TV shows often go out of their way to tie a holiday into their story lines. This weeks’ awful episode of My Own Worst Enemy actually had a super spy with a split personality making a turducken. Its also the perfect time to spring ‘a very special episode’ on everyone. For the record, these episodes are usually a train wreck and have long past their usefulness. House is one show that is ripe for a “special episode.” House is an angry, unloving atheist. It must be hard to resist an episode where House sees a sick child healed and suddenly has a Scrooge-like epiphany. Happily, the cynic in me is appeased this week leaving the sappy togetherness for an episode of ER.

A man desperate for a diagnosis, bursts into the hospital and takes House some patients hostage. The hostage taker is played by Željko Ivanek the fine Slovenian actor who recently played a vampire judge on a few episodes of True Blood. He’s great as the shifty Jason and a good foil for House.

Jason doesn’t trust the injections that House orders up. For good reason too as House tries to trick him into taking a sedative. In anger, Jason fires a round into one of the hostage’s legs.  At the same moment the SWAT team show up headed by the awesome Avon Barksdale from the Wire. house assembles the team, but Chase refuses to play along with Jason and stalks off. Its a great moment for Chase as its exactly the kind of stand that I wanted to see someone take.

Forman’s clinical trial involves some experimental disease drugs and he offers  a place in the trial to Hadley. As usual she’s a narcissistic pain in the ass and refuses to be involved. Now trapped in with the hostages, she volunteers to be Jason’s drug guinea pig. The drugs take their toll on Hadley and House accuses her of having a suicide wish. The injections cause her health to deteriorate bringing into question how much she does want to live. Hadley’s illness has always been a pretty weak plot point. Its just ludicrous that a woman of science would ignore her health problems due to some point of pride. That point finally comes to a head. Hadley is always a pretty annoying (when she isn’t kissing other ladies) but in this case she does show some descent acting.

Now convinced that it could be cancer, the hostages, patient and House all make their way to radiology. House explains that in order to get a proper X-ray, Jason has to give up the gun. He does and House, Hadley and one of the hostages remain. When it turns out that there is no tumor, House is left without a diagnosis. At this moment, House does something that is indicative of the insane genius that he is. He gives Jason the gun back because he too now wants to know what’s wrong with him. Its just fantastic. It sums up all the reasons why I like House.

After yet another injection putting Hadley’s life in danger, House has the breakthrough we’ve been waiting for. Apparently, Jason didn’t realize that Florida would be considered a tropical climate. After another standoff for drugs, Hadley and Jason are left alone. After Hadley finally comes to grips with the fact that she really doesn’t want to die, Jason takes the shot, SWAT blows open the doors and rushes in. Jason seems to be cured and he’ll have some nice years left as he spends them in lockup. Hadley wakes up in Foreman’s care and decides that she does want in on his new drug trial. It should be a sea change in her character, but you can never really tell on this show.

There are several moments of great editing in this episode that deserve to be noticed. TV editing and direction is often overlooked. House has some fantastic editing and I hope they get a shot at an Emmy this year.