Skip to main content

When Grey’s Anatomy fans think about Cristina Yang (Sandra Oh), they always picture her with her twisted sister, Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo). However, some viewers pointed out that she had the “most wholesome friendship” with another character on the show.

Ellen Pompeo as Meredith Grey and Sandra Oh as Cristina Yang on 'Grey's Anatomy'
Ellen Pompeo as Meredith Grey and Sandra Oh as Cristina Yang on ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ | Richard Cartwright/Walt Disney Television via Getty Images

Are Cristina Yang and Meredith Grey still friends on ‘Grey’s Anatomy’?

Although Cristina Yang left Grey-Sloan Memorial Hospital in the season 10 finale, Meredith Grey will always be her person. The two danced it out one last time before Yang left, and she reminded Meredith she was the sun.

There were not too many mentions of Yang over the years since her departure. However, in Grey’s Anatomy Season 16, Meredith texted with her twisted sister very often. The cardiothoracic surgeon even sent her a package from Zurich, Switzerland, in the form of McWidow (Richard Flood).

However, as close as the two friends are, another character did not criticize her for working so hard. 

Fans feel Cristina Yang had the ‘Most Wholesome Friendship’ with this person

In Grey’s Anatomy Season 8, Yang met an older doctor who frustrated her with his old-fashioned medical approach. She wasn’t happy to see him working at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester when she left Seattle. However, Dr. Craig Thomas (William Daniels) became Yang’s mentor and pushed her further than anyone else ever had. 

'Grey's Anatomy' Stars William Daniels and Sandra Oh as Dr. Thomas and Cristina Yang
‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Stars William Daniels and Sandra Oh as Dr. Thomas and Cristina Yang | Danny Feld Walt Disney Television via Getty Images

When Dr. Thomas had a heart attack during a surgery he was performing with Yang; fans were devastated. They often comment that while everyone else thought Yang was insane to love her work as much as she did, he never did.

“I cried so much when he died,” one fan wrote on Reddit. “I love that he accepted Cristina’s love for surgery and didn’t see it as a flaw like so many other people in her life.”

Many other fans agree that Dr. Yang and Dr. Thomas were a welcome combination on the show.

“Their friendship was so pure and just what she needed,” another viewer added.

Grey’s Anatomy fans will never forget Dr. Thomas’ speech to Cristina Yang

“I have his speech to Cristina saved in my notes,” one fan wrote. “It was so moving.” 

Related

‘Grey’s Anatomy’: Fans Are Freaking Out Over the Package that Cristina Yang Sent to Meredith

“Breathe, Dr. Yang. Don’t be crass,” he said to her in a moving speech. “You’re skulking. Women of your generation are graceless. It’s an affront to nature. Mediocre surgeons will see you and feel themselves wilting in your shadow. Do not shrink to console them. Do not look for friends here. You won’t find them.”

“None of these people have the capacity to understand you,” he continued. “They never will. If you’re lucky, one day, when you’re old and shriveled like me, you will find a young doctor with little regard for anything but their craft. And you’ll train them like I trained you. Until then, read a good book. You have greatness in you, Yang. Don’t disappoint.”