Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Sufe Bradshaw
Veep, Season 2, Episode 7: “Shutdown”
Written by Tony Roche and Armando Iannucci
Directed by Becky Martin
Airs Sundays at 10pm (ET) on HBO
Despite Selina’s best efforts at balancing the budget last week, efforts that saw her sit down to discuss numbers in the midst of her daughter’s birthday party, the President still went ahead with a government shutdown over manufactured disagreements. This week explores the effects the shutdown has on government, in a compelling yet hilarious display of finger-pointing and political backstabbing that promises long-reaching ramifications for Selina Meyer and her staff.
Watching the political machinations occurring in DC this episode is fascinating to see. Slowly but surely, from several directions, the noose is tightening on Selina Meyer’s political career, and the blame for the government shutdown falling squarely on her may be the beginning of the end for the reigning Vice-President. It will be interesting to see how Dan’s betrayal of Selina in favour of Danny Chung plays out in the coming episodes; while the frustration of someone as ambitious as Dan at being stuck working with the likes of Mike and Gary is understandable, Danny Chung proves this episode that he is also very much a politician, and very few people have shown Dan any level of respect, which leads to the idea that Chung himself may be using Dan as a way to rattle Meyer and make her slip up. How Meyer reacts when she learns of Dan’s betrayal, and how Chung treats Dan once he’s no longer useful, both promise to be fascinating storylines to look out for.
Dan Bakkedahl, Julia Louis-Dreyfus
Selina’s self-destruction, of course, is not helping her chances. Her questionable deal with Furlong, the rekindling of an affair with an ex-husband whose party funding controversy is only the latest indiscretion, and her inability to form any allies do not paint an optimistic picture of her chances of pulling out of the tailspin her career is seemingly headed in. Her current position stands in stark contrast to her position at the beginning of the season, when she represented a victory, however marginal, for the ruling party; she, however, did not get to where she is by being a poor politician, and what trick she pulls out of her sleeve to get out of the mess she seems to be headed towards is bound to be compelling to see.
Overall, this was another great episode, and further proof of how the show has managed to elevate itself in quality from a first season that already set it apart as one of the better shows on television. Chung’s political machinations with regards to the widow of the bear attack victim indicate, for the first time, that he may be a better politician than Meyer, and the contrast between Meyer’s visit to the garbage plant and Chung’s sit-down session with the widow helped illustrate that very effectively. It was interesting to see Gary and Sue try to take each other’s place, proving their own individual worth in the process, and how Dan’s attempts to get out of the Meyer administration, as well as how Selina’s personal actions affect her political career, are both storylines worth tuning in to see next week.
– Deepayan Sengupta