Surfing Drama: House – “After Hours”
We’re coming up on some pretty gruesome spoilers for this week’s episode of House right after the cut…
This week’s episode of House kicked the melodrama up to Eleven and reminded me why I used to enjoy this show so much. There’s a lot of stuff going on in this week’s episode, so let’s jump right into it.
First is the patient of the week, which is a little bit different than what we normally get. A friend of Thirteen’s from prison comes pounding on her door, bleeding to death from a stab wound. When things get weird, Thirteen enlists Chase’s help. They wind up getting into an argument because Chase wants to take Thirteen’s friend to the hospital. They actually get into a physical altercation before Chase manages to get the friend into his car and start on the way to the hospital. Thirteen and Chase wound up bonding, finding kindred spirits in one another. You know, after everything that happened with Chase and his divorce, it was nice to see him doing something besides playing Hottie McHotterson and sleeping around with women.
The c-plot of this episode involves Taub having an existential crisis after founding out he got the nurse he’s been seeing pregnant. This part was not as exciting as the rest, but it was interesting to see Taub trying to deal with it. It is slightly ironic that one of the things that helped drive Taub and his wife apart (other than the obvious part of him cheating) is that they had collectively decided not to have children, and Taub had second-thoughts last season. It was really cliche that Taub had to have a near-death experience to decide that he wants to have the baby with Ruby, but it will make for some interesting character development next season, I’m sure.
The biggest part of this episode, however, is (of course) House. After finding out that the rats in the medical study died from massive tumors, House winds up doing a little self-diagnosing. He has three small tumors in his leg, which he has the brilliant idea of cutting out himself. After he nearly kills himself, he winds up having an awkward reunion with Cuddy, who is the only one to answer her phone when he calls for help. Before he goes into surgery, he worries about losing his leg.
When House wakes up from surgery, Wilson is waiting for him. Their friendship is definitely one of the things that has always defined this show. There is a very touching scene between them at the end where House gets up to use the bathroom and lets Wilson lend him a shoulder to lean on so he can walk.
“You can’t keep doing this. Something has to change,” Wilson tells his friend.
“Can I pee first?” House asks. A resigned pause. “I know.”
I love Wilson, I really do. The dynamic between House and Wilson is certainly one of the things that has kept me coming back to this show when I otherwise would have left a long time ago.
The medical mysteries lost their novelty a few seasons back, even though that’s why I originally started watching this show. The character development, however, has been very underwhelming. This episode was a pleasant breath of fresh air, something a little outside the box for the writers of House. There was a lot going on in this episode, and while some of the stuff (like House performing surgery on himself) was over the top, the emotion was believable. There was a depth that we haven’t seen in a long time — and, damn, Hugh Laurie, I forgot you can act. I apologize for not remembering that until now.
We have one episode left this season, and next season has been confirmed as the show’s last. Let’s see if they can make it count the way this episode did.
Other Bits:
Just one other thing I wanted to talk about. Cuddy’s daughter Rachel is adorable. I love that she writes House a letter telling him that she hopes his leg feels better soon. “I hope we can be friends, you bloody scallywag.”
Wilson: “You’re an ass.”
House: “What, for trying to walk on a freshly mangled leg? Performing surgery on myself? For thinking I could solve my emotional problems with rat medicine? If you’re gonna nag, at least have the decency to be specific.”
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http://preacherofthenight.blogspot.com Chris
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