Why Maya Bishop Will Most Likely Survive On Station 19
Station 19’s Maya Bishop suffered a nasty fall off the firehouse treadmill in the season 6 fall finale, but she could and should pull through.
The Station 19 season 6 winter return will largely focus on the aftermath of Maya Bishop’s fall off the treadmill in the fall finale, but while she’s been left in bad shape, it’s most likely that she will survive the accident. The images of Maya lying alone on the ground in the station gym with blood pooling around her head and her turnout jacket forgotten as the firefighters rushed to save Meredith’s burning house were haunting. This was only made worse by the three-month break that has left viewers questioning whether Maya will survive Station 19 season 6.
Station 19 seasons 5 and 6 have been hard for Maya’s character especially, from her losing her captaincy to Maya and Carina’s issues surrounding having children. It seems as if Maya has had bad break after bad break, finally culminating in self-destructive behavior typically manifested in overworking that led to her dangerous fall off the treadmill.
In the winter premiere promo video, Maya is shown in the Grey’s Anatomy emergency room, being worked on by Teddy and others, with Carina paged to see her wife. It will certainly make for a dramatic storyline, but killing off Maya would be a mistake.
This Would Be An Awful Ending For Maya Bishop On Station 19
As one of the original firefighters on the Station 19 show, Maya started off mostly as Andy’s best friend, but she was given the opportunity to step out of the best friend role and establish herself as a character completely independent of Andy. Her assumption of captaincy in Station 19 season 3 provided interesting and necessary depth to Maya, which also coincided with the beginning of her relationship with her now-wife Carina. Maya once famously said “monogamy is for the weak or the very, very dedicated,” which is just one of many examples of her growth since the earlier seasons.
To kill Maya off when Station 19 season 6 returns would be an unsatisfying and disappointing ending for her character, especially because it would come while she is at her lowest and worst. Unlike Dean, who received a hero’s death in Station 19 season 5, Maya’s death would be a disappointing culmination of her downfall. Her fall from grace has been intriguing, but also heartbreaking, especially given Maya’s shown potential for greatness and the fact that her descent was only further sped up by the 6-month time jump between season 5 and season 6.
Maya’s Near-Death Experience Will Probably Be The Wake-Up Call She Needs
Prior to Maya’s fall in Station 19, Carina, Andy, and Theo have been trying to give Maya the wake-up call she desperately needed. Maya’s self-destructive behaviors have been obvious to everyone around her, but they have only worsened because only a few characters seem to care enough to help her. The reveal of her threat to earn her captaincy back through the illegal method of blackmail, which continues a problematic Grey’s Anatomy tradition, has caused many Station 19 characters to turn their back on their former captain. She also won’t listen to those who do care, so this near-death experience could actually benefit her in the long run.
Having Maya survive this fall would make sense for both her character and the Station 19 storyline. Maya has officially hit rock bottom, and without a big accident like this, it would be hard for her to plausibly recover mentally and emotionally. She was bound to get seriously injured at some point, whether it be on the job or on the treadmill. It will also hopefully provide a wake-up call for those around her who have been ostracizing and mistreating her, such as Vic, Sullivan, and Chief Ross, and maybe even finally lead to the firing of Captain Beckett.
This Is What the Grey’s Anatomy Universe Does Well
In Grey’s Anatomy, Meredith Grey has almost died multiple times, sometimes for the purpose of providing a wake-up call. In some ways, Maya and Meredith are similar, particularly with their similar upbringings. Maya grew up running track, with her dad very involved in her training in ways that she didn’t realize until adulthood were abusive. Even as an Olympic gold medalist, he was never satisfied with her. Ellis Grey also made it clear that Meredith was never going to be enough when she called her “ordinary,” despite Meredith being happy in her career and with Derek. This has led both of them to have some poor coping mechanisms.
Maya’s current Station 19 situation could be comparable to Meredith’s drowning, which had dead characters like Denny return to Grey’s Anatomy to visit Meredith in a comatose state and force her to confront her issues before returning to her body. Both characters have both exhibited reckless behavior that shows a lack of concern for their own lives, from Maya climbing up a Ferris wheel in the Station 19 Halloween episode to Meredith putting her hand on a ticking bomb. The Grey’s universe excels in using near-death experiences to not just shock viewers, but help characters grow, change, and appreciate their lives. Hopefully, Station 19 does the same with Maya.