House vs. God

Season 2, Episode 19, Aired
EDIT

Episode Summary

House treats a 15 year old faith healer, while Wilson feels left out when he finds out House isn't planning on inviting him to his weekly poker game.
8.7
out of 10
EPISODE RATING: Great
617 votes
  • Your Rating: 10
    "Perfect"
  • Your Rating: 9.5
    "Superb"
  • Your Rating: 9
    "Superb"
  • Your Rating: 8.5
    "Great"
  • Your Rating: 8
    "Great"
  • Your Rating: 7.5
    "Good"
  • Your Rating: 7
    "Good"
  • Your Rating: 6.5
    "Fair"
  • Your Rating: 6
    "Fair"
  • Your Rating: 5.5
    "Mediocre"
  • Your Rating: 5
    "Mediocre"
  • Your Rating: 4.5
    "Poor"
  • Your Rating: 4
    "Poor"
  • Your Rating: 3.5
    "Bad"
  • Your Rating: 3
    "Bad"
  • Your Rating: 2.5
    "Terrible"
  • Your Rating: 2
    "Terrible"
  • Your Rating: 1.5
    "Abysmal"
  • Your Rating: 1
    "Abysmal"
Rate It

Watch Online

Amazon
Buy
iTunes
Buy
VUDU
Buy/Rent

Cast & Crew

See All EDIT

Fan Episode Reviews (27)

See All

  • One foot in the wrong direction.

    6.7
    "Fair"
    By NoShadesOfGrey, Nov 07, 2010 Report Abuse
    For a series that usually sets such remarkable standards, this episode was disappointing at best, maybe even egotistic. Religion is controversy -that, I understand- but this episode completely eradicated all sense of legitimacy to Christianity. There was not even a portion of the medical case that was left unexplainable as a COMMON COURTESY to the religious audience. The believers became considered nutcases and crackpots with "hallucinations", or deemed incapable of making rational decisions. The only time it was attempted to "appease" the Christian viewers was when the boy commented on how House's life was based around uncertainty, leaving the doctor with a "thoughtful expression" on his face. Sorry, but that doesn't cut it. What are Christians supposed to think when the scoreboard showed God-3, House-3 ? There is always a line drawn somewhere when a major controversy is the basis of a show, and millions of viewers are waiting to see the outcome- one foot stepped over that line in this case. The score is House-0, Religion-1.moreless

    DO YOU AGREE?

    5 31

  • Missed the mark; would have been better left open-ended, not \\\"Christians who advertise their Christianity are immoral scum and the only true faith is that of the cynic\\\". That is an adolescent attitude...and a shame to this show.moreless

    3.6
    "Bad"
    By sheerbeauty, Nov 07, 2010 Report Abuse
    Watched an ep of House a few days ago. A young faith healer is shown to be just another sinner. The healing he performs is explained as an unexpected side effect of his immoral antics, and is temporary to boot. The \\\"healed\\\" person is a believer, though - poor deluded soul! And House\\\'s cynicism is left intact. All his settings are restored to Bleak. There is no hope in his world, just weariness and anger.

    Would it really alienate viewers to see someone who claimed to believe in God to live a moral life for real? In other words, do writers feel the aching need to set up paper Christians just to tear them down? Or are they scared that if, say, House has an evangelical patient who is true to his faith, will House\\\'s lack of faith begin crumbling like a sandcastle in a storm? If they do, that says way more about their insecurity in what is true than it says about faith healers, real or phony.
    moreless

    DO YOU AGREE?

    4 27

  • My #1 episode! Writing is brilliant!!

    10
    "Perfect"
    By hemingwaykitten, Jun 08, 2010 Report Abuse
    House Vs. God is my #1 episode! The writing is sharp and crucial insights into many characters are built into this show. Do not miss this one, the bigger cynic you are, the more you will love it. Speaking of writing, anybody know what happened with HOUSE at the middle of S4? Did the smart writers quit during the writer's strike? The writing hasn't been this good in a LONG time. Watch it again to remind yourself of the best days of HOUSE...you'll be amazed at the difference. Lots of heat in this one, and hard truths as well. Worth a repeat viewing!moreless

    DO YOU AGREE?

    1 0

  • Religion rears its ugly head...

    10
    "Perfect"
    By DonStants2, Jun 08, 2009 Report Abuse
    I really enjoyed this episode, which is probably why I have played it to death! The writing was brilliant, and it was interesting to see the team delve into their religious belief. I loved House's interactions with the 15 year old "faith healer", and how House believes faith is "moronic". I thought him and Wilson's friendship worked brilliantly, and it was interesting to see them at odd's during the poker game.

    There was a very brief insight into Chase, and I was actually left pondering what Boyd meant by "why do you always do things you don't want to do"- I think part of Chase wishes he didn't become a doctor.

    I thought it was better that there was less focus on the spat between Foreman and Cameron- that dulled down the previous episode.

    For me though, it was the interactions between House and Wilson that tipped this into a brilliant episode, and the interesting twist of proving that Grace was still dying in order to save Boyd, which I thought was a great twist. Contrary with some reviews, I think it gave an interesting insight into Wilson's desire to "feed on neediness".

    Overall, brilliant, controversial, with a great plot and good character development.moreless

    DO YOU AGREE?

    0 0

  • The only episode of House I did not fully enjoy....

    5.0
    "Mediocre"
    By uk6strings, May 27, 2009 Report Abuse
    "House vs. God" is the only episode of House I can not fully enjoy (and I very much dislike Kal Penn but was able to enjoy the episodes he was a part of in seasons four and five). The acting is top-notch as always but, here in this episode, the writing lags behind the acting. "House vs. God" sees a young "healer" brought to House after collapsing during one of his faith healing sessions or whatever the technical name for whatever the kid was doing is. The thing that sets this episode apart from other House episodes as lackluster is this case of the sick healer, which is not as interesting or exciting as most other episodes in the series. Instead of focusing on great characters who have to deal with a thrilling and mysterious case and unpredictable office politics, the episode focuses on House's religious views, which I could not care less about. Sub-storylines dealing with Wilson and the Cameron vs. Foreman arc are redeeming qualities but only go so far.moreless

    DO YOU AGREE?

    0 2
 

Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

See All

  • Trivia

    ADD TRIVIA
    • House walks into the closed cafeteria to get coffee, turns on the espresso machine and gets himself a cup of coffee. It would take considerably longer for the machine to actually work after being turned off. Edit
    • The first shot of House's potential straight flush had the deuce, four, six and eight of clubs showing. No hole card can complete the straight flush. In a subsequent shot, the eight has become the five of clubs. Edit
    • Trivia: The tune that House plays on his piano partway through the episode is What a Friend We Have in Jesus. Edit

  • Notes

    ADD NOTES
    • This episode was nominated for a Humanitas Prize for 60 Minute Category. Edit
    • International Air Dates: The Netherlands: May 10, 2007 on SBS 6 Bulgaria: June 11, 2007 on NOVA The Czech Republic: October 1, 2007 on TV Nova Belgium: October 25, 2007 on KanaalTwee Finland: January 3, 2008 on MTV3 Edit
    • Music: The song that Boyd sings while wandering through the hospital is "Go Tell It on the Mountain", a Christmas carol. Edit

  • Quotes

    ADD QUOTES
    • House: You have a gift... for manipulation. Dr. Wilson: I listen, I have an actual conversation with people, which shockingly does raise the odds that they'll be cooperative. House: That's what I'm saying. You read that kid, and you manipulated the hell out of him. Edit
    • Dr. Chase: You say "won the lottery," he says "miracle." House: Yeah, the hand of God reached into this kid's pants, made him have sex, so he could scratch a rash, stick his fingers into some woman's face, and give her a few extra months. Come on, it's just another liar and manipulator. Dr. Wilson: Well nobody's as perfect as you are. Edit
    • Dr. Foreman: His fever is 103° and rising, if we don't do something real soon, he's going to be chatting with God face-to-face real soon. Edit

  • Allusions

    ADD ALLUSIONS
    • House: How many times can you hit pause at the part where Lindsay Lohan wins the spelling bee? What is it about girls who can spell? The movie House and Wilson are referring to is the 2004 Mark Waters' film Mean Girls. Edit
    • Dr. Wilson: This is fun, it's like Password. Talking about the game show Password, which premiered in 1961 and ran through 1966, and several versions have started up since. Allen Ludden hosted the game, where one partner had to use one-word clues to get his partner to say a particular "password." Edit

Show Forums

See All
Last Activity
Replies

Watch House Full Episodes

See All

Related Shows

  • Nip/Tuck

    Available Episodes: 100

    Source: FX

  • Doc Martin

    Available Episodes: 34

    Source: ITV

  • ER

    Available Episodes: 332

    Source: NBC

  • White Teeth

    Available Episodes: 4

    Source: Channel 4

  • Bones

    Available Episodes: 135

    Source: FOX

Season 2 Episodes

See All
Ep 24
No Reason
Ep 23
Who's Your Daddy?
Ep 22
Forever
Ep 21
Euphoria (2)
Ep 20
Euphoria (1)
Ep 19
House vs. God
Ep 18
Sleeping Dogs Lie
Ep 17
All In
Ep 16
Safe
Ep 15
Clueless
Ep 14
Sex Kills
Ep 13
Skin Deep
Ep 12
Distractions
Ep 11
Need to Know
Ep 10
Failure to Communicate
Ep 9
Deception
Ep 8
The Mistake
Ep 7
Hunting
Ep 6
Spin
Ep 5
Daddy's Boy
Ep 4
TB or Not TB
Ep 3
Humpty Dumpty
Ep 2
Autopsy
Ep 1
Acceptance

Contributors

Become a contributor
More
Less

TV Listings

Full Listings
BROWSE | Shows | Videos | News | Listings | Forums | People | Photos | TV.com Blog

CBS Entertainment | About TV.com | About CBS Interactive | Jobs | Advertise

© 2012 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. | Privacy Policy | Ad Choice | Terms of Use