Ratings: 25.76 million viewers

Special Guest Star Jeffery Dean Morgan (Denny Duquette) previously appeared in the episode "Losing My Religion", the episode in which he passed away. Special Guest Star Kyle Chandler (Dylan Young) previously appeared in "(As We Know It) (2)", the episode in which he was killed in an explosion.

Meredith: (voiceover) Like I said, disappearances happen. Pains go phantom. Blood stops running and people, people fade away. There's more I have to say, so much more, but ... I disappeared.

Alex: I'd notice
Addison: What?
Alex: If you went missing, I'd notice.

Cristina: It's Meredith?
Alex: Yeah.
Cristina: Are you sure? Did you see her? Because it could be any --
Alex: It's Meredith.
Cristina: Oh. Oh. Oh.
Izzie: She will come through this.
George: You don't know that.
Izzie: She will come through this.
George: People die.
Izzie: I know people die. People die in front of us everyday, but I believe Meredith will survive this. I believe, I believe, I -- I believe in the good. I believe that it's been a hell of a year and I believe that in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary that we will be okay. I believe a lot of things. I believe that ... I believe that Denny is always with me. And I believe that if I eat a tub of butter and no one sees that the calories don't count. And I believe that surgeons who prefer staples over stitches are just lazy. And I believe that you are a man that made a terrible mistake marrying Callie and I believe that because I'm your best friend I can tell you this and we can be okay. I believe that even though you made this mistake you will be okay. I believe we survive, George. I believe that believing we survive is what makes us survive.

Dylan: Hey.
Meredith: Hey. Am I dead?
Denny: Damn right you are.
Meredith: Holy ...

Burke: The Chief is working on her.
Derek: He threw me out.
Burke: What do you need?
Derek: I need you to go in there.

Izzie: Oh, Cristina, oh my God, you are not going to believe what I just did, I'm going to tell you, but you're not going to believe me, you're going to think I made the whole thing up ... I drilled a hole into this guy's skull. Several holes, actually, with a drill I borrowed from a guy named Vince, packed the hole with freaking tissue and then brought him back here, and then now I get to scrub in on his craniotomoy. It was like a ride, this crazy roller coaster ride with, like adrenaline shooting out of my ears. You would think that my hands would be shaking but they weren't, there was no shaking. Did I mention the drill? The scene where I was a rock star, by the way.

Burke: What is your problem?
Cristina: You know everyone’s back. Everyone’s back except her. And I listen to her. Everyday, about her McLove life, her McDreamy, her McCrap. And the one day, the one day I have a thing she disappears.
Burke: Meredith, this is about Meredith.
Cristina: She doesn’t know yet.
Burke: Meredith?
Cristina: She’s my person.
Burke: Right. And if Meredith doesn’t approve, then what?
Cristina: This, This is not about getting her approval, it's about --
Burke: What?
Cristina: Telling her makes it, makes it ... If I murdered someone she’s the person I’d call to help me drag the corpse across the living room floor.
Burke: Okay, now, you’re likening someone here to a corpse. I’m done.
Cristina: She’s my person.

George: Can I see his face?
Callie: I'm in the middle of surgery.
George: I know. Is this boy your patient? I know the picture's half smeared and hard to see but ... Please tell me it's him. Tell me he has been right here, under my nose, open on your table all day, and not drifting along the bottom of the ocean. Please tell me that.
Callie: Hold the photo under the light so I can get a better look. Oh yeah, oh yeah, that's my kid. I could spot those goofy ears anywhere.
George: Really?
Callie: Really.
George: Callie O'Malley. I can't kiss you right now because you're scrubbed in, but tonight, when you get home, I am going to --
Callie: All right, people let's focus. George, I'm working here. I'm working, so, yeah, bye.

Bailey: What do we got?
Paramedic: Jane Doe. She's hypothermic and dropping.
Derek: She's not a Jane Doe. It's Meredith Grey. It's Meredith.
Bailey: Derek! Derek! How long has she been down?
Derek: I don't know. She's alive. She's alive.

Episode Title: Drowning on Dry Land

"Drowning on Dry Land" is the title of a song by Tab Benoit, Fish Soup, and Blues.