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- Thread starter Bucky32
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AJHawkfan
Wanna make $14 the hard way?
We just finished Season 3 last night. Good stuff, but not quite up to par with Season 1 & 2. Things seemed to drag a little bit at times. Of course, one of the biggest complaints I saw regarding seasons 1 & 2 were that things sometimes seemed to move too fast (no way he could've elevated himself to PoTUS that quickly, etc.)
On the whole, I enjoyed it and am looking forward to Season 4.
On the whole, I enjoyed it and am looking forward to Season 4.
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So I am just now catching up, I wrote a TL/DR post for Season 2, so why not 
I am currently halfway through season 4, so I will only focus on season 3 here. Spoilers ahead, so don’t read if you haven’t watched.
So speaking of my TL/DR, we’ll start with the premise that I began with, which was that Stamper was going to be a big loss. Obviously, he didn’t die and was a big part of the season, especially at its climax. As with most of the story lines, there were parts of the Stamper thing I liked, and part that I didn’t. Him fucking with Heather Dunbar was good, because it really showed how singularly devoted his thinking is…much like booze, Stamper is addicted to Frank Underwood (FU), much as he was to Rachel. I also like the wrinkle where he basically came between FU and Claire (CU) because she no longer trusted him. On the flip side, I thought the whole storyline with his recovery and his brother dragged out way too long, because it never went anywhere. I guess the point was to show the temptation he felt for a “normal” life? Problem is they did the same thing with CU in seasons 1 and 2, and it didn’t really come off then either. After all the underhanded and barbaric shit they pulled, the idea that 2 kids and a fenced-in yard was anywhere on his radar was somewhat preposterous. And it took them like 5 episodes to get there. I also wasn’t crazy about how the creepy computer fucktard arc played out, but it was fun watching Doug get medieval.
Speaking of Doug, I also said at the end of season 2 that Danton made no sense as WH Chief (WHCOS), and I stand by that. They just sort of started the season with both that and Blythe as VP, which I found atrociously inconsistent. Yes, they tried to mix in explanations for it (a specific one in the case of Blythe), but neither of them overcame the ridiculous inconsistencies of that decision. That also led to more problems, because with Danton, here is a guy that worked for FU, felt underappreciated and grew to hate him, tried to fuck him over for a full season…only to work as WHCOS? OK fine, he is a ruthless pragmatist setting himself up in the best position. But wait, no…then he gets some more Sharp noogie, and goes right back to falling on his sword. No. Fucking. Sense. Blythe did little in season 3, his inconsistencies apparently appear more in season 4.
So it goes without saying that I hate the Sharp/Danton thing even more than I did before, and now they are making it one of the central storylines, which is even worse. On the flip side, I really, really enjoy Catherine Durant and Heather Dunbar. Both actresses are very good and have added a lot to the show. The frienemy bitch boots between Durant and CU is a pretty interesting part of the season. The lady playing Dunbar is not unattractive and her ambition combine with her political inexperience have played out in a series of victories and missteps that was one of the highlights of the season for me. Speaking of which, Seth Grayson is also a double-crossing poon, so I expect him to get him some in season 4. He plays it well, so I think the actor is doing a good job.
So obviously, with Russo being the focus of Season 1, Stamper being in Season 2, this season it was really CU. I think they are borrowing a bit too much from what has happened, or what people think has happened, with the Clintons for my taste, but the whole UN Ambassador thing was pretty interesting. I like the fact they don’t use this as a Feminist Hero moment, she is a strong character, but she is far from perfect and gets the double-turn from the Russians when she thinks she is smarter than she is. You can see some evolution in her character that way. I thought the Pussy Riot thing and the gay activist thing were both weak sauce, because it seemed like they started with the idea that they wanted to include them and then shoe-horned them into the story. For example, CU having a crisis of conscience was, quite frankly, insulting to the audience at this point, but it seems like that’s the narrative they wanted to go with, no matter how it fit. They did a decent job with it when it became a bargaining chip, but by then the whole thing was just kind of misplaced. It’s clear to me that the show is angling for her to become as powerful and then surpass FU, with my guess being that at the climax of maybe season 5 or 6, she has him killed, or kills him herself under the guise of being a battered woman. Obviously that is pure speculation, but from what we saw at the end of the season, I think it is almost inevitable that it will end up that way in some way, shape, or form. In fact, if she becomes VP…well, nevermind, I’ll wait until the end of Season 4 to see how that all turns out first.
So what else, oh, the AmWorks thing. Eh, interesting idea, but they shut it down quickly. Good to see Freddy again, thought that was a nice touch. And of course Doug killed Rachel. Again, meh. Predictable and rushed. If they were going to go that route, I was hoping that she would at least cause some trouble first, or try to when she realized she was still being tracked. But no, she tried to witness protection herself, to no avail. I could have done with a bit less Russian drama and more of that.
All in all, it was an OK season, decent but not as addictive as the first 2. The cast additions for season 4 are very exciting, as the depth of the talent increases exponentially (and Neve Campbell looks hotter now than she did when she was “a thing”.)
I am currently halfway through season 4, so I will only focus on season 3 here. Spoilers ahead, so don’t read if you haven’t watched.So speaking of my TL/DR, we’ll start with the premise that I began with, which was that Stamper was going to be a big loss. Obviously, he didn’t die and was a big part of the season, especially at its climax. As with most of the story lines, there were parts of the Stamper thing I liked, and part that I didn’t. Him fucking with Heather Dunbar was good, because it really showed how singularly devoted his thinking is…much like booze, Stamper is addicted to Frank Underwood (FU), much as he was to Rachel. I also like the wrinkle where he basically came between FU and Claire (CU) because she no longer trusted him. On the flip side, I thought the whole storyline with his recovery and his brother dragged out way too long, because it never went anywhere. I guess the point was to show the temptation he felt for a “normal” life? Problem is they did the same thing with CU in seasons 1 and 2, and it didn’t really come off then either. After all the underhanded and barbaric shit they pulled, the idea that 2 kids and a fenced-in yard was anywhere on his radar was somewhat preposterous. And it took them like 5 episodes to get there. I also wasn’t crazy about how the creepy computer fucktard arc played out, but it was fun watching Doug get medieval.
Speaking of Doug, I also said at the end of season 2 that Danton made no sense as WH Chief (WHCOS), and I stand by that. They just sort of started the season with both that and Blythe as VP, which I found atrociously inconsistent. Yes, they tried to mix in explanations for it (a specific one in the case of Blythe), but neither of them overcame the ridiculous inconsistencies of that decision. That also led to more problems, because with Danton, here is a guy that worked for FU, felt underappreciated and grew to hate him, tried to fuck him over for a full season…only to work as WHCOS? OK fine, he is a ruthless pragmatist setting himself up in the best position. But wait, no…then he gets some more Sharp noogie, and goes right back to falling on his sword. No. Fucking. Sense. Blythe did little in season 3, his inconsistencies apparently appear more in season 4.
So it goes without saying that I hate the Sharp/Danton thing even more than I did before, and now they are making it one of the central storylines, which is even worse. On the flip side, I really, really enjoy Catherine Durant and Heather Dunbar. Both actresses are very good and have added a lot to the show. The frienemy bitch boots between Durant and CU is a pretty interesting part of the season. The lady playing Dunbar is not unattractive and her ambition combine with her political inexperience have played out in a series of victories and missteps that was one of the highlights of the season for me. Speaking of which, Seth Grayson is also a double-crossing poon, so I expect him to get him some in season 4. He plays it well, so I think the actor is doing a good job.
So obviously, with Russo being the focus of Season 1, Stamper being in Season 2, this season it was really CU. I think they are borrowing a bit too much from what has happened, or what people think has happened, with the Clintons for my taste, but the whole UN Ambassador thing was pretty interesting. I like the fact they don’t use this as a Feminist Hero moment, she is a strong character, but she is far from perfect and gets the double-turn from the Russians when she thinks she is smarter than she is. You can see some evolution in her character that way. I thought the Pussy Riot thing and the gay activist thing were both weak sauce, because it seemed like they started with the idea that they wanted to include them and then shoe-horned them into the story. For example, CU having a crisis of conscience was, quite frankly, insulting to the audience at this point, but it seems like that’s the narrative they wanted to go with, no matter how it fit. They did a decent job with it when it became a bargaining chip, but by then the whole thing was just kind of misplaced. It’s clear to me that the show is angling for her to become as powerful and then surpass FU, with my guess being that at the climax of maybe season 5 or 6, she has him killed, or kills him herself under the guise of being a battered woman. Obviously that is pure speculation, but from what we saw at the end of the season, I think it is almost inevitable that it will end up that way in some way, shape, or form. In fact, if she becomes VP…well, nevermind, I’ll wait until the end of Season 4 to see how that all turns out first.
So what else, oh, the AmWorks thing. Eh, interesting idea, but they shut it down quickly. Good to see Freddy again, thought that was a nice touch. And of course Doug killed Rachel. Again, meh. Predictable and rushed. If they were going to go that route, I was hoping that she would at least cause some trouble first, or try to when she realized she was still being tracked. But no, she tried to witness protection herself, to no avail. I could have done with a bit less Russian drama and more of that.
All in all, it was an OK season, decent but not as addictive as the first 2. The cast additions for season 4 are very exciting, as the depth of the talent increases exponentially (and Neve Campbell looks hotter now than she did when she was “a thing”.)
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