Jump to content

A Hard Day's Night (Grey's Anatomy)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by 108.4.139.227 (talk) at 12:08, 12 March 2022 (Plot). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

"A Hard Day's Night"
Grey's Anatomy episode
The cast of the first season of Grey's Anatomy, excluding Alex, all of whom appear in the pilot episode.
Episode no.Season 1
Episode 1
Directed byPeter Horton
Written byShonda Rhimes
Featured music"Cosy in the Rocket"
"Portions for Foxes"
"Super Cool"
"They"
"Dance"
"Ready to Rise"
"Life is Short"
"Into the Fire"
Original air dateMarch 27, 2005 (2005-03-27)
Running time43 minutes
Guest appearances
  • Kate Burton as Ellis Grey
  • Moe Irvin as Tyler Christian
  • Martin Ighani as Rectal Exam Patient
  • Billy Wood as Senior Resident
  • Josh Bywater as Intern No. 1
Episode chronology
← Previous
Next →
"The First Cut Is the Deepest"
Grey's Anatomy (season 1)
List of episodes

"A Hard Day's Night" is the pilot episode of the American television medical drama Grey's Anatomy, which first aired on March 27, 2005 on the American Broadcasting Company (ABC).[1] The episode introduces main characters and surgical interns Meredith Grey, Cristina Yang, Izzie Stevens, Alex Karev and George O'Malley.[2][3] Other main cast members include Derek Shepherd, Miranda Bailey, Richard Webber and Preston Burke.[4] These five interns become faced with what their future holds as they enter the realm of surgery at Seattle Grace Hospital.[2]

The episode was watched by an American audience of 16.25 million,[5] and received positive reviews from television critics.[6]

Plot

This chronicles the first 48-hour shift for the new surgical interns. Meredith (Ellen Pompeo) meets Derek Shepherd (Patrick Dempsey), with whom she had a one-night stand the night before,[7] and discovers he's the new attending and chief of neurosurgery at Seattle Grace, and also her "boss".[8] All the interns are introduced to their resident in charge, Miranda Bailey (Chandra Wilson), nicknamed "The Nazi" for her serious demeanor and strictness.[9] They are also introduced to the Chief of Surgery Richard Webber (James Pickens Jr.) and the head of cardiothoracic surgery Preston Burke (Isaiah Washington), who catches the eye of Cristina (Sandra Oh).[10] Meredith has trouble with her first case, a teenage girl who's having unexplained seizures. Izzie (Katherine Heigl) dislikes Meredith, as she thinks she's trying to "get ahead" by sleeping with an attending surgeon;[11] it is revealed Izzie had a past career as a model, which is how she put herself through medical school,[12] and she is teased by Alex (Justin Chambers). George (T. R. Knight) earns the nickname "007" ("license to kill") after botching his first surgery, an appendectomy, when he inverted the stump and pulled too hard on the sutures, tearing the bowel (the patient was saved by Dr Burke).

Meredith is the daughter of acclaimed surgeon Ellis Grey (Kate Burton),[13] who evidently had an affair with Richard years before, while married to Meredith's father, Thatcher.[14] Ellis is now battling Alzheimer's disease and Meredith constantly and secretly visits her.[15]

Production

The voice-over starting the episode did not originally appear in the episode; Rhimes said: "In the editing room, it felt like a piece was missing, so we added it."[16]

Reception

ReviewStream.com gave positive reviews regarding the pilot episode, due to the undeniable chemistry between Ellen Pompeo and Patrick Dempsey from the series' first scene.[6] Regarding Miranda Bailey's appearance in the pilot, ReviewStream.com stated "She's such a small woman but wait until she speaks".[6] HomeTheaterInfo.com, however, had a mixed perspectives on the pilot, noting that the storylines were similar to fellow ABC series Desperate Housewives, but also "brilliantly written, extremely well acted and directed to near perfection".[17] New York Daily News named Grey's Anatomy a "winner" in response to its first season,[18] whereas Newsday expressed a positive opinion by stating "You simply can't stop watching."[18]

References

  1. ^ "Grey's Anatomy Episode Guide 2005 Season 1 - A Hard Day's Night". Retrieved 25 June 2012.
  2. ^ a b "Grey's Anatomy - Season 1, Episode 1: A Hard Day's Night - TV.com". Retrieved 25 June 2012.
  3. ^ "About the Show - Grey's Anatomy - ABC.com". Retrieved 25 June 2012.
  4. ^ "Grey's Anatomy Cast & Character Bios - ABC.com". Archived from the original on 25 June 2012. Retrieved 25 June 2012.
  5. ^ "Weekly Program Rankings". ABC Medianet. March 29, 2005. Retrieved 25 June 2012.
  6. ^ a b c "Grey's Anatomy Season 1 Pilot Episode A Hard Day's Night Out". reviewstream.com. Retrieved 25 June 2012.
  7. ^ "Derek Shepherd - Biography - Meredith and Derek Online". Archived from the original on 25 June 2012. Retrieved 25 June 2012.
  8. ^ "Meredith Grey - Biography - Meredith and Derek Online". Archived from the original on 9 February 2012. Retrieved 25 June 2012.
  9. ^ "Miranda Bailey - Grey's Anatomy". Retrieved 25 June 2012.
  10. ^ "Cristina Yang Bio - TV Fanatic". Retrieved 25 June 2012.
  11. ^ "Izzie Stevens Bio - TV Fanatic". Retrieved 25 June 2012.
  12. ^ "Izzie Stevens - Grey's Anatomy character Izzie Stevens". Retrieved 25 June 2012.
  13. ^ "Meredith Grey Bio - TV Fanatic". Retrieved 25 June 2012.
  14. ^ "Richard Webber (James Pickens, Jr.) Bio - Grey's Anatomy - ABC.com". Archived from the original on 3 March 2011. Retrieved 25 June 2012.
  15. ^ "Richard Webber - Grey's Anatomy". Retrieved 25 June 2012.
  16. ^ Oldenburg, Ann (April 26, 2006). "'Anatomy' has all the right parts". USA Today. Gannett Company. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
  17. ^ "Grey's Anatomy: Season One". HomeTheaterInfo.com. Retrieved May 15, 2012.
  18. ^ a b The reviews by New York Daily News and Newsday can be found on the DVD's back cover.