It took me quite awhile to pluck up the courage to acquire Season Five of my favourite medical drama. Whilst I applauded the gimmick of hiring the replacement team that filled so much of Season Four, I never quite bonded with the new 'ducklings' and I felt that the format suffered from the ravages of the writers strike. I also felt that House, himself, became too introspective, too troubled and lacking in bite.
I should have known better than to worry. Season Five represented a triumphant return to form for the writing team, with precisely the acid edginess to House's dialog that I'd missed so much.
I did have some plot niggles, specifically to do with Kuttner's arc, but in the interests of remaining spoiler free, I'll simply say that they did not impair my enjoyment of Season Five significantly. The best thing I can say about Season Five is that it has me pumped for Season Six - there'll be no similar doubt and hesitation regarding my purchase of that!