(Warning: Spoilers ahead.)
Just watched the “Commander in Chief” premiere. Politics aside, it just isn’t a very good show, is it? The damn thing is so earnest – there were a couple of jokes (including a funny running gag about Hilary-resentment among the White House staff), but they were very far between. It’s as if someone set out to prove that West Wing would be unbearable without the sense of humor.
The Nigerian subplot was an insult to viewers’ intelligence. I understand it was intended to be wish-fulfillment, but come on: once having been warned, why wouldn’t the Nigerian government just move the prisoner to a secret location right away, or have a guard shoot her in the head before the US Marines could arrive? Why would they set a precedent that the US gets to dictate Nigerian internal policy, without even offering any benefits or face-saving to Nigeria’s government? It makes no sense.
Plausibility aside, I’m also bothered by the politics of the Nigerian subplot. The show endorses the idea that the US can get whatever it wants in foreign policy if the President is just willing to be a belligerent enough bully and to wave around the US military like a magic wand. The world doesn’t work that way – but the belief that it does helped Bush and co. get away with claiming that Iraq would be a cakewalk, in and out in less than a year, welcomed with hugs and flowers, etc.. I was hoping that the atrocious results in Iraq would put that kind of thinking in the grave for at least a few years, but apparently not.
Haven’t seen it, haven’t heard much about the episode except Amp’s post, so I’m largely untainted. But here’s what I was expecting:
I expected the first episode to focus on the show’s central question: Can a woman be President? That is, after putting my little girls to bed, can I go to sleep confident that there is someone out there who is tracking down people who would make life inconvenient for me, and killing them and anyone else within a 100-ft radius? Of course, I’d never consciously want to vote for that; I much prefer to have those benefits subconsciously, where I don’t have to confront the obvious injustice the policy engenders. It’s like the unstated male privilege checklist, only now in nation-size!
Subconsciously I assume a male is willing to use lethal force and a female is not. So to demonstrate the new President’s bona fides, I’d need to see lethal force, right away. We may deplore Iraq-think, but a female President is in a distinctly weak position to challenge it.
Similarly, I suspect that there are limits on the amount of humor we can expect from a show about a female executive, at least at first. Again, I subconsciously assume that issues are being addressed seriously where a man is in charge; humor merely demonstrates that people are sufficiently confident in that assumption that they don’t need to be concerned about undermining it. Even when the executive is the butt of the joke (Spin City), we don’t assume that the joke is about all men; it’s just about this one. None of these assumptions apply to a female executive. I only feel confident about whether she’s taking matters seriously if she makes a display of her seriousness. And laughing at the foibles of the first woman to become President will likely look a lot like laughing at the concept of a woman President. I suspect the writers will tread carefully there.
To over-compensate, I would expect the writers to create stories in which the President makes conspicuous displays of attributes traditionally associated with masculinity, including seriousness and domination. As counter-balance, I would expect the writers to create stories where the President makes conspicuous displays of attributes traditionally associated with femininity in the domestic sphere, such as concern for her kids. Amp makes it sound as if they’re right on track.
Astute observations, Amp. I was also less than enamored with it, but I hope it grows into itself well.
I thought the subplot of the First Husband adjusting to his new role was more intriguing than the heavy-handed main plotline.
“First husband?” Is that what they’re calling him? I believe the masculine equivalent of “lady” is “gentleman.” (Or, technically, “lord,” but not only does “lady” not have anywhere near the punch “lord” has, but this is the United States and nobody calls anybody “Lord” unless they’re at a Renaissance faire.
I didn’t watch—I read a spoiler earlier about the whole everyone-wants-her-to-step-down aspect of the pilot, and that level of sexism is very frustrating when I can’t scream at anyone besides the TV screen. If I were the character, that’d be a different story, ’cause the assholes would be very much within ranting distance and it would be very satisfying. But seeing/reading about sexism without getting a chance to blow up at the perpetrators and have them hear me, is like getting very turned on without getting an orgasm. Read: Frustrating as hell. So I didn’t watch.
Hope it improves, though; I like the idea. Would be wonderful if, by the end of the first season, it’s a show that gets its kicks completely through government/war/other-noteworthy-events/non-gender-controversy etc, and not get any of its novelty from the fact that the person in the oval office doesn’t have a dick. And it would also be wonderful if the writers stopped taking their anti-humor medications.
To Kyra:
Yeah,. “first gentleman.” Damn you, I wanted to be the one to point that out!
It just seems stupid that after Margaret Thatcher we would need to question western female politicians ability to be bullies. That entire stepping down thingwas completely unbelievable as well, I mean Ford was the president and noone even voted hisass into executive branch. Though I shouldn’t have expected anything but Disneyfied ham-handedness from any show on ABC.
To clarify, I’m not sure exactly what he was called, I just used First Husband to mean that character.
In defesne of the lack of humor, the president was dying and then died, which doesn’t exaclty make for good mirth-making material. Maybe they’ll use more humor in future episodes.
Well, there was that jab at Pat Buchanan, which I took as a promise of fun to come.
You know, if Pat Buchanan had been elected in 2000, we could have actually seen a scenario like this if he had died in office. Not only would the new president have been female, she’d have been black as well.
That wouldhave made a hell of a TV show. Our first black president, our first female president, and our first John Bircher president, all wrapped into one.
Bah, I liked it Amp. Well, Matt and I liked it. Yeah, it’s fluff, but come on, it made me squirm angrily in my seat at least a few times with regards to all too familiar political tactics, which told me it was being at least somewhat true to life, rather than fluffy bunnies and rainbows at the idea of a female president.
I’m looking forward to the next episode.
Would you hire the person who was chosen to play Press Secretary for anything, let alone this job? I was on the fence about Commander in Chief but this has pushed me over the edge. She is so absolutely unbelievable that I’ll continue to watch HOUSE. Who was the person who chose her with that lanky hair and mousy demeanor? They could have done better, much better than this young woman. Ugh.
This show is a joke. Geena Davis should have left her masculine bravado at Thelma and Louise. It is hilarious to watch them all struggle with the role reversal issues. It’s also silly to watch the “family hour” portion of each show where mommy and daddy have to balance being president and “first man” of the most powerful nation on earth with snotty kids who have to struggle with “finding” themselves, coming of age, etc.
If this is supposed to be a precursor to Hillary, America is in deep trouble. Can you imagine Hillary having to interrupt a State Dinner to keep tabs on Bill’s escapades?
I wanted to know if anyone taped the first episode of commander in chief, and still has it. I would like to borrow the tape and show it to my class
peggy
contact me at peggy1129@aol.com
thanks a bunch.
First off, these are some of the finest movie actors money can buy. They are not tv stars. We had a production movie on TV. I am a male and I personally believe a woman in the white house is what we need. This show, showed how a woman would and can run this country. If they won’t bring this show back on the net-work, please bring it back on cable.
Its funny, how the people not for this show sound like ignorant republicans. So narrow minded in thier prejustice to think they are smarter than their Moms or anyone else. Grow up. ( I am a male) If it was not for our women, most of us males would be living under a bridge. Don’t be afraid, women can and do love us. Maybe not with money, but emotionally. They will boost a mans ego, love us,and take care of us and the family we men create.