Games (House)
Encyclopedia
"Games" is the ninth episode of the fourth season of House
and the seventy-ninth episode overall. It aired on November 27, 2007.
orders House
to make a final decision on which two candidates he's going to hire permanently. She says that if he doesn't make a decision, she'll reduce his salary to pay the two too many of them, but he appeared to not care, so she tells him she'll also move his parking space far away to the E lot, and it works. House visits Cameron in the emergency room to try to find a new case to help him make his decision and finds an uncooperative punk rock
musician with a multitude of health problems. Although most of the candidates (particularly Amber) argue that the patient's woes are due to his high-risk lifestyle and drug abuse
, House orders them to look into his symptoms, while scoring each doctor on a points basis in order to decide whom to include on his team.
A few months previously, Wilson
had told one of his patients that the patient was going to die. However, he later finds a flaw in his diagnosis and that the patient is fine. When he tells the patient, instead of being happy, the patient complains that he was planning to sell his house and now that he's going to live, he'll have to cancel the sale and won't be able to afford to pay the real estate broker. Wilson tries to compensate the patient from his own checkbook but the man decides to sue Wilson for even more money because his potential death let him live in the present, which brought him happiness. Wilson correctly deduces that House is the one who counseled the patient to sue Wilson.
House tells Cuddy that he wants to keep all four of his candidates but Cuddy insists that he can only keep two. While she's leaving, House asks her advice on whom he should keep. At one point, he brings all four candidates into her office to highlight their strengths; although all their theories are wrong, each contributed to the correct diagnosis that the patient has measles
, which he contracted while hanging around children to entertain them. Cuddy, however, still will not budge from her position.
House calls the team into the lecture room for a final time and tells Amber to stand up. Amber asks House if it's bad that he called her by her real name for once instead of "Bitch" (for "Cutthroat Bitch", her nickname). House tells her that while she plays the game better than anyone, she can't handle losing or being wrong. House goes on to say that if she is going to work for him, she has to be able to deal with and accept both these things and fires her as a result. As Amber sits at her desk sobbing, House tells Thirteen
to rise. He fires her as well but notes that were he allowed to keep three team members, she would have been hired.
Cuddy later approaches House in the lecture hall, telling him he can't have an all-male team and orders him to hire Thirteen along with the two male candidates. As Cuddy walks away from House, his face turns into a mischievous grin. Cuddy then realizes that he kept Taub and Kutner because he knew that if he did, Cuddy would tell him to hire Thirteen so as not to have an all male team. Cuddy agrees to the hiring of all three and says that with the final team hired, at least all the games are over; House continues smiling and asks her: "How long have you known me?"
House (TV series)
House is an American television medical drama that debuted on the Fox network on November 16, 2004. The show's central character is Dr. Gregory House , an unconventional and misanthropic medical genius who heads a team of diagnosticians at the fictional Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital in...
and the seventy-ninth episode overall. It aired on November 27, 2007.
Plot
CuddyLisa Cuddy
Dr. Lisa Cuddy, M.D., is a fictional character on the Fox medical drama House. She is portrayed by Lisa Edelstein. Cuddy was the Dean of Medicine and hospital administrator of the fictional Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital in New Jersey. She also becomes House's love interest through the...
orders House
Gregory House
Gregory House, M.D., or simply referred to as House, is a fictional antihero and title character of the American television series House, played by Hugh Laurie. He is the Chief of Diagnostic Medicine at the fictional Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital, where he leads a team of diagnosticians...
to make a final decision on which two candidates he's going to hire permanently. She says that if he doesn't make a decision, she'll reduce his salary to pay the two too many of them, but he appeared to not care, so she tells him she'll also move his parking space far away to the E lot, and it works. House visits Cameron in the emergency room to try to find a new case to help him make his decision and finds an uncooperative punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
musician with a multitude of health problems. Although most of the candidates (particularly Amber) argue that the patient's woes are due to his high-risk lifestyle and drug abuse
Drug abuse
Substance abuse, also known as drug abuse, refers to a maladaptive pattern of use of a substance that is not considered dependent. The term "drug abuse" does not exclude dependency, but is otherwise used in a similar manner in nonmedical contexts...
, House orders them to look into his symptoms, while scoring each doctor on a points basis in order to decide whom to include on his team.
A few months previously, Wilson
James Wilson (House)
James Evan Wilson, M.D., is a fictional character on the Fox medical drama House. He is played by Robert Sean Leonard. The character first appears in the show's pilot episode when he introduces a medical case to Dr. Gregory House, the protagonist of the show. Wilson is Dr. House's only true friend,...
had told one of his patients that the patient was going to die. However, he later finds a flaw in his diagnosis and that the patient is fine. When he tells the patient, instead of being happy, the patient complains that he was planning to sell his house and now that he's going to live, he'll have to cancel the sale and won't be able to afford to pay the real estate broker. Wilson tries to compensate the patient from his own checkbook but the man decides to sue Wilson for even more money because his potential death let him live in the present, which brought him happiness. Wilson correctly deduces that House is the one who counseled the patient to sue Wilson.
House tells Cuddy that he wants to keep all four of his candidates but Cuddy insists that he can only keep two. While she's leaving, House asks her advice on whom he should keep. At one point, he brings all four candidates into her office to highlight their strengths; although all their theories are wrong, each contributed to the correct diagnosis that the patient has measles
Measles
Measles, also known as rubeola or morbilli, is an infection of the respiratory system caused by a virus, specifically a paramyxovirus of the genus Morbillivirus. Morbilliviruses, like other paramyxoviruses, are enveloped, single-stranded, negative-sense RNA viruses...
, which he contracted while hanging around children to entertain them. Cuddy, however, still will not budge from her position.
House calls the team into the lecture room for a final time and tells Amber to stand up. Amber asks House if it's bad that he called her by her real name for once instead of "Bitch" (for "Cutthroat Bitch", her nickname). House tells her that while she plays the game better than anyone, she can't handle losing or being wrong. House goes on to say that if she is going to work for him, she has to be able to deal with and accept both these things and fires her as a result. As Amber sits at her desk sobbing, House tells Thirteen
Thirteen (House)
Remy "Thirteen" Hadley, M.D., is a fictional character on the Fox medical drama House, portrayed by Olivia Wilde. She is part of the new diagnostic team assembled by Dr. Gregory House after the disbanding of his previous team in the third season finale...
to rise. He fires her as well but notes that were he allowed to keep three team members, she would have been hired.
Cuddy later approaches House in the lecture hall, telling him he can't have an all-male team and orders him to hire Thirteen along with the two male candidates. As Cuddy walks away from House, his face turns into a mischievous grin. Cuddy then realizes that he kept Taub and Kutner because he knew that if he did, Cuddy would tell him to hire Thirteen so as not to have an all male team. Cuddy agrees to the hiring of all three and says that with the final team hired, at least all the games are over; House continues smiling and asks her: "How long have you known me?"
Background
- Song played at the end of the episode is "Spirit In The SkySpirit in the Sky"Spirit in the Sky" is a song written and originally recorded by Norman Greenbaum and released in 1969. The single sold two million copies in 1969 and 1970 and reached number three in the U.S. Billboard chart, as well as number one on the UK, Australian and Canadian charts in 1970. Rolling Stone...
" by Norman GreenbaumNorman GreenbaumNorman Greenbaum is an American singer-songwriter. He was raised in a traditional Jewish household and went to Hebrew school. His initial interest in music was sparked by Southern blues music and the folk music that was hugely popular in the late 1950s and early 1960s...
. - The guitar composition played in the background during the elimination of the team was composed and played by Hugh LaurieHugh LaurieJames Hugh Calum Laurie, OBE , better known as Hugh Laurie , is an English actor, voice artist, comedian, writer, musician, recording artist, and director...
. In an ironic twist, House reveals that it was composed by Jim Moskowitz, who later came to be known as Jimmy Quidd—the very patient they just diagnosed. - The record that House plays throughout the episode to annoy Wilson and at the end of the episode to induce a seizure in the patient is the track "Kicked Out" by Pussy GalorePussy Galore (band)Pussy Galore was an American garage rock band that formed in Washington, D.C. in 1985. They had a constantly fluid line-up until their demise in 1990. Like many garage rock outfits, they were dogged by substance abuse problems...
. It can be found on the album Dial M for MotherfuckerDial M for MotherfuckerDial 'M' for Motherfucker is an album by the New York City garage punk band Pussy Galore, released in 1989 by Caroline Records. The song Kicked Out is played in an Episode of House, "Games", when Gregory House plays it to annoy Wilson and induce a seizure in a patient.-Track listing:#Understand...
.