April Kepner
April Kepner, M.D., F.A.C.S. is a fictional character from the ABC's medical drama series Grey's Anatomy. The character was created by series producer Shonda Rhimes and is portrayed by actress Sarah Drew. April was introduced in the episode "Invasion" as a surgical resident from Mercy West Medical Center who joins the staff at Seattle Grace Mercy West following the merger of the two hospitals. This was done to compensate for the absence of some central cast members, and April was originally created to be somewhat disliked by her colleagues. Although initially set to appear in just two episodes, Drew's contract was extended for the remainder of Season 6, and she became a series regular in Season 7.
April's primary storylines revolve around her professional struggles and religious beliefs. She eventually marries Jackson Avery and together, they have two children: a son, Samuel, who dies from osteogenesis imperfecta type II, and a daughter named Harriet. April's story concluded with her departure in the Season 14 finale, and it was later revealed in Season 17 that she left Seattle with Jackson to run the Catherine Fox Foundation.
Initially, April focused on neurosurgery during her residency due to a crush on Derek Shepherd, but she ultimately found her true passion in trauma surgery. After failing her medical boards, April briefly leaves the hospital but later returns as a surgical attending when Chief Owen Hunt offers her job back. ABC characterized her as determined, thorough, and intelligent, while also noting her insecurity, over-eagerness, and vulnerability as her main weaknesses.
The character received mixed reviews from critics early on, with some finding her irritating due to her insecurity and overzealous nature. However, as April evolved and her storylines deepened, she gained significant character growth, and many fans began to appreciate her journey, eventually becoming a fan-favorite.
Storylines
April Kepner was born in Columbus, Ohio. Her mother Karen is a teacher, and her father Joe is a farmer, and she is the second of four daughters. Kepner is initially a surgical resident at Mercy West Medical Center. She joins the staff at Seattle Grace Mercy West after the merger of the two hospitals, alongside Jackson Avery, Reed Adamson, and Charles Percy. April is first shown to possess a red diary, in which she writes all her feelings and thoughts which is stolen by Lexie Grey. Lexie uses the personal information written in the notebook to unnerve and blackmail Kepner but later apologizes. After she made a mistake that led to a patient's death, she is fired. However, Derek Shepherd rehires her when he becomes the new Chief of Surgery. As she is not confident anymore, she spends her time doing errands for Shepherd and develops a crush on him, earning her the nickname "Shepherd's flunky". In the Season 6 finale, she discovers the body of her best friend Reed, who has been shot. She later runs into the shooter, Gary Clark, who spares her after she tells him about her life. Following the shooting, April and fellow resident Jackson Avery move into Meredith Grey's house.April reveals that she is a virgin because she is a Christian and made a promise to God to stay a virgin until she was married. She shows potential as a trauma surgeon during a trauma drill. She develops feelings for Alex Karev who almost makes her lose her virginity. When Jackson, now her best friend finds out about this, he assaults Alex. Later, April agrees to go on a date with Robert Stark, believing him to have a good side. Her fellow residents make fun of her which prompts her to break up with him. April also impresses Owen Hunt and she is ultimately granted the position of Chief Resident in the Season 7 finale. Many become upset with Owen's decision. April initially struggles with her new status as her fellow doctors do not listen to her and do not take her seriously.
As the end of the fifth year of residency is near, the surgical residents, including April, prepare for their boards exams for the different fellowships they plan on joining. The night before taking the exam, April loses her virginity to Jackson which causes her to re-evaluate her faith during her Boards Exams, making the examiners feel uncomfortable. It is revealed that she is the only one out of the residents to have failed her Boards Exams. She receives phone calls from other hospital retracting their offers of fellowships and is laid off from Seattle Grace. Although Jackson has true feelings for her, April pushes him away because she believes that he feels guilty for having sex with her. As a celebration of the conclusion of their residencies, the former chief of surgery Richard Webber organizes his annual dinner for them. The eighth season ends with April, Jackson, Alex, and Richard waiting for Meredith and Cristina, who are victims of an aviation accident.
In Season 9, months later, Owen goes to visit April, who had moved back to her parents' farm in Moline, Ohio. In the wake of the aviation accident, he offers her an attending position at the hospital. When she gets back to Seattle Grace, she resumes her sexual relationship with Jackson, despite claiming she wants to re-virginise. April has a pregnancy scare and Jackson promises that he will be there every step of the way, even marry her, if she tests positive. When April finds out that she is not pregnant, she is overjoyed, but inadvertently hurts Jackson's feelings by saying that they dodged a bullet, seemingly thrilled that they do not have to get married anymore. Jackson breaks up with April. April suggests to Jackson that they each take a date to Bailey's wedding in an attempt to move on. Jackson takes intern Stephanie; the two bond and eventually have sex. When Jackson tells April that he is sleeping with somebody else, she is visibly crushed and tells him that they cannot be friends again until she has gotten over him. In the next episode, an attractive paramedic named Matthew asks April out for coffee and they start seeing each other. Shortly afterwards she turns to Jackson for dating advice and it is hinted that Jackson is still in love with her when he shows signs of jealousy but they re-establish their friendship. She confesses to Matthew that she is not a virgin anymore as she led him to believe and he breaks up with her because she lied to him. However, in the next episode, Matthew forgives April and they get back together. He asks her to marry him through a flash mob and she says yes. In the season 9 finale, April thinks she lost Jackson when a bus blew up and tells him she loves him, but he only has a few injuries.
In Season 10, April is still engaged to Matthew while Jackson dates Stephanie. At the wedding, Jackson realizes he still loves April and stands up professing his love. Jackson and April are seen driving off together at the start of the following episode and later, it is revealed that they have secretly gotten married after they ran off together. At first, April and Jackson do not tell their friends about their marriage, but later they do because of a new rule at the hospital. Catherine Avery is not at all happy about her son's elopement with April, and the fact that there was not a prenuptial agreement. They soon make up after April signs a postnuptial agreement.
In Season 11, Jackson and April hit a rough patch when they realize that they have different views in the way their children should be raised religious. Not long after their fight, April realizes she is pregnant. April and Jackson's baby is diagnosed during pregnancy with a sickness that causes the babies bones to break, which is called Osteogenesis Imperfecta type II, and learn that the baby will not survive long after birth. Jackson believes that termination is the best option, however April would rather give birth to the baby knowing it will not live very long. They scheduled an induction for the next day, at the beginning of the appointment they are asked to sign their baby's death certificate, which is too hard for the couple to bear. April does not sign the papers and returns to work the same day, praying for a miracle. They decide to give birth to the baby via induction at 24 weeks gestation having it baptized right then. She gives birth to a boy, named Samuel Norbert Avery, and he died a few hours after birth because of his sickness. In the following weeks after Samuel's death, April and Jackson find it hard to be around each other and be intimate with one another. After April tries to seduce Jackson in a supply closet, Jackson asks if she is sure she wants this so soon after the death of their son, leaving April to storm out in anger. In the season 11 finale, April decides to join Owen Hunt for three months as a trauma surgeon with the army; this not being well received by Jackson. But after April states she needs this in order to grieve Samuel, Jackson lets her leave. Over the following months, April lengthens her stay in the army, this having a strain on her and Jackson's marriage as Jackson can rarely get a hold of her. On Christmas Day after already being away for some time, April announces to Jackson while on video chat that she is staying for a longer service period, but the conversation is cut short by sounds of gunfire and explosions from April's base camp, leaving her to terminate the call; meanwhile Jackson is unsure whether his wife is hurt. On Valentine's Day, April returns to the hospital surprising Jackson, and they embrace in the foyer.
In Season 12, April and Jackson go through divorce proceedings that Jackson started. The morning before they sign the divorce papers, April discovers that she is expecting a second baby. She does not inform Jackson, and he is told by Arizona Robbins, which leads to additional tension. After Catherine Avery convinces Jackson to fight for full custody of his unborn child, April takes out a restraining order against him. The Averys' lawyer asks for all documentation of their marriage and Jackson realizes they should fix the situation for their child. He and April decide to raise their child together as friends. Complications arise when April needs a C-section and Warren has to do it, without anesthesia or other medications.
In seasons 13 and 14, April faces a crisis of faith as she believes that good people get punished and bad people get good things. She does this after treating 3 seemingly simple patients who are good people and die, including Matthew's pregnant wife, after delivery. Robbins then tells April it's her fault. As a result, she goes into a dark place and uses partying and sex to mask her deep-rooted pain. She earns the nickname "The Party" by the new interns. She refuses to let Jackson help her through this time. However, in mid-season 14, she encounters a terminal patient who helps April reaffirm her faith. April starts seeing Matthew again and their relationship is made public when the two are involved in a car accident, where April almost dies of hypothermia; when April finally wakes up from her coma after Jackson prays for her, her friends are relieved. In the season finale, April and Matthew get married. She resigns from the hospital to provide much-needed medical care for the homeless communities in Seattle, something she and Matthew had been doing together voluntarily.
In Season 17, it is revealed that April has separated from Matthew. When Jackson decides to resign from the hospital and take over the Catherine Fox Foundation, April decides to go with him and Harriet, and the three of them depart Seattle for Boston. In the following season, she and Jackson visit Seattle and it is revealed that the two of them have reconciled.