HughLaurie-related stories
Posted Nov 17th 2009 2:06PM by Jane Boursaw
Filed under: OpEd, House, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S06E07) "I'm living my life. For the first time, I'm not going to change that because of how it might affect him -- or you." -- Cuddy to Wilson, who asked her what she sees in Lucas
I just want to shove House and Cuddy into a room together and let them figure out their relationship. It's clear that even though she's trying to be happy in her current relationship, she just can't get House out of her head, no matter how much she declares that she has or is going to.
I feel for her, because once they end up getting together -- if they don't by the time the series ends, I'll be ticked -- she'll have a long road ahead of her. Or not. People change. There's a good heart beating inside House's damaged psyche. It could work.
Continue reading Review: House - Teamwork
Posted Oct 28th 2009 2:11PM by Nick Zaino
Filed under: Animation, Interviews, Reality-Free
Seth Rogen has always enjoyed Halloween specials, from the TGIF line-up when he was a kid up to
The Simpsons' Treehouse of Horror. Tonight, he'll be in his own Halloween special,
Monsters vs. Aliens: Mutant Pumpkins from Outer Space (NBC, 8 PM), based on the Dreamworks animated feature
Monsters vs Aliens.
"I was a nerd and had nothing to do on Friday nights," Rogen says of the TGIF line-up during a conference call with press. "Whenever like the sitcoms would do their Halloween episode, I always enjoyed that for some reason. That always spawned some good comedy."
Continue reading Seth Rogen is back as B.O.B. for Monsters vs Aliens Halloween special
Posted Oct 21st 2009 3:03PM by Nick Zaino
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, TV on DVD, OpEd, British TV
When I was a kid, I remember seeing episodes of a couple of strange British shows on my local PBS affiliate in Rochester, NY. I never caught them regularly, not even sure when they aired, but I remember one of them was a peculiar little period piece with some funny gags, and a storyline I never completely grasped.
I learned later this first show was the classic
Blackadder series with Rowan Atkinson, and the reason the storylines never made sense from show to show is that there are four seasons of the show, all taking place in a different historical period. I saw them out of order, and mostly caught the first season.
Watching the new
Black Adder Remastered - The Ultimate Edition DVD set from BBC America (video and audio both remastered), it's clear the best way to watch
Blackadder is to at least watch each series in order. And if you can watch the whole run in order, so much the better. From the first series set in the Dark Ages to the last set in World War I (
Blackadder Goes Forth), Atkinson's character, Blackadder, remains a scheming coward. But he changes, too.
Continue reading Review: Black Adder Remastered, Fawlty Towers Remastered
Posted Sep 26th 2009 9:25PM by Danny Gallagher
Filed under: Episode Reviews, Reality-Free, Jay Leno
Usually television shows, especially comedies, should try to end a strong note and Jay Leno's Friday show did just that. Well, the last part did.
The interviews were much improved, including the dreaded "Ten@Ten" segment, the comedy worked for the most part and the show finally seems to be fitting around Jay the way a plastic shrink wrapper engulfs its product. Except there are quite a few air bubbles that need pounding.
Continue reading The Jay Leno Show: Hugh Laurie, Lebron James
Posted Sep 23rd 2009 2:07PM by Jane Boursaw
Filed under: Programming, OpEd, House, Reality-Free
We used to be big
House watchers in this house a few years ago. We loved seeing Dr. House be snarky and cynical, and while an addiction to Vicodin is tragic, it was part of who he was. Really, maybe that's part of what addiction is -- it becomes familiar and part of your psyche, and you don't want to give it up. I'm no therapist, though (clearly).
We lapsed with the show as it became more and more predictable, and even the addition of the new team and the
Survivor-like way House picked them wasn't enough to make it must-see TV. We watched only an episode or two last season. House's spiral was sad, and we didn't want to watch it anymore. I know long-running shows have to evolve, but we had lost the old House.
Continue reading Did you want House to stay in the asylum a little longer?
Posted Sep 23rd 2009 9:08AM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: OpEd, House, Reality-Free
I have a problem with procedurals. I tend to get bored with the same formula week in and week out. And yet, I've been enjoying
House for years, despite the incredibly repetitive sequence of events we get every week. The reason for that is because of the brilliance of the character Gregory House, and Hugh Laurie's portrayal of him.
As Jonathan mentioned in his
review of House's season premiere, this two-hour trip into the insane asylum broke the procedural formula completely. Not only did we not see House cure any medical ailments, we didn't see the rest of the cast at all, save a quick cameo by Wilson. Instead, we got a character study and a major breakthrough for House.
But a breakthrough is a beginning. What if the show, like the character, had a transformation of its own? How about a medical-based drama instead of a medical procedural? We can still have cases and House diagnosing them, but dump the weekly formula and instead make it about the characters and their lives.
Continue reading What if House stopped being a procedural?
Posted Sep 22nd 2009 10:00AM by Nick Zaino
Filed under: OpEd, House, Pickups and Renewals, Casting, Reality-Free
I missed
House. Plain and simple, no other show on television makes keeps me guessing what will happen next, and gives a more satisfying payoff, whether I've guessed the twist or not. That was the first thing I thought watching last night's season six premiere episode, "Broken." I'll even forgive the suddenness of a couple of plot twists (Dr. Nolan's father, and how House suddenly had keys to every room in the hospital when he needed a quiet place for a booty call). I know how those things fit into the plot, and I'll let the contrivance slide a bit.
The other thing I thought watching "Broken" was that I also missed Andre Braugher. His character, Dr. Darryl Nolan, was the toughest, smartest I've seen him play since
Homicide. (Note - I haven't seen everything he's done since, so if you have any suggestions on something to seek out, I'll take a look). It's not easy to hold your own onscreen with Hugh Laurie's House. It has been said lot, but it's worth repeating, Laurie is great in the role, and the role itself is one of the best on television (good enough that they named the show after him).
Continue reading More Andre Braugher!
Posted Sep 21st 2009 2:06PM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: OpEd, House, Reality-Free
Hey, Fox! Would you rather lose Hugh Laurie as the curmudgeon Dr. House, or would you rather risk what could happen to the show if he lost that trademark limp? He's been limping around the set for five years now. He's no spring chicken, and the limp is starting to take such a toll on his body, that
Laurie might consider leaving House over it.
"
The show might last through to (season) seven, eight or nine, but I don't know if I will because I'm starting to lose my knees," he said. "It's a lot of hip work. There are things going badly wrong." I've been reading for a few years now about how the limp has been affecting Laurie's actual health and physical well-being. I don't see why Fox doesn't just resolve this problem by eliminating the limp.
I know the chronic pain is supposed to be a facet of his character, but it's season six now. The viewers like him and can accept him as he grows and changes. We'd certainly rather deal with a pain-free House than a
House-free TV schedule.
Posted May 12th 2009 12:08AM by Hemal Jhaveri
Filed under: House, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S05E24) If you've been watching
House for any serious length of time, you know that things are never what they seem. And, moreover, if you've seen any of the previous season finales of the show, you know that there are major fireworks in store. Going off the precedent set by last season's gut wrenching two-parter, "House's Head" and "Wilson's Heart", I was expecting a killer episode. So, for the first 30 minutes, I kept wondering when we were getting to the good stuff. After the final 10 minutes? Well, I reserve the right to change my mind, but after first viewing, it feels like a rotten bait and switch. Follow me after the jump for the big reveal.
Continue reading House: Both Sides Now (season finale)
Posted Apr 28th 2009 12:53PM by Hemal Jhaveri
Filed under: House, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S05E22) So, what's going on inside House's head? We left off last week with House getting a surprise visit from a very dead Amber and she's still around this week, running rampant and unchecked through his life, an eerie hallucination from House's subconscious. For a while it looks like House is onto something good, he has a direct link to the inner workings of his mind, which helps him solve cases and plan bachelor parties. But, that all comes crashing down when the Cut-Throat Bitch (as she was affectionately nicknamed) tries to kill Chase.
Continue reading House: House Divided
Posted Apr 13th 2009 1:40PM by Hemal Jhaveri
Filed under: House, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S05E21)
"You manipulative little bitch ..." House to Wilson.
After last week, we could all use a little breather from epic drama, right? Most of this episode was a complicated and not-too-enlightening game of cat and mouse between various parties that ended up being more amusing than annoying, thankfully. There were a few moments when I felt like I was watching
Grey's Anatomy...and no, I'm not talking about the surprise ending.
Continue reading House: Saviors
Posted Mar 31st 2009 11:01AM by Hemal Jhaveri
Filed under: House, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S05E19) Before we jump into an excellent episode, can someone please tell me what happened in the last minute of this episode, right after House stepped into the elevator and his vision began to get all blurry? It looks like Fox ran
House a minute or two later than normal, once again, because my DVR cut off right in the middle of House talking to Wilson. Did anyone else have this problem? Or is it just time for me to get a new DVR?
Regardless of my minor technical glitches, this was an almost flawless episode that turned the focus back onto medicine and patients, while artfully weaving in the personal stories of the main characters.
Continue reading House: Locked In
Posted Mar 31st 2009 9:03AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: House, Casting, Reality-Free
I adore
Carl Reiner. There. I said it. What are you going to do about it? No, seriously, if there's another actor/writer/director/producer in show business who's made me laugh more than Mr. Reiner, I can't think of him/her right now. He's been one of Hollywood's prime time jewels for six decades. So, the news that
Carl Reiner is guesting on the House season finale makes me very, very happy.
According to the
House powers that be, Mr. Reiner will be a clinic patient at Princeton Plainsboro, and his interaction is slated to be with Dr. Cuddy. Good for Lisa Edelstein!
Continue reading Carl Reiner checking in for House's season finale
Posted Mar 17th 2009 12:29PM by Hemal Jhaveri
Filed under: OpEd, House, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S5E18) "Cats make terrible doctors. Oh wait, that's women." -House We get a break from the angst factory this week. The neurotic and usually enjoyable Judy Greer guest star's as the patient of the week, who arrives at PPH with fake seizures, green pee and a cat that can predict the deaths of old people. With all that, and some light-hearted pranking between House and Kutner, and this episode felt like it should have aired around Halloween, and not near the end of the season.
I enjoyed parts of this episode but didn't get any real dramatic tension from it. Even while crazy cat lady Judy was possibly dying, it was hard to muster up any emotion beside indifference to her situation.
Continue reading House: Here Kitty
Posted Mar 10th 2009 1:48PM by Hemal Jhaveri
Filed under: OpEd, House, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S05E17) This may have been one of the most satisfying episodes of
House I've seen in a long time. The show is almost always compelling, but lately has left me more frustrated than content. Not so this time around. We finally had an interesting and engaging patient; a nice enough family man named Nick, who suddenly loses his social filter and starts spewing every private thought he's ever had. There was little to no Thirteen and Foreman, a smattering of Taub and Kutner, but, best of all, epic amounts of House and Wilson, which, counts for a whole heck of a lot.
Continue reading House: The Social Contract
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