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Template:House (TV series) episode

Pilot is the first episode of the television series House, which premiered on the FOX network on November 16, 2004. It introduces the characters of Dr. Gregory House (played by Hugh Laurie) - a maverick anti-social doctor - and his team of diagnosticians at the fictional Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital in New Jersey. The episode features Dr. House attempting to diagnose a young grade school teacher after she collapses during her class.

Pilot was directed by series producer Bryan Singer, known for directing films such as The Usual Suspects, X-Men and later, Superman Returns, and guest starred Robin Tunney as House's first patient of the series; Tunney went on to star in Prison Break.

Behind the scenes

In their first scene together, Dr. Lisa Cuddy (played by Lisa Edelstein) reprimands House for not performing the duties the hospital administration expects of him; House reminds her that he has tenure. Hugh Laurie read this scene in the preliminary casting phase for an actor to play House. On the audition tape, Laurie apologized for his appearance as he was filming Flight of the Phoenix at the time of the casting session. Producer Bryan Singer originally demanded that an American actor play House. Laurie's audition tape was shown, compelling him to get up out his chair to get as close to the television screen as he could. Singer commented on how well this "American actor" was able to grasp the character; unbeknownst to him at the time, Laurie is British. Singer later referred to Laurie's performance in the pilot as "a little rough" in his attempts to find cadence and humor inside the character of House. Laurie later stated that his original impression was that the show was about Dr. James Wilson, as the script referred to him as a doctor with "boyish" looks, assumed this to be the star and that Dr. House was the "sidekick". It wasn't until he received the full teleplay of the pilot that he realized that House was the protagonist.

Similarities between House and the famous fictional detective Sherlock Holmes appear in the pilot: each character has only one real friend (Dr. Wilson and Dr. Watson, respectively) who connects the cerebral hero to human concerns; they both share their ability to come to rapid conclusions after the briefest examination of a client/patient and their drug use (cocaine for Holmes, Vicodin for House); the main patient is named Rebecca Adler, after Irene Adler, a female character from the first Sherlock Holmes short story.

Synopsis

Template:Spoiler Shortly after the start of class, kindergarten teacher Rebecca Adler (played by Robin Tunney) becomes dysphasic, much to the amusement of her students. Their amusement turns to horror as she falls to the floor. Dr. James Wilson (played by Robert Sean Leonard) attempts to convince House to treat Adler, but House dismisses him, citing boredom. The conversation leads to Wilson claiming that the patient is his cousin and that House's team in the Department of Diagnostic Medicine, are bored. House agrees to take the case still believing it to be a brain tumor, but open to other ideas. Soon thereafter, House is approached at the elevator by Dr. Cuddy - the administrator of the hospital - who attempts to persuade House to fulfill his duties at the hospital's walk-in clinic, a task he loathes because of the incomplexity of the cases brought to him; House refuses, claiming that Cuddy cannot fire him, and hurriedly leaves. Later, when House's team attempt to perform an MRI on Adler, they discover that his authorization has been revoked. House confronts Cuddy, accusing her of disrespect and risking a patient's life. Cuddy reasons with him, eventually allowing him authorization for treatments in exchange for him performing his required hours in the clinic.

While performing the MRI, Adler's throat closes up, and Robert Chase (played by Jesse Spencer) and Allison Cameron (played by Jennifer Morrison) - two member of House's team - are forced to revive her with a tracheotomy. House instructs the team to investigate the family's history and to search for an environmental cause. He then leaves to work in the hospital's clinic, where he treats a 10-year-old boy whose mother only allows him to use his Asthmatic inhaler intermittently, as opposed to everyday, which is what her son's doctor prescribed, because the idea of children "taking such strong medicine so frequently" bothers her greatly. On hearing this, House sarcastically scolds her for making such a drastic decision without first learning more about asthma. In the midst of his rant on the affects of steroids, House stumbles upon an idea and leaves quickly to treat Adler with steroids, diagnosing her with cerebral vasculitis, despite having no proof other than the possibility. Adler improves greatly on the steroids for a short while.

Upon House's insistence, neurologist Eric Foreman (played by Omar Epps) breaks into Adler's house with Cameron, to find the cause of Adler's illness. They find ham (which is not kosher) in Adler's kitchen, leading Foreman to reveal that Dr. Wilson had lied to House to convince him to treat Adler, as Wilson is Jewish and Adler is not. House dismisses the lie and concludes that Adler is infested with a tapeworm from undercooked pork; the tapeworm reproduced, resulting in larvae to travel into Adler's blood stream, infesting her brain. However, Adler refuses to accept anymore treatments without proof that the diagnoses they are meant to treat are correct, wishing to die with dignity, but House attempts to persuade her otherwise. During the conversation, Adler asks for the cause of the limp in House's right leg. House reveals he had an infarction in his thigh muscles that led to muscle death, which could have been avoided if his doctor had the correct diagnosis. House continues, claiming that death is inevitably ugly and that Adler can not die with dignity, but still she refuses treatment. House is ready to dismiss the case when Chase provides an idea for non-invasive evidence of Adler's infection with tapeworm: using an X-ray, House proves that Adler is infested with tapeworms and therefore her condition is treatable. After the revelation of this evidence, Adler happily agrees to take her medication, therein ending the case. Template:Endspoiler

Reception

The premiere, like the rest of the series, was well received. USA Today praised the show for its blend of a CSI formula with a medical show, and its pairing of "a great actor with a great character" in reference to Hugh Laurie and Dr. Gregory House. It was also compared to its rival television series, Medical Investigation, as being more character driven than Investigation's "plot-driven procedural". The New York Magazine referred to the series as "medical TV at its most satisfying and basic," once again praising Laurie as well as the other actors calling them " actors playing doctors who care about their patients." The Washington Post referred to Dr. House as "the most electrifying character to hit television in years," calling Laurie's performance "perilously close to perfection". After praising the format, actors and characters, the critic tied House with Desperate Housewives as "the best new drama on television."

The premiere attracted just over 7 million viewers, making it the 62nd most-watched show for the week of November 15-21, 2004, improving ratings for FOX from its lead-in that night, the short-lived reality series, The Rebel Billionaire (attracting 5.45 million viewers; the 78th most-watched show for the same aforementioned week).

Christopher Hoag, who composed the music for Pilot, was nominated for a 2005 Primetime Emmy Award (for the 2004–05 season) Outstanding Music Composition for a Series (Dramatic Underscore) for his work. Jon Ehrlich and Jason Derlatka would score all subsequent episodes.

References

1. Casting Session with Hugh Laurie House DVD Special Feature,
2. ^ The Concept House DVD Special Feature,
3. "House, M.D.: Season One". Reel.com. Retrieved 2006-10-03.
4. Inside the Actor's Studio Hugh Laurie Interview, BRAVO Network,
5. "How Dr. Gregory House is like Sherlock Holmes". House M.D. Guide to the TV Show. Retrieved 2006-09-11.
6. "'House' thrives with inspiration from Sherlock Holmes". The Philiadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 2006-10-03.
7. "There's a doctor worth watching in 'House'". USA Today. Retrieved 2006-09-11.
8. "Scrub Par". New York Magazine. Retrieved 2006-09-11.
9. "'House': Watching Is the Best Medicine". Washington Post. Retrieved 2006-09-11.
10. Viewer numbers for the week of November 15-21, 2004
11. "Awards for "House M.D." (2004)". IMDB. Retrieved 2006-09-11.

External links

• Official website
• The House Guide
• "House M.D." IMDB Profile
• "House M.D." Pilot IMDB Profile

• House episodes
• Television pilots