Spoilers ahead for the midseason premiere of Grey's Anatomy.
The midseason premiere of Grey's Anatomy was an emotional rollercoaster. While there were some lighter plot lines for Bailey and the growing romance between Jackson and Maggie, all eyes were on Camilla Luddington's Jo. The midseason finale saw her abusive ex Paul (Matthew Morrison) show up at Grey Sloan Memorial, and absolutely shock the young surgeon. The newest episode saw Paul terrorize Jo in the hospital, and ended with him being admitted, following a horrifying car accident. And while we don't know who was responsible for the incident, Jo's confrontation with and divorce from Paul is going to positively affect the character. Luddington teased this herself, saying:
It's finally going to hopefully be a weight lifted off her shoulders. She has navigated through her life always looking over her shoulder and she can now be at peace with herself and feel free. That's what I've hoped for her since season nine when we revealed her past. It's been a long time coming for the character. Jo will let go and walk through some of the pain of her past that she, until now, had held back and not wanted to address. Filing for divorce was a step in the right direction. She's going to feel some relief.
Camilla Luddington's comments to THR seem to indicate that Jo's traumatic history of abuse is finally going to stop dictating her behavior. She's no longer in hiding from Paul, and she was able to tell him what a monster he truly is. Once the dust settles on Paul's mysterious car accident, it looks like Jo will finally be free of his influence.
Now the question is what the hell happened to Paul. Throughout the premiere episode, titled "1-800-799-7233", both Jo and Alex admitted that they'd like to see Paul dead. And since he threatened the couple and took their information, they certainly have plenty of motive to do something to Paul's car and land him in the hospital.
There's also a strong possibility that the accident was caused by his fiancee Jenny, played by One Tree Hill alum Bethany Joy Lenz. From she and Jo's conversation, it was clear that the cycle of abuse had already started between Jenny and Paul. And while she rejected Jo's offer to help and ultimately told her fiancee about their conversation, the trailer for the next episode makes her look pretty damn guilty.
It should be interesting to see how Paul's storyline is finished up on Grey's Anatomy. Jo coming face to face with her abuser has been anticipated for years now, and fans are no doubt happy to finally see it play out on screen. And while Grey's seems to be sending a message against domestic violence, now there's a new mystery to be solved.
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.
