One Night I Gave You Everything You Wanted: House/Cuddy

While I am certainly intrigued by the House/Wilson connection (I have been a devoted fan of Holmes, both in canon and pastiche, for at least 40 years), I find that the deepening of the House/Cuddy relationship is the one that interests me most on this show now. I watched the first two episodes of season 3 last night on my new DVD and was struck once again by that quiet, lovely moment of connection in "Cane and Able" in which Cuddy was able (or was permitted) to reach beyond House's facade of snark to touch the troubled core of his soul. She refused to be deflected by his boob/pregnancy jokes as she asked about his returning pain and was rewarded for her persistence by an important admission on his part. I think there are many more examples of this deep connection between House and Cuddy stretching back to season 1. I like her simple acknowledgement of his good work at the end of DIYD, her blinding smile and shiver when he bangs down his cane on her desk, her agreement with his choice to cover up the ball player's steroid use in "Sports Medicine," his quiet and heartfelt analsis of her strengths as an administrator and as a friend in "Humpty Dumpty," his genuine flashes of concern for her health in "Airborne," his willingness to keep her secret in "Who's Your Daddy" and Cuddy's hesitant approach to House at the end of that same epi, their lovely, wistful October/October moment on the balcony at the end of "Act Your Age." The list goes on. What I appreciate most of all is that the story of House and Cuddy has unfolded carefully and slowly over the three seasons. They are old familiars with a relationship that stretches back at least 20 years so it is not surprising that House and Cuddy speak to each other in a kind of code, an intimate short-hand in which little and much is said. Pure exposition in their conversations is rare, so as viewers we were not privy at the beginning of the show's run to all that lies between them. I find this to be completely realistic, as I don't speak to my oldest friends with a constant patter of recollections about our early years together. The chords that bind us are struck as undertones only. But we have been told some important things about the House/Cuddy relationship. We know that she has quite literally saved his life on several ocassions: -- she revived his heart when he died after the infarction; -- she approved the operation which left his leg crippled and probably preserved his life (the fact that House bears no grudge against Cuddy on this score is telling IMO); -- she created the PPTH diagnostics department for House and arranged for his hiring as its chief, a move that certainly rescued his professional life and probably saved his actual life since, as we learned in DNR, his work is his "one thing;" -- she (finally) stood up to Vogler and saved House's job and future again; -- she was the one he asked for at the end of "No Reason" because he trusted that she would understand and give him the ketamine treatment which briefly delivered him to a new life free of pain; -- she perjured herself to end the Tritter persecution, saving House from the certain prison sentance that would have ended his medical career and quite possibly his life. This life-giving pattern was established early and is a defining feature of their relationship. So by constantly saving House from death, Cuddy is in a real way the one who has repeatedly given metaphorical "birth" to him. House is not oblivious to this pattern in his life as he indicates in his speech to Cuddy at the end of "Humpty Dumpty." But his male pride, stubbornness, insecurity, and pessimism mean he won't share this insight with anyone. After the surprise of her perjury in "Words and Deeds," we see that House's view of Cuddy has taken another turn in the second half of season 3. The acts that inspire House's romantic side are not the obvious ones, I guess! As for quiet moments, I would cite: -- the utterly charming and convincingly sexy "Do you like me, House?" scene in "Insensitive;" -- the scene of pure domesticity, comfort, and relaxed but lustful companionship in "Half-Wit " (they really seemed like an old married couple here); -- the comic but intense reveal of their intimate past at the end of "Top Secret;" -- the triumphant gifting of the vacation ticket to House in "Fetal Position;" -- the pure longing of the balcony scene in "AYA," -- the lyrical and lovely moment in "Human Error" when House offers his compliment on Cuddy's legs without his usual sarcasm, snark, or crudeness. Sorry for this extremely long post, but I find there is a richness to the House/Cuddy relationship which begs to be explored in considerable detail, something which I am certainly hoping we will see more of in the upcoming season.

So much WORD, blacktop. I think the show has been really slow about developing this relationship, but there are so many small moments that you've mentioned that prove to me that they definitely have a chemistry there. And normally all of these sexual remarks in the show would piss me off, but that's how House is. If it wasn't her breasts/low cut top, it'd be something else.

Exactly and his sexual remarks aren't reallly mean like "you're a whore and I hate you," they seem to come from... IMO, a really sweet place of "I notice what you wear..." just delivered in a snarky House way, but not necsarilly with a lot of mean House behind it... Is this making sense to anyone other than me?

I think talking about her panties in front of other staff members pretty much qualifies as trying to embarrass her. The private comments about her breast size when he thought she was pregnant we meant to be cute and I think she took those that way.

As with most things on this wonderfully complex show, I think that House's sexually charged comments about/to Cuddy work on several levels. I agree that he often has as a primary motive finding new and creative ways to embarrass her. The great produce department gag in "Kids," the more recent "panty hamster" comment are examples of this. House is loud, ennunciates clearly, and sort of looks around to see that others have heard his words. Cuddy seems to show only momentary shock or none at all when he does this, which only serves to encourage him to find ever more outrageous things to say. In this, as in so much else, House is pushing to find the limits of her tolerance as a test of their relationship. When House made those repeated private comments about her breasts or expanding hips in the first half of season 3, I do think he was trying to tease her with another cute remark. I think in particular he enjoyed playing with the fact that he knew something extremely important about her (her desire for a baby) that was special to the two of them. Cuddy's willingness to share her pregnancy quest with House took them to a new level of intimacy, one that he relished and encouraged through these jabs. But I also think that House was honestly pushing to find out if Cuddy had succeeded in getting pregnant. He felt highly ambiguous about this possibility, as we saw in "Who's Your Daddy," and this self-confusion was nicely carried through in season 3. Does he want her to suceed at getting pregnant? Does he wish she had asked him for the donation? Does he fear and resent the possibility that she might carry another man's baby? Also highly interesting in this regard is the slip House commits during Tritter's visit to the hospital in "Wac-a-mole." The three fellows witness Tritter exiting from Cuddy's office and wonder what he is doing there. House bitterly quips that Cuddy is looking for sperm donors so perhaps Tritter is a candidate. As soon as the words are out of his mouth, House regrets spilling her secret and he retracts the accusation with a lame joke. I think that this exchange shows how seriously House is fazed by the Tritter threat AND how seriously he fears that Cuddy will indeed succeed at getting impregnated by someone else. He has blended both of his greatest current concerns into a potentially wounding slip of the tongue. In retrospect, we viewers can add another poignant layer to the story: the awful knowledge that Cuddy was indeed fleetingly pregnant several times during the period of House's teasing inquiries. How hard must it have been for her to listen with equanamity to his jokes about the thing that was dearest to her heart, the one thing she could not sustain or have.

Arrgh! Get me out of here. I find House/Cuddy sickening. I used to think, back in season one when the HAM was so omni-present, that if House had to be with anyone already on the show (I include Stacy) Cuddy would be best. Then season three happened. The more I saw of Cuddy the less I liked her and the more I saw of House/Cuddy, the less I like that too. My Cuddy and Huddy hatred probably reached it apex with the IMHO anything but "utterly charming and convincingly sexy" scene. All I could think was, gag, barf, puke, get over yourself Cuddy. shudder. I don't think this thread is the right place for me.

bailey: I think there are very much some relationships far more important than others. I think the Wilson/House relationship is far more important (and lasting) than the House/Foreman relationship. I think House's relationship with Stacy is/was far more important than anything we've seen between House/Cuddy or House/Cameron. I agree with this. The two most defining relationships for House are, IMO, House/Stacy and House/Wilson. As for House/Cuddy, I agree with much that has been said about them obviously having feelings for each other, but I think that regardless of the fact that they were intimate in the past, their present relationship is more of a solid friendship with mutual caring and respect than it is a romantic one. Spoiler ahead (highlight to read): Though we've been given reason to believe that they might be intimate with one another again, I doubt very much that it will be more than two old friends finding temporary comfort in each other. There certainly will not be a deep and abiding romance; if House isn't willing to risk it again for Stacy, whom he clearly still loves, he isn't going to risk it for anyone else.

One thing I found interesting in S3 was how TPTB handled House butting in on Cuddy's date in Insensitive. Cuddy thought it showed that House liked/wanted her... and it seemed like that was supposed to be the clear implication for viewers. But House had done the same thing to Wilson in Fools for Love. Does House not know what/who he wants? Or is he just, as he said in Insensitive, an "Evil bastard who just wants to mess with other people’s happiness"? You know, I think that a huge part of House's meddling comes from his fear that he will lose what he already has. The pillars of his little world are his job, Cuddy, and Wilson (and those three things are naturally deeply connected with one another). The way I see it, House views any new love interests for Cuddy or Wilson as a threat to the fragile stability of his life. He needs both of those people, needs them very very much and cannot tolerate the idea that either one might drift off and abandon him. Which is why he was completely freaked out by the idea of Wilson and Cuddy hooking up. In his mind that meant the danger of losing the attention and love of the only two people who House knows really do love him. They certainly don't always do right by him, but they love him. That's why he forgives them for so many grievous wrongs. And I find it interesting (and it's practically never discussed) just how forgiving House really is of Wilson and Cuddy. Everyone thinks it's House who doesn't forgive and who has to be forgiven all the time, but look a little harder and you realize just how much he does forgive his friends when they hurt him. And then he trusts them all over again. It's really quite remarkable.

Everyone thinks it's House who doesn't forgive and who has to be forgiven all the time, but look a little harder and you realize just how much he does forgive his friends when they hurt him. And then he trusts them all over again. It's really quite remarkable. Now this I can totally agree with. I'm generally thought of as a kind and tolerant person, not at all unforgiving, but I don't think I would ever want to speak to again--let alone sleep with!--anyone who had done to me the things Cuddy (and Wilson) have done to House in season 3. Hmm--House is more forgiving person than I am...what does that say about me....yikes!

blackmare: You know, I think that a huge part of House's meddling comes from his fear that he will lose what he already has. The pillars of his little world are his job, Cuddy, and Wilson (and those three things are naturally deeply connected with one another). The way I see it, House views any new love interests for Cuddy or Wilson as a threat to the fragile stability of his life. He needs both of those people, needs them very very much and cannot tolerate the idea that either one might drift off and abandon him. This makes a lot of sense to me; that's how I interpreted House's jealousy of Cuddy's date and his fear of Wilson and Cuddy becoming romantically involved.

What I would hope most people agree with, whether they are slashers or not (I'm not, btw) is that House's relationship with Wilson is the emotional center of the show. David Shore (one of the producers, anyway) said this very thing in a post-Tritter interview, when he said that destroying that relationship for the Tritter arc threw the show way off balance. What I appreciate most of all is that the story of House and Cuddy has unfolded carefully and slowly over the three seasons. Me too. Rather, I did until Cuddy was suddenly thrown in our faces so much in the latter half of S3. The more screentime she gets the less I like her, which grieves me because not only do I adore Cuddy, I like adoring Cuddy. she created the PPTH diagnostics department for House and arranged for his hiring as its chief, a move that certainly rescued his professional life and probably saved his actual life That's not canon. I like this interpretation, don't get me wrong, but there's never been any suggestion in canon that this is what happened. All we know is that she hired him. The timeline is so screwed up that we don't even know when! It was LE who said the above, I believe, and she's not a writer. And I find it interesting (and it's practically never discussed) just how forgiving House really is of Wilson and Cuddy. Me too. The man held a grudge for 20 years against Von Lieberman, but forgave Wilson and Cuddy's transgressions against him without them even asking for it. Of course the alternative was losing his best friend and his job if he didn't... I like House and Cuddy as friends, but can't stand the idea of a romance between them for one - and only one- reason. She's his boss. It would make his sexist cracks about how she only keeps him around because she's in love with him TRUE, and God help me I'm already thinking it is. It would weaken her as a character because not only would she be screwing an employee, she would be in a relationship with a man who humiliates her at work and undermines her authority every chance he gets (you know he wouldn't stop doing that). It's always made her look weak that she's willing to sacrifice her HOSPITAL for this man, but I could accept that she's so blinded by his genius that she thinks it's worth it. But an affair with House, after she's been on record as believing that he ruins everyone around her? No, no, no. Character assassination.

I so totally agree with you on this Taiga! Which is nice since we seem to rather disagree on a number of other things! It's stuff like this makes me wonder what those chimps at the typewriters think they are doing anyway.... :roll:

The reminder of what DS said about the darkening of the show in season 3 due to the disruption of the House/Wilson relationship is important, I think. IMO the Tritter arc was largely devoted to an intense exploration of how far Houe and TPTB could push his relationship with Wilson without actually breaking it. This testing of their friendship is a constant hallmark of the interaction between the two men ("Daddy's Boy") and was carried to its logical extreme as made explicit in "Son of a Coma Guy" and "Words and Deeds." So this suggests to me that for season 4 TPTB will concentrate their dramatic energies on pressing the limits of the House/Cuddy relationship. (In terms of dramatic developments, it makes no sense to me for TPTB to push all over again on stretching the friendship with Wilson until it almost breaks. As a dramatic device they have done that all too effectively. I think that we will see lots of cute House/Wilson moments this coming season, but in a lighter vein that underlines their abiding friendship rather than twists or strains it.) So I speculate that season 4 will see House pushing Cuddy to determine how far she will tolerate his punishing pressure before she withdraws her affection from him. Increasing the tension in a relationship until it almost snaps is a central feature of the neurotic pattern House imposes on his closest consorts (see Stacy post-infarct, Stacy in season 2, Wilson in season 3). It is his preferred "scientific" way of measuring how much he is loved and he expects everyone to fail the test at some point. This is also a surefire way to ratchet up the drama on a TV show so my guess is that we have lots of angst on the Cuddy front in the coming season.

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