By Kaden Weaver
Staff Writer
2. House of Cards
Kevin Spacey plus David Fincher equals crazy delicious. What more do I need to say? Spacey, the actor from Se7en, The Usual Suspects, and American Beauty teams up with the director that brought us Fight Club, The Social Network, and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Spacey plays Francis Underwood, the power-hungry democratic whip from South Carolina who, like the honey badger, ruthlessly gets what he wants. Robin Wright stars as Underwood’s partner, Claire, who represents an equally strong feminine role, and to say that the two are a power couple would not only be ironic, but also an incredible understatement.
The whole series is a stimulating commentary on the modern political landscape in Washington, demonizing the true incentives of D.C. politicians, while also illustrating the media side of life in the capital. From the title sequence to the last episode, the show makes Washington come alive as a living, breathing, and often horrifying monster. Your can watch the last two seasons on Netflix and the third season (which Spacey hinted at in his interview with GQ) will drop in February.
- Game of Thrones
Sooooooo why are you not watching this one yet? The only two reasons I can think of would be that you are either lazy or off put by the fantasy theme. If you are that slothful, then you might as well pull up the covers and dive in to this 4-season series. If it’s the fantasy, then let me obliterate your reserve. Although the show happens to be set in Westeros and Essos, a fictional world filled with knights, castles, kings, and mythical creatures, the setting is almost completely irrelevant. The series could just as well feature intergalactic war and be set in space. The main draw of Game of Thrones is its constant power struggle. As a bonus you get to watch excellent sex scenes, complex schemes and ploys, and find yourself completely shocked by the unexpected.
I would be lying if I said you do not have much catching up to do, but I can say for sure that watching Game of Thrones is definitely worth your time. The first few seasons have some downright boring subplots, and by that I mean unimportant characters dicking around in the woods for episodes at a time. As the program runs into its fifth season, which will be released next year, more is happening. As a result, everyone wins. HBO GO is the legal place to find it. But then again, it being one of the most illegally downloaded shows, it should not be hard to find elsewhere.
- Mad Men
Mad Men would not be on this list if it were not amazing. But why is no one in your face about this one? Watch one episode and let the show speak for itself. Donald Draper (Jon Hamm) is a handsomely cunning creative director at a New York advertising agency circa 1960. The series revolves around him and the people that surround and come into contact with him. But you already knew that. What you did not know is that the program uses this platform to observe contemporary American life, concentrating on themes that resonate to social issues today. The scope of the message in Mad Men is just simply astounding, and the plot will have you reflecting on the same topics in your everyday life.
Mad Men, which can be found on AMC, as well as Netflix, is now in its seventh and final season. Although it might seem daunting to make it through that much television, I think I can safely say that getting through about half of it would be rewarding in itself. The first two seasons are a build up to the incredible third, and the rest of the story slowly declines from there, not to say that by season three you won’t be seriously inclined to finish the entire show. The second part of season seven is set to air in the early half of next year; so if there is ever a time to get addicted, it would be now.