Look, I’ve been a fan and a detractor of Designated Survivor’s Tom Kirkman in equal measure. A fan because, of course, the man represented everything we would ever want in a public official, he was honest, he was hardworking, he cared – in fact, you might even say he caredRead More →
Look, Designated Survivor used to be my favorite thing. It was one of those shows that I felt like – well, for a period of time – I was always going to be on the edge of my seat and it was unpredictable. Then it wasn’t. When the show wasRead More →
I wondered, before the announcement that Designated Survivor had been cancelled; how I was going to feel it the decision was negative. I wondered if I was going to feel sadder for the lost possibilities or happier that this show wouldn’t get a chance to continue on a downward spiral.Read More →
Look, I watched through this entire hour of Designated Survivor and I had things to say about how once again shit goes right for Kirkman or how once again we get a variation of the “I can only do what I think is right” phrase or how this whole thingRead More →
I’m not going to sit here and pretend this episode of Designated Survivor was shocking, no. It was textbook bait and switch, and though they executed it well, anyone who’s watched at least one procedural in their lives could have told you that on TV things are never what theyRead More →
See, Designated Suvivor, I knew you had it in you. For someone who’s been asking for drama (the good kind of drama, not the OMG I HAVE A KID I NEVER TOLD YOU ABOUT kind) and for characters to make wrong choices and all of that, you’d think I’d beRead More →
Well, that was …surprising. Really, really surprising. Especially considering that this season has felt more like a slog than a sprint. We’ve survived, more than thrived, and there have been many times where I have groaned at the mere thought that I had to watch an episode of this showRead More →
I’m not exactly eating my words, not yet, but I have to admit this episode of Designated Survivor (and hopefully the rest of the Michael J. Fox arc) was pretty much exactly what I’ve been asking of the show – minus the ship no one wants, but we’ll go intoRead More →
I’ve been critical of Designated Survivor the past few episodes – a big change for me, after praising this show for it’s entire first season and most of season 2. Today, however, I’m feeling somewhat optimistic, because the show just took a huge step in the right direction. Somewhat. Look,Read More →
There are two big problems with Designated Survivor right now, or at least two big ones – the smaller ones are just too numerous to count and I just don’t have the time or inclination to list them. Let’s focus on the big picture here. Number one: No one knowsRead More →
I have to write this review, and I really don’t know what to say about what happened. Because, what happened? I mean – things, happened, obviously, but nothing actually happened. Nothing ever happens in this show anymore. Nothing at all. There’s no emotional resonance. There’s no actual plot, just aRead More →
I’ll be the first to say I love Tom Kirkman. And that’s true, I love Tom Kirkman. He’s a kind, decent man who I think everyone who’s ever watched an episode of Designated Survivor would rather have in the White House than it’s current occupant. But the things that makeRead More →
Some people dismiss ‘The Fault in Our Stars’ as teenage crap, but I can tell you, as someone who’s a little removed from her teenage years at this point, and as someone who has experienced loss, that the book, to this day, contains one of the most sincere portrayals ofRead More →
You know that we’re obsessed with Designated Survivor and we admit it, sometimes we re-watch just to see how they over-use gel on Aaron’s hair. But our obsession with the show remains. Now, it’s about to grow stronger, because they have added Michael J. Fox to the cast for aRead More →
…if we, you know, cared? Harsh, I know, but had to be said. Designated Survivor’s winter finale ended with a not-so-shocking (if you’d heard the news of Natascha McElhone’s departure) death that feels way less emotional and anticlimactic than it should. Add to that Hannah’s supposedly hard choice of confronting/shootingRead More →
You know when you’re watching a TV show and you catch yourself thinking, yeah, this sort of thing ONLY happens on TV? That was me at several points during this otherwise enjoyable episode of Designated Survivor. Because really, Mr. President, there’s bravery and then there’s just stupidity. And despite theRead More →
Breckin Meyer will always remind us of Clueless and we love that movie. But now he’s coming to one of our favorite television shows and we’re excited! Deadline is reporting that Breckin Meyer has joined the cast of Designated Survivor in a recurring role. He will play the little brotherRead More →
Ten minutes into this episode of Designated Survivor, I thought, well, maybe the show is on an upswing. Twenty minutes in, I thought, this may very well be the best episode of the season. Thirty minutes in I said yay, balance at last! By the time “Family Ties” was over,Read More →
For weeks, there has been something missing with Designated Survivor. The show hasn’t been bad, not even close to bad, and the level of emotion Tom Kirkman routinely manages to elict in me, in us, is about as high as it’s ever been, but since Season 2 started, and maybe,Read More →
Sometimes I think that maybe, in another Earth (Earth 19, or something, help me out here The Flash), one where Hillary Clinton is President of the United States, I could watch a show like Designated Survivor with a TV reviewer sensitivity and that’s it, worry about plot points and characterRead More →
Remember when this show was about abstract politics and idealism and not about who we are as people? Yeah, I don’t either. After a season of conceptual problems, a season mostly planned in a world where Donald Trump was not President of the United States, Designated Survivor has approached Season 2Read More →