6.21 - Baggage

When we first met Lucas, he was wearing workman's boots with argyle socks. House remarked upon it. One thing: why didn't Nolan get alarmed when his addict patient admitted to getting blind drunk? And this wasn't the first time?

House was surprised that Wilson can keep a secret from him. This could mean that House is good at figuring out when Wilson knows something interesting and is very good at worming it out of him (or getting him drunk and then finding out.) Or it could mean that Wilson is a gossip. House is good at keeping secrets when he wants to. When he accidentally told the team that Cuddy was trying to get pregnant, he covered. But he will also blab people's secrets when it suits him.

One thing: why didn't Nolan get alarmed when his addict patient admitted to getting blind drunk? And this wasn't the first time? I agree. The better question is why isn't Wilson bothered at least as much as Cuddy was? And the even better question, is why isn't House alarmed? It is very unlike House to subject himself to a loss of control. When he was on vicodin, he justified the drug abuse and insisted that he could still function; he only went into rehab when his control slipped and he felt his ability to do his job threatened. When he overheard Wilson whispering to Amber, the thought that he was having auditory hallucinations again plainly freaked him out. Now he's ending up in a neighbor's bed and getting unexplained injuries, and he's not upset? I understand -- and I can see Nolan or any professional dealing with -- the ongoing process of relapse/recovery/relapse/recovery as par for the course with serious addictions, but not why House, of all people, would take it so nonchalantly.

One thing: why didn't Nolan get alarmed when his addict patient admitted to getting blind drunk? And this wasn't the first time? I agree. The better question is why isn't Wilson bothered at least as much as Cuddy was? And the even better question, is why isn't House alarmed? It is very unlike House to subject himself to a loss of control. When he was on vicodin, he justified the drug abuse and insisted that he could still function; he only went into rehab when his control slipped and he felt his ability to do his job threatened. When he overheard Wilson whispering to Amber, the thought that he was having auditory hallucinations again plainly freaked him out. Now he's ending up in a neighbor's bed and getting unexplained injuries, and he's not upset? I understand -- and I can see Nolan or any professional dealing with -- the ongoing process of relapse/recovery/relapse/recovery as par for the course with serious addictions, but not why House, of all people, would take it so nonchalantly. That is an excellent point. House is drinking to blot out reality, apparently, and doesn't seem to be bothered by the blackouts. Whereas on Vicodin he felt fully functional until he wasn't. However, I have to disagree about Nolan. He's not an addiction counselor. On the other hand, to have focused on the drinking would have pulled dramatic focus from the rest of the episode. It's only 41 minutes to work with, so I guess they have to make choices.

I'd think House is alarmed and he's also been in deep denial about it which is why it was so devastating near the end when he finally admitted there might be a problem. It had to be dredged up and made undeniable by the logic that Nolan used for him to quit running from something that has been building up: he's still addicted, miserable and alone, just not addicted to vicodin so not hallucinating. But the blackouts should have been a warning to Wilson at least, but he's got his tunnel vision on Sam now much more than House so even though he knows about it and is worried about it he's not seeing it or at least not reacting to it as the big problem it really is.

Finally got a chance to watch this episode, and just had to delurk to say WOW! Everything about this epi is made of awesome with awesome sauce on top! Brilliant structure, dialogue, pacing, even props-placement, and then the dance-duet-duel between HL/House and Andre Braugher/Nolan - simply breathtaking! How apt that the length of the episode is almost the standard length of the "therapeutic hour" (especially with House arriving late!). :wink: Definitely among the best 5 episodes of the series.

I think it's a testament to how screwed-up House is, that he still wants to be friends with Cuddy and Wilson, even though he believes they view him the way he described to Nolan in this episode. And I can't stop laughing at Nolan's versions of Wilson and Cuddy "colluding" about House! Wilson doesn't sound like Wilson at all ;), I love the way RSL and LE played that version. Also, Cuddy's looking more conservative with her jacket on, Nolan has clearly never seen her in her usual work attire ;P. (before anyone points it out, yeah, I know she's worn jackets before, but I still think it's a funny and telling difference between House's and Nolan's version of the conversation)

Not so much screwed up but short of other options and inured to their scolding. He'd miss it; it shows they care.

Bea wrote: I think it's a testament to how screwed-up House is, that he still wants to be friends with Cuddy and Wilson, even though he believes they view him the way he described to Nolan in this episode. This insight into how House viewed the attitudes and expectations of his friends was a beautiful and poignant set-up for the final reveal in "Help Me." Cuddy's simple statement that she knew he was screwed up and loved him anyway without expectation that he must change was a moving rejoinder to House's own lowered self assessment. The meticulous construction of these final two episodes continues to amaze me.

I keep meaning to comment on this and forgetting: House: He's my friend. Nolan: So what do you value in him? House: I can say whatever I want to him, and he'll never leave. Nolan: He's sort of leaving. At least, he won't be around as much… because he's putting Sam first. House: For now. After the divorce, he'll probably ask me to move in again. I take the long view. Nolan: You say that to Wilson? House: Are you kidding? That's the kind of remark that leads people to hate you. In 10 seconds, House goes from being able to say anything to Wilson to not saying something that would make Wilson hate him. He says plenty of disparaging things about Wilson's future with Sam but he knows there are limits. ~~~~ There's an interview with David Foster which is very interesting. <snip> in each of the six acts, there is one of the items from Nolan's office making an appearance elsewhere in the story. My memory is not visual. I'll remember dialogue but won't notice things on the screen. I've found 2 -- even I am capable of noticing a chair. Has anyone found the others? (As an aid, here's a list of all the scenes that take place outside Nolan's office.) Teaser ER – House meets Sidney Condo - breakfast Act 1 (4:50) PPTH – x-ray reading room House’s apartment and lobby – Alvie is painting Street – outside sporting good store Doughnut shop Porch outside Sidney & Jay’s house Act 2 (11:55) Inside the house Pawn shop - ETA: Clock from coffee table (thanks to to21be) Act 3 (16:50) House’s apartment – Nerf football Sidney’s room and the hallway outside– she thinks her and Jay’s lives are boring MRI Act 4 (24:10) Street outside pawn shop Sam and Wilson Wilson/Cuddy conversations about House – armchairs and coffee table from Nolan’s office are in the corner of Cuddy's office Act 5 (31:08) Sidney’s room, arguing about brain surgery Professor’s lawn, front stoop and hallway House’s office when Taub and Alvie meet Act 6 (35:18) Diagnostics conference room – talking to House on speaker Courtroom Hallway outside courtroom PPTH hallway with ultraviolet light where House sees the tattoo Sidney’s room – roses PPTH hallway – Nolan follows House House’s apartment – Nolan sits next to the piano in armchair from his office.

There's an interview with David Foster which is very interesting. <snip> in each of the six acts, there is one of the items from Nolan's office making an appearance elsewhere in the story. My memory is not visual. I'll remember dialogue but won't notice things on the screen. I've found 2 -- even I am capable of noticing a chair. Has anyone found the others? I haven't gone searching yet, but I remember seeing an item standing on Nolan's coffee table that also appeared on the counter at the pawn shop. It's small, golden and round... a clock, I think. (see pawn shop counter next to the coffee cup at 15:25 in my recording). Would that make it the Act 2 item? I didn't think the chair and table from Nolan's office counted, for some reason I can't explain. I assumed the items were less obvious than that.

Nolan: You say that to Wilson? House: Are you kidding? That's the kind of remark that leads people to hate you. I thought House had said that it is the kind of remark that would lead people to hit you. Since that would tie back to his earlier statement about people hitting him for something he said.

Nolan: You say that to Wilson? House: Are you kidding? That's the kind of remark that leads people to hate you. I thought House had said that it is the kind of remark that would lead people to hit you. Since that would tie back to his earlier statement about people hitting him for something he said. Ooooh. Thank you. You are right. I'm working on the transcript and I took "hate" from the closed captioning titles. (It's not the first time they were wrong.) to21be, he said that some of them would be easy -- I assume those are the table & chairs. Why else would Nolan be sitting in his armchair, squeezed into a corner of House's apartment. There are other places for him to sit and talk to House. (Also, in Act 4 I loved how Nolan's office morphed into Cuddy's office -- the slatted blinds appeard, then the glass wall disappeared, etc.) I don't see the clock in the pawn shop.The brass clock is the only thing on Nolan's table other than the carafe and glasses (and the occasional pad of paper), but it doesn't have a pedestal base -- it has one of those square bases that allow you to angle the clock face up or down. (ETA: You can see it clearly when Nolan gets up to get a magazine to read at around 21:50) I had high hopes for the gyroscope that Alvie is playing with in the pawn shop. It reappeared as a paperweight in Act 6 on House's coffee table, holding down the note. But I think it must be one of the things Alvie pawned because I can't find it in Nolan's office. (And it seems like the type of aesthetically interesting thing House has used to decorate the apartment.)

There's an interview with David Foster which is very interesting. <snip> in each of the six acts, there is one of the items from Nolan's office making an appearance elsewhere in the story. I read that as "David Foster Wallace" and became very confused. :oops:

to21be, he said that some of them would be easy -- I assume those are the table & chairs. Why else would Nolan be sitting in his armchair, squeezed into a corner of House's apartment. There are other places for him to sit and talk to House. (Also, in Act 4 I loved how Nolan's office morphed into Cuddy's office -- the slatted blinds appeard, then the glass wall disappeared, etc.) I don't see the clock in the pawn shop.The brass clock is the only thing on Nolan's table other than the carafe and glasses (and the occasional pad of paper), but it doesn't have a pedestal base -- it has one of those square bases that allow you to angle the clock face up or down. (ETA: You can see it clearly when Nolan gets up to get a magazine to read at around 21:50) I didn't think the chair and table were part of it, because they are so obviously part of the story (as a reminder that we are still sitting in Nolan's office), not just gimmicky props that are placed somewhere for eagle eyed fans. But of course they can be among the items Foster meant. I wasn't trying to say they aren't, just that I would have kept my eyes open for more. Just in case there is something else. As for the brass clock. I stand by what I wrote. I think it's the same clock. At the spot you mentioned, the little pedestal is not visible, because Nolan's notepad is lying in front of it. Here's a cap of both instances side by side. Size, shape, color and even the clock face look the same to me.

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