We’re only a few weeks away from Grey’s Anatomy’s return to the 2024 TV schedule, where we’ll learn who exactly is still employed by Grey Sloan Memorial after some big moves in the Season 20 finale. However, the Seattle surgeons won’t be the only doctors in ABC’s house on Thursday nights. Ryan Murphy is bringing a new series to the Alphabet Network, with Doctor Odyssey also premiering on September 26.
While I’m excited to see Joshua Jackson practice medicine on the high seas, I can’t help but be a little put off that the rookie medical series is bumping Grey’s Anatomy from its timeslot. Let me explain why, as a Grey's fan, I’m concerned about the new Thursday lineup.
Can ABC Handle Two Medical Dramas On Thursday Nights?
Joshua Jackson will star in the freshman ABC series as Dr. Max Bankman, the new on-board doctor for a luxury cruise ship. He, the ship’s captain Robert Massey (Don Johnson), nurse Avery Morgan (Phillipa Soo) and nurse Tristan Silva (Sean Teale) will be faced with some unique crises as they navigate the seas miles from shore and a traditional operating room. This, to me, sounds like a great premise — and as far as medical dramas go, it’s definitely different from Grey’s Anatomy’s brand of hospital-oriented entertainment.
That said, with ABC’s Thursday nights kicking off with a two-hour Ryan Murphy block of the first responder drama 9-1-1 and then Doctor Odyssey at 9 p.m. ET, I’m concerned that audiences aren’t going to stick around for another doctor show. It’s a similar situation to when Grey’s Anatomy followed Private Practice, but in that case, Kate Walsh’s medical series was a spinoff that worked in tandem with Ellen Pompeo’s gig. And just look at what happened to Station 19.
Will Grey’s Anatomy Suffer Station 19’s Fate?
Grey’s Anatomy’s second TV spinoff Station 19 seemed to be going strong six seasons in, featuring multiple crossovers with the flagship series and together dominating Thursday night ratings. However, ahead of its seventh cycle, ABC announced that the 2024 season would be its last. For its final run, the firefighter drama was also bumped from its timeslot, into the same 10 p.m. ET space where Grey’s Anatomy is headed next month and being replaced by 9-1-1 — that’s right, a Ryan Murphy drama of the same genre. Sound familiar?
There’s also the question of what the pairing will mean for Doctor Odyssey. Will Joshua Jackson’s show benefit from Grey’s Anatomy’s existing fanbase, or will viewers remain loyal to Meredith Grey and opt not to add more medicine to their Thursdays? And how long will ABC give Doctor Odyssey to settle into its “Big Deck Energy” (the series’ words, not mine), when they’ve already got an established medical drama on the schedule?
Grey’s Anatomy’s New Timeslot Hasn’t Seen Consistency In Years
As I previously mentioned, I’m also not thrilled about seeing Grey’s Anatomy move to the 10 p.m. ET timeslot. How to Get Away with Murder was the last Thursday night show to hold that hour for more than one season, and that was when it was bolstered by other Shonda Rhimes brainchildren like Grey’s and Scandal.
Since How to Get Away with Murder ended after the 2019 season, the 10 p.m. hour has been held for one season each by A Million Little Things (which moved back to Wednesdays the next year), Big Sky (also moving to Wednesdays the year after), Alaska Daily (canceled after one season) and finally Station 19’s seventh and final season. Can Grey’s Anatomy break the trend, or will it too be moved or canceled next year?
The Shonda Rhimes Era On ABC Appears To Be Over
Grey’s Anatomy has always seemed pretty indestructible. Even a few years ago when Ellen Pompeo was convinced it should end, ABC apparently wouldn’t hear of it because it was such a big moneymaker. However, with the show facing budget cuts for the network to shift its focus to new series, I wonder if there could be an expiration date on Grey’s after all.
Either way, the writing had been on the wall for a while, even before the cancellation of Station 19, regarding the end of the Shonda Rhimes Thursday night era on ABC. In 2017 Rhimes parted ways with the company (she felt like she was “dying” on network television) and accepted a lucrative deal with Netflix. Station 19 was her final creation for the Alphabet Network.
When Grey’s Anatomy premieres in September, it will be the first time since 2008 that it’s not accompanied by at least one other Shonda Rhimes series. In 2009 Private Practice moved from Wednesdays to Thursdays, and after that our Thursday nights featured one or more of Scandal, How to Get Away with Murder and Station 19 to keep our favorite Seattle doctors company.
Is Ryan Murphy the new Shonda Rhimes? The queen is dead. Long live the king.
Of course, I would love for Doctor Odyssey to be a hit, and it’s certainly possible that all three Thursday night shows could help one another prosper. A rising tide lifts all boats, right? With the new drama taking place on the water, it seems like there’s such a huge opportunity to bring something unique to the world of medical TV. A cruise ship is such a great setting, too, and coming from the brain of Ryan Murphy, you just know we’re in for some wild times.
My big concern as a longtime Grey’s Anatomy fan is that there’s just so many things working against it this year — the budget cuts, the late timeslot, the loss of cast members and, yes, the competition with a young, fresh medical drama. I think I’m going to have trouble getting comfortable until we see how the ratings play out and what ABC decides to do going forward.
Be sure to tune in on Wednesday, September 26, as 9-1-1 kicks off its eighth season at 8 p.m. ET, followed by the premiere of Doctor Odyssey at 9 p.m. ET and then Grey’s Anatomy at 10 p.m. All three will be available to stream the next day with a Hulu subscription.
