House is a drama, Frasier and Sienfeld (mentioned earlier) are sitcoms.
In sitcoms, it's not uncommon for most of the main characters in the show to live in the same place, work at the same job, eat at the same restaurant and have the same relationships for the entire life of the show. Naturally, these shows are able to "mix up" the flow all the time, because everything else stays the same.
In a drama, the characters, relationships, and jobs are the things that change all the time, while the flow stays the same. That's why dramas always seem "formulaic" to some people. "
It's always the same thing. Someone gets killed, then they try to solve it. No one listens to the smart guy until the end and then the bad guy goes to jail. Booorrrring."
What people miss, though, is that a drama is usually more about the characters themselves and how they relate to each other than it is about what they are doing. Sitcoms are the opposite: they're more about what the characters are doing than who they actually are and how they relate.
Some people like one, some people like the other, some people like both... and some people just watch Star Trek.
That's my take on things, at least.