A windstorm stirs up drama on the midseason premiere of Grey’s Anatomy

Grey’s Anatomy picks up right where it left off  — with three elevators stuck in limbo and the people trapped inside them desperate to escape before lives are lost.

Before Grey’s Anatomy went on its winter hiatus, Grey-Sloan Memorial was rattled by a terrible windstorm, one that wiped out the power and caused a shutdown in the elevators. Thus leaving Andrew and Meredith stuck in one, Bailey, Helm, and their organ donor Phoebe in another, and Teddy, Owen, and Amelia in the third.

Elevator #1: Phoebe, Bailey, & Helm

Phoebe, the victim of a fatal selfie stick accident, is the answer to saving Cece, since she will be the one donating organs to the beloved matchmaker but she can only be of so much assistance while in an elevator with a panicked Bailey and Helm.

Both women are suffering from anxiety attacks triggered by being stuck in an elevator and Helm’s fanatical catastrophizing only pushes Bailey closer and closer to a stress-induced breakdown. As someone who has suffered from anxiety her entire life, I thought Helm’s spiral was hauntingly realistic and along some of the same thinking I deal with on a regular basis (particular involving elevators).

More from ABC

• Dancing with the Stars season 32 week 9 scorecard: Who went home on DWTS?
• Roger Howarth is leaving General Hospital (Cast exit explained)
• Taylor Swift won’t appear in special Dancing with the Stars episode
• ABC will start rolling out its midseason schedule January 2024 (Release dates and airtimes)
• Grey’s Anatomy season 20 officially has a premiere date (Everything to know)

Their panicked pleas do eventually get them rescued when the business owner (Jay), Jackson, and Link use assorted materials to bust open the doors.

Except, after the grand rescue mission, Jay almost loses his legs with a shocking Final Destination-like twist. We see bone and everything as his limbs are snapped, hanging on only by the barest inch of sinew. Grey’s Anatomy never did do subtly well.

Unfortunately, while Jay survives, Cece doesn’t. Her impact at the hospital will be felt for a long time to come, especially for Meredith who tells her as much in her impromptu eulogy where she admits she is happier than she’s been in a long time thanks to Cece’s help and advice.

Elevator #2: Amelia, Owen, & Teddy

Teddy’s secret is finally out in its entirety. She’s having Owen’s baby and Amelia is going to have to learn to process that. More so, Owen needs to figure out what the heck he wants once and for all.

All three parties involved have some serious choices to make and perhaps making them over a bloody impromptu trauma surgery while crammed in an elevator is not the best time or place but you do what you have to do to save lives I guess.

Elevator #3: Andrew & Meredith

The chemistry between Gianniotti and Pompeo is sizzling hot. Sorry Link, I don’t mind you but I can’t see you being real competition for that. The heavy banter, the will they/won’t they, the smoldering gazes, I was fanning myself while watching this and I’m not the one trapped in a stuffy 6×6 room.

Not only do Andrew and Meredith flirt in Italian and almost kiss, but they also get to know each other better on a genuine level. Andrew talks about his father, a surgeon with a mental illness who killed several of his patients but never got held accountable due to his status. The gravity of his privilege has not been lost on Andrew and he still grapples with how to deal with his troubled family balance.

If anyone can relate to daddy issues, it’s Meredith Grey.

But just before these two get to indulge in what looks like a too-steamy-for-network-television-kiss, the elevator doors open and we get left with our tongues hanging out, (not unlike Deluca anytime he glances at Meredith).

Odds & Ends

• I’m not a fan of Owen and I’m not invested in Amelia/Owen or Teddy/Owen (I’d rather see Teddy/Amelia to be honest) but it was impressive of Amelia to say, flat-out, that Owen should consider what he wants because the back-and-forth is getting tired and they’re all mature adults. It’s time to grow up and make a decision.
• Bye Betty! There was nothing wrong with you but the storyline never clicked, I hope she stays in rehab for a while.
• What is going on with Link’s hair? Honestly I preferred the longer locks.
• I love watching Meredith torment Link and Andrew. I admit it’s a little similar to the old Vet!Finn/Derek triangle but it’s the kind of gleeful, playful, Meredith we haven’t gotten the chance to see in a long time.
• Nico and Levi are so cute, I’m rooting for them and I loved the fake-out with Alex’s speech actually being about them  finding a room with a locked door. Reminds me of the old days when Alex was the one frequenting the on-call rooms with his preferred nurse of the week (though I prefer the newer, grown-up, and kinder Alex much better).

Meredith and Link bump heads over a patient, while Maggie grows concerned about Catherine’s diagnosis on an all-new episode of ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy, Thursday, January 24th.