DVD Reviews

House, M.D.: Season Seven – Blu-ray Review

By Patrick Luce Sep 4, 2011, 16:14 GMT

He\'s sarcastic, incorrigible, bitter and in a relationship? Hugh Laurie returns in all 23 Season Seven episodes of House, the role that earned him 5 Primetime Emmy(R) Award nominations and 2 Golden Globe(R) wins. Dr. Gregory House has spent his career taking on seemingly hopeless cases, but when his rapport with Dr. Lisa Cuddy (Lisa Edelstein) changes, he finds himself facing new - and very different - challenges. His team ...more

Dr. House is back and he is in love. He is also drug free and in a good mood. Or at least, in as good a mood as House can be. Naturally, this doesn’t last the whole season, and by the last episode the pill-popping, cranky doctor we all love is back – which is not necessarily a good thing.

In its seventh season, the series is starting to show its age a bit, but the cast keep you loving (or hating) the characters and watching episode after episode just to see how crazy House will get (the chicken contest is easily one of the funniest episodes of the season).

The season also gets a boost from a recurring guest appearance from Amber Tamblyn as House’s new  goodie med student Martha M. Masters who cannot tell a lie and Candice Bergen appearing in a few episodes as Cuddy’s very overbearing mother Arlene Cuddy – who has a great clash with House during a not to be missed dinner episode.

The season kicks off with romance as Hugh Laurie's Dr. Gregory House is spending some quality time in bed with the love of his life Dr. Lisa Cuddy (Lisa Edelstein). The two have finally expressed their love for each other, and now are left with answering the question of what to do next.

While House and Cuddy are feeling the love, Dr. Eric Foreman (Omar Epps), Dr. Robert Chase (Jesse Spencer), Dr. Chris Taub (Peter Jacobson), and Dr. Remy 'Thirteen' Hadley (Olivia Wilde) are left trying to solve the case of the week. House's soulmate, Dr. James Wilson (Robert Sean Leonard), also tries to discover if House is off the wagon, and fears the worse when House confesses Cuddy is in his bed (she was actually in the closet).

The first part of the season focuses on House and Cuddy trying to discover if they can make a relationship work and if their professional life can survive their personal life. It is clear to see the relationship is doomed since House can’t help but do what he believes is right and Cuddy can’t help but expect too much from a man she knows is damaged. Still, there are some great laughs as House tries to be a good boyfriend and even bond with Cuddy’s daughter.

Along with the House/Cuddy relationship, the season follows the mysterious disappearance of Thirteen (who reportedly leaves to go take part in an experimental treatment but is actually some place less lovely) and the arrival of Tamblyn’s Masters.

Tamblyn’s Masters character is easily the most fun aspect of Season Seven as her goodie routine (she can’t tell a lie) clashes with House’s style. It is also fun to see how House is driven to push her buttons and even corrupt her – leaving her possibly forever damaged by the end of the season.

The men of House also get some of the focus in Season Seven as Taub’s marriage crumbles and he is forced to move in with Foreman so for a new version of The Odd Couple (give them a spinoff show and it could be comedy gold!).

Chase is a man of action this season and seems to be working his way through the hospital nurses and pretty much any other woman that has a guest appearance on the show. He gets a lesson in payback as one of his one-night-stands post a rather unflattering picture of him on the net and begins to turn his life upside down.

Along with all the season long subplots, House and his team have to solve the medical mystery of the week, and are able to solve the mystery right before the time is up – normally through someone saying some comment to House as the camera goes in tight on Laurie’s face.

This last minute save via something someone says has been the formula of House for several seasons now and it is really starting to hurt the show. I have been a fan of the series since Season One and I will continue to watch, but wish it could break some of the routine.

The addition of Tamblyn’s Masters and some of the changes to Taub and Chase keep the supporting characters important to the show, but House/Cuddy/Wilson are still the main focus. Laurie owns this character but Leonard and Edelstein are a big reason why the character is so great to watch. Throwing Cuddy and House into a love relationship didn’t hurt the series as much as I thought it would, but I did find myself counting the episodes until the predictable demise.

As sad as it might be, House is a character that needs to be a loner and miserable. A happy drug-free House just isn’t as entertaining as the pill-popping doc who is quick with an insult to a dying patient.

Like past seasons on DVD, Season Seven comes loaded with special features that take you into the show. They include A Beginner's Guide to Diagnostic Medicine; commentary; a look at the Martha Masters character"; "Huddy Dissected"; a breakdown of an episode "Anatomy of An Episode: 'Bombshells'"; and a look at the return of Thirteen.

House might be starting to show its age, but the series is still entertaining thanks to its incredible cast. The season features some great guest appearances and a gives some of the supporting characters more of the spotlight. It still has a formulaic feel to the basic episodes, but leaves you counting down for Season Eight.

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