Wilson confronts House about the missing patient, berating him that stealing a sick man is not the same as stealing a guitar. What if the nurses gave his patient the wrong meds and there we have it… the Aha! moment. We can literally see the light bulb above House’s head as he realizes that is what’s been wrong with Megan all along.
House goes back to Megan’s room with another chart. The mother asks what he is doing to Megan and he coldly says, “Nothing.” He explains Megan is not feeling anything at all, because the girl in the bed is not Megan. She is another similarly featured girl who was in the building with Megan when it collapsed. The chart he brought was for the other girl whom everyone assumed had died in the hospital the day before. She had been on antidepressants, had an abortion, and was on the pill. It was Megan that had died. He proves it by removing the tube from the girl’s throat and asking her name. The girl whispers, “Liz.”
The genius of this plot twist is that the audience gets to feel the anguish of Megan’s loved ones. Throughout the episode, we were given bits and pieces of the patient’s story to the point were we are emotionally vested in her outcome. We experience the frustration of the family as Megan’s health deteriorates but we still hope that House will cure her. That hope is thrown back in our faces by a bizarre twist of fate. Someone was saved, but she was a stranger.
And worst of all, but sadly true to character, House didn’t care. In what could have been a poor attempt to comfort the boyfriend at the discovery of this tragic mix-up, he said to him, “Your girlfriend never lied to you.” Even for a fan-girl like me, who feels that House can do no wrong, it came off as callous and uncaring. This brings me to the third missing item from the episode: the little spark of humanity that House keeps hidden from the rest of the world. This was not the House who argued with a patient in the pilot to choose to live with dignity because death is always messy, nor was he the House who heroically lied to a transplant board on behalf of his bulimic patient who needed a new heart, or helped the vegetative state guy protect the heart he wanted to donate to his son when he committed suicide. This House was truly an uncaring bastard who bragged to his boss that he solved the puzzle all by himself.
Article comments
1 - Kaonashi
I feel sorry for those poor, poor interviewees. House will eat them for breakfast.
2 - Householder
Many thanks for your brilliant & insightful review! I look forward to reading more of your blogs...
3 - Ex-House Viewer
Big disappointment. Watched 3 seasons but noticed a decline in storyline last year. The writers seem to be running out of fresh ideas. This premiere stunk. I won't be watching House any more.
4 - Vanessa
This was a really great premiere, and I don't think they have been declining, they are definitely rising, but I really don't know how long House M.D. will last on the television. I love this show.
5 - Shirley
I enjoyed the premiere. Especially the interaction between House and Wilson which hadn't been the same for alot of last season.
6 - OJU
I thought the premiere was great! I think they did an excellent job re-establishing the dynamics of the character relationships, so as not jar us into thinking "this is a different show! It's not the same!". It felt really comfortable, but at the same time was moving towards something exciting and fun, but different. I thought the writers did a good job and are going to handle this "House survivor" thing very well. This is quite obviously not the same show that premiered in 2004, I think it has gotten a lot better.
7 - CindyC
Thanks for the comments and encouragement. I am looking forward to the survivor game. I'm sure the Housisms will be flying. And for Ex-House Viewer: I'm sorry you feel that way and I'm curious to know the top three things that you think the show needs to do to keep you as a viewer.
8 - Mary
This episode was, incredibly, based on an actual case that happened in, as I recall, Michigan. The family only found out late in the game that the girl they thought was their daughter was in fact another girl entirely. I remember thinking at the time that it was only a matter of time until someone used it as the basis of a TV episode.
9 - Alex
I enjoyed the episode, and I didn't miss the ducklings at all. I'm ready for a new bunch. House, Wilson, and Cuddy have always been the core of the show for me.
10 - wee_ko
Today the fourth season of House M.D. premieres in Spain, and here I am, spoiling myself! But I have great expectations. Great review 8)
11 - Cassandra
Just started on House. Not much of a tv person. My friend knows how addicted to Blackadder I was so she thought I should see Hugh in another light. Oh, yeah...totally different. Such a good looker too. And the "American accent"? Not so American I think. The shows great. I'm glad that last lot has left though, they were flooding the show with cliche emotional issues.....especially Cameron and Chase. Too much emotion for me. Tell how Season 4 pens out, I'll be waiting for the DVD release. It's so much easier to watch House that way for me, I can overdose on yes, his "spectacularly blue eyes"....his eyes are very very blue and the mini pout is great too.
GOOD GOOD SHOW ......... BEST RIDDANCE OF CLICHES ON TV SO FAR......... HOPE THEY DON'T MAKE HIM ALL FEELINGLY LATER THOUGH!
12 - Danielle
Wow, thanks for getting me connected! I am not much of a TV fan, but got 'addicted' to House in the first season when I was in grad school. I now live in Africa and can't get the video stream on Fox.com to work, so I am just counting the days until Season 4 is available on video! My husband brought me Season 3 on DVD and I never imagined that Cameron, Chase and Foreman would not be back! I also thought it was often too much 'drama and not enough medical mystery' but I did like the team. Anyone know why they were all ousted at once? This blog was posted four months ago; can anyone tell me what their updated feelings on the show are? I have months to go before I can see it!
13 - toni
love house cant wait for season four keep goin