Ratings The sixth season opened up to 17.04 million viewers with a 6.7/17
Nielsen rating/share in the 18–49 demographic. Although the rating was a 1% decrease from season five's opener, it managed to rank first for its time-slot and the entire night, in terms of both ratings and viewership, and served as the season's most viewed episode. The season's finale garnered 16.13 million viewers, and received a 6.2/18 rating, ranking first for its time-slot and the entire night, in terms of both ratings and viewership. Overall, the season ranked at #17 for the year, and had an average of 13.26 million viewers, a 5% decrease from the previous season's ranking.
Critical response ' performance was well received. The season received mixed-to-positive reviews among television critics. Speaking of the premiere, Glenn Diaz of
BuddyTV noted that the special foreshadowed a "very dark" season, adding: "The talk between George's mom and one of the surgeons [Torres] proved to be one of the more heart-breaking scenes in an episode that in itself is heartbreaking enough." In contrast, Kelly West of
TV Blend was critical of the premiere, writing: "I don’t think based on the first episode that we can say that Grey's is headed in a new direction, nor do I think the writers are making much of an effort to bring the series back to the greatness that was its earlier seasons. That said, this is Grey's Anatomy and with that comes the usual drama, sex, love and whacky medical mysteries thrown in the mix to keep things moving. If that's what you’re looking for, I think you’ll enjoy the season premiere just fine." Capshaw's performance this season was praised, with
The TV Addict calling her "immensely likeable". Although "Sympathy for the Parents" was the least viewed episode,
TV Fanatic called the episode "touching", praising Chambers' performance.
TV Fanatic's reaction to the season was fairly mixed, with Steve Marsi saying that ''Grey's Anatomy'' was facing an identity crisis after viewing "
Give Peace a Chance". He said that: "Still popular but lacking its past magic, it's trying to decide what to become. All we can say is that if it becomes what we saw 12 hours ago, we are all for it. Last week saw the doctors plunging into
ER-style chaos with 12 different doctors giving 12 different accounts of one case. Last night, we saw something else equally unusual." John Kubicek of
BuddyTV also noted that the finale was the best episode, adding: "[It was] two of the best hours of television all year. It was certainly the best ''Grey's Anatomy'' has ever been, which is saying a lot since I'd written the show off for the past few years. No show does a big traumatic event like ''Grey's Anatomy
, and the shooter gave the show license for heightened drama with five major characters being shot over the two hours. It was emotional, expertly paced and had me in tears for most of the finale." Entertainment Weekly'' wrote, "At any rate, now you can at least see where it all began. And while you’re still pondering how Grey's can still be so damn good sometimes,"
Accolades The season was one of the least acclaimed of the series, in terms of awards and nominations. Despite not being nominated for a
Primetime Emmy, the show received two
Creative Arts Emmy Awards: Outstanding Prosthetic Makeup For A Series, Miniseries, Movie Or A Special for "How Insensitive" and Outstanding Makeup For A Single-Camera Series (Non-Prosthetic) for "Suicide is Painless". The season also received a nomination for Outstanding Drama Series at the
GLAAD Media Awards. Wilson was awarded the
NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Directing in a Dramatic Series for her directing in "Give Peace a Chance". The season also ranked at #10 on
Movieline top ten list. == DVD release ==