The team returns to House’s office seeking instructions for the next step in Irene’s treatment. House poses a question, directed at Cole. He asks, “What would Joseph Smith do?” House then launches into a tirade about the hypocrisy of the Mormon religion. House accuses the Mormons of persecuting epileptics and accusing young women who had taken hallucinogens of being witches. House goes too far by calling Joseph Smith a horny old fraud and Cole is finally provoked beyond his limit. Cole punches House in the mouth. Good times!
This little outburst is not without its merits. Amber solves the case by remembering that it wasn’t just hallucinogens that caused young girls to be accused of being witches. She deduces that Irene is suffering from ergot poisoning, which she got from eating moldy organic rye bread. Her symptoms are the same as those of the young women burned at the stake. Once Irene is treated for the ergot poisoning, she realizes that her mother is indeed dead. It is sad watching her let go of her delusion.
The end of the episode has House channeling The Bachelor, handing flowers to the six fellowship candidates who will be staying on. I thought that Hugh Laurie was brilliant in this scene, deftly displaying the qualities that make him a great actor. He shades each gesture with subtle nuances to show how he feels about each of the team members.
House lets Amber believe she is about to be dismissed, but handed her a flower with a smirk that seemed to say, "Psych!" When House gave Thirteen her flower, it was almost like a little boy presenting flowers to his crush and then quickly turning away to avoid meeting her eyes. House tossed flowers to Kutner and Brennan as if to say, "Dudes! You're in but don't expect me to get close." Sadly, it is Henry who gets let go. He thinks too much like House, so therefore, House doesn't need him around. House looked genuinely disappointed to see him go.
The fun and games at Princeton-Plainsboro don’t stop with Henry’s final act; Cuddy hires Foreman back to oversee House and the remaining fellows. She should know from history that having Foreman supervise House will not stop the madness. However, I predict that it will be fun to watch.
Article comments