Last House call

Warning: If you have not yet watched the series finale of House MD, but want to watch the episode, stop reading. There WILL be spoilers.

Last night was the series finale of House MD, one of my favorite shows. For eight years, this show has brought wit, humor, roller-coaster emotions, and medical knowledge (hint: it's never lupus) to our television. Hugh Laurie is a gifted actor, and the rest of the cast flourished.

When the episode prior to the finale ended with the news that House's parole was revoked and he would be sent back to jail to finish the last six months of his sentence, although best friend Wilson only had five months of life remaining, my husband and I instantly had a theory of how the finale would go. He thought House would die - somehow. I thought he and Wilson would go off on a Thelma and Louise type adventure, evading the police and enjoying the freedom.

Surprisingly, we were both right! The ending was perfect for the show. House "died" in the burning building. Wilson and Foreman witnessed him in the window, saw the ceiling fall, felt the explosion. Then, in perfect House style, during his own funeral he texts Wilson "Stop talking you idiot." The body was his last patient, who had died. House switched his own dental records with the patient's. Brilliant. Unlikely in the real world, but brilliant nonetheless. Just like the rest of the show. House asks Wilson how he wants to spend the remaining five months of his life, and the final scene shows the two of them riding off on motorcycles. Not many series finales are this perfect.

Remember the finale for Chuck? 

Sweet, beautiful, but achingly frustrating for those of us who watched this couple go from first meeting to a beautiful marriage and partnership. We never knew if Sarah regained her memories. I know I wasn't the only fan to feel cheated. The House finale was much better. No questions left unanswered, no open endings. I suppose we could ask what House will do once Wilson dies, but I am positive he'd go on living, alone, playing his music, enjoying the company of various hired women, and possibly eventually letting someone love him.