"The Other Side of This Life" consists of the twenty-second and twenty-third episodes of the third season of the American television medical drama Grey's Anatomy, and the show's 58th and 59th episodes overall. It was written by Shonda Rhimes and directed by Michael Grossman. The episode aired on the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) in the United States on May 3, 2007. The episode was produced as a backdoor pilot for a proposed spin-off, Private Practice, which would focus on the character of Dr. Addison Montgomery (Kate Walsh). "The Other Side of This Life" sees Montgomery take a leave of absence from the hospital, in order visit her infertility specialist best friend in Los Angeles, California, due to her desire to get pregnant. Further story lines include Dr. Cristina Yang (Sandra Oh) and Dr. Preston Burke (Isaiah Washington) meticulously planning their upcoming wedding, Dr. George O'Malley (T.R. Knight) dealing with his decision to transfer to a different internship program, Dr. Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo) treating her stepmother along with Dr. Miranda Bailey (Chandra Wilson) and Dr. Alex Karev (Justin Chambers) bonding with Ava (Elizabeth Reaser), after she undergoes an unsuccessful brain surgery.
The episodes were fictionally set in both Seattle, Washington and Los Angeles, California, but filming occurred in primarily in Los Angeles. Elizabeth Reaser (Ava) reprised her recurring role as a guest star, in addition to Mare Winningham (Susan Grey) and Jeff Perry (Thatcher Grey), along with future Private Practice series regulars, Merrin Dungey (Dr. Naomi Bennett), Taye Diggs (Dr. Sam Bennett), Tim Daly (Dr. Peter Wilder), Amy Brenneman (Dr. Violet Turner), Paul Adelstein (Dr. Cooper Freedman), and Chris Lowell (Dell Parker). The title of the episode refers to the song, "The Other Side of This Life", by Scottish musician and songwriter, David Byrne. The episodes received mixed to favorable reviews, with Pompeo's performance being particularly praised. Running together for 86 minutes and two seconds, the episodes were viewed by 21.50 million Americans in the United States each upon the original airing, ranked third in weekly viewership and garnered a 7.5 Nielsen rating in the 18–49 demographic.
