[7.7/10] This is a weird one for me to judge, because I laughed my ass off at all the gags and running bits, but I also have qualms about how topical everything was here. Having Jonah complain that his own campaign managers think he doesn't have the “tetriment” to be president, or hearing Selina talk about how if they lose the election, it won’t be for “lack of touching people” at a Denny’s, or seeing Mike both succeed at and butcher the whole new media gig is all a hoot. But man, the parallels are too close.
Selina accepting help from the Chinese in exchange for implicit assurance of recognizing a territory grab is a thinly-veiled version of Trump/Russia. Jonah running against his own party/campaign managers as an insurgent is an obvious reference to Bernie Sanders. Amy becomes an ersatz Kellyanne Conway by the end of the episode. Hell, even Mike’s vlog references the real life “kids burst in during pundit interview” bit that went viral. Despite being theoretically separate from the current news, Veep always had its way of commenting on real events, but this feels too direct.
And yet, I laughed and laughed, so I suppose I can’t complain too hard. I loved the little things here, like Gary being totally unprepared to handle “faith-based initiatives” despite his desire to have more responsibility. The fact that Majorie does the job better, but isn’t as good at fluffing Selina’s ego is a nicely cynical turn. Richard being a hero mayor after “7-11” is another obvious historical homage but one that comes off kind of adorable given Richard’s inherent brightness and earnestness. And the whole endorsement tango with everyone brings the humor as well.
The bits with Selina’s efforts to win South Carolina have some more potent satire, with her mercenary attempts to win both black voter and non-college white voters. The whole Chinese help angle gets to be a little far-fetched, but I enjoy them using Mike as a patsy and the fact that the Quinn guy is finally relevant. The whole sleeping with and then firing Dan thing feels like a possible jump the shark-esque twist, but I’m at least willing to see where it goes.
And as always, Jonah realizing that he’s just a stalking horse to gain delegates and help his former father-in-law get some anti-marijuana laws is a good bit as well. His all-left-feet offensive responses to anything and everything (including railing against “sharia math”) are a much better form of satire.
Overall, the onslaught of references feels a little concerning to me, but I suppose I can’t argue with the results on the comedy front, so I shouldn’t complain.
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParentSpoilers2019-05-02T04:51:16Z
[7.7/10] This is a weird one for me to judge, because I laughed my ass off at all the gags and running bits, but I also have qualms about how topical everything was here. Having Jonah complain that his own campaign managers think he doesn't have the “tetriment” to be president, or hearing Selina talk about how if they lose the election, it won’t be for “lack of touching people” at a Denny’s, or seeing Mike both succeed at and butcher the whole new media gig is all a hoot. But man, the parallels are too close.
Selina accepting help from the Chinese in exchange for implicit assurance of recognizing a territory grab is a thinly-veiled version of Trump/Russia. Jonah running against his own party/campaign managers as an insurgent is an obvious reference to Bernie Sanders. Amy becomes an ersatz Kellyanne Conway by the end of the episode. Hell, even Mike’s vlog references the real life “kids burst in during pundit interview” bit that went viral. Despite being theoretically separate from the current news, Veep always had its way of commenting on real events, but this feels too direct.
And yet, I laughed and laughed, so I suppose I can’t complain too hard. I loved the little things here, like Gary being totally unprepared to handle “faith-based initiatives” despite his desire to have more responsibility. The fact that Majorie does the job better, but isn’t as good at fluffing Selina’s ego is a nicely cynical turn. Richard being a hero mayor after “7-11” is another obvious historical homage but one that comes off kind of adorable given Richard’s inherent brightness and earnestness. And the whole endorsement tango with everyone brings the humor as well.
The bits with Selina’s efforts to win South Carolina have some more potent satire, with her mercenary attempts to win both black voter and non-college white voters. The whole Chinese help angle gets to be a little far-fetched, but I enjoy them using Mike as a patsy and the fact that the Quinn guy is finally relevant. The whole sleeping with and then firing Dan thing feels like a possible jump the shark-esque twist, but I’m at least willing to see where it goes.
And as always, Jonah realizing that he’s just a stalking horse to gain delegates and help his former father-in-law get some anti-marijuana laws is a good bit as well. His all-left-feet offensive responses to anything and everything (including railing against “sharia math”) are a much better form of satire.
Overall, the onslaught of references feels a little concerning to me, but I suppose I can’t argue with the results on the comedy front, so I shouldn’t complain.