Sandra Oh as Cristina Yang
Dr. Cristina Yang is an intern at Seattle Grace Hospital. Swamped in a competitive and pressure cooker environment, she seems to be doing very well as she is a fast learner. Often perceived as aggressive and conceited, she has difficulty in relating with people, particularly patients.
When she first walked through the doors of Seattle Grace, Cristina immediately became friends with fellow intern, Dr. Meredith Grey. Being highly competitive and serious, Cristina got envious of the attention and opportunities being given to Meredith (one, because Meredith is Dr. Derek Shepherd’s girlfriend, and two, because Meredith is the daughter of renowned surgeon, Dr. Ellis Grey). Nevertheless, Cristina became best friends with Meredith and also formed a special bond with other interns, Dr. Izzie Stevens and Dr. George O’ Malley.
Although her cold exterior has made others distance themselves, Cristina’s intelligence and strong spirit won the affection of surgeon Dr. Preston Burke. Their relationship started with a cup of coffee and quickly escalated to a more intimate level in the on-call room. Both of them decided to keep their relationship a secret for the sake of their careers, but because Cristina had some commitment issues, she pushed Burke away, to the surgeon’s utter frustration. Things got more complicated for her when she found out that she’s pregnant, but instead of telling Burke, she confided in Meredith. Eventually, the truth about Cristina and Burke came out, and as expected, Burke’s job was threatened. Burke broke up with Cristina not knowing that she’s carrying his child. Trying to seem strong and unaffected, Cristina went on with her stressful lifestyle, which ultimately led to a miscarriage. Burke was obviously surprised and devastated, and he was the only one who was able to provide comfort in her moment of anguish. Soon thereafter, they got back together and eventually, Cristina moved in with him. After overcoming many more obstacles, such as hiding Burke’s hand tremors and being found out, Burke proposed to Cristina and they became engaged 8 days later.
The strong feelings she has for Burke equals that of her love for her best friend, Meredith. When Meredith drowned and assumed a death-like state, it was Cristina who forced the doctors to keep trying to save Meredith’s life. When Meredith woke up, Cristina told her about her engagement, even saying that Meredith was the only person she wished to inform.
(Photo courtesy of ABC)