The world of Grey’s Anatomy requires lots (and lots) of props. From 3D-printed fetuses to sourcing the right medical instruments to creating edible food to capture the magic — and accuracy — of Grey’s, the props have been spearheaded by property master Ryan Blank.
One of his more memorable prop endeavors was in season 14 when he and special effects coordinator Jason Gustafson set up the famous “elephant toothpaste” experiment for Maggie, which Blank says was “a wonderful and unique challenge.”
“This experience using massive beakers to create 20-foot-tall spouts of ‘elephant’s toothpaste’ was the most fun I’ve had in my entire career,” he recalls. “Jason and I, because we did the practice runs repeatedly together, ran the gag on set the day it was shot. Repeating the gag over and over with consistent results was an absolute blast.”
Blank’s props can be so popular that he’s even encountered cast members attempting to pilfer them from the set. But one of the most challenging moments in his job is when props are “changed at the last minute or during rehearsal for the scene,” and the “list of these props is endless and always evolving,” he says.
Though this week’s prop wasn’t as hands-on (or messy!) as the elephant toothpaste, it still took thought, time, and a major collaboration. Miranda gifts a copy of the just-released Red Cloak Volume 12 to Dorian, one of her patients, who’s been at Grey Sloan for 51 days — clearly, things have not been easy for Dorian. In the original script for the episode, Blue and Mika admire the book, with Mika saying she might swipe it from Dorian. But there’s no need for that: Blue has the entire collection at home. Although the book only makes a brief appearance in the final version, a lot of effort went into making it.
“Typically, in a situation where something must be created, I would research and find examples of something similar to work from,” Blank explains. “In this case, I was perfect for the task as a lifelong consumer and collector of comic books. I already knew what would make the book authentic. Mom was wrong — my love for comic books finally paid off!”
Dorian (Freddy Miyares)
To imagine the Red Cloak series, Blank worked with episode director Debbie Allen to understand the writers’ expectations for what it should look like and what the tone should be. He then collaborated with production designer John Zachary, who enlisted Matthias Beeguer, an artist and art director at Marvel. Beeguer has worked on such shows as One Piece, Dark Matter, Echo, Ms. Marvel, and She-Hulk and the upcoming movie Bad Boys: Ride or Die.
Zachary gave Beeguer some references that reflected “the mood of what I thought was appropriate,” along with the script pages. “These showed the characters from the show interacting with the comic book, helping me understand the context,” Beeguer says. “They emphasized that the main focus should be on the composition of the pages and cover, with the text and story coming second. This approach will ensure that viewers can grasp the content and subject matter even if the filming doesn’t capture the text clearly.”
In the early 2000s, Beeguer created several short comics for Heavy Metal magazine, which he incorporated as an inspiration. “I used sketches, photographs, and various personal artworks to train an artificial intelligence model,” he explains. “By providing prompts that described elements like the red cape and the action, I compiled a series of promising images and a style.”
A mockup of graphic novel Red Cloak by Matthias Beeguer
Ultimately, the AI model generated hundreds of images. Although not everything was right for Red Cloak, it gave Beeguer a head start on imagining the artwork. He used Photoshop to add missing elements, adjust the images, and put together the narrative and the composition, which tell a story across several pages.
“Controlling the backgrounds and the colors was very important for cohesiveness,” he says. “The bulk of the work was given to the covers and backing options, painting details, and textures to achieve a more finished look. The whole process took two days. Unfortunately, at the end of the second day, we realized that the dimensions of the frames were different than the book the prop department had ordered with the printer, so I spent an extra day reconverting to a different, more elongated composition, which of course gave me further opportunities to fix numerous issues, repaint some elements, and make sure everything was going to look its best in high resolution.”
For Beeguer, the process was rewarding and enjoyable despite the hurdles. “Working with unrestricted creativity is my favorite approach, and I’m incredibly thankful to the Grey’s Anatomy team for giving me the rare opportunity to exercise that principle,” he says.
Not only do the fictional Red Cloak books appear in the episode, but they have also been used to decorate Blue’s bedroom in the intern house. Discerning fans can spot the series on his bookcase. Although they play only a small role on this season of Grey’s Anatomy, it is a memorable one.
“John chose well,” Blank says of Beeguer’s work. “The images were incredible, and we had more than enough material to create multiple versions of the graphic novel.”
Emily Zemler is a freelance writer and journalist based in London. She regularly contributes to the Los Angeles Times, Rolling Stone, and Observer, and is the author of five books. Follow her on Twitter @emilyzemler.
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