Have you ever known someone who was too nice to be true? They annoy you when you realize that you haven’t a prayer to ever be quite that good, until you discover that their niceness makes you a better person. At least that’s what the wife of this week’s “nice” patient believes. Is this a key to why House seems almost desperate to hang onto his friendship with Wilson? Wilson is House’s tie to humanity and if he’s lost then so is House’s humanity — completely. Or maybe I’m reaching for something not there in this played-for-fun episode of House, “No More Mr. Nice Guy.”
“No More Mr. Nice Guy” was a lot of fun, but slightly disappointing (to me anyway) after such a long, long dry spell — and with only three more episodes to go for the season. I'm not blaming the writers or the other powers that be. Maybe my expectations were way too high after a season already peppered with fun and hi-jinks, and without one episode to provide a real emotional punch in the gut. As a friend pointed out to me this morning after watching the House marathon on USA Network yesterday, there is a stark contrast between the ethical questions and emotional explorations of the marathon episodes (“Detox,” “Control,” “Role Model,” and “Babies and Bathwater,” for example) and the lighter, more humorous tone of this season. She asked me whether had I not already been so invested in the series and in the character of House the series would have taken such a hold on me. And I'm not sure. Then again, I'm all about the angst and torment. (Sick, huh?)
Maybe the lightness is intentional; maybe House torn from his usual symbiotic relationship with Wilson is a House of ennui; of just simply being an ass. The House of “No More Mr. Nice Guy” really doesn’t care. Not about the patient, or really even about the diagnosis. He really only cares about playing mind games with his team and playing territorial games with Amber and Wilson. He’s not the troubled intellectual (who was apparent even in the hilarious season two episode “Distractions”), nor the reluctant healer (despite being in withdrawal and desperately in pain) of season three’s “Merry Little Christmas.” Nor the deeply compassionate (despite himself) man who wants to help a patient live a “normal” life (season three’s “Half-Wit”).
On the other hand, maybe House's territorial games are his desperate bid to hold onto his only human tie, and the prospect of losing it frightens him a bit. His territorial games weren't nasty, and his willingness to compromise regarding Wilson was interesting in a guy who (almost) never does. Is House really trying to be "nice" about Amber?
Article comments
— go to most recent comments1 - marykir
This felt to me like an episode written for "the fans" -
meta about the strike? check.
House/Wilson scene? check.
Amber? check.
musical House? check.
House/Cameron innuendo? check.
House/Cuddy innuendo? check.
House/Chase scene? check.
House/Cameron scene? check.
Foreman taken down a peg? check.
more Kutner? check.
13 and Taub in the background? check.
about the only thing missing was ROF and House going for a motorcycle ride... oh, and any serious attention to those philosophical/ethical issues David Shore says are the heart of the show :)
2 - hl_lover
Barb,
I had commented elsewhere that it must have bothered House to have his team consider him 'sick' because he is an outlier on the Bell curve of niceness.
He may not have known that Kutner would go searching for a blood sample (it could have been the same blood used in "Half Wit"), so the whole team announcing to him that he had syphilis and handing him a bottle of penicillin pills did come as a sad shock to him. He however decided to take it and 'run with it', using it to his advantage and turning the screws back onto his team. I'm just guessing here, of course. Nothing on this show is ever fully clear as to motives, and sometimes it's as infuriating as it is intriguing to watch.
The thought did cross my mind that House indeed does have neurosyphilis, but he is too afraid to treat it for fear of it 'changing' him, therefore losing what is most precious to him, his reasoning abilities, the thing that sets him apart from most people. What does anyone else think of this idea?
Oh, and lovely review, as always, Barbara!
3 - hl_lover
marykir, I know you are being facetious and humorous, but you should put yourself in David Shore's shoes for a sec and see if you could be capable of writing an episode of House that simultaneously follows what you feel is best, but at the same time not alienate too much of the various factors of the House fandom, given the fact that this is a Top Ten show and you would like to keep it that way.
I'm sure you are referring to his recent interview with Maureen Ryan of the Chicago Times, and he admits to the extreme difficulty of finding this balance, and I admire the man for his efforts.
4 - marykir
hl_lover, I am absolutely serious. I thought the episode pandered to the fandom. It seemed to try to be all things to all people, and ended up being much less than the sum of its parts.
I personally don't care what stories DS and the writing team come up with, as long as they feel passionate about those stories and tell them with conviction. I didn't get that sense from this episode.
5 - Clare
TOO MANY PEOPLE!Personally, I think the show has suffered due to the abundance of cast members. I love the old team, but they really need to move on. Foreman is really starting to get on my nerves. Why does he think he's the boss? And Taub really put him in his place:) Chase... the first thing that came to mind when I saw the bowling scene was "No way would House hang out with Chase!" I mean c'mon! Chase was such a little punk especially in season one! I think the writers, directors, and/or producers are wasting time showing these little segments with the old team. Did anyone notice how little we saw the patient this week? If not, watch an episode from an earlier season and compare. Finally, Cameron might as well re-join the team. House is constantly in the ER and Cameron has been participating in differential diagnoses quite a bit. I really like Cameron--she balanced out the team. 13 is too... mysterious (for lack of a better word). Please give her a real name, PLEASE! I have a few more grievances, but I won't bore anyone reading this any further.
One last thing: Amber needs to go, like, now.
6 - Barbara Barnett
Marykir, I have to agree with you on this. I keep thinking back to the first episode I watched (and it wasn't in the long run a favorite). It was "Cursed" back in season one. House was snarky and cynical. But his bite was underlain by a depth that was just "there." Not expressed, not made "cute." Just part of House. Who he was and what he was (and still is).
Had this episode (which I actually liked better than "Cursed" on the whole) been the first one I'd seen, I would not have been grabbed so viscerally by this bitter, melancholy but essentially moral character. I thougth it was fun and lacked depth (maybe, as you say, passion). I liked it, but it was cotton candy (which I love, but has no substance).
HL_L, you may indeed be right on this. I do think House might be sad at what his team think, but he did say to Wilson that he had set it up earlier "because they would be testing his blood at some time for something." And maybe that's House's way of keeping his privacy...private (we do know how private a person House can be, for all of his bluster.)
Clare--big cast, too little time on House himself. sigh. They will need to do something since this is not an ensemble show. Good question for the writers--do they think that writing for a big cast is to the detriment of the exploration of House's character--or do they want to slow that down (since there are probably three more seasons to cover?)
7 - Mary
hl_lover: I used to work in long-term care and have seen a patient die of tertiary stage syphilis. Untreated syphilis is a horrific way to die. As a physician, House would know that, and know that IF he had that disease and it went untreated, that his much-prized rationality will be the first thing he'll lose.
I'm just so happy to have new "House" to geek on that I think I'll just sit back and watch others comment on this episode. My speculation is that the series finale will mean the loss of one or two of the ducklings, just to keep us all off balance.
8 - slychipmunk
Three more seasons??? I sure hope so.
9 - slychipmunk
Three more seasons??? I sure hope so.
10 - Barbara Barnett
Oh, slychipmunk--
I'm just speculating! I have no idea how many more seasons there will or will not be!
11 - Boffle
Thanks for the review Barbara. I agree that Wilson was far from nice. In fact he was a manipulative bastard and not for the first time, not that I don't like Wilson, but he absolutely has gotten away with murder since day 1 and I'd love to see this game with House and Amber come crashing down on him (I know I'm probably a minority of one, but there it is.)
I still haven't rewatched this one, which I think I probably need to do since it was so packed with content. I agree with markir and thought it ironic that such an irreverent show was so PC in regards to the various segments of the fanbase you detailed. They are never going to please us all, so writing what they want with passion and conviction: absolutely the only way to go!
Also, I think the writer's strike put the writers in the uncomfortable position of catching us up in one or two or four episodes on where they were planning to get to in twelve, so my guess is that's some of the reason it seemed all over the map. Lots of questions and relationships were put in play at the beginning of the season and I applaud TPTB for attempting to get some kind of resolution for S4.
That said, I think House needs to get back to the core of House-centered ethical dilemmas soon. That's their wheelhouse as Shore stated in the Ryan interview, and all this other stuff, though fun, is really not the point.
So where are they going with all this? I think the purpose of this episode was to set the endgame in play: start to derail Wilson/Amber; put House at risk in some severe way (perhaps after a fakeout with the syphilis scare); target the Huddy not as a joke, but as a real possibility; break up the new team and maybe even the old team (we could end up with Foreman plus Kutner and/or even 13: I think Taub will go first) while Cameron and Chase pop in and out unpredictably.
And then, will those glorious writers give their spectacular cast a story line that goes to the heart of the questions that House raises better than any other show: how do you do the right thing? how do you know who to believe? what is real and what is a lie? what does it mean to be a good person? And of course, is it better to be the person saving lives without caring for the people personally or caring for the people as individuals and missing the flaws that tell the underlying, unpleasant truths of human nature that lead people to lie and sometimes destroy themselves?
House is a diamond of a character being portrayed by a brave, immensely talented actor who has shown great trust in his writers: I do hope that they continue to deserve both the character and the actor.
12 - Barbara Barnett
Boffle,
Thanks for your comments. I agree with you that Wilson has been a manipultive dude since season one--Detox immediately comes to mind. He was behind House's crash and burn in Season three as well.
So where are they going with all this? I think the purpose of this episode was to set the endgame in play: start to derail Wilson/Amber; put House at risk in some severe way (perhaps after a fakeout with the syphilis scare); target the Huddy not as a joke, but as a real possibility; break up the new team and maybe even the old team (we could end up with Foreman plus Kutner and/or even 13: I think Taub will go first) while Cameron and Chase pop in and out unpredictably.
And then, will those glorious writers give their spectacular cast a story line that goes to the heart of the questions that House raises better than any other show: how do you do the right thing? how do you know who to believe? what is real and what is a lie? what does it mean to be a good person?
You set up some nice possibilities, and I hope this is the beginning of that drive to the finale. What are they setting up? Will Amber win and completely take House out of Wilson's orbit? And what will that do to House? Does that have some bearing on what's going to happen in the finale? Why House was riding the bus?
The questions that House asks week by week need to become the focus of the show again as the writers get their bearing and into season five.
13 - Clarice
Good review. House is better than anything else on television. But, I had just watched part of the marathon and seen those critical moments when all the hurt comes into HL's expressive eyes providing about half of the storyline without words. I have missed those this season.
But, we shall see how the writers head for the Season 4 endgame. I, for one, like Kutner and think he is a great new character who may have almost as many layers as House. The bowling scene was particularly funny. Thanks again for getting us through the dry spell with your wonderful articles, episode guides, and essays.
14 - Boffle
What are they setting up? Will Amber win and completely take House out of Wilson's orbit? And what will that do to House? Does that have some bearing on what's going to happen in the finale? Why House was riding the bus?
Well, I'm mostly not spoiled but there do seem to be some directions being established if you go by the rules of the show: 1) everybody lies and 2) people don't change. So if Amber's downfall is that she can't accept defeat, she has to be right, and she will do anything to win, then, especially under the stress of possibly losing the one person who has given her both love and respect, and the added stress of losing him because of the interference of the man who recently handed her a devastating rejection, she will revert to her basic (and base) nature. She will live up to her sobriquet and cut House's throat (metaphorically, of course) and win, but in winning she will also lose. It would be an amazing twist if she does in fact break the House/Wilson friendship, but the doing of that breaks up her and Wilson as well.
Now losing Wilson's friendship might send him to Cuddy for solace and that likely wouldn't last into the light of day, though I don't think it would fundamentally change their relationship which is more about power and affection than sex anyway. So, it seems that with the human relationships on the show, House is the cue ball ever ricocheting from side to side and never, um, finding a home.
House sees more, knows more and maybe even feels more deeply, though not in the same way as the other folks on the show. Trying to figure out what makes him tick and watching how he uses his creativity in ways that are both awful and awesome is so compelling (thank you, Hugh Laurie). I'm hoping to see this explored in some different way in the finale and expect to be surprised (though I suppose the one takes the mickey out of the other?).
The bus? Maybe House was too drunk to drive; maybe he thought he saw someone with fatal symptoms and followed them onto the bus; maybe he's hallucinating the whole bus crash and it didn't really happen outside his imagination. After all, time is not a rigid construct!
Anyway, sorry for the long posts, but I'm giddy with delight at having new House episodes to chew on.
15 - pacemaker
This is the third site I have come across today(yes, I am obsessed) with whispers of one of the new ducklings leaving the team. Am I missing something??? Or is this all speculation?
16 - hl_lover
Mary, I am knowledgeable about tertiary syphilis, so my comment was not made out of ignorance.
Do not forget that the writers play rather fast and loose with medical fact, understandably so most of the time,as it serves to further the plot in some way. The best example of this, and it has to do with tertiary syphilis, is House benignly accepting Georgia's decision in Season One to continue untreated, as she enjoyed her pleasant sensations wrought by the spirochete.
Now, how realistic is that? Georgia is a wonderful character, one of the best patient/clinic characters the series has produced, and her decision and House's acceptance of it was an excellent demonstration of a Housian interaction with a patient who he actually (almost) liked. Where was his concern about the horrible end that you mention comes to these patients?
Bringing this back around to the original discussion, and again, factoring the 'not medically accurate' aspect of the show's plot, House treasures his mentation, his specialness greatly, although he seemed willing to possibly sacrifice it in "No Reason". If there were any indication at all that syphilis could be responsible for his brilliance and even his personality, as it was thought to be the case with the POTW, he *might* not want to take the penicillin and alter himself. (He was willing to risk the ketamine-induced coma, however).
My rather long-winded point is rather moot, I agree, but to dismiss out-of-hand the idea that House could truly have syphilis isn't as easy as 'Oh, it's not medically possible and House would know better'. Not at least on this show. ;)
That being said, I wish to make clear that I do not believe it myself, but was only putting the idea forth for consideration and feedback purposes only.
I do like very much your idea, boffle, about Amber being successful in winning the game but ultimately losing. But, perhaps she wouldn't care as much about that as the winning part.
Could the season-ender shocker be the apparent loss of Wilson, either through health reasons or through hatred of House, from PPTH and House's life.
Shore did say that we would be surprised, didn't he? ;)
17 - Theronald
Barbara, as always, excellent excellent :)
I have one quick question that i havent seen addressed either here or on other websites - why was Cameron dismissing Chase's questions about sleeping with House? Cameron doesn't lie. And, whilst not in real life, is still seeing Chase (isnt she?) - yet she couldnt answer the question. Perhaps im reading too much into it, but when House confesses the syphillis is not real to Wilson, Wilson says "are you going to keep screwing"...and house's reply, "yes." Now, i first thought that means screwing with the employees about the whole syphillis thing, but now im not so sure. It distracted me the whole episode, and what threw me again is House's (in my opinion) covert desire for cuddy. But why would Cameron shy away from Chase? Just wondering if u have any input, because i havent seen it discussed yet, and to be honest i hope he isnt secretly seeing Cameron, House and Cuddy r the better couple.
As always, thanks Barbara, i thoroughly enjoying reading your recaps and thoughts
18 - sue
This was the first post-strike episode, and it showed in several ways.
I don't think Hugh was mentally back into character. He underacted House. There were many opportunities for snarkiness, and I didn't see it. He was too even-toned throughout the episode. He mumbled some lines, making it hard to figure out what he was saying. Had there been more extremes in House's character, the episode would have been more interesting. House's interaction with the patient was too even-keeled. The best part was Hugh's reaction to hearing he had syphyllis. Hugh did that masterfully.
The show was too packed with dialogue. If a loyal viewer cannot absorb what is happening, what does a casual viewer think? In a show that is so smartly written, every word is essential to the story; losing lines interrupts the flow. I still don't understand the dialogue with Foreman about how House humiliating him would make the new hires respect and fear him.
It seemed Olivia Wilde was trying harder in this episode. She seemed to be more expressive. They upped her wardrobe. She is still boring and wooden. Maybe the bad reviews on the message boards made a difference.
Peter Jacobsen can only deliver his lines on way. We were supposed figure out that maybe his wife had cheated on him, and then feel sorry for him. I could not have cared less. It was the same when House found out that he cheated on his wife and left his plastic surgery practice. Go back and watch how he acted those scenes. There is no nuance in his acting.
An interesting way to compare the new and old teams is to watch the reaction shots. When House delivers a line, they cut away to the team to show their reactions to what House said. The expressions and non-verbal resonses to what House says amplifies the impact for us. The reactions of the four team members this year are almost non-existent, and what there is is not effective.
It was nice to see some variations in personality in Chase and Cameron in this episode. They had become one-dimensional and boring until now. Unfortunately, Foreman is still bland and like wallpaper . House was using him, and he had virtually no reaction to that. Why should we care if the character doesn't?
Kutner is the only character with some color in his acting, but I just don't care about him.
The best scene was when House gave Cuddy his evaluation of her. Lisa acted that scene perfectly. The writers nailed the dialogue about Cuddy's situation. Obviously, House has been thinking about Cuddy. Is he going to rescue the damsel in distress?
I did not care about the POTW or his wife. The resolution of the case, while clever, did not matter to me.
There were no high-highs and low-lows in this episode. It was too even all the way through.
19 - jena
nitpicking! hl_lover, house convinces georgia to take her medication by telling her that the brain damage sustained thus far will be permanent.
anyway, great article as always, barbara. i, too, was disappointed, even though i enjoyed the episode. everything about it was schizoid. it contained the elements that have made house a funny show in the past, which kept me laughing, but it didn't make up for the fact that i missed the moral and emotional depth that's made the series so worthwhile and rewarding to watch. once again i was confused and upset by house's newfound lack of interest in his cases, and how he's turning into a petty, conniving asshole, rather than a person of great morality and worth who tries very hard to convince the world and himself that he is a petty, conniving asshole. and worst of all was how they dropped the ball on house's evaluation of cuddy. something could have been made of that, but instead, it was a dim echo of his speech at the end of "humpty dumpty". my only hope is, as was mentioned above, that the defects of this episode were a direct result of cramming all the storylines neglected during the strike into a single episode.
20 - Barbara Barnett
I think, in a real sense, Clarice is right. With the larger cast, I think what's been sacrificed is not dialogue or situations, but the "moments" when the subtext becomes clear and we get to peek into House's head when no one at PPTH is looking. And without that, as she said, a lot of the story is missing (or just even more hidden). Some of us take the time to find it under the dialogue even without the "moments" of unspoken subtext, but many will not, which will re-inforce the notion that the character is all about the jerk and less about "doing the right" thing and telling truth to power.
If for no other reason than to have back those crucial bits (and I think it's more that than "angstiness" per se), we need to see the cast reduced to a less-than-ensemble cast number.
I have one quick question that i havent seen addressed either here or on other websites - why was Cameron dismissing Chase's questions about sleeping with House?
thanks for your kind comments theronald ;)
my take on this is that she didn't want to discuss it in front of the new team, and truly believes that it's none of Chase's business, so she's not telling (I think we all know that they did not sleep together--again, I think as attracted to her as House is, he believes that theirs would be an age-inappropriate, not to mention incompatible, relationship.)
Sue--I agree that maybe that actors, HL included were "getting back into it," and that may have come across.
This episode certainly has generated a good discussion here! Carry on! And thank you for all of you comments on both the column and the show!
21 - hl_lover
*slaps forehead* So Georgia did take the meds after all? I still feel, however, that the essence of my point still stands.
After reading several opinions concerning the 'screwing' comment from Wilson to House, it only makes sense, then, that, after hearing House declare that he didn't have syphilis 'yet', then logically Wilson is asking House if he would stop screwing prostitutes while he was still ahead of the game. House responds that he will continue being his usual self, ie, taking chances with prostitutes.
Does this make sense? I certainly don't see House with Cameron, not at all.
22 - Barbara Barnett
House's best comment in Poison to Georgia was when he convinced her to take the meds because they wouldn't stop her "feelings." He added that he wouldn't give up her flirting with him (or something like that). She agreed after his words of assurance to her (and very sweet words at that!) i will have to watch NMMNG again for all of these tidbits a bit later this evening!
23 - jena
re the "screwing" comment (since everyone else has weighed in on it, and i want in too), i felt as though the writers did that to tease, rather than to make a point; i think it makes most sense for it to be "screwing with the team". if house was in any type of relationship, even of the most casual kind, there would be some difference in him; we've seen women to whom he's attracted, even if only physically, affect his behavior throughout the series. and he's so reticent about absolutely everything that it would make no sense to me if his constant talk about hookers was an accurate reflection of his life. to enlarge upon that, one of the most difficult scenes to watch in the whole series, for me, has to be the end of "distractions", in which house lets the prostitute into his apartment. he's obviously ill at ease and ashamed of what he's about to do, and his demeanor is such that it suggests that his own opinion of himself, never very high, is diminishing with each passing instant. in all it doesn't look like something he's accustomed to.
24 - Barbara Barnett
Jena--I agree. I'll have to watch the scene again, because it passed me by completely (bad me!) But you're right about the end of Distractions and what it says about House, his self-esteem and his relationships with women (including hookers). I think House uses them occasionally, but I belive that most of the time he takes care of his own needs (if you get the meaning).
I don't think he takes any relationship casually, male or female-based.
25 - sdemar
Great review, Barbara. I really liked the episode even though it seemed to go at such a fast pace that I had a hard time keeping up.
Noone else has commented on this but this didn't feel like a DS written episode to me. I know he wasn't the sole writer but it still didn't feel like anything he would write.
I do think the pendalum is going to start to swing the other way starting with the finale and Season 5 may be a little heavier than Season 4. Perhaps the writers thought Season 3 was too dark, and as I recall there was a lot of grumbling over it, so they wanted to lighten it up this year. I'm one that likes a combination of angst and humor.
I also wonder if TPTB believe that Hugh and RSL do comedy well together and want to explore that. RSL has been in a lot more scenes this year and that seems to be how their relationship works.
A little plug of my Huddy love-I loved that final scene between the two of them. I do wish we had more scenes of them together and less of the newbies.