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'House' Recap: 'The Tyrant'

October 6th, 2009 12:08pm EDT  Post a comment    3 comments   Add to My News

HouseOh "House," you think you can seduce me back into your loving arms by giving an episode so reminiscent of season one? Well you're right. That's exactly how to do it. Remember in season one when House wasn't just a jerk but a medical genius who wasn't good with people, and he had these three young doctors under him that were all really different and steadily well developed? And back then the cases weren't always about shock value but sometimes about serious questions in the medical practice, and choices that House and the team had to make. Like the episode with the baby plague where House knew one of the babies would have to die to save the others, and everyone watching cried for about a week. We're back to that, and they may just be trying to woo us, but it's working!

Cameron and Chase are back on the team with Foreman until he can hire a new team, since Taub quit and he stupidly fired his girlfriend to 'save their relationship.' If Foreman treated his team the way he treats Cameron and Chase, with respect and honesty (most of the time), he wouldn't have had to fire 13 and maybe Taub would've wanted to stay. In any case, House is back too but he can't really be a part of the case since his license is still revoked. So he's just there as an advisor; House has more important things to do this episode. He's going to fight with his shadow self for Wilson's hand in marriage. Or something like that.

Actually, the shadow self is a veteran downstairs who is in pain all the time from his phantom limb and therefore hates everyone and everything. He likes to make other people miserable and snaps at Wilson that House is too loud and disruptive. Sound familiar? So new House kind of goes old school on him at first by breaking into his home and trying to blackmail him, but this really doesn't work. Wilson has to kick House out, so House tries that whole 'not being a psychotic ass' thing and manages to solve the guy's phantom limb pain. Because he's a genius doctor! Yay! Of course he kidnaps the guy to do it and ties him up first, but it works. For anyone interested, he uses the Vilayanur Ramachandran mirror box theory. Look it up.

Really this episode is about the original ducklings, and since the writers have ignored Cameron and Chase mostly for two years, they're trying to make up for it now. The patient of the week is an evil dictator played by James Earl Jones (!!!) and this brings up all kinds of moral ambiguity for the team. Chase brings up a similar case before, where they had to treat someone on death row, and Cameron is not having it. This is a genocidal murderer and she wants him dead ... although she doesn't intend to actually put him in the ground. Just smirk and secretly hope for it. Chase is trying to be a little more open minded, even running to warn the dictator when he thinks a murder attempt is being made.

House (Hugh Laurie, L) presents Cameron (Jennifer Morrison, R) and the team the case of President Dibala, the leader
of an African nation who is admitted to Princeton Plainsboro © FOX

While House enjoys mocking his old team and giving advice, mostly by proving how much smarter he is than them and doing hilarious over-the-top charades, Foreman is struggling with his role. He knows he's not as smart as House so he suspects the position will be given back to the curmudgeon soon. He tries to get Thirteen back on his side, which almost works, but then she brings up that he didn't even consider quitting himself to keep their relationship. He's like 'duh, no, I'm more important than you' and she storms off. It's the first time I've liked her in awhile, you go girl!

The medical mystery is not the big problem in this episode, no, it comes down to a rather disastrous and controversial choice. Chase and James Earl Jones have a serious heart to heart, after the dictator basically tells Cameron to kill him or suck it up already. She decides to do the latter and is reassured she's not a murderer after all. Too bad her husband gets the opposite memo. When James Earl Jones admits he will probably cause a genocide back home and kill thousands of people, Chase has an inner war that comes out on the side of 'kill the bastard.' He fakes a test so the team thinks the dictator has one thing, and when they go to treat him for that, he dies of something else. Foreman figures it out once House pushes him to look into the reasons, and he confronts his friend. Chase looks awful and tormented and acknowledges there will be awful consequences for his actions. He means to his heart and soul, but probably physically as well since he'd go to jail if it was found out. Foreman burns the evidence, but this is by no means the end.

"House" used to have these interesting dilemmas all the time, making you question the character's choices and whether or not you would do the same in that position. Would you allow one baby to die to save the others? Would you save the life of the man your long lost love married? Should you ignore a DNR if you can save their life? It still has these big overhanging questions week to week, but sometimes the show gets lost in its main character and his eccentric nature. Which is fine, but it's nice to have more of a balance again between the medicine and the characters. It was great to see the old team back together. They have such an easy and real chemistry between them.

So what do you think? Did Chase do the right thing or the wrong thing? Is there any gray zone for murder? Should Foreman turn him in?

"House" is on FOX Monday nights at 8 PM EST.

Bookmark our 'House' News page & check back for regular episode recaps & news!

Dee Doyle
Story by Chelsea Doyle
Starpulse contributing writer

Follow Chelsea on twitter at http://twitter.com/mustbethursday.



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