by Bethany Cuenod

Created on: May 29, 2007

HOUSE: AMERICA'S GUILTY PLEASURE.

House is a major hit and there's really no denying that. What with 3 seasons finished with and a 4th one coming strong, what seems to keep this ordinary medical show so intense and exciting? The characters are no doubt strong minded and the actors and actresses are well cast, but there has to be something more.

When browsing the internet a few days ago I came across an ordinary blog post talking about the television show House. Now, of course, people are allowed to have opinions, but what seemed to keep me reading the comments on this article featuring lead actor, Hugh Laurie, was the fact that people didn't like the show. It is understandable. My grandma for one thinks he's too mean, but that's just her opinion. What they were saying was that House was boring. Boring? How can a hit like House be boring?

So I sat and I sat, until finally, oddly enough while I was watching the second season of the show, I realized it. Every week they think they solved the case, and they don't. They go "Oh, I can't believe we missed that" and then they're wrong again. Then finally on the magic third to fifth try they finally get it. Of course that may seem to bore a lot of people, but there is an underlying story that keeps people interested, if the odd and strange cases don't. That story line being the romantic and sexual tension between characters or could it be the actual good looks of the actors and actresses themselves.

There is something about the show that keeps us watching and we can't deny it. We all know what's going to happen in the episode, but we watch it still. Do we enjoy House's ability to make us laugh during an intense drama? Do we really want to know if Chase and Cameron will get together or even to some if Foreman will get fired? House is America's guilty pleasure. We know what will happen and we know the story lines are getting old, but we still watch.

Will a hit like this continue to get it's viewers by the medical or romantic aspect? Will House stay America's guilty pleasure, what with Grey's Anatomy being such a big medical drama? Or will it stay strong for a while and then die out like ER did? Only time will tell the outcome of this dilemma, but for now the production team of House has us interested.

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