Maggie suffered a major blow on this season of Grey’s Anatomy — her mother was diagnosed with cancer, she hid it from Maggie, and then, even though she got treatment, she passed away soon after. Maggie didn’t take it well (I wouldn’t either), and even though she’s back at work, Maggie is still anchorless at Grey Sloan. Maggie is mourning her mother on Grey’s Anatomy, but at least she has her sisters with her to help dance it out.
Since Maggie was introduced to Grey’s Anatomy, there was an obvious divide between her, Amelia, and Meredith. It was (and still is, a little) Meredith and Amelia — the damaged ones — against Maggie — the shiny, happy, “normal” one. Meredith and Amelia even talked about this while watching Maggie at her mother’s gravesite in this very episode. Meredith and Amelia are the ones that have suffered great losses, and so their means of mourning are a little different. Meredith runs away and has a secret baby, as Amelia called her niece, and Amelia does a lot of OxyContin (her words, not mine). They thought that Maggie would mourn in a less violent way, but they were wrong, because Maggie looks like she has it all under control, but really, she’s crumbling.
When Maggie came home sobbing, the sisters sprang into action. Originally, Meredith and Amelia were going to let Maggie mourn and just watch from afar, but a sobbing lady one the doorstep is something to deal with right away. Meredith even cancelled a non-date with Riggs because of it, because for Meredith, dealing with her family and the people she “has to take care of” is more important than her love life. In true Grey’s Anatomy retro style, Meredith brought back the “dance it out” that she used to do with Cristina, because she and the sisters were either going to “cry or dance.” I, too, choose dancing, especially after all of that crying.
Here, Maggie hits a turning point. She’s going to have to learn how to live without her mother. Maggie has to come to terms with the fact that her mother lived a wonderful, full life, and she has to do that, too. Hopefully, her sisters will show her how and grow along with her.
