S01.E19: Misalliance

[thewhiteowl]

Quote

As the White House gears up for Kirkman's first international summit, Hookstraten's speakership is challenged. Alex wrestles with whether or not to bring the kids back to DC.

[paigow]

Hookstratten has to quit as Speaker if she wants to be VP, so no drama here...

[marinw]

Wear sensible shoes next time, Hannah.

Atwooooood! Noooooo!

So Kimble is going to settle for Secretary of Education instead of VEEP? Is she a fan of Battlestar Galactica?

Air Force One flies to Toronto. But they are already in Toronto, because that’s where the show is filmed.

I am enjoying DS much more  since I’ve made peace with the fact that the show is dumb.

Edited May 4, 2017 by marinw

[Danielg342]

@marinw beat me to it- Kimble Hookstraten is giving up VP to become the Secretary of Education? Since when?

(Not to mention the underlying sexism involved in that decision...women always get tagged for education posts)

R.I.P. Jason Atwood...you were gone too soon. I knew as soon as that deer showed up Jason would be a goner.

The alt-right being the bad guys...well, that's not being too political, is it show?

Hannah is on a barge...that complicates things. Didn't know the wiring in her bra could undo her locks. Was that an excuse to get a cleavage shot? I also wonder if her bra would, ahem, continue to "function properly" without that wire, because as she was running it seemed like her bra was functional.

That young Congressman believing that he can go to Washington and not have to broker backroom deals. HA! What kind of a politician does he think he is?

Not caring about the Kirkmans and their worries about Camp David...not sure the middle of an investigation into the largest terrorist attack in U.S. history is the right time to be sentimental.

Seth Wright and the selfie was kind of fun.

Oh, and Emily...more plunging necklines, please. 

Jay Whittaker seems to be way on top of things...and his plan seems to work out even when he doesn't seem to know it. Lucky Catalan was there to snuff out that snooping Atwood...wouldn't want the FBI to gain tangible information, now would we?

Overall, this didn't plod...it was a nice pace. Things actually happened. It was somewhat organic...it held my attention...but it felt very pedestrian. I just hope we get a good resolution so that in S2 they can come back far more focused.

[Frozendiva]

I like Kimble. She would make a capable Vice-President. Too bad about the more 'female' Secretary of Education posting.

Air Force One could just circle around Pearson Airport.

Hannah, do wear more sensible shoes. The sandwich meal did look quite sad. Being on a barge? Well, that makes if difficult to do much.

Two eps til the end of the season and we still don't know much.

[HerkyJerky]

Hannah being on a ship in the middle of the ocean?  Alias did it first and better!

[dwmarch]

The conspiracy angle was weird this episode. We know this guy who was involved in military contracting who was involved somehow but we just can't prove it. Like he wasn't so kind as to leave a whole goddamn missile silo full of high explosives or anything. Also that one treacherous guy in the government (Secretary of Homeland or something similar) makes his mwa-ha-ha call from within the friggin' White House!

I like the interactions between Emily and Seth. They play well off of each other.

Let me be the third or fourth to condemn Agent Wells' giant heels. Rebecca on 24 rocked some very stylish boots in the last few episodes of the season and she found out the meaning of suffering for fashion.

Speaking of which, Jason Atwood decides to abandon his ghille suit and silhouette himself against the background, leading to his immediate murder. I liked him as a character but he is seriously the worst FBI agent since The Blacklist.

I understand and appreciate that actors will play a variety of different roles over their careers and it is entirely possible for an actor who played a downtrodden father to play an elder statesman many years later. But Geoff Pierson will always be known to me for being the dad on Unhappily Ever After which was a thinly disguised remake of Married With Children. So that takes me out of the story a bit every time I see him. As if the United States of America would ever elect a second-rate Al Bundy to be the President!

[Driad]

Does the FBI teach how to use the underwire from a bra, or did Hannah watch Timeless?

[Moose135]

48 minutes ago, Driad said:

did Hannah watch Timeless?

I thought that as soon as she did that.

[wilnil]

I figured the reason Kimble was no longer up for VP was that she'd have to be confirmed by both houses of Congress, and she can't count on the House of Representatives anymore.

[Bobbin]

I wonder if Atwood was wearing a vest. How well camouflaged is that spy equipnent? hope at least that the computer command Atwood executed before he went to investigate the deer sent all of his critical evidence to the Cloud. The lone-wolf investigator uncovering evidence to blow the case wide open, but then getting killed before telling anyone can wear thin after the third or fourth time. At least in "Seven Days in May" the damaging note did ultimately turn up in time.

The water seems pretty smooth and quiet. I wonder where Hannah is. Not in the middle of the Atlantic, surely.

[Cthulhudrew]

When people in tv shows and movies are captured and tied up or otherwise restrained, why do they nevertheless always lunge towards suddenly towards their captors, knowing that it is a completely futile gesture? So dumb.

[mertensia]

I'm guessing it's for an occasion such as this that Hannah wears a bra with underwire. I mean, she doesn't need it. 

I'm so glad they're keeping Virgina Madsen; I like her.

Noooooo! Keep the kids at Camp David. Also the wife.

[marinw]

3 hours ago, Bobbin said:

I wonder if Atwood was wearing a vest.

Let us hope. I like him even if he likes to work without backup.

I did like Seth geeking out over Air Force One.

Edited May 4, 2017 by marinw

[marinw]

5 hours ago, Cthulhudrew said:

When people in tv shows and movies are captured and tied up or otherwise restrained, why do they nevertheless always lunge towards suddenly towards their captors, knowing that it is a completely futile gesture? So dumb.

And wouldn't a person be all cramped up after hours spent in chains? I have trouble moving after a long plane trip!

I don’t buy Kimble meekly settling for Secretary of Education, with all due respect to those who have held that position. She is way too ambitious.

Edited May 4, 2017 by marinw

[Ina123]

I'd vote for Atwood wearing a vest except didn't I see blood?

His last act on the computer will bring the Cavalry.

[Happy Harpy]

6 hours ago, HerkyJerky said:

Hannah being on a ship in the middle of the ocean?  Alias did it first and better!

Didn't 24 pull something like this, too? (Jack Bauer/China stuff?).

Boring. Boring, boring, so boring. I FFed most of it.

Show forces me to complain once again about the zzzzzzzzz factor of the First Family.  I found the funding subplot ridiculous. Doesn't POTUS have more pressing issues to care about like, I don't know, the hugiestest terrorist bombing on the US soil in History?

I had a moment of hope when Jason found out the Trump bad guy with the mole. Is he not really dead, or is he and no one will find out about the mole for a long string of episodes? Yes, I'm now playing "guess the cop-out". I'd rather keep Jason/Malik Yoba on the show at least until the end of the season (because unless huge improvement, that's when my watch will end).

Good moment with Kiefer S. when Kirkman discovered that Hannah was missing. Then... Kirkman:"Put everyone on alert!" Mike: "Already done" Me: *facepalm". Seriously writers. Let the guy DO something useful, not merely react.

I have the feeling they're phasing out Kimble and Aaron. Not too happy about it (read: not happy at all). I'm going to call them Team Self-Sacrifice. Kimble was watered down. Not that I want her to be the big bad, and I like that she can be noble, but she folded too easily. And was dragged into that vanilla funding subplot, argh.

Can Congressboys and Congressgirls go kaboom, too?

[Danielg342]

12 minutes ago, Ina123 said:

I'd vote for Atwood wearing a vest except didn't I see blood?

His last act on the computer will bring the Cavalry.

Maybe his vest cracked *shrugs*. It wasn't a headshot, which in Hollywood means "he might not be dead".

Also, is it just me or has Catalan not uttered one word in this series?

7 minutes ago, Happy Harpy said:

I have the feeling they're phasing out Kimble and Aaron. Not too happy about it (read: not happy at all). I'm going to call them Team Self-Sacrifice. Kimble was watered down. Not that I want her to be the big bad, and I like that she can be noble, but she folded too easily. And was dragged into that vanilla funding subplot, argh.

Can Congressboys and Congressgirls go kaboom, too?

I hope not. Kimble is one of the reasons why I watch this show. I do agree she caved too easily.

[Happy Harpy]

Just now, Danielg342 said:

I hope not. Kimble is one of the reasons why I watch this show. I do agree she caved too easily.

She is one of mine, too, so I hope I'm wrong. And maybe the new showrunner will be smart and place her and Aaron back in POTUS' orbit.

[Guest]

I don't think I'll continue to watch after this season. It's the time of the season where things should be ramping up, coming together, being exciting, and instead for the second week in a row, I was mostly bored. With such a dramatic opening, they needed to somewhat sustain that at least for the first season instead of focusing on stuff like arts education funding.  Not saying it isn't important, but when you've lost the vast majority of the federal government, that should dominate most of the headlines, you know?

[paigow]

Atwood is definitely bleeding...The floating prison might also have Stallone & Arnold on board...Maybe there will be a musical spinoff called Crazy Ex-Speaker now that Josh Chan is in Congress

[clb1016]

5 hours ago, mertensia said:

I'm guessing it's for an occasion such as this that Hannah wears a bra with underwire. I mean, she doesn't need it. 

 

Yup, but given that she probably only weighs about 85 lbs dripping wet, she sure is badass.

[snarkylady]

On 4/30/2017 at 0:26 PM, thewhiteowl said:

Quote

 Alex wrestles with whether or not to bring the kids back to DC.

Didn't Alex wrestle with whether (seriously, wrestle with whether?) to take the kids out of DC just a few episodes back?  I just don't like her and have suspected she is behind the entire conspiracy for a while now.  Every so often they raise the question of why the conspirators specifically wanted Kirkman as the designated survivor.  Perhaps the answer is right in front of us, Alex needed it to be Kirkman.

[waving feather]

Line of the episode: "Less nationalism and more multinationalism." These writers doesn't know subtlety if it hits them in the face. I thought art is supposed to make people think. These are paint by numbers plots and "messages" that anyone can see a mile away.

The actor playing Mike is still throwing off suspicious vibes and facial expressions. I don't know if that's on purpose or it's because he's not such a good actor.

I hope Kimble is playing a long game and that they didn't defang her. Forbid she becomes as goody two shoes as Tom. That would be boring. Sad Aaron doesn't have much to do with the main plot anymore.

The show basically said only Hannah, that Homeland security guy and Mike are still looking into the capital bombing. LOLOLOL.

The only bright spot is Seth. Emily is only tolerable when she's interacting with him.

[misstwpherecool]

4 hours ago, Ina123 said:

I'd vote for Atwood wearing a vest except didn't I see blood?

His last act on the computer will bring the Cavalry.

The actor was listed as a guest star so either he's too busy, has other issues or they wrote him out. They did make it a point to show him entering/sending something on the computer so there's little or no need to keep the character alive to tell what he saw. The scene was standard b horror movie fare with a false alarm then surprise!

As mentioned the lack of subtlety is like cartoonish. If not political subtext it's twirling mustache villain time. The only balance was the committee head trying to hold the line regarding back room deals and riders/sneak it in on another bill-real issue. Then prez snarkly remarked it's the oval office and not a backroom.

Going back to Chicago PD live.

[chaifan]

Am I the only one who thought Seth was going to meet a terrible fate by the end of the episode?  There was just so much of him being so giddy about getting to ride on AF1, I was certain he was being set up to a) get in a car accident on the way to the airport, b) get shot by someone aiming for Kirkman, or c) have the whole damn plane blow up. 

I agree with the poor shoe choice for Hannah, but remember, she was on her way home and kidnapped, so she didn't plan on running around on a boat.  Also, even on a ship that large, wouldn't you still feel some sort of movement being on deck in a container? 

I had hoped for something better/more dramatic for Kimble.  I thought Kirkman was going to figure out some way to shame the Senate into approving her for VP.

[Dowel Jones]

3 hours ago, paigow said:

Atwood is definitely bleeding...The floating prison might also have Stallone & Arnold on board.

I was hoping Hannah would run around a corner and meet face to face with.....Raymond Reddington, in his supremely well appointed container.

Sorry, I can't feel too sorry for Atwood.  Crawling out of your hiding place in hostile territory?  Bad idea.  Really bad idea.  Plus, the fact that he started tailing Browning down an alley.  Don't give yourself away or anything.

Hookstraten could resign her seat, and then run again in the special election, given enough support in her home district.  That would put a stick in Committee Chairman's eye.

[Mindthinkr]

12 hours ago, Driad said:

Does the FBI teach how to use the underwire from a bra, or did Hannah watch Timeless?

She goes on YouTube and watches The Crazy Russian Hacker. 

[Danielg342]

1 hour ago, Dowel Jones said:

I was hoping Hannah would run around a corner and meet face to face with.....Raymond Reddington

Man, if there's anyone that could play the Snidely Whiplash this show needs, it's James Spader. Red would be the perfect adversary. Put him in a room with Kirkman and watch the two go tete-a-tete would blow my mind.

[Happy Harpy]

1 hour ago, chaifan said:

Am I the only one who thought Seth was going to meet a terrible fate by the end of the episode? 

Nope! I thought I was going to get a kaboom, but not the kaboom I wanted.

I know, I know, but the show is the king of cop-outs so it makes me blood, or rather, explosion-thirsty.

In other news, this episode got a 0.9 in preliminary ratings, tying-up with CM:BB of all duds. I have a feeling that casual and online viewers goodwill has been tested and ran dry.

Edited May 4, 2017 by Happy Harpy

[Danielg342]

This show might be better if it had random explosions.

[Mindthinkr]

2 hours ago, chaifan said:

Am I the only one who thought Seth was going to meet a terrible fate by the end of the episode? 

I thought he did. He gave the other guy his opened phone to take a picture of him waving with POTUS on top of the stairs outside of Air Force One for his mother and then ducked inside to get going without retrieving it. Now I'm assuming the guy will follow up shortly but if it was me in such a position (privy to aspects of what's going on in the WH) I would not leave my device in anyone else's hands. 

[Tabasco Cat]

2 hours ago, chaifan said:

Also, even on a ship that large, wouldn't you still feel some sort of movement being on deck in a container?

You most certainly would notice the movement of the ship. The writers wanted the viewers to have a big AH HAH! reveal, though, so nope! Hannah will not notice. Or smell the salt air. Or feel the vibration of the engines rumbling below decks.

Edited May 4, 2017 by Tabasco Cat

[toodles]

I thought Kiefer looked very Joker-like when he was talking up close to the music guy,

[blackwing]

For once, the politics part of this episode didn't bother me too much, but only because it involved Hookstraten.  However, I was particularly annoyed by the fact that out of all of those congresspeople on the House Ethics Committee, not one of them looked much older than 40.  I get that the entire Congress save for Hookstraten and MacLeish were killed and replaced.  However, there was a glaring lack of people in their 50s, 60s and 70s on this committee.  Not one experienced former representative took up the call to serve again?  Not one experienced older state representative decided to run for Congress?  I know that the young Asian woman whispering to the Asian female rep was probably her aide and sat behind her.  But I assumed that all of the people actually sitting at the table were the actual representatives.  The woman at the left looked like she was in her 20s.

Also, the Filipino congressman that apparently leads both the Ethics Committee as well as the powerful Ways and Means?  Looks like he's 30.  There's no way someone so young would be given chairmanship of Ways and Means, even in a political crisis.

I don't buy that Hookstraten would give up Speaker to be Secretary of Education.  Speaker is two heartbeats away from the Presidency, and a much more powerful position.  Then again, I don't buy that a trip that someone took years ago and was paid for (OMG... HOTEL BILLS) would lead to a downfall.  Maybe if there were drugs or prostitutes or something... but at this time of crisis I would have assumed that the government would have wanted some stability, and that was Kimble.

I'm assuming Atwood is dead.  Too bad, I liked him.  But he was stupid.

Anyone who has been on a mega cruiseship the size of that barge or larger knows that you can definitely tell that you're on a ship.  No way should Hannah have been as shocked as she was.  She had shaken off the effects of the drugs so it's not like she lacked her senses.

[Mindthinkr]

13 minutes ago, Tabasco Cat said:

You most certainly would notice the movement of the ship. The writers wanted the viewers to have a big AH HAH! reveal, though, so nope! Hannah will not notice. Or smell the salt air. Or feel the vibration of the engines rumbling below decks.

Good points. Unless the drugging rendered her senses useless. When we vacationed as I child I could always tell when we were near the beach. That salty air smell. Still love it today. 

[paigow]

49 minutes ago, Mindthinkr said:

I thought he did. He gave the other guy his opened phone 

That dude is Secretary of State...He can be a dick, but is not evil

[Mindthinkr]

30 minutes ago, paigow said:

That dude is Secretary of State...He can be a dick, but is not evil

Still I personally wouldn't trust anyone with my phone if I was in that position. Also thx for telling me who he was. I couldn't remember exactly. 

[piequinn35]

Sec. of State Cornelius Moss played by Geoff Pierson is also a former President, he is not evil.

[Moose135]

I'm not sure I'd tell the Secretary of State and former POTUS that I don't trust him with my phone standing 20 feet away.

[TimWil]

The committee questioning Hookstratten looked ridiculously young. I mean...COME ON. The ones who perished in the Capitol Building that night surely couldn't have been replaced by their college-age grandchildren. So very stupid. No wonder this show is on its fourth showrunner. A good showrunner would have taken one look at these kiddies and been "WHAT THE F**K"?

And...oh yeah...Alex may have looked cute conducting that tour of the West Wing but SHE. IS. EVIL!

Good God, Kiefer's pronunciation of a certain city in Louisiana was so ...CANADIAN.

Edited May 5, 2017 by TimWil

[waving feather]

Anyway, you can still take pictures without unlocking the phone these days, so it really doesn't matter.

Another cringe worthy scene: when the two baddies meet up and they basically recapped to each other what has happened so far on the show for the sake of the viewers and also for Atwood to record. What clunky writing.

Some of the people on the committee look like they just graduated from University. Who knows, on this silly show they might be.

Edited May 4, 2017 by waving feather

[ishcabibble]

10 hours ago, paigow said:

Atwood is definitely bleeding...The floating prison might also have Stallone & Arnold on board...Maybe there will be a musical spinoff called Crazy Ex-Speaker now that Josh Chan is in Congress

Hahaha! All I could think everytime I saw him onscreen was, "Look! It's Congressman Josh Chan!"

[seacliffsal]

It's heartwarming to me that other people recognized Congressman Josh Chan!  We should soon see Rebecca serving on the Supreme Court, right?

I just have to watch this and think about how much I like Keifer, because otherwise my head would just explode with the lack of chaos within the nation and the already too powerful members of Congress considering that they have been there for about 2 months.  

Oh, and focusing on funding for music programs?  If the funding was expiring in a month, Congress (before it was blown up) would have been revisiting the funding.

[rur]

22 hours ago, Danielg342 said:

 I also wonder if her bra would, ahem, continue to "function properly" without that wire, because as she was running it seemed like her bra was functional.

The bra would continue to function, since it would still have straps holding it up. Some of its lifting and shaping duties would be compromised though. 

I have found it humorous that two shows have had women using the underwires in their bras as tools this year, and both of those women weren't really in need of underwires. And the wires must come out of their bras a whole lot easier than they come out of mine. The last time I tried to remove one (long story) it was quite a task, and not one I could have done while handcuffed. 

[Danielg342]

26 minutes ago, rur said:

The bra would continue to function, since it would still have straps holding it up. Some of its lifting and shaping duties would be compromised though. 

I have found it humorous that two shows have had women using the underwires in their bras as tools this year, and both of those women weren't really in need of underwires. And the wires must come out of their bras a whole lot easier than they come out of mine. The last time I tried to remove one (long story) it was quite a task, and not one I could have done while handcuffed. 

Thank you. I obviously do not wear a bra. :P

So I guess there should have been a slight sag, with maybe the cup "waving" a bit under her shirt (because the wire would press the bra against her breast).

Which means, would-be captors- it would be wise to remove your female captives' bras. Not that this wouldn't happen anyway, if this wasn't a network TV show.

[jhlipton]

21 hours ago, Moose135 said:

22 hours ago, Driad said:

Does the FBI teach how to use the underwire from a bra, or did Hannah watch Timeless?

I thought that as soon as she did that.

Me too!!

9 hours ago, Dowel Jones said:

Plus, the fact that he started tailing Browning down an alley.  Don't give yourself away or anything.

"This thing has a tracking radius of 10 miles."  "Damn, they're almost .2 miles ahead [they showed the tracker]!  I better speed up!"

7 hours ago, blackwing said:

However, I was particularly annoyed by the fact that out of all of those congresspeople on the House Ethics Committee, not one of them looked much older than 40. 

Also, the Filipino congressman that apparently leads both the Ethics Committee as well as the powerful Ways and Means?  Looks like he's 30.  There's no way someone so young would be given chairmanship of Ways and Means, even in a political crisis.

The second follows from the first.  If all the CongressCritters are in their 30s (or younger), then the heads of all the committees will be as well.  Even the Intelligence Committees.

[Driad]

In our universe, members of the House of Representatives have to be at least 25 years old, and members of the Senate at least 30. Few of them are that young. In the DS universe, who knows?

[TimWil]

1 hour ago, jhlipton said:

Me too!!

"This thing has a tracking radius of 10 miles."  "Damn, they're almost .2 miles ahead [they showed the tracker]!  I better speed up!"

The second follows from the first.  If all the CongressCritters are in their 30s (or younger), then the heads of all the committees will be as well.  Even the Intelligence Committees.

Well, that's patently ridiculous, then.

[jhlipton]

BTW, George Washington did not have wooden teeth.  He had teeth made from different animals. and one set made from the teeth of slaves, but not wooden ones.