Still, the feminist heart of the show is and always will be Meredith Grey. By season 12, she's been a little hardened by life (or, specifically, by the kind of life a lead character on a Rhimes drama must have), and through age, experience, and talent, she's now in a position of power. She's chief of general surgery, co-owner of the hospital, and answers to almost no one (with the exception, after all these years, of Bailey, played by Chandra Wilson). But even as an intern, who by design gets pushed around professionally by her superiors, she's always been able to stick up for herself. She lets her fellow intern Alex (Justin Chambers) know that it's not okay to demean her, and goes on to show that she's a far more competent medical professional than he expected. She lets McDreamy (Patrick Dempsey) know that she isn't interested in sleeping her way to the top, and that she wants to put her career above any potential tryst. She experiences moments of panic and indecision as a brand-new doctor, but is always ready to jump back in.