In the end, it was all about a bromance. Which I think is ironic, since when House hit the airwaves in November of 2004, I don’t even think there was the term bromance. However, like it did for eight seasons, House surprised us as it closed down for good last night, leaving us with one of the most memorable figures in television history.
The Queen enjoyed House more than me; she’s been the most faithful viewer, though I’d say I watched about 75% of all the episodes with her, give or take. But it was hard not to be enamoured with Hugh Laurie’s cantakerous character. Often times an asshole, self-absorbed and narcassistic, the character could have failed (and thus the series) if not for Laurie’s amazing work each and every week. Never has a jerk been so compelling.
Last night’s series finale saw the return of former regulars Kal Penn, Jennifer Morrison, Sela Ward, Anne Dudek and Andre Braugher. Noticeably absent was Lisa Edelstein, who played Dr. Cuddy and was one of the shows greatest characters for seven of it’s eight seasons. But since the other returnees were subconcious manifestations of House’s psyche as he lay in a burning building ready to die, it made some sense that Cuddy wouldn’t be there trying to encourage him to live.
If you watched House long enough, you likely hoped to see him get together with Cuddy. When that didn’t work out, you may have thought that his bride of convenience, Dominika, new this season, would turn out to be the one. But at the end of the day, and the end of the series, the love of House’s life was his best friend, James Wilson. Played by Robert Sean Leonard, he’s been there since the beginning, and in the last few episodes, when the oncologist himself was diagnosed with cancer, we saw just how truly important this man was to House. Through eight seasons, they fought and laughed like friends, sometimes like husband and wife, and they supported each other through all sorts of travails. In the end, it was that relationship that proved to be the backbone of the series.
So how does it all end? Well, House and Wilson ride off into the clearing at the end of the path, as it were. Is it a happy ending? For a few moments, maybe it is. And then it’s done.
As House would likely tell us, everybody lies and everybody dies. Even great tv shows.
