TV Review: House - "House Training"

"House Training" is one of those perfect storm House episodes: fun and meaningful exploration of the central character, insight into some secondary characters, ties to past episodes, and a compelling medical mystery that takes an unexpected turn. Some of the most memorable episodes in this series involve a break from the usual structure, but as written by Doris Egan, this one doesn't rely on twists or tricks, just wonderful characterization plus incisive and witty dialogue.

The entire premise of House is that the cranky doctor and his slightly less cranky team work with patients that other doctors can't diagnose, so the usual techniques don't apply. Pinning down the rare disease before the patient runs out of time often means they leap to treatment rather than tests — sometimes out of a conviction that their clever answer to the medical mystery is correct, sometimes as a quick and easy form of diagnosis.

From season one's "Detox" we got the madness behind House's method: "I take risks. Sometimes patients die. But not taking risks causes more patients to die. So I guess my biggest problem is I've been cursed with the ability to do the math."

Finally, we get the human face of the other side of the math equation. As Foreman points out, the team has run out of time before. They've made mistakes before. But this time, their mistake is a direct result of business as usual.

Lupe (memorably played by Monique Gabriela Curnen) is the unfortunate patient of the week, a three-card Monte accomplice who freezes during a scam, unable to exercise her free will. "Maybe we can get Thomas Aquinas in for a consult," House quips. As he philosophically points out, "What's life without the ability to make stupid choices?" And this episode is full of them.

The lack of free will is a symptom of a transient ischemic attack — a quick stroke — and the team brainstorms a root cause, such as a clot, ADD, or a vasospasm caused by the patient's stupid choice to use drugs. Chase toys with Foreman by rejecting the drug theory and implying Foreman is judging her because she's a minority. In fact, Chase already has the negative tox screen results. House has trained him well.

We learn Lupe's tragic backstory while House wanders off to investigate Wilson's friendly conversation with a woman we learn is his second ex-wife. A high school drop-out, pregnant at 15, Lupe lost her baby to SIDS. But like the man with the limp, her tragic backstory does not define who she is, and Foreman rejects the information as irrelevant and continues to view her with some scorn.

Article Author: Diane Kristine Wild

Diane runs the TV, Eh? website, a compilation of news about Canadian television. Follow her on Twitter @deekayw for more random thoughts.

Visit Diane Kristine Wild's author page — Diane Kristine Wild's Blog