Designated Survivor Season 1 Episode 4 Review: The Enemy
Lisa Babick
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President Kirkman had to make some tough decisions on Designated Survivor Season 1 Episode 4 as he faced a resurgence of the problems in Michigan and an increased pressure to start war.
Tom may be "thoughtful and reasonable," but he's also become quite resolute. He's learning very quickly how to play the Washington game, and as he does so, he's becoming much more confident as POTUS.
I think we can safely say that Tom Kirkman is no longer Mr. Nice Guy. That was a quick turnaround, wasn't it? I guess when you're running on only three hours of sleep and people are coming at you from all sides, you better do or die.
The nightmare of Michigan and Governor Royce reared its ugly head again after Royce saw the Vargas interview and learned that Kirkman was essentially fired from his job as HUD Secretary. It was just the kind of excuse he needed to continue his idiotic ways. How can one person make such rash decisions about people without any proof?
It's a scary thought to think that a governor can do what this guy was doing...basically turning his back on the POTUS and his authority and putting himself in charge. It's not a pleasant thought. What's worse is the idea that a military unit would make its own decision and go against the orders of the President, too.
If I let Governor Royce setup a police state, how can I stop the other 49 governors from doing the same thing?
Kirkman
Tom had a solid plan with federalizing the national guard as a way to bring some order to Michigan, but I wasn't expecting General Munoz to defy a direct order. Why did they even bother to show up in the first place? He should have just said no when he got the call from Washington.
Tom was right to be worried that if he didn't control the situation in Michigan that other governors might decide to do the same. Can you even imagine what that would be like? The whole country gone rogue because they didn't like who was president?
Royce was pretty cocky when he got off that plane. He probably thought he was going to be able to make all sorts of demands. I even thought at one point that he was taking orders from Hookstraten.
He was in for a surprise, though, wasn't he? Getting arrested for treason probably never even entered his mind.
Good for Kirkman. Anyone who doubted his ability before that had to take pause. Tom Kirkman was finally learning how to play the game.
He's turning into a different person.
Emily
He wasn't messing around with General Cochrane either, but Tom hasn't really had a problem standing up to the trigger-happy General. They've been in each other's faces from the very beginning, which is why I couldn't understand how he could be so tough with him and not everyone else.
It's not surprising that Cochrane went behind the Tom's back to set things up for an inevitable war, but that was a stupid move on his part. He's been itching for war since the beginning, but all Tom wanted was 12 hours to find the agent. Cochrane's been waiting for days now to start his war, what was a few more hours?
How embarrassing for him to be cut loose in front everyone. Made him look like a fool, and I won't be surprised if he connects with Hookstraten at some point. Those two are the most despicable characters on the show, but Hookstraten has Cochrane beat by a mile.
The woman is pure evil, and there is nothing good about any of her intentions when it comes to Tom Kirkman, which is why I don't get why Alex went to her for help with Maria. Of all people, that would not have been the person I would have sought help from. Her husband is the president, and he was willing to help her, but she turned him down.
We all want to do the right thing, Mrs. Kirkman, but the right thing is seldom free.
Hookstraten
Instead, Alex made a deal with the devil, and we all know it's going to come back to bite her in the ass at some point. Alex is a smart woman, she knows what Hookstraten is all about, so it was pretty stupid of her to make the deal. Is she even going to tell Tom about it?
I'm not liking Hookstraten all over the White House like she is. Shouldn't she be making requests via phone calls rather than just showing up in people's offices? Isn't there some sort of protocol she should be following?
Her interest in Aaron is disturbing. Is she trying to turn everyone against Kirkman? This is why I don't get why she's allowed all this access. After everything she did, I can't believe Tom didn't put her on a limited access status. That's the first thing I would have done. I don't care if she's the only Congresswoman left in Washington She shouldn't be given free reign in the White House.
You hitched your wagon to a footnote.
Hookstraten
I like that Seth is the new press secretary. His attitude about Kirkman has changed so completely from when we first met him. It's amazing how much respect he has for Tom now. Still, it was sort of goofy how it all came to be. How was Carter even functioning before?
Wouldn't the President or Aaron or somebody have noticed the guy was faltering long before he ran off the podium before Seth took it over? I can't imagine a guy being that uneasy in that position. It just didn't seem realistic.
Hannah giving up on finding the truth about the attack also didn't sit well, but that problem was solved when she got the phone call at the end of the hour.
I wasn't surprised to hear some anonymous caller implicate MacLeish. His wife's story sounded hokey, and Hannah was right to look at the phone records, but for her to to just give up after viewing them didn't seem in character. Like Jason said, she's not a quitter.
Things are getting more intense on Designated Survivor. While the Michigan issue seems to be resolved, Kirkman has made the decision to go to war after learning the agent was killed. What kind of toll will going to war take on Kirkman and the rest of the country? We'll have to wait and see.
What did you think of "The Enemy"? Hit the comments and share your thoughts. If you need to catch up, you can watch Designated Survivor online right here via TV Fanatic.
