[TV] House, M.D. - Season 1 (2004)

The first season of House, M.D. helped redefine the medical drama genre. Medically-themed shows have usually involved large ensemble casts with quirky personalities but overall you could rely on the doctors to be generally nice. House, both as a show and as a character, took a different path and stripped away all the bedside manner to leave you with a coldly logical yet brilliant diagnostician.

It quickly became one of my favorite shows and it's certainly something for those looking for a smarter medical show to get into.

At the core of the series is its title character, Dr. Gregory House as played by Hugh Laurie of Stuart Little fame. Don't make the mistake of comparing his previous characters, mostly a rich mix of comedic roles, since House is a lot gruffer and rough around the edges. His only redeeming quality is his amazing brilliance when it comes to figuring out cases no one else can solve and his willingness to cross any boundary in order to cure his patients.

Supporting him are a trio of very talented doctors in their own right - Dr. Eric Foreman (Omar Epps) for neurology, Dr. Allison Cameron (Jennifer Morrison) for immunology and Dr. Robert Chase (Jesse Spencer) for intensive care medicine. Beyond his team, he regularly consults with his good friend Dr. James Wilson (Robert Sean Leonard), an oncologist and has his own mix of run-ins with the Chief Administrator of the Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital, Dr. Lisa Cuddy (Lisa Edelstein).

For the most part, once can't help but compare House's nature to that of fictional master sleuth Sherlock Holmes given his dedication to cold logic with little regard for human relationships from a first-hand perspective. He understands how people works but chooses to remain separate from the greater majority of the world in a sort of intellectual ivory tower. He has the same dazzling brilliance that most others can hardly keep up with and yet at the end of the day remains separate from the rest as a matter of choice.

My favorite episode of the series definitely has to be Three Stories (Episode 21) which is amazing for both the demonstration of House's diagnostic and analytical abilities on several different levels but is also a masterpiece of storytelling. You'll just have to see it to fully appreciate it.

If you think you're up to the intellectual challenge, then pick up a copy of this season to start you off on a brilliant intellectual journey.