Showing posts with label House MD. Show all posts
Showing posts with label House MD. Show all posts

Dec 19, 2007

[TV] House, M.D. - Season 2 (2005)

House, M.D. - Season TwoHouse, M.D. - Season 2 (2005)After the success of their debut, Fox was more than willing to bring House back for a second season that continued to play to the strengths of the first season while exploring new areas of opportunity in terms of the characters and the medical cases.

The entire ensemble returned for this season with the addition of Stacy Warner (Sela Ward), House's ex-girlfriend and new legal counsel for Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital.

Given all the progress made in the first season, this return to the series certainly provided new opportunities for the show to explore the character interactions further while pushing the limits for them as individuals as well. This season also sought to further explore into House's more humane side with the addition of Stacy to the character pool as House explores the possibility of reuniting with his ex-girlfriend despite her new husband in a way that only House would have the audacity to pull off.

This season earned Hugh Laurie a Golden Globe for his efforts and he definitely deserved it given all the twists ands turns they subjected him to.

It's hard to pick out a favorite episode, but definite kudos have to go out to the two-part story Euphoria (Episodes 20-21), which has Dr. Eric Foreman (Omar Epps) becoming a patient as well and bringing into question House's methods now that he's on the receiving end of his unique bedside manner. Apart from that, the season ender, No Reason (Episode 24), which has House trying to think his way out of a hallucinatory reality.

The series continues to push the limits of both decency within the medical profession and of course that of the imagination in this second season. It's still a very strong show and it continues to gain momentum and I doubt I'll stop watching this series anytime soon.

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

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.