Last updated on July 21, 2013
House of Cards (BBC) – You know what? I really don’t like watching Kevin Spacey. Nor do I think he would make a good replacement for Ian Richardson!
I will, however, fully and utterly admit that I do not usually enjoy British television shows. They feel rather droll at times, and the humor doesn’t captivate me as a boorish American man. In this case, I will be quite magnanimous and say House of Cards (and its two sequels To Play a King and The Final Cut) are some of the finest miniseries/television shows I have ever seen, bar none. Conaidering they’re based on books, that’s not a surprise (Michael Dobbs), but the scripting brings it to life (and changes many things in the process, so I hear).
The saga revolves around the exploits of MP Conservative/Tory Chief Whip Francis Urquhart. As he says of himself (breaking that ever-precious fourth wall):
I’m the Chief Whip. Merely a functionary. I keep the troops in line. I put a bit of stick about. I make ’em jump.
Promised for years that he would receive a place of high position in the party, he is denied that honor by the new Prime Minister Henry Colenridge. Relegated to a side role, he feel quite disenchanted, and knows that he could do a better job than any of the halfwits in office (aided in this thought process by his wife Elizabeth). Instead of doing what a good whip does – keep party members in line to vote in a particular way for the good of the party – Urquhart finally takes up the mantle and proceeds to destroy every political opponent in his path. Whips know the dirty secrets of everyone, and FU (yes, that’s intentional) takes advantage of them all. Eventually, he gets it in his head that he, personally, should become PM, and thus does the plan go into motion.
This might sound like a rout political drama, yet it’s actually darkly comic and amazingly captivating. I’m not one for Parliamentary politics, but everything that happens seems completely feasible and in line with FU’s character. Rather than developing some psychological compulsion for his many acts of indiscretion and political punishment, he justifies everything under the common cause of country. Lo and behold, he’s actually right – selfish ambition overtakes all pretenders to the throne, yet FU justifies his own actions as “for the good of England”.
Contrast this to Breaking Bad, where a man with cancer wants to make a nest egg for the family he leaves behind and slowly develops into a drug kingpin. That story, really, just isn’t interesting to me. From my view of total depravity, people are born doing evil things for the right reasons all the time. FU perfectly exemplifies this; he says something to the effect of “if the ends are justified, the means will present themselves”. He proceeds, as a character, to remain entirely consistent with that philosophy while he himself exemplifies the use and abuse of power for the good of everyone in his country.
Of course, the show wouldn’t come to life without an absolutely superb actor backing the whole show, and Ian Richardson IS Francis Urquhart to the bone. He plays him with a casual wit and elegance, equal parts delightfully pleasant and polite, rageful and angry. It’s difficult to see his plan, even as he gives you his personal thoughts and perspective throughout the show. He’s really several steps ahead of everyone else, and that is never clear until all his works and plans suddenly come into focus.
If there’s one theme I could discern, given that the ordinary literary trope of poetic justice never comes into play, it is loyalty. Those who remain loyal to their principles and a cause greater than themselves, however egregious their crimes and faults, will eventually suceed in the end. Those who do not, those who play both sides to foster their own personal gain, are lost and can never win the game of life. Or, at the very least, political life. That theme plays itself out over and over again. You could call FU unscrupulous, but I imagine the means are seen as a lesser cost in the long run for Britain’s future; most anything is spendable and expendable, if you get what I mean, and the show has no qualms with making that clear. In other words, it’s great television!
Honestly, I never thought such a show would capture my attention, but my superb dislike of Kevin Spacey led me to seek the original (as it has with Tinker, Tailor, Solider, Spy), and I believe that the original version’s superior to the remake. That’s not always the case, but I find it difficult to imagine that the American version could compete with acting and plotting of this caliber. And they’re both on Netflix, too, so you can try both to see what flavor you enjoy more, you loud boors. Me? Do I hate the American verson?
You might think that, but I couldn’t possibly comment.
————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
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Monday Update – House of Cards (NOT THE AMERICAN ONE)
Last updated on July 21, 2013
House of Cards (BBC) – You know what? I really don’t like watching Kevin Spacey. Nor do I think he would make a good replacement for Ian Richardson!
I will, however, fully and utterly admit that I do not usually enjoy British television shows. They feel rather droll at times, and the humor doesn’t captivate me as a boorish American man. In this case, I will be quite magnanimous and say House of Cards (and its two sequels To Play a King and The Final Cut) are some of the finest miniseries/television shows I have ever seen, bar none. Conaidering they’re based on books, that’s not a surprise (Michael Dobbs), but the scripting brings it to life (and changes many things in the process, so I hear).
The saga revolves around the exploits of MP Conservative/Tory Chief Whip Francis Urquhart. As he says of himself (breaking that ever-precious fourth wall):
Promised for years that he would receive a place of high position in the party, he is denied that honor by the new Prime Minister Henry Colenridge. Relegated to a side role, he feel quite disenchanted, and knows that he could do a better job than any of the halfwits in office (aided in this thought process by his wife Elizabeth). Instead of doing what a good whip does – keep party members in line to vote in a particular way for the good of the party – Urquhart finally takes up the mantle and proceeds to destroy every political opponent in his path. Whips know the dirty secrets of everyone, and FU (yes, that’s intentional) takes advantage of them all. Eventually, he gets it in his head that he, personally, should become PM, and thus does the plan go into motion.
This might sound like a rout political drama, yet it’s actually darkly comic and amazingly captivating. I’m not one for Parliamentary politics, but everything that happens seems completely feasible and in line with FU’s character. Rather than developing some psychological compulsion for his many acts of indiscretion and political punishment, he justifies everything under the common cause of country. Lo and behold, he’s actually right – selfish ambition overtakes all pretenders to the throne, yet FU justifies his own actions as “for the good of England”.
Contrast this to Breaking Bad, where a man with cancer wants to make a nest egg for the family he leaves behind and slowly develops into a drug kingpin. That story, really, just isn’t interesting to me. From my view of total depravity, people are born doing evil things for the right reasons all the time. FU perfectly exemplifies this; he says something to the effect of “if the ends are justified, the means will present themselves”. He proceeds, as a character, to remain entirely consistent with that philosophy while he himself exemplifies the use and abuse of power for the good of everyone in his country.
Of course, the show wouldn’t come to life without an absolutely superb actor backing the whole show, and Ian Richardson IS Francis Urquhart to the bone. He plays him with a casual wit and elegance, equal parts delightfully pleasant and polite, rageful and angry. It’s difficult to see his plan, even as he gives you his personal thoughts and perspective throughout the show. He’s really several steps ahead of everyone else, and that is never clear until all his works and plans suddenly come into focus.
If there’s one theme I could discern, given that the ordinary literary trope of poetic justice never comes into play, it is loyalty. Those who remain loyal to their principles and a cause greater than themselves, however egregious their crimes and faults, will eventually suceed in the end. Those who do not, those who play both sides to foster their own personal gain, are lost and can never win the game of life. Or, at the very least, political life. That theme plays itself out over and over again. You could call FU unscrupulous, but I imagine the means are seen as a lesser cost in the long run for Britain’s future; most anything is spendable and expendable, if you get what I mean, and the show has no qualms with making that clear. In other words, it’s great television!
Honestly, I never thought such a show would capture my attention, but my superb dislike of Kevin Spacey led me to seek the original (as it has with Tinker, Tailor, Solider, Spy), and I believe that the original version’s superior to the remake. That’s not always the case, but I find it difficult to imagine that the American version could compete with acting and plotting of this caliber. And they’re both on Netflix, too, so you can try both to see what flavor you enjoy more, you loud boors. Me? Do I hate the American verson?
You might think that, but I couldn’t possibly comment.
————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
So that’s Monday Update! More stuff! Witty comment!
CategoriesMonday Update
TagsBBC but I couldn't possibly comment House of Cards Ian Richardson Kevin Spacey Netflix You might think that
Zachery Oliver, MTS, is the lead writer for Theology Gaming, a blog focused on the integration of games and theological issues. He can be reached at viewtifulzfo at gmail dot com or on Theology Gaming’s Facebook Page.