Grey's Anatomy has been going strong for 18 seasons, with the show just having been renewed for Season 19. At this point, it seems like it could go on forever, with even leading lady, Ellen Pompeo, itting it could go on without Meredith Grey.
With all these seasons under its belt, there have been lots of friendships at Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital. Popular ones like the bond between Meredith and Cristina Yang are ed by everyone but there have also been some completely underrated friendships that fans love just as much.
Derek Shepherd & Miranda Bailey
Although there have been plenty of iconic friendships over the years, Redditor predy_mama believes that Derek and Bailey's is underrated. They mention that "she helps him learn how to do Zola's hair after a hilarious scene where she tells him that people are staring because his hair is perfect but Zola's hair is 21 shades of wrong."
Despite Derek being her boss initially, this shows that Bailey is comfortable enough with calling him out. What's more is that she takes the time to help him learn, showing that she does care for him. Equally, Derek is ive of Bailey, stopping the elevator for her to cry after George's death, making this one of Grey's Anatomy's sweetest friendship scenes.
Cristina Yang & April Kepner
Every Grey's fan knows that Cristina and Meredith have a fan favorite friendship but that didn't mean that Cristina was closed off to everyone else. Redditor THEfictionfanatic says that Cristina was the first to "to grudgingly respect her and I could totally see April being that one friend who Cris looks on with fond amusement."
At first, April seemed to rub everyone up the wrong way, not to mention she got fired in only her second-ever episode. However, Cristina began to warm up to April and even itted to loving the fact that April had the courage (however selfishly) to leave Matthew at the altar to run off with Jackson.
Richard Webber & Arizona Robbins
This friendship developed fairly late on, well after Richard had resigned as Chief of Surgery, and it was a Grey's Anatomy friendship that no one saw coming. Redditor judesturner agrees, saying that the highlights of their friendship included "their trivia nights and him testifying for her in court."
In Season 12, Richard frequently acted as Arizona's wingman, proving to be quite successful at it too. This led to several brilliant moments between the two, culminating in them saying a heart-wrenching farewell as Arizona left to go to New York to be closer to Callie.
Jackson Avery & April Kepner
Although these two are best known for their epic romance and subsequent breakup (and recent reconciliation), Redditor izzyy13 says "they were a really cute couple, but even better as friends. They're so good together!" - adding that they miss their friendship.
In all fairness, April and Jackson's relationship should have remained just a friendship. In seasons 7 and 8, they were incredibly ive of each other, with Jackson punching Alex after he attempted to sleep with April. They also grew closer after the terrifying hospital shooting.
Cristina Yang & George O'Malley
George was initially often the butt of the joke out of the original group of interns, and he and Cristina didn't exactly immediately bond. However, Redditor lo-fish argues that "they rarely got along in the grand scheme of things but there was a solid mutual respect there."
Cristina often mocked George but there were a few moments where they genuinely bonded. When George was cruelly rejected by Mer, Cristina offered George advice regarding how to move on. Secondly, when George's dad died, Cristina was there for him again, proving that she actually cared deeply for her friend.
Jackson Avery & Meredith Grey
Jackson's debut in season 6 was more than a little rocky. He and Meredith didn't quite get on at first, but they both soon mellowed. In fact, Redditor h8omb postures that Jackson and Meredith "share the unique experience of being raised by super driven surgeon mothers and even now as adults still live in the shadow of their parents' names."
This fact definitely helped to cement the bond between the two surgeons, as they both inherited massive medical family dynasties. In addition, they also shared the fact that both their mothers had been or were currently in a relationship with one Richard Webber.
Nathan Riggs & April Kepner
When Nathan Riggs first arrived at Grey Sloan Memorial, it seemed like the only person who actually liked him was April. Reddit TheHedonInAllOfUs observed that Nathan came to the hospital because of April and that "they were super close in his first couple of episodes and then we just never saw them again."
This did appear to be the case. In Riggs's first few episodes, he and April hung out a lot in the bar, even playing darts. They opened up to each other about their personal lives and did indeed seem close. However, when Riggs left in season 14, April wasn't even in his last episode.
Meredith Grey & Izzie Stevens
Meredith and Izzie's friendship is often overshadowed by the bond shared between the twisted sisters. Izzie even itted to feeling as much in the show itself. Redditor silkscarves noted however that "Mer and Izzie is an undervalued one for me. Mer really valued her friendship, and she let Izzie indulge herself with the wedding planning, against her own personal distastes for floof and glitter."
Because Izzie left early on in season 6 under slightly less than favorable circumstances, many fans forget that she once shared a friendship with Mer and the other interns. However, the two surgeons were actually very close, as Meredith proved when she gave her massive wedding to Izzie and Alex.
Owen Hunt & Arizona Robbins
Owen and Arizona were never particularly close, but that changed slightly during season 9 after the latter lost her leg. Redditor miakivilaakso enjoyed "the episode where he helped her get through her phantom limb pain. Also, I think they could've bonded over their experience with the military, with Arizona's brother having died in Iraq."
Despite the fact that the two didn't particularly share a close friendship, they definitely had some great friendship moments. For example, Owen standing up for Arizona after she thought she had breast cancer in season 14 was very heroic, and it showed that he really did value Arizona as more than just a colleague.
Amelia Shepherd & April Kepner
April and Amelia didn't share much screen time during April's initial run on the show, but that didn't necessarily mean that they weren't on good . In fact, Redditor JoanCallas says that "I wish that Amelia and April could be friends. They've both dealt with losing a child in their own ways."
This is true. Despite their apparent differences, Amelia and April are far more similar than they first appear. They have both lost their child in tragic circumstances, and they both had to deal with their grief. They have also gone through some bitter divorces and it would have made sense to see them both each other more.