7x01 Iowa

[7.3/10] Solid start to the new season. I like the plot throughline of Selina trying to figure out a place and a way to announce her presidential campaign, and the thematic throughline of her trying to figure out why she wants to be President. The former makes for a good motivator for the episode, with the group heading to the wrong places and having to navigate endless mass shootings. The latter makes for a good identifier of the fact that Selina has no ideology, and doesn't actually want to be president, she just loves the idea of being president. Anytime she has to articulate her reasons, she just says what other people tell her to, or literally steals the words out of someone else’s mouth. But when she tries to be real, it’s not some sense of wanting to serve the country, it’s about the opposite, the sense that this country owes her. It’s a really interesting way to spotlight your protagonist’s essential character.

I also like the throughline that she’s constantly making mistakes and blaming them on others (chiefly Amy), like heading to the wrong city in Iowa, or hiring the wrong “Keith Quinn.” The whole “post-mortem on the last campaign” bit is a little on the nose, but I still like it. And the final reveal, that Tom James(!) is running against her is a hell of a twist.

I also like Amy’s story here. The fact that she potentially wants to keep this baby, and seems to (inexplicably) have feelings for the condom full of smugness and $200 haircuts that is Dan, only to feel uncertain and set back at every turn is an interesting direction for her. The sense of determination after getting constant shit in both her professional and personal lives is strong stuff.

Jonah’s bit is a little out there for me. The fact that he married his former step sister, only to have his mom want to get back together with his former step dad, is a little exaggerated even for this show. But the campaign managers freaking out about it and trying to control his verbal diarrhea is an amusing bit. And the fact that it actually improves his poll numbers is a nice touch of satire.

The odds and ends were good too. I like Mike as a part of the press now, struggling to adjust to the current state of journalism. Catherine and Marjorie and Little Richard having to deal with postpartum depression and new age parenting and soulless grandmothers using their grandchildren as a prop is good fodder for the show. And Richard working for both campaigns at once is, again, unrealistic even by Veep standards, but I like the character so much that I don’t mind.

Overall, this feels like a pretty standard episode of Veep, but that also means that it’s still pretty good! And it sets up a lot of interesting things for the show’s final season.