House of CARDS!!!

[elleng]

[CaliforniaPeggy]

1. We just watched the first episode.

I can only watch one at a time; they're so intense, I can't stand it.

One thing I really enjoy is when Frank turns to the camera and talks to us. It's funny to me.

[elleng]

4. Yes, very intense.

I watched 2 tonight.

[Liberal_in_LA]

18. was the Mrs wearing a sleek black dress? lol

[MADem]

21. The "Shirley Valentine" effect!!!!

If you haven't seen this film, I recommend it highly--same talking to the camera thing, but a totally different vibe. You will enjoy it!

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0098319/

[Bucky]

33. I like the "talk to the camera" scenes, too. It confirms my pet fan theory

That Frank Underwood is really Zach Morris

[onecent]

40. I love that part to Calif. This movie was made for him...I don't think

anyone else could have filled his shoes. got to finish Sons of Anarchy first...taking me tooo darn long.

[fizzgig]

2. i just got started on the second episode

[elleng]

3. Just finished it.

More tomorrow. Tell me what you think when you're done, if you'd like.

[avebury]

5. I am on Episode 10.

I am enjoying it. This season is very different then the first 2 seasons as Frank finds out that it is not as easy to govern as it to create covert mayhem.

[elleng]

6. Right,

having to deal with the clowns instead of BEING one of them!

[avebury]

7. I just finished!

I guess the US version intends to go on longer the British version.

[orleans]

8. i thought your post said HOUSE OF CRABS

and i thought:
that's creepy

[elleng]

9. which SOME of them ARE!!!

[Jamaal510]

10. I heard people

talking about it in class, but I have no idea what it's about. Too bad it doesn't appear to come on cable.

[elleng]

11. It's on Netflix.

It's about politics, KIND OF like an 'evil' version of The West Wing. There's a British version that may be available to you.

[Initech]

12. Just finished episode 2.

[elleng]

13. Finished 2 last night.

Intense, eh? #3 now.

[Agschmid]

14. About half way through...

This season is very different then the other two... It's good but it's got a whole different vibe.

[elleng]

15. Yes; power does that.

[elleng]

17. Just finished Epi. 3,

Francis praying! OMG! NOT exactly like Prez Bartlet!

[Baitball Blogger]

16. I just finished Season 3

Let me just say

AAAAAAaaaarrrrgggh!

[LynneSin]

19. I swear she is way more evil then he is

I Claire!

[Baitball Blogger]

22. Spoiler....

Last edited Sun Mar 1, 2015, 01:59 PM - Edit history (1)

S.P.O.I.L.E.R.s ahead! DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN'T FINISHED SEASON 3.
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I agree, but I find her to be a very complicated shade of evil, because, in the end, she did the right thing for all the wrong reasons.

The episodes were leading up to the estrangement between her and her husband; (The Russian leader created the greatest test, by forcing Frank to remove her as ambassador.)

After two colossal failures at finding a productive place in the White House, she was given two opportunities to reflect to determine if the sacrifices she had made were worth it. One of them involved the writer's script which reinforced the idea that without her, Frank wouldn't be in "the chair."

The other was the conversation with the woman who was breastfeeding her child. When the young mother wondered what life would have been like if she didn't have the baby, I think, as evil as Claire was, it made her reflect back on her own abortion. It was the road not taken.

I didn't understand the scene where Claire asked Frank to forcefully take her. If he had, then he would have been a cad. But he didn't, and she still saw him as a cad. Don't understand what that was about at all.

So, Claire left Frank because she had reached a glass ceiling in their relationship. It was best for all of us because really, who needs ruthless people like that in the White House? But it also shows that she left for purely selfish reasons because leaving at that juncture would inflict the greatest damage to Frank. He would never make it to a second term without her.

[elleng]

25. Thanks for this (I guess.)

SILLY of me to read it!

[Baitball Blogger]

26. I said Spoiler in the title!

Oh, God I'm so sorry.

I will try to make it more difficult for someone to read.

[elleng]

27. Yes you did, quite properly.

I assumed the risk. NO NEED to make it more difficult for someone to read. We are, after all, adults, right???!!!

edit: I see your clever 'change.' Thanks for trying to protect us from ourselves!

[Baitball Blogger]

28. .

[LynneSin]

29. More spoilers - and fooey on you if you ready it and get spoiled....

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I think one of the defining moments for Claire in season #3 was when she was in the Russian Jail cell with Gay-rights activist Michael Corrigan. Because in a way there seemed to be a bit of 'role-playing' so to speak where she ended up being more like Frank Underwood and he was being more like Claire Underwood.

Claire's goal in that cell was to convince Corrigan to leave. The Russian PM was going to leave but unfortunately nothing was going to change in regards to gay-rights in Russian. Corrigan didn't want to leave because he felt to leave meant that he and the voices of of other gay right-s advocates would not be heard if he walked out of there for any other reason other than Russian changing the laws. (for those of you who ignored the spoilers, Corrigan was an American in Russian protesting the laws).

So in a way, Claire went into that jail cell convincing Corrigan to leave in almost the same mannerisms that Frank has used to convince Claire to get on board with some of the things he has been doing. Using this 'It's for the greater good' and 'think of the bigger picture' and my favorite 'you're the one being selfish thinking only of yourself'.

But the kicker was this - when Corrigan started to talk about his marriage. Up until them we all assumed that Corrigan was in this happy marriage. We had seen Corrigan's partner out there on the campaign trail with Underwood's primary opponent Heather Dunbar and Corrigan's partner (whose name escapes me) talked about what a loving marriage that he and Michael had. Yet there in the jail cell, Corrigan opened up to Claire about how unhappy his marriage was and how he really wasn't that compelled to leave a Russian Jail cell just to make his partner happy - to make a compromise about a cause he felt so important about over a marriage that to him had no meaning anymore. Corrigan was really putting his values first over a marriage with no hope.

I think when she heard that for the first time she realized that was exactly what she was doing. That she was trapped in her own personal 'Russian jail cell' making compromise after compromise because if she didn't her husband would berate her for being selfish and not thinking of the big picture. And in the end if she didn't do anything she was going to end up like Corrigan - hanging from the rafters hung by one of her very expensive designer silk scarfs (which is how Corrigan killed himself).

BTW when she spoke out at the press conference after the death of Corrigan and against the wishes of her Husband and the Russian PM - that was the first step down the path of Claire walking away from her vision of hanging from the rafters with that designer scarf.

[Baitball Blogger]

31. Wow!

What a great analysis. I hadn't made that connection because I still hadn't realized that the entire House of Cards series was all about the relationship between those two.

You know, it only goes to show you something that I have observed. When you have that level of evil in positions of power, (i.e. the status quo) the only ones who can effectively put an end to that structure will come from infighting.

[avebury]

34. The problem with Claire though is the fact that

ambitions exceed her capabilities.

[LynneSin]

35. Isn't that the entire mantra of the GOP

[Sheldon Cooper]

36. I agree, and I also think that the conversation with the breastfeeding mom

helped to push her in the direction she took.

[LynneSin]

37. But she was already going down that path

that was like one in a set of dominos that was pushing Claire over the edge.

[Myrina]

32. I f'ing HATE her!

She reminds me too much of former managers I've worked (or tried to work) with.

[MADem]

20. I binge-watched the first two seasons. I can't wait for Number Three.

Don't have Netflix--I guess I should get it. Not sure when they'll put it on disc.

[LynneSin]

38. See if you can sign up for a trial period

or just pay for a month

[MADem]

39. In this household, once I'm in, I'm in!!

I can just HEAR the wails and moans if I giveth, then taketh away....I know there are some fans of the ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK show who want to see more episodes of that one, too!

I'm just so ... CHEAP! I can't help myself!

[langstonhues]

23. I loved seasons 1 and 2

This new one feels a bit lacking. It's kind of snoozy in parts and feels like the original writers walked out and left the B team in charge. I hope things pick up but we only have 3 or 4 to go so I don't have much hope for that. It seems that Claire and Frank have been forgiven for being murderers - I don't feel right about that.

[Sheldon Cooper]

24. I loved season 1, was less enthused about season 2, and season 3 left me pretty meh.

I was disappointed with Doug and the business with Rachel, I don't think they fleshed out the case for Remy abandoning politics altogether, and the only thing of possible interest for the next season will be Claire's future and how that will impact Frank. Can you imagine if she would turn against him? They have so much dirt on each other.

[elias49]

30. I hate the Underwoods!

AAMOF there aren't many people to like in this series. So I watch.
I've seen 2 episodes of the new season. Tonight: parts 3 and 4. (Yeah...kind of masochistic)