Whether it's amorous couples sneaking a private moment together, grand romantic gestures, doctors having meltdowns, or lives being saved, the elevator at Grey Sloan Memorial in the long-running Shondaland medical drama, Grey's Anatomy, has seen a lot. In fact, it is as much a vital location on the show as is the hospital itself.
The elevator plays a pivotal role in Meredith and Derek's love story, but it has also given fans some very memorable moments involving the other doctors, as well. A few of these moments have been funny, some have been heart-stopping, but most of them have been romantic or high on the emotional quotient, as is typical of this beloved series.
Addison Talking To The Elevator God
Addison Montgomery Shepherd left Seattle Grace hospital to join the Practice in sunny L.A. in what became the Grey's Anatomy spin-off, Private Practice. The spin-off happened after Addison was shown visiting her friend Naomi, an episode that also acted as a backdoor pilot for the new series.
Of course, Addison had to meet Pete for the first time inside the elevator at the practice, and she has a hilariously funny moment when she tells him about how elevators have an aphrodisiac effect on people in Seattle, referring to the romance that the Seattle Grace elevators saw every day. Pete is convinced that she might be a tad crazy, but he's also attracted to her. Later, Addison vents to the "elevator god" and she then finds out that it was the security person, Tilly, all along.
The Awkward Foursome
Yet another memorable elevator moment happened when Derek was cooped up in the elevator, not just with Meredith or Addison, but with both of them along with Rose, who he dated for a while to make Meredith jealous.
The foursome stood in very awkward silence in a laugh-out-loud moment, which is exactly what Mark Sloan did when the elevator opened for him on the next floor. He immediately caught on to the comedic element of the situation and couldn't help but have a laugh at Derek's embarrassment.
The Hello Kitty Moment
The iconic Hello Kitty bandaid is seared into the memory of any Grey's fan. Meredith tried to hide a pimple on her forehead with the adorably cute band-aid and, of course, ended up alone in the elevator with Derek.
Meredith can't help but tell Derek that she misses him, and the sexual chemistry between them is palpable. Derek comes close to Meredith and his very breath on her neck makes her shiver. The scene is a classic MerDer moment, with the elevator playing cupid.
Nico & Levi Share Their First Kiss
Nico and Levi finally give in to their desires in the elevator, marking the beginning of what eventually led to the series' first male same-sex love scene.
The scene was cut short when Levi mentioned that this was his first time kissing another man. Nico informed him that he had already come out and didn't necessarily want to get involved with Levi whilst he was working to understand his sexuality. The moment was short-lived but a landmark, nonetheless.
A Wounded Alex Dragging Himself To The Elevator
In the thrilling penultimate moment of the season 6 finale, one of the first people the gunman Gary Clerk shot on his way to Derek was Alex Karev.
Alex appeared on the scene right after Reed had been shot and was then shot himself. The graphic scene was overwhelming, and soon after, Alex managed to somehow drag himself into the closest elevator. This is how Lexie and Mark find him, passed out in the elevator, later on.
Bailey Lets Derek Take A Moment
One of the more touching associations, which was unfortunately never developed into a full-fledged friendship, was that between Derek and Miranda. The two shared some valuable moments when Miranda would make it clear that she wasn't afraid of Derek simply because he was an attending. They then end up opening up to each other in a way that was both sweet and mature.
One of the most beautiful moments the two shared came in the episode, "Into You Like A Train," when the young woman who had been in a devastating train accident passed away after asking Derek to pass a message on to her boyfriend. Derek was deeply moved by the tragedy and when he and Miranda were riding the elevator, the latter realized he needed to minute to calm down and so she stopped the elevator. It was a lovely moment between two people who understood and respected each other.
Charles Percy Dying In Bailey's Arms
This wasn't so much an elevator scene as it was one that had to do with the elevator. Charles Percy was one of the residents who was shot and killed during the season 6 finale, "Death And All His Friends." Miranda did everything in her power to save his life.
With her patient Mary's help, Miranda managed to drag Charles to an elevator so that she could take him to an OR and operate on him. However, with the hospital being in lockdown because of the shooting, the elevators were all deactivated, and she couldn't get to the OR in time. In one of the most powerful scenes in the series, Charles died in her lap and Miranda wiped her tears bravely, being there for him until the very end.
DeLuca & Meredith
The handsome Dr. Andrew DeLuca had been, for a good while, the potential significant other for Meredith Grey, after her husband's tragic death. And, one of the most memorable scenes the two shared happened in the elevator.
The power was down in the whole hospital and the elevators stopped working, with several doctors trapped inside them. Meredith and DeLuca were in one elevator, and the latter was clearly smitten by the brilliant general surgeon. He told Meredith about his father's past transgressions, and then about how much he would like to kiss her, all in Italian, just to make the heart thump a bit faster. Of course, he didn't know that Meredith actually understood Italian, which probably made him fall in love with her even more.
Elevator Love Letter
Of course, one of the most iconic elevator scenes for Grey's fans is Derek Shepherd's proposal to Meredith Grey. It made sense, somehow, that the elevator that had been witness to so much of their drama, should be the place where they finally sealed their fates together.
Derek, with Richard's help, set up a whole scene inside the elevator with scans and reports from various patients they had saved together, including Katie Bryce, their first save, and Izzie Stevens, the most recent. Derek doesn't get down on one knee as he proposes, but then he doesn't need to because the elevator is itself a love letter to Meredith Grey.
The Open Heart Surgery
And finally, the most memorable and definitely the most fascinating elevator moment happened early on in the series when George O'Malley single-handedly saved a patient's life inside the elevator by performing open-heart surgery.
George and Alex were taking a patient up to the OR when the elevator stopped and their patient's condition started worsening. Alex, always ready with his smart mouth, actually froze. It was George who took up the scalpel and followed Burke's instructions perfectly, saving the guy's life in what later became a legend that got passed on to every new generation of interns.