Spoilers ahead for the midseason premiere of Grey's Anatomy.
After an excruciating hiatus, ABC's Grey's Anatomy finally returned tonight. And while the conclusion of the cyber terrorist plot line was exciting enough, Grey's fans were also treated to another highly anticipated storyline. Because the Season 14 midseason finale ended with Jo's abusive husband Paul (Glee's Matthew Morrison) showing up at Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital. Fans waited years to finally see Jo confront her abuser face to face, and the episode didn't disappoint. Jo and Paul had some extremely harrowing scenes, and it all ended with Paul being admitted into the hospital after a car accident.
The episode, titled "1-800-799-7233" (after the abuse hotline of the same number), picked up exactly where the shocking cliffhanger left off. Paul is in the hospital, and he brought his wife Jenny (One Tree Hill's Bethany Joy Lenz). While he's there to help sign the divorce papers which should free her from his influence, she's all but paralyzed with fear. She eventually departs to tend to her surgeon, during which both Alex and Meredith come face to face with her abuser, and quickly rally to Jo's side.
This was one of the highlights of the episode-- seeing Meredith really advocate for Jo. She became Jo's person for the day, helping to ensure her safety while keeping Alex firmly away from Paul. Meredith has never been a big fan of Jo, and it's nice to see that the years have finally brought them together.
Eventually Arizona is brought onto the scene, and helps distract Paul long enough for Jo to appeal to his wife, and offer her help. Although the couple departs after another confrontation, a cliffhanger arose when Paul showed up after sustaining injuries from a car accident. Now the question is: exactly what happened to him?
The trailer for next episode seems to indicate that there are a few possibilities. Meredith's first thought was that Jo and Alex teamed up to cause the accident. They certainly have cause, as Paul took their information and promised to be back for revenge. But there's also the possibility that Jenny could have been involved. While she wasn't able to leave Paul and take Jo's advice, maybe she took drastic measures to free herself of her abuser. We'll just have to wait until the next episode to find out.
Aside from Jo's plotline with Paul, there were a few more interesting developments from the rest of the cast. Maggie and Jackson's flirtation reached a fever pitch after a steamy locker room scene. One of the new interns helped the hospital's emergency and came out as a trans man to Bailey, which was an unexpectedly sweet moment. Oh, and Arizona and DeLuca's sister are still flirting like crazy.
Grey's Anatomy airs Thursdays on ABC. In the meantime, check out our midseason premiere list to plan your next binge watch, and our cancellation list to see if your favorite show got the chop last year.
