'Grey's' Spoiler on the Dizzie 'Romance'

*Fair warning*: Do not read this entry if you don't want to read any spoilers about upcoming episodes of Grey's Anatomy.

You've been warned.

All of the debating over whether Grey's has been trying to concoct a 21st century version of Ghost can, apparently, come to an end, at least according to Entertainment Weekly's Michael Aussiello who reports that the appearance of Denny Duquette to Izzie Stevens (Katherine Heigl) -- and all the "mindblowing sex" the two of them have been having when Izzie's supposed to be working -- is a manifestation of a brain condition, though not a fatal tumor as had been rumored earlier:

"According to multiple sources, Izzie's hallucinations are health-related -- and brain-related. And although the specific name of the ailment is being kept in the safe underneath of [show creator/runner Shonda] Rhimes' desk, I'm told it's similar to an aneurysm. And every time it flares up, she sees Denny. And sometimes when it really flares up, she shags him."

(Gives new meaning to "mindblowing sex.")

Many of the commenters on the EW web site were scathing with their Grey's criticism. One commenter wrote: "I used to love this show. Never missed a single episode. Now I don't think I can bare [sic] this 'ghost' any longer . . . Denny is starting to make me hate this show. I love Denny and Izzie but let the dead RIP regardless of an ailment or not!"

Meanwhile, the Chicago Tribune's Maureen Ryan, in a blog entry entitled, "I'd rather stick a scalpel in my eye than watch 'Grey's Anatomy,'" wrote:

"That's the problem with Grey's -- and the reason I still complain about it. I'm not fond of all the actors on the show, but I certainly feel sorry for the good ones. This program used to have so much promise and has trapped the good cast members in a series of outrageous developments that are not just stupid but insultingly stupid. When daytime soaps seem like Frontline documentaries by comparison, there's a problem."

I don't think that all of Grey's stories have devolved to the point where a comparison with daytime soaps is apt, but now that I know that Denny's appearance represents a medical ailment, I'll be able to enjoy Grey's and Izzie's character more thoroughly, feel sympathy for Izzie rather than annoyance at feeling as though I was being strung along in some fashion . . . provided the medical explanation is actually something that seems remotely plausible.

House, which I watch for the characters not the medical cases, does this well. During most episodes of the medical drama, I'm willing to skeptically suspend belief when truly insanely complicated cases arrive at Dr. House's doorstep if the cases can be explained to my satisfaction. If the character subplots are particularly riveting, I'm sometimes willing to overlook an over-the-top potentially fatal ailment which seems ludicrous.

If Grey's offers a somewhat plausible explanation for the hallucinations, will that make any difference to you?

Image credit: ABC.