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The twelfth season of Grey's Anatomy premiered on September 24, 2015, and consisted of 24 episodes. It was broadcast on Thursday nights at 8 PM on ABC as part of the TGIT lineup.[source?]

Summary[]

The doctors find themselves simmering in a world of sexual politics. Bailey struggles with what it means to be a woman in charge of the hospital and her husband, while Maggie faces the challenges of dating a younger man and Amelia battles her own demons. Meanwhile, in the wake of a brutal attack, Meredith finds comfort and love in the most unexpected place, Callie and Arizona find themselves in a fight for their lives, and tensions run high when Amelia and Meredith come face to face with the doctor responsible for Derek's death.

Plots[]

  • After Richard and Catherine's wedding, Maggie and Amelia move along with Meredith and her kids to her former house.
  • Meredith starts to teach an anatomy class for new interns and residents and later is named Head of General Surgery.
  • Alex and Jo move to a loft. He plans a proposal and executes it, right when she decides she needs some time for herself as she feels he's not in her corner. He proposes to her again, but she rejects him for unknown reasons.
  • Bailey becomes the new Chief of Surgery, and her husband Ben deals with the aftermath.
  • Callie has a new love interest, Penny Blake, one of the doctors who worked on Derek when he died. Meredith, Maggie, and Amelia throw a dinner party where Callie introduces her.
  • Penny transfers her surgical residency to Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital, causing tension between the attendings.
  • Owen and Amelia's relationship begins to develop.
  • Arizona gets a roommate, Andrew DeLuca, a new intern who was in a relationship with Maggie.
  • April returns from Jordan wanting to improve her marriage with Jackson; she discovers her second pregnancy before signing the divorce papers but continues forward with the divorce because she doesn't want Jackson to stay with her just for the baby.
  • Arizona later tells Jackson that April is pregnant. The divorced couple decides to co-parent peacefully.  
  • Stephanie begins to move up in the hospital and her colleagues find out about her childhood disease. She falls in love with a MS patient, Kyle Diaz; they start a brief relationship, but he dies after a brain surgery.
  • Bailey hires Nathan Riggs, a colleague and friend of April's from the army. Riggs and Owen have a dark past involving Owen's MIA sister, Megan.
  • Meredith is brutally attacked by a patient and has a painful recovery process.
  • After several discussions, Meredith kicks Amelia out of the house and Amelia breaks her sobriety. During Meredith's recovery, she returns to AA meetings and comes back to the house after breaking up her relationship with Owen.
  • After being taught by Amelia and Meredith, Penny wins the prestigious Preminger Grant, which requires her to move to New York for one year. Callie decides to follow her with Sofia by her side, without Arizona's consent.
  • Afraid that Callie will take away her daughter, Arizona hires a lawyer. When they're unable to reach a compromise, the case goes to court and Arizona is awarded full custody. Unwilling to move to New York without Sofia, Callie decides to stay in Seattle and breaks up with Penny, who leaves the hospital for New York.
  • A drunk Jo reveals to Andrew that she's still married to a man who used to abuse her. She fled from him and can't divorce him without risking that he'll find her again, which is the reason she was forced to turn down Alex's proposals. Alex eventually wants to forgive Jo, only to find her in a compromising position with Andrew. Alex starts beating him, not allowing him to explain he was just trying to put Jo to bed.
  • Amelia and Owen come back, and after picturing a future together, she proposes marriage and he accepts. After some hesitation from Amelia, they get married.
  • After a hook-up with Meredith, Nathan seems to develop feelings for her. Meanwhile, Maggie has developed feelings for him and mistakenly thinks Nathan feels the same about her.

Cast[]

Main Cast[]

Recurring Guest Stars[]

Prominent Guest Stars[]

Recurring Co-Stars[]

Notes and Trivia[]

  • ABC officially renewed Grey's Anatomy for its twelfth season on May 7, 2015.[source?]
  • This is the first season since his introduction in season 1 to not feature Patrick Dempsey as Derek Shepherd.
  • During the ABC Upfronts of 2015, it was confirmed that season 12 would not be the last season of Grey's, as the network wants it to keep going for many years to come.[source?]
  • Shonda Rhimes called this season the season of rebirth and stated it would be much lighter of tone.[source?]
  • Filming started on July 22, 2015.[source?]
  • Like season three and season eleven, this season ended with a wedding.
  • As of this season, Debbie Allen is an executive producer.
  • This season saw several changes to the main cast compared to last season, having 16 regular cast members, the largest number in the show's history until season nineteen:
  • Like season 11, season 12 features a winter finale, which is the eighth episode.
  • This is the first season not to feature the Dream House since its construction in season seven.
  • For this season, advertisers had to pay $157,609 to air a 30-second ad during the commercials during episodes.[1]
  • A party for the 250th episode was held on September 15, 2015 with a cake and all of the cast and crew present.[source?]
  • All voice overs this season are narrated by Meredith Grey, except for one. Some of them are interconnected with her anatomy class.
  • Academy Award winner Denzel Washington made his television director debut on the ninth episode.
  • Ellen Pompeo cut her hair this season because it was all fried, so it needed to be cut.[source?]
  • Jessica Capshaw was pregnant with her fourth child during the filming of the season during 2016. She gave birth shortly after she wrapped filming.[source?]
  • The cast and crew had a BBQ on July 12, 2015 to kick off the production of this season.[source?]
  • Sara Ramírez wrapped filming for the season on April 27, 2016.[source?]
  • Filming of this season wrapped on May 5, 2016. Camilla LuddingtonKevin McKiddJustin Chambers, and Caterina Scorsone were among the actors who still had scenes to film that day.[source?]
  • There was a wrap party on May 6, 2016.[source?]
  • For the 68th Emmy Awards, the series submitted several nomination ballots.[source?]

Episodes[]

No. in series No. in season Title Directed by Written by Original air date
246 1 "Sledgehammer" Kevin McKidd Stacy McKee September 24, 2015
12x01-1
Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital springs into action to save the lives of two young girls whose powerful story will force some of the doctors to revisit the effects of bullying on their own pasts. Meanwhile, Meredith must adjust to changes at home with her new roommates while Bailey continues to fight for the Chief of Surgery position and Jackson prepares for April’s return to Seattle.
247 2 "Walking Tall" Debbie Allen Meg Marinis October 1, 2015
12x02-1
The pressure is on as a determined Bailey tackles her first day as Chief. Meanwhile, April's marriage is in jeopardy and she finds herself unable to address her problems. Meredith struggles to juggle all her responsibilities and Amelia works to define her relationship with Owen.
248 3 "I Choose You" Rob Corn William Harper October 8, 2015
12x03-3
Maggie reevaluates her life choices after receiving an invitation to her ex-boyfriend's wedding. Richard questions Bailey's loyalty, and Jo confides in Stephanie about a secret she's been keeping from Alex. Meanwhile, Alex struggles with a decision that will affect the lives of newborn twins.
249 4 "Old Time Rock and Roll" Nicole Cummins Austin Guzman October 15, 2015
12x04-1
Owen suggests the interns learn a vital lesson on how to break bad news to patients' families, and Arizona's 90 year old patient reassures her that she's destined to find love again. Meanwhile, the sisters completely forget about the dinner party they're hosting for everyone.
250 5 "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner" Debbie Allen Mark Driscoll October 22, 2015
12x05-1
In the midst of the sisters' dinner party, Maggie ditches her cooking duties to rush to the hospital. Meanwhile, April steps in to help cook as an attempt to avoid Jackson and Arizona nervously waits to find out more about Callie's new girlfriend.
251 6 "The Me Nobody Knows" Jeannot Szwarc Karin Gist November 5, 2015
12x06-1
Grey Sloan Memorial not only welcomes a new transfer resident, but also a patient who's the topic of conversation after accidentally sending his sex tape to his entire congregation. Meanwhile, Richard wrestles with how to progress his relationship with Maggie when an old friend visits the hospital, and April brings in a case of a young boy from the Middle-East.
252 7 "Something Against You" Geary McLeod Andy Reaser November 12, 2015
12x07-1
The team of doctors work on a high stakes case of a long time patient, adding additional pressure to an already tense environment. Meanwhile, Bailey wants Ben to kick out their new roommate, and Arizona is eager to get back into the dating world with a new wingman.
253 8 "Things We Lost in the Fire" Rob Corn Tia Napolitano November 19, 2015
12x08-1
As the rumor mill around the hospital continues to spiral out of control, Grey Sloan Memorial is flooded with injured firefighters from a nearby wildfire. Maggie struggles to keep things with Andrew professional at work. Meanwhile, Jo questions Alex's priorities.
254 9 "The Sound of Silence" Denzel Washington Stacy McKee February 11, 2016
12x09-1
Meredith is brutally attacked by a patient, and Penny is the one who discovers her. The doctors of Grey Sloan Memorial rush to stabilize Meredith and remain by her side in the harrowing aftermath.
255 10 "All I Want is You" Kevin Rodney Sullivan Elisabeth Finch February 18, 2016
12x10-1
As the hospital deals with Meredith's trauma, Maggie and Callie perform a risky, experimental surgery on Alex's 15-year-old patient against his professional opinion. Meanwhile, Owen and Nathan are still at odds with each other, and Maggie and Andrew's relationship continues to develop.
256 11 "Unbreak My Heart" Rob Corn Elizabeth J.B. Klaviter February 25, 2016
12x11-4
The evolution of April and Jackson's relationship is revealed through a series of flashbacks dating back to when they first met. Simultaneously, we follow the years-long progress of one of Jackson's patients.
257 12 "My Next Life" Chandra Wilson William Harper March 3, 2016
12x12-1
A patient from Meredith's very first surgery as an Intern is readmitted to Grey Sloan Memorial with a new aneurysm, and Amelia takes her case. Meanwhile, Maggie suspects that Richard knows about her relationship with Andrew, and Arizona debates dating again.
258 13 "All Eyez on Me" Charlotte Brandstrom Austin Guzman March 10, 2016
12x13-6
Meredith, Bailey, Jackson, Callie and Jo travel to a military hospital to perform an extraordinary and extremely risky surgery on a veteran with an advanced tumor. Meanwhile back at Grey Sloan, Andrew is tired of being Maggie’s worst kept secret, Ben makes an impulsive surgical decision, and a team of cheerleaders wreak havoc in the ER.
259 14 "Odd Man Out" Kevin McKidd Meg Marinis March 17, 2016
12x14-1
Richard throws everyone for a loop when he switches the resident and attending pairings and Arizona takes a huge risk on a woman who is pregnant with quadruplets. Meanwhile, April is faced with a difficult decision.
260 15 "I Am Not Waiting Anymore" Nicole Rubio Mark Driscoll March 24, 2016
12x15-31
Jackson learns about April's pregnancy, while Alex and the team of doctors handle an hours-long triple-organ transplant surgery. Meredith considers dating again, and Andrew insists on not receiving special treatment after he and Maggie go public.
261 16 "When It Hurts So Bad" Eric Laneuville Andy Reaser March 31, 2016
12x16-1
Meredith takes a step forward with Will but quickly regrets it. Maggie senses a disconnection with Andrew, and Amelia reevaluates her relationship with Owen. Meanwhile, Catherine comes into town and really shakes things up with April and Jackson.
262 17 "I Wear the Face" Chandra Wilson Karin Gist April 7, 2016
12x17-1
Meredith goes on an ambulance ride with Owen and Nathan to pick up a heart for a transplant patient. Musician & MS patient Kyle Diaz is admitted to Grey Sloan Memorial with a tremor in his hand, and the residents apply for the Preminger Grant. Meanwhile, Catherine continues to insert herself into Jackson and April's business against Richard's wishes.
263 18 "There's a Fine, Fine Line" Jeannot Szwarc Jen Klein April 14, 2016
12x18-1
After a missing child forces the hospital into lockdown, Ben decides to operate on a pregnant mother without the proper surgical equipment. Miranda, as Chief, is faced with the repercussions of the event and whether or not Ben's impulsive actions were justified.
264 19 "It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding)" Chris Hayden Austin Guzman April 14, 2016
12x19-27
Miranda continues to deal with the aftermath of Ben's reckless decisions and forms an advisory committee to recommend proper disciplinary action against him. Meanwhile, April and Jackson try to put their differences aside for the sake of their baby, and Arizona makes a decision that could affect her relationship with Callie forever.
265 20 "Trigger Happy" Zetna Fuentes Zoanne Clack April 21, 2016
12x20-1
The doctors work frantically to save a young boy who was accidentally shot. Meanwhile, Arizona is upset when Callie tries to make an important decision about Sofia's future without consulting her.
266 21 "You're Gonna Need Someone on Your Side" Debbie Allen Lauren Barnett April 28, 2016
12x21-1
Stephanie's relationship to Kyle becomes complicated. Meredith encourages Amelia and Owen to take a chance and choose to be a real couple. Arizona and Callie are at odds and put their friends in the middle of an uncomfortable situation.
267 22 "Mama Tried" Kevin McKidd Tia Napolitano May 5, 2016
12x22-1
Callie and Arizona are at odds over Sofia's future, and Stephanie questions the status of her relationship with Kyle. Meanwhile, Alex and April work on a pregnant teen who is readmitted to Grey Sloan Memorial.
268 23 "At Last" Rob Corn Stacy McKee May 12, 2016
12x23-1
Amelia and Owen take their relationship to the next level. Alex gains some clarity on his future with Jo and Callie and Arizona continue to struggle with the current custody arrangement.
269 24 "Family Affair" Debbie Allen William Harper May 19, 2016
12x24-50
Meredith and Maggie support Amelia on an important day. Jo reveals that she has been keeping secrets from Alex while Arizona and Callie deal with the impact of their custody arrangement. Meanwhile, Ben leaps into action to help a friend.

Reception[]

DVD Release[]

GreysAnatomyS12DVD

The "Grey's Anatomy: Complete Twelfth Season – Let the Sun Shine" boxset was released on August 30, 2016 in Region 1. In region 2, the boxset was released on October 3, 2016.

Set Details[]

The boxset contains the 24 episodes of the season. The DVD box includes 6 discs. Other set details are:

  • English (Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround)

Special Features[]

In addition to the episodes, the season 12 DVD set also contains a couple of special features:

  • Deleted Scenes
  • In Stitches -- Check Out The Cast Cutting Up, Both In And Out Of the OR

Gallery[]

Cast Promotional Photos[]

Posters[]

References[]

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