What would it be like if, instead of being his grumpy and mean self, House were nice and happy?

This week on House:”The Softer Side,” we got a taste of exactly that -a happy, cordial, even smiling House, something that in his case, can only be interpreted as an assurance that there must be something terribly wrong.

House’s noticeable change in mood, more than the case itself, becomes the focus of the show early on.

The first clue that says there’s something different about House occurs while he’s having breakfast with Wilson. House asks him if he can take food from his plate. No big deal, you might think. But, this is House we’re talking about–cynical, rude, don’t-ask-for-anyone’s-permission-to-do-anything House. It seemed trivial at the time, but this was the first of many incidents where House’s behavior is evidently “abnormal.”

House displays several other changes in behavior throughout the episode: although he’s extremely perceptive, he doesn’t seem to notice that Foreman and Thirteen’s “bitter breakup” is only an act, and although he never takes anyone’s opinion into account but his own, (especially when it deals with a medical case), he agrees to do an MRI on the patient just because the parents ask him to.

That’s where Kutner draws the line. He goes and tells Wilson that there is something unusual about House’s behavior, but Wilson dismisses him by attributing it to “a great cup of coffee or a tremendous bowel movement.” Eventually, Wilson realizes that there really is something strange going on with House and goes to Cuddy to find out if she has something to do with it.

They conclude that it must be heroin. In the end though, they discover that it wasn’t heroin but methadone (a substance that has similar effects to heroin), which is endangering House’s life.

The case: We learn about the patient through a flashback. A doctor explains to a young couple that their child was born with genetic mosaicism (See “deciphering doc talk” below). He also tells them that they will have to choose the gender they want their child to live with.
Fast forward about 13 years, and we see a boy, Jackson, playing at his school’s basketball game. After he sinks the ball, he winces in pain and collapses.

Cuddy presents the case to House, but warns that the parents have not told their son about his condition and therefore, the team must keep the secret as well.

House treats a boy whose parents have not been honest with him.

During a differential, House says it would be a waste of time to do an MRI on the boy. But then the boy’s parents come in and ask him to do an MRI. He agrees.

The team realizes his symptoms may have something to do with the fact that he recently started receiving testosterone shots and also figure he might have a blind uterus.

The boy also develops signs of liver and kidney diysfunction. At one point, the team believes it has to be due to Zollinger-Ellison or scleroderma, but in the end, House discovers that his symptoms were due to his high consumption of energy drinks. The drinks put a strain on his kidneys and when the team performed an MRI per the parents’ demands, the dye affected the boy’s organs.

Great moments:

The scene where Wilson asks Cuddy whether she had something to do with House’s change of behavior was full of snappy remarks:

“You slept with House. He asked permission before taking my bagel, took the case without a fight, honored the parents’ request…” Wilson tells Cuddy.

“Yes, those were my terms for sleeping with him,” Cuddy replies.

Wilson tries again: “He’s in a good mood.”

And Cuddy fires back “Sex with me would explain that, but it wouldn’t explain why I’m not curled up in a ball, weeping in shame.”

Another great scene was that where House decides to shave. Women across the country are raving on online forums about how sexy it was to see him lather on the shaving cream. Many of his female fans loved his clean-shaven look, while others complain that they prefer his scruffy look and want it back ASAP.

Best lines:

House: “Our new patient. Part girl. Part boy. All Thirteen’s dream date.” (A reference to the fact that patient has ambiguous genitalia and the fact that Thirteen is bisexual)

During the discussion of the case, Kutner confronts House and calls him on the fact that he doesn’t seem attentive:

Kutner: “… we’re considering a diagnosis unrelated to this kid being a shemale, assuming a coincidence like that would usually torture you but you’re completely unfazed.”

House: “Completely unfazed? You think I’m totally lacking in any fazing? The idea that I’m anything less than half-fazed I actually find offensive. It greatly fazes me.”

Later on, after Cuddy and Wilson find House passed out on the couch and Foreman basically brings him back to life, the first thing House does is to look at Cuddy and says:

“I think that my penis stopped breathing, do you know CPR?”

“Looks like your brain is okay,” Cuddy says.

House: “Other than my nurple is now purple (this because Foreman forcefully twists his nipples to wake him up) No wonder you broke up with him (addressing Thirteen). I’m surprised yours is still attached.”

Wilson and Cuddy help House after he faints due to a new and dangerous treatment that eliminates his leg pain.

After Foreman asks Thirteen whether she misses being with other women, she replies:

“Monogamy is like saying you’re never going to have any other ice cream flavor besides rocky road.”

Best scene:

The scene towards the end where Huddy (House and Cuddy) argue about whether he should continue to take methodone to control his pain was absolutely amazing. They have so much chemistry together!

This was their exchange:

Cuddy: “Starting tomorrow, come to my office for your fix.”

House: I’m done with the methadone. I screwed up… I knew he didn’t need it and I did it anyway. That’s what got him sick.

Cuddy: You just solved a case that no one could solve.

House: I created a case. I played nice because I was in a good mood because I didn’t hurt.

Cuddy: You don’t need pain to be a good doctor.

House: “I’m not interested in “good.”

Cuddy: “You’re afraid of being happy.”

House: “Why do you care if I’m happy?”

Cuddy: (She doesn’t reply right away. She looks down and says:) “You’re afraid of change. The one thing you have is your intellect. You think if that’s compromised, you have nothing. Just take it (the pill).”

House: “No.”

Cuddy: “Don’t do this.”

House: “It’s already done. (He throws it away). This is the only me you get.”

Wasn’t that brilliant? The show’s writers really did a great job. After the fact that he actually quit so he could continue taking methadone (Cuddy made him choose between his job and the methadone), it was somehow comforting to know that when it comes down to it, House prefers making the right calls and being able to diagnose his patients correctly, even if it means he has to suffer. Of course, it’s terrible that that’s the price he has to pay, but he’s willing to take it. That says a lot about his character.

Even more telling was the last part of their conversation. When House asks Cuddy why she cares whether he’s happy or not, the tension between them surpassed the TV screen. It was almost like watching a volcano about to erupt. When he asked her that, her eyes said everything he needed to know. The look in her eyes said “because I love you.” Unfortunately, in the end, she doesn’t find the courage to actually tell him that. Instead, there’s an electrifying silence between them, she looks down and comes up with something else. Darn it! Why don’t they just admit it to each other and finally get together? Argh! It’s so frustrating!

My two-cents:
Wow. Awesome episode. This is exactly the kind of episode that the fans love. Great acting, great writing, great everything!

Deciphering doc talk:

Genetic mostaicism: A condition where an individual has both male and female DNA present in his/her genetic makeup.

Trivia

Question: When Taub tells Thirteen that Foreman is like a T-1000, what does he mean?

Answer: This is a reference to the android assassin portrayed by Robert Patrick in Terminator 2: Judgment Day. The android is made of a metal alloy that gives it the the ability to change shape, recover easily from damage and even liquify so that it can walk through narrow spaces and even morph its arms into weapons. Taub compares Foreman to it because of his expression-less face.