The Best and Worst Experiences of Grey’s Anatomy’s Original Five Interns

We first met the original Grey’s Anatomy interns almost 20 years ago, but do you remember the ultimate highs and lows of their time at the hospital?

When Grey’s Anatomy first premiered back in March 2005, no one — not Shonda Rhimes, not the ABC production team, not even the main cast — knew how big the medical drama would become. The very first episode introduced a rag-tag group of interns who were all understandably fearful of their assigned resident, Dr. Miranda Bailey (also known as “The Nazi” at that time). They sized each other up much like how the viewers looked at the characters and wondered what would become of them during the most stressful time of their lives.

During their time on the series, the original five interns — Meredith, Cristina, Alex, George, and Izzie — fell in and out of love, questioned their jobs, and performed medical miracles for very grateful patients. They each put in countless hours and sacrificed everything else in their lives to be incredible doctors. However, as Season 20 approaches — and Ellen Pompeo’s Meredith Grey will not be returning, making her the last of the original five to leave the show — fans find themselves reminiscing about the former interns that made extraordinary things happen. Here are the best and worst experiences of each of Grey’s Anatomy‘s original five interns.

10.Meredith Grey’s Best Experience

Zola’s Adoption Getting Approved

So many great things happened to Meredith Grey over the course of Grey’s Anatomy‘s 19 seasons. She won a Harper Avery, helped save the hospital, met the love of her life, and became so much more than her mother ever could have imagined. All of these things are incredible milestones and accomplishments in her life, but nothing beats the moment Zola’s caseworker knocked on Meredith’s door with the young girl in her arms and said that the adoption finally and officially went through.

For much of the show’s early seasons, Meredith did not know if she wanted to be a mother because of how her own mom raised her, but when Derek asked her about adopting Zola together, everything just fell into place. Meredith realized she would defy all expectations and be an extraordinary surgeon and the best mom Zola could ever have all at the same time. It’s an experience no fan can forget.

9.Meredith Grey’s Worst Experience

Losing Derek and Having to be Strong Alone

Even with all the amazing things Meredith was able to accomplish as a doctor and a mother, there were certainly some setbacks during her journey. She and Derek were like a roller coaster when it came to juggling their careers, exes, and family. However, when it seemed like they were going to finally make everything right and get back to the power couple fans know and love them to be, Derek died. He was a hero for what he did to save the people around him, but his death took a toll on Meredith.

She left her friends, home, and practice behind for almost a year to cope with his passing. What no one knew at the time of her disappearance was that she was pregnant with their third child. Months went by and Zola and Bailey clearly missed their father, but Meredith had to put on a brave face for her children. She went into labor with just her daughter by her side, and eventually, she accepted that she needed to go back home to the people who would love and support her.

8.Alex Karev’s Best Experience

Becoming Chief of Surgery

When Alex Karev first joined the other interns on Bailey’s service, no one took a liking to him. He was rude, arrogant, and demeaning — many fans were actually surprised Meredith didn’t pin him to a wall sooner. However, over 16 seasons, Alex definitely grew the most as a person and a professional. He learned to really care about others, opened his heart up to love, and realized he could actually be a great doctor as well as a leader.

When Bailey instated Karev as the interim Chief of Surgery while she took a leave of absence (per Screen Rant), she truly did not know how much of an effect it would have on him. He took the job without much doubt because he had come so far. After quickly realizing the amount of paperwork and headache that came with the title, Karev found a more reasonable system and delegated tasks to department heads and interns. In the end, both Bailey and Webber were proud of what he was able to achieve, but Alex deserved to be proud of himself.

7.Alex Karev’s Worst Experience

Becoming the Man of the House as a Child Himself

To say Alex Karev had a rough childhood would be the biggest understatement of the series. We find out early on that his father was a drug user and an alcoholic who left when Alex was just a teenager. Then again, Alex and his family probably wished he had left much sooner because he often got violent when he got home. Then Alex’s mother was diagnosed with schizophrenia, and he had to prevent her from hurting herself, him, and his siblings for far too long.

When Alex’s brother shows up in need of surgery, he actually speaks very fondly of Alex and recognizes that his big brother had to step up as the man of the house when no one else could actually be a parent. This is a horrible experience for anyone to go through, and while many will say that it is how Alex got to where he is today, no child should ever have to go through the heartache and uncertainty that he experienced during most of his childhood.

6.Cristina Yang’s Best Experience

Inheriting the Hospital in Switzerland

Cristina Yang knew she was born to make a difference, and she constantly challenged herself to do the best and be the best. “Good” was never good enough, and she refused to let anyone make her feel as if she was less than incredible. Some may say that the best thing that ever happened to Cristina was Preston Burke walking away on their wedding day or when she and Meredith became friends. Those people would be wrong.

Because Cristina’s life is so wrapped up in medicine and reinventing the way cardiologists do things, her best experience throughout the series was when her ex-fiance, Burke, gifted her his hospital. There, she could do research she’d only previously dreamed of, and she would change the face of medicine more than she ever could back at Grey Sloan Memorial. Sadly, we do not get to see how things truly play out for Cristina, but we can imagine that she is happy where she is, surrounded by incredible professionals who share her determination and goals.

5.Cristina Yang’s Worst Experience

Losing Herself After the Hospital Shooting

Despite always being the brightest in her class and usually the smartest in the room, Cristina did not always have it so easy. When she was a child, her father bled out and died right in front of her before help could arrive. She managed to marry two men who stole bits and pieces from her soul and made her forget who she was for a short time. None of this, even dealing with the aftermath of the plane crash, comes close to how devastating it was to watch Cristina lose herself after Gary Clark shot up the hospital in one of the show’s heaviest storylines.

It was expected that everyone, especially Cristina, who was held at gunpoint while working on Derek Shepherd, would experience some form of PTSD after the tragic events. Surprisingly, Cristina took it much harder than anyone anticipated. It was as if she had to shut her entire passion and personality down to get out of bed each morning. People who once respected her began to doubt her abilities, but luckily, Shepherd found a way to pull her out of the darkness.

4.George O’Malley’s Best Experience

Supporting Miranda Bailey During Labor

Many fans are still angry that George O’Malley was written out of Grey’s Anatomy only six seasons in, but during that time, he accomplished quite a bit. From performing open-heart surgery in an elevator to showing his family he can be so much more than their “little Georgie,” the young doctor really managed to step up at times. When it comes to his absolute best experience during his time at Seattle Grace, there is no doubt that he would fondly look back on the time he helped Miranda Bailey get through labor without her husband.

Bailey, the terrifying five-foot woman who could make a grown man cry with just her words, was refusing to go into labor because the hospital was chaotic with a bomb being stuck inside a patient, and her husband was nowhere to be found. George took charge of the situation and convinced Bailey that she needed to begin pushing. He actually hopped up behind her and let the tiny woman destroy his hand and ear drums as she gave birth to a beautiful baby boy. This is the moment George became Bailey’s favorite intern.

3.George O’Malley’s Worst Experience

Watching His Father Die

George’s pining for Meredith was bad; his sleeping with Meredith was even worse. Jumping in front of a bus to save a person who was too distracted to look up was downright horrible. All of George’s friends could take a stab at what was the worst thing that ever happened to him during his years in the program, but none of them would come close to how he felt when he lost his father.

Harold O’Malley loved his boy with all his heart, even when he did not fully understand what he did for work or why he enjoyed it so much. When Harold’s cancer had spread, and he asked his doctors to cut out as much as they could (unbeknownst to George), they did as he wished. Unfortunately, complications happened, and, in one of Grey’s Anatomy‘s tear-jerking episodes, the O’Malleys were asked to make a choice to take Harold off life support. That is the moment that broke George. His family finally turned to him as the professional in the room and asked what they should do. It took George’s father dying for his brothers to truly understand the harsh realities of his job.

2.Izzie Stevens’ Best Experience

Selflessly Saving Her Own Daughter

In season two, episode 15, “Break on Through,” we learn that Izzie Stevens has a daughter whom she gave up for adoption because she wanted her little girl to have a better life than she could give her. Then, in season three’s “Time After Time,” Izzie’s daughter comes to the hospital because she needs a bone marrow transplant. Her biological child is 11, and her adoptive parents are desperate to help their little girl.

Izzie agrees to help even though he does not get to meet her daughter like she had hoped. The procedure is relatively quick, but it takes a physical, mental, and emotional toll on the young doctor. Izzie knows she did the right thing by giving her daughter away when she was just 16 years old and living in a trailer park, but knowing that her own flesh and blood is suffering when she cannot do anything about it breaks her. Her selflessness towards the person she loves but does not even know is by far Izzie’s best moment.

1.Izzie Stevens’s Worst Experience

Losing Denny

Izzie battled cancer, she was “the other woman” who broke up George’s marriage, and she even lost her job at the hospital. While all of these things were horrible, Izzie truly hit rock bottom when she lost the love of her life, Denny Duquette. Their love was quick but passionate, and she thought they were going to get to live out the rest of their days together after they both made insane sacrifices for one another. Unfortunately, fate had different plans.

By the time Izzie got to Denny’s room to show off her dress for the party going on downstairs, he was already gone. She did not get the chance to say goodbye or tell him how she looked forward to growing old with him. Izzie slipped away into a dark place after his death, and she knew she would never be the same person again.

Stream Grey’s Anatomy on Netflix