The 10 Worst ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Couples, Ranked

In a few months, Grey’s Anatomy will celebrate its twentieth anniversary, and the show is still going, with 21 seasons and counting. Over the years, Grey’s Anatomy has seen its fair share of unique medical emergencies, near-death experiences for Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo), and a number of romantic plotlines between its surgeons. The ABC show has become iconic for its swoonworthy romances, high-stakes medical storylines, and many disasters that have occurred at what is now called Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital.

Because Grey’s Anatomy has been on air for so long, it has had its fair share of both wonderful and disappointing storylines. Some of its best storylines include Izzie (Katherine Heigl) cutting Denny’s (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) LVAD wire, as well as the hospital’s unexpected emergencies, including the Season 8 plane crash. Many of Grey’s Anatomy‘s worst storylines were when the show attempted to romantically pair two characters who just didn’t fit together. These are the 10 worst Grey’s Anatomy couples, ranked.

10. Mark and Julia

Played by Eric Dane & Holley Fain

Mark Sloan (Eric Dane) and Lexie Grey (Chyler Leigh) were one of Grey’s Anatomy‘s best and most iconic couples, up until their final tragic moment together. Although Mark and Lexie were the perfect fit, they broke up twice, both due to him springing the fact that he had a child on her. After the second breakup, Lexie started dating Jackson (Jesse Williams), and Mark started dating Julia (Holley Fain).

In one of the best monologues on the show, Lexie confessed that she still loved Mark, but he still stayed with Julia.

Julia was perfectly nice, and she and Mark were a fine enough couple, but it was excruciating to see this relationship keep him away from Lexie. In one of the best monologues on the show, Lexie confessed that she still loved Mark, but he still stayed with Julia. Mark ultimately broke up with Julia while briefly awake from his coma due to his feelings for Lexie, and it was a fitting end to an otherwise unremarkable relationship.

9. Alex and Ava / Rebecca

Played by Justin Chambers & Elizabeth Reaser

There has always been something deeply unsettling about Grey’s Anatomy‘s doctor-patient romances, and it requires a significant suspension of disbelief to root for them. The best of these were Izzie and Denny and Teddy (Kim Raver) and Henry (Scott Foley). The worst of these was the relationship between Alex (Justin Chambers) and Ava, whose real name turned out to be Rebecca (Elizabeth Reaser).

Ava was in no condition to be in a relationship after what she went through, and Alex, as her doctor, should have known better.

Ava was introduced as the Jane Doe during the ferry crash in Season 3, and Alex helped her with her recovery while she had amnesia. The imbalance in this relationship was odd from the beginning, even though Alex was sweet with her. Ava was in no condition to be in a relationship after what she went through, and Alex, as her doctor, should have known better. The relationship, of course, ended in disaster.

8. Jo and Link

Played by Camilla Luddington & Chris Carmack

Jo (Camilla Luddington) and Link (Chris Carmack) started out as a sweet friends-to-lovers romance, but they have turned out to be a horribly mismatched couple. Jo’s best relationship by far was her marriage with Alex, and it was already impossible for the show to top this after his horrible exit. While Link was a really kind and supportive friend to Jo, he turned out to be a major disappointment as her boyfriend.

While Link was a really kind and supportive friend to Jo, he turned out to be a major disappointment as her boyfriend.

Most recently, in Season 21, Jo and Link have struggled to adapt to the news that they are having twins. In their last scene together before the hiatus, Jo confided in Link about her fear of being abandoned by him. Instead of meeting her with understanding and acceptance after everything she’s been through, Link lashed out at her and suggested that she didn’t trust him, before then storming off and leaving her just as she’d feared.

7. Jackson and Maggie

Played by Jesse Williams & Kelly McCreary

Jackson and Maggie (Kelly McCreary) were each part of two of Grey’s Anatomy‘s best couples, but neither of these were with each other. Jackson and April (Sarah Drew) had a beautiful love story, and it’s been a delight in the later seasons of Grey’s Anatomy to see that they have found their way back to each other. Maggie and Winston (Anthony Hill) had a lovely marriage, and it was really sad to see them ultimately go their separate ways.

Sure enough, Jackson and Maggie then turned out to have no chemistry, and were constantly fighting with each other.

Maggie and Jackson were doomed from the start as a couple, because they are quite literally step-siblings, due to Richard (James Pickens Jr.) and Catherine’s (Debbie Allen) marriage. Sure enough, Jackson and Maggie then turned out to have no chemistry, and were constantly fighting with each other. It was quite frankly a relief when Grey’s Anatomy finally broke them up, although the show dragged their relationship out for far too long.

6. Callie and George

Played by T. R. Knight & Sara Ramierz

George O’Malley (T. R. Knight) never had a great romance on Grey’s Anatomy before his devastating death in the Season 5 finale. All of his relationships just felt a bit off, including his marriage to Callie (Sara Ramirez). The two met right as George was trying to get over his feelings for Meredith, and it was always clear that Callie had much stronger feelings for George than he ever had for her.

It was hard to watch George and Callie as a couple, because he never really appreciated her, and always took her for granted.

The two only got married because George was in a bad headspace after his father’s death, and the marriage ended when he cheated on her with Izzie. The best thing about this relationship was that it introduced Grey’s Anatomy to Callie, who would eventually turn out to be one of the show’s very best characters. As it stands, though, it was hard to watch George and Callie as a couple, because he never really appreciated her, and always took her for granted.

5. Alex and Lexie

Played by Justin Chambers & Chyler Leigh

Alex and Lexie’s first relationship was a disaster, with him just using her, and her just grateful to have one person at the hospital who gave her the time of day. Their second relationship was a vast improvement, but they still never really worked as a couple. Alex threw himself into a rebound relationship with Lexie to get over his feelings of hurt and abandonment after Izzie left him, and Lexie was clearly not over Mark.

Lexie and Alex had a wonderful friendship, but they were a mismatched couple, and their platonic chemistry didn’t carry over into the romantic.

It was truly devastating to watch Lexie choose to stay with Alex after Mark confessed his feelings to her with the iconic line, “I’m saying you could have a husband.” This relationship was not meant to last, and sure enough, Alex broke up with Lexie shortly after the hospital shooting. Lexie and Alex had a wonderful friendship, but they were a mismatched couple, and their platonic chemistry didn’t carry over into the romantic.

4. Derek and Rose

Played by Patrick Dempsey & Lauren Stamile

Meredith Grey and Derek Shepherd (Patrick Dempsey) were a love story for the ages, with truly beautiful and memorable moments like her house of candles for him and his elevator proposal to her. Their breakup in the Season 3 finale was absolutely heartbreaking, even though it was clear that Derek and Meredith would find their way back to each other after she spent some time in therapy and was able to do some healing.

Derek’s relationship with Rose was ultimately just a plot device towards getting him back together with Meredith.

It was hard enough to see Derek and Meredith broken up in Season 4, even before he started dating someone new. Rose (Lauren Stamile) first caught Derek’s attention by judging him and talking down to him, and their relationship never really improved from there. He was very different with her, and they didn’t fit together as a couple, especially compared to his relationship with Meredith. Derek’s relationship with Rose was ultimately just a plot device towards getting him back together with Meredith.

3. Izzie and Ghost Denny

Played by Katherine Heigl & Jeffrey Dean Morgan

Izzie and Denny first met when he was at Seattle Grace Hospital in the hopes of getting a heart transplant. Instead, Denny got put on an LVAD, and he had to stay in the hospital for quite a while. During this time, Denny and Izzie fall in love. They were Grey’s Anatomy‘s first doctor-patient romance, and they shouldn’t have worked as a couple, but against all odds, they did. Izzie and Denny were a truly beautiful couple… that is, while he was alive.

It significantly undercut the tragedy of Denny’s death three seasons earlier, and it felt little too out of reach for what was generally considered realistic for the show.

In Season 5, Grey’s Anatomy made the baffling decision to bring Denny back as either a ghost or as a hallucination from her brain tumor. It significantly undercut the tragedy of Denny’s death three seasons earlier, and it felt little too out of reach for what was generally considered realistic for the show. Izzie was also already in a relationship with Alex by that point, and it made the whole renewed relationship feel particularly bizarre.

2. Cristina and Owen

Played by Sandra Oh & Kevin McKidd

Cristina Yang (Sandra Oh) was always a force of nature. She was confident in herself and her passion for surgery, and she wasn’t willing to let anything or anyone get in the way of her goals. That was why it was so disappointing to watch Owen (Kevin McKidd) chip away at her more and more throughout their relationship, similar to the ways in which Burke (Isaiah Washington) previously had.

Their relationship only went downhill from there, as Owen became controlling and judgmental, constantly making Cristina feel bad for putting surgery first.

Owen was initially introduced as a handsome stranger who pulled an icicle out of Cristina’s abdomen after she had suddenly been impaled. Their relationship only went downhill from there, as Owen became controlling and judgmental, constantly making Cristina feel bad for putting surgery first. Their marriage seemed to only be a result of Cristina’s trauma from the hospital shooting in the Season 6 finale, and it was a relief when they finally got divorced.

1. Izzie and George

Played by Katherine Heigl & T. R. Knight

There is no Grey’s Anatomy couple out there that was as much of an uncomfortable and cringeworthy disappointment as George and Izzie. Their friendship was always one of the best parts of Grey’s Anatomy, and it was infuriating to watch the show destroy their friendship for what turned out to be a terrible romantic relationship. Their relationship started with an affair while George was married to Callie, and ended shortly after when the two realized they had no chemistry.

There is no Grey’s Anatomy couple out there that was as much of an uncomfortable and cringeworthy disappointment as George and Izzie.

The worst thing about Izzie and George’s relationship was that they never became best friends again after they dated, and he instead replaced her with Lexie, while she jumped into a relationship with Alex soon after. Izzie and George were funny, sweet, and a true delight as a platonic pairing, and their weird, misguided romance destroyed everything that made them so great together.