House works best when it's as realistic as possible. In its glory days, the show was a weekly splash of cold water, an ongoing conversation about human frailty that bordered on both cynicism and sentimentality without going over the edge. Accordingly, one of the (unfortunately) many complaints about House over the past couple seasons is how it has so often veered away from that realism into melodrama, science fiction and too-convenient coincidences of storytelling. It has been business as usual for the dramas in the lives of the main characters to inexplicably reflect some element of the patient, whether it's his/her ailment or back story. That's why "Open and Shut" was such a breath of fresh air. The personal lives of the diagnostics team reflected the patient in believable, organic ways. By not having to carry an overbearing philosophical conceit, the actors got a chance to bring some nuance to their performances, to the benefit of the episode as a whole.

This week's patient is a woman who presents with severe abdominal pain in the middle of sleeping with a man who isn't her husband. But that's not the big twist. The couple have an open marriage, which of course leads to a lot of debate among the diagnostics team about the relative flaws and merits of such an arrangement. It doesn't take long for things to get around to Taub, the show's resident philanderer. He brings up the topic of open marriage to his wife at dinner, prompting a number of starts and stops that leads to Taub ultimately returning to his old ways. The difference is that now he feels justified thanks to a stray line about how we lie to avoid hurting people.

The Taub cheating business seems like a foregone conclusion, but at least it was fun getting there. Many of the differentials throughout the episode were tossed off in between inquiries into Taub's suddenly interesting sex life. The dialogue in those scenes really popped, which is something that doesn't happen all that much on House these days. It was a nice reminder that even though these doctors are in the business of saving lives and curing obscure ailments, they still get bored at work and are more than happy to indulge in office gossip. In a sense, that's partially what House has always been about: bored people with power.

Meanwhile on The House and Wilson Show, House continues to sabotage Wilson's rekindled relationship with his ex-wife Sam, this time by exploiting Wilson's domestic pet peeves. All it takes is a misplaced carton of milk and a mug without a coaster to bring Wilson's frustrations about how his marriage ended to the surface. The real payoff is the realization that this isn't just another failed relationship on House. Wilson and Sam reconcile after their fight, coming to the conclusion that Wilson has, in so many words, grown a spine over the years. We viewers have personally witnessed this as his interactions with House have slowly pushed Wilson to leave behind his milquetoast self for a more expressive way of life.

For everyone in this episode, it's the little stuff that counts. For our patient, the real cause of her illness has more to do with lilacs and bee stings than it does with lies and infidelity. If there's a lesson here, it's that complications often arise out of complicated thinking, not just loaded decisions.

Best Moment: Taub announcing that he (at least temporarily) has an open marriage. Foreman's reaction, "Um, mazel tov?", was especially nice.

Notes: I didn't notice until this episode, but Taub is a really slimy character. It's like he can't help but weasel his way out of everything.

Episode Rating: 3.8/5- A lot of "Open and Shut" was standard procedure for this series and I had a hard time caring about the patient, but the main character work was interesting and there was even a sense that a lot of the personal growth a lot of them have gone through over the past couple seasons hasn't been wasted.