Tv shows currently on the air (that phrase makes so much more sense nowadays) that my wife and I have watched together from the start, include Vikings and Designated Survivor. Every Wednesday night, we welcome Kiefer Sutherland into our homes, as would any good Canadian or American. Similar to the tv show The West Wing, I am a fan because of the quick pace, smart characters, and I have some amount of interest in politics, (I am not saying I am proud to know what a filibuster is). The premise, a low level Cabinet member becoming the President of the United States after a catastrophic attack, is handled seriously in a manner that makes you think this could actually happen. Commercial breaks provide for multiple little cliffhangers, every episode makes me wish I could binge watch, and after 21 episodes in a successful first season, Designated Survivor will be back for a season 2.
The building of suspense and mystery from the first episode, the horrible tragedy and action scenes, and the feeling of what is going through these character’s minds were all well executed, especially for a tv show (we are living in a golden age of tv). Kiefer leads a great cast, torn between being a father and the responsibility of a nation’s leader. His wife, played by Natascha McElhone, gives him a center while also trying to be resilient for the sake of their children. Banter between White House staff makes for laughs and increased tension. Members of investigative agencies help create the mystery of the show (or solve it) and sets up for action portions to breakup the talk heavy thinker. The effects allow for a larger looking production while leaving the focus to be on the characters themselves, who after I try to keep up with dialogue for an hour at a time, make me feel smarter.
2017, TV-14
1 Season (21 episodes)
Cast & Crew
The show was created by David Guggenheim, who also wrote Safe House (2012 with Denzel Washington and Ryan Reynolds). The director of the pilot episode is Paul McGuigan, who also directed Lucky Number Slevin (2006 with Josh Hartnett), and the most episodes have been directed by Fred Toye, who has directed plenty of tv episodes (including Person of Interest and The Good Wife). Kiefer Sutherland continues his streak on tv after starring in 8 seasons of 24 as Jack Bauer (2001-2010), and 2 seasons of Touch (2012-2013) as Martin Bohm. Natascha McElhone kept David Duchovny in check in 7 seasons of Californication (2007-2014). Maggie Q brings the action after starring in 4 seasons of Nikita (2010-2013) and 1 season of Stalker (2014-2015). Italia Ricci appeared in episodes of Supergirl (2016) and starred in 2 seasons of Chasing Life (2014-2015). Kal Penn appeared in season 3 of Deadbeat (2016) and in the 13 episode Battle Creek (2015).
Links
Spoilers
(please do not continue reading if you have not seen the show and do not want to read a spoiler)
The premise for this show sounds like a spoiler, with nearly everyone dying in an attack on the United States government, but that only sets up the first act of the first episode. We then spend the whole season following President Kirkman navigate politics and Hannah Wells investigate who caused the attacks. This show works because the balance of characters (lots of strong female roles like Kimble Hookstraten playing politics), and intensity (gasping 1 minute at Hannah getting hit by a car, then laughing the next minute at how Seth Wright handles Abe Leonard). I think the President may not be ready for this, then he negotiates with now fellow world leaders in ways I don’t see coming, and I like that he has a role model in former President Moss. I care about the first lady and wish she could just speak her mind, but in politics everything is an issue and I hope she gets more to do next season. The relationship between Aaron Shore and Emily Rhodes is complicated and not at the same time, and with Seth there for usually comic relief, the staff are just as much fun to watch as the President and the FBI. Hannah working with Jason, Chuck, and John Forstell could be a show by itself. My biggest (only?) gripe would be that the show pulled a Game of Thrones move and killed off so many characters too quickly. The suspense of not knowing who did this kept building until they were revealed, then killed, then another conspiracy was revealed, then they were killed. I wish they would have gotten to where they are at now by the end of season 2 and given us more of the characters I liked and liked to hate. Can’t wait for season 2!
