I do, too. The writing on this show is very erratic. It's like the folks behind the show can't keep an even keel on anything. Spotlight on Cam, and Foreman and Chase disappear. Spotlight on Cuddy, now Cuddy looks like an incompetent, ineffectual fool (that stupid carpet debacle, the parking space nonsense), as well as having that out-of-nowhere baby subplot that comes and goes like the full moon. And so on.
Of course things are going to seem strange & weird after the Tritter arc; ... and then dismissed it with an absurd foppish gesture & a puff of purple smoke. I'm STILL pissed about the way that storyline ended.
The ridiculous and nonsensical Tritter arc was just painful to watch. That and, as you mentioned, post-ketamine House gleefully running again. Good Lord.
Anyway, moving on.
A television series is never going to achieve the seamless beauty of a novel, or even a film; it's a collaborative effort that's often stretched too thin over too many episodes, writers, and influences ... The obvious downsides are plot contrivances, awkwardness, strained & confusing characterization; the upside is, the show becomes a constant companion, something to obsess over and think about; and I'm willing to bet everyone who takes the time to participate in this community NEEDS that kind of presence in their life. Hey, nothing wrong with a few abandonment issues, LOL AMIRITE?
LOL! 2RITE.
Oh, very well! Be logical and point out that as House is a network show, it will by necessity have plot holes, poor writing, nutty characterization, and other agendas getting in the way of good continuity and storytelling.
I was also a Buffy fan, and ohmygod, were there painfully bad spots in that show. I'm wondering which ones you're thinking of as you reference the show. Still, IMO, Buffy at its worst was still better than some of the insanity that House has been showing. Buffy feels a lot more cohesive, a lot more fluidly written, and managed a large ensemble cast with flair, something the House folks simply CANNOT seem to do.
In that Rolling Stone interview, HL was asked "Are you afraid of the show becoming a parody of itself?"....
That part in the interview made me smile. Both the interviewer and HL made me smile.
I think his concerns are valid. I think Season 4 will be very telling, in terms of how the show will go. I'm extremely worried because I love this show, and don't want to see it die horribly. ... I saw the last episode as an attempt to START to repair some of the damage, INCLUDING the H/W dynamic (which DOES feel strained to me, but I at least get the sense they're finding their footing once more).
Good point about the ep being an attempt to start to repair the damage. Crossing my fingers.
Yes, I agree about the importance of S4. I was a big, big fan of The X-Files (shocking!) and I remember thinking that Seasons 3 and 4 were the X-Files' best seasons, where it was so smooth and funny and well-done.... I also remember being less than impressed by Buffy's Seasons 3 and 4. The third season is often where a show hits its stride and really settles down and solidifies the type of show it's going to be from then on out. So imagine my unpleasant surprise at how House is turning out this season. Oh well. Maybe Season 4 will be the clincher. The make-or-break season. I'll be watching and hoping. ;)
I hope the H/W dynamic doesn't fall prey to the adverse effects of the Heisenberg principle (now that writers & actors KNOW there is such a large H/W fanbase, that observation may effect how the relationship shows up on screen), but only time will tell.
That's been bugging me lately: the uncomfortable feeling of fan-service permeating the show. Maybe that's why all of the H/W scenes feel so off to me, so forced. It's like the writers and so forth know we're there, watching, and are putting on a very self-conscious little show, but the heart behind it is gone. Wow. That's really maudlin. I think I'll go watch old X-Files eps and figure it could be much worse: at least House hasn't descended to X-Files Season 7 horrors.
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timeasmymeasure
Re: WOW WAY TL;DR
Date: 2007-03-29 09:06 pm (UTC)In all honesty, I blame the writers.
I do, too. The writing on this show is very erratic. It's like the folks behind the show can't keep an even keel on anything. Spotlight on Cam, and Foreman and Chase disappear. Spotlight on Cuddy, now Cuddy looks like an incompetent, ineffectual fool (that stupid carpet debacle, the parking space nonsense), as well as having that out-of-nowhere baby subplot that comes and goes like the full moon. And so on.
Of course things are going to seem strange & weird after the Tritter arc; ... and then dismissed it with an absurd foppish gesture & a puff of purple smoke. I'm STILL pissed about the way that storyline ended.
The ridiculous and nonsensical Tritter arc was just painful to watch. That and, as you mentioned, post-ketamine House gleefully running again. Good Lord.
Anyway, moving on.
A television series is never going to achieve the seamless beauty of a novel, or even a film; it's a collaborative effort that's often stretched too thin over too many episodes, writers, and influences ... The obvious downsides are plot contrivances, awkwardness, strained & confusing characterization; the upside is, the show becomes a constant companion, something to obsess over and think about; and I'm willing to bet everyone who takes the time to participate in this community NEEDS that kind of presence in their life. Hey, nothing wrong with a few abandonment issues, LOL AMIRITE?
LOL! 2RITE.
Oh, very well! Be logical and point out that as House is a network show, it will by necessity have plot holes, poor writing, nutty characterization, and other agendas getting in the way of good continuity and storytelling.
I was also a Buffy fan, and ohmygod, were there painfully bad spots in that show. I'm wondering which ones you're thinking of as you reference the show. Still, IMO, Buffy at its worst was still better than some of the insanity that House has been showing. Buffy feels a lot more cohesive, a lot more fluidly written, and managed a large ensemble cast with flair, something the House folks simply CANNOT seem to do.
In that Rolling Stone interview, HL was asked "Are you afraid of the show becoming a parody of itself?"....
That part in the interview made me smile. Both the interviewer and HL made me smile.
I think his concerns are valid. I think Season 4 will be very telling, in terms of how the show will go. I'm extremely worried because I love this show, and don't want to see it die horribly. ... I saw the last episode as an attempt to START to repair some of the damage, INCLUDING the H/W dynamic (which DOES feel strained to me, but I at least get the sense they're finding their footing once more).
Good point about the ep being an attempt to start to repair the damage. Crossing my fingers.
Yes, I agree about the importance of S4. I was a big, big fan of The X-Files (shocking!) and I remember thinking that Seasons 3 and 4 were the X-Files' best seasons, where it was so smooth and funny and well-done.... I also remember being less than impressed by Buffy's Seasons 3 and 4. The third season is often where a show hits its stride and really settles down and solidifies the type of show it's going to be from then on out. So imagine my unpleasant surprise at how House is turning out this season. Oh well. Maybe Season 4 will be the clincher. The make-or-break season. I'll be watching and hoping. ;)
I hope the H/W dynamic doesn't fall prey to the adverse effects of the Heisenberg principle (now that writers & actors KNOW there is such a large H/W fanbase, that observation may effect how the relationship shows up on screen), but only time will tell.
That's been bugging me lately: the uncomfortable feeling of fan-service permeating the show. Maybe that's why all of the H/W scenes feel so off to me, so forced. It's like the writers and so forth know we're there, watching, and are putting on a very self-conscious little show, but the heart behind it is gone. Wow. That's really maudlin. I think I'll go watch old X-Files eps and figure it could be much worse: at least House hasn't descended to X-Files Season 7 horrors.