Don’t Call It A Kidnapping is the title of this second episode of The Diplomat, but I can’t agree with Hal about it being a pull aside. They literally drugged him and tied his hands. This is a kidnapping.
That’s DEFINITELY a kidnapping.
This episode picks up right where we left off, which TBH, I am thrilled about. There are no questions about what could have happened in the in between, instead we just know. We see Hal and he’s being treated on the up and up. He’s quiet though, waiting for whatever happens next.
And whatever happens next is that everyone realizes that Hal is gone. Kate is panicked, but she’s holding her shit together. She knows that Hal can handle himself, and to a point she seems to be like, ya, he’s been kidnapped before, it’s all good.
It is not all good.
Everyone at Winfield House is trying to figure out what could have happened. For a moment, you see that Kate really loves her husband. He may infuriate her, but she loves him. I just think that neither one of them knows how to play the role that they’ve been given and sometimes when you are on different paths, it’s just not something that will ever work.
It seems that everyone is called in to try and find Hal. The CIA station chief is there and you just know between her and Heyford they are crapping their pants. This isn’t something that they want to happen. It looks bad on them too.
But as everyone is trying to figure out what happened to Hal, he’s getting told that Iran didn’t do it. They want him to impress upon his country that it wasn’t them. They even went as far as to throw a bone and tell him that Iran is in London, as they had planned to assassinate a retired general.
And you know, as one does when they’ve been “pulled aside” versus kidnapped, you go home via cab and act like nothing’s wrong.
But everything is wrong. Kate is hovering and you can tell that Hal is enjoying her hovering. You can see she’s upset, she wants to know what happened, and she wants to protect her husband. As Hal tells his story though, she wants his story fully vetted. Eidra is listening and she seems highly annoyed that Kate is pressing the Hal vetting.
The moral of this story – Hal can not be trusted. Not even a little bit. I do believe that he loves his wife, but I also believe that his love for Kate means that he’s trying to do things for the right reasons. But I also think that those reasons are completely selfish.
You see, I don’t think that Hal does anything that won’t do something for him, even at the expense of his wife.
I will say that Kate seems to be the only person that realizes that Hal can’t be trusted and for she’s definitely not going to stand for him pulling any type of shit. Yet, that’s the thing, Hal is pulling all sorts of shit, all the time. And if there is one thing that we’ve noticed is, he likes to lie.
The way that Keri Russell and Rufus Sewell work off of each other and you feel their connection on the screen is pure magic. They have chemistry and I am so thankful that they do. If it wasn’t for the complexity of their relationship, I wouldn’t believe in them the way that I do. Great casting.
That night, Kate heads into Hal’s room and cozies up on him. The are talking about the day. Hal seems to just be happy that she’s close to him. She’s there for a purpose, because she wants to know if Hal called Shahin. Shahin is their friend, but Iran and the US have no diplomatic relationship and if he called, neither one of them would ever work in the government again. This didn’t sit well with her, but he says he didn’t call Shahin and she takes him at his lie and leaves.
I’m sad that these two aren’t in a good spot in their marriage, because I really do like Kate and Hal together.
The next day, Kate and Heyford need to go to the memorial for the fallen British soldiers. At the event, the Prime Minister responds to an angry widow who is pissed off that this has happened. Everyone believes that it is Iran, who is pissed at the US and she believes that no one is doing anything.
Sometimes, people respond to things in the wrong way and the Prime Minister definitely does. He tells her that they will find out who did it rain hellfire on the country. Kate is taken aback, knowing that Iran didn’t do it, but is at a loss of what to say.
The statement goes viral and it’s just getting out of hand. Then it gets dangerous, when someone runs down a family outside a mosque. She can’t tell the information she knows and wants Hal investigated.
Hal has a certain celebrity status to him and always wants to be the hero. But being the hero mean that not everyone trusts you. Kate doesn’t like this part of Hal’s personality, but also knows that everyone else does. She’s pressuring for Hal to be investigated and the CIA says that they have looked at his phone records, but found nothing.
Hal and Kate may drive each other insane, but I do believe that they love each other and know each other inside and out. Though we haven’t gotten a look at all of their problems, I am hoping that we get to understand what drove them to this point, because in my opinion it’s important to see.
Though the CIA has given up on investigating Hal further, Kate knows that something is up. She’s overtaken by the feeling that Hal is hiding something and we quickly learn that her feeling is right.
When Kate hears that the President is coming, she insists that she needs to go for a walk. Since she can’t outrun her security, she tells them that she has to go to the bathroom and while in there, she makes one phone call to find out that there was a call to Rome made from a burner phone around the same time as Hal’s abduction.
Now, what I loved about this moment is that the show is that they make light of the situation. Kate is spending so much time in the restroom, her security is worried. They contacted Heyford and were tempted to call the ambulance. When Kate leaves the bathroom and calls Heyford, he’s worried its something she ate.
The show interjects some dry humor, but things that could be happening in real life. It’s so simple, but it’s the moments that make you laugh and smirk at all of the things.
Kate isn’t one to be messed with. She’s strong and fierce and wants to stand her ground. She finds Hal’s burner phone on him and calls his ass out. He tries to justify what he’s done and use his charm to calm her down. Hal underestimates her love for him and doesn’t seem to get that she doesn’t give a fuck about his charm.
She cares about her job.
Hal has pushed her too far and she’s about to push back. She has to tell the Secretary of State that Iran didn’t do it and the information from Hal. She has to go to Britain’s foreign minister and tell him that the Prime Minister has to walk back his statement. She’s told he won’t and that doesn’t work for her. But there is a line that is drawn and that line is hard for her to accept.
That’s the thing about politics though, there are a lot of lines that are hard to understand, but everything is a piece of the puzzle that we don’t get at all.
For Kate though, all of this is too much. She’s over the drama that Hal brings to her. This is television though, and she tells him that he has to go at the worst time. Because of course, she tells him as the President is arriving.
Hal is panicked. He’s panicked because he knows that she’s serious, so as the chopper is landing he tells her the truth. He tells her that she’s being vetted for the VP position and that she can’t get a divorce.
It’s about time that people are honest with her.
OTHER THOUGHTS
- I have to admit that I would fall for Hal’s charms
- I would love to learn more about Eidra and Heyford and I do hope that we get more of their relationship.
- The character of Ronnie kinda cracks me up. She seems so afraid to speak, but also doesn’t care so much.
- Pensy with the tray of bananas… I LOL
- I loved how Wyler was done with the whole photo shoot and went and took the dress off and laid on the ground.
- Heyford playing stylist is everything.
