Our summer with the Hammond/Barrish family wraps up this weekend, and the limited edition series leaves the door open for a return next year if the ratings merit it but also brings a bit of closure that should satisfy the fans of the show.
It’s been quite the ride to follow the former first family and their foibles as they navigate the new reality of a life after, and possibly before a return to, the White House.
The cast has done an impeccable job breathing life into and making us care about familiar characters–political families are nothing new in TV land–and the finale is no different. Long-held secrets come out, relationships change, and lessons are learned, but in some ways everybody ends up right back where they started, with their original problems and goals still very much intact.
The finale is called “Resignation Day” and it starts out to be exactly that–Elaine’s last day at the State Department–but it’s soon turned on its ear by events outside the family that directly affect everyone in it.
In the midst of that, we get no holds barred insight into why Doug doesn’t want Elaine in the White House again, and we learn how Elaine’s thought process works when her professional goals will very clearly affect her family. We also get a little bit more of a humane relationship between Elaine and Susan, even after everything is on the table about the game Susan has been running around Elaine’s openness with her.
As for the rest of the family, Doug’s in obligatory knots about his (expected) dalliance with Susan, T.J. comes home and has a come to Jesus with Margaret about his latest near-death experience, and Bud actually steps up as a father, even with his blowhard tendencies still completely intact.
There are a few surprises in the mix, but I think most people will have seen those coming. It doesn’t negate that everybody worked their butts off to tell the story. I think we’ll see this family again. But if I’m wrong, and we don’t, the conclusion works, and it was a treat to have actors like Sigourney Weaver, Ciaran Hinds, and Ellen Burstyn sharing the screen with the next wave, James Wolk and Sebastian Stan. And I’m always down for Carla Gugino.
Political Animals wraps Sunday night at 10 pm/9c on USA. You can catch the first four episodes online at USA’s website.
Here’s a sneak peek of tomorrow’s episode:
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