The past two episodes of “House” have been some of the best in the show’s history. Naturally one gets suspicious of when a show abandons its trademark storytelling style for a new, unfamiliar gimmick. However, “House” has been one of the few shows that have been enormously successful with their standout, out-of-the-box episodes. For example, one of the former season finales featured House getting shot, and living in a strange dreamlike state for most of the episode. This season finale adopted a similar narrative technique, and I found it to be quite enjoyable.
In the preceding episode, House awakens to uncover that he was a victim of a horrific bus crash and he comes to the shocking realization that he has lost several hours of valuable memory. He obsessively attempts to recount the symptoms of a particular passenger, eventually coming to the conclusion that it is the bus driver. Unfortunately, House soon learns through his subconscious mind that Amber was on the bus with him and she was critically injured. During the second half of the season finale, House is pushed to the limits to try to save Amber, but the inevitable occurs and she passes away in Wilson’s arms.
I enjoyed the flashes into House’s subconscious and the subsequent effects of his drug induced hallucinations. House is one of those characters that I just wish I could delve into his mind and see how the brilliance clicks; to see that light bulb turn on. Thanks to the creative dialogue and direction of this episode, the journey into House’s mind was completely accessible to the viewing audience. Unfortunately, there were a few points where the flashes were somewhat overdone and potentially unnecessary. I felt that the writers and directors were perhaps having a little too much fun with this narrative style and abused it a little. Nevertheless, the end result was never short of entertaining and moving.
The character developments were also extremely fascinating. House often masks his emotions and feelings with sarcasm, but he clearly desires and values Wilson’s friendship. It was certainly a different experience to see House wrought with grief over Wilson’s ill feelings toward him on account of Amber’s death. Thirteen also took an interesting turn in this episode. Normally she remains as passive as possible, yet she became emotional and her work suffered as a result. Perhaps as she saw a young female doctor approach death, she felt her future might end the same way. Kutner’s detached emotional state was explained when he revealed that he witnessed both of his parents get killed when he was six years old. This episode certainly dealt with a lot of character exposition, yet remarkably the pace never slowed.
However, the most moving moment of the episode was the farewell between Wilson and Amber. I had never really liked Amber’s character during the beginning of the season, but when she was revealed as Wilson’s secret love interest, I have to admit that she kind of grew on me. Like a mean, itchy fungus perhaps… Anyways, this could have been the one relationship that Wilson wouldn’t sabotage into a disaster like his former marriages, but apparently it wasn’t meant to be. I was nearly moved to tears by the bedside goodbye between the two of them. Exceptional acting.
Another noteworthy occurrence is the presence of Foreman, Chase, and Cameron. I do enjoy the new doctors, but I believe that the heart of the show lies with the original team. Hopefully the original team will remain into the forefront of the show and perhaps return to their former status. Overall, this was an exceptional episode with very few flaws. The acting was beyond superb. I give this episode a 9/10
