'Big Bang' Kaley Cuoco tapped for 'Grey's Anatomy' finale

Kaley Cuoco of the CBS comedy "The Big Bang Theory" will guest star on the season finale of "Grey's Anatomy," according to EW.

The actress, a self-proclaimed fan of the show, announced the casting  Thursday night at PaleyFest. Cuoco said she is set to film her part next week, although what exactly that part entails is still unclear.

"It's a big ol' secret. I have no clue what I'm doing," she told the magazine. "My guess is that I will be a patient of some kind. I'm practicing my scared, sad 'I'm dying' face."

This year's season finale for the ABC drama should prove to one to watch. Other guest stars  include "Gilmore Girls''" Liza Weil and "Everwood's" Debra Mooney.

The episode is slated to air Thursday, May 14.

--Kate Stanhope

Photo credit: CBS

'Grey's Anatomy': A night to remember

Thursday night was not the night to miss “Grey’s Anatomy.” Derek returned to work at Seattle Grace. Izzie underwent — and survived — brain surgery. Owen nearly strangled the life out of Cristina. And Mer-Der finally got engaged. It was an episode in which much went down but nothing felt rushed, a genuinely moving installment that provoked laughter and tears. It was the kind of episode that made you nearly forgive, if not entirely forget, all the craziness that threatened to permanently derail the beloved drama earlier this season.

Tensions were running high as Derek prepared to operate on the tumor in Izzie’s brain (the first in a long line of surgeries and hellish treatments awaiting her, it seems). His confidence was thoroughly shaken, and it certainly didn’t help to have Izzie’s hard-nosed oncologist (Kimberly Elise) questioning his every move. For her part, Izzie tried to put on a brave front, knitting a bright green scarf and encouraging her friends to go about their usual rounds. None of her fellow Seattle Gracers, outside of Bailey, seemed to know how to deal with the enormity of what was going on so they kept their distance. Alex, taking over voice-over duties from Meredith this week, battled guilt over not questioning Izzie’s hallucinations of Denny, as he struggled to make a “deposit” that might still allow Izzie to have kids one day. Callie felt guilty too for often wishing Izzie dead after she had an affair with George. And George was so hurt by the fact that Izzie hadn’t shared her medical crisis with him — but had shared it with Cristina — that he was willing to work with his ex-wife for the day.

'Grey's Anatomy': That's what friends are for

Awww. What would those “Grey’s Anatomy” peeps do without their BFFs?

After 100 phone calls didn’t do the trick, Bailey bullied Callie, and then Hunt, into trekking out to Derek’s trailer to try to convince him to get back to work at the hospital. But they just wound up commiserating and drinking his beer, which meant it was up to the Chief to get the job done. The Chief wasn’t going anywhere, no matter how much venom Derek spewed his way over blabbing about the ring to Meredith and destroying his life. Because true friends stick until their drunk, broken, melodramatic star surgeons decide to man up.

Which, as it turned out, happened in mere minutes. After all, Izzie’s got cancer in her brain — and seemingly everywhere else — and, as Meredith put it during their tentative reunion, Derek’s one of only 20 neurosurgeons in the world who can actually save her. Silly Mer. We all know Izzie doesn’t want saving; she wants a full-time film career.

But until that blessed (May?) day arrives, the ailing doc is gonna need to lean mightily on her friends. After sharing her diagnosis with Cristina last week, Izzie wanted her help about as much as Derek wanted the Chief’s — on the surface, not so much, but underneath it all, desperately. By the end of the episode, Cristina had broken through, and Izzie the doctor had become Izzie the patient, her white coat replaced by a blue hospital gown, as she climbed tentatively into a bed at Seattle Grace surrounded by her fellow residents. Anybody else get a smidge teary?

What did you think of how Cristina, about to perform her first solo surgery, delivered the Izzie news to Bailey and Alex? How funny was it to see Meredith go all Bailey on the interns over their personal drama? Were you happy to finally see more of George? And just how many hours do you think Blow-hole, the facial transplant patient, had to spend in the makeup chair each day?

-- Shawna Malcom

(Photo courtesy ABC)

'Grey's Anatomy': Shadows and light

Well, after many long months and one ill-conceived detour into Denny-ville, we finally found out what’s really ailing Izzie on last night’s “Grey’s Anatomy”: The girl’s got cancer -- in her skin, brain, liver, the works. The kind with a measly 5% survival rate. In other words, get thee to that movie career, Katherine Heigl!

But if, after all the headline-grabbing buildup, the official diagnosis wound up feeling more than a little anti-climactic, I could still appreciate the way it unfolded. Izzie did her best Dr. House, challenging her unwitting interns to solve Patient X’s medical mystery, and then chose to share the bad news with Cristina, that most unsentimental of “Grey’s” characters, in a dialogue-stripped scene that nonetheless packed a potent emotional wallop. It’s a beautiful thing when Shonda Rhimes decides to dial it down a bit, isn’t it?

The normally steady Derek would not be dialing anything down last night. Still reeling from the death of his pregnant patient and the blistering words of her grieving husband, Shepherd was as bruised on the inside as his Sloan-battered exterior suggested. Much of the hype for this episode revolved around Derek’s decision to quit Seattle Grace, but that development was just a warm-up to the drunken devastation he unleashed on Meredith. “You should understand better than anybody else,” he hissed at her about opting to leave. “You wrote the book on quitting, running, hiding!”

The guy gave pushing her away every ounce of cruel energy he could muster. Surely, that crack we heard wasn’t just the bat making contact with the diamond ring Derek’s been carrying around in his pocket for weeks; it was poor Mer’s heart shattering. Still, there was no quitting, running or hiding on her part, which just goes to illustrate one of the crazy little ironies of relationships: Just when one of you finally manages to get it together, the other one has to up and fall apart.

Meredith’s come a long way, but she could still learn a thing or two from the Chief’s wife about whipping a man out of his funk and back into shape. Nobody messes with Adele Webber. Not even Bailey.

–- Shawna Malcom

Report: 'Grey's Anatomy' to get more Jessica Capshaw

"Grey's Anatomy" has reportedly inked a deal with Jessica Capshaw for the former "Practice" actress to remain on "Grey's Anatomy" through the remainder of the season, writes Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello.

Capshaw has already appeared on five episodes of the series in 2009, and her character, pediatric surgeon Dr. Arizona Robbins, has a crush of Dr. Callie Torres (Sara Ramirez).

Entertainment Weekly notes that Capshaw initially signed on for three episodes, and there is an option for her to return in the fall.

Zap2It notes, "The extension of Capshaw's time on 'Grey's' jibes with statements ABC chief Stephen McPherson made at January's TV critics press tour. Responding to criticism that the network pressured the show to end the lesbian relationship between Callie and Brooke Smith's Erica Hahn, McPherson noted that Callie would soon be in a 'dedicated' relationship."

-- Todd Martens

Photo: Associated Press

'Grey’s Anatomy': A little of that human touch

Medical mistakes were all over last night’s “Grey’s Anatomy.” Izzie learned that incompetent intern Sadie, who’d previously diagnosed her with anemia, actually mixed up her blood samples with those of a clinic patient who appeared to be dying from cancer. Derek operated what seemed like at least 26 times on poor pregnant patient Jen, in an effort to reverse the complications that began when he inadvertently nicked her brain aneurysm last week. And Seattle Grace’s first female surgeon, Dr. Campbell (Faye Dunaway, in full melodramatic diva mode) botched a gallbladder surgery, much to the patient’s discomfort and Cristina’s obvious disgust. No wonder Seattle Grace has fallen to No. 12!

And no wonder emotions were running feverishly high. Derek had an unintentionally hilarious scalpel showdown with Addison -- “Put down the scalpel, Addison!” “You put down the scalpel!” -- when he refused to give up on Jen at the possible expense of her child. The baby lived, Jen died, prompting her devastated husband to tell Derek, “You’re a murderer!” Derek then turned around and took his frustrations out on Mark, who had the misfortune of choosing a really inopportune time to finally come clean about his relationship with Lexie. Their knock-down drag-out fight was both completely over the top and, I gotta say, kinda awesome. Then again, I am the girl who loves sitting close to the ice at hockey games just to get the full impact of players being slammed right up against the glass.

Some good did come out of all the mistake madness. Owen told Cristina he wanted to still be in her life 40 years from now. And Izzie got herself over to the dermatology department to get a suspicious spot on her back checked out. We won’t get her official diagnosis until at least March 12th, but as long as Denny stays MIA, I’m cool with the wait.

A couple of other developments worth noting: Callie worked up the courage to ask Arizona out on a date, then promptly got rejected for her relative inexperience with women. (As Arizona put it, “I spend all my time around newborns so I try not to in my personal life.” Snap!) And, in her quest to rack up a stack of glowing recommendation letters for the pediatric fellowship, Bailey unveiled some seriously fabulous new hair. Who knew she was such a whiz with a curling iron? Is there anything that woman can’t do -- apart from get a proper recommendation from the chief?

A few other questions to ponder: Do you think Derek’s meltdown will prompt him to reconsider proposing to Meredith? Will you miss Addison, who returned to L.A., all over again? And are Lexie and Mark finally winning you doubters over?

-- Shawna Malcom

'Grey’s Anatomy': Crossing over at Seattle Grace

When I was on the “Grey’s Anatomy” set for a feature story about last night’s “Grey’s”/”Private Practice” crossover, Dr. Bailey herself (Chandra Wilson) kindly summed up what has become a primary difference between Shonda Rhimes’ two ABC dramas. “This is the more juvenile, crazy, off-the-wall, people-who-don’t-have-any-sense kind of show,” Wilson said of “Grey’s.” “The ‘Private Practice’ people are a little bit more mature.”

Lucky for us “Grey’s” fans, “Private’s” Addison (Kate Walsh), Naomi (Audra McDonald) and Sam (Taye Diggs) brought a little of that maturity with them to the halls of Seattle Grace. Their presence, which could’ve easily just been a cheap ratings ploy, instead had the welcome effect of bringing the beleaguered mother ship from which “Private” launched back down to
Earth.

For starters, there was a renewed focus on medicine (always a plus for hospital dramas). The Addison with the sassy new haircut and sharp gray suit wasn’t back in Seattle to drive a wedge between ex-husband Derek and Meredith, though her arrival did have the side effect of delaying Derek’s plan to propose. Rather, Addie was there in hopes that her brilliant neurosurgeon ex could save the life of her brother Archer (Grant Show), an egomaniacal, womanizing (and yet, still oddly charming) neurologist, who was fading fast thanks to a bunch of worms in his brain. When Derek finally operated, we got to see said worms on that snazzy OR monitor, and it was hard not to be on the edge of your seat as he carefully extracted them one by one.

'Grey's Anatomy,' 'Private Practice' prepare for a joint operation

There's nothing like a nasty case of worms in the brain to bring a gang back together.

On the set of "Grey's Anatomy," a gaggle of doctors have congregated around the hospital bed of one of their own, a neurologist who's suffering from the life-threatening illness. Dr. Derek Shepherd (Patrick Dempsey) wants to perform risky surgery on the patient (Grant Show), who just happens to be the brother of his ex-wife, Dr. Addison Montgomery (Kate Walsh), who exited "Grey's" in 2007 for a fresh start on its spinoff, "Private Practice."

Now, just in time for sweeps, Addison is back at Seattle Grace for the first crossover between the ABC series.

"This is like our 'Big Chill,' " said Shonda Rhimes, who created both soapy medical dramas. "It's that idea of who you used to be and who you are now."

The timing of the on-screen mashup, which airs Thursday, is notable as well: "Grey's" is in the midst of a rocky fifth season, while "Private" is still regarded as its less popular kid sibling. The idea for a crossover was first floated by the network last season but, with "Private" still in its infancy, Rhimes was resistant. "I wanted to solidify the identity of what 'Private Practice' is," Rhimes explained, "both for audiences and in our minds.

Read the whole story here.

-- By Shawna Malcom

(Photo courtesy Karen Neal / ABC)

“Grey’s Anatomy”: Rules of engagement

Love was definitely in the air on last night’s entertaining (and fully Denny-free!) “Grey’s Anatomy.”

With a diamond ring burning a hole in his pocket, Derek tried to figure out exactly when and how he would propose to Meredith. The question of if no longer seemed relevant once Meredith quipped how cute their kids would be. If the girl could bring up babies without breaking a sweat, he figured, surely she wouldn’t bolt if he brought up marriage.

Naturally, word of Derek’s intentions spread quickly throughout the halls of Seattle Grace and, naturally, everybody had advice for the poor guy. Don’t make the question-popping a big, romantic McDreamy thing, Cristina insisted. Absolutely do make the grand gesture, countered a giddy Chief, and the grander the better: Flowers, candles, exotic foods, live musicians and even a rowboat should all be utilized, and skywriting should not be counted out. Even Derek and Meredith’s pregnant patient (Jennifer Westfeldt) -- who'd gotten engaged in a supermarket aisle, right between the cat food and the tampons -- weighed in: The proposal would be perfect, no matter where or how it took place, as long as it was the right person doing the asking. Hard to argue with that logic, I guess, even if it did come from a woman who’d just (accidentally) run her husband over with their car.

'Grey's Anatomy': Heaven and hell

Thanks to last night’s episode of “Grey’s Anatomy,” we finally know why Denny has refused to hit the road and why, for one week at least, he felt the need to hijack Meredith’s voiceover duties: Izzie’s sick -- and possibly dying!

What’s that, you say? It’s not exactly a shock? And Izzie had every right to be furious that it took her dead ex half a season to help her realize what he really meant by all those “I’m here for yous?” And that maybe, possibly, this twist would’ve been a little easier to get behind had it occurred months ago — say, before we were forced to endure the pair having hot, sweaty sex?

You took the words right out of my mouth.

At the same time, mad props must be given to Katherine Heigl and Jeffrey Dean Morgan, two fine actors who admirably continue to bring their A game, even though the effort must be exhausting by now. All this Izzie-Denny business has proven wildly unpopular, but clearly, that’s not their fault.

Apart from the “he’s dead/she’s alive — for now” love story, there were moments in this episode that were prime “Grey’s.” I’ve loved nearly every beat of the serial-killer storyline, partly because of Eric Stoltz’s finely tuned performance and partly for the way it’s shaken up the relationships at Seattle Grace. In an effort to both let the death row inmate avoid execution and provide Bailey’s dying young patient with life-saving organs, Meredith kept William’s deteriorating condition from Derek. McDreamy’s relief and obvious joy in the fact that his mom had liked his girlfriend enough to encourage him to propose quickly turned to anger when he learned the truth. But in a sign of how much Mer-Der’s relationship has grown, the pair didn’t immediately break up, like they might have in the old days. Instead, after the Chief nimbly convinced the wife of a brain-dead patient to sign over his organs to Bailey’s patient, Meredith attended William’s execution and found a supportive Derek waiting for her outside.

But that wasn’t Derek’s only gift to his future fiancee: He also facilitated her reunion with Cristina in two memorably funny scenes. First, he asked for her opinion on the ring: “I know you’re still fighting, but isn’t it about time you wrapped it up? I ask because, when I propose to her, she’s gonna need somebody to freak out to.” Later, upon hearing that Meredith couldn’t stop crying, it was Cristina who got in the last quip: “Did you propose?” Pure. Gold.

Elsewhere in the hospital halls, Lexie broke the most valued bone in Mark’s body—you know the one -- during some particularly raucous sex in the on-call room. A little over the top? Sure. But ultimately, it illustrated how these two are evolving from hook-up to full-fledged relationship when Lexie refused to leave Mark alone with his humiliation and instead climbed into the hospital bed beside him and he didn’t object.

Is the new couple winning you over? What did you make of Callie’s TMI conversation with Owen — the one that included her “I’m a lesbian now. Maybe. Sort of. I don’t know” confession? And does the fact that Izzie is, in fact, ailing make you any less sick of Denny’s lengthy Seattle stay?

-– Shawna Malcom

(Photo courtesy ABC)

TCA Press Tour: ABC's Steve McPherson on 'Grey's' and ghosts

What could have been a ho-hum executive session with ABC President of Entertainment Steve McPherson on the last day of TCA press tour wound up as anything but.

Of course, the TV press was interested in ABC’s hit “Grey’s Anatomy” and its recent confusing foray into ghost conversations, ghost appearances and ghost sex. For weeks, Denny (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) has been visiting Izzie  (Katherine Heigl) from his grave, whispering sweet nothings in her ear and doing sweaty things with her that a family newspaper cannot describe.

This has alarmed TV critics and many viewers, not just because it happened — but because it’s happened more than once.

On Friday, McPherson delivered this news bit: “It’s not a ghost, which you will learn. I think when you get to the end of the season and see everything [creator Shonda Rhimes] had in mind, it might not be your cup of tea, but I think you will be surprised at how insightful and smart the story line itself is in terms of the dynamics that it’s creating for the characters that are involved.”

For months, it’s been rumored that Heigl will be leaving the show at the end of the season and that Rhimes is killing her off. Is she seeing a ghost or does she imagine him as a result of a tumor or aneurysm? These were possible scenarios until recently when Denny and Alex (Justin Chambers) had a conversation when Izzie was not in the room. Unless, of course, Alex also is dying and has an aneurysm in the way that women who spend a lot of time together menstruate at the same time.

When asked about this after the press conference, McPherson was not pleased.

“Watch the show,” he said. “I’m not going to talk to you about a creative issue on Shonda’s show. He’s not a ghost. You’ll see.”

To be fair, McPherson was already in a sour mood when the question was posed because another reporter had dared to ask why “so many actors were jumping ship.”

“Grey’s Anatomy”: Mother knows best

How many sorts of awesome is Tyne Daly?

Last night, the six-time Emmy winner guest-starred as Derek’s grounded, former-Navy-nurse mama, a woman with a knack for getting the truth out of -- and knocking a little sense into -- nearly everyone she encountered at Seattle Grace. After learning about Mark and Lexie, and determining that Little Grey was a mostly law-abiding gal with an acceptable number of past sexual partners, she encouraged Mark to believe he deserved the relationship while delivering one of the smartest lines of the night. (“You have the emotional maturity of a horny 15-year-old. You need young.”) And after Meredith dropped the perky ponytail and came clean about her dark and cloudy ways, Mama Shepard gave Derek her blessing -- and an engagement ring for his girl. “You see things in black and white,” she told him. “Meredith doesn’t. You need a spoonful of that. You need her.”

Amen! As I noted last week, “Grey’s” hasn’t done itself any favors this season by relegating Derek and Meredith to the back burner. Fans waited eons for the notoriously on-and-off couple to finally get it together and, once they did, they all but disappeared to make room for a seemingly endless series of new recurring characters we can’t possibly care as much about. (Especially when they turn out to be duds like pouty-lipped intern Sadie, who sliced herself open for an appendectomy a few weeks ago and now wonders why she’s in pieces. Or something like that. Thankfully, she’s on her way out soon.) The renewed focus on Mer-Der, as well as other beloved characters such as Cristina -- who’s also in the thick of the death-row inmate storyline -- has resulted in two consecutive weeks of improved episodes.

If only that blasted Denny would go away. As Meredith met her future mother-in-law and Cristina prepared for her first date with the haunted Iraq doc, Owen, Izzie realized that she too wanted an alive-and-kicking boyfriend. So she broke up with her dead one. He cried. I felt a flicker of hope. For a moment, it seemed we were free. Free! Surely, if Izzie had come to her senses, that meant Denny was heading back to his sports-lovin’ buddies in the sky. Unfortunately, the dude has turned into a can’t-take-no-for-an-answer stalker in the afterlife. One who's now started talking to Alex. When will it stop??

What was your take on Thursday’s episode? Do you agree with Mama Shepard that Mark and Lexie should make a go of it? Should Cristina give Owen another shot after he showed up late and drunk and proceeded to take a fully-clothed shower in her new place? How creepy-brilliant is Eric Stoltz as the serial killer? And would Meredith and Cristina have given Izzie’s advice the same weight if they’d known she now sees dead people? Weigh in below.

-- Shawna Malcom