I kept expecting Kutner to not be dead. I didn't believe it for at least half the episode - I mean, there was no set-up for it at all the way that "House's Head" set up Amber's death in "Wilson's Heart." On the other hand, that's how these things happen a lot of the time. There are no warning signs at all.
I was shocked, but not upset. You're right about Kutner being a cipher. We never saw inside his head the way we see inside Taub or Thirteen's. He had no personal life that we saw, no real relationships or attachments. I'm not sure we ever even saw his apartment until this last ep.
I agree that Taub's breakdown was touching. Actually, that entire end sequence was very good, I thought. That show uses music very well.
Unqualified agreement that the House producers use music extremely well. They nail those closing song choices.
I was thinking (and may even have said this to you in IM) that Kutner's isolation could have been the hook for them. I don't mind if the suicide is a mystery to the characters-- I'm okay with them never knowing. But I need a framework for it. I need pattern in my art. Somewhere.
I'm not sure we've ever been invited to care about any of the new ducklings. They might want us to, but I never have simply because they never got billing status, so I've always assumed they were going away eventually. I think it was kind of cheap of the writers to use death. It makes me wonder if they're capable of writing off a character without killing them.
The only thing that did upset me about him dying is that, to me, he is the most interesting and likable out of the 3 new ducklings. I cringe at the thought of Taub and 13 getting more airtime.
See, I always just assumed it was contractual issues that kept them out of billing status. I've cared about them all for a long time. I like all of them. And I, unlike lots of fandom, am a-okay with Foreman/Thirteen. I'll miss Kutner. And Taub is a complicated thorny man, which I like. In short: season 3 nearly lost my interest, but seasons 4 & 5 have really kept it.
Can I grieve for a television character who's a cipher?... The approach to feeling for Kutner is for me to see that he wasn't a cipher to the other characters.
I haven't seen the episode (or indeed any House for... whole seasons now) so this is more general storytelling musing.
I think another way it could work would be to see the other characters grieving for a colleague who was a cipher to them. Suicides sometimes occasion a "what did I miss? where did I fail?" response even from the deceased's acquaintances. So seeing and possibly entering in to other characters' questioning, or self-reproach, or regret, about how little they knew of the dead man, might also be a way for writers to invite the viewer to feel for the cipher character.
So seeing and possibly entering in to other characters' questioning, or self-reproach, or regret, about how little they knew of the dead man, might also be a way for writers to invite the viewer to feel for the cipher character.
This was definitely the approach of the House writers, almost to the point where it went too far. No, Kutner's suicide is not all about House! Please connect it to *Kutner*, I was thinking. Until the end, when Taub (who had been trying the stoic, I don't care approach) broke down. Then somehow the human emotions felt real to me, not like a manipulative TV show.
And here I want another parenthetical to say that I don't mind TV shows being manipulative. All emotional storytelling is manipulative; that's the point. I'm willingly entering into that experience with the writer. It's just when I am made aware of the mans of manipulation that I have less fun.
I can't really comment on your central question because unlike you guys, I didn't think Kutner was a cipher. He was less developed than the others, yes, but I liked the character a lot.
Ooh, thank you for the link! That was most informative.
I also liked Kutner a lot, and had been hoping for a Kutner-centric storyline like the one Taub just got. Now that's impossible. However, I can't begrudge Penn his new career, which he seems quite happy about.
I haven't seen the episode yet (I'm about half a season behind in watching), but I've been reading people's reaction posts. More than anything, this reminds me of Tasha Yar and the killer tar pit from first season ST:TNG. You want off the show? Fine. *zap* See ya.
Do I recall grumblings from the time that happened about how it happened? This was a bit more nuanced, and I think (hope) we'll see repercussions over the next few episodes.
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I was shocked, but not upset. You're right about Kutner being a cipher. We never saw inside his head the way we see inside Taub or Thirteen's. He had no personal life that we saw, no real relationships or attachments. I'm not sure we ever even saw his apartment until this last ep.
I agree that Taub's breakdown was touching. Actually, that entire end sequence was very good, I thought. That show uses music very well.
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I was thinking (and may even have said this to you in IM) that Kutner's isolation could have been the hook for them. I don't mind if the suicide is a mystery to the characters-- I'm okay with them never knowing. But I need a framework for it. I need pattern in my art. Somewhere.
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The only thing that did upset me about him dying is that, to me, he is the most interesting and likable out of the 3 new ducklings. I cringe at the thought of Taub and 13 getting more airtime.
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I haven't seen the episode (or indeed any House for... whole seasons now) so this is more general storytelling musing.
I think another way it could work would be to see the other characters grieving for a colleague who was a cipher to them. Suicides sometimes occasion a "what did I miss? where did I fail?" response even from the deceased's acquaintances. So seeing and possibly entering in to other characters' questioning, or self-reproach, or regret, about how little they knew of the dead man, might also be a way for writers to invite the viewer to feel for the cipher character.
Reply
This was definitely the approach of the House writers, almost to the point where it went too far. No, Kutner's suicide is not all about House! Please connect it to *Kutner*, I was thinking. Until the end, when Taub (who had been trying the stoic, I don't care approach) broke down. Then somehow the human emotions felt real to me, not like a manipulative TV show.
And here I want another parenthetical to say that I don't mind TV shows being manipulative. All emotional storytelling is manipulative; that's the point. I'm willingly entering into that experience with the writer. It's just when I am made aware of the mans of manipulation that I have less fun.
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I can't really comment on your central question because unlike you guys, I didn't think Kutner was a cipher. He was less developed than the others, yes, but I liked the character a lot.
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I also liked Kutner a lot, and had been hoping for a Kutner-centric storyline like the one Taub just got. Now that's impossible. However, I can't begrudge Penn his new career, which he seems quite happy about.
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