Review ‘House of Cards – Season 3’ From The Editor

“House of Cards” first couple Frank (Kevin Spacey) and Claire (Robin Wright) Underwood find that making it to the top of the mountain can be lonely and that the fall can be deadly on this season (Season 3).

Although if you’re also anything like us, you found the first two seasons overrated.

However, House of Cards took a rather dramatic shift in season 3, and the second half offered some of the show’s best moments and stories yet. The dynamic was different, relationships were challenged and the presidency led to some genuine dramatic tension in this otherwise toothless series.

A presidential motorcade opens the new season as Frank visits his father’s grave. It’s a moment that encapsulates Frank’s journey from ambitious college student who had to pay for his father’s tombstone to the leader of the free world.

Season 3 picks up after Frank’s litany of manipulations led to him replacing the previous president, who stepped down amid a money laundering scandal created by Underwood.

It doesn’t take long before it becomes very clear that Frank yields much less actual power to control situations as president than he did as the Democratic majority whip and as vice president in past seasons. There are more eyes on him. He actually has to run the country, make tough decisions on foreign policy, deal with the multiple sources for leaks, sign bills and he has no control over his waning approval ratings among Americans.

All of which must be handled if he has any hope of actually being elected president after his term is up. “I will not be a placeholder president,” Frank yells at Claire in a moment of frustration.

At the same time, Claire has no desire to just be the First Lady. She has her eyes set on a loftier post, one that her husband is willing to open the door for, but unable to actually hand over to her.

That’s the struggle of Season 3. While previous seasons thrilled us with Frank’s hands-on approach to climbing the political ranks, the third season finds him much more dependent on henchman.

If the strong female character arcs on House of Cards season 3 highlight one thing, it might be the show’s failure to deepen Frank Underwood himself. Kevin Spacey is terrific as usual, especially in a big scene at the end of the season 3 finale where he is better than ever (and which might make him a shoo-in for an Emmy win). But the character never changes or evolves. He’s a megalomaniacal tyrant who will do and say anything in his quest for power.

He doesn’t have much of a character arc in season 3, aside from becoming more and more frustrated as he faces obstacles that don’t go his way. One of the big ones is America Works, his plan to end entitlements like Society Security in order to end unemployment by giving everyone a job. Not only is there understandable opposition to this plan, but his typical method of going around everyone’s backs and getting it done by any means necessary fails to work out exactly as he hopes.

The only real change he has is physical as the show turns his hair greyer and ages him. Being president always seems to hasten the aging process, and the show does a great job of slowly morphing Spacey into an older man, even if the season only chronicles a little over a year.

Continuing the theme of strong-willed women, Frank faces stiff competition for the Democratic nomination for president in 2016, something he isn’t guaranteed despite being the incumbent. His two strongest opponents are Solicitor General Heather Dunbar (Elizabeth Marvel) and Frank’s protege Jackie Sharp (Molly Parker). Jackie, of course, only enters the race to help diminish Heather’s support amongst women before she plans to drop out and endorse Frank after he promises to name her his vice presidential candidate.

Marvel is the real breakout star of season 3. Dunbar is character whose brilliant mind makes her a formidable opponent for Frank Underwood. An attempted manipulation early on is easily thwarted, proving that she won’t be as easy to take down as Frank’s previous nemeses.

The eventual debate between the three of them is one of the season’s strongest episodes, mostly because it highlights the strong women in the series. Even as they go after each other, it’s clear that their words have an impact and Frank’s plan once again backfires in several unexpected ways.

The season ends shortly after the Iowa caucus in January 2016, leaving a very difficult fight for the Democratic nomination and then the general election on tap for season 4.

Despite Doug’s pointlessness and Frank’s inability to evolve as a character, House of Cards season 3 still represents the show’s best year yet and a nice change of pace. The first two seasons were all style with very little substance and no real conflict or dramatic tension. But there’s plenty of drama in season 3, and the shocking final revelation promises even more conflict in the future.

Nobody wants to see two evil people getting away with everything while facing no hurdles in their quest for absolute power. Season 3 changes that dynamic and offers real obstacles while transforming one of those evil characters into a morally complex heroine questioning her every decision.

This may be just the creative bump House of Cards needs to genuinely deserve the awards and praise it received for its overhyped first two years. If you’ve been on the fence about House of Cards like I was, this season will convert you.