Big news in the Grey's world - Isaiah Washington, a/k/a Dr. Preston Burke, Cristina Yang's version of Dr. McDreamy, is returning for an episode in May. Grey's fans will recall that Cristina cut her teeth on Burke's wisdom, and became more than his muse - for a while, after an injury, she was his hands. Yes, Cristina learned those amazing cardiac skills as an intern by illegally performing complex cardiac surgical procedures on patients while her lover, Burke talked her through them.
Washington was famously fired after an anti-gay slur on the set against fellow cast member T.R. Knight - George O'Malley.
At the time, Burke and Cristina were getting married. Yes, Virginia, Yang got corralled into a big, traditional, totally not-Cristina-style formal Church wedding. It didn't happen because Cristina ran away, almost literally at the altar.
So, how will Shonda Sunshine Rhimes write his return? Here's my thought. We all saw in the last episode that divorced spouses Cristina and Owen had sex. Later, the girlfriend Owen was about to move in with went all traditional spouse on him, telling him that she wants kids and wants to be home with the kids, walking them to school. That prompted Owen to break up with the girlfriend, taking her out to dinner to tell her that he didn't want that. He wants a wife who is involved in her career, a surgeon with whom he can discuss surgery and medicine.
That sounds --- an awful lot like Cristina, doesn't it? It sounds like Owen wants the wife he had.
So, Sunshine could play it that way. Perhaps, Owen and Cristina will reunite, taking it slowly, at first, but then deciding to go "all in." This time, they'll go "all in." It may be his idea or it may be hers, a reaction to her history. But they could decide to schedule a big ole' Church wedding. Only, in Shonda Sunshineland, history tends to repeat itself and things end up where they started.
So, I think Cristina may show up at the Church, all dressed in white, and the wedding march will play (sound familiar?) - only, at the last minute, she can't do it. She just can't do it. And she runs out of the Church, down a flight of stairs, to find a posh, luxury car (I see it as a convertible, but it could be a limo ). And the driver is - yes, you got it - Preston Burke. He looks at Cristina and says something like, "Going somewhere?" or "I thought you might need a ride."
And Cristina gets in the car. As Burke speeds away, she asks him, "Where are we going?" And he answers, "Where we were always meant to be." Cristina snarks, "And where is that?" And Burke answers, "Together."{ And Cristina doesn't snark. She thinks, and smiles and nods........ and they drive off, into a joint future as the hotshot couple of cardio.....
I could be wrong. Burke could show up just to say, "I came to see if you'd really do it this time." Or something similar, but Sunshine does love her circles. I DO NOT, IN ANY WAY, SHAPE OR FORM SUPPORT WASHINGTON'S ANTI-GAY SLUR, but I think he's been interviewed a lot in the intervening years. I hope, and believe that his attitude has changed. And I think Shonda thinks that's true because otherwise, regardless of how tempting the prospect, I think she'd have written it differently.
Regardless, in strict show terms, I think Derek is Meredith's McDreamy, and I think Burke is Cristina's. Having her end up with anyone else would just seem wrong.
We shall see, right Grey's fans? And while we wait, don't forget to pick up my tribute to Grey's Anatomy, Dangerous Relations: Griffin's Law.
