This Woman's Work is the season premiere of the seventh season and the 96th overall episode of Station 19.
Short Summary[]
Andy steps into the station's captaincy as Jack's life hangs in the balance. The team is called to a hostage situation. Natasha fights for her career, and Maya and Carina make a choice.
Full Summary[]
In the midst of a call, Andy calls for operational retreat. Jack tells people to get out. Andy tells Jack to evacuate, but he hears music and knows someone's still inside. He finds someone lying down and flips them over to see it's him.
Amelia operates on Jack's brain.
Andy, Ben, Vic, and Theo watch the news report on the floor collapse, highlighting that Ross was injured and the recent revelation of hers and Sullivan's relationship.
Ross is also watching the report with Sullivan and she is irritated that they focused on their relationship instead of the people who had died. Sullivan asks if she regrets outing their relationship, but she says no, because people already knew they were together and they really just confirmed it. She tries to get up to talk to the mayor, but Sullivan talks her back into the bed. He is sure the mayor won't fire her after what has happened. She says she looks weak and people like them can't show weakness. Sullivan tells her to stop spinning out and offers her ice chips. She asks for coffee instead. He leaves to get some.
Andy gets a snack from the vending machine. Amelia comes to her and says Jack's surgery went well and she was able to close his skull. She'll know more when he wakes up about what his prognosis is. As Amelia walks away, a hallucination of Jack appears to Andy and says it might not be the time to cry as she has a team to lead.
Ben tells Vic and Theo that Kate is waiting on a neurology consult because her doctors are being cautious. Once that's done, she'll be cleared to return to work and making chaos. Ben stands up to take a call from his sister. Theo asks Vic if it'll be weird for them to be on Crisis One together and asks if she wants to have Andy switch them. Vic says that's the risk they took dating co-workers and she can handle it. Andy comes to them and tells them Jack's out of surgery. Ben says it's a good sign that they were able to close.
Carina is with Nanette's baby. Maya comes in and Carina tells her that the baby has no idea his mom didn't make it. Maya assures her she did everything she could. Carina says the floor collapsed and some of them made it and some didn't, which gave her clarity on them. She tells Maya she thought she could keep living in Maya's apartment, but she can't. There are too many bad memories there now. She wants them to start fresh in a house. They start talking about things they want in their house and Maya agrees to do it.
Andy tells Theo she knows how it feels to be passed over, but he says it is what it is. She wants to know they're a team and she can count on him, but before they can say more, Theo and Vic are called away for a Crisis One call. Theo says she can count on him before leaving.
Travis is impressed with how quickly Eli can shower. He didn't want to be late. He has a huge meeting. Travis asks if Osman is going to replace Ross and Eli truly doesn't know. He tells Travis not to spend the day thinking about work, even though he'll spend his day at work thinking about Travis. They kiss and Eli leaves.
Vic and Theo arrive at Aqueous Future Solutions, where Vic jogs to the door and sees a group of people inside, held hostage by a woman who is angry about someone lying to her. Vic knocks and introduces herself. Ariana asks for help, saying the woman blocked all the exits. She's also holding explosives. Kevin says she's a disgruntled employee and she's trying to blow the place up. Phyllis says she was fine until he and Sanjay lied to them. Theo and Vic quietly decide to call the bomb squad, but tell them to come with no lights or sirens. Vic turns her attention back to the scene and learns that the woman is Phyllis Myers. Vic asks what she has in her hands and Kevin says it's antifreeze. Phyllis holds it up and says if she mixes it with the vial she's holding, it'll cause an explosion. She moves as if to pour it, but Vic calls her attention. She asks Phyllis to tell her why she's so upset. Phyllis says Kevin and Sanjay stole her life's work.
Andy sits by Jack's bedside, where the hallucination of Jack remarks that he doesn't look so good. Maya comes in and asks if she can tell Andy something as a friend. It's normal to be stressed with everything going on. As a woman in leadership, she has the weight of all the other women on her. Andy says it's different now because they have a woman as chief. Maya asks for how much longer. If Osman fires her, odds are they're back to the old boys club. It's not enough to be strong. Andy has to be tough. They don't have the luxury of screwing up, even once. She'll be down the hallway if Andy needs her.
Phyllis says she's spent her whole life working in tech and at every job she's ever had, guys like Sanjay and Kevin have poached her work and taken the credit. She tells Vic she's a chemical engineer developing low-cost ways to purify water for drinking. They said they would patent the technology, but leave it open, so others could use it without paying. Sanjay denies ever saying that. An hour ago, Phyllis found out that the patent was closed and Sanjay and Kevin filed it in their names so they could make money. She asks if they thought she wouldn't find out.
Theo radios for help, but tells them no lights or sirens. He's searching for another way into the building. All ground-floor exits are locked and there's no access to upper floors.
Vic tries to relate to Phyllis, but Phyllis says they just used her because she's been working on the technology for 30 years. So have others in the crowd. She wonders why they're not angry like she is.
Travis arrives at the Dixon house and Kitty happily welcomes him inside. He has food form his mother. She sends him to put it with the other dishes and tells him to help himself to a plate. She's working with the funeral director. Travis struggles to find a place to put the dish down on a crowded table as Kitty picks the music for the funeral. She claims Mahler was Dixon's favorite, but Emmett tells Travis that it was actually Springsteen. Travis says hi to him.
Ross is working in her hospital room when Sullivan comes in and tells her to stop. She's supposed to be resting, but she says there's work to be done and this will be how she keeps her job. She doesn't want to be fired for not doing her job, but Sullivan still doesn't think Osman will fire her. Osman peeks in and asks if it's a good time to talk. He has Sullivan step out so they can speak privately.
Sullivan sits with Ben in the waiting room and tells him Ross is talking to the mayor, who kicked Sullivan out. He thinks Osman might fire Ross, which is cold and a terrible decision because she's the best chief they've had in decades. He'll fire her over a rule that has nothing to do with how she does her job. Ben says that's politics and asks if Sullivan will be okay knowing he's the reason she's losing her job.
Vic says she understands that Phyllis is angry and the pain is fresh, but questions if Phyllis will still be angry after the dust has settled. She might regret acting so strongly when she calms down. Phyllis thinks she'll still be angry. Vic tells her she'll hurt the people around her and maybe they're hurting just like she is. Maybe there's a way for them to get their due without blowing things up. Phyllis sees Theo and asks if he's the bad cop. Vic says they're not cops and Theo introduces himself. He says Phyllis can stay right where she is and Vic will stay with her for as long as she wants, but maybe they can get the other people some help. A security guard is bleeding and another person is hyperventilating. If she lets them out, Theo can check them out while Phyllis and Vic keep talking. Phyllis says they can't come in. Vic asks if she thinks they'll change their minds about the patent under threat. Vic relates to Phyllis as a woman in a male-dominated field. Vic knows what it's like to have to shout to be heard. Her co-workers are terrified and so is Vic because she's standing in front of a glass wall and Phyllis has explosive chemicals in her hands. But she doesn't think Phyllis wants to hurt anyone. She didn't think things through and now she's out of moves. But if she puts the chemicals down and lets her co-workers go, Vic promises to stay with her and try to find a way out. Phyllis puts the containers down and opens the doors.
Emmett tells Travis the food in Florence is even better than people say. He gained ten pounds and had to find a gym. Kitty comes in and says the funeral director is gone. He was very hospitable to her. Travis says she's holding up well and she asks if he means because Travis killed her husband. Emmett chastises her and she asks if they tried the coffee cake. After she leaves, Emmett apologizes for her, but Travis says she's not herself and he knows that. He was beginning to wonder if she remembered what happened. Emmett asks him what happened because he knows Travis was there. Travis starts to explain, but when he talks about Dixon talking about Emmett, Emmett cuts him off and walks out.
Theo directs people as they exit the building. As the last few step out, Phyllis hears sirens and asks if they called the police. Vic says she didn't, but Kevin says the police are coming and Phyllis will go to jail. Phyllis shoves Vic off the door and closes it, then runs back into the building. Kevin and Sanjay follow and then Vic follows them.
Marsha enters Jack's room, asking why they didn't call her sooner. She was worried sick, calling around to all the hospitals. Andy says he called Jack's sister, but Marsha says she barely knows Jack. Marsha is Jack's family. She expected more from them. Marsha starts talking to Jack.
Vic chases Sanjay and Kevin, who believe Phyllis is going to destroy the prototype. They catch up to Phyllis, who tells them to duck. The chemicals explode, throwing her back.
Outside, Theo radios Vic and asks her status.
Vic tells Theo what happened and says she's uninjured and moving the three civilians to cover. Theo radios for backup.
Vic directs Sanjay and Kevin to an open room and helps Phyllis get there as well.
Andy radios the team as they're on their way to the scene and says she wants them communicating. Then she asks Sullivan about Ross, but he doesn't know anything except that the mayor was talking to her.
In the room, Vic gets Phyllis onto a couch and uses Sanjay's shirt to stop some bleeding on her leg. Sanjay says Phyllis blowing up the servers is worse than her hitting the lab, which is exactly why she did it. They shouldn't have lied to her. Vic tells them it's not the time. They have to find a way out. They realize the blast must have knocked out the fire suppression system as the fire enters the room. Vic says her team will be there soon. Phyllis didn't mean for this to happen. She just blacked out in rage. She's tired of people using her to make themselves rich. She wanted to put good into the world. Vic says they have to focus on getting out of there.
Chef Wolf sees Carina and recognizes her. She doesn't remember him until he explains that he was at the firefighters ball, in the kitchen. She asks if he's there to see the baby and he says he is. And he's going to adopt the baby. Nanette didn't have a chance to pick parents for him and he wants the baby to know about Nanette, which he can do. They worked together for a few years. Nanette hoped whoever got him would name him Liam, after her favorite member of One Direction. That's his name. Liam. Wolf's son. It sounds weird, but he'll get used to it. He thinks Nanette would like that he's with Wolf. Carina wishes him luck.
Theo tells Andy the status of the scene. Andy sends Maya and Cutler to the roof and tells Sullivan and Larsson to get the aerial up to the third floor for a rescue. She has others run a line to the third floor.
Vic explains her location to Andy. She sees a balcony outside, but Andy says it's not a way down. Sanjay says the server's backup batteries are getting too hot and will soon reach a point where they let off a toxic gas. Vic has Kevin block the gaps in the door as much as he can while Sanjay monitor's the battery temps. Vic updates Andy.
Sullivan tells Andy they do have room to get the aerial in the right place. Andy calls for a rescue cushion and tells Vic the plan.
Phyllis, Sanjay, and Kevin all say they can jump.
Ben tells Marsha he's not surprised Jack never changed his emergency contact. He's allergic to paperwork. Marsha says he drove on an expired license for four months because he didn't want to do the paperwork. Ben says he insisted on no forms for the clinic. Marsha apologizes for being irritable when she came in, but Jack is her only family. Ben says he's family to him, too. His kids love Jack and he can't imagine not having him for their sake. Marsha says when Jack became part of her life, it was like stepping out into the light after being in darkness. She thinks she saw Jack move, but realizes it might have been wishful thinking.
The batteries start off-gassing, so Vic wants to move them to the balcony. The rescue cushion will be ready in 30 seconds. Vic uses a fire extinguisher to break the window and helps everyone out. The cushion is ready, so Vic has Kevin jump and then Sanjay. It's Phyllis's turn, but she won't jump and tells Vic to go without her because she doesn't want to go to jail. Unable to persuade her, Vic radios out to Andy and says it's not happening.
There was damage from the blast preventing them from getting the fire put out. Hallucination Jack taunts Andy as she tries to think of another way. Finally, she decides to have Maya rappel from the roof and lower Phyllis to the ground.
Maya gets to the balcony and Vic helps her load Phyllis into a harness. As they lower to the ground, there's an explosion and Vic jumps to safety as the flames approach her. Once Phyllis is on the ground, Maya helps her walk to a gurney. She is handcuffed as she's wheeled to an aid car. Andy orders them to knock the fire down.
Amelia tells Andy that there's no change on Jack's neuro exam, but he has scarring in his brain from precious TBIs. He may have lost some fine motor skills. He might recover them with physical therapy, but people with brains like Jack go on to develop CTE. He's alive, but Amelia doesn't see any doctor or the fire department clearing Jack to fight fires again. She says they'll continue to give Jack the best care possible.
Travis finds Emmett and says he's sorry his dad didn't tell him what he needed to hear. In the time that Travis spent with him, he thinks that Dixon was sorry, too. Emmett cries and hugs Travis, then starts kissing him. Travis starts kissing back and they undress each other.
Hallucination Jack tells Andy she should have seen this coming. She says she tried to get Jack to go see a doctor. He hopes she looks out for the rest of the team better. She says it's not her fault and he won't use it to make her doubt herself. She worked to get where she is and now she'll be the best captain the station's ever seen, even better than her dad. She deserves it.
Osman wheels Ross outside as reporters swarm, asking if she's being fired. Osman reports that Ross has been discharged to recover at home. He adds that she's done excellent work and her relationship doesn't change that. The rule needs to be replaced, not her. He's asked her to stay on and she has agreed. The reporters keep questioning her.
Theo goes to Vic and tells her he fooled around with Kate that night, right after they broke up. She say okay and he's surprised, but she says that given everything else that has happened, him being with Kate when they were broken up is a very small thing. She feels like she failed with Phyllis because she wasn't able to stop a critical incident. Now she and Phyllis both have to live with that.
Sullivan drives Ross home and says they need to celebrate. Ross isn't prepared to celebrate because it could still change. Sullivan wants to get married, but she says they only talk about that during times of crisis. He says when she was trapped, he was worried he'd lose her forever and nothing else seemed important. That's not adrenaline. It's clarity. She wants him to ask on a normal Tuesday, when they're grumpy and stressed. Then she might say yes. He tells her tomorrow's Tuesday.
Wolf watches baby Liam and cries. Carina comes in with Maya and says she was just telling Maya about Wolf and Liam, but Wolf says he started filling out the paperwork and answering the questions and he decided he couldn't do it after all. He leaves and Maya looks at Carina and says they can. They can be his moms. They can still get pregnant, but they're perfect candidates for emergency foster care. She's sure, so Carina introduces them to Liam and says they want to be his moms.
Andy tells Ben Jack's prognosis. Marsha calls them, saying Jack is waking up.
Inside the room, Jack wakes up and asks Andy when his next shift is. Marsha reminds him that he just woke up.
Cast[]
Main Cast[]
- Jaina Lee Ortiz as Captain Andy Herrera
- Jason George as Dr. Ben Warren
- Boris Kodjoe as Lieutenant Robert Sullivan
- Grey Damon as Jack Gibson
- Barrett Doss as Victoria Hughes
- Jay Hayden as Travis Montgomery
- Danielle Savre as Lieutenant Maya Bishop
- Stefania Spampinato as Dr. Carina DeLuca
- Carlos Miranda as Lieutenant Theo Ruiz
- Josh Randall as Sean Beckett (credit only)
- Merle Dandridge as Fire Chief Natasha Ross
Guest Stars[]
- Caterina Scorsone as Dr. Amelia Shepherd
- Lachlan Buchanan as Emmett Dixon
- Rob Heaps as Eli Stern
- Jayne Taini as Marsha Smith
- Tricia O'Kelley as Kitty Dixon
- Emerson Brooks as Robel Osman
- Tara Karsian as Phyllis Myers
- Kapil Talwalkar as Sanjay
- Charley Koontz as Chef Wolf
- John Shartzer as Kevin
Co-Starring[]
Rescues[]
Phyllis Myers[]
Crisis One was called to Aqueous Future Solutions. Vic and Theo arrived to find Phyllis Myers keeping her co-workers hostage in their place of business. Ariana told them through the glass that the liquid Phyllis was holding was explosive. She was a disgruntled employee threatening to blow the building up. Phyllis explained that she was fine until Kevin and Sanjay lied to her. Vic had Theo quietly call the bomb squad while she engaged with Phyllis. Phyllis explained that Sanjay and Kevin had stolen her life's work. She explained that she's a chemical engineer and she was producing a low-cost technology to purify water. She says that Sanjay and Kevin agreed to patent it, but keep it open, so others could use it without paying for it, but she found out that the patent was closed and they'd filed it in their names to get rich. Meanwhile, Theo established that all the ground-floor doors to the building were locked and there were no ways to access the building. She'd been working on the technology for 30 years. Her co-workers had worked on it as well and Phyllis asked why they weren't angry like she was. Vic asked her to think about her colleagues and ask herself if she'd still be as angry tomorrow. Theo then pointed out the people who were injured and asked her to let them go so they could be treated. Vic related to Phyllis as a woman in a male-dominated profession and agreed to stay with Phyllis and help her find a way out. Phyllis put down the chemicals and opened the door. As the people were evacuated, Phyllis heard sirens and asked if they called the police. Vic assured her they didn't, but Kevin said the police were coming and she was going to go to jail. Phyllis pulled the door shut and ran back into the building. Kevin and Sanjay followed her and Vic followed them.
Sanjay and Kevin said she was going to destroy the prototype and they caught up to her just as there was an explosion. Vic moved Sanjay, Kevin, and Phyllis to a nearby room while Theo called for backup. Vic used Sanjay's shirt to stop the bleeding from an injury to Phyllis's leg. The fire suppression system didn't activate, so they assumed it was damaged by the explosion. As they waited for help to arrive, Phyllis explained that she had just gone into a blind rage when she heard the sirens. When their backup arrived, Vic told Andy that there was a balcony outside, but Andy said it wasn't a possible way out. Sanjay then said the servers operated on backup batteries and they would put off a dangerous gas if they got too hot, a point they were close to reaching. Vic had Kevin fill the gap at the bottom of the door and had Sanjay monitor the temperature of the batteries.
Outside, Sullivan told Andy that they couldn't get their rig into position for evacuation because the buildings were too close together, so Andy had them set up a rescue cushion so they could jump to safety. Vic asked Sanjay, Kevin, and Phyllis and they all said they could jump. As the batteries started giving off gas, Vic broke the window and had them move to the balcony. Kevin then jumped to safety, followed by Sanjay, but when it was Phyllis's turn, she refused because she didn't want to go to jail. Vic was unable to persuade her to jump, so Andy had Maya rappel from the roof to the balcony, then put Phyllis in a harness and lowered her to the ground. As that was happening, Vic jumped to safety herself as an explosion erupted behind her. Once Phyllis was on the ground, Maya helped her walk to a gurney and she was taken to the hospital.
Music[]
| Song | Performer | Scene |
|---|---|---|
| "Cello Suite No. 1 in G Major - Prelude" | Lorne Balfe |
|
| "Bring That River Home" | Raye Zaragoza and Beza |
|
| "Back to Light" | Sorin |
|
| "Come Home" | Beza |
|
Notes and Trivia[]
- This episode's title originated from the song This Woman's Work, originally sung by Kate Bush.
- This episode scored 2.79 million viewers.[1]
- The table read for the episode took place on November 28, 2023.[2]
- Filming for this episode started on December 6, 2023[3]
- This episode marks the 100th appearance of Jaina Lee Ortiz as Andy Herrera.
- The baby who played Liam in this episode is the daughter of Bryce Hudson.[4]
- This episode marks the first appearance of BokHee on Station 19, thus making her one of the few characters to appear on all three shows of the Grey's Anatomy Universe.
- Merle Dandridge shadowed Paris Barclay as he directed this episode.[5]
- The fire scene took a second unit director and three stunt doubles to film.[5]
- As of this episode, Amelia Shepherd is the only character in the entire Grey's universe to appear in both a season premiere and finale of all the three shows.
Gallery[]
Episode Stills[]
Quotes[]
See Also[]
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A complete overview of this episode's crew can be found here. |
| Station 19 Season 7 | ||||||
| #01 | "This Woman's Work" | #05 | "My Way" | #09 | "How Am I Supposed to Live Without You" | |
| #02 | "Good Grief" | #06 | "With So Little to Be Sure Of" | #10 | "One Last Time" | |
| #03 | "True Colors" | #07 | "Give It All" | |||
| #04 | "Trouble Man" | #08 | "Ushers of the New World" | |||
| << Season 6 | ||||||
