Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		4.5

House M.D.: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie Review

It's never Lupus.

Reviewed by Justin Dekker February 21, 2025

At long last all eight seasons of the Fox medical drama arrive on Blu-ray (many for the first time in the US) in the 'House M.D.: The Complete Series' boxed set courtesy of Universal. Running from 2004 to 2012, it stars Hugh Laurie ('Blackadder', Jeeves & Wooster') as the misanthropic and brilliant diagnostician Dr. Gregory House. He's assisted in his weekly procedures by series mainstays Robert Sean Leonard ('Dead Poet's Society'), Omar Epps ('Dracula 2000'), Jesse Spencer ('Chicago Fire'), and some more transitory cast members such as Lisa Edelstein, Jennifer Morrison, and Olivia Wilde. All 176 episodes are included in this 39-disc set that offers over 129 hours of unusual medical cases mixed with acid wit, social commentary, and some surprising guest stars. Each season is packaged in its own case, and all eight cases are housed in an attractive slipbox that sports nine telling images of the good doctor. A Digital Code is not included.

Over the years, television has provided viewers with a host of doctors they can admire; doctors whose skill and wisdom are surpassed only by their compassion. These sorts of doctors who represent the best of humanity are part of a long-standing television tradition dating back to 1951's City Hospital and carrying on through to New Amsterdam, which treated its last patient in 2022. House M.D. gleefully and purposefully charts a radically different path, offering a blueprint of sorts to series such as Edie Falco's Nurse Jackie (2009-2015) and Morris Chestnut's Watson (2024-) which would follow and leverage certain of its ideas.

British funnyman Hugh Laurie's Dr. Gregory House, or just simply "House" as he is most commonly known, is a genius. The world-renowned diagnostician heads Princeton Plainsboro Teaching Hospital's Department of Diagnostic Medicine. Spots on his team are typically reserved for the best and brightest young doctors and are highly coveted. The difference is that House presides over them like a god. Rarely offering praise but quick to criticize, he also pries into personal lives, shamelessly manipulates others to further his goals, and dishes out cutting remarks that reduce their target into a pile of ash (and occasionally, tears). More problematic with each passing season, an infarction he suffered prior to the beginning of the series has left him with chronic pain in his right leg, making him reliant on a cane and a steady supply of Vicodin to function in the world. He is petty. He is vengeful. He is self-centered and offensive. He is immoral and has little regard for policy, procedure, and, sometimes, the law. He is a nightmarish boss. However, this pill-popping walking employee relations nightmare is the best there is at what he does; he solves cases that no other doctor can, offering a new chance at life for those who would otherwise be doomed. For that, he is granted a great deal of latitude. And as the viewer spends more time with House and detects the elements of his personality that he tries so hard to hide, he grows increasingly likable. He's a tragic figure consciously or unconsciously bent on his own destruction as those at the hospital and in the audience never give up hope that he will change. It's Hugh Laurie's wonderfully layered performance that makes the audience's conflicted affection for the character possible and is instrumental in the series' success.

Before going any further, it is important to address the elephant in the room; specifically the theme music. For many, the beautiful and haunting Massive Attack song "Teardrop" is an integral part of the series. Due to licensing issues, the viewer's location dictated which version of the theme music was heard. US audiences were greeted with "Teardrop", each week, while the similar but different "European" and "Singaporean" versions played in other markets and were present on home video and streaming services as well. This new release from Universal leverages all three versions of the theme song across the set's eight seasons. Season One sports the "European" version, Seasons Two through Five play with the "Singaporean" version, and as the discs for Seasons Six through Eight duplicate the previous stand-alone releases Massive Attack's "Teardrop" accompanies those episodes. For those who appreciate all three themes equally, it's a puzzling situation, but a win of sorts. For those who were hoping for "Teardrop" to run at the beginning of all 176 episodes, it's a point of frustration that is either due to licensing issues or some sort of human error. Tellingly, on the back of the cases for Seasons One through Five, a small box appears in the lower left corner that reads, "Music may differ from televised version". Based on my investigation into these episodes, only the theme song is impacted with other musical elements remaining the same.

From the very start, the series created by David Shore (NYPD Blue) wastes no time establishing a number of indelible links to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's infamous consulting detective Sherlock Holmes. To get viewers rapidly running down the path to make the connection, House's home address is revealed to be "221B Baker Street" the same as Holmes', and is, without question, the most famous address in all of literature. Sherlock Holmes' companion was Dr. John Watson, who served not only as a foil for Holmes but as a stand-in for the reader, someone to whom Homes could explain the solution to the current vexing problem and how he arrived at it. In this series, Dr. John Watson is replaced by Dr. James Wilson, but his function is the same. Both of those men were able to forge legitimate romantic connections and marry, while Holmes and House never could. It is true that House was married prior to the series, but he is never seen in a functional adult relationship during the series' eight-year run. While House was technically married late in the series, it was a sham to provide a young woman with a path to citizenship, but more importantly to childishly and cruelly take revenge on someone for whom he cared deeply. House, in a very Holmesian way, could look at any individual and instantly, based on his observations, effectively deduce an uncanny amount of information about them, a critical skill for a character whose mantra is "Everybody lies". Holmes could often be quite cutting in his remarks about Watson's intellect and that of the members of the police and Scotland Yard's Inspector Lestrade as well, just as House is critical of the doctors on his team, Wilson, and his boss, Dean of Medicine Dr. Lisa Cuddy (Lisa Edelstein). Holmes had an addiction to cocaine, which was legal at the time, much to the dismay of Watson, while House has an addiction to Vicodin which is equally troubling to Wilson. Holmes was prone to playing the violin, whereas House (Laurie is a skilled musician) frequently plays guitar or sits at his piano, a character embellishment carried over from his days on Jeeves & Wooster where his Bertie Wooster would often play and sing songs from the show's era. And staring viewers in the face each week, the name "House" is an obvious play on the name "Holmes". Names like Adler and Moriarty surface as well, but may be harder to spot, and when the situation ultimately becomes to dire and potentially inescapable, both characters decided that a faked death was the only sure solution.

House M.D., as with any long-running series, quickly establishes and follows a formula that it uses to guide the then-weekly episodes. Typically a group of new characters is seen going about their daily lives, either somehow at work or play. Within minutes one of them is experiencing some sort of acute medical crisis most often resulting in seizures, the loss of boldly fluids, a cardiac event, or the like. As the series progresses, those watching will undoubtedly engage in speculation as to which of these characters is about to begin a fight for their lives. After the opening credits and some inter-character banter, House either selects or is assigned the case involving the person from the opening. What follows is then a flurry of activity as House and his team argue and debate a diagnosis, run a battery of often unpleasant-looking tests, and attempting a number of treatments before House has a moment of epiphany and arrives at a brilliant and correct diagnosis. Along the way, the camera would routinely move into the afflicted person's body to show viewers, in a reasonably graphic fashion, exactly what it looks like when the condition makes its presence known, when actions from the team or other factors cause it to exacerbate, or when a new issue or complication arises.

The regular cast of the series is outstanding, that almost goes without saying. Edelstein, Epps, Morrison, Spencer, and Wilde quickly ground themselves in their characters and the series allows ample space for ongoing character development. But the guest stars are of equal importance. Standouts include Chi McBride (Frighteners) as an early nemesis intent on bringing House to heel. More frightening and difficult for House to deal with is David Morse's (St. Elsewhere) Detective Tritter who makes punishing House for his rude bedside manner and ceaseless pill- popping his personal mission. Candice Bergen arrives late in the series to brilliantly portray Cuddy's mom and the legendary James Earl Jones' single- episode appearance would have long-lasting ramifications for several characters. More gentle and beautiful is Dave Matthews' turn as a musical savant, and the two men playing piano together is a particularly touching and memorable moment. Viewers should also keep an eye out for a pre- Hamilton Lin-Manuel Miranda whose boundless energy and talent is recognizable even with his limited screen time.

The last three seasons of House M.D. previously received stand-alone releases. Please follow the links below to read about them.

House M.D.: Season Six

House M.D.: Season Seven

House M.D.: Season Eight

House M.D.: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

House M.D.: The Complete Series arrives on Blu-ray with a very healthy video presentation. The sole and obvious exception to this is, unsurprisingly, and as is often the case, the very first episode, "Pilot". Here detail levels are never quite what one would expect, skin tones are inconsistent and generally skew toward tans and almost oranges. Depth and dimensionality suffer, and blacks have a tendency to crush. Other issues are present as well, but this partial listing of the deficits on display should certainly establish the point that the first episode is problematic. The good news is that it is not at all emblematic of what viewers should expect from the second episode forward. Colors are pleasantly and realistically saturated within the established color pallet of the series which sees them being typically slightly muted from what one would expect from a series set in the modern day. It seems to be a deliberate choice to help reflect the bright lights and sterile environment of the hospital setting. Skin tones are healthy and primaries are afforded opportunities to pop, especially reds, which factor into some key episode moments and plot points. Black levels are adequate and acceptable in what is often a well-lit series. Depth and dimensionality are strong. Most impressive is fine detail, with Laurie's eternally stumbled face, Edelstein's perfectly styled hair, and Foreman's impeccable attire inviting inspection, as do the well-defined and observable set elements from House's apartment and office, Cuddy's home, and numerous other locations found in each episode. To my eye, some mild and very occasional banding is the largest optical issue to overcome, which never rises to the point of derailing an episode or pulling the viewer out of the story. It's a solid transfer.

House M.D.: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The first thing to remember about House M.D. is that its audio track is very much a product of its time and its last episode aired in 2012. As such, viewers accustomed to more modern efforts need to adjust expectations in accordance with the practices of the era. The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track is a very capable accompaniment to the on-screen action, but it is certainly not as immersive and dynamic as more modern fare. Faithfully rendered, the track is unabashedly front-heavy. Surrounds are used frequently enough to populate busy environments, allow for dominant and emotional musical swells, and craft appropriately disastrous and calamitous scenes when the need arises, but for the most part, the front channels do most of the heavy lifting. Dialogue is typically front and center, intelligible, and properly prioritized. Bass is appropriate to add depth to music and effects but never approaches anything close to being overpowering. For want of a better word, one could perhaps call it tasteful. Directionality is strong and objects move fluidly through the sound field, be they rushing gurneys, speeding cars or more motorcycles, or debris. Music is rendered with excellent fidelity and never fails to be a sonic highlight of each episode where it is allowed to be the focus, from The Rolling Stones' "You Can't Always Get What You Want", to Louis Prima's "Enjoy Yourself (It's Later Than You Think)", and "Get Happy", the somewhat dark big production number that star Hugh Laurie performs near the midway point of Season Seven. At all points in between the music highlighted is an impressive mix of classic songs from a number of genres and more modern tracks as well. It's never reference quality and it doesn't measure up to today's television/streaming releases, but it doesn't need to do either of those things. It simply needs to competently handle the relatively routine demands of an early 2000s drama and it does that quite well.

House M.D.: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Universal's new release of House M.D.arrives with a voluminous amount of special features spread across each of the eight seasons.

Season One, Disc 5

• Dr. House

• Medical Cases

• The Concept

• Set Tour

• 'House'-isms

• Casting Sessions with Hugh Laurie

Season Two, Disc 1

• "Autopsy" Commentary with Executive Producers David Shore and Katie Jacobs

• Alternate Take From "Daddy's Boy": The Valley Girl Version

Season Two, Disc 4

• Alternate Take From "Sleeping Dogs Lie": The Valley Girl Version

• Blooper Reel

• It Could Be Lupus

Season Two, Disc 5

• No Reason" Commentary with Executive Producers David Shore and Katie Jacobs

• An Evening with 'House'

Season Three, Disc 1

• Alternate Take From "Cane & Able": The Angry Valley Girl Edition

Season Three, Disc 3

• "Half-Wit" Commentary with Creator/Executive Producer David Shore and Executive Producer/Director Katie Jacobs

Season Three, Disc 5

• House Soundtrack Session with Band From TV

• Anatomy of an Episode: "The Jerk"

• Blood, Needles, and Body Parts: The 'House' Propr Department

• Open House: The Production Department

• Blooper Reel

Season Four, Disc 4

• "House's Head" Commentary with Creator/Executive Producer David Shore and Executive Producer/Director Katie Jacobs

• House's Scoop: Prescription Passion

• New Beginnings

• Meet the Writes

• The Visual Effects of 'House'

• Anatomy of a Scene: 'The Bus Crash'

• My Favorite Episode So Far...

Season Five, Disc 3

• 'House'Meets a Milestone: The 100th Episode

Season Five, Disc 4

• "Locked In" Commentary with Writer/Producer David Foster and Writers/Executive Producers Russel Friend & Garrett Lerner

Season Fve, Disc 5

• Keeping it Real: Accuracy in Writing

• Dr. Mom: Dr. Cuddy's Storyline

• 'House' Guests: Casting the Show

• Anatomy of the Show

Season Six, Disc 1

• Before "Broken": An Original Short

• A New House for 'House'

• New Faces in a New 'House'

• Crazy Cool Episode: "Epic Fail"

• "Broken" Commentary with Executive Producer/Director Katie Jacobs, Writer/Executive Producer Russel Friend. and Writer/Executive Producer Garrett Lerner

Season Six, Disc 3

• "Wilson" Commentary with Series Star Robert Sean Leonard and Writer/Supervising Producer David Foster, M.D.

• "5 to 9" Commentary with Series Star Lisa Edelstein and Writer/Executive Producer Thomas i. Moran

Season Six, Disc 4

• A Different POV: Hugh Laurie Directs

Season Six, Disc 5

• "Help Me" Commentary with Director/Co-Executive Producer Greg Yaitanes and Technical Advisor Larry Collins

Season Seven, Disc 2

• Meet Martha Masters

• Huddy Dissected

Season Seven, Disc 4

• Anatomy of an Episode: "Bombshells"

• Thirteen Returns

• "Bombshells" Commentary with Director Greg Yaitanes and Series Star Lisa Edelstein

• "The Dig" Commentary with Writers Sara Hess and David Hoselton

Season Seven, Disc 5

• "Moving On" Commentary with Creator/Executive Producer David Shore and Director/Executive Producer Greg Yaitanes

Season Eight, Disc 5

• 'House, M.D.' Swan Song

• The Doctor Directs: Behind the Scenes with Hugh Laurie

• Everybody Dies: A Postmortem

House M.D.: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

While a US-friendly release has been available for import for many years now, it's fantastic that House M.D.: The Complete Series has, at long last, received a proper stateside iteration. While the theme song may be a sticking point for some, those willing to look past it should be pleased with a very fine 1080p presentation and a solid DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track that backs it up, and the accompanying on-disc supplemental features should satisfy most of the grouchy doctor's fans. Thanks in large part to Hugh Laurie's brilliant performance, House M.D. has been a perennial favorite in my household since it first aired, when the weekly episodes were required viewing. Since then, my family and I have worked through this British release several times. It's become the television equivalent of comfort food, in a way. Of course, the unusual medical cases, humor, melodrama, and excellent cast also speak to why the series has and should continue to endure. For fans of the series and those who love medical dramas but are approaching it for the first time House M.D.: The Complete Series comes highly recommended.