House: 7x23 "Moving On" - Discussion and Spoilers

[Robert Maxwell]

They'll probably go Magnum P. I. and have next season be all about House figuring out he killed himself of a drug overdose after this season's finale. I just can't realistically see House going back to work at the hospital after the events of this season's finale; House would have to be delusional to think he could go back after that.

This is television. It wouldn't be the first time that a TV character has committed wildly illegal or immoral acts and then gotten off the hook for them in order to continue as a series regular. Heck, that describes half the characters in Joss Whedon's canon alone.

Apples and oranges. Whedon's shows involve blatantly fantastical concepts from the outset, so discrepancies with "real world" legal practices hardly measure on the radar.

House is supposed to be grounded in reality with a legal system that functions more or less like the one in the "real world." House has done a lot of stupid things over the years but has generally been clever enough to get away with it, and has also avoided maliciously harming others (or attempting to.)

I don't see any amount of cleverness that would get him out of this, given the multiple eyewitnesses and that Cuddy wouldn't be particularly interested in protecting him anymore.

Him having to pay restitution and spend 30 days in the clink doesn't seem like an unreasonable outcome. If he pled guilty he could probably get fourth degree reckless endangerment.

Him going back to work at the hospital is another matter, though. If Cuddy is written out as having quit over the whole thing, then House has no one protecting him and I imagine a lot of the other staff would be bitter toward him about it (as if they didn't dislike him enough already.)

 

[Snaploud]

The big problem with any after-the-fact rationalization (about House checking the window to make sure nobody was there) is that Cuddy's daughter could have been playing under the window. Unless the writers are planning to have House work from a jail-house for the rest of the show...I find it hard to believe House will be working on any cases with the rest of the doclings anytime soon.

As for the connection with Whedon shows: it seems the House writers are playing off a Whedon-like tendency to destroy (or otherwise inhibit) happy relationships. It's a crutch too many writers use, and I hate the resulting lack of healthy relationships on tv as a result.

 

[Robert Maxwell]

The big problem with any after-the-fact rationalization (about House checking the window to make sure nobody was there) is that Cuddy's daughter could have been playing under the window. Unless the writers are planning to have House work from a jail-house for the rest of the show...I find it hard to believe House will be working on any cases with the rest of the doclings anytime soon.

As for the connection with Whedon shows: it seems the House writers are playing off a Whedon-like tendency to destroy (or otherwise inhibit) happy relationships. It's a crutch too many writers use, and I hate the resulting lack of healthy relationships on tv as a result.

Conflict is the essence of drama. Happy relationships are boring. If two characters have a happy, functional relationship, don't expect it to get much screen time.

 

[Christopher]

Apples and oranges. Whedon's shows involve blatantly fantastical concepts from the outset, so discrepancies with "real world" legal practices hardly measure on the radar.

Beside the point. Just because Whedon's shows were the first examples I thought of, that doesn't mean they're the only examples, not by a very, very long shot. There are plenty of other shows, in every genre, where the protagonists commit acts that would get them arrested or institutionalized, but have those acts forgiven because they "got the job done" in the process, or simply because they're the leads and have hero immunity. TV Tropes has several categories that cover this: Hero Insurance, Saved By The Awesome, Get Out of Jail Free Card. Not to mention Status Quo is God. The show is called House. Hugh Laurie is the star. And it's a doctor show, not a prison show. Therefore, House will be excused for his actions here and be back solving medical cases within at most three episodes. The realities of series television trump realism every time.

House is supposed to be grounded in reality with a legal system that functions more or less like the one in the "real world." House has done a lot of stupid things over the years but has generally been clever enough to get away with it, and has also avoided maliciously harming others (or attempting to.)

Ahh, but if the show really were realistic about the legalities, House and his staff would've been disbarred or arrested years ago for all the legal and ethical violations they've committed. People on this board have commented on that many times in the past.

 

[Robert Maxwell]

Apples and oranges. Whedon's shows involve blatantly fantastical concepts from the outset, so discrepancies with "real world" legal practices hardly measure on the radar.

Beside the point. Just because Whedon's shows were the first examples I thought of, that doesn't mean they're the only examples, not by a very, very long shot. There are plenty of other shows, in every genre, where the protagonists commit acts that would get them arrested or institutionalized, but have those acts forgiven because they "got the job done" in the process, or simply because they're the leads and have hero immunity. TV Tropes has several categories that cover this: Hero Insurance, Saved By The Awesome, Get Out of Jail Free Card. Not to mention Status Quo is God. The show is called House. Hugh Laurie is the star. And it's a doctor show, not a prison show. Therefore, House will be excused for his actions here and be back solving medical cases within at most three episodes. The realities of series television trump realism every time.

House is supposed to be grounded in reality with a legal system that functions more or less like the one in the "real world." House has done a lot of stupid things over the years but has generally been clever enough to get away with it, and has also avoided maliciously harming others (or attempting to.)

Ahh, but if the show really were realistic about the legalities, House and his staff would've been disbarred or arrested years ago for all the legal and ethical violations they've committed. People on this board have commented on that many times in the past.

Thirteen actually did go to jail, you know.

 

[Snaploud]

The big problem with any after-the-fact rationalization (about House checking the window to make sure nobody was there) is that Cuddy's daughter could have been playing under the window. Unless the writers are planning to have House work from a jail-house for the rest of the show...I find it hard to believe House will be working on any cases with the rest of the doclings anytime soon.

As for the connection with Whedon shows: it seems the House writers are playing off a Whedon-like tendency to destroy (or otherwise inhibit) happy relationships. It's a crutch too many writers use, and I hate the resulting lack of healthy relationships on tv as a result.

Conflict is the essence of drama. Happy relationships are boring. If two characters have a happy, functional relationship, don't expect it to get much screen time.

I don't expect the happy relationships to get a lot of screen time, but it's important that we have examples of strong relationships on television. It's annoying when even side-relationships get destroyed for the sake of a little more drama.

There are also ways of showing difficulties in a relationship without the end result being divorce/death/violence/etc. We're getting near the end of House's run. Is it really so horrible for the "drama" that we start to see House having something approaching a happy, functional relationship? It's not as if I expect the transition to be easy for him.

 

[Robert Maxwell]

The big problem with any after-the-fact rationalization (about House checking the window to make sure nobody was there) is that Cuddy's daughter could have been playing under the window. Unless the writers are planning to have House work from a jail-house for the rest of the show...I find it hard to believe House will be working on any cases with the rest of the doclings anytime soon.

As for the connection with Whedon shows: it seems the House writers are playing off a Whedon-like tendency to destroy (or otherwise inhibit) happy relationships. It's a crutch too many writers use, and I hate the resulting lack of healthy relationships on tv as a result.

Conflict is the essence of drama. Happy relationships are boring. If two characters have a happy, functional relationship, don't expect it to get much screen time.

I don't expect the happy relationships to get a lot of screen time, but it's important that we have examples of strong relationships on television. It's annoying when even side-relationships get destroyed for the sake of a little more drama.

There are also ways of showing difficulties in a relationship without the end result being divorce/death/violence/etc. We're getting near the end of House's run. Is it really so horrible for the "drama" that we start to see House having something approaching a happy, functional relationship? It's not as if I expect the transition to be easy for him.

House is not a happy, functional person, so I wouldn't expect him to be capable of a happy, functional relationship.

 

[Christopher]

Thirteen actually did go to jail, you know.

Only because of Real Life Writing the Plot. Olivia Wilde needed time off to film Tron Legacy and Cowboys and Aliens, so they needed to write her out of the show for most of a season, and throwing her in prison let them do that. But obviously they need to keep House as the star of the show, so he's not going to get sent to prison no matter what he does, unless it's just for a brief stint between seasons.

 

[Robert Maxwell]

Thirteen actually did go to jail, you know.

Only because of Real Life Writing the Plot. Olivia Wilde needed time off to film Tron Legacy and Cowboys and Aliens, so they needed to write her out of the show for most of a season, and throwing her in prison let them do that. But obviously they need to keep House as the star of the show, so he's not going to get sent to prison no matter what he does, unless it's just for a brief stint between seasons.

I dunno, a "House in prison" arc could beat the "House in mental hospital" arc.

 

[Christopher]

^But he was only in a mental hospital for two episodes. They're willing to vary the formula, but only for so long.

 

[Avalon]

Maybe he'll end up as the janitor in some other hospital...and when they're stumped, they'll have to listen to him...

 

[JarodRussell]

The big problem with any after-the-fact rationalization (about House checking the window to make sure nobody was there) is that Cuddy's daughter could have been playing under the window. Unless the writers are planning to have House work from a jail-house for the rest of the show...I find it hard to believe House will be working on any cases with the rest of the doclings anytime soon.

As for the connection with Whedon shows: it seems the House writers are playing off a Whedon-like tendency to destroy (or otherwise inhibit) happy relationships. It's a crutch too many writers use, and I hate the resulting lack of healthy relationships on tv as a result.

Conflict is the essence of drama. Happy relationships are boring. If two characters have a happy, functional relationship, don't expect it to get much screen time.

Noone ever tried that, though.

 

[AJBryant]

This was a little too far out for me. Understand him being pissed and all, having his cathartic moment or whatever, but this was too much. When he last looked in the window, all 4 of them were at that table (didn't see Rachel). Drove away, didn't see in the window for a minute, then put his car straight through the house. Could have easily killed all 4 (or 5) of them, and had no way of know that as he sped towards the house.

No way that's excusable, and seems a pretty open/shut case of attempted murder and serious jail time.

I agree with all of this.

Holy crap.

If there are not some SERIOUS legal ramifications marking most of the next season, this will be a major shark-jumping moment.

That *was* attempted murder. I don't care what he may have been THINKING it was, but last time he looked in that window there were four people sitting there, and he rammed that window with his car. Even if the window was the next room, they were moving around, and he had no knowledge they wouldn't be in THAT room. That's depraved indifference. and that's attempted vehicular murder, at least four counts.

COunt me as one of those who officially no longer cares for House, or what he does or what he says. For some time now I've been right on the edge of barely tolerating the incredible misanthropy and obnoxiousness and illegality that is Gregg House, and wondering how anyone can tolerate being around him -- his magical diagnostic skills notwithstanding. No more. He's an ass, and should go to jail for some serious time for his drug use, forgery of another doctor's name on the scrips, theft and misappropriation of hospital property (and use of experimental drugs), etc.

 

[sojourner]

Everyone's missing the obvious out the writers can use - a time jump of a year or two with about 20 minutes of the first episode bringing us up to speed.

 

[JarodRussell]

If Cuddy goes, I can see Wilson getting the job.

 

[CorporalClegg]

Bring on Jail House Doc!

 

[od0_ital]

I say they rename the show "Beach House" and have Hugh Laurie offerin' medical advice from the barstool, while usin' the drink specials chalkboard to map out what's what...

If Cuddy goes, I can see Wilson getting the job.

If? Ya do know the actress was let go from the series, right?

 

[sojourner]

"let go" or "left"?

 

[od0_ital]

^

From what I read, she was offered a contract with a massive pay cut, and didn't agree to it. Obviously a tactic by the producers to get her to leave.

When your boss says "take a pay cut or get fired," you're bein' let go.

 

[Trekker4747]

I suspect they'll get her for at least a one-episode guest-star role to send her character off next season.