What is it about Taub's job that scares the hell out of him? Taking chances medically? He's not used to dealing with life-and-death situations any more? He's afraid he's not good enough?

I think Taub represents a lot of doctors who appreciate the fact that there are doctors like House (and Kutner to an extent, though Kutner has to learn to calm some of those desires) to take chances and to work outside the mainstream. But Taub's training and his past practice are very much rooted in standard, mainstream practice. Heck the Hippocratic oath begins with "do no harm," but House's take is that sometimes you've got to risk doing harm to save the patient. There are the normal risks that you take in surgery or medicine, and then there are the risks that House takes. They're very different beasts. With House's take on medicine, there are people in the mainstream who wish that they could do what he does, take those risks and there are people who are dead set against him and think he is a bad doc because he takes unnecessary risks. (Foreman's boss at Mercy was of the second variety, the one he interviewed with later who admired House and Foreman's maneuver at Mercy, but ultimately couldn't take that risk would be in the former.) Taub is that rare mainstream person who has been pushed outside his comfort zone and while he told the cancer researcher in "Greater Good" that he believes his work there is more important, it also scares the crap out of him.

This interview with Peter Jacobson made a couple of interesting points about the way Taub is insulted on the show. I’ve sometimes wondered how PJ felt about some of the Housian barbs thrown his way, since many of them refer to his personal appearance. I hope PJ is being completely frank in his answer here, and it sounds just like HL to be uneasy about lines he has to say to his fellow actors. I'm getting to really like PJ. :) Taub is constantly being berated by House. Is it hard to play the character who is always being insulted? "No, I love it. To be honest, and sometimes the writers come to me and they feel kind of bad: 'Well we have these really mean nose jokes in this one and we're going to keep calling you tiny,' you know I think that's where the fun is ... There's certainly no personal insult whatsoever ... Absolutely zero personal insult, we have a lot of fun with my height on the show in general – on screen and off. I've grown up with that. I find my height to be one of my more endearing qualities." So you don't hate Hugh Laurie at the end of the day? "Oh my God, are you kidding me? I say the more abuse the better ... Hugh's probably more sensitive about it than anybody ... I get the feeling he feels kind of bad and he never should ... Hugh is a gem and a joy to work with, even when he’s making me feel like sh--." http://www.popeater.com/television/article/peter-jacobson-popeater-interview/495602

Part of what makes him a successful character actor is his looks. He isn't cookie-cutter, which enables him to stand out. It's good that the writers and his fellow actors don't find it easy to make jokes based on someone's height or nose, but do recognize that they are in character for House. I once read an interview with Marlo Thomas who was talking about when Ruth Buzzi was on That Girl. A date thought a picture of RB was Anne Marie (Marlo) and asked if she'd been in an accident. Marlo insisted the line be changed so as not to make fun of someone's looks but Ruth Buzzi said "This face is my fortune." She was right. If you look different than everyone else in Hollywood and you are comfortable with who you are, being different can be an asset.

I think PJ is wonderful and he has always been my favorite newbie even when Kutner was around. He is dry and there is depth to his character. I have always wondered how he felt about the nose and height jokes. I know they keep me entertained and the height difference between him and Hugh is comical in itself. It's good to see he has the "bring it on" attitude. They will need to work on more interaction between Taub and Wilson and Cuddy. I think his dry humor would blend well with Wilson and Cuddy, who both can be quite funny.

I've loved Taub since the beginning as well. Alot of it started as my general fondness for PJ in other roles, but I love how they're fleshing out the character and I hope we see more of it. This was a great interview.

sdemar said it better than I could have. I would also add that if PJ was at all familiar with the show going in, he would have been expecting jokes about his height. The interaction between Kutner and Taub was wonderful, and now that we've lost that I'm looking forward to seeing how they use Taub next season.