The Start of Something New

Calzona Review 

 

Greys Anatomy 13 x 14  “Back Where You Belong”

It’s starting. They’re rising.

Last week’s episode was the start of something exciting for Ariliza, with Arizona being not just a horn wire genius but also a much needed comfort and listening ear to the Grey Sloan-infamous Eliza Minnick.

And that “something” officially commenced in 13.14.  

In the previous episode, Eliza and Arizona quite bonded after that parking lot situation where Arizona ably cut Eliza’s car’s stuck  horn wire and became Eliza’s mechanic in pediatric armor.

In this episode, Eliza had been busy leading residents on a kidney transplant case.

Ariliza  chumminess was the order of the day as both went down the Grey Sloan staircase exuding that air of familiarity and rapport with each other. Obviously, these two had developed a certain closeness which we assume to have taken place instantly after the parking lot incident.

Eliza must have softened up to Arizona when Arizona opened possibilities of friendship, while Arizona’s open heart, had taken a comforting role to the surprisingly vulnerable Eliza. In the blink of an eye and a stuck car horn, yes, a relationship can start.

The rapport had to end though as they were quick to start a game of pretend as Jackson approached. Arizona was not ready yet to spread the word that she jumped the ‘Hate Eliza” ship which had almost all the attendings on board.

The silent dissent among attendings against Eliza was at its peak but  Arizona had seen the light that there was a likable side to Eliza after all. Maybe she still feared being  ostracized by her peers, so chose to keep silent about it. Arizona was pretending all day that she still disliked  Eliza too, she didn’t want to be seen as a traitor.

Jackson: I do not know how you do it. I don’t know how you could be polite to her

Arizona: Oh I know she’s the worst.

Jackson: I couldn’t do it.  Not  after the way he screwed Webber over

This continued on as Eliza told her about the  kidney transplant story about an abusive father making amends for sins to his family, by donating his kidney to his son, anonymously.

Arizona: Oh my God, he’s an abusive husband?

Eliza: Yeah. So now he’s the only hope. The kid’s getting his dad’s sleazeball kidney.

Arizona:  Well, you’re doing the right thing.

Eliza: Feels gross. 

Arizona: But the choice that keeps everyone alive is the right one.

Eliza: That is wise

Arizona: I am wise.

Eliza : And you’re pretty rude, actually rude and obstructive and I’m fed up with it

Worthy to note that Arizona did share some valuable wisdom in this conversation, before Eliza fake fought with her to impress Webber. 

Making us remember that all her years of experience as a doctor has led her to say this. I personally wrote that line down as it is chock-full of wisdom.

It was  adorable that Eliza was in on it. Arizona was friendly to her but wanted to keep it a secret, and Eliza was game enough to play along. She understood Arizona and  was actually having fun with it. Obviously, they liked each other enough to engage in this teamwork charade.

It was hard to keep a straight face when Arizona feigned support for Webber, as this was done with humor. Kudos to the comedic timing of Jessica Capshaw.  She is truly awesome at funny scenes.

Webber: That woman is a menace. And what  I hate is  her smugness.  She doesn’t have the experience to be that smug. And she hides her total disrespect under this perky.

Arizona: She’s confident.

Webber : She’s overconfident. She’s a menace

.

Arizona: God yes. Ugh.

As the day came to an end, Arizona had had enough. Being a woman of conscience and principle, she knew something was not quite right. She had to tell Eliza what she felt. 

Arizona: It’s not fun. I don’t  like pretending not to like you.  I don’t like listening to the awful things that people say about you.

Arizona: Cause you’re nice and you’re smart and you’re funny and you care. You care about the students even more than I do and you have this brilliant way of making your victories their victories and  you’re here at this place and you’re good for them and they should know that

Eliza: Arizona stop. 

Arizona: But this is not

Eliza: I need you to stop. So I can kiss you.

Arizona: Oh.

And the kiss happened.

Notes:

Arizona was brave enough not to conform to what most of the attendings were doing.

It was also gratifying to see Arizona tell Eliza about her positive traits which she was privileged to see.

This brings me to my point.

Arizona is a woman who does not just go with the flow. She is independent-minded.  The good man in a storm stays true to her moniker. She was true to herself as she observed that  despite how almost all attendings were against her, there was something positive about Eliza. She wasn’t all that bad. Thus she opened herself up for friendship.

Arizona  had been initially annoyed with Eliza because she didn’t exactly like how Eliza strutted within the hospital halls with her superiority complex. And she did have some objections to how Eliza was doing the teaching thing. 

But then she opened her mind and saw Eliza’s good points. Eliza wasn’t such a bad guy after all. It does influence people when almost all the attendings have set up a united front against Eliza and the changes she has campaigned for in the hospital. It’s easy to be swayed but then Arizona saw that Eliza has positive points too.

Eliza-- not once did we see her affected, despite knowing that there was a movement against her at the hospital. Despite the upfront protests of the attendings against her new program, she had not flinched.  We only saw her vulnerable side  when that kid patient died last ep. That was the only time we saw her cry. And the rest we say is history.

For all it’s worth, Arizona opened our eyes to Eliza’s good side. Articulating her positive words for this woman was enough to touch Eliza’s emotions. And Arizona didn’t have to finish her words. Eliza could not wait to kiss her.

The Kiss

And there it was. The kiss that would start it all. It had been a long time coming. Many had been impatient as their  relationship seemed to have stalled  for a few episodes but  they’re finally starting.

The kiss. I didn’t want to talk about the kiss because as this relationship is in its infancy, I didn’t want to mention that the kiss was awkward. It did linger for a good number of seconds, and then another kiss, and another.

For sure, many fans were thrilled with this kiss but for me, this was the kind of simple first kiss of two people who are starting to like each other. Maybe the kisses will appear more relaxed in the episodes to come.

So here we see the start of the Ariliza love story.  No idea at all how long this will last but it’s easy to rest in the fact that their hearts are ready to love each other.

What’s Next for Ariliza

This relationship is young. Eliza may be at the hospital until season end. Even if  in the new promo, Jackson is shown to be bent on kicking Eliza out, it may still be possible that this sl stretches on till season end.

It feels like there will be more tenderness and love moments to come.

The important thing is that Arizona remains happy. She deserves someone to love too and Eliza seems to be the kind of girl with whom she can have  fun with. Can’t wait to see more of  the fun from these two.

Comparisons to Callie and Calzona

It is expected that when a new partner comes along for Callie or Arizona, there will always be comparisons.  No need for feuds. Callie and Eliza may have similar physical features but they have their own attributes. Suffice it to say, Callie has her own pluses and so does Eliza. And they are both hot so any perceived rivalry is irrelevant. Besides,   it isn’t ethically sound to compare people’s physicalities.

Bottomline is, we know who’s mfeo.

Ariliza is a new pairing. It is a new  source of happiness for Arizona while Callie has her own Penny and Sofia happiness in New York.

Calzona meanwhile, is legendary. An iconic pairing beloved by many.

Do we need to compare further?

Let’s just let Arizona be happy. Let’s enjoy all the love adventures coming their way. That is,  until Callie comes back (read: until Sara works it out with ABC, until she feels and decides to come back)

Of course there will be non-fans of this new couple but that’s normal. Every person is different. 

Don’t worry, we love Calzona of course. Just let us be happy with our baby Arizona for now.

Remember what Arizona said and ponder it: "The choice that keeps everyone alive is the right one."

Bracing myself for more upcoming sweet moments of Ariliza.

I expect fun, fun and fun, and yes, hotness.

Till then,

@GAFan8