How can you not love a House episode that features the main cast attired in tuxedos and evening gowns? But even without all of the window dressing and eye candy, “All In” is one of season two’s best episodes. An examination of House’s medical obsessiveness, Hugh Laurie’s textured performance slowly peels back new layers of House’s inner life, as he grapples with the case of Ian, a young boy whose symptoms match those of a previous patient, the elderly Esther Doyle.
In a sense, death can be viewed as House’s archenemy, something with which he does battle relentlessly; and sometimes to a point beyond which other doctors would turn in their scalpel and wave their white coat in surrender. It’s part of what makes House heroic, especially because he often does it with little regard for his own comfort or career (or life); but House’s medical relentlessness also is part of what makes him a medical outsider.
But House doesn’t always win; death is a powerful adversary, and despite House’s sometimes heroic efforts, it defeats him and patients die. One of House’s more macabre traits (as seen by his colleagues, anyway) is that he will continue to pursue the illness beyond death. He needs to know the cause; what went wrong and why. It’s not (just) morbid curiosity with him. Figuring out the “why” even after death has won allows House to add one more case, one more bit of knowledge, one more weapon, should that disease ever come round again. It’s not something that his colleagues always (or even most of the time) understand. It’s why he continued in “Occam’s Razor” (season one) to search for the mistaken colchicine pills long after the patient was cured, why he needed to know the source of the girl’s infection in season three’s “House Training” even after it was too late to save her. And why, even 12 years later, House still can’t let go of Esther, succumbing to a rampantly aggressive disease — one that killed within hours. A disease that House could not defeat in time to save the patient; a cause of death he could never confirm.
Article comments
1 - Tigerfeet
Thanks for a great review, as always! All In is one of my favourite episodes, and you have summed it up perfectly!
If we ever needed confirmation that House will do anything for a patient, or this time Cuddy's patient, this is it. He had dressed up (how often does he do that?!)and was clearly looking forward to the prospect of beating Cuddy and Wilson, and probably winning the whole poker tournament. And as an added bonus enjoy this even more than usual beautiful vision that was Cuddy. But as circumstances turned out, all that had to be "sacrificed".
I am fully aware that his need to solve mysteries, especially this one due to Esther, comes into it. But still. He could have turned a deaf ear when the other doctor talked to Cuddy, so as to finally have an enjoyable evening, but no.
Well, it's difficult to describe House and my understandig of him. Especially in another language... But I trust you get what I mean. After reading all your reviews and other articles on this series, I find that your take on him is exactly like mine.
Thanks again, and keep up the good work you do here on Blogcritics and elsewhere!
2 - Barbara Barnett
Hi Tigerfeet...
I completely understand your take on House (and your English is just fine). I've always said there are (at least) two Gregory Houses. The first you can know by listening to him and taking him at face value and the other House is harder to know and we only get clues from his more private moments--with a patient (for instance what would the fellows make of his sitting with Ian like that?) I think Cuddy and Wilson know this side of House but tend to forget about it (it takes energy to get this part of their friend) and sometimes they just get tired of it.
Anyway, thanks for your kind words!
3 - hl_lover
"All In" was about as darn near perfect as a "House" episode can get. A compelling medical mystery, a cute little boy about whom we care, a Gregory House who's pushed right up to the edge of both his physician skills and his humanity, excellent interaction between House and his two closest friends, and, of course, Hugh Laurie as House, devastatingly handsome in his character's tuxedo.
Thanks for bringing it all back to mind in your beautifully written review, Barbara. :)
4 - Buds
"All In" definitely rates among my top 10 all-time fav episodes. Just seeing HL dressed up in a tux brought back memories of Jeeves & Wooster.
What a sweet looking child.
House's keen observational powers were demonstrated by the skill with which he manipulated both Cuddy and Wilson in the poker game. Although its only two episodes later in "House vs. God" that we see that Wilson is not to be underestimated in a card game.
There is one goof I noticed in this episode, though. When House writes Esther's name on the white-board he misspells it as Ester. Kinda weird for someone who obsesses about this case to misspell the patient's name.
BB, the "Rubik's complex" was actually mentioned in "DNR" not "Detox". It's in the scene when House is in court trying to keep Marty from pulling the plug on John Henry Giles.
Great article, BB. Always look forward to reading more.
5 - Barbara Barnett
Hey Buds, thanks for your comments (and my "oops" moment)--you're right of course and I must've been having quite the senior moment. I was thinking of course of the courtroom scene and wilson's comment (and that was absolutely in DNR!)
HL in a tux...sigh.
I think the label was a typo, not House's writing. I've never seen the name esther spelled without the "h"--"ester" is a sort of organic chemical compound, not a name! That's my story and I'm stickin' to it :)
bb
6 - sdemar
It was nice to revisit this episode and you did a great job with the review, Barbara.
I can still visualize Wilson telling House about his poker move when he found him out on the patio. RSL's facial expressions and body language were adorable and I loved the smirk on Hugh's face as House listened before his epiphany. Watching that scene confirmed to me what a fine actor RSL is and what wonderful chemistry he and Hugh have.
And Hugh in a tux was the icing on the cake.
7 - sue
Great review.
This episode was about everything we did not have in the first half of season 4. This was the intense, committed, serious House I love the most. And nobody can play intense like Hugh Laurie can.
In Human Error, House claims he does not care about the patient and her husband, he just cares about whether he can solve the puzzle before she dies. What if they do an autopsy and he could have saved her if he had thought of something sooner?w In It's a Wonderful Lie, House says he can tell patients the truth because he doesn't care. In All In, House showed us that was not really true. He carried Esther with him all these years because he cared. He cared about Ian. The reaction he showed when he heard the diagnosis was not intellectual; it was emotional. House was in a hurry to solve the puzzle to save Ian's life, not just to solve the puzzle; House would have had an answer from the autopsy. When House thought Esther might have had leukemia, he reacted with emotion thinking about the possibility that he might have saved her life if he had thought of it then. House tries to intellectually separate himself from the patient so he can be objective and make decisions based on the medicine. He had to do that in Wilson's heart. But he doesn't do it as well as he likes to tell himself he does.
8 - Barbara Barnett
This was the intense, committed, serious House I love the most. And nobody can play intense like Hugh Laurie can.
100 percent agreement here! I agree that in Human Error, when House was agonizing over the white board it was not because of some puzzle. Cuddy came in and told him to turn off the life support and call time of death. House wasn't ready to do it--he was thinking about Lupe. A simple infection they found on autopsy. He couldn't bring himself to go there again. What if he was wrong--what if it was something simple that he missed?
In wonderful Lie, I completely didn't believe him when he said that he could lie because he didn't care. And you're right, Sue, that House talks a better game than he actually feels or acts.
In Season 4 we have gotten some of that (but some was sacrificed for the time it takes given the larger cast): The Right Stuff, Ugly, Even You Don't Want to Know (when he was feeding the CIA guy the tea, sitting with him), for example.
9 - Maineac
Another great review of a wonderful episode. Just wanted to add that Maternity is another example of House continuing to pursue the mystery after the patient's life had been saved.
10 - Tigerfeet
Sue, how to the point you are writing. It's amazing to see how you are able to link all the examples of House's caring to the different episodes. Thanks!
11 - Andi
After "Autopsy," this episode is my favorite from Season 2, and in my Top 5 Favorite episodes of the whole series. Barbara, I've never been able to express how much -and WHY - I absolutely adore this episode. You have done that perfectly for me. You've said it all, including the old team's concern and caring for House's emotional well-being. I missed that in Season 4, just as I missed this obsessive, driven, tormented man. We didn't get anything this gritty in Season 4 until the finale.
12 - NDM
Great episode by the way, does anyone know what song House plays at the end of the episode?
13 - NDM
WOW!!! Sorry, maybe I should have read you're entire article before posting. I'm dumb, please disregard my previous statement and thank you for the help.