TO CLOSE

Shonda Rhimes is the mastermind behind television series like "Gray's Anatomy", "Scandal" and "How to Get Rid of Murder". After working for years with ABC Studios, Rhimes signed a contract with Netflix.
UNITED STATES TODAY & # 39; HUI

As a fan of "Gray's Anatomy", I'm used to hearing an exhausting and easily readable question from Google: "Is this show still relevant?"

Yes, that's it. And with the 332nd episode of Thursday (8 EST / PST), the ABC series surpasses "ER" as the oldest medical drama series.

Of course, this is not the audacity it once was and many original characters have left the series after being dying or not (but mostly dying). Nevertheless, Gray's pulse continues to beat, and there is no need for a defibrillator to resurrect the scenarios each season. Here's why:

1. An inexhaustible distribution

"Gray & # 39; s Anatomy" takes place at SeattleThe Gray Sloan Memorial Hospital (his last name, anyway), and focuses on members of a surgical residency program. These programs train surgeons before they are dispersed to other hospitals. Anyone can still find a job and leave, so it's easy to write someone (however, in the show, people tend to stay occasionally).

More: Ellen Pompeo on the historical episode of Gray's Anatomy, the video of Ariana Grande and the emails of Sandra Oh

Of course, it would be boring if the only The way the characters came out of the series was done by jumping jobs. The creator Shonda Rhimes killed so much that he became the target of jokes.

2. The will of his main wife to continue

Ellen Pompeo, blessed her heart, played Dr. Meredith Gray for 15 seasons. She has been wearing the series since her debut, first as a trainee and now general surgeon of rock star.

There is something gratifying to see someone cross the lowest (the death of her husband) and the highest (win a coveted surgical award).

Ellen Pompeo in ABC's "Gray's Anatomy". (Photo: Richard Cartwright, ABC)

3. The show evolves for the current climate

Just like "Law & Order", if you have seen it in the headlines, it is likely that you have already seen it in "Gray's". The series has intrigued everything from sexual conversion surgery to the reverberant effects of racism. This is not limited to patient cases: Last season, writers tackled the #MeToo movement head-on with a plot featuring the prestigious surgeon Harper Avery (Chelcie Ross). After his death on the screen, it was revealed that a group of women he had sexually harassed with signed DNAs.

4. Resurgence of streaming

Thanks to Netflix, Hulu and other services, fans can discover all kinds of series. In the case of "Gray's Anatomy", viewers have a lot to catch up with – and they do it anyway. Younger viewers were introduced to the series via Netflix. This helped keep "Gray's" at the forefront of ABC dramas until another medical drama, "The Good Doctor", was presented to the audience. autumn 2017.

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