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Monday, January 25, 2010

House 6.11: Making Amends, Mending Fences, and a Psychopath

House 6.11 was split about 50/50 with a good story for the major characters, and a good story for the patient.

I'm always a sucker for a good story about House, and tonight's was quiet, off-beat, and very compelling.  Back in medical school, House thought his lower-than-expected grades in a course were due to the professor not liking him (astute!), so House switched his paper with another student's.  That paper received an A, which disproved House's hypothesis.   Now House learns that the other student (Wibberly, played by Ray Abruzzo from The Sopranos) got an F on his paper - written by House - which caused him to flunk out of med school.   Wibberly's life was ruined.  He's on the verge of losing his house.   House wants to make at least a little of this up to him by paying a few month's rent.

Thus we get another glimpse of the human being lurking not too deep in House.    He also cuts up a cherished photo of Cuddy's - and when she tells him, we see that he feels bad about that, too.  On his way to being at least a little of a mensch.

But House learns that making amends is never easy.   Wibberly doesn't want House's money - and tells House that, actually, he didn't flunk out of medical school at all.  He was drummed out of practicing medicine, years later, for another reason.   And when House goes to apologize to Cuddy, he sees her with her boyfriend Lucas, and House can't bring himself to interrupt them.

In the end, House slides his check through Wibberly's door.  It's a small, sad, brave, and important gesture.

Meanwhile, the patient whom House and team are treating is a psychopathic beauty - not a killer, but just devoid of feelings.   She's married to a rich, unattractive nebbish, for whom she has no feelings.   Thirteen helps solve the case, and in the process begins to mend fences with Foreman, at least insofar as their working together.

One pyschopath cured, one amend made by House - more or less - and at a professional relationship starting to mend.   Not a bad haul at all in another fine episode of House.


5-min podcast review of House

See also House Reborn in Season Six? ... 6.2: The Gang is Back and Fractured ... 6.3: The Saving Hitler Quandary ... 6.4: Diagnosis vs. Karma ... 6.5 Getting Better ... 6.6 House Around the Bases ... Four's a Crowd on House 6.7 ... House 6.8 and the Reverse of Flowers for Algernon ... House 6.9: Wilson ... House 6.10: Back in Business









The Plot to Save Socrates


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"a Da Vinci-esque thriller" - New York Daily News

"Sierra Waters is sexy as hell" - curled up with a good book

1 comment:

Unknown said...

How good was that actress at playing a psychopath! She gave me chills with just one look. I thought her turnaround at the end was a little too quick and implausible, but then again, most episodes of House are like that.

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