I’m trying to squeeze in as many shows as I can before all my fall programs start back up in a couple weeks. So with that I decided to get my hands on a 2012 mini-series that I have had on my list for a while, Political Animals.
The show centers on Secretary of State and former first lady, Elaine Barrish, along with her entire family; former president and ex-husband, Bud, twin sons, Douglas and T.J., and her mother/former Vegas showgirl, Margaret. Initially throwing a wrench into Elaine’s life is reporter, Susan Berg, who later becomes a sort of ally.
We see Elaine butt heads with the President and Vice President, but only in matters that concern the safety of Americans in other countries. Elaine actually ran against President Garcetti, so it was a little surprising that he made her Secretary of State. Another issue that seems to always get in the way is her ex-husband’s numerous acts of infidelity, both when they were married and now that they are separated.
Elaine’s son Douglas is Chief of Staff, but is also leaking information to Susan, while T.J. is openly gay and a recovering addict. A few episodes in we learn that he tried to commit suicide once due to a closeted politician breaking things off with him. He also overdoses on drugs after a present-day encounter with him.
Aside from the first two episodes, the rest of the season centers on whether or not Elaine will run for president again, and trying to keep that fact under wraps in the meantime. In the end, Elaine resigns as Secretary of State and decides to run.
This family was a hot mess, although I assume most political families are, and it was portrayed with a stellar cast (Sigourney Weaver, Sebastian Stan, Ellen Burstyn, and Heroes alum Adrian Pasdar)! For this mini-series only coming out in 2012, it definitely seemed dated, and ultimately the story wasn’t all that interesting to me. Had this been more than six, hour-long episodes, I probably would have stopped it early.