Grey's Anatomy -- Goodbye, Cristina

The big event of the night, aside from Cristina's departure, was an explosion at the local mall and the press labeling it a terrorist event. After terrorizing everyone in Seattle, the press was forced to admit it was just an accident. Before that, they were even suggesting it was a dirty bomb, because several of the patients brought in had a rash. But it was a rash caused by dry cleaning fluid that leaked when the explosion occurred. Okay, Shonda, you really did a number on the press. Guess you don't like them very well.

Owen spent most of the hour in fear that Cristina was at the mall when the explosion occurred. They woke-up in bed together and she mentioned she had to go to the mall for something. Then he heard there had been a huge explosion at the mall. At one point he thought he saw Cristina in the hospital, but when he caught up with her she was gone. Ultimately, they really didn't share much of a goodbye if any. He was doing surgery and looked up and Cristina was standing at the window with her hand pressed against the glass. He looked away for a second and when he looked back she was gone. And that was basically the sum total of their goodbye.

Meanwhile, Derek was busily pushing Meredith into a move she didn't really want to make. If he'd taken a good look at her face, instead of only thinking what he wanted, he would have seen just how much Meredith didn't want to leave Seattle.

Parents-to-be Jackson and April experienced two different emotions as they had patients that involved children. Jackson got to help deliver a newborn baby, while April tried to help a couple in an explosion find their missing child. When they couldn't she was overcome with how it would feel to have a child and to lose it. Ironically, it was Mother Avery who found her crying and got through to her. She told her about an incident from her childhood when her father was targeted by white racists in a diner, but that he didn't back down. The message being you have to be brave as you face the challenges life has for you.

The pregnant woman who gave birth also had a profound affect on Callie and Arizona, as well. She was a surrogate carrying a baby for a couple that couldn't have a child on their own. Since Arizona doesn't really want to carry a baby and Callie can't, this seemed to be the answer to how they can have a new baby.

The new Head of Cardiology, Maggie, can't wait until Cristina takes her little bag and heads off to Switzerland. Cristina keeps overruling all her orders. Cristina finally makes her exit, allowing Maggie to perform the heart transplant on one of the Heart Failure Kids. Turns out Maggie's got a big secret. She gets to talking to Webber and reveals that Ellis Gray is her mother. The question is, is Richard her father?

Karev is hanging out at the hospital again and it's obvious he misses it. He pitches in when the mall disaster occurs. Yang tells him he's a good doctor, but not as good as her, but who is? She also suggests he should come back to the hospital. As a possible way to encourage that, she leaves him her shares and seat on the hospital.

Wait a minute, Cristina! Maybe you can leave your shares, but maybe not your seat. See, Webber has already promised Bailey the seat. Jackson has shut down Bailey's geno lab and Webber reveals he didn't fight for her, because she's a surgeon and needs to get back into the operating room.

Anyway, Cristina has left a little mess behind. Seems like Bailey and Alex may do battle for who gets Cristina's seat on the board.

Leah gets called in to help, as well, even though Webber canned her. She really seems to excel at emergency medicine. She even is able to help a man that has a bulging eye ready to pop out of its socket that Ross is pretty useless at helping. After the crisis is over, Leah takes one look at the place before leaving for good.

Meanwhile, Ross begs Cristina to take him to Switzerland with her and she agrees. I really hate that after all he's done, including causing a patient and interns death, and he gets a good ending. Anyway, Ross is gone and he's Cristina's problem now. That just leaves two interns left: Jo and Edwards.

The Twisted Sisters help each other before separating for good. Meredith forces Cristina to leave, as she keeps finding reason she can't leave yet. After having one last dance, Cristina tells Meredith she's the sun and a good surgeon and not to let Derek eclipse her. She realizes Meredith doesn't want to go and is just going along with it because she thinks Derek's career is more important than her own.

This gives Meredith the impetus to stand up to Derek when he tries to push her into signing the papers on a new house he wants them to live in in Washington. She calls him on the fact that he promised to hold back and let her pursue her career after Bailey was born. She says if she doesn't stop him, he's going to turn her into Thatcher and she won't let that happen. In short, she's not going to Washington. So the ball is in his court. He can either go to Washington without her and be a part-time dad or he can tell the president no and stay in Seattle.

The last shot of Cristina is with toady Ross as she heads out of her new office in her new life.

Shonda must really have loved the Cristina character, cause when you think of it, she's really the only departing character that's ever gotten a good exit. George got run over by a bus and burned beyond recognition. Izzy was pretty much persona non grata when she left. Lexie got crushed under a plane. And Mark lingered in the hospital from his injuries before finally dying.

Oh, you say, what about Addison. Totally different situation. She was being spun off into a new show.

Anyway, goodbye, Cristina. I wish it had been Owen that had gone with you instead of that toady Ross.