HOUSE MD

[Montresor]

Meh, the show's so damn formulaic, missing an episode hardly seems relevant . . .

"I saw last week's episode. It was great. House, the so-called genius doctor, comes across an interesting case, which he first tries to avoid. He and his team then misdiagnose the patient a few times, inadvertently causing their near death, which finally leads to an epiphany on House's part - you know, the genius doctor who gets it wrong two or three times first - and he correctly diagnoses and cures the patient. It was interspersed with scenes of House acting in cantankerous fashion, before concluding with a scene of him looking melanholic at his piano. Too bad I missed this week's episode. What was that about?"

"Oh! Damn! You should have seen it! In this one, House and his team get this weird case. House first tries to avoid it, though. Anyway, House is a real genius, you see - but they get the diagnosis of the ailment wrong a few times. Then, when they almost kill the patient by mistake, House works out what the real problem is. House wandered about the episode in his same old cantankerous fashion, before - I think - the show ended with him sitting at his desk looking kind of melancholic. Great, refreshingly new TV."

If it wasn't for Hugh Laurie, and Dr Cutty wandering around looking eminently f__kable, this show would be barely worth watching.

[wayfriend]

I'd hate to read your opinion of an NFL football game. "First they try to run the ball a few times. Then they pass a few times. The the other team gets the ball ..." And yet, somehow, there's more to it.

[Menolly]

*snort*

I've never seen a single episode of this show.
...nor of BSG, nor Lost...

I really do watch very little television. The Watch is much more entertaining to me.

But...I enjoy reading y'all's interaction about them.

I was praising iQ's post, not the show, silly.

[kevinswatch]

Bah.

Shows what you know, iQ. I'm going to use my highly advanced Video Cassette Recording (also known as a VCR) to tape the last episode, and then watch BOTH on Tuesday. Ah ha!

-jay

[Montresor]

I'd hate to read your opinion of an NFL football game. "First they try to run the ball a few times. Then they pass a few times. The the other team gets the ball ..." And yet, somehow, there's more to it.

Haha! True . . . lucky for me, I don't watch NFL.

Surely, though, you can't deny that House really wins the prize for plots by formula.

[wayfriend]

Surely, though, you can't deny that House really wins the prize for plots by formula.

No denial here.

But I think if you watch the show for the suspense of not knowing if House can figure out the disease in time, you may be unaware of it's other entertaining aspects.

I was a big fan of Home Improvement. Did I know that Tim Taylor would "fix" something, Al would make a lame joke, and that Wilson would dispense some worldly wisdom? Yep. Still liked it anyway.

The formula is like the melody around which the guitar solo is built - coming back, striking off, contrasting, returning with new resonance.

TONITE!!!!

[dANdeLION]

Wow, what a season ender. Guess I can't talk about it for another day, or 8 days, depending on Jay's VCR recording skills, which are certainly in doubt now that we know he has problems turning on his television......


And Montressor, go back the the first few pages on this thread, and you'll see I was once a House scoffer, too. no more, says I. But, even when I mocked House, I never stooped to calling him formulaic. I mean, who are we to judge? After all, anybody who has a steady job, stable home life, etc. could be accused of living a formulaic life.

[Montresor]

But, even when I mocked House, I never stooped to calling him formulaic. I mean, who are we to judge? After all, anybody who has a steady job, stable home life, etc. could be accused of living a formulaic life.

Yeah, but they aren't putting their lives up as a TV show. House is quite good, but it's stymied by the fact that it's just about the most ridiculously formulaic drama on TV. A real shame. I know people who stopped watching because they got sick of seeing what is basically the same episode played again, with different character/disease names.

Personally, I also find it a little amusing that a so-called genius doctor ends up getting it wrong and making near catastrophic mistakes on a near episode-to-episode basis.

[Loredoctor]

I'd hate to read your opinion of an NFL football game. "First they try to run the ball a few times. Then they pass a few times. The the other team gets the ball ..." And yet, somehow, there's more to it.

I must say that you win points for the effort of making an analogy, but lose some because it fails in one important respect . House is fiction, so we should be expected to be surprised, not follow the same damn path every time. That in itself detracts from the drama and suspense, because we all know how it pans out. You go to a football game to see the rules in action; we should watch good drama to see the formula broken.

[wayfriend]

Great finale! I was very surprised! And I very much enjoyed how things unfolded. I almost groaned when I thought I saw what the cliff hanger ending would be, and then to my surprise it was something completely different - I'll say no more.

LM: again, I can only say, if you think House is only about solving medical mysteries, then all you'll see is formula. If you see the other things that it is about (the nature of genious, medical science vs bedside manner, an interestingly conflicted personalities, dynamic relationships crossing work/relationship boundaries, etc.) then the formulaic parts become the background, the stage, around which the rest is built. It is, first and foremost, a show about characters!

[kevinswatch]

Yay! Success! My plot worked perfectly! Thank Alynna that I still have the VCR that I stole from her! Hehe.

Anyway, both episodes were great, both in their own ways. Probably my two favorite episodes of the season. Can't wait for next season.

I almost groaned when I thought I saw what the cliff hanger ending would be, and then to my surprise it was something completely different - I'll say no more.

Haha, way, I think I know what you're talking about, since I thought the same thing. But no cliffhanger for House this season.

If you see the other things that it is about (the nature of genious, medical science vs bedside manner, an interestingly conflicted personalities, dynamic relationships crossing work/relationship boundaries, etc.) then the formulaic parts become the background, the stage, around which the rest is built.

And most importantly, it's a show about a sarcastic ass. Which is my favorite part. Hehe.-jay

[Loredoctor]

LM: again, I can only say, if you think House is only about solving medical mysteries, then all you'll see is formula. If you see the other things that it is about (the nature of genious, medical science vs bedside manner, an interestingly conflicted personalities, dynamic relationships crossing work/relationship boundaries, etc.) then the formulaic parts become the background, the stage, around which the rest is built. It is, first and foremost, a show about characters!

From that perspective, I can see your point.

[Montresor]

If the formula of the show was simply: Strange case arrives in hospital, House & team cure case, that would be fine. The problem is, it's far more formulaic than that, to the point where, as the episode progresses, you think 'oh, this is the bit where they almost kill the patient, but then find the cure' etc etc.

It reminds me of the old Perry Mason show (black and white era), where every episode, without fail, a member of the court's audience stepped up and declared they couldn't take it anymore, the man on trial wasn't guilty, and it was time to turn themselves in.

But, if you like House, fair enough. I just think it's a shame it's not as fresh as the hype claims it to be.

[wayfriend]

But no cliffhanger for House this season.

Oh, I thought so. Did you see that look Wilson leveled at House at the end? I see a storm approaching.

[kevinswatch]

Ok, ok, I was going to say that. I guess you could think of that as a cliffhanger. But when I said that, I was thinking of the more traditional, huge, sudden event that they leave hanging until next season.

Spoiler

Like House in a coma. Which they decided not to do.

-jay

[wayfriend]

House. Premiere. Tonight.

I am a bit excited. I hope the House/Wilson thing has some meat, and doesn't die as quickly in the new season as House's big trial did.

[dANdeLION]

I think you got your wish. Now I'm faced with a choice; do I talk about details of the episode before or after jay posts his self-disgust over missing the season opener?

[kevinswatch]

Actually, I did catch the first two episodes so far. So nyeh!

So far though, I don't know how I feel about the new season. I haven't been overly impressed yet.

And one thing that really bothers me... Why are the 3 new characters not in the opening credits???

-jay

[dANdeLION]

That's a good question; I was wondering about it myself. I think last season's gonna be hard to beat.

[aTOMiC]

I have enjoyed the first couple of episodes thus far. Was it my imagination or was Hugh Laurie listed as executive producer now?

"That's some bad hat, Harry."