all these years later. For now? No, we won't go there. I've no time today for nonsense.
Jo and Alex's wedding dned up taking place on a ferry boat because they accidentally locked themselves in a shed and missed their original ceremony. Most of us remember that one, too, mostly because of the way Alex ended up leaving the show, and the supposed love of his life. But still. Do you remember Teddy and Owen's wedding? I didn't. These two are somehow still together, though how that's possible is the real mystery here.
Take your pick: Cristina leaving Burke at the alter. Meredith and Derek's Post-It Note "wedding" followed by the jarring discovery of the identity of the bus accident victim (if you know you know, and yes, I was shocked to be reminded that these two things happened one after the other). Callie and Arizona marrying on broadcast television, which was iconic back then in more ways than one.
A Grey's wedding isn't just a feel-good event. It has become defined as the moment that changes everything for at least one of the show's characters, whether that ends up being the people getting married or not. Something is going down at Jo and Link's wedding. Something always does. But it always leads to a pivotal choice that defines a character's trajectory thereafter. Remember Simone's choice not to marry Trey? Look at her now. Much happier with someone new, but also much more confident in her future career.
Whether this will go down in Grey's history as one of the most iconic weddings of all time or one of the most mundane, all things considered -- well, I can't tell you that yet. But I can tell you that I'm probably just as terrified for the safety and well-being of everyone involved as the rest of you.