Fetal Position

To begin with, I am watching and writing about this episode in 2017 because unlike Dr. House, I did set the TiVo to record. "Fetal Position" (Season Three) is one of the more thought provoking episodes; It is short on the usual jokes and competition/insults between House and his underlings, and features Dr. Cuddy out of her administrator role and into an active physician's role. The episode was written to feature Dr. Lisa Cuddy and House in a role reversal. There are moments in this episode that could be viewed as maudlin if one favored the usual cynical themes of the show's driving force. There is the "touching" moment in surgery that I won't describe further in case anyone, like me, is 10 years behind in their TV viewing. There is also the scene where the recovering mother is hanging photos in her home of the doctors who treated her. But importantly, we also get to see a little bit of the compassionate side of Gregory House, who usually does an excellent job of covering up any emotions. In this episode his job is to take 2nd chair to his boss, who empathizes, to a fault as House reminds her, a middle aged woman's desire to have a child at any cost. (She almost kills two patients to help secure the wishes of one of them) In 9 out of 10 times, House tells her, both the mother and her baby would have died. Some people have written off this episode as being some kind of pro-life statement. In my opinion, they have seen what they wanted to see, rather than what the writers of the show intended. It is no more pro life than it is pro Galápagos Islands. I enjoyed this episode because it allowed the actress Lisa Edelstein to display her considerable skills and to illustrate how often doctors can be wrong by allowing their own emotions to affect their judgement. House takes over her role by scolding her for her lack of judgement.

This woman, full of life, a successful photographer who is pregnant, has a stroke while at her job. This leads to hospitalization and issues evolving around the fetus and its anger to the mother. Cuddy is the featured person in this episode, doing House's job for a time because her maternal instincts trump her medical judgment. House is a realist, knowing the score. All odds are against saving both the mother and the baby.

Chase and Cameron continue their dalliance. This is a bit tiring. Overall It was a weaker episode for me.

House is going to the Galapagos and still he has a connection to his team and to Cuddy, even though he totally disagrees with her.

How did the photographer develop photos while lying deathly ill in her hospital bed? She photographs the doctors from her bed and the photos suddenly appear as 8x10 glossies on her bedside table. Even a Polaroid won't do that.

I can see that the writers were eager to include the patient's profession as part of the plot, but did they think the audience would not see this error? I also doubt the doctors or nurses had time to rush to the local drugstore to pick up her photos.

Still, overall the episode was intriguing. I had never heard of the disease that plagued the patient, and the conflicting beliefs of House and Cuddy on how to treat the patient added drama and interest to the episode.

I am fine with profile stuff...but this episode is not true to any characters, there is no risk, it is all roses. Upto this point (from Season 1 to 3) this is nearly the most cliché' and least well written...with the exclusion of the poor way they did the evil cop...oh and every time House mentions things being "evil" when he does not believe in "evil". I don't want to have to throw spoilers in, so let me just say this, if you are pro-life, but also pro-story arc you will not like this episode, if you are pro-life and hope for House to find pro-life, you will like this episode, if you are pro-choice you will hate this episode. It is a bit of the old shark jumping moment (not in the term of the series, but in the term of the episode...since you can do a single shark jump episode).

This episode was much much better than the "one day one gloom" or some of the tritter episodes earlier. It was welcome change. Sure, it was no way flawless but definitely watchable and the conversation not irrelevant. Like other reviewers pointed out "that" moment with House was really touching. It is not going to change him or made him do anything different but it definitely made him "think" for a while even after that happened. Sure the writers thought to make Cuddy the Hero and House has gotten one wrong. But you cant really say it that way. House understood Cuddy and he backed off which is strange for a man who usually gets his way. Well, this episode belong to women. Cuddy is happy, Cameron fighting with her feelings and doesn't seem to realize one bit what Chase thinks of her. She says everything except that "one" thing looking at that photo. All in all no matter how debatable this episode was I still think it is worth a watch and I felt good. I love "House" TV series and this is one of the good episodes. All that starts well, ends well.