"Twenty Vicodin" is the eighth season premiere episode of the American television medical drama series ''

House A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

'' and the 156th overall episode of the series. It aired on

Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

on October 3, 2011. The episode introduces a new regular cast member to the series,

Odette Annable Odette Juliette Annable (; born May 10, 1985) is an American actress. She is known for various roles in film and television, including as Dr. Jessica Adams in the Fox medical drama series ''House'', Beth McIntyre in the monster film ''Cloverfie ...

, who plays Dr. Jessica Adams.

Jaleel White Jaleel Ahmad White (born November 27, 1976) is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Steve Urkel on the sitcom ''Family Matters''. The character was originally intended to be a one-time guest appearance on the show; however, he wa ...

, who played

Steve Urkel Steven Quincy Urkel is a fictional character on the American ABC/ CBS sitcom ''Family Matters'', portrayed by Jaleel White. Originally slated to be a one-time-only character on the show, he broke out to be its most popular character and gradual ...

on the

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

show ''

Family Matters ''Family Matters'' is an American television sitcom that debuted on ABC on September 22, 1989, and ended on May 9, 1997. However it moved to CBS, where it was shown from September 19, 1997, to July 17, 1998. A spin-off of '' Perfect Strangers ...

'', makes a guest appearance in the episode. In the episode, the storyline picks up eleven months after the season seventh finale with House in prison.

Plot

Eight months after being imprisoned for driving his car into Cuddy's living room, House has five days before he is granted parole, to which he has become eligible due to space issues and relatively good behavior. He is faced with prison bullies, mainly their leader (

Jude Ciccolella Richard Jude Ciccolella (born November 30, 1947) is an American actor and singer. He is best known for playing Mike Novick in the television series '' 24'' from 2001 to 2006. Life and career Ciccolella was born in Burlington, Vermont, and spen ...

), who extorts him into paying them "twenty

Vicodin Hydrocodone/paracetamol (also known as hydrocodone/acetaminophen) is the combination of the pain medications hydrocodone and paracetamol (acetaminophen). It is used to treat moderate to severe pain. It is taken by mouth. Recreational use is co ...

" as "exit tax", and meets Jessica Adams (

), a young prison doctor who becomes fascinated with his medical skills. When a fellow prisoner collapses due to mysterious symptoms, House races against the clock and the head prison doctor to find the cure. During his imprisonment period, House has not had any phone calls or visitors; as House explains, human contact is what brought him there to begin with. In the end, House cures the man, but not without punishment from the parole board.

Production

"Twenty Vicodin", the eighth season premiere of ''House'', was written by Peter Blake. It debuted actress

as Dr. Jessica Adams, a doctor working at the prison where Dr. House is incarcerated.

David Shore David Shore (born July 3, 1959) is a Canadian television writer. Shore worked on ''Family Law'', ''NYPD Blue'' and '' Due South'', also producing many episodes of the latter. He created the critically acclaimed series '' House'' and more recentl ...

stated that it was a challenge for him to appropriately punish House for the deed in the season 7 finale without turning the series into a prison show or changing House's characteristics (while changing the environment around him, i.e. removing Cuddy and "chilling" his relationship with Wilson), and that is why he decided to pick up the story eight months after House's incarceration.

Reception

Critical reception

The episode was received with generally good reviews. The A.V. Club initially gave this episode a B− rating. Anthony Ocasio of ScreenRant.com gave the episode a positive review, stating "the House season 8 premiere presents a wonderfully crafted case study, penned by executive producer Peter Blake, on the man that is House, in which Hugh Laurie masterfully traverses a new environment filled with intriguing challenges and compelling characters." Joseph Oliveto from screencrave.com gave the episode a very good review, awarding the episode 9/10. Oliveto commented that Twenty Vicodin was "A tense season-opener

hat A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...

assures us that “House” hasn’t lost the magic".

Ratings

With 9.78 million viewers, "Twenty Vicodin" was the 8th most watched program of the night. This was a decrease of 0.76 million viewers from the season seven premiere, but an increase of 0.67 million from the season 7 finale. The episode was the 14th most watched program of the week for adults 18-49. The season premiere was the second most watched program of the week in Canada with 2.81 million viewers.

References

External links

*
"Twenty Vicodin"
at

Fox.com The Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly known simply as Fox and stylized in all caps as FOX, is an American commercial broadcast television network owned by Fox Corporation and headquartered in New York City, with master control operations and ...

Medical review of "Twenty Vicodin"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Twenty Vicodin House (season 8) episodes 2011 American television episodes Prison healthcare in fiction Television episodes set in prisons