A one-night stand with her boss was just the beginning for Ellen Pompeo’s Meredith Grey in Grey’s Anatomy. Since that moment aired over two decades ago, we’ve seen Meredith and her colleagues face numerous deaths, hospital disasters and complicated romances. 

Meredith’s near-death experiences alone have captivated audiences. She’s held a live bomb in a patient, come close to drowning, survived a plane crash, been attacked by a patient, faced down a gunman, almost died from COVID-19 and nearly bled to death from a splenic injury after an emergency C-section during a superstorm. And that’s just scratching the surface of the drama she’s faced. 

As the longest-running scripted primetime medical drama in U.S. history, with a whopping 22 seasons under its belt, there’s a lot to catch up on before diving into Season 23, which premieres Thursday. 

From Post-it vows to a plane crash that changed everything, the show has covered countless storylines so far. We’ve rounded up the key moments to get you up to speed — without a 466-episode rewatch. 

As for the new season, we can expect to see the fallout after Toni finds Cass at Amelia’s home, trouble in Link and Jo’s relationship, a new VIP wing and Ben finding out about Winston and Jules. There are also some cast additions including Schitt’s Creek actor Sarah Levy and Mad Men star James Wolk. Episodes will air each Thursday on ABC and be available to stream on Hulu. 

Key storylines from every season of ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ so far

Season 1 | 2005 | 9 episodes 

• Meredith Grey has a one-night stand with a man who turns out to be her new boss, Derek.  
• Meredith hides her mother’s Alzheimer’s diagnosis. 
• Derek (McDreamy) Shepherd’s wife, Addison Montgomery-Shepherd, shows up.  

Season 2 | 2005-06 | 27 episodes 

• Mark (McSteamy) Sloan arrives at the hospital and earns a punch from Derek after flirting with Meredith. Derek chooses Addison, despite Meredith begging him to pick her.  
• The bomb two-parter: Meredith holds a live explosive inside a patient’s body, which she manages to remove before it detonates, killing the bomb squad leader. 
• Denny Duquette, the patient Izzie Stevens falls in love with and cuts his left ventricular assist device (LVAD) wire for, dies. 

Season 3 | 2006-07 | 25 episodes 

• Meredith drowns — and is brought back to life after a ferry crash. Her mother dies on the same day. 
• Addison heads to L.A. (where Private Practice, the first Grey’s spinoff, begins) and George O’Malley fails his intern exam. 
• Preston Burke leaves Cristina Yang at the altar and leaves the hospital.

Season 4 | 2007-08 | 17 episodes 

• George’s affair with Izzie ends his marriage to Callie Torres, who later develops feelings for Erica Hahn.
• Meredith’s younger half-sister, Lexie Grey, joins the new wave of interns. 
• Meredith maps out her future home with candles, showing she’s ready to commit to Derek.

Season 5 | 2008-09 | 24 episodes

• Izzie’s diagnosed with Stage 4 melanoma after seeing Denny’s ghost. Meredith and Derek let Izzie and Alex Karev have their wedding. Meredith and Derek write their vows on a Post-it note. 
• Owen Hunt and Arizona Robbins arrive at the hospital. 
• After being hit by a bus and disfigured, George’s colleagues initially don’t recognize him. His identity is later discovered by Meredith.

Season 6 | 2009-10 | 24 episodes 

• George dies in the season premiere while Izzie later leaves Seattle — and Alex. 
• The Mercy West merger brings Jackson Avery and April Kepner to the hospital. 
• The hospital shooting episode: A grieving widower opens fire inside the hospital, shooting Derek and killing residents Reed Adamson and Charles Percy. Meredith miscarries.

Season 7 | 2010-11 | 22 episodes

• Pregnant Callie is badly hurt in a car crash. While she’s unconscious, the musical episode takes place. 
• Callie, after surviving and giving birth to Sofia, marries Arizona Robbins. 
• Meredith tampers with Derek’s Alzheimer’s trial to help Adele, threatening her marriage, job and baby Zola’s adoption.

Season 8 | 2011-12 | 24 episodes 

• A pregnant Cristina has an abortion and her marriage deteriorates. Owen later admits to cheating on her. 
• Meredith and Derek adopt baby Zola. 
• The plane crash episode: six of the hospital’s doctors are stranded in the woods after a plane crash. Lexie dies, Arizona’s leg is crushed, Mark is seriously injured and Derek badly hurts his hand.

Season 9 | 2012-13 | 24 episodes 

• Mark dies from his injuries after the plane crash and Arizona’s leg is amputated. 
• The crash survivors and Callie pool their settlement money to help buy the hospital and rename it Grey Sloan Memorial. 
• Meredith gives birth to Bailey during a storm.

Season 10 | 2013-14 | 24 episodes 

• April leaves Matthew Taylor at the altar after Jackson objects to her wedding. 
• Maggie Pierce enters the scene as the new head of cardio — the daughter of Richard and Ellis Grey and Meredith’s half-sister. 
• Cristina leaves for Zurich.

Season 11 | 2014-15 | 25 episodes

• After suffering a head injury in a car crash, Derek dies. 
• April and Jackson’s son, Samuel, is born with a fatal condition and dies shortly after birth.
• Meredith vanishes for months and gives birth to Ellis.

Season 12 | 2015-16 | 24 episodes 

• Meredith’s attacked by a patient, leaving her temporarily unable to hear and with her jaw wired shut while she recovers. 
• Callie moves to New York. 
• Alex attacks Andrew DeLuca after misreading a situation involving Jo. 

Season 13 | 2016-17 | 24 episodes 

• Alex’s charged with attacking DeLuca but ultimately returns to Grey Sloan after DeLuca refuses to testify against him. 
• Miranda Bailey hires Eliza Minnick to replace Richard as residency program director, dividing the staff. 
• Owen’s sister Megan Hunt is found after 10 years missing in action.

Season 14 | 2017-18 | 24 episodes 

• Jo Wilson’s abusive husband, Paul Stadler, returns. After surviving a hit-and-run, he suffers a fatal head injury while threatening his fiancée and Jo.
• Meredith wins the coveted Harper Avery award and the foundation is renamed following a scandal. 
• Alex and Jo marry. Arizona and April leave the hospital and Teddy Altman returns.

Season 15 | 2018-19 | 25 episodes 

• Teddy has a relationship with Tom Koracick before she and Owen get back together and have a daughter, Allison. 
• Jo learns she was conceived through rape and seeks psychiatric help. 
• Meredith commits insurance fraud and is fired.

Season 16 | 2019-20 | 21 episodes 

• Meredith faces the legal consequences of committing insurance fraud but ultimately keeps her medical license. 
• Richard’s mysterious illness turns out to be cobalt poisoning from a past hip replacement, and surgery saves his life. 
• Alex leaves, writing Jo a letter that explains he’s moved to Kansas to be with Izzie and their twins.

Season 17 | 2020-21 | 17 episodes 

• During a COVID-19-induced coma, Meredith spends time with Derek, George, Mark and Lexie on a beach. 
• DeLuca dies after he’s stabbed by a sex trafficker. 
• Jackson and April move to Boston, so Jackson can run his family’s foundation. 

Season 18 | 2021-22 | 20 episodes 

• Meredith and Nick Marsh’s relationship develops, with Meredith splitting her time between Seattle and Minnesota. 
• Owen gives lethal drugs to terminally ill veterans and goes on the run with Teddy and his children when his actions are discovered. 
• The residency program shuts down, Bailey resigns and Meredith becomes interim chief. 

Season 19 | 2022-23 | 20 episodes 

• Meredith restarts the residency program and welcomes a new class of interns, including Simone Griffith, Lucas Adams and Jules Millen. 
• Meredith moves to Boston for Zola. 
• Maggie moves to Chicago.

Season 20 | 2024 | 10 episodes 

• Catherine Avery demands Meredith and Amelia Shepherd hand their Alzheimer’s research to Tom Koracick. Meredith instead resigns and releases her research. 
• Jo realizes she’s pregnant. 
• Catherine fires Amelia, Teddy and Owen.

Season 21 | 2024-25 | 18 episodes 

• Levi Schmitt and Mika Yasuda leave. 
• Jo and Atticus (Link) Lincoln marry before their twins arrive. 
• An explosive device detonates on the surgery floor.

Season 22 | 2025-26 | 18 episodes 

• Monica Beltran dies after being injured by the explosion. Link is seriously injured. 
• Jo gives birth to twin daughters and Richard is diagnosed with prostate cancer. 
• Owen and Teddy leave for Paris and Nick and Meredith get engaged.