Whac-A-Mole (21 Nov. 2006)

A young man collapses at his job, and House makes a game of establishing the diagnosis until things turn critical, and Tritter increases the pressure on Wilson.

Director:

Daniel Sackheim

Writers:

David Shore (creator), Pam Davis

Stars:

Hugh Laurie, Lisa Edelstein, Omar Epps

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
Hugh Laurie	...	Dr. Gregory House
Lisa Edelstein	...	Dr. Lisa Cuddy
Omar Epps	...	Dr. Eric Foreman
Robert Sean Leonard	...	Dr. James Wilson
Jennifer Morrison	...	Dr. Allison Cameron
Jesse Spencer	...	Dr. Robert Chase
Patrick Fugit	...	Jack Walters
Cassi Thomson	...	Kama Walters
Tanner Blaze	...	Will Walters
Dustin Seavey	...	Rodent
Deborah Lacey	...	Lorraine
Mandy June Turpin	...	Beth
Alan Rosenberg	...	Bruce Steinerman
Marco Pelaez	...	Hospital Pharmacist
Dorothea Harahan	...	Paramedic

Storyline

A young man collapses at his job, and House makes a game of establishing the diagnosis until things turn critical, and Tritter increases the pressure on Wilson.

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Plot Keywords:

some scenes animated | friendship | rain | arcade | investigation | 

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery

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Certificate:

TV-PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

21 November 2006 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Stage 10, 20th Century Fox Studios - 10201 Pico Blvd., Century City, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bad Hat Harry Productions, Heel & Toe Films, NBC Universal Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

60 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Consistent with House's parallels with Sherlock Holmes, when he challenges his team to solve the puzzle of the diagnosis, he writes it on a piece of paper, puts it in an envelope and on the envelope writes "The game is a itchy foot." This is a play on words of Holmes' popular phrase, "The game is afoot."

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Quotes

Dr. Eric Foreman: [House is writing down something] What are you writing?
Dr. Gregory House: Nothing.
Dr. Robert Chase: If you know the diagnosis, why don't you...?
Dr. Gregory House: [finishes writing] How are you gonna learn to swim unless I take off your floaties and throw you into shark-infested waters?
[licks the envelope]
Dr. Allison Cameron: You can't know what's wrong after a 30-second perusal of his file.
Dr. Gregory House: Apparently, you can't. Now what's a game without rules? Uh, no tagbacks, no biting, you get one test each and the clock runs until lunch.
[...]

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Connections

References Vertigo (1958)

User Reviews

Poor Wilson

Tritter never makes an appearance, but his presence is strongly felt as Wilson's med writing days are put to an end and he decides to shut down his practice. House continues to expect Tritter to fold first, and remains resolute not to apologize, no matter what. The patient of the week is a teenage male who faints and later bleeds and convulses. He is also full of tumors. Sadly, he is guardian to a younger brother and sister, and stands to lose them. House is all over the case, and his shoulder begins mysteriously aching. The explanantion at episode's end is pretty obvious. House is grimmer than ever, and more insufferable than ever. I am afraid this continued characterization will cost him fans.