House: Dominika's Green Card

by Amy K. Bredemeyer

I liked this episode. I thought it was funny. I find it a bit troubling that many others seemed not to be satisfied with it. Wilson had a strange moment portraying House's neighbor, but he also had a lovely part in helping House prepare for the green card interview. I thought that the patient was pretty standard... has a strange problem, they treat it, it turns out to be something else, House has an epiphany to solve the mystery, etc. The remaining part of the episode dealt with House needing to name a team leader... and that was great. Nobody wants the extra work involved except Park, but it's only when House actually thinks about giving it to the novice that there's objections. Plus, only House would require the competitors to actually take part in races and whatnot in an attempt to win the now-coveted position! And, I think you'll agree, it was rather quintessential House that he'd forgo everything and just give the job to the one who strikes a side deal with him. Classic.

House "Man of the House" (S08E13): We see a guy giving a marriage seminar but he passes out and falls off the stage. Because the patient was in a bad fight a few years back, House thinks that the guy needs hormone replacement therapy - he has low testosterone, which has made him more feminine. [eek!] His girl is looking forward to his increased libido, but he gets very mean with the hormone. She's told that it's similar to going through puberty, and he'll just have to take some time to figure it all out. But, he now suffers from incontinence, and during an MRI, he starts seeing double. The team thinks it's Lyme disease, but Adams tests for celiac anyway. [I hadn't even considered Chase's injury as being a result of doing an unordered test, though that's exactly what it was. His limp is almost gone now, though, so he's probably in the clear.] By looking at some old videos of the patient, House realizes that he has Silent Thyroiditis, which is a symptom of an immune deficiency problem. Now that the real problem is solved, the patient decides to stop taking the testosterone, since he's "a better man without it," even though it may cause him more problems in the future. [interesting. I didn't know what the outcome of that was going to be.]

House wants a team leader, but he's interrupted when "the old ball-and-Ukraine" comes back. [nice! I had all but forgotten about House's second wife, Dominika!] She's been running a Ukrainian food truck in Atlantic City, and the time has come for her green card interview. She and House need to learn all about one another, plus fake some vacation photos and whatnot. [I was surprised that he agreed to it all so quickly... until we found out that she was giving him $30,000!] The team helps

Cr: Jordin Althaus/FOX

House study, particularly Park, who is angling to become the team lead. [In HS, Park was "the bookie monster." This makes me laugh.] She organizes a green-screen photo shoot and even goes to his apartment to quiz the couple. [you know, for a similar position, this would be too ingratiating, but for House, it makes perfect sense!] Wilson is worried about House committing perjury, but he eventually gets into the spirit and helps House know when he just knows "too much" and it looks fake. [three marriages will give you that knowledge!] The meeting with the immigration officer goes well until he wants to corroborate with the neighbors... Wilson pretends to be a neighbor, but the real neighbor shows up and spoils things. [Wilson with an English accent? really?] So, House and Dominika bring a lawyer and go to the immigration office. Wilson tries to get House to save himself, but he keeps quiet. They're told that she'll be denied a green card and might be deported, and that his parole officer will be notified. Dominika says that she loves House, even if it was a sham, and that she'd rather he stay out of jail than her stay in the country. The guy doesn't buy it, but he decides to let them stay together, though they'll have unannounced visits for the next six months. [which will likely take us past the series finale, so we'll probably never see her get a green card. Though I'd be willing to bet that he calls it off before than anyhow.]

[Let's finish off the team lead storyline...] Team Leader earns an extra $50/week, which is why Park wants the job. [well, that and the resume-boost!] Nobody else cares until House decides to give it to her, when Chase and Adams protest. [haha!] Adams wants to remake the department, so Chase complains to Foreman, though he doesn't really want the job anyway. House has the three contestants (Taub isn't playing) race to suture hearts, run lab tests, etc. Meanwhile, Taub offers to split the $50/week, and that gets him the position.