Tonight's Episode

[nightdog_barks]

ANVILS TO THE RIGHT OF ME! ANVILS TO THE LEFT OF ME!

Well. Okay, I liked this episode a little more than I thought I would. Perhaps it was the whole thinking-Masters-might-be-a-psychopath there at the end? Jesus Christ.

Parallels upon parallels until backwards reeled my brain.* Masters is House, I got it. The exposition from Masters' roommate was another clunky anvil, and I wonder how RSL felt explaining the entire backstory of House's leg and Stacy's decision just in order to give the viewers who haven't been watching for X number of years the connection between that story and Masters'. Long sentence is long.

The chickens were cute. Wilson vaulting the balcony wall was awesome. The dog was adorable, although I did flinch when it grabbed the (fake) chicken. And Jesse Spencer was wonderful.

Ferrets, heh.

ETA that here's an interesting video from this episode's writers, talking about Masters-as-House and the ending music.



*Old quote from somewhere about Time magazine's writing style.



Okay, must make dinner.

Comments

[taiga13]

Interesting to think of Masters being House. I've heard that cynics are disillusioned idealists, was House once as idealistic as Masters? But his old bandmate Crandall said that House was always cynical.

[namaste]

See, I figured the point is that she's not like House, despite the supposed parallels of both being geniuses and weird. Fact is, House is OK with bending the rules, as long as it benefits his patient. (and his own curiosity, of course) She can't live with that, so she'll never be what he is, and she's come to a level of understanding and satisfaction (Stones reference not intended) with that.

House, on the other hand, will never be satisfied with anything.

[nightdog_barks]

Maybe I saw her as House-lite. :-)

That lying on the floor business was House, and the closing music, for better or worse, is connected with House. I think she's done things in the past that were Houseian (although I can't think of any at the moment).

[deelaundry]

Ooh, a canon point: This is the first time we've ever heard someone in the show refer to the hospital as "PPTH"! The surgeon said it during his intro to the surgical interns. \o/

[nightdog_barks]

I liked that surgeon. He seemed like a crusty old bastard, and it was fascinating to hear him talk about House.

[namaste]

I'm sure we've seen that surgeon before. Maybe the guy who was fighting with House in "5 to 9?"

[nightdog_barks]

That could be. I looked on IMDB but (of course) that actor wasn't listed.

:-(

[hannah]

Foreman said it last week when he was talking to Taub's not-date.

[blackmare]

Well, I found this week's episode a lot more enjoyable than last week's. I may not love Masters but I can feel her as a character, which I really can't do with Thirteen.

I saw the Hello Obvious Parallel with the whole lying-on-the-floor thing, but to me, even that kind of read as one thread in a tapestry of reasons she wasn't much like House, really. She could do a few of the same things but it didn't matter.

Wilson's exposition speech didn't bug me because, while of course we know what happened to House, Masters didn't know. I ... actually thought it was kind of nice to see this show remembering its history for once.

Maybe I was/am just in an irrationally good mood because the Great Chicken Caper made me happy. House and Wilson playing with one another that way just warms my bitter little heart.

At the end I was glad that Masters came to terms with herself and walked out. They could have had her leave in any number of ways, and this was probably the best possible one.

ETA that if anyone in tonight's episode was supposed to be Housey, it was the patient. Who I liked. But who cared a lot more about going after the Thing in her life, than about her life itself. And who was known to be a pigheaded stubborn git who'd do pretty much anything to have her own way.

[nightdog_barks]

:-)

Just added a link to a video from tonight's writers addressing the Masters-as-House question.

... if anyone in tonight's episode was supposed to be Housey, it was the patient.

Heh. See, I saw her as Masters, pursuing a dream to the detriment of everything else (like any kind of real social life or interaction with other people).

[blackmare]

Hm, nice vid.

I suppose in some ways we were both right. My brain might have been befuzzled by the reappearance of Wilson.

&hearts Wilson &hearts

That last line of his, the triumphant reveal of THAT CHICKEN BELONGS TO DR. GREGORY HOUSE, still kind of has me smiling.

[nightdog_barks]

*beams*

Wasn't that great? That and his pragmatic "What? And lose out on twenty bucks?" made me laugh out loud.

[blackmare]

I loved that, since it was so clear that the bet was about the game, and the reveal that it was only $20 proved beyond a doubt that Wilson was thoroughly enjoying the whole thing.

Ferrets, indeed! They're too stinky, though.

Someone ought to write a story about the Next Bet, and what they settle on for it.

Those two playing pranks and making bets with each other, always seems to bode well for the immediate future of their friendship. It seems to be how they draw one another closer.

[deelaundry]

His last line was actually "Ferrets?" LOLOL

My favorite line of his tonight was, "Emotionally... it was a rough night," because he seemed to be making fun of himself a bit while also teasing House. (And for House to inquire about the chicken in the first place made me smile.)

[blackmare]

Yes, of course you're correct. And the "Ferrets?" thing had me LOLing too.

Agreed about the "rough night" line. Oh, Wilson, never change that sense of humor.

[taiga13]

I was amused by the implication that he stayed up all night comforting the traumatized chicken! I'm sure he didn't but that's what the "emotionally, it was a rough night" line sounded like.
One thing that puzzled me: why does Masters want to be a surgeon? That choice of specialty surprised me.

[deelaundry]

I was amused by the same thing, and it seemed to me that Wilson was laughing at himself a bit. ♥ ♥ ♥

[taiga13]

Well, he has the free time, since he and his department weren't TREATING THE CANCER PATIENT!

[topaz_eyes]

Really, Masters was House in this? Only superficially. If anything, she had the Stacy/Cuddy role with the PotW. And her decision to walk away from House was very much like Stacy's.

I'm surprised House approved of what Masters did, given he'd been in the PotW's situation. Maybe this means he's come to terms with his infarction.

[nightdog_barks]

Really, Masters was House in this?

The writers of the episode seemed to think so. :-)

I agree that she was also playing the Stacy/Cuddy role, but to me her other actions -- the lying on the floor to think, her genius-level intellect, her continued social awkwardness, her dedication to finding a diagnosis, all paint her as House. Plus, what music do TPTB give her for her exit? The song most associated with House. I was thinking late last night that she's also John House, with her constant disapproval of dishonesty. She's a bundle of different characters (characterizations?), but to me she was Mostly House. Or House Lite, as I mentioned to Namaste upstream. :-D

House really did seem remarkably blasé about Masters' actions, and that surprised me too. I don't know what to think about that.

[topaz_eyes]

I saw the interview. I'm not really buying. :-)

I agree that she was also playing the Stacy/Cuddy role, but to me her other actions -- the lying on the floor to think, her genius-level intellect, her continued social awkwardness, her dedication to finding a diagnosis, all paint her as House.

Superficially that's all true. However, her defining trait was her honesty and strict adherence to ethics, which set her up as the anti-House from the start. I do agree with the writers that her story was a coming-of-age. I don't think it means she's House, because she rejects him, in the end.

I wasn't keen on the exit music for Masters, either, until just now. She needed to fall, to gain perspective that ethics are (sometimes) situational, not always absolute.