There have been times over the first six seasons of House that the show has changed direction. In an effort to stay fresh--for and the creative team who write and perform it--David Shore and company have never shied away from taking a risk, whether that means jettisoning House's entire team of fellows, sending him for therapy to kick his Vicodin habit, or, as they have for season seven allowing the chronically miserable House to be happy, hopeful--and in love. Cast members have come, gone, come back again, only to go once more, this time for good.
The fandom—that group of mostly Internet-based hard-core fans (and yes, I include myself) —is, I suppose “the base,” in 2010 political terms. But even the fandom is not a unified voice. Some love the coupling of House and Cuddy (even thinking that it’s way overdue); some hate the very idea and believe with all sincerity that if only Cameron, older and wiser, came back into the picture, House would find again his one true love. Still other believe that until House acknowledges seriously what he has joked about so many times—his passion for Wilson, he will be unfulfilled, denying the real love of his life. Some would prefer House to remain without any romantic entanglements at all (save a hooker or two on the side).
Me, I go with the flow. As long as the writing is good, the characterizations are consistent with what we know about them and the acting is honest, earnest and in the moment, I’m right there. Take me along for the ride, wherever—and with whomever—House sojourns.
The fact is, among the millions (and millions) of people who watch House, whether on Fox, or in syndication on Bravo or USA Network, the fandom people (myself included) are a fairly small part of the whole. Most people watch House with varying degrees of enthusiasm, but even when people do get really hooked, they forget to tune in (cursing themselves afterwards if they’ve forgotten to set the DVR), miss an episode here and there and seldom watch an episode more than once (okay, or twice).
They watch mega-marathons on USA Network or Bravo, both owned by House’s producing corporation NBC/Universal. Most of them are not going to stop watching because House is together with Cuddy (or anyone else), that is, unless it’s done poorly or made boring. That’s what causes viewer drift—when they simply stop caring. (That happened to me with The X-Files mid season seven, when egos on both sides of the camera made for very bad television too often, but I digress.)
Article comments
— go to most recent comments1 - Kelsey
To be honest, I think the plunge in the ratings has nothing to do with season 7, but more with a combination of "dancing with the stars" and season 6. I personally feel like season 7 is being made with the idea that a romantic relationship will bring viewers back who were put off last season.
The greatest plunge in ratings in the history of the show was "The Choice" last year, only drawing in about 9 million viewers. The numbers of the other episodes surrounding that episode are around 10-11 millions (which still isn't too shaby) but I feel that people sort of tuned out last season towards the end because the middle of the season had been such a let down (my humble opinion). I feel as though the episodes were kind of chaotic, lacked substantial plot and felt kind of boring which I think I can assume was a thought shared by the general public.
The general public, not the hardcore fans, aren't always interested in the delicate details and symbols/metaphors the show uses. They're looking for dramatic medicine, some wise-ass remarks from House, maybe some funny moments with Wilson and then a romantic scene or two thrown in there with one of the many couples. When that sort of stuff comes to a stand-still and the medical storyline isn't dramatic enough to hold up an episode on it's own, people become bored (blaming it on the forumla aspect of the show) and switch the channel. Not only that, but if those episodes continue for multiple episodes in a row, people won't bother to tune in anymore because they figure they will become bored.
So in my opinion, the people that are blaming 'huddy' for this decrease in ratings can't validate their arguments until later into the season because at the moment they have nothing to base that logic off of. Let's look at some numbers:
According to Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_House_episodes). Yes I do realize, awesome source........but anyways
Remorse (6x12) had 14.2 million viewers, in the span of 8 episodes, which aside from the wonderful "5 to 9" had very minimal House and Cuddy interactions, the numbers dropped to 9.9 million viewers by "The Choice". If anything, according to the numbers, it seems as though a lack of House and Cuddy is what is decreasing the ratings. All I'm trying to say here is that people want to blame a popular couple for the death of their show which in reality I think is Shore and Jacobs trying to save it.
2 - Sam
Um, no offense to you, but everyone out there knows that you are one of the #1 hardcore Huddy shippers, don't you think you're lying to yourself with that statement of going with the flow? And of course, YOU and your fellow Huddies would never blame Huddy for the decrease of the ratings. Sorry, but please, don't try to sound unbiased when you clearly are. I've talked to and written with a lot of fans in the fandom throughout the years and most of the people I talked to liked the subtle hints throughout the first seasons but none wants to see a full-blown ship on the show (least of all with Cuddy). So, sorry but YES I blame Huddy for the mess. And if Huddy fans are to stubborn to see that, I'll ask - what if it wasn't Cuddy? You wouldn't be so enthusiastic either. Don't lie to yourself, it's ridiculous. Problem is that you Huddy fans don't want to see what's wrong with the show, and you claim everyone with justified criticism is just a silly teenager. You don't even listen to their objectives. The behaviour of Huddy fans makes me acutally feel ashamed that I have ever counted myself as part of the fandom. Congrats, if you guys wanted to achieve a fandom with Huddy fans only you're on a good way. We'll see if the show can survive that. I doubt it.
3 - sylvia
Having watched from the very first episode of the very first season (like all others in the 'fandom base') I can say with certainty, two episodes into S7, that the production values are sloppy, the scenes feel barely rehearsed or blocked and the writing is lackluster.
None of which is caused by the Huddy coupling.
Yes, I am laying the blame at the threshold of the directors office and various 'schmucks with laptops' as Hugh so cheekily calls them. I want them to be better, to pay more attention, to not be satisfied with the first draft, or the first run-through. I know they can do it, as they have before, and it will impact the ratings!
When Lisa says 'It's called...' in Now What, it is a cringe worthy moment of acting that a director should have caught and done over. Lisa deserves the opportunity to try again in that scene.
When Hugh is in the kitchen, in that unfortunate choice of a pin-striped, ill-fitting bathrobe, how is it that no one on the production crew noticed the large black blob of, well, something, on his a** throughout the entire scene. It drove me to distraction. Such an obvious and easy thing to fix before calling the scene a wrap. Sloppy.
S6 and S7 suffer from not being 'tight', particularly when compared to prior seasons. (With the exception of the mighty Broken which is as good as it gets for broadcast television).
And of course, Fox's backward logic of putting their cornerstone drama up against DWTS defies explanation. (As does the popularity of DWTS but that is a discussion for another day)
I will enjoy this show thoroughly, and remain devoted through all seasons to come, but I will also watch with a critical eye and will celebrate loudly when they hit the mark with true perfection.
4 - Sasha
Seirously, I think DWTS would have been a 900 lb gorilla any season, but this year it has such wealth of potential train wrecks (Bristol, Hoff, etc) and a darling golden child (Jennifer Grey) that I think House is going to just have to suck it up this season.
Which is a pity because (granted only two shows in) I'm loving it. We are seeing sides of House and the supporting characters we haven't seen before and I, for one, am loving it.
5 - BeeJ
Enjoyed the article...nice job!
I just wanted to say I'm one of those middle of the road viewers. Sometimes I watch House live and other times I DVR it and watch it by the end of that night, when kids are done with baths and in bed...and I can enjoy it lol.
To me there's no point in arguing Huddy vs non-Huddy. It really is hard for me to believe that someone ACTUALLY changes the channel because they just cannot stand seeing certain characters together or on screen. Even non-shippers who complain on forums have to admit...at least they are still watching. Heck, I HATE Taub...absolutely cannot stand him and hate him in every scene he's in. I just keep watching and don't punish the whole show by turning the channel or pushing stop on my DVR. My husband and I are not shippers by any means, however I just simply accept that I have been watching this man's journey for 6 years. I have been watching him and Cuddy do this dance for 6 years. It has been nice to see some payoff regardless if it lasts or not (It probably won't...let's be honest). I have seen him addicted to drugs for 5 years, almost go to jail, I've seen him lose his mind, admitted to an insane asylum, in psychotherapy...what's so wrong with seeing him try to make an adult relationship work?
I truly believe all this is CRAZY premature. Not to mention a giant miscalculation by Fox. Older shows need a little tender-love-and-care. NATURAL viewer attrition is usually the number 1 killer of some of the greater shows in TV history. Fox should have never allowed House to go against DWTS at 8pm. Should have moved it to Tues or Wed night.
Again, I believe the fandom needs to cool it and give the season time to breath (2 epi's in is NOT enough time). DWTS goes off air November 23rd. House will be in the middle of holiday hiatus and returns in Jan 2011. The real ratings debate should begin at that time...as there will be NORMAL competition at 8pm and then we see where DWTS viewers go when they come back.
6 - van ledger
I´m a big fan of the show from the beginning, I love House, I believe it is one of the greatest characters ever, but honestly, I really dont enjoy this 2 first chapters of season 7, It isn´t directly about the huddy thing, I like Cuddy, but I feel House ( especially in "selfish") like out of character,lately is acting more like Wilson does. ( and I love Wilson,I´m a bit Hilson, but House should be House). I really hate see House like a dumb puppet of cuddy, I like see him confront everything, be rebel, be genius, be a little jerk (XD) because that is House, that is the reason we love him. I miss see House like House, I miss the times when the medical case was relevant and who sleep with him didn´t matter so much. I really hope see House back to be the amazing character who I fall in love!
(and I sorry if my english is bad)
7 - Sarah
I'm the only "fan" at my office, but a year ago, all 9 other people were tuning in regularly. Now, I'm the only one still watching.
The easy banter, compelling cases, hilarious clinic scenes, and fabulous characterization are all gone. Insults flung back and forth between House and Cuddy, under the guise of flirting, put me off, but it also is why one of my co-workers stopped watching altogether. Clinic scenes in season 6 and now season 7 serve only to further whatever unbelievable plot is crammed down our throats. They used to fill time by making me laugh until I cried, while also telling the audience more about House's nature or background.
One co-worker said he stopped watching because the show has turned into a tired old soap opera, and I have to agree.
Kudos to Shore and company for bravely forging new paths with the show, but shame on them for getting rid of what works, producing episodes based on hastily written scripts that present conflicting backstory, and changing base elements of the characters.
It's pretty sad when several million people would rather watch has-beens learn how to dance and then compete against each other instead of suffer through the tripe Shore and company have been polluting their HD sets with.
8 - KC
I enjoyed reading this article, you made some great points.
To reiterate what Kelsey said, the show's ratings started seriously declining in season 6. The House/Cuddy relationship certainly cannot be blamed for that, since they barely had one scene together per episode. And though the House/Wilson relationship was featured prominently throughout the season(it got to be a bit overkill IMO), its also wrong to say that people stopped watching because of it. I think the ratings declined in season 6 in part due to the choppy schedule with random multiple week long breaks in between two or 3 episodes. These breaks not only made the season in general seem very choppy and disjointed, it also lost some of the casual viewing audience who simply didn't know when a new episode was going to air. Also, I am pretty sure that DWTS was also on the air at that time, so again House had to compete with that powerhouse show.
In regards to Cameron's departure, I took a look at the ratings from season 6 and they were not really affected at all by it. They even increased a little bit in the episodes following Teamwork. So I don't think bringing her back would do anything positive for the ratings (nor do I really see the purpose in bringing her back full time).
There's no way of really knowing why the ratings change for a show, so pin pointing one thing(especially a relationship or character) as the sole reason for a ratings delcine is rediculous. House is still my favorite show and I am very much looking forward to the rest of season 7. I feel that it has been rejuvinated by the House/Cuddy relationship and I can't wait to see where it goes.
9 - Claire
I personally love the direction the series has taken, but honestly, I know some people who don't.
And I'm not talking about 'huddy' here, it would be too semplicistic.
IMO, the problem is that, around seasons 5-6, the series has changed: the procedural aspects of the show (potw, clinic, etc.) have been marginalised in favor of the development of the characters; and House has begun a personal 'quest for happiness' that has partially changed his behaviour.
I think this has alienated many viewers that watched House essentially as a procedural with a particularly interesting/funny protagonist. The cases are less compelling; and this 'new House' (yes, I know he's not really changed, but you get my point) is probably not very appealing to casual viewers.
And to be honest, I know that this series was never really a procedural in the first place, and that House's personal growth was needed (it wouldn't have been realistic for him to remain miserable and alone all his life), but TPTB should have done a better work in integrating this into the formula of the series without changing it so much, especially since that formula was actually working very well for the viewers.
Then, of course, I agree with Barbara that there are many other factors for the ratings decrease: the show being in its seventh year, the timeslot, DWTS, etc. etc. But IMO some of the changes in the show did play some role.
10 - Sue
"Go with the flow." I beg your pardon, but you are very biased toward Huddy. Feel free to defend the ratings, but first you should make an honest disclosure. You write Huddy fanfiction, and in your episode recaps, you dubbed Cuddy, "The angel in pink." As for Wilson/RSL, a majority of your write-ups barely mention his part in an episode even if he's a key player. Look at your banner. He's not among the cast, however Jennifer Morrison is.
I don't ascribe Huddy as the sole contributing factor to the rating slide of House. It's been going downhill for years. The show is getting old and not getting better. Mostly that has to do with Shore's poor choices since the inception of the survivor arc. Every time he tinkered with the overall season's ratings eroded.
11 - Jace
DWTS...DWTS...DWTS...DWTS...DWTS...DWTS!!!
Haha, I'm sorry to sound so flippin' repetitive! But just like any shows that goes against American Idol Jan-May pretty much is DOA. The same happens for any shows opposite DWTS. Literally two episodes in and people want "Heads to Roll" on this, or in this case they want Huddy dead or the C-storyline, House to relapse, be miserable/cranky until the series finale...oh and MORE WILSON!!! That must be what works...MORE WILSON!!! As if season 6 didn't have A LOT OF WILSON!!! Frankly, I find all the crying about how we "Used be number 1" so pathetic! It's like an aging Michael Jordan or Kobe Bryant...one day the flash goes away, skills decrease, what once was isn't there anymore...you hope your superstar goes out with some dignity. I feel like my show is! Instead of being bitter that that things are not the same anymore (as if the show was NOT supposed to change at ALL in 7 years) and the end is coming near...simply stop watching and being negative. If not watching isn't an option, then who cares if 5 million more people aren't watching...you still are, enjoy the end of the ride!
Also #5 BeeJ - what you said about this argument being a little premature is right on! DWTS goes off in November and House comes back January. The debate should begin then.
12 - Tara
Talk about "truth hurts". Excuses come easily to those who work on the show or are rabid fangirls and refuse to acknowledge the voices which have been complaining about the lackluster show since season 5.
The favorite excuses are (were) the writers strike and the new slot. However, the writers strike was...what? 3 years ago? And the show was moved to Monday almost as long as that. Other shows bounced back after the strike. Other shows (Mentalist) still have amazing ratings, despite being moved to new days/slots. Other shows (NCIS, CSI) still have amazing ratings despite being "old" shows.
You know when shows like CSI Miami and NCIS: LA beat House in the rating then you have to strip of you fangirl uniform and face the fact that House is...well to put it nicely...going down the drain.
Huddy is one huge element of it but not the sole reason why the show is bad. It however isn't helping and it's merely a fan service.
The original title of the show is House MD. MD as in Medicinae Doctor. MADICINAE, which quite frankly the show is no longer about. It got pushed aside so that there's enough screentime for nakedness, sexapades and crude sexual jokes. The show only benefits from the amazing talented actors that Hugh Laurie and Robert Sean Leonard are (with the help of LE and JS, the rest is just a boring lot)
13 - ann uk
I haven't seen the first episodes of series 7 yet. owing to Sky TV's infuriating delays, but I feel some of your correspondents may be too gloomy.
I hated the first few episodes of series 4, but watching them now in the context of all that has happened since, I can enjoy them and still find things I missed.
So , I prefer to trust the House team to find ways of alloying House's happiness without repeating themselves.
That said, I know that even House must end , even if only to save Hugh from developing a permanent limp, and I still don't know if I think it will be tragedy or fulfilment
14 - Brittani
I'm going to go out on a limb and admit to enjoying the House/Cuddy pairing, but I am aware of a number of people who despise it and have discontinued watching the show -- though, as a corollary, I'm also aware of a number of people who continue watching it, or who now want to watch it (my roommate included -- yes, I've converted her to House!). So I agree that the House/Cuddy relationship/new terrain has probably contributed to a slight dip in the ratings. Personally, my problem with the show lies in the fact that you've got Hugh Laurie, Lisa Edelstein, Robert Sean Leonard, and a whole slew of fantasmic guest stars (Jennifer Grey and Candice Bergen) and their talent is being wasted. Where's the wit and the snark that audiences fell in love with? That sharp writing, with subtle jokes that rely on an intelligent audience to understand and laugh at? I understand that season 6 was supposed to be a dark place, and I think Hugh Laurie (and the rest of the cast) did beautifully, but that crap is done! I don't know. I suppose I'm one of the few House/Cuddy supporters who predicts the end of the relationship and House returning to some dark place, but before THAT writing returns, I'd like season 2/3 wit, funny shit that makes me laugh out loud at my television screen. I adore the show, love it, in fact. It's my 21st century X-Files (of which I watched every episode, even though I grew up in Italy), so I'll continue to watch it and support the creative process -- despite the fact that sometimes I just want to yell at the writers/directors/etc through the screen. I mean, that's what this is, it's a creative process, and if we don't respect all of it, we don't deserve any of it. It's like getting halfway through a book and deciding it's not worth it and discontinuing; it's not really fair to make judgments without reading the whole book. So, I shall take the advice of Hugh Laurie and "buckle up."
--As a side note, please stop dismissing people as "fangirls" simply because they're not against the House/Cuddy relationship. This comment was an effort (albeit an "iffy" one since I just woke up) to defend the show and perhaps, the writers, but it was not a running diatribe on the greatness that is "Huddy."
15 - Mei
I can only speak for myself and explain the reason why I stopped watching... I'm still checking in every now and then to see if something interesting seems to be happening in the show, but I USED to be a complete fanatic. I went particularly nuts in season 4 when they got rid of Cameron (who I liked for her own character and her moral counterpoint to House, but I was also a complete anti-shipper of her and House romence) and without that threat I could enjoy the show doubly. Enter 13. The choice of her as a continuing character baffled me, and the only reason I could see for making that choice is that she was a pretty girl who kissed other pretty girls... It made me start to doubt the show creators, the shows intention and I started to nitpick things... I still watched regularly, but things started to annoy me... season 5. 13-fest. I started to skip episodes, the faults started to get bigger, why is Foreman still there, Taub annoyed me, Chase and Camerons weird appearances annoyed me, and 13 in my face all the time annoyed me ALOT. I lost faith in the creators... then they started to talk about Huddy. I've never been a shipper (just anti-shipper), but I thought this might be interesting. But it never happened, did it. It just dragged on and on and on. Season 6. It drags on and on and on and ON AND ON! And then it happens, and it actually feels forced. THAT, is amazing. I now have no faith in this show whatsoever. Maybe if they actually had the balls to do something fresh and new and not need TWO YEARS to think about it first, and maybe if they finally got rid of 13 for good, i MIGHT look into it again.
So Huddy and 13 isn't the only reasons I stopped watching, but it was a good start.
16 - mel35
great article! personally, I think the lower ratings are because "dancing with the stars" and season 6.
It's silly to say "huddy" is the problem when ratings were low last year too, and last year was NOT a huddy season at all!
17 - bluehue
(H)uddy Love
Billie Holiday (song tweak)
I don't know why but I'm feeling so sad
I long to TRY something I never had
Never had no kissin'
Oh, what I've been missin'
(H)uddy Love, oh, where can you be?
The night is cold and I'm so alone
I'd give my soul just to call you my own
Got a moon above me
But no one to love me
(H)uddy Love, oh, where can you be?
I've heard it said
That the thrill of romance
Can be like a heavenly (hallucination) dream
Someday we'll meet (season seven)
And you'll dry all my tears
Then whisper sweet
Little things in my ear
Hugging and a-kissing
Oh, what I've been missing
(H)uddy Love stay on my teevee.
18 - barbara barnett
I won't beat a dead horse by saying that while I really like the House-Cuddy pairing, I'm only going where the characters and writers are taking me. So, if that makes me biased, so be it. Fine. End of story. Full stop. This horse has stopped breathing.
As far as the AI positioning, I do think the lead in really gave the numbers a huge push back in the day (which probably partially accounts for the ginormous numbers back then). People began to watch, failed to get hooked, went on to other things, whatever. New viewers came on, old ones dropped off. The series, after all, is in its 7th season.
Two episodes hardly make a trend, and my article was intended as a response to another piece in the press the last couple of days. Had that not appeared and got me a-thinking, I doubt I would have written about the ratings at all. I just felt the assertion had to be answered.
19 - barbara barnett
BlueHue: I just saw your post (must have been posting while I was writing). I sing that Billie Holiday song (it's a signature piece for me when I do jazz/blues sets). It made me smile.
20 - sdemar
I am glad House & Cuddy are finally together. It was a match-up I saw in the making for the past 3 seasons and the chemistry was there from the pilot. To blame the hook-up (only 2 episodes in) as the reason for the drop in ratings is too simplistic and unfair.
I suppose I could make an argument the ratings started going south last year because of the lack of House and Cuddy scenes together, the introduction of Lucas and the over abundance of House/Wilson scenes but that would be too simplistic and unfair, too.
The show is in the 7th season and has stiff competition. Unless you are a diehard fan, viewers are fickle. For me, I plan to stay until the bitter end because this is the first show in my life than I make sure I am home for so I can watch it live. It is still the best around in my opinion.
21 - sdemar
One other comment. Tvbythenumbers showed the premier episode coveted age group went from 4.2 to 5.1. 10M+ plus in viewers, top rated drama for the night, 5.1 in coveted age group. This is bad, why?
22 - jonathan
you seem to forget however, that RATINGS ARE EVERYTHING. If the ratings go bad, the show goes bye-bye(i.e. Lone Star). That only lasted 2 episodes. the only reason House isn't gone like that is because it has "tenure" on the network. otherwise the ratings have stayed below 6 million viewers and episode. which is a travesty in the television industry. if the rating don't improve for the show, it will probably be canceled before the season ends.
let us also not forget that without fans/viewers, there is no show. i personally don't think Huddy was a wise choice. they castrated House and gave Cuddy his balls. after the writers/producers swore the characters wouldn't change at all.
i watch the show because i have to, because it would feel wrong not to. but i hate what they've done.
23 - Mike
Count me in as a non-shipping ex-fan who thinks "Huddy" has helped bring this show down. It's not just what is happening now, but what happened in order to bring it about, which lost the show a lot of credibility, IMO, and definitely drove me away. You can protest that Season 6 was not a Huddy season, but I'd have to disagree. It was obviously heading that way (that awful 80's dance and ludicrous backstory is one example) and we'd already been told that it was coming. Lucas was just a temporary roadblock, and a character that had to be eviscerated in order to make House look better. Poor, impotent Lucas can never be the stallion that House appears to be - even after a day of crawling around in rubble! The outrageous pranks by Cuddy were the beginning of the big slide for her character, plus turning up the heat on her personal T&A show with the "Oh, isn't Cuddy so sexy?" anvils. Just ask any random patient! Throw in crotch-grabbing, boob grabbing, and enough anvils to sink the QE2, and they have alienated those of us who enjoyed the Sherlock Holmes medical mystery and House as a genius doctor.
Blaming football (doesn't start until 8:30), the time slot (HIMYM is PICKING UP viewers in this time slot now, and other shows fare quite well at 8:00), and the age of the show and its viewers are just excuses. Look at the aging NCIS - last spring they not only faced American Idol, but DWTS as well, and still managed to pull in anywhere from 15-17 million viewers at 8:00! Now it's holding its own against Glee, a new ratings force to be reckoned with. Perhaps people just want and crave consistency in their television show, and that's where NCIS delivers and House is all over the place.
I'm also going to place a portion of the blame on the promotional focus of Season 7. It's Huddy, Huddy, Huddy, and if you don't like it, you're pretty much sh!t out of luck. If Huddy!Sex and crotch-grabbing isn't what you tuned into House for in the past, you're out of luck. For me, stunt casting doesn't even begin to make up for all the show's problems, especially when I couldn't care less about the way a certain award-winning actress is going to be used. (I'm not sure how you stand on spoilers, so I won't be specific.)
I'm all for House evolving, but it shouldn't revolve around Cuddy as a "reward." Wouldn't it have been more effective if we could have seen House decide against the Vicodin for his OWN personal, moral victory? It would certainly have meant more to folks like me who were gobsmacked by Cuddy swooping in at the last minute.
I'll risk a few catty snickers on a House forum (really, ladies?) and say that I think getting rid of Cameron is a factor, not because of any potential romantic involvement with House, but because she represented an opposing view to House when it came to the patient's care. I enjoyed that she made House stop and think twice about medicine, and not from his "Gee, if I do THIS, I won't get to bang Cuddy tonight" angle. TPTB not only got rid of Cameron in the most ridiculous of contrivances, but they also completely alienated her fan base in the process. I don't think that should be dismissed or snickered at. Again, I point to the success of NCIS as a model of cast and character consistency. Not everyone likes the consistency, but apparently 19 million people did last Tuesday night in the 8:30-9:00 half-hour. Consistency and integrity still count for something these days.
24 - madfashionista
Excellent piece, but having read your marvelous book (which I urge everyone out there to buy) I think you are being disengenuous when you say you "go with the flow." After all, in this column alone, you devoted Part Two of a long article called "House in Love," to House and Cuddy. None of us who love the show fanatically can call ourselves unbiased, no matter which way the biases go. And yes, the fandom is thrashing like an anaconda with food poisoning.
From my end, anecdotal evidence suggests that many long-time fans (friends) stopped watching during the last season. Most had that vague feeling that the show wasn't as interesting anymore. If one steps away from the fandom, you notice that the larger press no longer writes about the show (i.e. The New York Times, etc.), even as much as they did at the beginning of Season 6. Ken Tucker's negative review in EW wasn't in the print edition, only online. Whereas at the beginning of last season, nearly every national news outlet wrote about "Broken." There's nothing new about two television characters hooking up, unlike putting your protagonist in a two-hour episode in rehab.
Personally, I believe that "House" shows signs of fatigue, and that once House got sober, he was essentially neutered. Now, he's too much like any other snarky lead character on "Psych" or many other shows. Particularly if you are a casual fan.
I loved Seasons 1-5, but after that...
One reason that "NCIS" has remained so popular is that not only do they manage to keep the formula fresh, the characters are consistent over the years, and their personal lives intertwine with the larger story. The larger story is always front and center. I'm not saying that "NCIS" is a better show, far from it. But "House" could have benefited from sticking to that approach.
And as someone commented above, the writing has been sloppy, and the plotlines recycled.
25 - Delia_Beatrice
I applaud the writers and producers of "House" precisely for not kneeing down and sticking to the formula, like NCIS and other shows. Which would have made it yet another cheap commercial show, unlike the work of art that it actually is.
"House" is a character drama - not a procedural show, not a comedy and definitely not a way for bored viewers to escape into a fictional world where they feel their petty frustrations being avenged by the sharp-tongued doctor who never gives a crap.
For 7 years, "House" has taken on creative challenges of great depth and complexity, and it has dealt with them with utmost brilliance. The continuity and coherence of the show are beyond reproach, while the psychology of the characters and their evolution are flawless.
The depth and complexity of the journey House himself was, and is, undertaking are impressive. The show is beautifully written, directed and performed, keeping its incredibly high standards of quality after these 6 years.
In my opinion, what happened to the ratings in season 6 is due to a few factors within the show, and many factors outside the show (which Barbara mentions in her article). In short, within the show, i blame the public losing interest on the following: the continuity of the storylines was broken by taking a whole season to address Huddy, which "Both Sides Now" had left the fandom hungry for; the airing schedule drove viewers away; the absence of the clinic duty took away an important, much loved element; and House's paternity issue, opened in season 5, just like Huddy, was left pretty much hanging.
I have high hopes that this season will make up for all of these and i am watching breathlessly - and applauding with both hands and feet.
In regard to Barbara being biased because she is a "Huddy shipper" (awfully silly term): i disagree fully. None of us was born a "Huddy shipper" or anything else. We loved "House" and House, all of us, and we
all DID go with the flow - it's the flow that drove many viewers into believing that House and Cuddy would make an exceptional couple. The way this romance was built for 6 years, its deep and complex layers, the chemistry of the actors and the insane charm of the on screen pairing are the reasons Huddy fans have been wishing to see this couple in a real relationship. So to say that Huddy fans don't go with the flow, but pressured (?!) TPTB to go into this "catastrophic" direction is absurd beyond any imagination.