Season six of “House,” aptly titled “Broken,” breaks down the Dr. House (Hugh Laurie) we know. Viewers travel from Plainsboro hospital in Princeton to a psych ward, where instead of prescribing medicine and making diagnoses, House is a patient.
From the very beginning of the two-hour premiere, which featured clips of House going through Vicodin detox, it was obvious that season six is heading in a different direction. Don’t worry – House is still a lovable jerk. But the premiere shows a much more emotional jerk.
After a series of hallucinations at the end of season five, House was committed to a psychiatric ward. The first episode deals with the doctor as a patient, going through rehabilitation so he can get his medical license back.
Initially, the episode seemed surprising and almost a disappointment for “House” lovers, as virtually none of the regular characters on the show, like Dr. Lisa Cuddy (Lisa Edelstein), Dr. Robert Chase (Jesse Spencer), Dr. Allison Cameron (Jennifer Morrison) or Dr. Eric Foreman (Omar Epps) were present.
Instead, House is thrown into a ward with a whole new cast of characters, including Dr. Darryl Nolan (Andre Braugher), House’s psychiatrist. Braugher plays his role as a tough-but-understanding physician well. His interactions and one-on-one sessions with House are the most believable and fascinating scenes of the episode.
Season six also brings another new character and potential love interest, Lydia (Franka Potente, from “The Bourne Identity” and “Blow”). Fans of the House and Cuddy relationship may be disappointed by Lydia’s appearance and House’s definite interest in her. However, it’s early in the season, so if you’re still hoping for “Huddy,” it might not be over yet.
But despite the initial negative reaction to a radically different setting and new characters, House still manages to captivate and entertain. He still has his sharp wit – he manages to insult every patient and find his or her weakest spot within five minutes. House is funny, introspective, vulnerable, lonely and trying to heal. The season takes on a much deeper understanding of the character and Laurie does an excellent job capturing all of the facets of the complex character. Even without any of the familiar characters from previous seasons, Laurie is able to hold his audience for two hours.
At the same time, the episode is more of a stand-alone. House is a character known for his stunted emotional growth, his crudeness, his Vicodin addiction and his medical brilliance. The psych-ward storyline adds an emotional depth to his character, but it remains to be seen whether it will take away from the feel of the show. Given the dramatic ending of season five, the writers clearly had to devote the time to exploring House’s psychiatric issues, but hopefully next week’s episode will bring back Cuddy, Wilson and the original medical dimension that once drew us in.
