'House': Ice packs, brain zapping and an overdose of drama

    For the second half of their season finale, the writers of "House" pulled out all the stops, and at a certain point I found myself, if not yelling, then thinking very hard, "Put some back, put some back." 

    While Amber (Anne Dudek) lay frozen in induced hypothermia, which Drs. House (Hugh Laurie) and Wilson (Robert Sean Leonard) managed to perform in an ambulance using some cold saline and what looked like a couple of reusable ice packs from the driver's lunch box, House desperately tried to remember what had happened on the fateful night leading up to the bus crash that cracked his skull and left Amber such an inexplicable mess. Wilson struggled to accept that his girlfriend might die, Thirteen (Olivia Wilde) took this opportunity to explore the possibility that she carries Hodgkin's disease and everyone else stood around doing what they increasingly do on "House," which is not much.

    OK, that's not technically true. We did learn that Dr. Kutner (Kal Penn) lost his parents in a holdup when he was 6 and that Dr. Chase (Jesse Spencer) is a man of many talents -- in this finale he has performed everything from hypnotism to electroshock. Who knew?

    So Amber died of complications I don't think the writers quite understood. I know I didn't. Something to do with her flu meds and binary proteins. All of which Wilson explained to her, in what has to have been the most technical bit of deathbed exposition ever seen on television, after he roused her from her hypothermia so he could say goodbye. The actual goodbye was fairly touching, proving once again that Leonard is one of the best actors around because anyone else would have simply collapsed under the weight of medical jargon and finale schlock. House missed it all because he was busy lying in a coma -- I don't like to be picky, but isn' t this like his third coma? -- after having electrified his already damaged brain and Risked His Life so he could dislodge the memory of the evening in the hope of saving Amber. Oh, and Thirteen found out she is positive for Hodgkin's.

    If this sounds like a soap opera, if all that is missing is Diedre Hall possessed by Satan, then I fear that is a danger "House" faces. Or maybe it's just that this strange cobbled-together season has made everything seem somehow off -- after two or three post-strike episodes were finally starting to get in the groove and, bam, here's the season finale with all near-death experiences, tragic acts of God and predictable cliffhanging sturm und drang. Without the natural progession of a full season, you can really see those hands nakedly clutching for your heartstrings.
    I don't mind that the medical stuff is so crazy (though the brain electrifying scene really did cry out for Gene Wilder, or maybe Tim Curry) because the medicine on "House" is always crazy. As one doctor I know says: "There are good medical shows and then there's 'House.'"

    "House" is a detective procedural with Laurie playing Sherlock Holmes made flesh -- a tantalizingly troubled genius whose misanthropic nature provides a natural tension with his overwhelming desire to save lives. He is surrounded by underlings who admire and loathe him and who, in a seemingly vain effort to quell his contrarian nature, illuminate various facets of human nature.
    Or at least that's what the show used to be about. And maybe it still is, or will be again, once the creators take the summer to figure out what they're going to do with all these underemployed characters. The theme of the season finale -- that life can change randomly and irrevocably in a single moment -- is an evergreen, and there were moments when it played well. "I shouldn't have gotten on the bus," Amber says, realizing she is doomed, and even the hard-hearted certainly smothered a sob. House, for his part, seems to have finally come up against a consequence for which he cannot justify his actions; Amber would not have been on the bus if she had not come to drive him home, drunk, from a bar. Though Amber's death certainly supports his bleak world view, he has finally truly hurt someone he loves. "Wilson will hate me," he says in a wierd between-worlds moments with the dead Amber. "Don't you deserve it?" she says with a smile.
    Actually not, or at least not for this. Even House can't control a bus accident, and he did electrify his brain to save the woman. So while we are left with the prospect of Wilson finally breaking with House, and perhaps even House attempting to make amends, it already feels a bit manipulative. But one can only hope Wilson is allowed his spine back, and anything that allows Leonard to strut his stuff is all right by me. After that deathbed scene, he deserves his shot at the Emmy for sure.

-- Mary McNamara

Comments

[A. Green]

Huntington's Disease (incurable, degenerative genetic disease), not Hodgkin's (treatable cancer that has good treatment success rate). Very different diseases.

[Cathy]

I believe it was Huntington's disease, not Hodgkins.

[Anon]

'13' has Huntingtons Disease, not Hodgkins.

[Dr. Squid]

Huntington's, not Hodgkin's. Hodgkin's is not hereditary.

[djfom]

It was Huntington's you unobservant person. And Huntington's is an awful way to go. I thought the finale was just fine, I mean, as soon as they "induced hypothermia" in a the back of an ambulance, well, I knew to suspend all rational thought and just go along for the ride. As such, I found the good bye really sad and disturbing, and I am interested enough to return next year to see if House and his old buddy can keep it together.

I have to admit to some exasperation that on House, people are typically orphans raised in the wild with noone to call to their deathbeds beyond one parent (Foreman's near demise) or their colleagues at work (Amber, House). I may hate Grey's Anatomy, but at least those people appear to been birthed and reared in intact families which whom they speak with on occasion.

Also, as a long time watcher for fun, and not for profit, i enjoyed the touchstones that I suppose you didn't have room to mention- I enjoyed seeing Foreman get together with Chase and what's her name, bec they are the only people who'd be able to understand the ridiculous sequence of events he'd been party too. And Cuddy sleeping with her hand on House, rather like an anchor now that his other anchor is gone. This episode touched me where no other episode this entire season has. So, that's good.

[echo]

um, 13 tested positive for Huntington's disease, not Hodgkin's. if you are going to be a snarky critic, at least get the details correct, otherwise you lose your credibility and your criticisms carry less impact. and as a matter of fact, the complications that killed Amber,in the end, were actually incredibly easy to follow and understand. she was taking medicine. she was in a bus crash that ruined her kidneys. her ruined kidneys couldn't properly filter the medicine through her blood. the medicine became globally toxic. and she died from it. what's hard to follow about that?
and wierd is actually spelled weird. now, how about you watch the 2 part season finale again and then offer up a much more informed, thoughtful, criticism. it's the very least a show of this caliber deserves.

[CC]

The disease Thirteen has is not Hodgkin's but Huntington's. Still lethal either way yet I do believe that you are correct with Robert Sean Leonard. Definitely an underrated actor who deserves more recognition than he gets.

[Ellen]

The medical explanation made perfect sense. Amantadine, the anti-viral drug Amber took to reduce, shorten and/or prevent the flu symptoms she was beginning to feel, had no way out of her body after the crash, because of the kidney damage. As explained while house was having his brain zapped, dialysis wouldn't have worked, because the drug binds to proteins and cannot be removed from the bloodstream. Therefore, she was in a state of irreversible overdose. It caused the heart problems and the kidney failure. The crash didn't kill her, the drugs did, though, of course, the drugs wouldn't have done such fatal damage without the crash. In short, very extremely bad timing.

I, for one, would think twice about taking certain meds for something you can survive by eating chicken soup in bed for a couple of days.

And I'd agree that House fans love the mystery, the wit and the humor. We did not sign up to have our hearts ripped to shreds. But judging by the number of people all over the Internet who've admitted to uncontrollable sobbing - even from those who swear they never cry over movies or TV shows - the House crew did a stellar job. They pulled off emo drama. And they set the stage for some very complicated relationship issues in Season 5.

Any objective person would realize that House isn't directly responsible for her death and, in fact, risked his life at least twice to save her. But he's going to be feeling the guilt, just the same, and Wilson is going to feel the anger. It may take quite a few episodes to work this one out.

[LA Woman]

It was Huntington's disease, not Hodgkin's, fyi

[HouseFan]

Not Hodgkins, you moron: Huntington's. Hodgkins is cancer of the lymph system, curable if caught early and aggressively treated. No drama. (I know, my Mom had it and beat it.) Huntington's, on the other hand, is an inherited, incurable, progressively more debilitating neurological disease. A soap writer's dream.

[heather]

you mean huntington's

[Mary]

It was Huntington's, not Hodgkin's disease. Not that I think the show is perfect, but your criticisms are undermined by the fact that you clearly weren't paying attention.

[Egads]

Sigh. Not, repeat NOT, Hodgkin's lymphoma -- 13 has Huntington's chorea, which has no cure and no proven method for slowing its progress. The most intelligent person I ever met had Huntington's, and knew he he had Huntington's, and died of it before he was 45. He earned multiple Ph. D.s - biology, physics, math, chemistry and more; spoke English, Russian, German and several other languages fluently and was the best teacher I ever had.

[Kate]

Mary:
You may have been off about the deadly disease, but you were right on target about the finale and the rest of Season 5. It was DOA, due mostly to the addition of the new ducklings (read: too forced, awful acting), and TPTB's insistence in shoving them down our throats, along with ridiculous storylines and dialogue. "I have a position open on my pen**?" Or whatever that line was, but oh, puh-leaze! Somebody grab some shock paddles and resuscitate this show to which I was once happily addicted. Grade for S5: C+ at best, except for the acting of HL, RSL, and LE: A-

[Crumpet]

Aside from the Huntington's/Hodgkins error, you're spot on, although I must have been one of the only people in the country not blubbering by the end of the episode. This for a number of reasons. For one, the bus thing was an artificial device. I mean, they're DOCTORS !! What's a doctor doing on a city bus? A real doctor would have taken a taxi. But then, of course, you wouldn't have the ensuing chaos after the crash. Secondly, I never liked Amber and I thought Wilson could do better; and last but not least, I don't think the writers spent enough time developing the relationship for me to actually care. Wilson has been married and divorced three times, he sleeps with his own patients, he goes through wives and lovers with ease, but a handful of episodes is supposed to convince us that that Amber is somehow different? Hmmm, no. Buying a bed together does not equal commitment or even love, and there wasn't enough character development for us to believe that Amber was anything more than Wilson's latest fancy. I'd have found the story more devastating had it been Chase and Cameron, or House and Cuddy, or even House and Stacy, simply because I'm more invested in the characters. But of course, none of that would have set up the conflict between House and Wilson for next season.

[Marc]

The acting during Amber's death scene was excellent - from both actors. When Amber's character realized she was dying, the way in which her face slowly displayed that realization was fantastic.

Oh, and I have to ask, what's with "Diedre" and "wierd"? Are the editors asleep?

[Jackie]

I gathered from the already commented upon mistakes that you don't pay a lot of attention to episodes you review, which is a shame. Perhaps you should pick another show for your attentions? This two part finale was absolutely breathtaking, and built on the themes threaded through the episodes all season. This season was beautifully written. The biggest problem it had was the interruption and truncation due to the strike. The strike meant emotional beats were not hit where they were planned--these two eps should have been in early Feb--storylines were truncated and the writers had 8 less episodes to develop the relationships. Obviously not ideal. But the writers pulled it off nonetheless and these finales were the best eps on TV. Absolutely cannot wait until next season.

[housefan]

Thank you so much for expressing what so many of the less vocal hard core House fans feel but have difficulty to epress among the crowds sobbing viewers.
It is soap all the way and what a shame House has turn into one.

[h]

The 'House' I love showed up right at the end--the tears and over-the-top drama followed by Kutner chowing down something out of a big bowl in front of the TV.

[NLP]

I'm kind of with you I guess. Along with that thought, I want to see them get back to the core characters of (the very successful) Seasons 1 & 2. I'd like to see the sexual tension with Cameron return. Who the heck builds up a back story for 2 whole seasons then just drops it cold? (And I thought that pole dance Cuddy did was just plain creepy!) But what made all the watching Worthwhile was that scene with House & Amber on the bus. House explaining why he didn't want to get off the bus just totally encapsulated House the character (&, of course, Hugh Laurie was incredible, amazing, blah, blah, blah, the man is just wicked awesome!) If I were House, I would have had to be dragged off the bus, kicking & screaming all the way.