The fifth season of Netflix's first original series is its best so far. "House of Cards" has had its ups and downs, but has found consistent satisfaction throughout Season 5.
Though not much can be said without spoiling the plot, I will attempt to give those who have not seen it yet a chance to know if this season is worth watching.
It is.
The Spoiler-Free Review
The show's strengths are still present, just done better. Frank Underwood is still just as charismatic as he was when this all started, a devil we hate to love. The aesthetically pleasing cinematography is almost as much eye candy as the beautiful Robin Wright, who commands Claire at her most dynamic. And probably more than ever, the current state of politics is mirrored constantly within the show's plot points and even bits of dialogue.
It is commendable that the show has found a way to still keep viewers coming back, given that we already know how each arc seems to end: Frank wins. The best explanation of this would be that the "how" of each season is more important than the "what" to fans. That is still mostly true with Season 5, but Frank's secure victories feel a little less secure this season, filling both Frank and the audience with a much-needed suspense.
The new characters are nice additions to the cast, each fulfilling a role that is hard to pin down at first, and by the second half of the season, surprise us. Characters like Romero and Sean Jeffries, a journalist who begins working with the hard-hitting Tom Hammerschmidt.
Overall, I give this season 5/5 stars.
Now here's why:
The Spoiler-Full Review
"House of Cards" has always found ways to weave current events into the show's narrative, and this season is no exception. "ICO" is continually the show's equivalent to ISIS, but new parallels like fake news, the "not my President" trend, and Russia's involvement in the election emerge this season. A natural outcome, one might call it, given the Trump era's ever-growing infamy.
The show has changed its formula for storytelling dramatically over the years. Seasons 1 and 2 were both slow-burn rises to power for Frank. Season 3 left on the cliffhanger of Claire walking out on Frank, finally giving Claire her dues, but it also established the show's new formula of starting an arc halfway through a season, then resolving it the first half of the next, and so on.
Season 4 did this, leading us to the conflict between Frank and his worthy opponent, Will Conway, which was resolved in Season 5. This arc started off really well, because Conway was the kind of political combatant who could make Frank nervous. He is a great character, too, since he is a Republican but hardly represents the typical Republican. It is a little disappointing that Conway is hardly in the latter half of the season, after he (of course) loses the election to Frank.
It was becoming quite the tired climax, too, having Frank always win, which is probably why the ending of Season 5 was so satisfying, because now... we are like Frank, unsure of his victory.
This season is the most feminist one yet, as well. The idea of Frank and Claire being partners was something introduced in Season 3 with the famous line, "I'm sorry I made you President." That quote forced not only Frank but us as an audience to reflect on just how much Claire gave to their not-so-noble cause while Frank reaped all the benefits. The power, though, has slowly been shifting the whole time to Claire.
Perhaps the most shocking part of Season 5 was the revelation that Frank was "giving up" his position to put Claire in place as President, that he had even been in disguise, feeding information to Tom Hammerschmidt to jeopardize his status. The irony is that even when Frank thinks he has made Claire the President, he believes that he is the reason. He believes he will be in power, lobbying from the outside after she pardons him. His overconfidence, after five seasons, might finally be his downfall, since it is implied that Claire will not pardon his crimes during the last shot, when she looks to the camera and says, "My turn."
Beautiful.
The women in the series have never shined brighter. Not only has Claire stole the show again, but her new crony, Jane Davis, is an enigmatic, terrifying character. It will be interesting to see where her loyalty lies come Season 6, since she had a private phone conversation with someone off-screen that implies there is a scheme afoot.
There were several shocking deaths this season, including reporter Tom Yeats (murdered by Claire during sex) and Cathy Durant (pushed down the stairs by Frank). Another shocking death was Leanne's, if she truly died. This show has a way of faking deaths (remember Doug?). There is still no confirmation that Leanne died. Here's to hoping that Rachel is still alive as well and we are in for a good twist sometime in the future.
It was easy to find concern over the show's renewal last year, given that, as stated earlier, it has struggled to invent new outcomes for Frank. He has always won. This season might not only set up an interesting story for Season 6, but it, more importantly, might set up a different story.
