House’s creator believed that his favorite episode could not be topped, but two episodes must have proved him wrong.Houseis widely regarded as one ofthe best TV shows of all time, and Gregory House became Hugh Laurie’s defining role. The show centers on the titular Dr. House, who is antagonistic and irritable. That said, he is a diagnostic genius, and each episode focuses on a medically complex case that House and his team must race against time to solve. One criticism of the show is that House seemed infallible, but that was not always true.
A harsh reality of rewatchingHouseis realizing just how arrogant House really is, and he does not always get things right. While his diagnostics were usually correct, he tended to fail spectacularly when it came to his personal life. His relationships with both Cuddy and Wilson formed much of the tension as the show progressed, and he rarely trusted his team. Still, in season 1, House was shown to make a medical error which affected the rest of his life, and this episode is often considered one ofthe bestHouseepisodes of all time.
David Shore Didn’t Think House Would Ever Top “Three Stories”
“Three Stories” Worked On Its Own, And In The Greater House Context
An Emmy Award-winning episode, “Three Stories,” shows House presenting three different leg injury cases with similar symptoms to his students, without telling them that one of the cases is his own. This episode is where we find out what happened to House’s legal, as it had not been explained before that point.The show’s creator, David Shore, named it his favoriteHouseepisodein a behind-the-scenes featurette.Shore didn’t think he’d top Three Stories, saying,“Unfortunately, I don’t think I’m going to top that in my career, but hopefully. We’ll see."
Househad some extremely funny moments, which were often related to House’s outrageous behavior, and “Three Stories” contained many of these. House changed his stories and illustrated the patients' accounts of their symptoms by using exaggerated actors, including Carmen Electra, to make the cases “more interesting” for the students.The episode stands on its own as a window into why House is the way he is, explaining the painful backstory to his injury.
Both Episodes Gave Other House Characters A Chance To Shine
“Three Stories” gave us more insight into House’s mental state and bitterness about his leg, but in season 4, the episodes “House’s Head” and “Wilson’s Heart” arguably topped it through their emotional impact. The two episodes form a two-parter, and the first begins with a sinister bus crash that House knows he must have been involved in, but he can’t remember. All House knows is that a patient is gravely ill and needs help. Unfortunately, he realizes at the last moment in House’s Head that the patient is Amber, leading into “Wilson’s Heart”, which containsone ofHouse’s darkest scenes.
Hugh Laurie was nominated for an Emmy Award for his performance in “House’s Head,” but lost to Bryan Cranston forBreaking Bad.
As the most intriguing character in the show,House generally stole any scene that he was in with his confidence and professional expertise. However, both “House’s Head” and “Wilson’s Heart” showed him without either, and unsure of himself. This allowed the other characters to shine, including the controversial Amber. These two areHouseepisodes that are considered masterpieces, as other characters were allowed to put their feelings ahead of House’s for once.
House’s Three Most Iconic Episodes Share One Important Trait
All Three Of These Episodes Changed The Show Forever
One criticism ofHouseis that the show could be very formulaic. Usually, a patient showed worrying symptoms, and the team tried to diagnose them before the patient got worse, and then House stepped in with the answer. “Three Stories,” “House’s Head,” and “Wilson’s Heart” all break this formula and show that House is not infallible.House is embellishing the stories in “Three Stories,” and has no memory in “House’s Head,” giving the episodes an unreliable narrator, who is usually a patient rather than House himself.
“Three Stories,” “House’s Head,” and “Wilson’s Heart” are three of theepisodes that changedHouseforever. House’s leg pain is central to his character, and “Three Stories” gives context to his moody and bitter behavior. “House’s Head” and “Wilson’s Heart” show the way House works to solve cases, but then add the terrible twist that some people cannot be saved. He then has to deal with the fact that he is the reason that Amber was on the bus, affecting his relationship with Wilson and changing the trajectory ofHouse.
