Massage for the soul (A review of 'Massage Therapy)

 During the first few seasons watching House MD was my equivalent of a massage by Brandi:

• A convincing medical case as a general do-over for my back,
• House being obnoxiously outrageous (preferably to his team, but in default to his patients) to loosen up those tense shoulder muscles,
• a scalp massage in the form of an insight that shows that although House's communication techniques leave much to be desired, morally he's spot-on, breaking open the shell of our social conditioning to reveal the pearl of truth within,
• gentle musical accompaniment in the form of House's private interactions (The key word here is 'accompaniment'. Just as I don't go for a massage in order to listen to the music, I don't watch the show for the sake of background stories. My favourite music is intricate House-Wilson fugues; House-Cuddy duets are fine as long as they sing counterpoint, but who wants solos by members of the team?) and
• a 'happy ending' in the shape of a connection between case and private dilemma.

After last night I heaved a sigh of relief. Okay, it wasn't a massage with much of a happy ending nor was the masseuse called Brandi, but as in all relationships we have to make compromises: House can't have Brandi and I can't get my first three seasons back. But at least I'm getting a massage again instead of music without a massage.( Read more... )