Every Shonda Rhimes Show That Takes Drama To A Whole New Level

Number Of Seasons / Episodes: 20 seasons and still running, over 425 episodes.

What It's About: Grey's Anatomy is a differently-spelled allusion to the classic human anatomy book Gray's Anatomy, and as the name suggests, it is a medical drama. It focuses on the personal and professional trials and triumphs of attending and surgical staff of the fictional Seattle Grace Hospital, later named the Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital. Fans know why.

The Shonda Factor: With nine billed stars to start with, namely Ellen Pompeo, Sandra Oh, Katherine Heigl, Justin Chambers, T. R. Knight, Chandra Wilson, James Pickens Jr., Isaiah Washington, and Patrick Dempsey, the chemistry of the ensemble cast remains phenomenal. Of course, actors have joined and left, and Rhimes seems to have had fun writing them out in near-violent and tragic ways.

Bingeability: With an 84% Tomatometer score, this is one of the best Shondaland shows with plenty of light moments and enough cathartic cries as well. Since each episode closes a medical drama, it's binge-worthy for both casual viewers who like to pop in and out without delving too deep into character storylines, and for die-hard fans who know everything there is to know about everyone in the show. 

Standout Episode: Given the 425 episodes of the show, and counting, it's a tough cookie to pick a favorite episode. But audiences and critics alike love the season 6 finale. A two-part episode, “Sanctuary” shows a gunman holding the hospital hostage, and in part two, “Death and All its Friends,” there are some deaths and a lot of joyful reunions. Without giving the plotline away, it's a bittersweet set of episodes that bring home the fact that in the end, doctors are just as blood-and-bone humans as their patients. Plus, it calls American gun laws and control into question. 

Number Of Seasons / Episodes: 2 seasons (16 episodes) out and one in the pipeline (another 8 episodes.)

What It's About: Bridgerton is based on romance novels by Julia Quinn and follows the love stories, trials, and travails of the Bridgerton clan: Anthony, Benedict, Colin, Daphne, Eloise, Francesca, Gregory, and Hyacinth. Season 1 focuses on Daphne while season 2 is about Anthony. The much-awaited season 3 is all about Colin.

The Shonda Factor: Bridgerton takes you back to the Regency Era, with a Shondaland twist. Instead of the all-white characters in the original series of books, the series has people of all genders, ethnicities, and sizes, which gives it a wonderful modern flavor. From a mixed ethnicity hero in the first series (Regé-Jean Page as Simon) to an Indian heroine in the second season (Simone Ashley as Kate), and finally, curvy Penelope Featherington in season 3 (Nicola Coughlan) - the protagonists of this series will be close to the hearts of a global audience.

Bingeability: If you like a good love story with laughter, tears, and steamy make-out scenes all mixed in, peppered with a dash of prim-and-proper principles, Bridgerton makes an excellent watch. Since these are eight-episode seasons, you will have to watch a season in its entirety to follow the love birds and the drama in their lives. You can watch the seasons out of sync if you like but we recommend going about it in the proper order. It scores 82% on the Tomatometer, so rest assured, the critics approve. Do give the books a read after, or before, given Julia Quinn is pure romance magic. 

Standout Episode: “A Bee in your Bonnet” is episode 3 of season 2, and focuses on Anthony's panic at finding that Kate has been stung by a bee. He reacts so because his father had died of a bee sting, which is what fuels his mortality fears, and so Kate levels with him, calming him down - and it's also when she starts to like him as a person, other than the sparks that keep flying.

Number Of Seasons / Episodes: 6 seasons and 90 episodes

What It's About: How to Get Away with Murder is a legal thriller that tells the story of Annalise Keating (played by the award-winning Viola Davis), a defense attorney and law professor in Philadelphia. While she helps clients, representing them in tough murder cases, she also helps her students get away with murder, since they killed her cheating husband.

The Shonda Factor: Led by a strong Black woman with tons of humor, a bit of unexpected drama, and multiple twists and turns, How to Get Away with Murder is the perfect Shondaland offering. Viola Davis also became the first Black woman to win the Primetime Emmy for best actress in a drama for her performance as Keating, which proves that Shonda Rhimes empowers her lead cast. The more you watch the series, the more you realize how the plotline is delightfully twisted.

Bingeability: Watching it in order of seasons and episodes is your best bet if you truly want to understand how the legal cases presented are deftly interwoven with dark and twisted personal drama in every character's life. Miss an episode and you are likely to miss an unpredictable drama that's key to something bigger. Be it justice or self-preservation, this series is hard to switch off once you put it on, and the critics agree with an 88% Tomatometer score.

Standout Episode: While the show is chockablock with twists and turns, episode 9 of season 2, “What Did We Do?” turned out to be a game-changer. A night of murder is revealed as yet another diabolical cover-up by Keating, even as she was shot in the stomach by Wes, at her instigation.

Number Of Seasons / Episodes: 7 seasons and 124 episodes.

What It's About: A peek into the dark side of American politics, this fast-paced show focuses on Olivia Pope and her crisis management firm. Pope is partially modeled after former George H. W. Bush administration press aide Judy Smith. Smith came on board as a co-executive producer. As the firm cleans up the lives of its clients, Pope and her employees' lives keep getting murkier.

The Shonda Factor: Shonda Rhimes seems to love strong women, and Pope is shown to be completely formidable, in a good way. As always, Rhimes keeps the cast multi-cultural and the characters have depths. Unless they are bad because then, instead of depths they tend to have the crazies. Watch it for election rigging, presidential assassination attempts, White House coups, and more, all done soap opera-style.

Bingeability: If you believe politics is a dirty game, then Scandal is a great show to watch. Kerry Washington shines through even though we don't quite know what she and her firm actually do. That said, if you watch it now and then, you may lose the plotline, so this is a show best watched in the right order. Given it has a 93% Tomatometer score, you are in good company,

Standout Episode: Episode 8 of season 2, "Happy Birthday, Mr. President" focuses on Pope's primary love interest, the President of the United States, Fitzgerald Grant, getting shot on his 50th birthday. It was a hit with the audience, given the Internet was flooded with the #WhoShotFitz hashtag soon after. Besides weaving in flashbacks of Pope and Fitz's steamy relationship, it also delves a little into the Defiance conspiracy. 

Number Of Seasons / Episodes: 7 seasons and still running, over 100 episodes.

What It's About: Since this is a spin-off of Grey's Anatomy, it's based in Seattle and focuses on firefighters, who are also trained EMTs as per state requirements. Think of it as an intense action series with lots of personal and medical drama woven in, along with all the required emotional entanglements you have come to expect from anything out of Shondaland.

The Shonda Factor: The common thread between all of Shonda Rhimes's shows comes to the forefront for Station 19 as well, so you get the emotional plotlines, human connection, high-stakes settings, and finally, strong and empowered women, sometimes backing up strong and empowered men.

Bingeability: While understanding the interpersonal and inter-personnel drama might require you to be a consistent viewer, you can still manage to have fun with all the guest characters and plotlines that come on an episode-to-episode basis. It's a fast-paced show, given fighting fires is a fast-paced business, and there's plenty of rescue and medical drama as well, making it a great watch on days you just want to be a couch potato. It also gets a 93% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes.

Standout Episode: In episode 12 of season 3, “I'll Be Seeing You,” it is fun to see Dr. Jackson Avery from Grey Sloan (Grey's Anatomy) work with old pal Ben Warren (remember Dr. Bailey's husband who gave up his scalpel for a hose…) The Grey's Anatomy chemistry still works but this episode also hints at an impending loss within the team.

Number Of Seasons / Episodes: 6 seasons and 111 episodes.

What It's About: Another Grey's Anatomy spin-off, Private Practice focuses on Addison Montgomery (Kate Walsh) and her story as she leaves Seattle and starts her private practice in Los Angeles. With a fresh ensemble cast and new drama, it runs parallel to Grey's Anatomy with several expected crossovers.

The Shonda Factor: Initially, the series received mixed reviews from the critics, showing Addison running away from her life and loves (remember the dysfunctional love triangle?) to join her newly divorced friends at their clinic. The show grows on you, given Addison had always been a somewhat loveable character on Grey's Anatomy and Rhimes is successful in portraying yet another strong female lead. 

Bingeability: Like its inspiration and sister series, Private Practice can be watched as standalone episodes if you only want the medical drama. But to know and understand what makes the lead characters tick, it's best to settle down comfortably for a long watch because personal drama (and secrets) are addictive. The audience agrees with an 81% score on Rotten Tomatoes.

Standout Episode: While there is buzz of a revival, the finale of the show was especially touching, even if everything was neatly tied up with a bow. In season 6, episode 13, "In Which We Say Goodbye," Addison finally ties the knot, while there is an unexpected reconciliation as well. The seas seem calmer for all, but if this show comes back on, perhaps it was the calm before the storm.