Grey's Anatomy: 5 Characters Alex Should Have Hooked Up With (& 5 That Would Never Work)
Dr. Alex Karev, played by Justin Chambers, is one of the original interns, turned attending, turned resident at Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital on the hit primetime medical drama, Grey's Anatomy.
Alex has had a lot of girlfriends on the show and a couple of wives. Alex's personal life was frequently a storyline over the course of the sixteen seasons he was on the show and there were a lot of ups and downs, along with a few missed opportunities.
10 Should: Callie Torres
Callie and Alex have a lot in common. They are both extremely attractive and very tough. They don't shy away from much, be it a risky surgery or a new love interest. They both have go-getter personalities that could have made for a fun courting process.
It also would have been entertaining to watch the power struggle between the two alphas as they navigated a personal relationship. There definitely would have been some hot rendezvous in the on-call room if these two had gotten together.
9 Shouldn't: Meredith Grey
Meredith and Alex are best friends and the only two original doctors left after sixteen seasons of the show. After George died, Izzie disappeared, and Cristina moved to Zurich, Alex and Meredith were left with no choice but to lean on each other a lot.
They became each other's "person" once all of their other people were gone. If they had ended up together, that would have ruined an important friendship and they wouldn't have been able to support one another the way they do as just friends.
8 Should: Cristina Yang
Alex and Cristina can both be pretty uptight. They are very focused and don't let much get in their way when it comes to surgeries and their work. Their passion could have potentially translated well into a personal relationship.
Alex could have benefitted a lot from being with a woman like Cristina. She could have taught him a thing or two, like how to work smarter, not harder, and maybe even how to control his temper from time to time.
7 Shouldn't: Miranda Bailey
Dr. Miranda Bailey is driven, smart, wise, and caring. She's also too good for Alex Karev. When Bailey is introduced, she is a no-nonsense type and bosses her interns around unapologetically, including Alex Karev.
If Bailey and Alex had ever gotten together, it would have caused viewers to question everything they know and love about Miranda Bailey, while Alex would have most likely participated in the affair to gain an advantage in the workplace. It would have been an unwelcome storyline, to say the least.
6 Should: Mark Sloan
Alex worshipped Mark Sloan when the latter first came to Seattle Grace Hospital as the new head of plastic surgery. Alex thought he wanted his specialty to be in plastics and wanted to learn everything he could from his new idol. Mark and Alex also got along well, probably because they were so similar.
Because they have so much in common, they're able to hold each other accountable and call each other out when it's necessary. They make a great professional team, and that could have translated well into a more personal relationship.
5 Shouldn't: April Kepner
April and Alex would have never made a good match. Their backgrounds couldn't be more different and they don't agree on much.
At one point, early on, when April first arrived at the hospital after Seattle Grace merged with Mercy West, she and Alex had the small beginnings of a potential relationship. April even considered losing her virginity to Alex, but it was clear these two don't work together; luckily, April didn't go through with it and they both moved on.
4 Should: Addison Montgomery
This is another relationship Alex almost had but didn't follow through on. After Addison's divorce is finalized and she's officially back on the market, she and Alex start flirting a little bit. Alex had been working in pediatrics under Addison and they bonded. They even shared an intimate moment after a successful day and kissed.
A few episodes later, Mark catches Addison and Alex coming out of the on-call room. The relationship fizzles out and Addison moves to LA, but she leaves a lasting impact on Alex and he decides to shift his focus to pediatrics, which shows Addison was good for him and they could've made a great power couple.
3 Shouldn't: Arizona Robbins
Arizona takes over as the new head of pediatric surgery and Alex quickly becomes her go-to side-kick for all of her cases. It's pretty incredible to see bad boy Alex Karev handling cases with sick children, infants, and complicated pregnancies.
Viewers could see Alex's heart getting larger with every new case while his knowledge and skills improved under Arizona's guidance. If these two ever got personal, it would have ruined an incredible mentorship and since Alex thrived under Arizona's supervision, he couldn't afford to lose her.
2 Should: Teddy Altman
Alex needs a strong woman, someone who is her own boss and can boss him around as well. Teddy is definitely that kind of woman and she won't put up with any drama or games. Someone like Teddy could have been really great for Alex.
Despite all of his best efforts, Alex still carries around a lot of his less attractive behaviors from his younger, more reckless years, and Teddy could have been the one to break those bad habits.
1 Shouldn't: Maggie Pierce
Maggie is a brilliant surgeon and the youngest Head of Cardiothoracic Surgery Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital has ever had. Alex wouldn't be able to feed Maggie's interests and curiosities had the two every gotten together.
Not to mention, Maggie is Meredith Grey's half-sister and Alex already had a relationship with one of Meredith's sisters, Lexie, albeit brief. It was dramatic enough that it almost caused a rift in Alex and Meredith's relationship. Alex does a lot of questionable things, but he learns from all of them.