marinw

I know this will never happen now, but I am still amused at the idea of the Kirkmans facing exile in Montreal. The horror! The horror! Montreal is actually a really nice, fun, sophisticated city where most Montrealers love to live. Ok, that is my PSA for the day,

As for House of Cards, there are many shows where the VEEP become POTUS. Four of these are Commander in Chief, 24, VEEP, and House of Cards. Fun fact: Three of these shows comes equipped with their own Sutherland.

Interestingly, Raja, the Deputy Prime Minister (our equivalent of the American VEEP) in Canada is an honorary post that is barely a real thing, Stephan Harper didn't even have a Deputy PM. Neither does our current PM Justin Trudeau.

Thanks for your knowledge on this topic @Raja

Thanks @thewhiteowl. I enjoy watching American Political Dramas because to my knowledge there aren't any great Canadian ones. Not that our politics lack intrigue, chess-playing, subterfuge and all of those things that are probably more fun to watch than to live.

As I Canadian, I don't have a deep knowledge of how Washington works so maybe that's why it easier for me to hand-wave away all the inaccuracies and declare this show a fantasy. As for Kirkman, I believe that he is being sincere when he says that he is POTUSing out of his sense of duty. But there must be some part of him that wants and likes having power. He and Emily had been labouring for some time over some sort of affordable housing plan that did not even get a mention in the State of The Union address. Now he has great power. It's a fascinating situation to be in. So far he seems incorruptible, but we shall see. I also find it sad the HUD is so low on the Washington totem poll, and is not considered an very important role. Anyone who has ever struggled with paying the rent or the mortgage would beg to differ.

Awe, Kirkman has no use for Kievlar (Kiefer+Kevlar=Kievlar) (I have serious jet lag and this is the most profound thought I can come up with after catching up last night)

Hello I am travelling in Peru and the Wi-Fi may be spotty. I will miss the next two episodes but Designated will be the first thing I watch when I return to Canada on the Canadian Thanksgiving. I am really enjoying this forum and look forward to rejoining in a couple of weeks.

I hand-wave these political shows as taking place in a parallel universe that is similar but not identical to ours. This way we can have a POTUS who isn't Obama, slightly different rules and laws and maybe a couple of fictional countries if you need them. For these shows to be compelling, this universe has to be similar enough to ours to feel real.

Thank you for mentioning Touch. That show is so forgotten that I sometimes think it was a product of my imagination.

The Tom Kirkland/ Jack Bauer comparisons are impossible to avoid. It is safe to say that both these characters get very little sleep. Poor Tom, lecturing Alex about the need for a good seven hours. As if. Kiefer would do well to emulate the career of Patrick Stewart who will forever be Jean - Luc Picard. But he still has a great career with Prof X and other rolls. Yet I am also thinking of Bryan Cranston who IIRC once said that for an actor to get two great TV roles is such a rare thing. In either case, Kiefer has in the space of one episode presented us with a character we care about. The fact that we have five pages of discussion already is proof of this.

I read somewhere that those glasses were Kiefer's idea. The right pair of glasses can be flattering and enhance a person's handsomeness. Those are not those glasses. And then there is his pre POTUS wardrobe of tweed suits and college hoodies.This makes his transformation all the more dramatic: take off the glasses and put him in a decent suit and the man is HANDSOME.

Two more random observations: I thought it was very astute of Kirkman to ask for a moment of silence when he first meets all the generals. It was a respectful thing to do and let everyone catch their breath. Also, Kiefer is a very convincing vomiter.

Prediction: The Iranians will restrict their oil exports, and Kirkman will use this as an opportunity to aggressively promote a green energy agenda that could never be passed with the now blown-up Congress.

Me too! As you know from 24, Kiefer has a lot of tattoos that don't always go with his character. Why an actor would do that to himself is something you will have to ask him. You could always cast him in a Prison Break or Blindspot type show.

Maybe that warmonger Genreal is the Mastermind. He engineered all this so that he could seize power. Mwahahaha! Too Obvious?

Kirkman was into affordable housing. My hero! An issue that seems to be ignored by governments in RL. I like that he's a beta male, Betas need to have stories about them too. Agreed. That would have given the Secret Service the time to go to Kirkman's house and fetch him his own (hopefully not tweed) suit.

Can we talk about the actual episode now? How can he read the teleprompter without his glasses, is my question. Okay, that wasn't very deep. But I still want to wrap Kiefer in a blanket.

Thank you for these links. I am always impressed by how thoughtful and humble Kiefer is. The Maggie Q piece is also interesting.

I loved the Truman Show.

Here's a nice interview in the New York Times.

I am completely unfamiliar with the work of Natascha McElhone, but she seems lovely.

And VEEP is still called VEEP and not POTUS.

I join you in the excitement! I have literally waited years for Kiefer to find another TV project that is worthy of him. I have charitably relegated Touch to the category of Noble Failure.

Not silly at all IMO. I am way too happy that Kiefer is in charge of Housing and Urban Development. A planning nerd! With glasses!