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Does the TV show House bear some blame for the opiod crisis?

PersonAndStuff

PersonAndStuff

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
5,264
Don't get me wrong, the show definitely had it's moments where it made clear that House was a drug addict and the drugs weren't affecting him positively. But, because it's a procedural, he shows back every week and does his job well. So the underlying message is that you can totally be a major opoid addict and maintain a normal life where you're a cool, smart doctor.
 

B.K.

Member
Oct 31, 2017
17,021
No. It was a problem before House. Doctors giving out pills like candy is the problem. A doctor in my hometown has gotten in trouble for all the prescriptions he has written. He gave out five million pills in eight years.
 
Alucrid

Alucrid

Chicken Photographer
Member
Oct 25, 2017
11,413
i remember watching house in the 90's and immediately going out to try opioids
 
Sandfox

Sandfox

Member
Oct 25, 2017
24,743
PersonAndStuff said:
Don't get me wrong, the show definitely had it's moments where it made clear that House was a drug addict and the drugs weren't affecting him positively. But, because it's a procedural, he shows back every week and does his job well. So the underlying message is that you can totally be a major opoid addict and maintain a normal life where you're a cool, smart doctor.
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House's drug use completely destroys ever facet of his life and is treated as a bad thing.
 
Einchy

Einchy

Member
Oct 25, 2017
42,659
PEC1P4i.gif
 
subpar spatula

subpar spatula

Refuses to Wash his Ass
Member
Oct 26, 2017
22,084
Could someone have taken opioids because of the show? Yes. Did it make the opioid crisis worse? No.
 
Vic_Viper

Vic_Viper

Thanked By SGM
Member
Oct 25, 2017
29,030
Nah, he was constantly battling with the addiction and it became pretty focal to the story as the show went on. Especially in the middle seasons when his tolerance got to the point where it wasnt working anymore, or when he was trying to quit.

I mean if you watched one or two episodes randomly, then yea I could see getting that idea. But if you watched it each week or binged the show, I dont see how anyone could get the idea that being on opioids made him a better doctor without any set backs. One of the main overarching points of the show was that House had lost everything because of his addiction.
 
Inugami

Inugami

Member
Oct 25, 2017
14,995
Absolutely not... It was a semi legal drug trade peddled by doctors and pharma companies to make a ton of money. Aside from a few escape goats and a few million dollars in settlements, they basically got away with it.
 
fontguy

fontguy

Avenger
Oct 8, 2018
16,151
Now we've got that covered, remember that one episode where Lin Manuel Miranda jumped off a parking garage?
 
Dyle

Dyle

One Winged Slayer
The Fallen
Oct 25, 2017
29,910
My dad looks a lot like Hugh Laurie so he bears a small percentage of guilt as well
 
OP
OP
PersonAndStuff

PersonAndStuff

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
5,264
Well, fuck me I guess.

Vic_Viper said:
Nah, he was constantly battling with the addiction and it became pretty focal to the story as the show went on. Especially in the middle seasons when his tolerance got to the point where it wasnt working anymore, or when he was trying to quit.

I mean if you watched one or two episodes randomly, then yea I could see getting that idea. But if you watched it each week or binged the show, I dont see how anyone could get the idea that being on opioids made him a better doctor without any set backs. One of the main overarching points of the show was that House had lost everything because of his addiction.
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I watched every episode. Admittedly it's pretty hazy now but I always thought it was part addiction and part House being an asshole that ruined his personal life. In work, he remained a rockstar for the most part. Highly effective while always high.
 
gdt

gdt

Member
Oct 26, 2017
9,467
Been thinking making a House thread, but I guess I'll just make this observation here.

My gf is rewatching House at the moment. And the other day as I walked into the living room throughout the day, I realized how many fucking episodes there are where some adult is fucking a kid. It's crazy. There's even one where a dad is fucking his daughter. I was thinking how random that is, for this show to dip into that topic so much.

Then it hit me...

Bryan Singer was an EP on the show. Wonder how much input he had in the writers room....
 
mikeamizzle

mikeamizzle

Member
Oct 25, 2017
3,058
Yes. Yes OP. Hugh Laurie is entirely personally responsible for the Opioid epidemic and I don't think it's debate-able.
 
mikeamizzle

mikeamizzle

Member
Oct 25, 2017
3,058
gdt said:
Been thinking making a House thread, but I guess I'll just make this observation here.

My gf is rewatching House at the moment. And the other day as I walked into the living room throughout the day, I realized how many fucking episodes there are where some adult is fucking a kid. It's crazy. There's even one where a dad is fucking his daughter. I was thinking how random that is, for this show to dip into that topic so much.

Then it hit me...

Bryan Singer was an EP on the show. Wonder how much input he had in the writers room....
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Shit I don't remember the shows stupid premises too clearly but this is pretty gross tbh.

I'll never understand the pass Bryan Singer and his shitty movies continue to get.
 
Vic_Viper

Vic_Viper

Thanked By SGM
Member
Oct 25, 2017
29,030
PersonAndStuff said:
I watched every episode. Admittedly it's pretty hazy now but I always thought it was part addiction and part House being an asshole that ruined his personal life. In work, he remained a rockstar for the most part. Highly effective while always high.
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My bad, when I said "you", I didnt mean you personally. Should have said If "someone" randomly watched an episode or two just in passing while it was on TV at the time, I could see thinking that they were trying to say that he was such a great doctor because he was always high. Because, as you said in the op, it was a procedural and took awhile for plot lines to come together. So without seeing it all together people might miss the larger storyarcs.

I just re-watched the show a year or two ago, so its still pretty fresh in my memory lol.
 
lenovox1

lenovox1

Member
Oct 26, 2017
8,995
Do you have articles or something to back up your theory?

Or... Like, Data?

Was House uniquely popular in the cities where the opioid crisis has taken its highest toll or something?
 
RiOrius

RiOrius

Member
Oct 27, 2017
6,073
As someone who started cooking crystal meth after watching half a season of Breaking Bad, I can authoritatively conclude that yes, some people do make terrible life choices based on the opening act of a series intended to be a cautionary tale.

Not sure if we're statistically significant, though. Most of my coworkers seem to have arrived by a more traditional career path.
 
Darksol

Darksol

Member
Oct 28, 2017
1,704
Japan
Does The Sopranos play a part in mob activity? Are more people slinging dope because they watched The Wire?
 
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