Last night's House

[kalimyre]

So after three weeks, there was this new House on last night. One day and one room, or something like that. I recorded it and didn't get around to watching it until today, but I noticed a curious lack of general squee on my flist in the interim. I can say now that it is not all that curious after all.

Comments

[leenys]

Hm. Well, I loved it, I've watched it twice so far.

To me, medicine is nothing *but* a religious and philosophical debate. Every decision you make is essentially playing god, taking control over another life. Parenting is much the same way. There is always and ethical (religious)/philo debate going on in House, just more so here than normal. Everything about House is a ethical/philo debate.

For those that don't want the philo, I can understand not liking the episode. Personally I like to see this kind of ep every so often. From what I've seen, House had fallen into a formula of "pick a patient, find out what's wrong, give them a test that they have a reaction to, rinse, repeat". I was getting tired of that senario.

I find it interesting that a girl could break into his shell. I find it interesting how she managed to do it, and I find it interesting that she took her situation seriously enough to find the one person who understood PAIN to talk to, and I don't mean physical. That's what she was digging for, to me it would have come across as being a Mary Sue if everyone HAD dropped everything to help her. That isn't what happened at all. House asked for advice, it was given (thought Chase's advice was funny). These people weren't checking up on her or bemoaning her any more than they do any other patient. I thought she was very strong, and very, very well played. It is assumed that they won't cross paths again.

The whole "one room" thing fascinates me, and rings true. Your actions are very much dictated by "who is in the room with you", be it figuratively or literally. It harkens back to the "live in the moment" deal. She was trying to do that, trying to work through her issues, trying to find someone who wouldn't coddle her and would truly listen. Once she had House's ear, she had THAT. And at first, she didn't know. But she knew for some reason *he* was the one to talk to, because he was real. The whys and hows she had to figure out as she went along, and that was quite a ride.

Cuddy, yeah, expected the whole "you owe me" thing, and glad House said what he did. Hopefully this'll be the only ep she say that.

House saying she's throwing her life away by keeping the baby...this is HOUSE. This is the man that issues unnecessary tests to keep out of clinic duty. I can totally see him supporting abortion, especially under the circumstances. He's no martyr.

(I'm reading through comments LOL)

Um...I think now they can tell much earlier if there is a pregnancy. I'm surprised a post date-rape drug wasn't mentioned. Or was it, and I missed it?

The thing that got me about the homeless guy dying was the fact that he wanted so desperately to be remembered. I think they (writers) gave him to Cameron because she's the most likely to do that. He wanted to know that his existence wasn't a joke to be passed by. He had the same issues as the girl.

House's daddy issue would have been more interesting and relevant to the episode if it had been the mom. That not only would have had more of an emotional impact (fathers known to be more abusive than mothers to sons), but it would have explained his reasoning in regared to his comments about the abortion. They really missed a trick there.

All in all, I loved it, I'm loving this season. And I have to wonder, I'm just going to throw this out there for anyone to answer...I'm active in several fandoms, and in every one people seem to be downing their episodes and threatening not to watch, saying they hate the current season or hating the prospect of the next season or wanting the previous connections back, ect ect ect. Are we perhaps expecting too much from television shows, period?

[kalimyre]

Ah, well then you're on the other side of the coin. This does seem to be a love it or hate it episode. I do see what you're saying about how House always deals with ethical and philosophical issues, that's true. The show loves the gray area, and loves exploring it and usually I do like that. This was just a little too much of it.

A lot of this episode rests on the girl--if she can be convincing and engaging and believable, then the episode works. If not, then it falls flat. For me, she didn't work. Her responses seemed too formulaic and... I don't know quite how to describe it. Like a hundred Law and Order SVU episodes glommed together. Like every poorly handled non-con fic I've read. Essentially, like the way some writer thought a rape victim should act, which makes a certain amount of sense.

It was kind of interesting to see everyone's different views on what she needed and how to deal with her. Cameron, of course, personalized it and took the perspective of the victim, and Foreman was more about distancing and rationality. Chase was plainly lost which goes with his tendency toward trying not to think or care about things that are emotionally difficult.

I have loved most of this season, although I thought the resolution of the Tritter arc was taking the easy way out. Yes, maybe having the typical patient of the week thing was getting repetitive, but I still liked it and the characters are still interesting. I'd rather see the old House than this emo sensitive guy who repeats one liners about rooms and people you're stuck with.