5.05 - Lucky Thirteen

There are several problems with the approach. One is the introduction of a character that plays everything so close to the vest that she is essentially unknowable. A good actor can make up for this tell not show deficiency by offering something interesting in the background or any other visual clue that there may be more beneath an intentionally blank surface Very well put, bailey. In all fairness OW probably isn't the worst actress in the world (though at times I sure feel like she is), but the role she's been thrust into requires someone who's really, really good at those subtle visual cues to pull it off. I should have been invested in her character's plight last night-instead I was shocked to learn that I was a mere 20 minutes into the ep when I was sure I had been watching for a good forty-five.

Very well put, bailey. In all fairness OW probably isn't the worst actress in the world (though at times I sure feel like she is), but the role she's been thrust into requires someone who's really, really good at those subtle visual cues to pull it off. No, that little girl on "Small Wonder" was infinitely worse. The other problem with having an unknowable, unfriendly character is that its impossible to know what her baseline for behavior actually is. Was she out clubbing and picking up strangers before? Who knows? She certainly didn't appear as though this was the first time she'd done that and her reaction from drug use wasn't terribly unusual from how she normally behaves. I mean, if the show implied that Cuddy was all of a sudden hanging out in clubs all night and having random flings, then I'd sit up and take notice. 13? Who the hell knows? Her "spiral" was far from convincing.

I'm pretty sure "art" went out the window when the uncut preview was blasted all over the internet with the description of "watch OW get it on!" It was marketing and pandering to the lowest common denominator. Art, it ain't. I don't do the spoiler thing, and I didn't spend god knows how long talking about in spoiler discussion threads, so it didn't seem overly done to me. I'm just judging on what was aired. Is it really fair to judge the actual show that was broadcast to some 12 million viewers (plus another 3-4 million via DVR) based on 'net hype that only a very small percentage of them may have been aware of, even less seen? I've said before that I think obsessing over spoilers almost kills the actual watching of the show for me. When you don't like an arc or a character, knowing that something will focus on them becomes something like going to the dentist ... the anticipation makes the actual procedure that much worse. It's the downside to the 'net phenomenon because rather than talking about what you have seen, you end up pre-judging what you might see.

So while I agree that a dying doctor presents a multitude of opportunities and compare/contrast themes to House, their approach is so mind-numbingly awful that I can't even rally around the general idea. I wonder how much better this would be if we could see this happening to a character the audience actually liked. Theoretically--and just throwing this out there, so no bites, please--Jesse Spencer could act the hell out of this. How devastating would that be? And how much more realistic would House's reaction be? (Note: I adore Chase and do NOT want JS off the show. But if they're going to string this particular storyline along anyway, I'd sure like to see it be effective and, frankly, I think giving JS a long-running, noble death storyline would be a hell of a lot more interesting than what he's got now.) I agree with you wholeheartedly. 13 should be an interesting character and this should be an interesting plot line, but it's not. Had they given a character like Chase, a character that the audience actually has gotten to know and care about, a terminal disease it would have been compelling television. And that would be in no small part due to the ability of the actor. Jesse, without a doubt, could sell this story from every subtle moment to any big dramatic moments. He can act and he brings Chase to life verbally and physically. By contrast, Olivia Wilde can't seem to muster enough energy to make 13 even seem like a real person. Watching her lis like watching someone plucked off a junior high stage. That isn't an insult to junior high actors, but an illustration to point out that she seems like she's barely had an acting class much less any real experience. If Chase had Hunnington's, the audience could take comfort that his life expectancy was at least 10-12 years and he'd probably outlive the show anyway. I saw a comment online earlier where someone said they were rooting for the Hunnington's in 13's case and I couldn't help but laugh and agree.

I think if we'd be given a little more time to get to know the character, the Huntington's storyline might be more compelling. We haven't been given that moment where we connect to 13. It's like with Amber...most people couldn't stand the character (loved to hate sort of thing), some didn't like the actress, some hated Amber flat out, but the moment Amber told Wilson he needed to take care of himself...boom, even the folks who weren't crazy about her found something to like her about (I was one of them). We don't have that yet with 13, and her storylines have sort of been shoved on the audience without pretense. There's an element missing, that connection, the reason for empathy. I don't mind the Huntington storyline, but I'm not invested in her character either, so I don't much care one way or the other. As for OW...I like her. If OW's character is supposed to be fairly unemotional, reserved, cold even, then I think she's doing her job. YMMV of course.

I didn't like this one very much. I'll probably re-watch it, because I missed a couple of bits in the middle, but I would describe it as schizoid. OW didn't sell the story, IMO, but she wasn't helped in the least by what was going on around her. I refer to the House/Wilson hijinks. Every time they would go from this fairly nuanced development of 13's story, to two grown men acting like kids, it undercut the drama. As someone else mentioned, the 6-commercial structure is also brutal on building any kind of momentum or feeling. I don't have anything against Olivia Wilde, but I do want there to be only one main character here: House. IMO having a second doctor with a terminal version of his situation is kind of goofy anyway, but having it take up so much plot time is even worse. I should qualify my statement: I want House to be the only main character if they make him interesting again. This week, he wasn't. It's no good saying that maybe his limp meant he was suffering from PTSD. I like subtle, but not buried. They are piling on the plot developments and letting go of rich seams they set up in HH/HW. No way should Wilson have come back so soon or so readily. And House shouldn't be so eager, either. I still haven't heard any acknowledgment from Wilson of what he went through for Wilson's sake. One of my main beefs with this ep was the writing. When House is being manipulative, I want to have my own lightbulb moment about why. They should not have to have 13 explaining it to me. That's lame. And the explanation was weak. Agree with whoever said they short-shrifted the medicine. But I did like that there was no convenient solution for 13. The dynamics of that plot were fine; the execution could have been better, and it just didn't work with the rest of the episode. Namaste, I couldn't agree more about spoilers. I'll never understand wanting to know the plot in advance, let alone discuss it. Having said that, they did include the sex scene in the promos they were running all week, so they were playing this aspect for the regular TV audience as well. Which is exactly what any show would do, IMO, so I'm not going to carp. Had the sexy scenes been H/W or Chase/anybody, it wouldn't have been called great art, but there would have been squeeing instead of tsk tsking, and I can envision some best-episode-evers. It's always been the case that we criticize things when we like the actor, and snark about them when we don't. Human nature. Nice to see a prospect of something for Foreman, since OE is a good actor being wasted, but there are just too many characters to do justice to most of them. If we're going to end up having Very Special Episodes about each one in turn, it's going to be a huge bore. That's not the way to develop characters. I'm going back to my opinion from circa S1: Better they should have stayed a procedural. The characters would have lasted longer. Maybe it's harder to find good medical mysteries than crimes a la L&O. I wish they had tried. It would have been much better for the longevity of the show, IMO. Not so good for the fandom, perhaps, but my concern is with the show.

So, what was it in Wilson's trash that gave the plot away?? I was so busy trying to see what everything was, I missed part of what was being said. Did Wilson really jazz-up the scam just to keep House busy or to reassure him even more that they were ok (back to normal, for them) while at the same time he knew Cuddy's news would really throw him out of whack? Wished the P.I. could have had one more scene. Poor Taub and Kutner got religated to Chase/Cameron status. Guess it sucks not to be Foreman or Thirteen. How is it that of CCF & TTK, these two have been singled out for more screentime and story than the others in their team, combined? Or does it just feel that way? (zzzzzzzzzzz) The girl-on-girl stuff felt partly like a stunt since the promo/tease on YouTube was longer and the remarks we've heard from House on the subject in the past. I've commented on this before, that while we've seen lesbian couples (in different relationships and even one couple with a child) we have yet to see any gay couples or relationships of ANY kind....sexual or more committed. Not any guy/guy action or single show of affection or kiss or ANYTHING. What gives?? Seems like some kind sexist double-standard. Plus, with the H/W HoYay toned way down a good while back, it seems like an intentional avoidance for whatever reasons. I'd really like to know the answer to this....from the show or the network. Was it my imagination or was there a little catch in Wilson's voice when he was telling House how Amber had told him to 'move on' or be happy or whatever. If so, he's scary good. A fake 'choke-up' while invoking your dead GF's name is way up there on the 'anything-to-get-you-to-buy-this' chart. Hey, he COULD have someone buried in the basement. Kind of both looking forward to and dreading any House and Cuddy and potential adoption stuff next week and beyond. Most, if not all the time, Cuddy not only comes out on the losing end, but she also ends up looking weak and pathetic. I hate how House sometimes treats her and she lets him get away with it ESPECIALLY since she is his boss. Can't imagine this being anything less than a trainwreck since House handled Wilson/Amber so well...and look how that turned out. I REALLY hope we don't see House have any sudden epiphany of 'feelings' for Cuddy only now, because her time (and emotions) will be focused elsewhere.

They should just start producing the show as a series of one acts. House/Wilson scenes worked. House/Wilson/Cuddy scene worked. Foreman/Chase scene worked. Precious little else did. Notice that the "else" was the bits with the new team? I still like the PI though. Well, nobody paid me to watch JM practice acting for three years either but that's what I did. Maybe. But Cameron never got the screentime 13 is getting,much less called upon to carry the episode the way 13 is here and in Dying Changes Everything. Cameron did get substantial screen time and have prominent story lines in "Maternity," "Fidelity," "Informed Consent," "Love Hurts" and to a lesser extent, "Hunting." I say lesser because it was a C story in an episode with very strong A and B stories, but it was a very powerful one. I'll admit, though, I never tried to measure her minutes of screen time against those of House or the other characters. I was fascinated by Cameron from the beginning ... before I ever shipped her and House, and before it came out in canon that she was interested in House. We saw certain behaviors and reactions that had us -- and House -- wondering what her story was. Our curiosity was piqued before we got the big reveal about her dead husband. The writers never gave us that with Thirteen. She might as well have made her first appearance with "I've Got a Secret!" tattooed on her forehead. Personally I had no reason to make an emotional investment in her that would have me dying to know her secret(s). She was just THERE, being beautiful and mysterious. I was hoping she would stay fired and that House would make good on his offer (threat? joke?) from "Living the Dream" and hire Cameron back. I can't think of a realistic way to make that happen in canon, but a Hamster can dream. (Not because I'm holding out any hope of a House/Cam hookup in canon -- I just want the poor girl to get more screen time!) It was so nice to see Foreman given something to do besides give House the Scowl of Disapproval and the Eye Roll of Exasperation. I loved his scenes with House and with Chase. You're not boring, Eric; you're just drawn that way. I think they used to call it Jessica Rabbit's Disease, but it should be renamed Hadley's Syndrome. And I was unspoiled, so the Cuddy thing did catch me unawares. I am both dying of curiosity about, and dreading, the next episode.

I have a question. Since OW's getting almost as much screentime/more screentime than HL in two of this season's five episodes so far, does this mean when she submits one of the episodes that have focused on her for an Emmy, will she be able to submit in the Lead Actress category?

No, that little girl on "Small Wonder" was infinitely worse. :lol: But in the little girl's defense, bailey, she was at least supposed to be a robot. The other problem with having an unknowable, unfriendly character is that its impossible to know what her baseline for behavior actually is. You make an excellent point here. I clearly recall sitting up in shock when Cameron took meth and jumped Chase in Hunting, because it was so unlike anything we'd seen her character do before that it came as a shock. For all the hot, lesbian action going on last night, I wasn't really shocked or surprised at all, because Thirteen's actual personality (if she has one) is such a blank. ...does this mean when she submits one of the episodes that have focused on her for an Emmy, will she be able to submit in the Lead Actress category? Gah!! Perish the thought, e_c.

I REALLY hope we don't see House have any sudden epiphany of 'feelings' for Cuddy only now, because her time (and emotions) will be focused elsewhere. In the show's defense, they paved the way for that in the episode where we found out House was a cheerleader. He and the PI were setting up as rivals for Cuddy's attention. I would much, much rather they have House realize genuine feelings for Cuddy than that he simply be a self-involved, it's-all-about-me dog in the manger about her adopting. He does nothing for her on a personal level, so I can't be sympathetic to him because she's going to make a life for herself. Of course, this being Hose, any feelings he has for Cuddy cannot bring about a happy ending. Nor would I want that to happen. Not now, anyway.

I was fascinated by Cameron from the beginning ... before I ever shipped her and House, and before it came out in canon that she was interested in House. We saw certain behaviors and reactions that had us -- and House -- wondering what her story was. Our curiosity was piqued before we got the big reveal about her dead husband. But as always, this is a YMMV point, because I found Cameron a standard ingenue who then went even more downhill with the crush storyline--one of the worst longstanding arcs of the show, in my opinion. I had a more positive response to Thirteen, and she is not my favourite supporting character by any means. But I'm open to her story. I find Cameron a more interesting character these days, and am sorry when I see a pointer in her character to her old arc, as with the flowers. I think Olivia Wilde is finding Thirteen more strongly every week. That said, I have no need for her to have so much screen time. But not especially her as opposed to any other supporting character. I just think House is the centre of the show and needs to stay that way.

This is another episode that I'll file in the "Never watch again" category. There was just TOO MUCH Thirteen, and since NCIS was an episode about torture - something I cannot tolerate - I couldn't count on my usual escape route from the never-ending Thirteen scenes, which was another form of torture in itself. However, there were things I liked: 1. Chase-Foreman scene - YAY! That was great, and shows how much that dynamic is needed. I continue to love how the old team plays so well off each other. I feel as if the new team suck all the life out of every Ddx session. 2. I liked Foreman in this one. He actually cared about what people thought about him - for once. He felt compassion toward Thirteen - something I cannot feel at all. 3. The PI had some funny lines with House. I figured right from the start that it was all a scam on Wilson's part, so why didn't he? 4. Cuddy's revelation at the end. As long as it isn't House's kid, I don't have any problem with Cuddy having a baby. I hope it works out for her, but I doubt it. I like that she trusted Wilson with the secret. 5. I enjoyed seeing that strange, blonde woman talking to House in the beginning. What was her name again? Oh yeah, Cameron. 6. I loved Wilson's prank on House. Things I didn't like: Everything else. 1. Who's the boss here? The scene with Cuddy, House, and Thirteen in Cuddy's office was ridiculous. Cuddy told him what to do, he openly defied her in front of Thirteen, and she let him get away with it. I hate how much he flaunts his disrespect for her authority in front of the new team. At least with the old team, he allowed them to respect her. 2. Another fake firing of Thirteen. I'm tired of getting my hopes up and having them dashed. The next time better be for real. 3. Way too much Thirteen. It's all about her these days. I'm not surprised to see that once again she (nearly) had as much screentime as House. She does not deserve this attention. The way I figure the formula is: Cameron's total screentime in Seasons 4 & 5 + Chase's total screentime in Seasons 4 & 5 < Thirteen's screentime in ONE EPISODE. What is wrong with this picture? 4. House's reaction to Cuddy's baby news. Jeez, in spite of having his self-centeredness backfire on him with Wilson, he continues to care only about himself. 5. House's nastiness with his team. He is getting more obnoxious all the time, and the redeeming moments are getting fewer and farther between. Why would the newbies put up with all that? Why would Foreman? 6. House's perv-o-meter is all the way up to 10 on this one - on a scale of 1 to 5. In the first season or two, we didn't have this side of House shoved at us. Yes, he talked about internet porn and hookers, but until "Distractions," I didn't take him seriously. I just thought it was a way of keeping people away. Now it's constant, and his total glee in demanding every detail of Thirteen's sexual encounter was revolting to me. For me, it continues the "position on my penis" vulgarity from last season. 7. We had a wonderful episode last week which gave me some hope that the show was finally turning itself around. House displaying some vulnerability at the end was something I needed to see, not only in the sad realization that his father had died, but in his friendship with Wilson as well. This week, there are no references to House's father's death and Wilson seems to have totally forgiven him now. Have they hit the "reset" button on this friendship already? As much as I adore House and Wilson scenes, this just didn't feel right to me.

I didn't think Bonnie sounded Canadian when we met her but I could be wrong there. Sounded Canadian? Can you really tell? In my experience, most Americans can't tell whether someone is Canadian or not by accent, unless that person is French-Canadian, which I don't think Bonnie is. :D Only a few words - particularly "Sorry" - sound a little different to me. But I could be mistaken!

So, what was it in Wilson's trash that gave the plot away?? I was so busy trying to see what everything was, I missed part of what was being said. Needles, PI thought Wilson was using and that's when House figured out he'd been had. That said, I have no need for her to have so much screen time. But not especially her as opposed to any other supporting character. I just think House is the centre of the show and needs to stay that way. ITA, I have no issues with her storyline and I don't find her to be nearly as horrible an actress as most seem to, (the "I'll race you" scene actually got to me) but I don't think any supporting character should be that close to House in terms of screentime. Anyone. Shallow note, am I the only one who thought the POTW was not attractive? I've read a lot of posts talking about how hot she was, I thought she was...not, to put it nicely.

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