The transitional period for House continues. Licking his wounds after Cuddy rejected him, revealing that she is dating his old frenemy Lucas (from season 5), House attempts to assemble, or reassemble, his team with mixed results.
Lucas’ reappearance is just one of many shifts occurring in House. As House courts Thirteen and Taub to try to get them to come back, and schemes and manipulates to keep Chase and Cameron from moving away, it is all a part of larger changes that are taking place.
Yes, cynically, recalling old characters is an act of desperation by the show’s writers to breathe life into a floundering series that is unsure of what to do next in order to remain relevant. Nevertheless, House really is undergoing subtle changes. He is coming to terms with the pain he feels over Cuddy’s rejection. Pain which he is dealing with, as Wilson points out, by clinging to the familiar faces of his old team. This is as blatantly, unabashedly needy as House usually gets, and the mixture of vulnerability and sly maneuvering is intriguing.
This was an enjoyable episode that continued to offer character studies and retain the characteristics of Dr. House that audiences know and love. Plus, it must be mentioned that Jennifer Morrison’s tearful farewell at the end was maybe the best performance she has given on the show. It was a sweet, believable moment that rang with more dramatic emotional weight than she generally conveys or than the slickly witty House often delivers. Set to “Where Did You Go?” by Jets Overhead, the ending made for a wistfully melancholic episode that hinted that there is still more to come.