In season 6 of “Grey’s Anatomy,” Seattle Grace merges with a nearby hospital, Mercy West, which introduces some new residents into the mix. Some of those residents, like Dr. Jackson Avery (Jesse Williams) and Dr. April Kepner (Sarah Drew), end up sticking around to become main members of the cast, but others aren’t so lucky … so how do they perish? In a horrific shooting, actually.

These deaths are not, I should say, “stupid.” They’re actually very sad, and one is especially shocking. In the two-part finale of season 6 — “Sanctuary” and “Death and All His Friends” — Gary Clark (Michael O’Neill), the husband of a former patient, shows up at the recently renamed Seattle Grace-Mercy West Hospital with a grievance and a gun, intending to shoot a group of doctors who followed his wife’s end-of-life directive after a surgery created complications and put her on life support. Despite that his late wife asked to be removed from the life support, Gary has scores to settle with Dr. Richard Webber (James Pickens Jr.), Dr. Lexie Grey (Chyler Leigh), and the chief of surgery at the time, Dr. Derek Shepherd (Patrick Dempsey), but as he tries to find his way through the labyrinthine hospital to Derek’s office, he encounters Dr. Reed Adamson (Nora Zehetner), one of the new residents from Mercy West. Impatient and stressed, Reed says she’s a “tour guide, not a surgeon” before Gary shoots her between the eyes.

Later in the episode, after shooting Alex Karev and killing unnamed doctors and nurses, Gary storms into a patient room belonging to Mary Portman (guest star Mandy Moore), where surgeons Dr. Charles Percy (Robert Baker) and Dr. Miranda Bailey (Chandra Wilson) are hiding. Miranda lies and says she’s a nurse, but Charles admits he’s a surgeon, and Gary shoots him before leaving. Reed’s death is brutally quick, but on the flip side, Charles’ death takes forever as Miranda and Mary try and fail to save his life. “Sanctuary” and “Death and All His Friends” are two genuinely great dramatic episodes of television, and Charles and Reed’s deaths are stark examples of the horrors of gun violence, even when you’re surrounded by excellent doctors.

If you have been impacted by incidents of mass violence, or are experiencing emotional distress related to incidents of mass violence, you can call or text Disaster Distress Helpline at 1-800-985-5990 for support.