In which episode does Mark die in ‘Grey’s Anatomy’?

Grey’s Anatomy introduced an especially memorable character when Derek Shepherd’s old pal Mark Sloan (Eric Dane) showed up at the hospital in season 2. Right away, he was deemed McSteamy, and we loved watching him banter with the other doctors and interns.

In typical Grey’s Anatomy fashion, Mark was so likable that we got invested in him… and then he died. It happens so often on the ABC drama that we should be used to it by now, but we’re still surprised every single time. Here’s what episode of Grey’s Anatomy Mark dies in, along with what happened to his character after that tragic moment.

What episode of Grey’s Anatomy did Mark die in?

Mark Sloan dies in the season 9 premiere of Grey’s Anatomy called “Going, Going, Gone.” After getting hurt in the plane crash in the season 8 finale, he falls into a coma. At the start of season 9, the doctors realize they have to remove him from life support, which is of course incredibly traumatic for them.

The end of Mark’s storyline is about taking risks and telling people how you feel about them while you’re still here. Mark knows he has fallen in love with Meredith’s sweet half-sister Lexie Grey (Chyler Leigh) and hates that he wasted so much time being immature and full of himself. Mark’s death has ripple effects on the other characters for years to come, especially when Meredith has to grieve Derek’s unexpected death in season 11.

It doesn’t sound like it was Dane’s decision to leave Grey’s Anatomy but simply where the story naturally took his character. The actor told Entertainment Weekly, “it was an opportunity for me to go and I was interested in something different.” Dane then starred in the TV series The Last Ship, which aired on TNT from 2014 to 2018.

Mark is a great example of exactly why we love Grey’s Anatomy so much… and his death proves how powerful the most well-crafted Grey’s Anatomy seasons are. While Mark is a jerk when he first gets a job at Grey Sloan, he becomes a better person by being around the other doctors. He realizes he wants to be an involved parent and that he wants to find love. It’s hard to like him at first and impossible to imagine that he could change, but that’s the beauty of a Shonda Rhimes show. We always get surprised.

Mark returned in season 17

Mark returns in season 17, episode 10 of Grey’s Anatomy called “Breathe.” When Meredith is in the hospital with COVID-19, she sees visions of several characters on the beach who have died. In this particular episode, she sees herself talking to Mark and Lexie’s spirits.

This moment was years in the making and proves how much Shonda Rhimes loves this couple. In 2012, Rhimes wrote an essay for Entertainment Weekly and shared that she imagined Lexie and Mark together. Whether we believe that ghosts are real or that the afterlife exists, it’s nice to know that Rhimes thought these characters would find their way back to each other.

Lexie and Mark tell Meredith that she must live in the moment and enjoy herself. While it’s upsetting for Meredith to grieve their deaths all over again, she feels hopeful and uplifted by the message they have for her. Mark also made us all sob when he said he loves watching his daughter Sofia with Arizona Robbins (Jessica Capshaw) and Callie Torres (Sara Ramirez). McSteamy definitely grew up.