Grey's Anatomy [1] pulled out all the stops for its season premiere on Thursday, with a two-hour episode that seemed at times to be atoning for the show's previous sins. It's packed with romance, dream sequences, and a scene that will make it impossible for me to ever look at icicles in the same way, so to talk about it, just .

The fairytale — Can fairytales come true, and would you even want them to? That's the central question of this episode, which finds the doctors treating three "aging princesses" and their three husbands, who were on their way to a ball in a Seattle freak snowstorm when both of their limos crashed. One is having an affair with her best friend's husband, which leads Meredith to question (and question, and question) her decision to move in with Derek. One has a spinal injury that needs a revolutionary treatment, which leads Callie and Erica to muse about trying something new. And one is left with a memory that resets every 30 seconds, meaning her friends have to tell her over and over again that her husband has died — until Izzie realizes she can lie and tell her that her husband is right around the corner. It's a sweet but painful moment, made sweeter/more painful by Izzie's own fantasy version of her story with Denny. Man, every time he shows up, I feel so emotionally manipulated, but it always works.

The icicle — Ack! OK, I don't know why it was snowing in September in Seattle, other than to give us that moment where the icicle stabs Cristina. That story ends up delivering two of my favorite scenes: Cristina imagining herself and Mere as old ladies eating a chicken while wearing what was apparently the world's worst old makeup, and Cristina making out with Dr. McArmy, who's kind of her new rough-and-tumble surgical idol. Cristina got a lot of interesting stuff this episode, actually, between the kiss and her realization that as much as she knows, it's not nearly good enough.

The meta stuff — Seattle Grace has fallen from second in the surgical rankings to 12th — which, as this guy points out [2], is the approximate trajectory of Grey's in the ratings. Cristina repeatedly tells Meredith to shut up. George says he made a lot of mistakes, but he's trying to do better. Whether intentional or not, all those things certainly seem like commentary on the show itself, and they gave me some of the biggest chuckles of the night.

Some other thoughts:

• Lexie loves George! And, in true Grey-family fashion, she can't tell him. Her little whispered "I adore you, by the way" was cute, but I really like how this is setting up a fun relationship between Lexie and Mark.
• Speaking of Mark, his description of his teaching methods: "I'm like a guru. They come to me for help and I gently guide them along the path to truth and wisdom."
• I'm still getting used to the idea of Callie and Erica together, but it's interesting that Erica has also never kissed a woman before. I think I like that they're new to this together.
• Meredith on Derek moving in: "He's got fishing gear. And boots. And hair products."
• So Rose is kind of a crazy, but not as much as I feared they'd make her. Nonetheless, glad she's gone.
• Anyone in the medical field want to explain to me what the surgical rankings and the level of a hospital's trauma center have to do with each other?

So, what did you think? Is it "a mistake of massive proportions" for Mere and Derek to move in together, or is it about time? Why does Alex always make himself such a jerk in the end? And who else's heart fluttered at the sight of Denny Duquette?

Photos copyright 2008 ABC, Inc. [3]