With Grey’s Anatomy season 20 nearing its conclusion, it has become apparent that the show dropped an all-important season 19 plot thread — at least for now. The cliffhanger ending of Grey’s Anatomy season 19 saw Dr. Simone Griffin (Alexis Floyd) ditched her wedding to be with fellow intern Dr. Lucas Adams (Niko Terho). Across the country, Dr. Miranda Bailey (Chandra Wilson) finally received a much-deserved Catherine Fox Award, just as Ellen Pompeo’s Dr. Meredith Grey announced to a room full of wealthy donors that everything they think they know about Alzheimer’s disease is wrong.
Thanks to its slim 10-episode order, Grey’s Anatomy season 20 focuses on the bigger picture…
While the twentieth installment of Shonda Rhimes’ long-running medical drama resolves several cliffhangers and continues a handful of season 19 stories, including the thread about Meredith’s groundbreaking (and subversive) Alzheimer’s research, it isn’t able to dig into every character’s life as fully. Thanks to its slim 10-episode order, Grey’s Anatomy season 20 focuses on the bigger picture and character dynamics more than backstory, though there are a few exceptions. Even so, the series has yet to revisit a crucial storyline involving Simone and her grandmother, Joyce Ward (Marla Gibbs).
Grey’s Anatomy Season 20 Hasn’t Revisited Simone Griffin’s Alzheimer’s Plotline
Simone’s Grandmother Joyce Ward Is Living With Alzheimer’s In Grey’s Anatomy Season 19
Although Joyce has only appeared in three episodes of Grey’s Anatomy, she’s positioned to have a huge impact on both her granddaughter and the series as a whole. When viewers are first introduced to Joyce, she’s seeing Simone off to work. Handing her a lunch bag, Joyce insists that she packed her granddaughter’s favorite meal. Upon opening the bag, Simone discovers a TV remote and other household items, though she pushes past her feelings and thanks her grandmother. In her second appearance, Joyce visits the hospital to see Simone’s mother, who died years ago during childbirth.
When Simone tries to intervene, Joyce becomes agitated, which prompts Meredith to step in…
During season 19, viewers learn that Simone was born at Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital, making her employment there a real full-circle moment. When Dr. Richard Webber (James Pickens, Jr.) notices that she seems distracted on her first day, Simone shares that her mother died at Grey Sloan — something Simone’s sister has always held against her. Being back is difficult, but it becomes even more challenging when a disoriented Joyce visits the hospital and asks for Simone’s late mother. When Simone tries to intervene, Joyce becomes agitated, which prompts Meredith to step in to calm Simone’s grandmother down.
With Just 10 Episodes, Grey’s Anatomy Season 20 Can’t Do Its Ensemble Justice
The Series Has Been Forced To Narrow Its Focus
Part of the reason Joyce becomes so agitated is that she believes Simone is her own daughter, Denise. When Simone tries to correct her grandmother and explain that Denise is gone, Joyce’s frustration and confusion only deepen. Notably, Grey’s Anatomy opened with Meredith, then an intern herself, navigating her own mother’s struggles with Alzheimer’s. Recognizing the signs, Meredith steps in and assures Joyce that they will find Denise. It isn’t true, but it deescalates the situation. Later, Meredith sits with Simone and listens to her talk about her grandmother’s symptoms, which have progressed rather rapidly.
Meredith shares her own Alzheimer’s story and gives Simone some crucial advice: She needs to play along with whatever Joyce’s reality is at the moment. Knowing it’s a challenging prospect, Meredith assures Simone that she’ll find it in herself to do so. Simone’s relationship with her grandmother is not only crucial to her character, but to the series at large, allowing for a kind of full-circle moment for Meredith, who’s able to pass on her knowledge. Unfortunately, the truncated season 20 has impacted the show’s ability to delve into over-arcing stories like this one.
Grey’s Anatomy Season 21 Must Explore Simone’s Relationship With Her Grandmother
Simone’s Relationship With Lucas Can’t Be Her Only Story
Where Simone is concerned, most of her season 20 screentime has revolved around her on-again, off-again connection with Lucas. While Grey’s Anatomy’s new Meredith and Derek-level relationship is intriguing, Simone’s relationship with Lucas cannot be her only story. The show has recently paired Simone with the sharp-witted and often-impatient Dr. Benson “Blue” Kwan (Harry Shum Jr.). Developing Simone’s relationship with another surgical intern has been a much-needed break from the angst of her love life, but Joyce’s absence from Grey’s Anatomy season 20 is rather glaring, especially in the wake of Simone’s failed wedding.
Grey’s Anatomy season 20, episode 7, suggests that a complex case involving a pregnant woman will dredge up Simone’s most painful feelings and memories.
Previously, Simone told Meredith that her grandmother was a mother figure — a crucial person who raised her. One of Simone’s biggest worries revolved around her grandmother returning to Grey Sloan time and again to search for Denise. While that doesn’t need to be a constant concern, it’s strange that Joyce hasn’t come up at all. Grey’s Anatomy season 20, episode 7, suggests that a complex case involving a pregnant woman will dredge up Simone’s most painful feelings and memories. While it’s possible Joyce will figure into the episode, it’s clear that Grey’s Anatomy season 21 needs to place a renewed focus on Simone and Joyce’s relationship.
Meredith Grey’s Alzheimer’s Story Is Still A Crucial Part Of Grey’s Anatomy
Simone’s Grandmother Could Factor Into Meredith’s Alzheimer’s Research
In addition to caring for her mother, Dr. Ellis Grey (Kate Burton), Meredith has previously been involved in several Alzheimer’s-related threads. Notably, she assisted her late husband, Dr. Derek Shepherd (Patrick Dempsey), with a clinical trial — only to completely skew the results by giving Webber’s wife, Adele (Loretta Devine), special treatment. More recently, Meredith’s oldest child, Zola (Aniela Gumbs), has navigated anxiety around Meredith developing the genetic disease. That anxiety is part of what pushes Meredith to leave Seattle and pursue Alzheimer’s research with the Catherine Fox Foundation.
It’s possible Meredith’s research will intersect with Simone’s grandmother, giving Meredith a chance to redeem her clinical trial mishap.
In Grey’s Anatomy season 20, Meredith enlists the help of her sister-in-law and acclaimed neurosurgeon Dr. Amelia Shepherd’s (Caterina Scorsone) to further her groundbreaking research. As seen in the season 19 finale, Meredith’s theories about Alzheimer’s will completely upend leading medical research, positioning the thread as an incredibly important one for future seasons. It’s possible Meredith’s research will intersect with Simone’s grandmother, giving Meredith a chance to redeem her clinical trial mishap. Moreover, by helping Simone navigate her grandmother’s Alzheimer’s disease — both personally and medically — Meredith’s Grey’s Anatomy story would have a satisfying full-circle moment.