Warning: spoilers ahead for the winter finale of Station 19 Season 4, called "Out of Control."
Station 19 wrapped its run in 2020 with an intense winter finale that could change the shared Grey's Anatomy universe forever. When the heroes of 19 were faced with the dilemma of whether or not to take action as civilians when the police weren't responding to the possible scene of a kidnapping, they eventually chose to intervene, and Miller and Sullivan wound up arrested for their efforts. According to one Station 19 star, characters will have to start reevaluating relationships now.
Barrett Doss, who plays Vic Hughes on Station 19, spoke with ET about the winter finale and the aftermath of Miller and Sullivan's arrests:
I can't say too much. What I will say is that it forces a call to reexamine our relationships to the job, and in some cases, to each other. It brings in a lot of questions that I don't think we've touched on, on our show. We focus so much on what brings these characters together and what keeps them united as a team, we haven't talked a lot about what makes them different from each other and those fundamental differences that some of us walk around with. We have queer characters on our show. We have Black characters on our show. We have mixed race characters on our show. These are things that we haven't touched on with that much specificity and we are getting into those conflicts and how some of our identities might rub up against the reality of doing our jobs and being able to do our jobs well. That's what I can say about where this goes.
"Out of Control" was an atypical episode of Station 19 (and not actually much of a crossover despite the hype), in that the firefighters of 19 spent almost the entire episode in civvies. A panicked mother begged for their help, but she didn't have confirmation that her daughter was actually being held inside of the house, and they didn't actually have cause to break in and stage a rescue that might not have been needed. Tensions continued to rise, and the girls eventually started a fire from inside the house to justify breaking in.
But the crisis wasn't over. The white cops who eventually arrived on the scene chose to listen to the white kidnapper's demands that the girls be arrested for starting a fire in his house, and weren't exactly being gentle in questioning the girls about their ordeal. The situation escalated when the firefighters started arguing with the cops, who began using excessive force and even drew their weapons. Miller and Sullivan were arrested for obstruction of justice and breaking and entering to save the girls.
The dynamic of the 19 crew is going to have to change when Station 19 returns with two members arrested, and they were already facing some harsh realities in the winter finale as they tried to resolve the situation. Miller broke out some scary statistics about violence against Black women and girls, with Vic speaking up as well. As much as 19 is a cohesive unit when it comes to saving the day, they're different characters who come from different backgrounds and react to situations differently. No wonder relationships will have to be reexamined after the winter finale!
"Out of Control" wasn't the first time in Station 19 Season 4 that the firefighters realized that law enforcement wasn't necessarily on their side, which actually led me to suspect that the show is slowly but surely working to launch another Grey's Anatomy spinoff based on police, a la what NBC has going on with One Chicago. After the winter finale, however, I'm just hoping that Miller and Sullivan aren't punished in the long run for doing the right thing. Sullivan has had a hard enough season already, and Miller is dealing with some challenges on the home front when it comes to his estranged family and his baby daughter.
Unfortunately, viewers are in for a wait before finding out what happens next for Sullivan, Miller, Vic, and the rest. Station 19 and Grey's Anatomy won't return with their winter premieres until Thursday, March 4 on ABC. For some viewing options in the meantime, be sure to check out our 2021 winter and spring premiere schedule.
