After six seasons, HOUSE is essentially what it’s always been, and yet so much more. Episode to episode the format is the same. Patient has some bizarre symptoms, House and his team guess and treat, guess and treat, and as the patient speeds toward death, House berates his team for being morons (at least compared to him), until he finally has an a-ha moment in the nick of time, and saves the day.
And yet the most compelling reason to watch is the characters themselves, House in particular.
The self destructive House has legitimately tried to change his curmudgeonly ways. He doesn’t always do so well, but at least, in his own half-assed attempts, he’s making the effort.
House loves Cuddy, but won’t come out and say so. Cuddy loves House, but won’t come out and say so. House cherishes Wilson’s friendship, but won’t come out and say so. Wilson actually says so, but gets rebuffed by House regularly for doing so. And for reasons that are always entirely clear, they all try to help House be well, less House-like.
As for his team of docs, well … they’re kind of interesting, I suppose. Chase is a little too mopey, even with his doc wife, Cameron, divorcing him. Foreman is just an outright bummer, Taub, for his part, has at least tried to battle his infidelity demons, to varying degrees of success, and, of course, Thirteen is certainly easy on the eyes and for me, at least, the most compelling doc on House’s team. But in the end, you watch House for House himself.
In what was essentially a two-part season finale, House gets the ultimate House confrontation — House on House. I won’t give away any spoilers, but after trying to save a young woman’s life as she’s trapped in a collapsed parking garage, we finally see House move toward something–or someone–he’s wanted all along. But given House’s past, given his drug addiction and hallucinations … is it, as he asks, even real?
All in all House is House is House. I’d still like to see the show evolve more than it has, perhaps having cases stretch across multiple episodes, rather than the “case of the week” format, but if you’re looking for medical mysteries, black humor and the peeling away of personalities, House still delivers.
House Season 6 Finale
Grade: A-
House Season 6
Grade: B
