Happy Birthday, James Hugh Calum Laurie

Despite my grumblings, I really do like the show "House, M.D."

I used to also admire the show for its subtly genius writing, but that's out the window now.

The way the season ended .... (spoilers ahead if you haven't watched it!) ...

REALLY??

House does not strike me as the hallucinating type, unless it's one long nightmare because he's in a coma from a terrible accident and can't wake up. Or if he's under a self-induced drug haze that makes him imagine dead people.

Either way, it's far too soapy a storyline, something that a show like "Desperate Housewives" might stoop to, but definitely not a plot point that I ever thought would pop up on "House." It's a bit disappointing, really.

Despite the ups and downs I've had with the show, one thing remains constant:

Hugh Laurie is awesome.

He takes every nincompoop character twist with aplomb and somehow makes the brash, gruff doctor likable. This is saying a lot, as I think the character always looks a bit like he would smell bad, and if there's one thing I cannot abide, it's smelly people.

So in spite of the fact that House looks like a cross between Einstein and a bum, I still love him. And I much appreciate an actor that can breathe such life into him.

So, Hugh Laurie, happy birthday! 50 is a big age, yet I think you have great things ahead of you, after "House."