Calzona Review 12x04 "Old Time Rock n Roll"
"You might be surprised but anatomy classes can be uncomfortable for surgeons. We're trained to put bodies back together. We prefer our tissue warm. Alive. Usually when a surgeon is staring at dead tissue, it means that something is very very wrong."
Still reeling from the awesomeness of this episode. Grey's magic is all over this ep as it made me cry and then laugh and then amazed and then awed in all its airtime minutes. That kind of effect by old Greys episodes. All i can say is that Greys is back to its old awesome self.
Excellent writing and directorial credits go to Austin Guzman and Nicole Rubio. The episode was supremely engaging. No dull moment at all.
And it's not just a lead-in for the much talked about 250th 'Who's coming to dinner" episode. This episode stands proudly on its own with its magnificent writing and excellent directing.
The Callie Arizona saga makes a soft-sharp turn in this ep and much as i Iove for them to be together , it was bittersweet and fun to watch them get on with this new chapter in their lives as exes. It's the stage where they're friends, and it's time to meet the new girl in the other's life.
I didn't quite know how to react to the encounter between Aprizona and Callie.
First, i was taking in all of Arizona's and April's jitters about going to the dinner party at la casa de seestra grey-shepherd, worried if Callie and Jackson were coming.
I felt a flutter in my tummy when Arizona was worried about whether Callie was to bring her new girlfriend. It was sad that Callie had moved on without her but it was kind of fun to see her jealous or bothered by this new chapter in Callie's life. It is rare that we see her jealous. It was always Callie who had bouts with the jealousy pangs.
Clever how April asked about Penny and Arizona asked about Jackson, in a scene that made my heart beat loudly, and made me hysterical.
Just seeing Callie and Arizona in a scene like that makes me blush. Goodness, i'm still here for the sparks even if they're estranged.
April: Are u going? Please tell me youre going
Arizona: I don't know . I mean, Callie's gonna be there.
April: Since when was that an issue?
Arizona: It's not. I don't wanna make her girlfriend feel uncomfortable. You know, intimidated by me. I mean if she's bringing her out. You know if she's bringing her, Do you?
April: Well she's right over there. Do you want me to ask her if she's bringing her girlfriend?
Arizona: Yes, please
April: You ask about Jackson, I'll ask about Penny.
Callie: Hey, about that thing tonight, im not sure any of them cook. Should I bring food just in case? I dont wanna starve.
Arizona: I think its gonna be fine. Do you know if Jackson's coming tonight?
Callie: No idea
April: Are you bringing Penny?
Callie: Oh! I hadn't. Oh i didn't know if you would be okay with that. And uh I didnt want it to be awkward or uncomfortable for her. You know.
Arizona: Okay. Me? Oh I'm fine. Are you kidding? Bring her. Totally .. Bring her cause ...i wanna meet her. I think that we all want to meet her . Yeah i mean not just me. Mostly me..
April: I would really love to meet her
Callie: I will see if she's available
Arizona: Cool!
Arizona : See i can do this. I can do this. I'm excited. It's cool. I'm cool.
April: Cool people don't say they're cool
In truth, seeing a Calzona scene nowadays is like worth much more than gold.
My take on this scene:
1. Callie purposely didnt consider bringing Penny because she was concerned about Arizona's reaction. And that was very thoughtful and kind of her. Just like in episode 2, where she didnt want to tell Arizona about Penny. See, Callie still cares about Arizona and doesnt want to hurt her at this stage. How sweet.
2. Arizona was funnily defensive and was in panic, struggling for words to not appear like she was bothered or jealous. It was not in her plan to be caught off guard but she was. The opposite of what she wanted happened. She had to have pride, and then some. Face to face with Callie, of course she had to show that she was okay with the new girlfriend, even going overboard saying she really wanted to meet her.
I honestly was so overwhelmed by this scene and was laughing so much at how Arizona struggled to put up an unaffected front, but ended up like she so wanted to meet Penny.
thank goodness bestie April saved her from the awkward struggle by saying "I would really love to meet her"
I wanted to hug April.
Jessica pulled off this bittersweet hilarious scene so well, one of the many brilliant scenes she had in this episode.
3. Callie was so pure in her surprise and delight in that Arizona wanted to meet her new girl. And she is so radiant in this scene. Gosh, she must really be in love.
The only concern that Callie had was about bringing food to the dinner party. She was doubtful if the grey-shepherd seestras could even cook, so when Arizona and April brought up the subject of inviting Penny, she liked the idea and decided to ask if Penny was available. Finally, her friends could meet her new girlfriend.
All was fine.
But not fine for me :)
Effect of this scene:
In a nutshell, this scene made me excited, thrilled to see them talk to each other about the new girl,then made me laugh so hard, then made me want to shed tears. I don't know why.
Doctor Sweetheart and Abe
A very interesting part of the episode was the encounter between Arizona (called sweetheart by Abe and she corrected it to Dr Sweetheart) and 90 year old patient Abe, who was part of the silver flood at Grey Sloan, caused by an accident involving senior citizens.
Abe had an incidental chat with Arizona and served as inspiration to Arizona, his love chronicle was something that Arizona needed to hear at a time like this. They had a brief but meaningful talk over cups of jello.
He was 85 when he met the love of his life and he was set to propose. He even showed off the ring to Arizona, who was all so mesmerized by Abe's romantic description of his proposal plan and with Abe's loving description of the girl of his dreams, Gabby. Arizona was paged so she had to leave and thus cut short the conversation.
The talk, however had ceased permanently with Abe's unexpected passing on.
This short, fun conversation though, had hit Arizona hard. After checking on Gabby's (Abe's girlfriend) status and Owen assured her she'll be taken care of, she didn't realize how it affected her until she was in the supply closet where she broke down in tears.
Jessica played this part so well with the step by step stages of tears that developed into a downright bawling.
Before i talk about how cute Arizona was when she started to cry, i need to reflect first on her talk with Abe.
We saw her obviously upset or worried but feigning happiness about Callie's new gf at the beginning of the ep.
This was picking up from her reaction about the girl in episode two where she defensively told Callie , "you can tell me, Callie , you can always tell me.."
Maybe she was trying to suppress the feeling of loneliness or being left behind. She was trying to appear strong to everyone especially to Callie. She didn't want to be pitied.
There was her ex-wife Callie who apparently had already totally moved on and seemed to have found someone she adored a lot; and here she was, all alone with no love life to speak of.
If we look back at the past season where Callie had several short-lived romantic entanglements, Arizona was centered on her career and her self growth. She did not have a romantic relationship after all the not-so-pleasant relationships she had. Leah was the last one we knew of on-screen, and we never really saw her yearn or search for anyone.
She seemed to be satisfied with focusing on her second specialization--fetal surgery and was busy helping out her mentor conquer her brain tumor. It was laudable that she had no succeeding partners even if Callie had.
On our part, we knew we wouldn't have been able to withstand seeing her again with another girl. It was just too much for us to handle at the time.
Now that Callie had seemed to find someone who was worthy of her, maybe Arizona had a mixture of feeling left out or alone, combined with the feeling of not finding anyone worthy of her love yet.
Her brief chat with Abe triggered those emotions, so when she finally found solace, while gathering surgical necessities at the supply closet, that's when she let it all out.
The Supply Closet Chronicles Part 2
Arizona was distraught. I could only guess that maybe she was very sad about Abe and a love story cut short by death, or maybe she felt sorry for herself or maybe she thought that when she finally had someone inspire her to find hope in love again, he was suddenly gone.
Good thing bestie April entered the supply closet and comforted the dreary Arizona.
April: What happened?
Arizona: Nothing I'm fine
April: What happened?
Arizona: I don't even know why Im crying. He wasn't even my patient. He wasn't even a baby. He was 90.
April: Who was 90?
Arizona: Abe. He was..in love. He met the love of his life when he was 85 and he was gonna propose to her but he died.
April: I'm sorry
Arizona: I felt that i could talk to him forever. He made me feel like.. I never really believed that I'd find love again. Not anything real or true. I thought i had it, i screwed up and that was over. Then he was madly in love at 85. And that is proof that there is more love out there. And Callie might have found hers, and I can find mine, even if It's in 60 years.
April: But I don't wanna find my soulmate when Im 90. I met mine already and he wants a divorce.
Sarah Drew's/April's perfect segue was so hilarious that my emotions for Arizona turned to a howl of laughter for what I knew would be a punchline waiting to be said...
Arizona: Oh sweetie, this is about me. This isn't about you.
Before i say how much this scene made me cry and laugh again, I have to mention these points to remember from Arizona's speech:
1. The reason why she had not been searching for a new relationship is that somehow she had given up hope on finding a new love. Maybe she had believed that after screwing up her marriage, she just gave up hope of finding a relationship that was at least up to par with her relationship with Callie
2. Abe's story remarkably inspired her and spurred new hope that there is still a chance for a new love, even if it will take a long time.
3. Maybe she still wanted to talk to Abe so that he could continue to inspire her. Maybe her hopes were not as strong and maybe she needed someone else to remind her that she could still find true love.
So maybe she broke down in tears because she was afraid and was feeling a lack of courage about finding a new love. Maybe she was grieving the fact that her new found hope died too, together with Abe.
4. I hope that Arizona will just use this moment to inspire her more and give her courage.
As she said, Abe wasn't even her patient and not even a child. So in essence, it was like fate had her meet Abe, and Abe was a significant passer-by to remind her of new hope.
I wish that she takes this experience with Abe as a positive one and lead her to find love again.
I knew I was almost crying with Arizona but then April shifted the sorrowful attention to herself and it became a drama turned comedy instantly. And to make things even more hilarious was Arizona stating the obvious fact that the spotlight was on her and not on April. My tears of sadness turned into tears from laughing too much.
What began as confiding of feelings and thoughts became a tug of war of tears and vying for who was more lonely and who deserved consolation.
One thing i know for sure, trust that : Arizona plus April plus supply closet plus drama, equals non-stop laughter.
Team Aprizona always rocks.
And kudos to Grey's for giving us drama then making us laugh.
Perfect perfect comedic timing from both Sarah and Jessica. They're the funniest comedic onscreen besties nowadays. Woot woot.
Arizona Is Not Ready
Finally, at the dinner party, Arizona and April were on the couch when April announces that Callie has arrived with her redhead girlfriend.
Arizona: Is that Jackson?
April: No it's Callie
Arizona: Oh God
April: I didn't know her new girlfriend was a redhead.
Arizona: Oh no. I need more alcohol I'm not ready.
Seems that to Arizona, every detail about this new girl will be something to react about.
When it sunk in that Callie and her new girl were about to make an entrance, Arizona was all nerves, she made that one big long glass-emptying gulp of her wine to probably drown her jitters or awkwardness upon finally seeing Callie's new girl. She just was not ready.
It hurts. I could feel Arizona's tension. Should I say every Calzona fan felt the same way Arizona did? Suffice it to say, we all shared Arizona's anxiety about seeing Penny.
Personally, i had been waiting for this, yet deep inside, I dreaded it too. And the time of reckoning has come.
The closing VO may be applied to Arizona's current situation:
"...No matter how uncomfortable they make us, and there can be rewards for stepping outside our comfort zone, even when the thought of it makes us wanna puke even when we want nothing more than to run screaming for help.
That's why people love to say that what doesn't kill you makes you stronger. But sometimes those people don't know what the hell they're talking about."
Postscript
Since I am a self-confessed die hard true-blue Calzona fan, it is easy to know whom I do not like to see on my screen. And of course, any character who stands in the way of my OTP can kiss the screen goodbye.
Honestly, at this time when this separation is mutually agreed upon by Callie and Arizona and that they are peacefully apart, I have to respect their life choices.
Also, we saw how happy Callie is right now, i would have to say that she deserves that so much. It has been too long since we saw Callie genuinely happy. And i think that as much as we want them to be together now, it is not realistic because they are not in that place right now.
In stark contrast to Callie's present happiness, Arizona as we have seen is kind of lonely and sad. And even pained by the thought of Callie having a new girl.
It is cute really because there is a strong possibility that she does still love Callie. Why would she be bothered if Callie didn't matter to her romantically anymore? By the way she reacted at the dinner party where she needed the aid of alcohol to shield herself from facing the reality of Callie's new girl, it goes without saying she is jealous because by these actions, it can be interpreted as she does still care about Callie.
Callie too cared about Arizona enough by being careful about "flaunting" her new girl. She respected Arizona enough and cared that she did not feel awkward nor hurt.
The thought of seeing Callie with another woman has always been a dreadful thought for any Calzona fan. Seeing Arizona with other women in the past seasons had injured my heart enough.
And just like Arizona, we have to face what we fear. With alcohol or not. For that may not kill us nor make us stronger, will sure build our and Arizona's character. And we have to face it for the sake of their individual happiness.
Next episode is the day we will see that encounter. Where Callie, Arizona and Penny will see each other face to face. In front of their friends and colleagues.
Will Arizona be drunk then? If she will be, if this is the way that she can manage it, then so be it,
Serious Note to self: Be nice to Penny. She did nothing wrong. She may have bungled giving proper medical care to Derek but to us Calzona fans, the only thing she has done was make Callie happy. And that's reason enough to respect their relationship. Much as it hurts.
As we saw how Arizona is looking forward with hope for new love as inspired by Abe, maybe in the not so distant future, we will see her with a new girl too.
My insides are uncomfortable talking about my broken up OTP with their present and future lovers, but if this is a winding bumpy curve in that so called journey, then okay. I will wait and see how it unfolds.
Anyway, no matter how many partners they end up with, my faith in the love story of Callie and Arizona remains rock solid.
Timing is everything. This too shall pass. After all is said and done, they will find their way back to each other. And only genuine Calzona faith can make me say that.
For now, we already know who's coming to dinner.
So let's meet Penny.
And enjoy the ride.
Calzona Forever of course.
Twitter:
@GAFan8
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