Pardon the Interruption: House 7:23 - Moving On

Overall Rating: 9.9

Wow...they actually went there...House has finally completely lost his mind!



Plot Synopsis:

The full details can be found at FOX.com (here).

The Skinny:

My reaction to the events of "Moving On" can be summarized as follows:

• Take a large piece of finely cut poster board.
• Press it firmly into each of your cuticles until you see blood.
• Fill the stinging wounds with lemon juice.
• Pour rubbing alcohol over them.
• That will be more fun than watching this episode. Holy crap!

Seriously...my basic reaction is...to be glad Cuddy is evidently not returning to this show. My co-author and I spoke at some length about our reaction to this episode, and have different reactions to Cuddy's role in House's growing insanity, but here is the bottom line as I see it.

1. Cuddy had a romantic vision about being the one to save House...always has. That's why she hired him when no one else would...that's why she always gave him so much latitude...that's why he was the dominant person between the two according to their mirror syndrome patient...that's why she showed up at his door after "Help Me."
   
2. Cuddy has also, thus far, demonstrated a complete lack of ability to commit to a decision throughout her adult life. There's a reason she waffled back and forth so long about trying tro have a kid, about whether pursuing House was a good idae...and IMHO, a reason she dumped Lucas precisely when they were newly engaged. I think she's a coward...I think cowards shouldn't go chasing metnal tornadoes...and I think she knew this would end badly on some level.
   
3. Cuddy went into this relationship with House with her eyes wide open regarding his problems - she can't have missed the fact that he was about to take a buttload of pills to escape the pain of losing a patient with whom he'd connected on top of the pain of failing to find happiness after "Broken". But at the first sign of a relapse, Cuddy bolted for the door.
   
4. I get that it's a lot to ask of someone to follow through with a decision that might have been in poor judgment to begin with...and I get that the Christian thing to do (supporting the one you love through good times AND BAD...helping them work through their problems and believing that they CAN work through those problems) is not easy for many people. But Cuddy did the worst possible thing she could have done when confronted with his relapse in "Bombshells." She not only broke things off with House just as he was beginning to make REAL substantive changes to his priorities and his self-evaluations...she literally told him there was no hope for him. It wasn't "I need to see some sign from you, House, that you want to work to confront your pain and I'll help you do that...but I can''t date someone who can only deal with pain by using Vicodin"...no...it was "you're an addict, House...you'll always be an addict...you can't face pain sober and that'll never be who you are." Part of truly loving someone is believing that they have the ability to work to better themselves. And ironically...HOUSE WAS DOING THAT! Slowly...painfully...he was getting better!
   
5. This does not absolve House from some of the responsibility here...the healthy reaction to being told by the one you love that she can't be with someone like you is to look at the reasons why she's leaving you and work hard to change them. House chose the...EXACT OPPOSITE approach. Perhaps he could have gotten Cuddy back if he'd have been more willing to meet an urgaent need with urgent action. But he's always been slow to admit to his own faults...filled with pride and coldly logical in his manipulations of other people. Even as he was improving in his relationship with Cuddy, many of his decisions, while healthy in deed, were not pure of spirit. He made changes that pleased Cuddy because he coldly, logically deduced that it was better for him to make that change. Some of his progress with real...but not all. It would have been a long-running struggle to get him to the point where he was truly ready for marriage.
   
6. But this plot demonstrates EXACTLY why you do NOT enter into a romantic relationship with someone - sex and all - simply because some part of you desires things. They ought to show this story to teenagers entering sex ed class. The risks of sex (and relationships in general) go far...far beyond STDs and unwanted pregnancy. They include the emotional damage that impulsiveness such as what Cuddy has displayed all along with House can cause...to the impulsive...and to their impulse. ESPECIALLY for impressionable teens and man-children with emotional problems...it's asking too much to assume that you can get into a relationship, and if it goes poorly, get out of that relationship better off for having tried. Cuddy's irresponsibility and selfishness has landed the one she STILL loves in his first true psychotic break. It's tragic...it makes me want to cry...and it could have been avoided.

There is still some room for my interpretation of the car-crash and subsequent beach scene to be wrong...but to me, it seems almost certain that the beach was a delusion and that House is either unconscious or psychotic now. All because Cuddy "had to know if this could work." Selfish b****. Glad you're leavinfg if that's how you treat people you care about. BYYYEEEEEEEEE!

Naturally, despite all I've said...House had better earn his way back to PPTH...he'd better be in jail or in a nut house for a good long while next season. And he'd better get back off the damned Vicodin. There's no excuse now for Wilson to turn a blind eye to the drug use...I was glad to see him finally take a stand and call back the scripts...glad to see him stand up to House...that's what a real friend does.

A TON happened this week...and a ton is left unresolved pending what seems likely to be the final season of House in 2011/2012...they have my attention.

Writing: 10.0

The path from slow recovery to precipitous downfall was well paved...and very logical. House's chilling conclusion that life "means nothing" and the he himself "feels nothing" left one absolutely convinced that House was one more push away from a straightjacket. And that's where he landed.

Acting: 10.0

hugh Laurie is my God. Period. Just give him the damned Emmy and stop being douchebags, Academy losers.

Message: 9.7

I believe this is all coming down to the show's long-running message AGAINST reason as the only tool for coping with life...AGAINST a lack of faith in something beyond our understanding. And on top of that, we have the new wrinkle...with Taub facing the consequences of his cowardice and infidelity, Thirteen and Chase facing the consequences of playing God...even if it might have been justified rationallty...and Cuddy facing the consequences of serial dating and impulsiveness...we seem to be arguing that heaven and hell are what we make of them in our own souls, and that all of these flawed people are suffering because they refuse to look into their souls to fix what's wrong in their lives. I wholeheartedly approve.