That incredibly crabby doctor with the serious leg pain is back for the third season of the acclaimed medical series "House, M.D." And once again Hugh Laurie and company came up with another winner of a season, although in my opinion it was just a tad notch below the first two seasons. Still, "House" season three is still very much worth watching.
Laurie once again dominates season three as he did with seasons one and two, and come Emmy time he better be rewarded! (He's already won two Golden Globes and one Screen Actors Guild award for his portrayal of Dr. House.) Being snubbed for a nomination for season two was a crime! His performances throughout season three was probably some of the best acting that Laurie has done on the show so far, thanks in part to one major storyline early in the season. David Morse was introduced in the fifth episode as Detective Tritter, a cop who comes to the hospital as a patient. Guess which doctor he ends up getting? Before you know it, Dr. House starts off by treating him rude, and if that's not bad enough, pops Vicodin right in front of him. Later on, he arrests Dr. House for possession of drugs, and thereafter tries in every way to make the cranky doc's life miserable (such as when Dr. House has to go for days without Vicodin and ends up in rehab). In addition, these turn of events also put a disturbing effect on his team, as the cop pressures each team member to give him some answers about their boss. This was a very strong storyline, and Morse was excellent in the role of the ticked off cop.
Sure "House" is the Hugh Laurie show, but lets not forget about the superb supporting cast: Lisa Edelstein as hospital administrator Lisa Cuddy; Omar Epps as neurologist Eric Foreman; Robert Sean Leonard as oncology specialist James Wilson; Jennifer Morrison as immunologist Allison Cameron; and Jesse Spencer as intensive-care specialist Robert Chase are all back for season three, and they're better than ever. For all three seasons these actors are given plenty to do in support of Laurie, and each of them does a great job playing off not only Laurie but each other. This is thanks to some terrific writing by creator David Shore and his writing team. They not only make this show compelling but smart as well. My favorite episode from season three is the one titled "Airborne", where House and Cuddy board a plane departing Malaysia that soon becomes a hospital ward when several passengers become seriously ill (including Cuddy); while back at Princeton-Plainsboro Wilson, Chase, Cameron, and Foreman try to solve a medical mystery on their own. This is a great episode, maybe the best overall episode of the show so far. It's not only thrilling and dramatic, but funny and shocking as well. Other great episodes include the second episode "Cane and Able", in which House and his team try to figure out why a 7 year old boy thinks he's being tortured by aliens, and the next-to-last episode "The Jerk", in which Dr. House meets his match with his latest patient: a teenage chess player with an arrogant attitude that's even worse than House's.
Despite this show's greatness, I had a few quibbles on the third season of "House". One season three episode didn't work for me (episode #12 - "One Day, One Room"). I found this episode kind of dull and not all that interesting. It's not real bad, but I just didn't seem to care about it all that much, which makes it the weakest episode of "House" so far. One minor storyline that was also kind of silly was the sexual hook-ups between Chase and Cameron, which featured them getting down and dirty in the hospital, in a patient's house, etc. And it was only for fun. Chase wants a relationship, but Cameron doesn't. This really isn't smart writing on the part of the writing team on "House". I think it was only thrown in their due to the real-life engagement of the actors who play Chase and Cameron (Jesse Spencer and Jennifer Morrison got engaged midway through season three). But in all fairness, I think this storyline would have worked better if the writers had done exactly what Chase wanted: let them have a relationship. These actors do look great together. I think a serious relationship storyline between Chase and Cameron would be awesome. Perhaps that might come later.
Familiar faces who show up for guest appearances during season three include: John Larroquette ("Night Court"), Kathleen Quinlan ("Apollo 13"), Joel Grey ("Cabaret"), Charles S. Dutton ("The Piano Lesson"), Piper Perabo ("Coyote Ugly"), Kurtwood Smith ("That `70s Show"), and pop star Dave Matthews.
The final episode of season three apparently will be opening the door for changes when season four debuts in the fall, as House lost his entire team (Foreman and Cameron resigned; Chase fired). I'm hoping that this will not be the end for some members of this great ensemble cast. I love this cast on "House", and if any one of these cast members leave the show or end up being let go, I will be very saddened by it. But this is the show's big cliffhanger for the summer. We'll eventually find out what will happen when season four returns this fall. And my fingers are crossed that all these cast members return.