Gut Check

"Gut Check" is the sixteenth episode of the eighth season of House and the 171st overall. It aired on April 9, 2012 on FOX.

Plot

House and the team take on the case of a 22-year-old minor league hockey player, Bobby "The Hatchet" Hatcher who collapsed while coughing up blood after a fight on the ice. After debating the merits of fighting in hockey, the team decides to test for about four possible causes of Hatcher's condition. Hatcher tells the docs he's close to a NHL call-up and explains to Taub the importance of "enforcers" to the sport. Taub suddenly starts hating him.

A neighbor's baby has been keeping Wilson awake at night. House thinks part of it the problem is Wilson thinking about never having been a father. House tells him a story about Wilson's ex, Beth, calling House eleven years earlier to say she was pregnant, then basically says he's kidding. Wilson looks confused. Park is complaining about taking care of her mother all the time. Chase encourages her to do something about it. While drawing blood for leukemia Taub sees Hatcher's breasts had grown. Wilson tells House that he called Beth and he does have an 11-year old son. The team decides to look into the possibility of alcohol and steroid abuse.

In the hockey locker room Chase offers to let Park stay in his spare bedroom while she figures out stuff with her mother. Park finds a prescription that indicates Hatcher's teammate has mono. She accepts Chase's offer.Wilson goes to find presents for his 'son' with House. House doesn't think meeting the boy is a great idea.

Taub finds Hatcher sitting behind his hospital bed crying. Taub thinks he has chronic traumatic encephalopathy, Park thinks his liver failure has caused a hormone imbalance. Park panics and tells the team about moving in with Chase. House wants a psych evaluation. Wilson meets Duncan, his son. Duncan already owns the present Wilson bought him.

Hatcher's psych eval goes fine and he tells Taub he's feeling better. Taub brings up CTE, which Hatcher is well aware of, but does not want to be tested for. Ducan and Wilson seem to get along well. Duncan asks if he wants to hang out that evening and Wilson agrees. That night the two continue to hit it off. They love the same foods (pizza) and at the end of the night Duncan hugs him and tells him he loves him. House thinks Taub is biased against Hatcher.

Hatcher starts to stroke out. Hatcher ends up sticking up for Taub, despite the House's dislike of him. They move to microscopic polyangiitis. Hatcher tells Taub that he was forced to start enforcing to continue his career. Hatcher suddenly says he can't feel his arms. Taub starts to like him now The paralysis results in the team going with a treatment for Botulism. Hatcher starts to regain feeling in his arms.

House warns Wilson about the gravity of the responsibility with Duncan. Wilson seems excited precisely because it such a big deal.Taub and Hatcher play a table-hockey game on his bed. Hatcher begins to have chest pains.

House tells Taub that he lied to him about Hatcher taking his side. They decide to biopsy Hatcher's brain. Duncan tells Wilson that his mother is planning to leave for a job in Costa Rica. He doesn't want to go and asks if he can stay with Wilson. Wilson eventually agrees, as long as it's okay with his mother. Taub asks House to take him off the case. During the conversation Taub has an idea. He rushes to the OR and stops Chase. It turns out they had the proper diagnosis earlier.

Wilson tells House about Costa Rica. He doesn't think he's acting rationally and admits that House is right about him not being ready. House then brings in Duncan and tells Wilson that the kid is just an actor. Wilson yells at House to leave, then chuckles to himself.Park and Chase figure out that Chase is jealous of her family. We see Chase playing cards with her grandmother while Park goes to see her mother. House and Wilson are making pizza together. House tells that he got Beth to tell Wilson about the fictitious child just because she was still mad with Wilson.

Reception

The Onion's AV Club gave this episode a B+ rating,^[1] while Lisa Palmer of TV Fanatic gave it a 3.5/5.0 rating.^[2]

References

External links

• "Gut Check" at IMDb
• "Gut Check" at Fox.com
• Medical review of "Gut Check"