Ignorance is Bliss - Recap

A courier makes a delivery at a bookstore and notices of books of physics books written by James Sidas. The owner chats with him and notices that the courier looks like the photo on the back of Sidas' books. James tells him that he's not that guy any more but the owner insists on getting his autography. James reluctantly agrees but then discovers that his hand is paralyzed.

House is trying to steal food from the cafeteria and Cuddy ends up paying for it. As they walk, he casually asks her what she's doing for Thanksgiving and she says that she's eating with his sister. Cuddy wonders why he's asking and House claims that he's simply trying to be nice and make conversation. She offers him the case of a 15-year-old with migraines and House immediately accepts, and Cuddy admits she was trying to trick him into taking James' case by offering him the uninteresting one first.

House takes the case to his team, everyone minus Cameron. As they go over James' symptoms of atemia, ataxia, and coughing, House realizes that Wilson isn't at the hospital and has him paged. Foreman suggests TTP of the spleen and Thirteen agrees, much to everyone's surprise. She insists that she and her ex are on good terms and House says they're all one big happy family and tells them to confirm that it's TTP.

Thirteen and Taub take samples and talk to James and his wife, Dara. Taub figures that James is either lying about why he dropped out of science to become a courier, or has mental problems. James insists that he found his intellect and the realizations that it brought depressing, and he is happier as a courier with a wife who doesn't care how smart he is.

Foreman goes to the doctor's lounge and finds Chase, and tries to ask him how he's doing since his breakup with Cameron. When Foreman offers to take him out for a drink, Chase insists that he's fine and tells Cameron that he doesn't want to talk about it.

As they run the tests for TTP, Thirteen wonders why Taub came back and he admits that his wife Rachel isn't happy about his decision. He wonders if things are as good as she claims between her and Foreman, and Thirteen insists that neither one of them got hurt and they're fine working together. The tests show positive for TTP but Taub is suspicious of the easy diagnosis and figures that House is playing some sort of game since he doesn't take easy cases. They go to talk to him, and find him in the restroom looking for Wilson. House tells them to perform a splenectomy to deal with the TTP, and insists that he has better things to do then play games with them.

Wilson finally comes in and House catches up to him in the lobby. He needs to know if Wilson has the address of Cuddy's sister. When Wilson wonders why, House explains that he plans to try and break up Cuddy and Lucas. He figures that either he'll succeed and they don't deserve to be together, or they'll stay together and demonstrate how strong their relationship is. Wilson isn't impressed with his friend's reasoning and refuses to help.

Chase performs the splenectomy and checks on James. He appears to be responding, but then has a stroke. The team reviews the new symptom while House goes through the phone book calling all of the Cuddy's in the area to find her sister. He finally focuses on the case and tells Chase and Taub to check out James' house while Thirteen and Foreman work together and do more tox screening.

As they go over James' house, Taub invites Chase to Thanksgiving dinner at his house. Chase figures that Taub is worried about him committing suicide, and notes that he's not Kutner. Taub wonders if Chase has someone to talk to but Chase refuses to discuss the situation with him. They find James' long-abandoned physics calculations and a hidden bottle of vodka.

House is checking out patients at the clinic and being nice about it. Cuddy notices and House insists that he's just being nice. She figures he has an agenda and wonders what it is, and House says he's looking forward to her telling him what it is. Cuddy finally figures he's trying to be nice and invites him to Thanksgiving with her. She gives him the address and leaves. House goes to Wilson to boast about his victory and Wilson wonders if Cuddy is trying to set House up. House has confirmed it's a legitimate address rather than a vacant lot.

Taub and Chase tell the team about the vodka while House tries on ties. Since removal of the spleen didn't work, they figure that the problem is simply liver failure brought on by alcoholism. House tells Thirteen and Taub to stay Thanksgiving Eve and test to confirm, and lets Foreman and Chase go home. The junior team members talk to James, who admits that he drinks occasionally. Dara is surprised to hear it, but James insists that he's never been drunk, she's never seen him drunk, and a liver biopsy is a waste of time.

House drives to the address Cuddy gave him and discovers that it is her sister's home. However, Cuddy's sister and her husband are in Hawaii for three weeks and Cuddy told the house sitter to expect House and offer him a turkey sandwich. She and Lucas are with Lucas' parents, and Cuddy nervously checks the time occasionally.

Thirteen and Taub perform the liver biopsy and it turns up negative. Taub suspects kidney failure and they realize they're going to have to stay into Thanksgiving to confirm.

House breaks into Lucas' apartment and waits for the detective to return. Lucas comes in and finds the doctor nearly passed out on his couch, drinking his wine. House insists that Cuddy isn't right for Lucas and she invited House because she wasn't sure, and she felt guilty. As Lucas tries to get him to bed, House admits that he's blown all the chances he might have with Cuddy, but he still loves her.

The next day, the team meets but Foreman tells the others that House called to say he won't be there. Taub asks Chase what he did for Thanksgiving and Chase claims he doesn't remember, but he wasn't drinking because then he'd have a problem. They return to the case and Chase wonders if the cough that James had, and the cough syrup they found in his medicine cabinet, might be a symptom. No one else think it is. They kidney tests proved negative but it's all they have so Foreman takes the lead and orders treatment and dialysis. When Thirteen objects that he's taking charge, Taub intervenes and notes they all agree with the diagnosis, and the two of them can fight later.

Out in the hallway, Thirteen approaches Chase and suggests that he see a counselor. Chase isn't interested and tells her that he wants everyone to leave him alone.

Cuddy goes to see House at his home. He admits he has no idea how he got there, and she informs him that Lucas is breaking up with her because he didn't want to get between her and House. She tells House that there is nothing between her and House and leaves. As he brushes his teeth, House tells Wilson that he's succeeded in breaking the couple up, and he pretended to be drunk while professing his love. Wilson notes that House is fortunate that Lucas is stupid, and House gets an idea. He goes to see James and accuses him of deliberately making himself stupid by taking DXM: cough syrup. DXM causes brain dysfunction, resulting in lowered cognitive processes. It can also cause brain damage unless taken with alcohol, and James was using the vodka to negate the side effects. James admits that it's true and explains to Dara that his life is only bearable without the gift of genius. She complains, noting that she thought that they married so she could help him get through the unbearable times, but he tells her that she isn't enough. As House leaves, James says that he can't live without DXM, but House tells him that he'd be surprised to learn what he can live without.

Foreman gives James lavage treatment to remove the DXM from his symptoms. His genius starts to come back but he privately tells Foreman that he can't stand his wife when he's smart, since her IQ is closer to a gibbon's then to his. James wishes it was different. When he takes the DXM, it is.

House is in the clinic checking a patient but soon realizes that she's a rat for an insurance company, checking out quality of care. He pays her $20 to pretend he was nice for Cuddy's benefit. However, when House leaves the room with her, he discovers that Cuddy has already left.

Dara talks to Foreman and wonders if James hates her. Foreman tries to reassure her, but they hear James yell in terror. They run inside and discover that his legs are paralyzed.

That night, Taub's wife Rachel is upset and he tries to learn why. She finally admits that she's unhappy because he's 40 years old but he's gone back to working for a tyrannical boss instead of calling the shots himself. He accuses her of believing he's a wuss, but then gets a call from House summoning him in.

Taub is the last to arrive for the meeting, much to House's irritation. None of them have anything but Chase refuses to even participate. When House threatens to call in Cameron, Chase gets up, punches him in the nose, and walks away.

Later, Cuddy comes to see House and ask if he's pressing charges. The bandaged House insists that nothing happened and persists in asking her on a date now that she's broken up with Lucas. Cuddy says she needs to know if Chase can handle the pressure, and says that sparring with House isn't fun any more. She tells him to do his job and leaves.

Desperate, House goes to James and asks him to review the date to see if he can figure out anything now that he's a genius again. James comments that House should understand how being a genius can make someone lonely. He tells House that he once tried to commit suicide by leaping off a building into a dumpster, breaking three of his ribs and cracking his collarbone. He was put on narcotics afterward for the pain and the lowered intelligence made him feel normal and happy for the first time. That was when he met Dara. House gives him cough medicine and prepares to leave, but then gets an idea. He takes James to the MRI chamber and injects him with contrast, and then brings the rest of the team in. The contrast marks James' spleen, the one that was supposedly removed by Chase. It's in 16 different locations throughout James' body. When he fell and broke his ribs, they cut off pieces of his spleen, which drifted through his bloodstream and embedded themselves in different parts of his body. They were correct that it was TTP: they simply didn't get all of the spleen out. Once they remove all the spleen pieces, James will recover.

Afterward, Chase runs after House. He apologizes and explains that he punched Hose so that everyone else would stop bothering him about his problems with Cameron. House accepts that.

After the surgery, House and Taub check on James, who is recovering nicely. The former physicist plans to keep working as a courier and secretly take the cough syrup again so he can be normal. House simply nods and walks away. Taub wonders why he's letting James essentially lobotomize himself, and House says that it's James' choice and ignorance is bliss. Taub reacts by taking out a digital photo of House's face and leaving. At home, he tells Rachel that he beat up House. Aroused by her new non-wuss of a husband, Rachel kisses him.

As Cuddy leaves, House approaches her and offers her tickets to a holiday carnival for her and her daughter. Cuddy refuses to take them but House insists he's just doing it to be nice. Cuddy still turns them down and says that she'll see him tomorrow.

At home, House tells Wilson that Cuddy and Lucas never broke up. If they had, she would have taken the tickets. Instead, she and Lucas are lying so he'll stop bothering Cuddy. House admits that it worked, and he'll leave them alone.

Cuddy goes home and tells Lucas that House knows what they tried to do. Lucas figures if House accepted her story even though he knows it's a lie, he must be okay with them dating. As he goes to make dinner, he says that House might not be so bad after all. Cuddy considers her daughter and admits that would be nice if it were true.

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