(Season One, Episodes 13 – 16)
It took me a couple of episodes to get behind the introduction of Edward Vogler, but by the end of these four, I was. You’ll see that I didn’t think he was necessary when first introduced, but he grew on me. It’s odd, considering what these doctors do each week, but his hard-nosed, and back handed, tactics have raised the states of what goes down in the halls of Princeton-Plainsboro.
“Cursed”
Guest star mention of the week goes to the father of the victim, Nestor Carbonell. Most well known around these parts as Lost‘s Richard Albpert, but he’s my first pick to play Khan, should JJ Abrams and company choose to include him in the next Star Trek movie. Here, he did a good job of being the blustering father, but the look of fear that flashed on his face when his son’s airway started to close was very subtly, and brilliantly, played.
House picking fun at the Doctors Chase was quite a bit of fun. It was a bit odd that the elder would get consulting privileges so very quickly, but I guess writing the book on auto-immune diseases does get you in the door rather easily. I had just expected them to address it more directly.
“Control”
“Billionaires buy movie studios to get laid. They buy hospitals to get respect.” Wilson’s assessment of the new Chairman of the Board is interesting … I don’t yet get what Vugler is bringing to the table, other than being another antagonist for House. Frankly, I don’t see the need. Its not like he’s got to go looking for someone to fight with, all he needs to do is open his office door.
House’s moral dilemma (Those are three words I hadn’t expected to write in this column) about lying to the transplant committee about Carly’s bulimia raises interesting questions. I would assume that exclusion criteria is in place to ensure that organs go where they will do the most good, or, by extension, who deserves them most. Its seems to me a very objective way to make a subjective decision. Its always fun, though, when House makes a personal connection with the patients.
“Mob Rules”
The Vogler arc has started to grow on me. I like Chi McBride a lot, and I think he’s doing a great job at making me not like his character. I get that you’ve got to run hospitals like businesses, but I also know that in business, it’s acceptable, sometimes even preferable, to have non-profitable departments. Ask Sony, for example, what kind of profit it makes on selling PS3s right now. I have no doubt, however, that our team will be broken up, at least not for long.
Ok, I know this is a nitpick, but I can be the king of the nitpick when I want to be. Is there a particular reason that the whiteboard that they use keeps going back and forth between a clearboard and a whiteboard?
“Heavy”
While the case of the week was interesting, its hard to talk about anything that happened in this episode other than Vogler. At this point, it looks much more like he’s got a personal vendetta against House more than anything else. Getting moles, playing the team against each other … these are all the machinations of a man holding a grudge of some kind, and not one just trying to make sound business decisions. House’s offer to take a 17% (along w/ the rest of his team) is a rather big sacrifice.
Where can the story arc go from here? I know enough about the show to know that the team stays, and Vogler will eventually go. How that all will play out remains to be seen. I don’t know how long it will last, but the intrigue has been fun.
Vol. One: Diary of a House virgin – Wait, that doesn’t sound right
Vol. Two: Diary of a House Virgin – Still picking up steam
Vol. Three: Diary of a House virgin – lies, damn lies, and guest stars
Clacked by Ivey West 
on Jul 09, 2009 @ 09:00 EST5EDT
