Look.
I love this show, I love the aesthetic, I love the political intrigue and the drama, and I love the way characters evolve and change. I habitually go back when I'm at a series finale and watch the first episode to catch all the callbacks and see how the characters and setting evolves, and I'm glad I did. Doug and Claire are background noise in the first episode and they're the main players in the very end. I would have loved to see FU's story end, but under the circumstances seeing the two people his power-struggles damaged most come to blows is excellent. They both carry half of Francis with them and the final conflict shows us his characters impact even if they can't show his face. This I love, it's like poetry. And them both addressing the camera... Just yes (though it could've been meatier, they could've actually monologued a bit).
Doug killing Francis... I didn't even catch it when I first watched the episode. It's an interesting idea, showing Doug as a sociopath who idolizes the man enough to be the one to kill him and try to salvage his legacy, that's dark and interesting. It was executed pretty poorly and the reveal didn't seem very substantial, but I like the sentiment. Could've been fleshed out more.
But like...
Claire can kill Doug, that works. The problem is that she is still there, standing over a dead man in the Oval Office, forever. Like I have no problem with the episode except that it ends where it simply can't. As long as she is in office, as long as the Shepherds are after her, there's a story. What happens when they find a murdered man in the Office? Like what? And how can this be a true conclusion if she's still operating, if the conflict of her character is in no way resolved?
Rarely do I say that a season needs another episode. Most seasons are padded with marshmallow plots and empty calorie characters, but at least they actually end. One more episode to wrap up the Underwood nightmare would be everything, but this great series ends with just another episode.
I love this show, I love the aesthetic, I love the political intrigue and the drama, and I love the way characters evolve and change. I habitually go back when I'm at a series finale and watch the first episode to catch all the callbacks and see how the characters and setting evolves, and I'm glad I did. Doug and Claire are background noise in the first episode and they're the main players in the very end. I would have loved to see FU's story end, but under the circumstances seeing the two people his power-struggles damaged most come to blows is excellent. They both carry half of Francis with them and the final conflict shows us his characters impact even if they can't show his face. This I love, it's like poetry. And them both addressing the camera... Just yes (though it could've been meatier, they could've actually monologued a bit).
Doug killing Francis... I didn't even catch it when I first watched the episode. It's an interesting idea, showing Doug as a sociopath who idolizes the man enough to be the one to kill him and try to salvage his legacy, that's dark and interesting. It was executed pretty poorly and the reveal didn't seem very substantial, but I like the sentiment. Could've been fleshed out more.
But like...
Claire can kill Doug, that works. The problem is that she is still there, standing over a dead man in the Oval Office, forever. Like I have no problem with the episode except that it ends where it simply can't. As long as she is in office, as long as the Shepherds are after her, there's a story. What happens when they find a murdered man in the Office? Like what? And how can this be a true conclusion if she's still operating, if the conflict of her character is in no way resolved?
Rarely do I say that a season needs another episode. Most seasons are padded with marshmallow plots and empty calorie characters, but at least they actually end. One more episode to wrap up the Underwood nightmare would be everything, but this great series ends with just another episode.