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House Rundown, Season Finale "Help Me"

BuzzSugar — Tue, 18 May 2010 06:30:00 PDT

Wow. I don't even know what to say, but this week's season finale of House is gut-wrenching, suspenseful, and dare I say, pretty epic. Even now, I'm still trying to wrap my head around all that happened.

After a collapse occurs at a construction site, House and team are on the scene to remove victims. House discovers Hannah, a woman whose leg is trapped underneath concrete, and she quickly becomes his patient as they wait for rescue team members to lift her out. Only thing is, House is somewhat distracted during the relief effort because Cuddy has big news. I can't speak much further without inundating you with spoilers, so

House gives Cuddy the book by her grandfather that he so relentlessly fished around for last week, telling her that it's a housewarming gift, but she doesn't seem as fazed by the gesture as you might expect. House, of course, reads into this, assessing that there's trouble with Cuddy and Lucas, and calling Wilson to dissect his Cuddy conversation - while Wilson attends to dying patients. Sometimes I really can't stand how self-absorbed House gets, you agree?
House confronts Cuddy about the awkwardness surrounding her gift. The real reason for her less-than-warm response: she thinks it was an engagement gift, because Lucas and she are getting married. It's the first somewhat big reveal of the night, and you can practically see House's heart breaking over the news, as he tries to shrug it off. Were you surprised?
While on site, House hears something from beneath the collapse, so he goes crawling to find the source. There, he encounters Hannah, a married woman stuck underneath a slab of concrete. Although House is resistant to being nice to her at first, he soon gets very protective of his new patient. When Cuddy and the rescue team suggest amputating Hannah's leg, he resists - partly due to his issues with his own handicap.
Back at Princeton-Plainsboro, the team works on the victims, including the construction worker responsible. While they thought he fell asleep on the job at first, it turns out he may have a neurological condition (it's later found to be spine-related). But the bigger mystery is Thirteen, who shows up late due to "physical therapy." At the end of the episode, we see her putting a letter on House's desk. Taub inquires as to what it is, and she tells him she's taking time off, the implication being that her health has taken a bad turn. Will you be sad if Thirteen departs for good?
As workers try to lift the rock over Hannah's leg, the building collapses further, giving House a serious gash and leaving Hannah still trapped. Cuddy tells House that amputation is the only option left, but he continues to refuse. This really gets Cuddy upset, and she lashes out at House, telling him that she doesn't love him. Ouch. What's worse is that House counters by calling her a "middle-aged mom who's dating a man-child." I was pretty shocked by the animosity - especially from Cuddy - and just felt bad on both counts.
Harsh as they may be, Cuddy's words must have affected House, because when he returns to Hannah, he tells her they'll have to take her leg. To calm her fears, he relays a story about how saving his own leg has only resulted in daily pain and hardened him as a person - and he wishes he hadn't kept it. This is one of the most revealing things I think we've ever heard House say, and Cuddy seems impressed by his admission, too.
The amputation procedure is successful, but another issue arises once Hannah, her husband, and House are in the ambulance - Hannah's lung collapses. House thinks it's a clot at first, but then he realizes the amputation went bad given the unclean conditions at the wreckage site, and Hannah dies. We don't see House lose many patients, and her death makes him all the more sympathetic, as he stares on at her in utter defeat. Did you think she was going to die, or did you think House would pull things together, like he always does?
Upset, House goes to the bathroom where he smashes a mirror and grabs his drugs. For a second, it seems like he might overdose given the sad state he's in, but just before he ingests the meds, Cuddy shows. She tells him that she ended it with Lucas . . . because she can't move on . . . because all the can think about is House! What?! I seconded House's skepticism, is this another hallucination?! But then Cuddy tells him that she loves him, and he kisses her! I'm still not 100 percent sure if this all just isn't a drunken dream on House's part, but are you glad the writers finally brought these two together as an actual couple? I didn't find Cuddy's sudden change of heart all that believable, but I will be very curious to see how this new development may change House for the better, won't you?

Please, please share your thoughts about Cuddy and House and the rest of the episode in the comments below. Or, if you really feel like sounding off, head over to the House! group to write an entire post on the topic!

Photo courtesy of Fox

House Rundown, "Baggage"

BuzzSugar — Tue, 11 May 2010 08:30:00 PDT

With a little help from the return of House's therapist Dr. Nolan (Andre Braugher), this week's episode gives us a glimpse inside the man's psyche. As you might expect, he's an interesting, albeit complicated study.

The show itself is a little strange, too, constantly flipping between House's conversations with Nolan and the usual run of interactions with patients, Wilson, and the like. It almost feels like a play, but by the end, we dig down deep to what it is that really is bothering House lately. Want to know what it is? Just

First big surprise of the night: Wilson wants House to move out so Sam can move in. He agrees and journeys back to his old apartment, which is now being occupied by (surprise!) Alvie, his friend from the mental ward. I sort of liked having Wilson and House live together, even if their pranks sometimes felt tired. I'll miss them as roomies, how about you?
An unfortunate side effect of Alvie's reappearance: he got rid of several of House's belongings when he moved to the doctor's apartment, including a very important book that House seems adamant to have returned to him. How come? Keep reading.
As for this week's patient, House is overseeing an unusual amnesia case where a female runner has no recollection of her former life, including her husband. House steps in to help her figure out who she is...then he thinks she's going to die...then he just realizes it was a bad tattoo and all she needs is a skin graph. Talk about anticlimactic.
Alvie may be a sweet enough guy, but he sure is annoying. House realizes he's trying to sneak by immigration, so he calls for a hearing. They even collect Alvie in handcuffs! I was pretty shocked by House's move to get his friend arrested, but sure enough, House swoops in at the last minute by producing a fake DNA analysis to prove that Alvie is legal. Alvie is appreciative, but later, he takes off to go live with his cousin instead, leaving House all by his lonesome again.
So, Wilson and Sam are preparing to co-habitate, Alvie and his cousin are living together, and wait - Cuddy and Lucas are moving in together, too?! Finally, Dr. Nolan gets it out of House that the underlying reason for his hard week is Cuddy. That, and the fact that everyone is leaving him behind. Kind of makes you feel bad for the man, but to add to it, we learn that the book House is so protective of is actually written by Cuddy's ancestor. House had plans to give it to her in the future as a thoughtful gift. Now, doesn't that just make you feel even worse for the guy?

What'd you think of this week's episode? I enjoyed the shakeup to the typical structure, but I thought it was kind of a downer. The script seemed to be lacking the banter that gives the show its zip, so this one instantly took a darker, more serious tone for me. Do you agree? Sound off in the comments or click on over to the House! group to chat more.

Photo courtesy of Fox

House Rundown, "The Choice"

BuzzSugar — Tue, 04 May 2010 09:30:00 PDT

Another week, another House episode that tries to push the sexual envelope. This time, a patient's past sexual experimentation isn't known to his fiancee (guest star Eva Amurri) until his spiraling health forces an old male partner out of the woodwork. My, oh, my.

As for House, he's trying to make it even harder for Taub to cheat on his wife. I say hooray for that, as you know how ticked I was after last week.

This episode raises several questions regarding fidelity and orientation, but it also gives us a peek at what's to come for the doctor (outlook is not so good). Let's get into it when you

Call me a prude, but I was weirded out by seeing Wilson seduce Sam in bed. I believe he called it "happy time"? I don't necessarily know if I exactly want to imagine Wilson having sex. Agreed?
House has a drinking problem now? After a bender, he wakes up in the bed of a next-door neighbor's kid. Then, as the episode goes on, we see him reaching for his painkillers and opting for alcohol instead. I don't know if I like this. Can't the writers just let him be OK for a while without doping him up on something?
Patient of the week, Ted, is quite the confusing case. He loses his speech at his wedding, gets it back, but then has major headaches and what appear to be strokes. Oh, and he also has an old boyfriend whom his fiancee doesn't know about. Seems that Ted wanted to "cure" himself of being gay after the two men fooled around, and he suffered a head injury as a result of the therapy. Interesting enough premise, but why does every House case have to involve a patient's taboo sexual history? Did it grab your interest?
House is on to Taub. I don't know how, but he knows that Taub is still seeing Maya - and he makes Taub's life even harder for it. He mentions a fake ceramics class that Taub is supposedly taking to Rachel. Taub, in turn, finds the one class that's full so she can't join it, and then he goes so far as to buy handmade napkin rings online to fool her. Don't get me wrong - I love that House is putting Taub through the ringer - but I'm not quite sure why he's so invested in Taub's marriage. Any theories?
Wilson has been arranging for House to go on "dates" with different team members, since Wilson and Sam are always together. Wilson's intentions may have been good, but I thought this seemed a bit condescending, don't you? Still, it made for funny scenes as House goes to a lesbian bar with Thirteen and does karaoke with Chase and Foreman (with choreography, I might add).
Are we going to see Thirteen and House get together? Crazy, I know, but when they go to the bar together, I swear I sense some sexual tension, as he says that she attracts "everything that moves." Were you picking up on it, too?
Right before the credits roll, Cuddy asks House to go grab a bite, because she just wants them to be friends. He replies, "Funny, that's the last thing I want us to be." I was pretty surprised by his brutal honesty, but what do you think - touche, or too harsh?

On a side note, did you happen to catch the promo for next week? Wilson asks House to move out?! Dying to hear your thoughts on that, as well as this episode. Chime in below, or head over to the House! group to chat as much as you'd like.

Photo courtesy of Fox

House Rundown, "Open and Shut"

BuzzSugar — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 09:27:40 PDT

Relationships go topsy-turvy on this week's House - but what do you expect when the show tackles a touchy subject like open marriage? The episode centers on a female patient who sleeps with men outside of her husband and their mutual trust (or lack thereof). In fact, trust continues to echo throughout the episode as Wilson struggles with Sam, and Taub and his wife, Rachel, continue on their rocky recovery following his infidelity.

Taub, by the way, deserves a firm talking to. But before I unleash my fury over his actions, let's start in on the rest of the episode. Spoilers ahead when you

The episode opens with a woman and her Taylor Kitsch lookalike about to get it on in a hotel room, but right before it ventures into NSFW territory, her husband walks in, and we discover their open marriage secret. I don't know - the open marriage thing is a somewhat interesting spin, but after the show has even had porn star patients, I'm just not as shocked as I'd like to be. Why does the show always try to sexify its storylines?
How weird is it for House to be living in the apartment while Sam and Wilson kiss and flirt?! If they have such an issue with him messing with their relationship, then why don't they just go to Sam's place?
Speaking of House, he once again stirs up trouble for the newly reunited couple. Wilson is quite OCD, so when Sam screws with his sense of organization, he fumes inside. Little does he know, though, that House is adding to the mess to spur a fight for the duo. Which is exactly what happens. I always like a friendly tease between Wilson and House, but I can't decide whether House meant his actions as a dose of tough love - like he says, Wilson needs to learn to speak up to Sam - or if he really only wanted to cause these two to split. What do you think his true intentions were?
Just when we haven't seen Taub's womanizing side in a while, it rears its ugly head yet again. Thirteen gives Taub a hard time for having coffee with a nurse named Maya, suggesting that Maya wants to sleep with him. Now that Taub has the bug in his ear - and spurned by the patient with the open marriage - he implies to his own wife, Rachel, that they try a similar arrangement. She agrees to it to make him happy, but after he sets up a date with Maya, Rachel changes her mind, so he cancels. Am I the only one who thought Rachel was too much of a doormat? I get that she's acting the way she does out of love, but I feel so bad for her.
Wilson and Sam make up, and Sam tells him that they should've had the fight 10 years ago. I was kind of glad to see them reconcile, but after we got a glimpse of their history (Wilson actually calls her a selfish b*tch when they were married), I question if these two really belong together. Do you think Wilson is headed for heartbreak . . . again?
The patient and her husband do OK too, but they're not without their own problems. Turns out, he's been covering up their lack of insurance, because he lost all of their savings, and now, she's ticked at him for hiding the truth - even though he's stood by as she's slept with other guys. But on the bright side, she's going to live!
Nice ending moment: House looks on at Sam and Wilson and puts the milk on the refrigerator door as a last-ditch effort to get his friend back. I actually felt pretty bad for the guy.
Not-so-nice ending moment: Taub bumps into Maya in the parking lot, apologizes for bailing on their date, and kisses her! UGH. Then, she asks if he wants to go somewhere, and he gets in her car. I kept thinking Taub would leave her be, but no. Sorry, but he's not getting my sympathy anymore, "genetic condition" or not. Were you as surprised as I was?

What did you think of the episode? Are you happy for Wilson and Sam? Ticked at Taub? Weigh in below, or head over to the House! group to talk more.

Photo courtesy of Fox

House Rundown, "Knight Fall"

BuzzSugar — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 05:30:00 PDT

Oh, it's on. On this week's House there are a couple battles raging - one is the fictional role-play kind between knights and the other, a real-life war brewing between Wilson's ex-wife turned girlfriend Sam and his better half, House. Yes, Wilson and Sam appear to be hitting it off the second time around, but House is ready to bring the woman down, even if it means walking around naked and hiring a transvestite prostitute.

It's not exactly fair play, but how often does House take the high road? I'll be curious to see how the Sam and House faceoff turns out, but before we do, let's recap some of the big points from this episode when you

First things first, did you think for just a split second that this mutual hatred between Sam and House might be hiding just a tinge of sexual tension? When she walks in on him naked in the kitchen, I thought maybe I was sensing a bit of it. Can you imagine if that happened?! Wilson would be so devastated, but it would make for a great story twist!
The patient plot this week felt kind of ridiculous, if you ask me. A young guy who role-plays as a knight at a medieval reenactment (and takes it a bit too seriously), collapses during the middle of a sword fight, and comes to House for fixing. Everything seems to be wrong - he has spots on his chest, an irregular heart beat, his eyes are completely bloodshot - and it stumps the doctors. They, of course, have to dress up in ye olde period garb to get to the bottom of matters, and in a strange side diversion, Thirteen and Chase find black magic materials at the knight's apartment. Weird thing is, the writers totally drop the witch element later on, and I kept waiting for it to pop back up. Are we just supposed to forget that the guy dabbles in spells and such?
House confides in Cuddy about his concerns with Sam, and she suggests to him to let it be. Then, Wilson approaches Cuddy about Sam to ask for advice, and she tells him that he might as well go for it, because things could be different the second time around, and he'll never know unless he tries. It makes me wonder if she feels the same way about House? Perhaps the writers haven't given up on Huddy after all.
One way that House tries to throw a wrench into Sam and Wilson's relationship is by bringing a transvestite prostitute to dinner with the couple - which backfires when Sam and House's date hit it off. It was pretty hilarious watching House get all disgruntled, and I would've liked to have seen the episode milk the set up more.
To make up for his childish behavior at dinner, House cooks for Sam and Wilson back at the apartment. It seems civil, but when Wilson leaves for the bathroom, House starts his tongue-lashing, telling Sam he's not going to let her hurt Wilson again. Didn't you love seeing House being so concerned and protective?
After some investigative work, House deduces that his knight patient ingested hemlock - and since he was apparently also taking steroids, the mixture of the two worsened his condition. Meh. I wanted to be more interested in this story, but even the love story where the knight is in love with the queen didn't really keep my attention. What did you think?
Speaking of investigative work, House hires Luke to do a little P.I. job on Sam. Luke says he can't find anything on her, other than some confidential therapist notes. The surprise here: after Sam asks House to give her and Wilson a chance, he actually trashes the files before reading them. Think they'll make a reappearance? And does this mean House actually trusts Sam now? Come on, that wouldn't be any fun.

So, do you think Sam's intentions are good? Is she here to stay, or like House tells her, will he stick around longer than she will? (Obviously, I hope it's the latter!) Tell me your thoughts about the episode in the comments or pay a visit to the House! group to talk more.

Photo courtesy of Fox

House Rundown, "Lockdown"

BuzzSugar — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 07:30:00 PDT

Did this week's House feel a little different to you? Hugh Laurie stepped behind the camera to direct, but I also liked some of the unexpected character pairings that the writers gave us.

When a baby goes missing, Princeton-Plainsboro goes on lockdown. That means Wilson and Thirteen are forced together, Foreman and Taub get stuck in the records area, House ends up in a room with a dying patient, and Chase, well, he finds a surprising companion for the next few hours, too. I couldn't have cared less about the storyline, because it's the little things we learn about each of the doctors that make this episode so interesting. Ready to recap? Spoilers ahead when you

Jennifer Morrison is back! At least for this episode. Cameron returns to ask Chase to sign divorce papers, and what follows is a weird roller coaster of emotions, with Cameron sobbing as Chase asks if she ever loved him. She says she's not sure. Yikes. Were you surprised by that response?
The mother with the missing newborn was totally giving me flashbacks to Lost's Claire between her messy hair and screaming for her "baaaby!"
Taub and House end up locked in with the hospital's classified files and swallow several meds to "get inside [House's] head." Then, they spend the next segment stoned and punching each other in the face. Anyone else find this subplot kind of dumb?
As I mentioned, House gets stuck with a dying patient who reveals that he previously sent House a plea to take his case. House is unapologetic at first, but soon the two men connect by speaking frankly about regrets, particularly with women. The patient tells of his daughter (whom he later calls), and House alludes to Lydia, not Cuddy. Surprising, no?
I sort of loved watching Thirteen and Wilson play Truth or Dare. Wilson asks Thirteen about her father, Foreman, and he dares her to show her breasts to Taub. In return, Thirteen asks about his love life, and dares him to steal a dollar (which, of course, makes Wilson's goody-goody nature sweat bullets). It's a silly bit, but amusing, especially when Wilson gets caught.
Foreman tries to swipe his employee file, because he's hiding that he toyed with lab results, and as such, he doesn't believe he belongs at the hospital. Taub's dilemma is the opposite: his record is so spotless, he's ashamed that he hasn't succeeded more. I liked seeing these two come to understand one another, especially when Taub shreds Foreman's papers without him knowing. Think they'll be buds now?
Whoa. Cameron blames the whole mess with Chase not on Dibala, but on herself saying, "I'm unfixable, not you." I did not see that coming. They slowly warm to each other, reminisce on their marriage, dance - and then have goodbye sex. Was it closure for you with their relationship?
A girlfriend for Wilson! His first wife Sam is back in the picture after her recent divorce. Wilson tells Thirteen that he wants to ask Sam out - which he does. I cannot wait to watch Wilson have a lady again and to witness the stress it will cause House.
Thirteen's dad doesn't know about her Huntington's or her bisexuality. You just know the writers will eventually show that conversation which will make for great TV.
The way they solved the baby mystery felt a little too forced. Turns out, one of the staffers put towels into the mother's bathroom and had some seizure so that she mistakenly left the child in a laundry bin. Er, riiight.
Thirteen lives up to her end of the dare and flashes Taub which made me chuckle.

Are you happy to have House back after weeks of repeats? What did you think of this episode? Share your thoughts in the comments, and then head over to the House! group to talk more.

Photo courtesy of Fox

House Rundown, "Black Hole"

BuzzSugar — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 08:30:00 PDT

This week on House, we deal with issues of trust in relationships, along with a head-scratcher of a medical case. My verdict: it makes for one really solid episode.

A high school senior is brought into Princeton-Plainsboro after she stops breathing and regurgitates liquid during a field trip. Not a pretty picture, but then again, neither is her bloody heart surgery (ick). As the docs race the clock to find the source, all scientific means turn up short, and they have to resort to newfangled methods.

On the other end of things, Taub is going through some trouble with the missus after she complains that they don't do enough together. He spends the rest of the episode making it up to her - but by the end we're left wondering if his intentions are pure.

But enough of the chitchat, let's talk questions. Just

In the latest edition of "ways House can annoy Wilson," House suggests that Wilson buy some furniture for their bachelor pad. When Wilson concedes - albeit, by taking the shortcut and renting - House returns all of it. The wise doctor's reasoning: Wilson needs to pick out the pieces himself to figure out who he really is. I thought House was being a little pushy about his "lesson," but how cute is it when Wilson includes an organ for House in his newly decorated room? It's a nice, bromantic moment for the odd couple, but do you think Wilson lets House control him too much? I do.
Anyone else incredibly frustrated by Foreman in this episode? He shoots down every one of House's suggestions with his holier-than-thou attitude. I agree with the rest of the gang - he's a total buzz kill. Where is his brother anyway? At least that storyline let us see more of his human side.
I enjoyed seeing Taub's home life in this episode, even if it doesn't necessarily paint him as a good guy. When his wife complains about not doing things together, he begins texting her from work...as in, sexting. Okay, okay, so it's really House on Taub's phone. That part had me chuckling, but House continues to have his suspicions that Taub may be straying, and like usual, House's gut seems to be right. Even though Taub re-proposes (telling her he wants to be better, aww), the show closes with Taub being friendly with a nurse while House looks on with a critical stare. Do you think Taub is cheating, or is House just reading too much into things this time?
Creepy kid alert! How freaky are the imagined younger versions of this week's patient? Her visions completely remind me of The Ring. Do you enjoy this sort of horror slant, or would you rather the writers stick to basics?
Speaking of the patient, her case seems even more intriguing than typical. I love the cognitive power recognition testing, as we try to solve what's killing her. House figures out - using a mix of intuition and assumption - that the girl's boyfriend's father actually slept with the girl, passing on a parasite through his sperm. It appears to be a giant leap in reasoning, but House is right, of course. Were you surprised? I didn't see it coming at all.

Anything I missed from this week's episode? Did you like the medical case? How about the focus on Taub? Tell me your thoughts in the comments (and please help answer some of my questions!), or head over to the House! group to talk more.

Photo courtesy of Fox

House Rundown, "Private Lives"

BuzzSugar — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 09:35:47 PST

After a month-long hiatus for House (and a Cuddy-centric episode), the Princeton-Plainsboro team returns this week to shed light on another mysterious case. I waited in anticipation to see what they'd cook up after time off, but dare I say, I'm somewhat let down. Not that the night didn't have storyline gems, but the patient plot of an over-sharing blogger (Laura Prepon) feels like the show is trying too hard to tap into the 21st century. See how millennial we are? OK, to cut the writers some slack, I do love the battle between Wilson and House, and there is one particularly interesting reveal. It almost seems like we're getting hints about where the characters are headed in coming episodes. Ready to go over some of the night's important questions? Let's get down to it when you

I'd hate to be the speed dater stuck with House. When he, Wilson, and Chase head to a mixer, House bets Chase that he'll get the most phone numbers due to his pretty face. Chase agrees - optimistic about the women's lack of shallowness - and pretends to be a slovenly video game player who makes fat comments, while sympathetic Wilson gets stuck with sob stories about cats with cancer. As for House . . . well, he's himself. It isn't a vital scene per se, but hey, it entertained me. Who do you think will actually be the first to start dating next - House, Wilson, or Chase?
Speaking of Chase's love life, once again I think I sensed a connection between him and Thirteen, like the writers seemed to allude to several weeks ago. When Chase is disappointed by the outcome of his speed dating trial (several women want his number despite his behavior), he turns to Thirteen to validate that he's more than his looks, and the two doctors seem to bond. Would you like to see Chase and Thirteen get together?
Let the hijinks continue! House discovers that Wilson is in a porn tape and lets everyone in the hospital know - with posters. To Wilson's credit, it's a video he did for his college film student roommate, and he's not actually in the XXX portion. I do love seeing House and Wilson one-up each other and was dying to watch Wilson get him back. What about you - are you getting tired of the House and Wilson prank wars, or do you still love them as much as ever?
Wilson does return the favor: with a book. With Chase's clever deduction (seriously, it seemed too easy for him to realize House's fake book swap), Wilson finds out that House is reading a collection of sermons. Sermons?! Wilson obviously has a good laugh over this one, and after passing around copies to everyone to taunt House, the truth comes out - the book is written by House's biological father. 1) Yes, House's dad is a minister, and 2) Can we please, please see a reunion between father and son?
As for the patient, I enjoyed seeing Laura Prepon make an appearance, but her storyline? Kind of snoozy. First, we think she's been exposed to rat poison, then it's a bad heart valve, then it's lymphoma, then the vaccine is killing her. Sometimes I wish House could just figure things out on the first try. Did you enjoy her case? Her situation does raise questions about technology and social connection, however. I mean, do you think she's right to poll her blog readers on medical questions?

So tell me, are you glad House is back, or were you like me and hoping for a juicier patient case? Do you want to see an episode with House's father as much as I do? Share your thoughts in the comments, or head over to the House! group to talk more.

Photo courtesy of Fox

House Rundown, "Remorse"

BuzzSugar — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 09:33:29 PST

"Remorse" couldn't have been a more appropriate title for this week's House. Just when you think the doc's therapy didn't have any effect on his cold heart, his conscience pops up in the form of a former med school classmate. But while House experiences pangs of guilt, his new patient Valerie can't feel the slightest tinge of, well, anything. Did I mention she's psycho?

The medical case gave the writers a chance to have some fun as Valerie flips in and out of her faux "good girl" routine, but more so, I'm enjoying the shift that we're seeing in House as he learns from his mistakes and tries to make amends (albeit at a snail's pace). A few questions came to mind as I was watching, so I'm curious to hear your take! Let's break 'em all down and dissect some of the episode's highlights when you

Was anyone else expecting a hair-pulling cat fight between Valerie and Thirteen a la Ali Larter and Beyonce in Obsessed? What did you think about the "psycho" storyline?
We saw completely polarized sides of House this week. First, he's unsympathetic by destroying Cuddy's favorite photo, but then he pays the mortgage for a man he tried to hurt years before in med school. Obviously House is just trying to do penance in one scenario to compensate for the guilt he feels with Cuddy (as Wilson suggests). Do you think he'll ever formally apologize to her?
Favorite line of the night, courtesy of Taub: "Oh, sorry, that was our secret," in response to House requesting that anyone who hadn't slept together leave the room. After which, Taub looks at Thirteen. Nice one, Taub.
Speaking of Thirteen, are they really putting her back with Foreman? Ugh. He finally apologizes for firing her, and I swear by the end, she's giving him a longing look. Would you welcome a reunion, or would you rather see them move on?
What I did like about Thirteen in this episode: she solves the patient's case nearly on her own. Personally, I delighted in watching her prove the boys wrong. I know some of you are mixed on her, but did this episode make you warm up to her a bit more?
Did you freak as much as I did when Thirteen breaks Valerie's arm by accident?
I love how this show always raises questions about what (and who) is morally good. Example No. 1: Valerie may be crazy, but her sister divulges how she protected her from their abusive father. Example No. 2: Valerie tries to compare House to her, even though House is supposedly the show's hero.
Great song for the final scene! Fiona Apple's "Why Try to Change Me Now" seemed like a fitting way to tie up the episode.

Please, share your two cents! I'm especially dying to hear what you make of the new focus on Thirteen and Foreman. Sound off in the comments or head over to the House! group to chat more. Photos courtesy of Fox

House Rundown, "The Down Low"

BuzzSugar — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 09:30:28 PST

House is back (thank goodness!) and delivered an episode that was definitely worth the long Winter break. This week sees the beginnings of House and Wilson's domesticity and, yes, addresses their similarities to an old gay couple (to quote House, "We're two tigers away from Vegas" ha!). The whole scenario had me cracking up, but it was the patient that kept me guessing. Best of all: there isn't a single inkling of sexual tension between House and Cuddy for once. I needed a breather from that storyline, didn't you?

I hope that the writers keep up the good work, but for now, let's examine everything that happened (and the questions it raised in my mind) when you

This was yet another week when I thought, how the heck did House figure that out? There are even more twists than usual, between the patient Mickey's diagnosis (from toxins in his fat cells to an autoimmune disease) and Mickey himself (from supposed drug dealer to undercover cop). And when House pinpoints that he had bugged the room, too - how did he know?
Did you recognize Ethan Embry as Mickey? What a change from Can't Hardly Wait!
I loved House's ribbing on Chase's haircut ("Cameron get your hair in the divorce?"), but I sensed a bit of sexual tension between Chase and Thirteen when they're in the car for their "stakeout" - is that just me?
I jumped when I thought they were introducing a love interest for Wilson with new neighbor Nora (is it bad that I recognize her from Dawson's Creek?). Unfortunately, House makes her believe that they're gay to toy with Wilson and get into her pants. The whole mockery was hilarious to watch (an Evita listening party!) but kind of a letdown. Way to ruin it for Wilson, House. Hopefully it isn't the last we've seen of her.
Speaking of their Ambiguously Gay Duo routine, how perfect is Wilson's fake proposal? House deserves a taste of his own medicine sometimes.
What did you think about the back and forth games between Foreman and the team? I really thought they pulled the wool over Foreman's eyes by convincing him that they made more, but the joke is on them. Did you see that twist coming?
The faux Jack Bauer interrogation scene = AMAZING.
The writers really set up a question of morality, so let's get deep for a sec. Who do you think is worse: the drug-dealing associate for living a life of crime or the undercover cop for seeing to his arrest (even after his friend risks his own life to make him healthy)?

I can't wait to hear your thoughts about the episode - it's been way too long! So please, share your comments or head over to the House! group to chat some more. Photos courtesy of Fox